Esu Day Celebration -“Esu a gbe gbogbo wa o”

Congratulations to all faithful of Esu deity and all Yoruba sons and daughters on the occasion of the Esu Day Celebration, which is tagged “Esu is not Satan.

I must confess, like millions of Yoruba, that I didn’t know for many years that Esu is not the Satan in the Bible or” Ashitani” of the Islamic faith. Not until I read in my secondary school “Oju Odu Merindinlogun” and “Ijinle Ohun Enu Ifa” by Prof. Wande Abimbola, the Awise Ifa gbogbo Agbaye and former VC of the University of Ife now OAU. And not until I met adherents of the Esu deity in Abeokuta who were very pleasant and God fearing honest but frank people. Esu is a kind, gentle, straightforward but a no-nonsense deity when provoked just like Sanponan. When you enter a covenant with Esu you must fulfill it, if not, he gets provoked and does the needful. Adherents are very proud to bear his name like Esubiyi, Esugbemi, and Esufunke.

I think the mix-up of thinking Esu is Satan started with the Yoruba translation of the Bible by the intellectual theologist, Bishop Samuel Ajayi Crowther who translated Satan as Satani. And the non-informed newly converted Christians in the era for the absence of an appropriate word decided to call the Bible Satan as Esu.

It’s good that the error is being corrected globally where Yoruba culture permeates. I saw a similar “Esu is not Satan” rally in Brazil recently. That’s a good one since the religious colonialists won’t correct the generational error because it pays their objective to condemn what you have to impose on their own culture and tradition.
Congratulations on Esu not Satan celebration. Esu Lalu, Okiri Oko agbe gbogbo awa omo Yoruba o. Ase waaaa!

AWOGBEMI IFALOLA