The Diloggun

DIVINATION / INDIGENOUS CULTURES
"In this new book ocha'ni Lele has brought together information never before published for the education of serious students of divination, and for use by initiated practitioners of African traditional religions, especially those who follow La Regla de Ocha. In doing so, he has more than justified his own claim that 'one cannot overstate the academic and scholastic value' of this work."
--Edward Batchelor, Jr., Fellow in Religion, Yale University
The diloggun, the cowrie-shell oracle of Cuban Santeria, is more than a tool of divination. It is the doorway to a powerful transformational process, and the forces that are set in motion when it is cast determine the future evolution of the adherent. "The Diloggun" explores this mysterious Afro-Cuban oracle from the perspective of diaspora orisha worship and includes a thorough exploration of the body of lore surrounding the oracle, which is the living Bible of one of the world's fastest growing faiths.
ocha'ni Lele provides a detailed description of each of the twelve families of "odu" that exist in the diloggun--from Okana through Ejila Shebora. Within these twelve families are 192 "omo odu," the children of the odu, and each of these patterns or letters has its own lore, proverbs, meanings, prohibitions, and sacrifices, which Lele details as well. He is the first to provide the hitherto secret, but essential, information that the adept diviner needs to have in order to ensure that every element affecting a client's spiritual development is taken into account during a reading. He includes all the major indications for sacrifice, "ebo," providing the diviner with numerous ways to placate and supplicate the Afro-Cuban deities known as "orishas." His book is also the first to detail how to properly end a session so that negative vibrations are absorbed by the orishas and fully removed from the diviner's home. For those seeking the wisdom of ancient Africa, "The Diloggun" is an indispensable guide to the mysteries of the orishas.
oCHA'NI LELE has been immersed in the underground culture of orisha worship since 1989. He made Ocha in 2000 and was crowned a priest of Oya. His other books include "The Secrets of Afro-Cuban Divination" and "Obi Oracle of Cuban Santeria." He lives in Florida.