OSA MEJI

Recorded by J. Gleason

         Osa Meji-is-wealthy Making-a-lot-of-noise Bell-sound-come-down­ to-earth consulted Ifa for Odu that day she arrived, also for Ogun, Obatala, Odu being the only woman.

         "What will happen on earth when we get there?"

         Creator said, "Whatever you want to accomplish, I'll give you the power, that the world may be a good place."

         Ogun marched ahead, Obatala followed, Odu lagged behind.  Retracing her steps, "O Creator," she said, "Down there Ogun will have war power.  He has saber, he has gun, he has everything for fighting.  Obatala has the authority to rule.  What about me, the only woman among them?  What can I do?"

         Creator said, "Yours is the power of motherhood to sustain the earth.  And this bird-power is yours.  I gave you a big gourd full of it.  Odu, come back. Tell me, will you know how to use it?”

         Odu said, “If people don't listen to me, don't even ask my advice, I’ll fight, If people ask me for money, for children, I’ll be obliging unless they become impertinent; then I’ll take everything back."

         "Good," said Creator, "but use your power with calm, not violence, or I'll take everything back from you!"

Since that time, because of Odu, women have power to say what they please, for in the absence of women, men can do nothing.

          Odu came to earth. All forests sacred to ancestors, she went right on in, freely entered the bull-roarer's forest.  Everywhere spirits were worshiped, the woman entered.  "Ha!" the old one exaggerated.  Odu fell into disgrace.    ­

         Ifa was consulted for her, "Hen!" said Ifa, "you will have to calm down." ­

          "Why should I?"

          "Because of the power given you," said the diviners, "so people won't begin to understand what that's all about."

          "They won't!" said Odu. "Nobody saw Creator give it to me." "Sacrifice!" said the diviners.  “No!” said Odu.  "Nobody will take my power away.  They don't know anything about it."  Then she put on masquerade cloth and went out. There was nothing she didn't do in those days.

          Obatala came to Ifa, saying, "Hen!  Creator put me in charge of the earth, but this energetic woman is taking over.  There's no place she doesn't go."

          Ifa consoled Obatala:  "No one can wrest the world from our hands.  The world won't spoil.  You must sacrifice snails, a whip, and eight pieces of money."

           When Obatala made the offering, Orunmila said, "Don't worry, adoration will return to you."

           Meanwhile, if Odu said "Don't look!” and people looked at her, they became blind.

           "Let’s live together," she said to Obatala. "That way you can closely observe everything I do."

           Obatala worshiped his head with snails, and when he had finished he drank from the shell.  "Would you like some, Odu?"

           She drank, and her stomach calmed down.  “Oh, I have discovered a wonderful food, snail water is sweet, snail-water is sweet."

          So Obatala provided her with snails whenever she wanted them. 

          "But how about those things you have?  Those things you do?"

          "I’ll share everything with you!  Odu replied.   When she went to worship Egungun, though he said he was frightened, Obatala went along too.  In the sacred wood she put on the costume but didn't know how to­ sound like Egungun.  Later, Obatala added a net face to the cloth, took up the whip, and spoke with the voice of Egungun.

           He went out.  "Hen!  Ha!”  people said, "This is truly a presence from the other world.  He even frightened Odu, Hen!   Who entered so rapidly into the costume?  Who is speaking with that unrecognizable voice?"

           Thus with sagacity, man overcame woman.  All over town Obatala rushed in Egungun costume.  Seeing he wasn't home, recognizing his costume, Odu stayed where she was and sent her bird to perch on the­ masquerade's shoulder.  From then on everything Egungun was able to do, came about by bird power.   When Obatala did everything in Egungun, he came home, took off the cloth, laid down the whip, and went to greet Odu.  Before her he placed all gifts received.

           “You can have Egungun,” she said; "no longer will woman dare put on the cloth, but the power you will use belongs to us, and when you go out I will dance before you.  From now on, only men will take out Egungun.  But no one, neither children nor old men, will dare make fun of women.  Woman-power is greater.  Women give birth, and whatever men want to do, women must help them or their projects won’t come to anything.”

          So they sang together, and Obatala said that every week everyone must praise women so the world will be peaceful.

          Bend your knee, bend your knee before women, for women have brought you into the world; women are intelligence of the earth, women have put us into the world; reverence women.