At the core of the diloggun are the sacred stories known as the patakis. This book recounts more than one hundred of these sacred parables, including many stories collected from the oral tradition of the African diaspora.

+cha’ni Lele has been immersed in the underground culture of orisha worship since 1989. He made Ocha in 2000 and was crowned a priest of Oya. His other books include The Secrets of Afro-Cuban Divination, Obf: Oracle of Cuban Santerfa, and The Dilogg·n: The Orishas, Proverbs, Sacrifices, and Prohibitions of Cuban Santerfa. He lives in Winter Park, Florida.

Preface

Acknowledgments

An Introduction to the Diloggún

1    Okana--One Mouth on the Mat
Okana Brews a Love Potion
Okana’s Seduction of Shangó
Okana’s Curses
Okana’s Lesson in Love
The Story of the Cat and the Rat

2    Eji Oko--Two Mouths on the Mat
The Birth of Ikú
The Marriage of Ikú and Ejioko
Ejioko Loses His Friend Iré
Ochosi Feeds Olófin

3    Ogundá--Three Mouths on the Mat
Why the Rooster Was First Sacrificed
How the Crocodile Became Powerful
King Olushola Makes Ebó

4    Irosun--Four Mouths on the Mat
How a Man and a Woman Found Love
Irosun Discovers His True Friends
The Story of the Cat and the Leopard
The Pact between Orishaokó and Olófin
The Tail (Tale) of the Little Monkey
Obatalá Rewards Odé

5    Oché--Five Mouths on the Mat
The Birth, Death, and Rebirth of Oché
How Oshogbo Became Dedicated to Oshún
How Oshún Came to the New World
A Foolish Merchant’s Tragedy
I Will Give You a Small Thing

6    Obara--Six Mouths on the Mat
The Farmer and His Ebó
The Best Food: The Worst Food
Ochosi Learns to Build a Trap
Ochosi’s Curse
The Story of Elegede

7    Odí--Seven Mouths on the Mat
The Creation of Copulation
Where the Hole Was First Opened
He Who Fights Knows about War

8    Unle--Eight Mouths on the Mat
Unle Is Born
Unle’s Ebó to Elegguá
Unle Builds a Home
Unle Becomes a Farmer
Obatalá Eats Heads

9    Osá--Nine Mouths on the Mat
The Death of His Love
A Beggar’s Story
A Son’s Loss
The Brag of the Boastful Boy
Shangó’s Imprisonment

10    Ofún--Ten Mouths on the Mat
Life and Death
The Story of Iré and Osogbo
Ofún, the Godchild of Ikú
The Loss of Ofún’s Daughter
How the Leopard Gained His Strength
The Spinning of the Web
Obatalá Makes Ebó

11    Owani--Eleven Mouths on the Mat
Eshu at the Crossroads
The Climbing Vine and the Okra
The Death of the Egungun Priests
Disobedience Becomes the Road to Death
Oshún’s Ebó
How Osain Saved the Ill-Prepared Man

12    Ejila Shebora--Twelve Mouths on the Mat
Shangó’s Losses
The Marriage of Oshún and Orúnmila
Yemayá’s Quest
Yemayá Learns to Cast Òpèlè


Glossary

Index