The Ibeji Cult of the YorubaThe Yorubaland has the highest twin birthrate in the world, about 45 out of every 1000 births (4). Yoruba oral

traditions say that twins, ibeji, can bring either joy or despair to their family. In earlier times, twins were feared and

infanticide was a common practice. The Yoruba people could not understand why a woman gave birth to more than

one child. However, over time the practice and beliefs changed. People began to praise the twins and believed they

could bring a family wealth. Through Yoruba oral

traditions we can try to recall the history of this

tradition. Because of this change in practice and

the high infant death rate, the people of Yoruba

began to carve wooden figures, ere ibeji. The

figures are meant to honor the deceased twin or

twins. Today, some people in Yoruba still

practice this tradition. However, it has been

further altered due to the strong presence of other religions (1).

Ibeji History

In early practices in Yoruba ibeji were not highly revered. People did not understand why a woman would bear two children instead of one. Some believed that the mother was promiscuous, and therefore had multiple children to represent her partners (1). Others believed that the twins were bad luck and would bring the family misfortune. To remedy this problem, the twin babies were killed. Infanticide was a popular practice among the Yoruba. However, at some point this practice changed.

By the mid-18th century a change in practice and belief took place (4). Some believe this change took place because foreigners thought infanticide was immoral, other believe that something occurred within the Yoruba people. The practice of infanticide is unusual in Yoruba, traditionally children and family were praised in their culture (2). The change was significant to Yoruba beliefs and therefore something grand must have happened. By the 19th century ibeji became recognized as a symbol of wealth and power or trouble (4). If the family performed the

appropriate rituals, the twins would bring the family wealth, if not problems would arise (2).

The reason for this change is hard to understand because their traditions are passed orally. There are no written accounts from an African about this change in practice and belief. However, a significant event must have occurred in order to change the ibeji tradition. I have collected several oral traditions that help to explain the origin and the change in practice of the ibeji cult of the Yoruba people.

I. Oral TraditionThis story was told by Chief Ajanaku, Araba of Lagos (the head of Ifa priests in Lagos) to T. J. H. Chappel in 1964 during a field study in the Yorubaland:

I. In olden days twins were forbidden and anybody having them had to kill them before it came to the notice of the oba [local ruler]. Isokun, near Porto Novo, in Dahomey, was the first place where twins were allowed to stay, and this was because Isokun was not, at that time part of the kingdom of Oyo. When these twins were born the parents did not know whether to kill them or to let them live because they were not in their own country and it was not the custom in those parts to kill twins as in Oyo. So they consulted the Ifa oracle. Ifa said that they should keep the twins, but they would have to dance around the town with them every five days. This they did and everyone took pity on them and gave them gifts. In this course of time they became so wealthy that people began to say it was the twins who had made them rich. This story eventually reached the ears of the Alafin at Oyo. He was convinced by what he heard that these twins were lucky children, so he said it was all right for the parents to keep them and not kill them as was the custom.

After some time these same parents at Isokun had another child whom they named Idowu. When the Alafin heard of this he decided that Idowu should come to Oyo and he, himself, would look after the child. Because of this people came to believe that the Alafin has actually given his blessing to twin births and so they stopped killing their twins. Idowu became very rascally in Oyo, so much so that people called him "the Eshu following after twins. (1)"

II. Oral Tradition

This story was told to T. J. H. Chappel by an elderly woman born in the Isokun quarter in Oyo:

II. A long time ago some people from Isokun quarter in Oyo town, who were traders, went to the country near Ajashe [capital of the kingdom of Porto Novo] and decided to settle there. They called their camp Isokun. It happened that one of the group gave birth to twins. In Oyo it was the practice to kill twins with the help of a knife at the neck for at this time people were distrustful of twins. They could not understand why a woman should give birth to two at a time when she was neither animal nor a goat [i.e., neither wild animal or domestic animal.] However, the parents of the twins decided to keep their children. They consulted Ifa and Ifa said that it would be all right for them to keep the twins provided they performed a certain sacrifice for them. The sacrifice was duly performed and as a result the parents became very rich. When the people in Oyo heard of this they decided to keep their twins so that they might become rich as well (1).

III. Oral Tradition

III. The following is a song mother's of twins would sing because they believed that giving birth to twins was "a gift from God." In this song the twins are said to be born from edun. This is important because in the Yoruba poem that honors the edun the ibeji are incorporated into the tale (1)

Oluwa [our Lord] has decreed it/ It is God's will.

Akanbe has given birth to twins/ Akanbe has given birth to twins.

Born of twin monkey [edun], I am holding your letter/ Twins, it is a part of my destiny to have you.

Twin was not made of chief/ Our Lord puts a crown on his head./ Twins do not need earthly titles/ They are crowned by God.

IV. Oral Tradition

IV. This poem is in the literature of Ifa and describes the honorable relationship between edun and ibeji:

May the sacrifices be accepted and blessed/ This is the verse of Ifa which talks about ibeji/ It talks about who the ibeji/ really are on earth/ And what they are from heaven/ It discusses especially how they are on earth/ In a position of honor/ And as something to be greatly regarded/ Out of the four hundred imole [spirits] of the right/ And two hundred original imole of the left/ The ibeji have been counted together with them/ Before that number was established/ They are not an addendum/ How the orisha are among human beings/ And how their honor and their ase [authority]/ Dwell with all things everywhere/ That is how the matter of ibeji also is/ This is because the Ifa verse which discusses them/ Talks about how Orunmila [deity of wisdom], nicknamed Ajana/ First gave birth to the persons who are known as ibeji/ In very ancient times/ These persons who were children of Orunmila/ Are known as edun

The Ifa priests predicted for her that she would have/ Two children at the same time./ They predicted that the children/ Would turn Orunmila into a king./ They asked Orunmila to perform sacrifice with/ Two rats and two fish/ Two hens and two pigeons/ Two goats and twenty-one cowries.../ Orunmila performed the sacrifice/ Peregun became pregnant again/ When she delivered/ She gave birth to twins/ One male and the other female/ They called them Edun [Colobus monkey]/ The male one started to study Ifa/ The Ifa which he learned/ Was not as great as the one which he knew/ Before he was born/ The boy began to visit his mother's other children/ He started to go to their homes/ He understood the language of animals very well/ Because they were his mother's children/ He understood the language of birds very well/ Because they too were his mother's children/ He also spoke the language of human beings...

At this point another story is introduced. It describes how oba Olofin of Ife needs to find medicine in the woods for his sick son. The medicine is the bark from a particular tree which he is having great difficulty finding. He is becoming discouraged and fearful. Finally, he arrives in a part of the forest inhabited by a number of Colobus monkeys.

Then Edun who had come there from the city/ Said to his colleagues:/ "Iwa" [being, life or existance] is lost/ "Iwa" is lost/ "Iwa" is lost/ This matter was not understood by his colleagues/ He then started to go towards the place where the lost king was/ Where the lost king was going up and down senselessly in the forest/ He saw Olofin/ He greeted Olofin/ Olofin also greeted him/ He then used his tail/ To sweep clean the foot of a certain big tree/ Which had plenty of shade/ Olofin said that he could not longer know where he was going.

At this time in the story edun goes to the river and offers Olofin water. He accepts and returns to the city with the monkey. Olofin refused to admit he had been lost. Because of his arrival home, many festivals and celebrations began.

The people said: "You Edun/ You are the relation of we human beings/ But you are also related to the animals/

You will henceforth reproduce yourself as a human being/ And that will allow us to live with you.../ Edun said that he would reproduce himself among human beings/ In such a way that his children would look like human beings/ But they must not call his children by any other name than Edun/ It was after that human beings started to give birth to twins/ As soon as they gave birth to twins/ They would say Edun has come/ Since then the parents of twins/ Must not eat the meat of the Colobus monkey/ Because they realize that it is he who has come to be/ reborn as a child in their home./ The parents of twins/ Must never kill the wild edun of the forest./ If they kill him/ They know for certain/ That they have killed a colleague of their children/ And they would suffer the consequences./ Therefore twin babies who were first born by Orunmila/ Are the ones who started among human beings/ The family of twins/ Since then and until today/ In all cities founded by Orunmila himself/ He has given them the commandment/ That they must not eat the meat of the Colobus monkey (1).

V. Oral Tradition

V. In the story the wife of Odua gave birth to twins and they were immediately to referred to as Osemowe, "These children are demons." However, before they could be killed a hunter named Ija takes the twins and their mother into the forest. As time passed, the twins became rulers in the town. The female ibeji became queen of Ondo. The male counterpart became the oba of Ile- Oluji, or Ijamo. These towns are refered to as "twin towns."

This verse describes Olofin's reaction when he realizes what has occured.

Odu Ifa called Okanran Irosun:

Olofin took the horn of aba [principle]/ And he also took the horn of ase [authority]/ He took them out/ He assembled all the inhabitants of the earth/ And asked them to make a law/ That even if a person gave birth to triplets/ Everyone should join that person in prayer/ That his Ori, his creator, the earth and Olorum/ Would help such a person care for his children/ All ibeji born henceforth/ Must not be killed/ And they must not be thrown away/ Parents should be allowed to take care of their own children/ As from this time, whenever a person gives birth to ibeji/ He would start to rejoice (1).

Ere Ibeji

Ere ibeji figures are used to represent deceased ibeji. About half of the twins die after birth (4). Due to the high twin death rate in Yorubaland there are a plethora of these figures. The figures are commissioned by the parents of the deceased. If one child dies, one ere ibeji is made, if both twins die, two figures are made. The Yoruba believe that the twins share the same soul. At birth the soul splits (3). The mother will treat and care for the ere ibeji figure as if it were the actual child (2). To chose a carver the parents must consult an Ifa diviner or babalawo. The diviner will then consult the Ifa to select the correct artist to carve the ere ibeji. Once the diviner determines the carver, the parents of the deceased twins must bring him offerings, a cock and two three-piece kolanuts. These also recognize that Ogun, the orisa of all who work with metal, is involved in the carving process. The actual offering takes place in the Ogun shrine at the carver's house (1).

The artist requires other items from the parents of the deceased to successfully carve the figure. For one child the items include: two kolanuts of any type, two alligator peppers, two dried fish, two dried rats, two snails, two cocks or two hens depending on the sex of the deceased, four kegs of palmwine, sixteen pieces of of big yam, four calabash full of beans, four calabash full of corn, and four tins of palm oil (1).

However, if both twins have died the parents must double the amount of items. Also, one more cock is required to be sacrificed at the base of an ire tree. This tree is believed to be sacred to the ibeji God and is the wood used for the ere ibeji. If the parents do not produce these items the process will be slower and it will bring them bad luck. The parents of the deceased must also bring food and drink to the artist while during the carving process. The process usually takes not more than one week. For artists, the ire wood is fairly easy to work with (1).

Ere Ibeji(Ere ibeji - from ‘ ibi ’ = born and ‘ eji ’ = two; ' ere ' means sacred image)

Ere Ibeji: carvingThe next process is carving the ere ibeji which is done in six steps (1):

1. sisa- cut the log into the appropriate size, usually from nine to thirteen inches

2. onalile- adzes and chisels are used to define major body parts; the head is usually about one-third the size of the body, legs, arms and base.

3. aletunle- with smaller tools, the artist gives the body parts more definition and refinement

4. didan- the carver smoothes the body with special utensils

5. finfin- the carver cuts the patterns on the figure including open eyes, hair styles and beads.

6. the artist carves in the facial marks pertaining to the father's lineage

Ere Ibeji: ritual wash

Once the artist is content with his work on the figure, he must perform a ritual washing on the ere ibeji. The mixture is made in a bowl large enough to hold at least two figures. The mixture is never reused but can be used for more than one figure. First, he prepares the mixture, agbo. It consists of bits of root from the Igi Aka or Akika tree, cuttings from a young palm seedling, bits of root from Ijokun and Ajekonbale trees, Idaro-agbedi or iron dross, pieces of the root of the Ira tree, part of an alligator pepper, bits of root from the Egbo-Elu tree and undiluted palmwine. The palmwine is kept in a keg that must not touch the ground after leaving the palm tree, which is usually prepared by the person commissioning the ere ibeji (1).

Next, the leaves of the cowpeas are squeezed into the undiluted palm wine. The artists uses this mixture to wash the figure. Then it is left to dry (1).

After all the roots have been collected they are put in the pot and set on fire. Fresh water, orugo, is poured into the pot. Every morning someone is sent to retrieve this water, they are not permitted to speak to anyone while on route. Also, a packet of alligator peppers is broken and it's seeds are added to the pot just before it reaches a rolling boil. For one hour the mixture continues to boil. Overnight, the pot is left on the hearth (1).

Ere Ibeji: Return to Parents

The next task is transferring the ere ibeji to its parents. The parents who commissioned the work are given about a week's notice to prepare for the figure's arrival. The artist will set aside a day for the parents to receive the ere ibeji (1).

The figures are removed from the pot three days before the parents arrive. The carver rubs the figures with an ointment called ero which relieves aching joints. The ointment consists of the leaves from seven ewe odundun, seven tete atetedaye, seven worowo and one egg, eyin adiye kan. The leaves are ground into a pot, mixed with palm oil, shea-butter and the egg is cracked and added to the mix (1).

Around four or five on a Friday, the parents are to receive the ere ibeji. Friends and family of the artist and parents are invited to the carver's house. The parents will prepare food and carry it to the carver's house for the occasion. The food consists of various types of yams, plantains, beans, corn, honey, groundnuts, sugar cane, kolanuts and palmwine (1).

During this assembly, through a certain procedure, the carver will determine how much he should be paid for the ere ibeji. Usually the carver can not accept a fee that is not approved by orisa Ogun. The usual minimum fee is five kobo. First, the one of the four pieces of kolanuts that the parents brought will broken. The carver will hold the four pieces in his left hand and place his right hand on the pieces and say: "Ogun lakaye Osinmole. Should my workmanship fee be egbewa?" Then he will throw the pieces on the ground. If two face up and two face down he will charge the minimum fee. If this does not happen time first time the carver will increase his price until the correct kolanut pieces show. However, if after many throws the correct kolanuts do not appear then they assume that there is a hidden meaning. To resolve this the artist consults the orisa Ogun using the same process with the kolanuts (1).

Next, the carver performs a ritual sacrifice. The mother and father of the ibeji will step forward to the Ogun shrine where the ere ibeji has been laid on a mat. The mother kneels down with the father behind her and stretches her hands toward the figure while the artist recites a blessing. Then the carver will present the ere ibeji to her. She will place the figure on her back. If there are two she will put one on her back and one in her wrap at breast level. After the blessing, the mother faces her family. As they sing various songs to her she claps and dances in rhythm to their music (1).

The ceremony is complete. The ere ibeji is carried home by its mother. The mother is instructed not to talk to anyone

on her journey home (1). Once at home the parents scrub the figure with black soap and the chaff of chewed sugarcane. The head of the figure is rubbed with waji, a cloth died with indigo or Rickets blue washing powder. A finely ground camwood powder, osun, is used to scrub the body of the figure. As a sign of wealth or connection to royalty the mother will dress the figure with beads and shells (4). The ere ibeji is placed on an appropriate mat and positioned in the corner of the mother's room. The figure is placed upright during the day and lying down at night. Sometimes the mother will prepare clothes for the figure. If the other twin is still alive they will be dressed in similar fashions. On the third and seventh day after receiving the ere ibeji the parents prepare food and drink which they bring to the carver's home. A small ceremony consisting of presenting food and praise songs, oriki, is performed every five days to ere ibeji. The appropriate food for the ibeji consists of epa, groundnuts; ireke, sugarcane; aadun, a mixture of cooked beans flavored with salt; ekuru, mashed beans; akara, fried corn meal cake; dodo, fried plantain; and isu, fried yam (1).

After completing these steps the commissioning of the ere ibeji is complete.