Tag Archives: Ogboduora

Edan

THE PATH OF EDAN-MUWAGUN

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The Pure, Sublime and True Way of Ogboni:
Who is ogboni? Ogboni is the person who has initiated into the mysteries of Edan-muwagun [Onile Ogboduora]. Ogboni is the person who lives a life in harmony with nature. Ogboni means living in a continual state of balance, equanimity, harmony and equilibrium. Ogboni is the person who has mindfully determined to follow the path of Edan, which is the path of truth, honesty, kindness, courage, personal responsibility and service to others. Ogboni is the person who has become established in the wisdom of the sublime gods and therefore has become a wise one. Ogboni is the power which elevates one to positions of authority, power and responsibility.
The path of ogboni is a challenging but satisfying path to walk upon. An ogboni is the one who is empowered by Edan and faces all difficulties of Iife with courage and without fear. An ogboni is a person who has arrived at spiritual maturity and is able to endure the trials, vicissitudes, challenges, demands and tribulations of life without becoming fatigued and/or disheartened and without being overwhelmed by despondency.
An ogboni does not allow himself to become discouraged by hardships, obstacles, criticism and/or setbacks. An ogboni elevates others to a higher and more sublime level. An ogboni devotee reveals what it means to be human. To be truly human is to be divine. The ogboni devotee does not come down to the level of ignorant, petty, insincere, spiritually uncultured and immature people. An ogboni welcomes and embraces the challenges, vicissitudes and difficulties of life, because he understands that through perseverance and endurance in the midst of challenges and difficulties the ogboni devotee will make steady and swift progress on the path of beautitude, maturity, wisdom, power-acquisition and spiritual perfection. By walking with Edan-muwagun the devotee is able to draw divine light to himself and he is able to nourish [and draw into] his soul new and wonderful divine abilities, gifts and powers.
Devotion to Edan-muwagun fills us with delight, and this delight fills us with peace, strength and supramundane confidence which sweeps away all difficulties, challenges and obstacles from our path. The ogboni fellowship has been entrusted with the most sublime mysteries [secrets] of the highest mystical divine spirituality. Edan gives immediate support and strength to her devotees. Edan immediately appears to give relief and support to her children when they call upon her.
An ogboni devotee is a truly spiritual alive person. An ogboni devotee is eminently a dynamic, charismatic, trustworthy,  industrious and intelligent person. An ogboni devotee is clean and wholesome. Through the blessing of coming in contact with a genuine ogboni master [oluwo ogboni] one is able to receive the power, light, knowledge and science of true spiritual life. An authentic ogboni master [oluwo ogboni] is able to impart to others and awaken in others the light, warmth, knowledge and power of true divine spirituality and life.
To walk in ogboni is to walk in the path of the sublime powers, energies and lights. An ogboni devotee delights in practicality, self-determination and effort. The path of ogboni is one of ever-increasing purity, optimism, inexhaustible inspiration, virtue [merit] and uninterrupted light. The ogboni adept knows that the unexcelled path to entering into the highest spiritual mysteries and secrets is by entering with simplicity. The ogboni worships rectitude. The ogboni stays far away from dishonesty, deception and double-dealing.
Ogboni is good in the beginning. Ogboni is good in the middle. Ogboni is good in the end.
The realized ogboni devotee is without hate. Ogboni is the path of refined, pure and fiery love. Ogboni is the path of chivalry, honor and courage. Ogboni is for the courageous, fearless and strong of heart. The poison of hate cannot enter an ogboni heart. An ogboni devotee cannot be swayed, manipulated or controlled by the negativity, inner-defilement and envy of others. An ogboni is only moved by and acted upon by truth, goodness and honesty. An ogboni is rooted in his true essential nature and foundation. An ogboni is rooted in the power of the immovable [spiritual earth].  An ogboni devotee suffers at seeing the suffering of others. An ogboni helps others and gives relief to others to the best of his ability without causing harm to himself. An ogboni devotee experiences rapture and delight in seeing others established in happiness, health and success. The ogboni disciple knows how to draw limitless power from the [spiritual] earth. The ogboni initiate is upheld, empowered and supported by the spiritual gravity, rootedness and power of the sacred earth and the guardian irunmole-orisa of the earth Edan-muwagun. Rectitude, brotherhood, amity, spiritual cleanliness and order are the foundations of ogboni life. Ogboni is a discipline, science and comprehensive manner of life.
The radiant jewel of the holy àse of Edan-muwagun installs itself in the heart of the sincere, guileless and simple ogboni devotee. The àse of Edan invigorates the devotee. The àse of Edan enlightens the devotee. The àse of Edan attracts, pulls, draws and guides the heart and mind of the devotee upward to the divine realms of purity, light, excellence and power. The àse of Edan awakens, activates and guides the interior spiritual faculties of the devotee.
Ogboni is the path of purity, purification, health, spiritual empowerment, unfolding knowledge and spiritual maturation. Divine character, maturity, courage, honor, inner-strength [endurance] and chiseled [refined] personality are the heart and soul of ogboni life. An ogboni devotee purifies, harmonizes and uplifts all he touches. An ogboni is an embodiment of confidence, joy, friendliness and optimism.
Ogboni and lies cannot walk together. Ogboni and immorality cannot walk together. Ogboni and vices cannot walk together. Ogboni and ignorance cannot walk together. Ogboni and moral-spiritual impotence cannot walk together. Ogboni and cowardliness cannot walk together. Ogboni is the society for the creation of divine values and wholesome fellowship.
The ogboni devotee lives in the pure, joyful and safe [perfectly protected] realm of good-conscience, fearlessness, peace of mind and inner-unified strength.
May the divine mother Edan-muwagun confer upon you her choicest and most select blessings. Àse.
May Onile Ogboduora [Edan-muwagun] set her penetrating gaze and power-filled eyes upon you to grant you peace, health, long-life, prosperity, abundance and fulfillment. Àse.
Ogbo ato.
Ogbo Edan.
Ogbo akokoniko.
Onile a gbe wa ooo.
~ Awo Òrúnmìlà Mark Casillas
Edan_AncestralPrideTemple

How do we propitiate Onile Ogboduora [Edan]?

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My response to a devotee:
A consideration for all who want to propitiate [Edan] Onile Ogboduora and who aspire to ogboni initiation:
[1] Ogbo ato asure iworiwofun Awo.
I am really happy to know that you have been very carefully reading and studying what I have written. I appreciate your initiative and enthusiasm. Previously I have shared with you what it means to follow Onile Ogboduora and that it is a great privilege, commitment and responsibility. I will not repeat what I already communicated to you before.
[2] I know and understand what you want me to say and answer. You want me to say,
“Awo — get these materials, present them to Onile in this way, offer your praise and prayers in this specific way and then consult Onile with Kolanut in this manner to secure her blessings etc. etc.”
[3] You want me to explain to you and say to you that to appease and propitiate Onile Ogboduora we can use atare pepper (alligator pepper), gin, kolanut and some other simple items with special praises and prayers to Onile. But I want to be absolutely honest, clear and direct with you because as an Awo you have to value truth and reality above all things.
[4] Alligator pepper, gin, kolanut, praises and prayers are good to honor, to express gratitude to Onile and to display hospitality. But no one can propitiate Onile with just these sacrificial materials. Onile is the guardian, guide and owner of the earth. What material items are you going to offer her that do not already belong to her?
[5] Onile Ogboduora is the divine mother whose main responsibility is to protect and guide all things on earth. Edan appeared to establish rectitude, morality, order and divine love and not rituals, rites and ceremonies. Rituals, rites and ceremonies are important and they have their rightful place but they are secondary not primary. Onile is the primary guardian of the earth and the primary teacher of humanity. Onile is the divine mother of truthfulness, order, rectitude, harmony and divine morality.
[6] The only true way to propitiate Onile Ogboduora is to dedicate oneself to living a life of truthfulness, rectitude, reverence, order (morality) and harmony (spiritual inner cleanliness). When we live like this Onile is appeased and she confers her choicest and most select blessings of health, peace, happiness, long-life and prosperity upon us.
[7] You just cannot offer Onile offerings of kolanut, gin, alligator pepper etc. and devotions if your life is not right. If your life is not in harmony with what Onile teaches and represents she will not accept anything from you and she will punish you if you are a hypocrite, a thief, a liar and an unfaithful-disloyal person. This is why the blessed divine mother Onile Ogboduora is known as the ‘the one who crushes the bones and eats the bones’ of those who practice injustice and disloyalty. Onile Ogboduora is also called ‘the one who drinks the blood’ of malicious, deliberately deceptive and intentionally dishonest people. This means that she will take the life of the person who practices malice, disloyalty, injustice, dishonesty and hypocrisy. But she will give life, health, peace, prosperity, long-life, divine protection and holy power to those who follow and obey her teachings and what she represents.
[8] Set your life right. Order your steps. Develop a great respect, awe, wonder and love for Onile because Onile Ogboduora is powerful. She doesn’t tolerate nonsense and wrongdoing. Be mindful of this. Imbue your life, mind, conduct and behavior with the above divine traits and Onile will be pleased with you and appeased-propitiated. Then you can offer gin, kolanut and alligator pepper with your praises, prayers and devotions and Onile will quickly respond to you and assist you.
[9] Onile is our mother. Just like you do not give orders and commands to your earthly mother we do not give commands or orders to Onile. We entreat divine mother Onile Ogboduora with reverence, awe, love, deep respect and gratitude. We present our requests and prayers to her and she will decide how to respond, when to respond or if to respond at all. Onile is to be loved and obeyed. No one jealously and zealously cares for and protects her children more than Onile.
[10] The true children of Onile are the ones who love her, who follow (practice) her divine instructions and who relate to all with humility and simplicity. Do not allow yourself to become impatient or impulsive. There are many people who have formally initiated into ogboni and they are not getting anything from their initiation because they were not right in their hearts and their purpose for being initiated did not blend and harmonize with Onile’s purpose. Ogboni (the society in-charge of promoting and upholding order, rectitude, justice, morality, peace, sympathetic-understanding and divine values) is not a club or something one joins just to say that one is ogboni and so forth.  I do not want you to be fooled by anyone by being told that if you offer this thing or that thing to Onile she will be appeased-propitiated.
[11] Onile cannot be appeased by offerings of any kind but she will lovingly accept your offerings and bless you greatly if you first appease-propitiate her by thinking right, by speaking right and by acting right. This is the only way to appease Onile and then only you can offer her sacrificial materials and speak with her with Kolanut Oracle. This my brother is the plain, honest and simple truth.
[12] Do not allow yourself to be tricked, deceived and duped by others. When you have grown and matured more, spiritually, morally and intellectually then you can complete and perfect your devotion to Onile by initiating into ogboni with the sole purpose of living the ogboni lifestyle. Start living the ogboni lifestyle now by following the above instructions and then Onile Ogboduora will see your determination, sincerity and commitment. If you are true then your formal initiation will be true, meaningful and powerful. If you are not true then the initiation rite of empowerment will add nothing to you. If you are not true, the power of ogboni will not adhere, cling, bond or attach itself to you or join itself to you. Focus on developing your iwa (character) and your otito (truthfulness). After living an exemplary and mature life before Onile and before your family and community for 1-2 years, when your morality and character are more firm, acknowledged and established, then apply for true ogboni initiation and Onile will greatly multiply your happiness. But now is not your time. I tell you this because I care about you and I am a honest and straightforward person. Give yourself time to build yourself up.
[13] There are many people out there who will initiate anyone into an ogboni society that is not real just to take your hard earned money so that you can put an unearned, unmerited, undeserved and therefore meaningless ogboni certificate on your wall in your home to display what? To display that you got duped or for you to show off and say you are ogboni? Real ogboni people are not showing off and they are not interested in taking your money. Real ogboni people care about you, they will speak the truth to you and if they do ask for any money from you it will be reasonable because there are things that you will need to have like your ceremonial ogboni regalías, ogboni cloths, your own Edan that has to be made and prepared for you. There are also some items and materials associated with initiation which have to be purchased. Also food is prepared for many people to celebrate your initiation and sacred title reception.  But no true ogboni will ask that you spend beyond what is actually necessary. This is the truth my friend.
[14] Begin by initiating yourself into iwa and otito and Onile will be pleased with you. Formal initiation alone does not make anyone a true ogboni. Ogboni is a condition of your heart and mind, and a clean and holy (wholesome) way of living. No one can make you clean and holy through any ceremony if in your heart you want to live a dirty and unwholesome life. When your life is in agreement with Onile then only will she share her grace, presence and power with you. The spiritual power of a true ogboni cannot be bought or sold. Onile bestows it freely as a gift and trust to her dedicated and trustworthy children who have made a solemn agreement with her.
[15] Initiation is your agreement with Onile. Initiation is Onile’s recognition of your status as one of her true children and of your promise to follow her noble ways. In return Onile entrusts to you her presence, power and full support. Initiation means that you fully understand what is expected of you and that you are fully committed to live the life pattern established by Edan. If you do not fulfill your agreement, dedication vow and promise which you make before Edan then Onile Ogboduora will withdraw her asé.
[16] I hope my sincere explanation brings blessing, joy and happiness to your life. I do not want anything from you except your true spiritual progress, peace and happiness. After having shared these things with you, you are free to do and pursue what you are convinced is right for you. But remember what I already explained and communicated to you above. Take care and be blessed.
Your friend and well-wisher Awo Òrúnmìlà Mark Casillas.
Edan_AncestralPrideTemple

ONILE OGBODUORA IS THE SUPREME PRIMORDIAL POWER

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The Divine Mother Onile Ogboduora is the Supreme Primordial Power. Olodumare is the Supreme Primordial Power in it its transcendent, expansive, inconceivable and all-pervading form. Olodumare is all of the Supreme Primordial Power that we are incapable of knowing. Olodumare refers to those wonders, glories and profundities of the Supreme Being that are entirely beyond are capacity to know. It is not possible for us at this time to know Olodumare as Olodumare knows Himself. This is why this expansive, all-pervading and inconceivable feature of the Supreme Primordial Power, Person and Being is called Olodumare. The Sole Owner of all inconceivable powers, energies, potencies, wisdoms and powers! 
 
It is completely impossible for us to know, experience and comprehend Olodumare without Olodumare choosing to reveal Himself and make Himself known to us. We simply cannot accurately know, perceive and understand Olodumare by the strength of our finite and limited will, reason or intelligence. It is only when Olodumare through His own initiative reveals Himself to us or responds to our desire and request to know Him, that we can know Him.
 



When we are blessed and graced with the initial, ever-increasing and progressive experience, knowledge and understanding of Olodumare, that facet of Olodumare which we are fitted to progressively experience, know, and be comforted, nurtured and uplifted by is called Onile Ogboduora. Onile Ogboduora is the name we give to our personal and ever-increasing experience and understanding of the Supreme Being. The transcendent (what we can’t at present know of or about Olodumare) aspect of the Supreme we call Father. The immanent aspect of the Supreme (what we can directly know of Olodumare) we call Mother i.e. Onile Ogboduora. Both aspects are one and inseparable from each other. From the perspective of the Absolute Supreme Being there is no distinction between the transcendent and immanent. But from the perspective of finite beings like ourselves, we perceive, experience, understand and differentiate between both aspects of the one Supreme Being. For all intents and purposes, it is the Mother aspect of Enitolodun (the Supreme Absolute Truth) that we crave, yearn and desire for. Onile Ogboduora is that aspect and feature of the limitless, expansive and all-pervading Divine Intelligence which meets our need for love, compassion, companionship, understanding, sympathy, personal/intimate devotion and individual/personal affection.



Onile Ogboduora is the feature and aspect of the Supreme Absolute Being Enitolodun which expresses the nearness, sympathy and awareness of the Supreme Power towards us. Onile Ogboduora is the owner, guide, adjuster and governer of Ile. Ile in this instance does not refer to planet earth and is not limited to the earth planet. Ile in this instance refers to all creation, all worlds, all dimensions and all realms of of the vast universal creation,  because these are the ile or home and dwelling place of the Infinite Spirit of Compassion, Sympathy, Dynamic Power, Understanding, Strength, Courage and Wisdom, i.e. Onile Ogboduora.
How can the Supreme limitless and infinite intelligence bridge the gap between its own eternal, unique and unequaled nature and our finite and limited nature? How can the infinite and finite meet and relate? How can the glorious one and great glory be understood, appreciated, known and experienced by humanity? Can we do anything to bridge this gap? No! There is nothing we can do. When the loving Supreme Power Olodumare makes itself known to us, and we personally and individually experience its true character, personality, intent and nature, that personally experienced and known knowledge and understanding is called, Onile Ogboduora. The divine nurturing mother.
When we really, personally actually know, and according to our present evolving capacity understand and experience the heart, intention mind of Enitolodun , the power of the Supreme through which He bonds us to Himself, manifests in us and through us, and causes us to know and experience His reality, true existence and limitless joy and happiness is called Onile Ogboduora. And this is why those who really know Enitolodun, revere Enitolodun, lovingly worship Enitolodun and enjoy a deep, transparent, fearless and satisfying friendship and living relationship with Enitolodun are known as ogboni (the wise ones), the ones who are truly knowing and experiencing the divine and eternal love, truth, intelligence and power – Onile Ogboduora.
Those whose quality of mind-spirit, vital-life and manner of living are one with Onile Ogboduora, these alone are the true sages, holy ones, seers, empowered ones and knowers of the sublime truth; or ogboni. A belief you can have today and change tomorrow. A belief you can have today and neglect, ignore, deny, reject or repudiate tomorrow. But when the experiential, direct and personal knowledge and power of Onile Ogboduora reveals itself to you and makes its home in your heart, this divine knowledge cannot ever be neglected, doubted, ignored, denied, rejected or repudiated because it is not a knowledge that is the product of your own individual hopeful belief or imagination but is something that is permanently impressed within you by a power, grace, beauty and goodness greater than yourself, and which exists and acts independently of your own circumscribed thoughts, ideas, feelings and beliefs.



Onile a gbe wa ooo! We praise you Primordial Divine Mother. You are of the essence of wisdom, love, knowledge and power. You are Life itself. You are Intelligence itself. You are Love itself. You are the spirit of Loyalty and Devotion. You are the Original uncreated and united Diverse Eternal Powers itself. You are a unity of limitless, inconceivable and fathomless potencies and energies. You are the initial cause, nurturer and owner of all things. You are life itself. You are the one who gives and gifts pattern, order, personality and originalilty to all things. You are the beginningless and original life who gives life and light to one and all. You are the Life of our life. There is no beauty, delightfulness and attractiveness that can approximate your own, not to speak of being your equal! You make yourself known only to the sincere, and to those whom your kindness and grace chooses to make itself known to. It is you who joins us experientially to Olodumare-Enitolodun. Yet, you yourself are Olodumare-Enitolodun! Who can understand and appreciate this reality except those who are near you and those to whom you have bestowed your nearness?! We thank you, remember you and praise you. Grant us always harmony, peace, prosperity, joy and long-life. Asé.



Onile a gbe wa ooo!
Onile a gbe wa ooo!
Onile a gbe wa ooo!
 
Your friend and well-wisher Awo Òrúnmìlà Mark Casillas.