Before we can describe who Esu is, it is very important that we understand who Esu is not. Esu is neither the existential enemy of Olodumare (the Yoruba godhead) nor is he the bringer of evil on earth. So, now that we have some understanding of who Esu is not, let us look at who Esu is.
Who is Esu?
According to the Yoruba pantheon, there are four hundred and one (401) Orisa (deities) in Yoruba land. Two hundred and one of these Orisa are classified as higher or benevolent, while the other 200 are lower or malevolent Orisa. Esu is one of the two hundred and one higher or benevolent Yoruba deities. Esu is arguably the most powerful Yoruba Orisa, who is universally recognized and appealed to by all Yoruba regardless of their affiliation to other cults. Esu is the divine communicator and mediator between the Orisa and humans, the symbol of harmony, and the metaphysical guardian of oritameta (i.e.the crossroad).
As the mediator between the Orisa and men, Esu plays a role in the cults of other Orisa; especially, that of Sango, the powerful Orisa of thunder. Esu also has a close relationship with Orunmila (the patron saints of divination). The relationship between Esu and Orunmila is grounded in many myths. A myth relates that it was Esu who taught Orunmila the art of divination. In return, Esu, as the Orunmila instructor, demanded that Orunmila should ensure that a portion of every sacrifice prescribed and offered is given to him. Esu therefore has vested interest in the process of Ifa divination, and this is why babalawo almost always advise their clients to offer a sacrifice to Esu.
As the symbol of harmony, Esu often tries to achieve harmony between disharmonious elements. This is evident in a myth about Esu and two good friends. According to the myth, two good friends swore allegiance to one another but neglected to acknowledge Esu. These two friends worked on adjacent farms, separated only by a narrow path. One day, Esu walked on the narrow path between their farms, wearing a hat that is black on one side and red on the other. He exchanged pleasantries with both men as he walked past them. Soon after Esu had walked past, the two friends got to talking about his hat; one friend said the hat was black while the other friend said it was red. The two friends fell to violet quarrelling, arguing with each other about the color of Esu’s hat. The neighbors gathered around the farmland to stop the fight between the two friends, and then Esu arrived. The friends explained their disagreement, and Esu showed them the two-sided hat and chastised them for not putting him first in their doings (Davis 2010:176). Implicit in this myth are the following:
1. The two-sided cap (red and black) is a metaphor for the binary nature of human reality (i.e. tibi tire).
2. Opposites are part of a unified whole.
3. The narrow path and the adjacent farms symbolize Oritameta (the crossroad), where life decisions are made – every decision is a crossroad.
4. Esu sometimes creates chaos to show the false fabrications of oppositional ordering and reveal the underlying harmony.
5. True belief may originate from sense-perception, but true knowledge rests on having adequate information.
Not only is the above myth embodies the nature and dialectic of the jointly completing relationship of opposites, it also explains the inherent binary nature of human choice and the crucial need for the refinement of human knowledge and choice through information mining.
And lastly, as the metaphysical guardian of the crossroad, Esu can keep peace in the market place and watch over the passageways and transition points in our lives. This explains why Orisa adherents offer sacrifices to Esu at the crossroads or at the passageways by the market place. Esu is many things, but Esu is certainly not Satan.
References
Davis, Erik. 2010. Nomad Codes: Adventures in modern Esoterica. Portland, OR: YETI Books.
Bolaji, Campbell. 2016. “Of color, character, attributes, and values of Orunmila.” Ifa divination, knowledge, power, and performance, edited by Olupona, Jacob K. and Rowland O. Abiodun, 302-304. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press.
Robert, Pelton. 1980. The trickster in West Africa: a study of mythic irony and sacred delight. Berkeley and Los Angeles, CA: University of California Press.
Omotade, Adegbidin. 2014. Ifa in Yoruba thought system. Durham, NC: Carolina Academic Press.
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