Blooming Into {the Ọ̀ṣun of} Me
• • • • • Part 1 • • • • •
Seeded sometime between 2013 - 2015 • Tended to & cultivated over time • Blooming always
Ọ̀ṣun….Oshun...Ochun...Oxum
Ore yeye ooo
In the distant, but not so far past, I struggled with Ọ̀ṣun.
The oversimplification plus hyper-sexualization, multiplied by racism, divided by superficiality equaled a bitter taste on my already parched lips.
I couldn’t relate. I didn’t want to.
But my Ori…my Eegun…Ọ̀ṣun…everything around me… had a different plan for me.
And sitting across one daughter of Ọ̀ṣun who laughed while saying “She took your hair because you haven’t acknowledged her,” and another daughter who shattered every misconception of her I stubbornly held on to, I had to stop. I needed to listen.
I needed to allow myself to let go of the self...the persona...the ego... and be swept up by the life-giving flood of awareness …no…remembrance of Ọ̀ṣun:
Mother, life-giver, creative energy.
God’s favorite: exclude her and watch the world crumble.
Ethics and communication, the joy of learning and education.
Sweet as honey on the one hand, and will kill you in an instant on the other.
River flowing, raging, eroding,
Gleaming brass, shimmering gold,
You’re beautiful and worthy because you exists, period.
Step into your brilliance—travel through all of your intelligences.
Hear, touch, smell, see,
Feel all of Life’s richness.
Scavenger, cleaner, expunging what is out of alignment
Fierce mother, defender of THE Mothers—put some respect on their name she warns:
Iyami, and no other.
Achiever of the impossible, fluent in the language of miracles.
No stranger to sacrifice;
Builder of empires out of thin air and dreams;
And so…so much more than my human brain can even begin to comprehend.
She teaches me to speak my truth, when every part of me wants to hide.
She shows me that I can extract sweetness from even the most painful of memories and situations.
She encourages me to love the reflection I see and continue to work on the inner me. And to see the beauty in the world, when all I want to do at times is give up on it.
And she just loves me. And sees me. She always has.
Even when I refused to see her. Hell, I couldn’t see myself.
Today, I run, skip, swim, dance to her.
I seek and see her in everything I do and everywhere I go.
Today I sing to, dance with, and play my bell for her.
And always will.
Ore yeye ooo
Ore yeye ooo
Ore yeye ooo
Moments with Ọ̀ṣun across a spectrum of experience. (1) At the gate of the Ọ̀ṣun-Oṣogbo Sacred Grove in Oṣogbo, Ọ̀ṣun State, Nigeria, 2019; (2) In a cenote in Tulum, Quintana Roo, Mexico (2018). Image by Jan Schoof; (3) Playing Oxum in “Zumbi” with Brasil Brasil Cultural Center, 2011; (4) Playing Luanda/Oxum in “Zumbi” with Brasil Brasil Cultural Center, image by William R. Greenblatt, 2013; (5) At the LA River, 2020.
Copyright of all images owned by ONYI LOVE LLC and/or the named photographer.
• • • • • Part 2 • • • • •
Seeded sometime in March 2023 • Tended to & cultivated through and beyond Spring Equinox • Blooming always
It hit me in such a powerful way today:
Ọ̀ṣun is brilliant, in every sense of the word—
Of how we do and don’t use the word.
She shines, inspires, is always inspired:
She is inspiration that is never tired
Another may bring illumination, but she IS luminance.
Intelligence sees the reflection of her face as it stares and states, shares and takes
All ways of sensing and perceiving, embodying and being.
Ọ̀ṣun is constantly singing Life’s praises as
She makes love to its infinite phrases.
Weaving in and out, seducing with and
Without even lifting anything more than the weight of your self-doubt.
She walks with integrity and makes any sacrifices
Including the very beauty you say entices
What’s the point of it all when there’s no thing called “Life” to even experience?
When we conflate and confuse ideas and concepts,
Intertwine definitions, descriptions and purposeful deception,
We collapse into a state of oversimplification that perpetuates our comfort, complacency, and boredom.
Ọ̀ṣun is so deep y’all.
And perhaps the knee jerk reaction to that which we cannot fathom is to reduce it to what we think we can more easily digest.
I have compassion for but refuse to enable the idea called “you can’t handle the truth.”
Because the truth is Ọ̀ṣun didn’t come here to play or be played like that.
And when you give her the respect and reverence she is [over]due, she will help you be who you came here to be with joy and sweetness through every step, no matter how challenging.
Try it and see.
Try her and be aware:
The absence of her presence is punishment you bring upon yourself.
So act and choose wisely.
Some of my favorite illustrated depictions of Ọ̀ṣun/Oshun/Ochun/Oxum by (from left to right) : (1) Artist unknown/ to be determined (2) Ayodê França (3) Benzadeus
Copyright of all images owned by the respective artists.
• • • • • Part 3 • • • • •
Composed by distant Ancestors with joy in unquestioned freedom • Maintained by Descendents through joy as resistance to infringed upon existence • Sung freely by me with joy
• • • • • Part 4 • • • • •
Seeded 3 • 20 • 2023: (1) Spring Equinox
And (2) the 5th day of second phase of my 90 day Changing Core Beliefs Ritual*
Tended to & cultivated through 3 • 22 • 2023
3 + 2 + 2 + 2 + 2 + 3 = 14
1+4 =5
This year I enter or exit—either/or, both/and, depending on perspective—my 41st solar cycle through Life as this personality construct knows it
5 = 4+1
5 is the number to which Ọ̀ṣun/Oshun/Ochun/Oxum) vibrates
I am completely, joyfully, peacefully, neutrally, creatively, and gratefully in en-amor(ed) with myself and Life. This love includes all of you. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to reflect and be a reflection of all that I am which completes the All That Is.
I continue cultivating myself.
I am always blooming.
Àṣẹ
Playing Oxum in “Zumbi” with Brasil Brasil Cultural Center (2011). Photo by William R. Greenblatt
• • • • • Part 5 • • • • •
Personal Ritual for Self Love & Appreciation
To help you re-member {the Ọ̀ṣun of} You
__________
• STEP 1 •
First thing in the morning when you wake up touch your head (ori). Hold both of your hands gently yet firmly on your head—whether it be the sides, the front and back, the top. Thank your[higher]self for waking up. Express gratitude to it for choosing to be in this life to experience everything that you need in order be more of who you are. Go to the mirror and take a really good look at yourself. Admire everything about you...your features...your uniqueness. Tell yourself (out loud) how much you love yourself; how beautiful you are; that you are worthy not because of anything you’ve done or how others see you, but simply because you exist.
• STEP 2 •
Before you eat or drink anything else, pour yourself a glass of water (omi). Hold the glass and think about all the things water does for you...everything that water does for our planet. Pray/speak into the water. Thank it. Ask it to do what you need it to do inside you. It already knows what it came here to do, and your words and intent reinforce this…they add power. Drink the water and feel its coolness flowing down your throat into your stomach. Stand/sit still for a moment and experience it flushing into and throughout your system.
• STEP 3 •
Treat yourself to a wonderful meal—whether you prepare it yourself or go to a favorite restaurant (or new one you've been wanting to try). If this meal can be prepared or shared with loved ones, wonderful! Make a plate, take a portion, or even order something to-go for your Ancestors (Eegun). Place the food on your Ancestral altar if you have one. If not, anywhere in your house you feel comfortable leaving the food (for up to 3 days) will be fine.
• STEP 4 •
Reach out to one person (or multiple people) in your life and really check in. Ask how they are doing. Be slow to speak. Mostly listen and hold space. Tell her/him/them you love and appreciate him/her/them. And do it through a phone or video call. Avoid text if possible, unless it is literally the only option available to you. Voice messages are lovely alternatives as well.
• STEP 5 •
Decide on a time that you will go to bed (it doesn’t matter when as long as it is in alignment with your natural rhythm), and prepare for that at least 1 hour before. Turn off all electronic devices or anything else that will be a distraction/overstimulation. Take a bath/shower and imagine you are washing away everything that no longer serves you that you have collected or attached to throughout the day. If you write/journey, take a moment to write down anything that stood out to you about your day. Once you finish, lay down and remind yourself of your joy and peace. While lying in bed, place your hands on your heart and speak (out loud) words of gratitude to yourself, your Ancestors, Guides, Angels, whomever...for the day that you had, everyone you encountered, and everything you learned. Take a few deep breaths and allow yourself to drift away.
• Rest & Be Well •
Do this ritual 1 day and you will feel sweet and renewed.
Do this ritual 5-9 days in a row and you will experience some major shifts.
Do this regularly/beyond 5-9 days and you will experience deep transformation in ways that you would not have even imagined.
As always, honor yourself first and foremost, and do what you can when you can. Feel free to leave what doesn't resonate with you, or replace with that which excites you. That too is how you re-member you.
We love you.
• O •
PS…
Ọ̀ṣun is an Oriṣa—deity within the indigenous system (Ìfá) of the Yorùbá people of West Africa. The letter Ṣ has a “sh” sound; the letter Ọ (which is different than the letter than O) sounds more like the cross between “Oh” and “Awe”; and the accents give different tones to create beautiful music. Ọ̀ṣun (also spelled Oshun, Ochun, Oxum throughout parts of the diaspora where she is venerated) is too vast for me to captured in a few words in this section, or even in the more than few words above it. She requires and deserves books, upon volumes, upon libraries—and even that can’t contain her immensity.
So instead of attempting to add more description here and now, I will encourage you to [re]read all of the above and pay attention to what is inspired within and without. [Re]listen to the audio. These are just some of my own reflections written at [one] time[s], adjusted over time[s], in whatever timing there has been to hold me. My relationship with Ọ̀ṣun continues to flow, fortify, and free itself from whatever is irrelevant and untrue. Layers peel away…more and more is revealed through my priestesshood and my life overall; though really, I see no difference between the two.
The order of the parts holds only the significance you ascribe. So play with all of it and see what blooms. Take your time. the only destination is yourself.
*Changing Core Beliefs is a set of practices and transmission gifted by Bashar who is channeled by Darryl Anka.
© 2023 by ONYI LOVE ® LLC & Felicia Richards