Orisha Nla

Orisha Nla was sent to create the world by the Supreme Deity of the Yoruba, Olorun. It is said that at the beginning there was nothing but a marshy wasteland with no definite Earth or water. There were many deities surrounding and attending to the Almighty Olorun, but only Orisha Nla was selected to carry out the task of creating a world.

Olorun gave Orisha Nla several gifts for his task. These gifts included a shell filled with Earth that had been infused with special energy, a five-toed hen, and a pigeon. These gifts were to [Page 506]accompany Orisha Nia wherever he went in his work of organizing the wasteland into an ordered world. The task was difficult because to bring order from chaos is not ...