Module 4 — Itans: Sacred Literature
Module 4
Itans — Sacred Literature — four lessons
- 1.What Are Itans — The Oral Tradition as Philosophy
- 2.Itans of Creation — How the World Was Born
- 3.Itans of Conflict and Judgment
- 4.Itans of Sacrifice and Transformation
About Module 4 — Itans: Sacred Literature
Module 4 of Ifá Wisdom dives into the Itans — the sacred myths that form the literary corpus of Ifá. If the Odus are the maps, the Itans are the stories those maps tell. They are narratives transmitted orally over millennia, preserved in the Ese Ifá (verses of Ifá) and in the Oriki (praise poems), which teach through parable rather than commandment.
Each lesson presents Itans grouped by theme: creation stories (how the world was born), conflicts and judgments (how the Orixás resolve disputes), sacrifices and transformations (how pain generates wisdom), and the structure of Ese Ifá as a literary form. The goal is to develop the ability to read an Itan and extract its ethical teaching — an essential skill for interpreting consultations with depth.
After this module, you will be able to recognize the recurring narrative patterns in the Itans, understand why each Odu has its associated stories, and use these narratives as a tool for personal reflection. We recommend reviewing the blog articles on Exu, Ogum, Iemanjá, and Xangô — each contains Itans that you will now read with new eyes.