Olorun

Etymology

In relative terms, the name is self-explanatory. It is composed of the prefix Ol or oni (owner) and Orun (heaven). Thus, the name means the owner or the Lord of Heaven. The name is also rendered as Olu-Orun, which means He is the King or Ruler of the Heavens. The thought that Olu-Orun is a god in charge of the skies (and, indeed, at times Olorun is referred to as Orisa-oke) made some early writers assume that Olorun is one of the nature deities. For example, one writer asserted that Olorun is one of the Orisa(s) or nature deities. Although divinities and deified personalities and kings may sometimes be called Orisa, the term Olorun is applied to the Supreme Deity alone by the Yoruba and is never used in the plural. The status of the deities in the Yoruba structure might be seen as shown in the following section.

The Status of Olorun

The gradations of status in Yoruba religious structure are as follows:

• 1.
  The Supreme Deity—Olorun or Olodumare
• 2.
  The major Orisa (of whom Esu and Ifa are the most important)
• 3.
  The deified spirits of ancestors and other spirits (of whom Oro, Ehuku, Agemo, and Egungun are the most prominent)
• 4.
  The minor Orisa (examples include orisa oko, oke, and aje)

Over and above all the other deities classified above and excelling them in power, honor, and majesty is Olorun (Supreme Deity), known as a Being of unique character, possessing attributes far too noble, far too abstract and refined to have originated from the thought of a primitive people.

Unlike the Ashanti of Ghana and Kikuyu of Kenya, the Yoruba do not have temples, priests, and altars for Olorun, but nevertheless God is real to the people. Although the Yoruba have no image of Olorun, that should not be misconstrued to mean the denial or lack of belief in the Supreme Being. Rather, it is a mark of the unique position of Olorun. Although the Yoruba worship some divinities and venerate some ancestors, they consider these as intermediacies between Olorun and human beings.

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