Odu Obara: Meaning, Strength & Symbolism

Obara: Strength, Humility and the Right Use of Will

Obara, the Resting and Hovering One, embodies the essence of strength, or the spirit of resilience. However, when strength is misapplied, it can manifest as an attempt to impose one's will on others. Ifa teaches that this inappropriate exercise of personal will is rooted in egotism, which arises from an inflated self-perception.

What Obara Represents

Obara is the Odu of power that has not yet learned restraint. It describes a person of genuine capability whose greatest risk is themselves. The strength is real. The question Obara asks is whether it will be used to build or to dominate.

Obara rests and hovers because it is waiting to see how the querent will behave once they hold influence. It is a testing Odu, and it tends to appear at moments when a person is about to gain something that will reveal their character.

When Obara Appears in Divination

When Obara appears, the querent is usually being asked to examine their motivations. The reading frequently indicates that a person has been pushing an agenda rather than listening, and that relationships or opportunities are suffering as a result.

In its positive expression Obara brings resilience, the capacity to endure, and the strength to transform a difficult situation. In its difficult expression it brings arrogance, isolation and conflict with those whose cooperation is actually required.

How to Work With Obara

Obara prescribes humility in action. It encourages consultation, patience and the deliberate practice of considering another person's position before acting. Where sacrifice is indicated, it is generally concerned with cooling the head, settling disputes and restoring harmony within a household or community.

The lesson of Obara is that strength becomes wisdom only when it is placed at the service of something larger than the self. Used that way, it transforms. Used otherwise, it isolates.

Obara and the Ifa Corpus

Obara is one of the sixteen principal Odu from which the two hundred and fifty-six are derived. It is distinct from Obara Meji, which is Obara doubled and carries its own interpretation.