Myth, Ritual, and Visible Expressions of O?bàtálá and Olókun in Ilé-If?`

In Myth, Ritual, and Visible Expressions of Obàtálá and Olókun Ilé-If, Oluwafunminiyi Wasiu Raheem and Ayowole S. Elugbaju explore Obàtálá (Yorùbá deity of creation) and Olókuns (preeminent owner of the ocean) existence in myth, history, and religion through various facets of pan-human worship, belief, and everyday ritual practices. Raheem and Elugbaju explore Yorùbás history and religion to provide an extensive analysis of core themes in Obàtálás and Olókuns stories. They argue for a more complex reading Obàtálá beyond the often sustained and single narrative of struggle and defeat as well as a more nuanced reading of Olókuns presentation as a holy well beyond its popular exemplification of a female deity of wealth, childbirth, and pre-eminent owner of the worlds ocean. Drawing from oral accounts, chants, folk songs, praise poems, and verses from the Ifá corpus, the authors provide new insights into the worlds of both deities hitherto missing in the literature.