The 256 Odus of Ifá
Sacred Binary System
The 256 paths of Ifá are the cartography of existence. Here you have them all, with their traditional names and meaning.
About this page
The Odu Library is the complete map of the 256 paths of the Ifá system. Each Odu is a specific "energy configuration" — 16 main Meji (where both columns of the Opele show the same pattern) and 240 Omoluo ("children of the king" — combinations of two different Meji). Each page contains the traditional Yoruba name, meaning, philosophical synthesis, Ire (blessing) and Osogbo (warning) guidance, and for the 16 main Meji the associated sacred literature. This library is free to browse — you can explore it without consulting the Oracle. Use the search filter to find a specific Odu or browse all 256 to deepen your knowledge.
256 results
Oyeku Meji
Oyekun Meyi (lucumí)
"“We are made of life and death” — oriki of the sign in the Tratado (p. 366)"
Oyeku Okanran
Oyekun Kana (lucumí)
"In the Tratado, death walks behind (p. 459), and the ashere played for Oshun every day makes the good certain (p. 454)."
Oyeku Oturupon
Oyekun Otrupon (lucumí)
""If those of one's own house do not respect one, the neighbours even less" — a saying of the Tratado (p. 506)."
Oyeku Owonrin
Oyekun Ojuani (lucumí)
"Where Elegba ate goat for the first time; your best friend is your worst enemy."
Oyeku Ika
Oyekun Ika (lucumí)
"The Ifá of envy, where one brother kills the other; do not wet your head with water."
Oyeku Ofun
Oyekun Berdura (lucumí)
"Shango hands the kingdom to Orunmila (p. 542); a new name serves as camouflage to outwit death (p. 550)."
Oyeku Iwori
Oyekun Iwori (lucumí)
"An Ifá of the ungrateful; even when it speaks badly, ire comes after 21 days (Tratado, p. 401)."
Oyeku Osa
Oyekun Osa (lucumí)
"Paint the house white so that Obatala may visit it and bring your fortune."
Oyeku Obara
Oyekun Bara (lucumí)
""The horse heeds only its master" — a saying of the Tratado (p. 449); what is wanted is not reached by force but by cunning (p. 446)."
Oyeku Odi
Oyekun Di (lucumí)
"An Ifá of conspiracy and deceit; always tell the truth and stand surety for no one."
Oyeku Ose
Oyekun Pakioshe (lucumí)
"Turn towards life, not towards death; do not go to wakes."
Oyeku Otura
Oyekun Tura (lucumí)
"Ifá of transfigurations (p. 511), in which one's own tongue is the enemy (p. 512)."
Oyeku Irosun
Oyekun Iroso (lucumí)
"The path of the cemetery (ona orun); every good you do, Olofin will repay you."
Oyeku Irete
Oyekun Irete (lucumí)
"In this Ifá is born the disease that infiltrates the body; a daughter of Yemoja will save you."
Oyeku Ogunda
Oyekun Ogunda (lucumí)
"Here one does not eat at the table; with the enemy's own witchcraft one prevails."
Oyeku Ogbe
Oyekun Nilogbe (lucumí)
"The staff of the dead and the night; do not mistreat the children of the house, on pain of misfortune."
Okanran Oyeku
Okana Yeku (lucumí)
"Be content with what God gives you, for there are many worse off than you; do not go poking into gossip nor curse, for God punishes it."
Okanran Meji
Okana Meyi (lucumí)
"“A cast net cannot catch a hippopotamus” — saying from the Tratado (p. 2710)"
Okanran Oturupon
Okana Trupon (lucumí)
"Born to govern, and therefore a king; but the more he has, the more he wants."
Okanran Owonrin
Okana Juani (lucumí)
"In war, whoever sleeps loses; whatever has a beginning has an end."
Okanran Ika
Okana Ka (lucumí)
"Whoever strikes a bargain with the cat is always scratched by the cat."
Okanran Ofun
Okana Fun (lucumí)
"The moon stays hidden for a few days and then comes out resplendent, and all the world desires it; the person, being heedless, loses their way."
Okanran Iwori
Okana Wori (lucumí)
""Play dead to see the funeral they give you"; "whoever itches has been eating ají" — sayings of the Tratado (p. 2744)."
Okanran Osa
Okana Sa (lucumí)
"The death of one is the benefit of others; the day you forget the Egun, you will slip backwards."
Okanran Obara
Okana Bara (lucumí)
"Do not underestimate the small one; when Obatala turns his back on someone, only Orunmila saves them."
Okanran Odi
Okana Di (lucumí)
"Whoever does not go by the known road turns back and finds the others closed; each one with their own kind."
Okanran Ose
Okana She (lucumí)
"The white parrot was the more celebrated after the enemies had stained it."
Okanran Otura
Okana Tura (lucumí)
"The branches wish to part from the trunk; the mouth that thought itself indispensable and did not make ebó ended up despised."
Okanran Irosun
Okana Roso (lucumí)
"In the land of the blind, the one-eyed is king; there are those who go cross-eyed from watching the other go blind."
Okanran Irete
Okana Rete (lucumí)
"With unhurried steps one reaches one's destination; dog does not eat dog."
Okanran Ogunda
Okana Ogunda (lucumí)
"The enemy is invited to eat in order to neutralise him; the glutton does not quarrel with the cook."
Okanran Ogbe
Okana Ogbe (lucumí)
"What you come to be told, you already know long before you come; do not lend your hat, lest you lose your head."
Oturupon Oyeku
Otrupo Yeku (lucumí)
""One does not wait for the day of battle to sharpen one's weapon" — a proverb of the Tratado (p. 1862)."
Oturupon Okanran
Otrupo Kana (lucumí)
"When someone improves, they forget the babalawo."
Oturupon Meji
Otrupon Meyi (lucumí)
"Ologbon Meyi, the sign through which intelligence came into the world, according to the Tratado (p. 1819)."
Oturupon Owonrin
Otrupo Juani (lucumí)
""Olofin is love, but wicked crime torments every human being" — proverb of the Tratado (p. 1900)."
Oturupon Ika
Otrupo Ka (lucumí)
"Do not give place to the axe, for it will be the death of all the trees."
Oturupon Ofun
Otrupo Balofun (lucumí)
""So sharp that it cuts itself" — a saying of the Tratado (p. 1959)."
Oturupon Iwori
Otrupo Iwori (lucumí)
""He came passing through and stayed to live"; "family war gets nowhere" — refrains from the Tratado (p. 1872)."
Oturupon Osa
Otrupo Osa (lucumí)
""Whatever is scorned today will be needed tomorrow" — a proverb of the Tratado (p. 1929)."
Oturupon Obara
Otrupo Bara (lucumí)
"The he-goat, for doing favours, lost its head."
Oturupon Odi
Otrupo Oddi (lucumí)
"Health, divine treasure; the word of Orunmila never falls to the ground."
Oturupon Ose
Otrupon She (lucumí)
"Whenever it rains, it clears up again."
Oturupon Otura
Otrupo Tauro (lucumí)
"From one day to the next, one may become as rich as one may become poor."
Oturupon Irosun
Otrupo Iroso (lucumí)
"The tamarind was sweet and had to turn sour in order to live."
Oturupon Irete
Otrupo Irete (lucumí)
"By the way one goes up, one comes down; and the sea, with its waves, cleanses the shore."
Oturupon Ogunda
Otrupo Ogunda (lucumí)
""Better to prevent than to have to lament" — refrain from the Tratado (p. 1924)."
Oturupon Ogbe
Otrupo Logbe (lucumí)
"A good repaid with an evil leaves the tiger trapped beneath the stone; two rams do not drink water at the same spring."