YORUBA Religion :: 8 World Religions, 4 Axes: Something is Wrong With The World. - Religion - Nairaland
Nairaland Forum / Nairaland / General / Religion / YORUBA Religion :: 8 World Religions, 4 Axes: Something is Wrong With The World. (8797 Views)
Major World Religions And Their Beliefs About God / America And The Vatican Seeking A 'global Covenant Of World Religions' / List Of World Religions With Their Approximate Estimates. (2) (3) (4)
| YORUBA Religion :: 8 World Religions, 4 Axes: Something is Wrong With The World. by Dulcet7(m): 8:02pm On Mar 28, 2011 |
For most of world history, human beings have seen religious rivals as inferior to themselves—practitioners of empty rituals, perpetrators of bogus miracles, purveyors of fanciful myths. In some cases religious differences move adherents to fight and to kill. But Hindu teacher Swami Sivananda writes, “The fundamentals or essentials of all religions are the same. There is difference only in the non-essentials.” Is this true? Does pretending that the world’s religions are the same make our world safer? We set out to see for ourselves, because religion matters. It's not merely a private affair. It at least matters socially, economically, politically, and militarily. German philologist and comparative religionist Max Müller said “He who knows one, knows none"! In a previous thread, I was arguing about the common essences that really matter across various religions, while insisting that they are surfaces of the same object but are not equivalent to one another. In this thread I hope to start a long and maybe slow discussion (hopefully unbiased at least from my end) to compare world religions across their differences, in no particular order: [size=15pt]8 religions[/size] [list] [li]The Yoruba traditional religion[/li] [li]Islam[/li] [li]Christianity[/li] [li]Judaism[/li] [li]Confucianism[/li] [li]Hinduism[/li] [li]Buddhism[/li] [li]Daoism a.k.a Taoism[/li] [/list] If you adhere to any of these religions, you are most welcome to join the discussion so that it does or preferably does not  get biased and we can all learn.We will compare them across 4 crude and simplistic axes on which each of these religions rotate. [size=15pt]4 axes[/size] - A problem - A solution to this problem (the religious goal) - A technique or techniques for moving from the problem to the solution - An exemplar or exemplars who (have) chart(ed) the path from problem to solution e.g. Christianity: (1) Sin, (2) Salvation, (3) Faith + Good works and (4) Saints in Roman Catholicism and Orthodoxy plus some Protestant people of faith. e.g. Buddhism: (1) Suffering (2) Nirvana (3) Noble Eightfold Path (meditation, chanting etc) and (4) Arhats, Bodhisattvas or Iamas depending on the type of Buddhism This is, once again, a crude categorization. When religions sub-divide, the solutions they offer to the problem often differ within the same religion, their preferred examples differ, etc. [size=15pt]Something is Wrong with the World[/size] What the world’s religions share is a starting point, not a finish line. And where they begin is with this simple observation: something is wrong with the world. Hindus say we are living in the kali yuga, the most degenerate age in cosmic history. Buddhists say that human existence is pockmarked by suffering. Jewish, Christian, and Islamic stories tell us that this life is not Eden; Zion, heaven, and Paradise lie out ahead. Religious folk worldwide agree that something has gone wrong. They disagree, however, when it comes to stating just what has gone wrong, and they diverge sharply when they move from diagnosing the human problem to prescribing how to solve it. If practitioners of the world’s religions are all mountain climbers, then they appear to be on very different mountains, climbing very different peaks, and using very different tools and techniques in their ascents. Lastly, before we start to discuss the Yoruba traditional religion; bear in mind that many of us have been confused by religious terms and it will help this thread if we put such confusion aside, at least temporarily for the sake of thread-sanity  . e.g. Scripture (oral or written) is not important to all religions. The Hindu Vedas are sacred scripture (like the Christian Bible) but they don't care what is in it but rather the way it sounds and the sacred power of the sounds. Not all religions are about faith and belief, though it plays a major part for most of them. e.g. you can be a Jew and not believe in God. And there is also the tricky controversial and popular bit: "salvation".Many Christian thinkers assume salvation is the goal of all religions and argue that only Christians can achieve this goal. This statement is confused because Confucians and Buddhists dont seek salvation since they don't believe in sin. It may seem to be an act of generosity to state that Confucians and Buddhists and Muslims and Jews can also be saved, but this is a confused statement, theoretically speaking. Salvation is a unique Christian goal, so it is like saying "What is the best kind of human food? Rice, Sand, Grass, Wood or Stone?" In such a question, we have privileged Rice from the start! To criticize Stone because it cannot fill your belly is rather awkward. Salvation is the monopoly of Christianity; and other religions have their own goals too in their interaction with their Deity(es) singular or plural, or in their religious maturation if there is no Deity involved. Muhammad (SAW) once said, “Asking good questions is half of learning”. The real big question is: What religious goal should you be pursuing? Trudging toward the end zone of salvation, or trying to reach the finish line of social harmony? Should your goal be reincarnation? Or an escape from the vicious cycle of life, death, and rebirth? And then that is your "salvation", your objective, the reason you are here. Enough appetizer .Someone should help please help kick off a discussion on the Yoruba traditional religion by introducing us to the fundamental beliefs (if any), the practices and then outlining the 4 axes above (if present).
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| Re: YORUBA Religion :: 8 World Religions, 4 Axes: Something is Wrong With The World. by PastorAIO: 9:41pm On Mar 28, 2011 |
Why do I get this sense that some people will be expecting me to jump in here? 1 Like 1 Share |
| Re: YORUBA Religion :: 8 World Religions, 4 Axes: Something is Wrong With The World. by Dulcet7(m): 5:55am On Mar 29, 2011 |
Pastor AIO: Hi Pastor AIO. If you have something to share, please don't hold back sir.1 Like 1 Share |
| Re: YORUBA Religion :: 8 World Religions, 4 Axes: Something is Wrong With The World. by Dulcet7(m): 8:21am On Mar 29, 2011 |
[size=13pt]Yoruba Traditional Religion[/size] Summary: This religion is the "way of connection". The goal is to find and follow your own purpose, and you must not hinder others from pursuing theirs. It varies slightly from traditional West African practices to the contemporary Yoruba-derived adaptations of religions: Candomble in Brazil and Santeria in Cuba. However varying, their beliefs and practices are far more closely connected than Mormons, Protestants, Jehovah's Witnesses and Catholics can be related. Together these Yoruba practitioners share the view that the human problem is disconnection and that the solution to this problem is to reconnect ourselves to our destinies, to one another, and to sacred power. This can be accomplished through the techniques of divination, sacrifice, and spirit/body possession, which in combination allow us to truly flourish as individuals and societies. Problem: Each of us has a destiny we have somehow forgotten. Before we are reborn (the Yoruba affirm reincarnation), one of our souls (we have two or more, depending on who is counting) appears before the High God Olodumare to receive new breath. Olodumare then allows us to choose our own destiny, which includes the day we will return to heaven, our personality, our occupation, and our own unique measure of good and bad luck. When we are born, we forget, however. So we wander through life veiled from our true purposes, sidetracked by pursuits in love and work, foisted on us by parents, friends, coworkers, and spouses. Solution The solution is to remember—to recover our destiny so we can do what we were created to do for ourselves, our families, and the world. One of our souls (our Ori - more on that later) knows the destiny but is not permitted to reveal it all at once. We must remember. We are not alone, though. We have a lot of help from many superhuman beings, known as orishas (orixas in Brazil, orichas in Cuba), able and willing to help us live in harmony with our destiny. Techniques There are many techniques of divination to obtain the wisdom of the Orishas, and specially trained priests and diviners [babalawos (if male) and iyalawos (if female), either means "custodian of secrets"] who through Ifa (a most venerable divination technique) help us recover destiny, protect it from harm via sacrifices and correspondingly fulfill it through physical action in the world. Not to say they dispense any such secret wisdom out of thin air, but they know how to cast the 16 palm nuts or the 8-half-seed shells divining chain when consulting with a client. This random casting process produces 256 (16 x 16) possible signatures each called odu and they have memorized at least 1024 Ifa verses (4 for each signature) and they chant the poems associated with the odu when it is cast. Embedded in each poem is the required technique in each case. The Ifa diviner is a mediator, not an oracle. Movies may have confused us a bit, though. Gender aside, permit me to use the male gender for the babalawo and the female for the client. Akin to what you may have seen in Nigerian movies, the client does not tell the babalawo why she has come - the problem presented is a mystery to the diviner. Contrary to what you may have seen in Nigerian movies, the babalawo simply recites at least four poems per odu and the client decides which of the recited poetry is appropriate for her conflict, then the babalawo tells the client stories about that verse she selected. This is in line with the PROBLEM and SOLUTION as described above. The babalawo is no superstar. He is only helping the client remember (with her own input of course) what she used to know before birth but has forgotten. Important to these techniques is the structure of the human being and the animating powers. Ara [/b]is the physical body. Each human has at least two souls: one called [b]Emi (related to breath) and another called Ori (related to destiny). Ori [/b]literally means head but here it refers to the spiritual center that chooses destiny just before we are born and then forget. Then there is the sacred animating power [b]Ashe (ache in Cuba and axe in Brazil), which animates both the Ori and the Orishas. It is potent in this channeling that happens between us and the Orishas. Ashe also channels between our Emi and our Ori i.e. the human-inclined part that forgets and the divine-inclined part that remembers. At the start of a divination, the babalawo touches the palm nuts to his client's ori/head (representing her ori) and says "You KNOW the Mystery" then touches the palm nuts to the divining tray (bearing the image of Eshu, the Orisha messenger and says to Orunmila a.k.a Ifa (orisha of wisdom) "You KNOW the Mystery" and finishes by adding "I, myself, I know NOTHING". Thus he sets up a connection between the god within the client (Ori), through the Orisha messenger Eshu to all the Orishas and then the Orishas will return replies through Orunmila/Ifa which will be carried out by the client feeding the Orishas with sacrifices. Ifa divination works not because the babalawo is superhuman but because the client has a god within herself. A Yoruba proverb says "The head [ori] is the greatest Orisa" Of all sacred powers there are malevolent spirits called ajogun [/b]who can make life a living hell if you cross them, ancestor spirits called [b]egungun [/b]and finally the most powerful spirits called [b]orisha who come in 3 overlapping types from plainly divine to basically superhuman (some combine classes e.g. Shango, god of thunder and lightning, is also a former king of the Oyo Yoruba kingdom). The Yorubas approach the divine largely through legends / stories. These legends are as important to them, as the Koran is to the Muslim and the life of Jesus is to the Christian. In Yoruba religion the variance between humanity and divinity, sacred and profane, supernatural and everyday is a very thin line. Human beings carry the awesome ashe power inside them and the Orishas have the most flimsy human emotions and most of them live in the earth (notable exceptions are Shango and Olodumare). Whereas Greek gods and goddesses go scotfree when they do wrong, Orishas pay for their misdeeds. With one foot in the natural realm and one foot in the supernatural, both sides of humans and deities speak. Both sides listen. Without orishas to empower them, humans will die. Without humans to consult them and feed them sacrifices, Orishas would get irrelevant and die, respectively. As the Yorubas say "If humanity were not, the gods would not be". These Orishas thus seem to be "one of us" rather than "sacred or set apart" and have a whole range of vices and virtues. [i]Like the Hindu gods, they do not present themselves as either wholly good or wholly evil. [/i]They can be generous and petty, merciful and vengeful. They can harm as well as heal. And so they challenge us not to eradicate evil but to balance it with good, and not only “out there” in the world but also inside ourselves (where good and evil coexist). This complexity of course, troubles Christians, Muslims and other religions who recognize evil and sin as problems. Christian believers often scurry to justify the biblical God’s actions (or inactions) when he supposedly does or permits "evil" things, which for an omnipotent being is almost the same. In Yoruba religion no such theological gymnastics are necessary because their deities fail morally and they learn from them like they learn from the life of their next door neighbour who, for example, got into trouble with the police. Orishas can be classified into male and female, sky and earth, hot and cool, forest and town. But Yoruba practitioners, in keeping with their strong preference for action over belief, do not typically worry themselves about such things. Neither do they fret about the afterlife. What really matters is how to get the orishas to intervene on your behalf in mundane matters of love, luck, and work. In order to do that, you need to get to know them—what they eat, what they wear, and how they sing and dance. 3 Likes |
| Re: YORUBA Religion :: 8 World Religions, 4 Axes: Something is Wrong With The World. by Dulcet7(m): 8:43am On Mar 29, 2011 |
Taking a break. More on Orishas later and then it's a wrap for this religion. More contributions are welcome please! |
| Re: YORUBA Religion :: 8 World Religions, 4 Axes: Something is Wrong With The World. by vescucci(m): 9:49pm On Mar 29, 2011 |
Actually, Pastor, I am expecting you to jump in. This is so far up your alley, it is ridiculous. 1 Like |
| Re: YORUBA Religion :: 8 World Religions, 4 Axes: Something is Wrong With The World. by Sweetnecta: 1:55am On Mar 30, 2011 |
in my mother's ancient family home, they have an ogun iron statue and two round boulders in the front of the house. i am going to 'InshaAllah' get some construction company to winch the horror away in the dead of the night. pastoraio, imagine the surprise in the morning of those onifade's without their silly symbol? i am gonna get a white guy from julius berger to do the job. i will not visit the town for a while and when i visit months after the fact, i will laugh quietly [silently] at the darn idolaters. dogs used to wee wee on. wonder why it will scare the dog that is abusing it. |
| Re: YORUBA Religion :: 8 World Religions, 4 Axes: Something is Wrong With The World. by Tonyet1(m): 5:40pm On Mar 30, 2011 |
Dulcet, Forgive my bias, but i really opine that a fulfiling discourse may be robbed if every man is deprived from referencing their biblos each man to his own religion. This is because every understanding as we both have of our individual religion - its origin, goal and destination (*based on different religion) was offered via something written either by the exemplars or some acclaimed god. That being said, I beg to offer my view based on my sentimental religious background - Christianity, as related to your many questions #1. I strongly agree with the Hindu teacher Swami Sivananda view which says, “The fundamentals or essentials of all religions are the same. There is difference only in the non-essentials.” The onus is to understand, what really are the fundamentals or essentials of every religion?, (I accept oxford's definition of fundamental as it says: anything that serves as the foundation of central or core importance) let's see: |
| Re: YORUBA Religion :: 8 World Religions, 4 Axes: Something is Wrong With The World. by Pukkah: 6:45pm On Mar 30, 2011 |
Sweetnecta: Then this planned action of yours would amount to insensitivity and provocation. What if you had been born into the family before Islamic was brought into Nigeria? Would destroying their age-old items make them convert to your religion? Don't you belief in the 'there is no compulsion in religion' mantra? This thread should not be derailed. 4 Likes |
| Re: YORUBA Religion :: 8 World Religions, 4 Axes: Something is Wrong With The World. by Sweetnecta: 8:04pm On Mar 30, 2011 |
i do belief in there is no compulsion in religion. i am emulation ibrahim [as] who broke all the smaller idols, then hung the ax on the neck of the biggest one which he left for his folks. the moral of the action was to call their sense to the fact that what they worship cant help itself. so how can it help them? two quick examples; in the early days of islam, 2 sons of an idolater converted to islam. they anted to call their father's sense in the fashion of ibrahim [as], above. so they took his idol threw it in the garbage where he can easily see in the morning. of course, the worship is done in the morning, so when he could not find it at its stand, he found it in the garbage nearby, with the understanding someone must have put it there. angry, vowed to deal with the person[s] if he ever finds out. that night he hung a sword on the idol and ask it to defend itself by avenging and or if it is approached again. that night, the sons took the idol to the neighborhood dump. saw a carcass of a dead dog. they strapped the idol to this filth; it and the sword hanging on it. in the morning the father wanted to worship the idol. could not find it. search the house, thinking about the previous morning. he couldn't find it still. in his effort to locate this idol, he began to search the neighborhood with the same eagerness that a person whose car is stolen searches for the car even between cars, or under a car. the search led the idolater somehow to the city dump, because of the garbage episode yesterday [see he can think, but in matters of religion most dont think then]. he found the idol with sword on it, both tied to the carcass of the dead dog. it is then that his mind opened up with his sense returning to him. he says to the idol, what good are you to me if you cant even defend yourself? this was how the man left idolatry. what good is a silly statue when the dog wee wee on it, or eats the food set before it? you can yse the iron figurine or the 2 boulders as a rest for your foot if you wish. it cant talk back and if it cant benefit itself, those who worship it are hopelessly hoping there is benefit coming to them from it. when they are dragged off its place, it will be priceless to see how empty their hope is. very similar to the hindu or buddhist who rings the bell to wake up his god, so that he can worship it. God does not sleep and needs noassistance of anyone or anything. does not cry out for hep. He is capable of all things and not part of the creation, at anytime. if islam had not entered my nation in my time, i would have believed a path that says God is the Creator and He is One worthy of all worship. if there was a person living such a pattern, i would have imitated him, as long as he did say that he was that Singular All Unique God. no man can be singularly unique in the way God is, since such a man is part of creation, similar to other men and even limited just like other men are. if it was a choice between christianity and judaism, i will choose judaism. but since i know that jesus and moses worshiped the same way, before islam, i would have followed jesus, using ot and what he says that is similar to ot. i do not intend to respond to any reply, concerning what i plan to do to bring sensibility to my people. if you let ignorance preserve itself, when do we get to wisdom? |
| Re: YORUBA Religion :: 8 World Religions, 4 Axes: Something is Wrong With The World. by Dulcet7(m): 5:38pm On Mar 31, 2011 |
@Tonye-T: How are you? Thanks for joining us! I look forward to more of your contributions when we get to Christianity. Pukkah: Would destroying their age-old items make them convert to your religion?@Pukkah: Thanks for the above comment. You spoke my mind. @Sweetnecta: So we meet again, sir! Please respect the fact that this thread is about EIGHT different religions, so please do not derail it with references to Islam in a manner that demeans any of the other religions. Does this mean there are no Yoruba worshippers on Nairaland? Apparently, no other contributions yet. Okay now let's look at the Orishas and how they relate to the [b]problem [/b]and the [b]solution [/b]man seeks when he follows this religion. |
| Re: YORUBA Religion :: 8 World Religions, 4 Axes: Something is Wrong With The World. by Dulcet7(m): 6:19pm On Mar 31, 2011 |
[size=13pt]Keeping up with the Orishas[/size]  Devotees disagree about just how many orishas there are. One reason the orishas are hard to count is that, like Hindu divinities, they answer to different names in different places, so it is often unclear when you meet a new orisha whether she really is a new acquaintance or someone you have already met under another name. The accounting traditionally runs to either 401 or 601—with the plus-one gesturing at the fact that in Yoruba culture there is always room for one more at the table. An ancient tradition mentions a total of 3200, while some people say there is only ONE divinity, and that the orishas are all manifestations of the High God Olodumare. There is a little confusion among Christians who are ethnically Yoruba about Olodumare and Eshu. Those two borrowed words do not represent the Christian God and the devil, as we are about to see. Conflating those entities across the two religions will simply cause discombobulated mix-ups.  OLODUMARE (a.k.a OLORUN) This is the supreme being who rules the cosmos from on high. Just like the God of Deism, Olodumare is remote, distant and difficult - almost impossible - to approach. But unlike the Deist's God Olodumare did not create the world - he delegated that small task to other gods. Practitioners do not worship Olodumare directly but sometimes they send prayers in his direction when they feel like it. He has NO temples, NO priests, NO liturgy. He does not possess devotees during festivals. Although he approves all sacrifices by veto power, nobody sacrifices to him directly. Just like the Hindu creator god Brahma, Olodumare is RESPECTED more than he is revered. For day to day concerns, devotees bypass him and approach lesser entities. Are the Orishas emanations of Olodumare or is he a combination/abstraction of them? Yoruba worshippers are divided on this, and yet others say Olodumare stands, separate from the Orishas. Then I wonder, do the Orishas actually get the job done when answering prayers, or are they simply intercessors powered by Olodumare who does everything in the background and wants no glory for it? Whatever it is, Olodumare is the chief source of Ashe - the power that is. ESHU (a.k.a Elegbara, Legba or Elegba) Eshu and Orunmila are the most important orishas because they connect Orun (heaven) and Aiye (earth). Orunmila delivers messages from above to humans while Eshu delivers (or more often, refuses to deliver) sacrifices and petitions from below to orishas and other spiritual beings. Without Eshu, interactions between Aiye and Orun will stop and chaos will ensue. There is no priesthood devoted directly to Eshu but images of Eshu are in almost every devotee's home; and all shrines make a small place for him in the corner. This is because if you don't bribe him a bit (his favorites are tobacco and palm oil) at the beginning of a sacrifice, he won't have the energy or desire to deliver your message. So he's called Elegbara which means "controller of the power" (with respect to the recipient - a human). Just like Hinduism's Ganesha, Eshu is associated with crossroads (symbolic meeting place of the natural and supernatural) because he has the freewill to take any route in any situation whether it is less or more travelled. Eshu likes to clear the way for those he likes and puts up roadblocks for those who neglect him. He inserts uncertainty into a world governed by fate and sits back and laughs at the chaos. An ambiguous trickster, Eshu is a policeman and a troublemaker. He walks the nonexistent line between the Orishas (benevolent) and the Ajogun (the malevolent spirits). As an Ifa verse says, "Death, Disease, Loss, Paralysis, Big Trouble, Curse, Imprisonment, Affliction. They are all errand boys of Esu." A popular story about Eshu tells how he wore a very trendy cap (impossible not to notice) colored red and black (his favourite colors) on each respective side, and walked slowly down the street. People on one side admired his fashionable red cap, and the other side people argued that it was a fine black cap. A fight ensued (some say it was bloody) and Eshu smiled wryly as he watched from a distance, the maker of mischief and disturber of peace. Every Orisha except Olodumare is associated with something in vogue. For Eshu, it is travel and transportation, computers and the internet, in fact whatever controls or involves rapid and decisive change. Eshu's provocations jerk people out of drift and force them to make a decision. If a Yoruba worshipper's hard drive crashes, he knows Eshu seeks attention. He helps the Yoruba worshipper find which way their destiny is calling them and gives them the courage to move forward in that direction. But of course if they neglect him, he makes mischief out of their experiences. A popular song by King Sunny Ade goes "Esu biri biri e wo mi o, iwaju loloko yi wa mi lo, eyin ko loloko yi wa mi lo, mo ti mo, mo ti mo ye o, mo ti mo, " An ethnic Yoruba person should please translate that to English! More on other Orishas later on. . . |
| Re: YORUBA Religion :: 8 World Religions, 4 Axes: Something is Wrong With The World. by JeSoul(f): 7:13pm On Mar 31, 2011 |
^"Keeping up with the Orishas" lol, love it! vescucci:Lol. Agree. I was one of those people also expecting him to take the reins. 1 Like |
| Re: YORUBA Religion :: 8 World Religions, 4 Axes: Something is Wrong With The World. by kodewrita(m): 9:47pm On Mar 31, 2011 |
Unfortunately for christians who would rather flirt with all manner of human philosophy, christ gave a take it or leave it proposition: John 14:6 Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. Denying this (stylishly or otherwise) puts you in the camp of the anti-christ. simple. 1 Like |
| Re: YORUBA Religion :: 8 World Religions, 4 Axes: Something is Wrong With The World. by Dulcet7(m): 10:05pm On Mar 31, 2011 |
kodewrita: Thanks for joining us, kodewriter. I wonder who you refer to in the above, but just to be sure, you said Jesus is the only way to the Father and I can't disagree with you. If you read the OP properly you will see that many people are not interested in this way to the Father; they have their own religious goals and they are pursuing it with all honesty and faithfulness. You as a Christian are interested in the way, and furthermore Jesus has asked you to make disciples of them, i.e. make them interested. If you do not understand their religions and what they believe, how will you make disciples of them? If you turn a blind eye to the people and you try to force them to see your opinion without understanding them, then it may be you who are denying, stylishly or otherwise, that Jesus is THE way. How did Jesus, the way, make disciples of those who were into Judaism? Not to worry, we will soon get to the Christianity section. For now, you can regard this thread as mere education. |
| Re: YORUBA Religion :: 8 World Religions, 4 Axes: Something is Wrong With The World. by Sweetnecta: 12:08am On Apr 01, 2011 |
@Dulcet17; « #10 on: Today at 05:38:50 PM » [Quote]@Tonye-T: How are you? Thanks for joining us! I look forward to more of your contributions when we get to Christianity. Quote from: Pukkah Would destroying their age-old items make them convert to your religion? @Pukkah: Thanks for the above comment. You spoke my mind. @Sweetnecta: So we meet again, sir! Please respect the fact that this thread is about EIGHT different religions, so please do not derail it with references to Islam in a manner that demeans any of the other religions. Does this mean there are no Yoruba worshippers on Nairaland? Apparently, no other contributions yet. Okay now let's look at the Orishas and how they relate to the problem and the solution man seeks when he follows this religion.[/Quote]while i ignore tonye-t the joker, Allah says in Surah Hujurat verse16; Say to them [oh muhammad [as]], what! will you wish to teach your religion [which is not Islam] to Allah, who knows what are in heavens and on earth [everywhere]? Allah is aware [knows] of everything. I do not participate in religion or religions that import[s] patron[s] along with God. |
| Re: YORUBA Religion :: 8 World Religions, 4 Axes: Something is Wrong With The World. by Dulcet7(m): 12:53am On Apr 01, 2011 |
Sweetnecta:I guess that means you shouldn't really be on this thread, you know? I don't post in every thread either. . . Thanks for stopping by! 1 Like |
| Re: YORUBA Religion :: 8 World Religions, 4 Axes: Something is Wrong With The World. by PastorAIO: 11:16am On Apr 01, 2011 |
JeSoul: I so hate to disappoint. So I shall make a few comments. On the issue of the original problem and the diagnoses thereof. I would not say that in christianity the problem itself is Sin. It seems a lot more complex than that. The problem like with Buddhism is suffering. That is the problem all the way around. This sense of discontent, of unfulfillment, of angst. In christianity/judaism it is portrayed as being cast out of the garden of Eden. 17And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; Now if man was not subsequently cursed after the disobedience and things had just gone on as usual then I don't think that there would be any need for religion etc. The fact is that we are living a cursed life, we toil and toil and there is sufferation all about. It is 'in sorrow that we eat'. If humanbeings all over the world did not feel this discontent and harshness then there would be no religion. So suffering is the starting point for all the religions. However the diagnosis of the suffering is a different matter. According to Christianity/Judaism it is due to a curse which is quite arbitrary. God could have taken any number of other measures to deal with Adam's disobedience. According to Buddhism it is due to our desires and clinging to things. According to Yoruba philosophy it is due (now this is complex) to 1) our having forgotten what our purpose on earth is (our mission). and 2) it is also due to the fact that Eledumare in his infinite wisdom gave ashe to all of his creatures and that some of them thrive from causing harm to us (the ajogun) just like we thrive from killing goats and cows and various plants and herbs. So Iku for instance, one of God's creatures, feeds on humans with absolute right given to him by Eledumare himself. But all this is more complex that I'm setting out. Yoruba do not try to eradicate suffering but rather to achieve fulfilment which is done not just inspite of suffering but with it's help. |
| Re: YORUBA Religion :: 8 World Religions, 4 Axes: Something is Wrong With The World. by Dulcet7(m): 2:39pm On Jun 16, 2011 |
Hello Pastor AIO and thank you for your contribution. I totally forgot about this thread, but now I must needs continue. Please more of your comments are welcome sir. |
| Re: YORUBA Religion :: 8 World Religions, 4 Axes: Something is Wrong With The World. by sangoleye: 7:26pm On Apr 08, 2013 |
Dulcet7: [size=13pt]Yoruba Traditional Religion[/size]Today is April 8th 2013 It wasn't until today that I read what you wrote I'm cuban I was initiated in the Yoruba religion 35 years ago and so was my wife,then, my children and grandchildren that is why my name is Sango leye. I can't put into words how much Iike what you wrote (which is nothing new to me) But the way you explained it for the people who don't know what this religion is about May you receive the blessings of Olodumare and all the Orishas, We need more people like you to come out of hiding I live in Miami for the last 50 years and my fight is for so many people who believe in this religion and have been initiated to come out and say it BE PROUD OF IT. Stop saying you are catholic when they ask your religion By the way I'm white and very proud of my African religion 2 Likes |
| Re: YORUBA Religion :: 8 World Religions, 4 Axes: Something is Wrong With The World. by sangoleye: 7:29pm On Apr 08, 2013 |
Today is April 8th 2013 It wasn't until today that I read what you wrote I'm cuban I was initiated in the Yoruba religion 35 years ago and so was my wife,then, my children and grandchildren that is why my name is Sango leye. I can't put into words how much Iike what you wrote (which is nothing new to me) But the way you explained it for the people who don't know what this religion is about May you receive the blessings of Olodumare and all the Orishas, We need more people like you to come out of hiding I live in Miami for the last 50 years and my fight is for so many people who believe in this religion and have been initiated to come out and say it BE PROUD OF IT. Stop saying you are catholic when they ask your religion By the way I'm white and very proud of my African religion |
| Re: YORUBA Religion :: 8 World Religions, 4 Axes: Something is Wrong With The World. by sangoleye: 2:57am On Apr 09, 2013 |
kodewrita: Unfortunately for christians who would rather flirt with all manner of human philosophy, christ gave a take it or leave it proposition: |
| Re: YORUBA Religion :: 8 World Religions, 4 Axes: Something is Wrong With The World. by PAGAN9JA(m): 5:54am On Apr 09, 2013 |
MODS FRONTPAGE! this is interesting! |
| Re: YORUBA Religion :: 8 World Religions, 4 Axes: Something is Wrong With The World. by Nobody: 6:13am On Apr 09, 2013 |
Is there anyone conversant with Odinani?.. It seems like online materials concerning it are few and hard to get by.. |
| Re: YORUBA Religion :: 8 World Religions, 4 Axes: Something is Wrong With The World. by inspiredbyGOD(m): 7:59am On Apr 09, 2013 |
musKeeto: Is there anyone conversant with Odinani?.. It seems like online materials concerning it are few and hard to get by..I'm also interested in knowing what Odinani entails. I once searched wikipedia, and the article on it was disappointing to say the least. |
| Re: YORUBA Religion :: 8 World Religions, 4 Axes: Something is Wrong With The World. by macof(m): 9:46pm On Sep 09, 2013 |
This thread is not suppose to be only about Yoruba religion na....where are the other religions? |
| Re: YORUBA Religion :: 8 World Religions, 4 Axes: Something is Wrong With The World. by macof(m): 9:48pm On Sep 09, 2013 |
sangoleye: Today is April 8th 2013 It wasn't until today that I read what you wrote I'm cuban I was initiated in the Yoruba religion 35 years ago and so was my wife,then, my children and grandchildren that is why my name is Sango leye. I can't put into words how much Iike what you wrote (which is nothing new to me) But the way you explained it for the people who don't know what this religion is about May you receive the blessings of Olodumare and all the Orishas, We need more people like you to come out of hiding I live in Miami for the last 50 years and my fight is for so many people who believe in this religion and have been initiated to come out and say it BE PROUD OF IT. Stop saying you are catholic when they ask your religion By the way I'm white and very proud of my African religion Sir, your name is Sangoleye...can I know the meaning of the name? |
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