Olojo festival
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The Olojo Festival is an ancient festival celebrated annually in
Ritual
On this day, the Ooni (king of Ife) appears after seven days of seclusion and denial, communing with the ancestors and praying for his people. This is to make him pure and ensure the efficacy of his prayers. Before the Ooni emerges, women from his maternal and paternal families sweep the Palace, symbolically ridding the Palace of evil.[2][3]
The Ooni later appears in public with the Are crown (King’s Crown), which is believed to be the original crown used by Oduduwa to lead a procession of traditional Chiefs and Priests to perform at the Shrine of Ogun. The next stage of the ceremony is to lead the crowd to Okemogun’s shrine. Here he performs duties including the renewal of oath, divination for the Ooni at the foot of Oketage hill by Araba (Chief Priest), as well as visiting places of historical importance.[10]
At the shrine, the traditional Chiefs with the swords of office marked with chalk and cam wood, appear in ceremonial attire and dance to rhythms from Bembe, a traditional drum. The style of grum and singing for each Chief is different. Only the Ooni can dance to the drum called Osirigi.
The Ifa Festival is a seven-day festival that takes place every year on the first Saturday in June. Ifa (also known as Orunmila) is a deity oracle and one of the Yoruba people's most important deities. The first day of the festival includes rituals such as Ijawe Ifa Ooni (leaf picking for Ooni's oracle) and Arisun Idana Afin (a culinary vigil at the palace), while the second day is dedicated to Bibo Ifa Ooni (sacrifice for Ooni's oracle). The third and fourth days are dedicated to Awo Oloju merindinlogun performing rites (a cult with sixteen faces). A public lecture and roundtable discussion on 'women in Ifa,' as well as a performance of rituals by a priest named Araba Agbaye, took place on the fifth day. The great climax, which begins on Saturday and lasts until early the next day, includes iwure (blessings/prayer) by Araba Agbaye (backbone of the universe) and other Arabas, as well as the feeding of Ifa and the crafting of the year's divination.[11]
Olojo has remained popular in Ile-Ife because of its myth and history. It connotes the day in the year specially blessed by
Tradition holds that Ile-Ife is the cradle of the Yorubas, the city of survivors, spiritual seat of the Yorubas, and land of the ancients.
References
- ^ "Ooni, Aregbesola, Alabi promote culture at Olojo festival". Punch Newspapers. 2022-09-25. Retrieved 2022-12-26.
- ^ a b "Olojo Festival … Grand celebration of rich Yoruba cultural heritage". The Guardian Nigeria News - Nigeria and World News. 2018-11-17. Retrieved 2021-08-07.
- ^ a b "Ife begins Olojo Festival as Ooni enters 7-day seclusion". 2020-09-21. Retrieved 2021-08-07.
- ^ "Olojo Festival … Grand celebration of rich Yoruba cultural heritage". The Guardian Nigeria News - Nigeria and World News. 2018-11-17. Retrieved 2021-08-07.
- ^ Akintonde, Oluwasola (2022-12-15). "Former Osun State Governor Denies Loan Allegations By Incumbent Governor". Voice of Nigeria. Retrieved 2022-12-26.
- ^ "Olojo festival: Celebrating the dawn of creation in Ile-Ife". Daily Trust. Retrieved 2021-08-07.
- ^ "Olojo festival: Celebrating the dawn of creation in Ile-Ife". Daily Trust. Retrieved 2021-08-07.
- ^ "Osun to build Yoruba museum in Ife, as Ooni emerges from seclusion". Vanguard News. 2020-09-26. Retrieved 2021-08-31.
- ^ "Olojo Festival Osun State :: Nigeria Information & Guide". www.nigeriagalleria.com. Retrieved 2022-12-31.
- ^ Ihejirika, Uzoma (2021-07-09). "Olojo Festival". Folio. Retrieved 2021-08-31.
- ^ "Ifa Festival, Ile-Ife Osun State of Nigeria :: Nigeria Information & Guide". www.nigeriagalleria.com. Retrieved 2021-07-31.
- Olubunmi, A.O. The Rise and Fall of The Yoruba Race 10,000BC-1960AD, The 199 Publishing Palace ISBN 978-2457-38-8
- On Ijesa Racial Purity, The 199 Publishing Palace ISBN 978-2458-17-1
- Akinjogbin, I. A. (Hg.): The Cradle of a Race: Ife from the Beginning to 1980, Lagos 1992 (The book also has chapters on the present religious situation in the town).
- Bascom, William: The Yoruba of Southwestern Nigeria, New York 1969 (The book mainly deals with Ife).