Vodu of Divination and Destiny
Ewe · deity · primordial · deity
Vodu of divination and destiny — the Fa/Ifa oracle. The descriptive title leads name.primary; the Ewe name Afa and the Fon Fa stand in alt/etymology. Its messages are interpreted by Legba (see ewe_legba 'associate of' edge); in Fon theology its power-source is the female spirit Gbadu set by Mawu in the palm-tree. Not a consistently-begotten son of Mawu-Lisa — see SOLITARY flag. Typed deity. Documented for the Ewe of Togo by Parrinder (1961) and for the cognate Fon by Herskovits (1938).
Domains
- divination
- destiny and fate
- sacred knowledge and counsel
Powers
- Reveal the destiny (kpoli) that Mawu has set for each person
- Speak through the sixteen signs (du) and their two hundred and fifty-six combinations