The Sacrifice of Mórimi

Author: Traditional Yoruba

Time Period: 1001 CE–1500 CE

Country or Culture: Africa

Genre: Folktale

PLOT SUMMARY

During the rule of Odudúwa, the founder of the Yoruba nation, the beautiful and virtuous Mórimi is living in the country of Ilé-Ifè with her husband, Obálufon. Mórimi is unable to conceive a boy for her husband, although his lesser wives have succeeded in giving him a son. She has, however, given birth to a daughter, Adétoún, who is also beautiful. Nevertheless, Mórimi longs to be able to give a son to her loving husband.

Day after day and season after season, Mórimi is mired in great grief regarding her situation. She decides to consult a priest of the god Ífa. The priest uses a sacred charm, an Okpéllè, to determine the cause of Mórimi’s plight. The divination of the Okpéllè reveals to the priest and Mórimi that the gods would have been willing to give her sons, but Éshu the Undoer (a god whose name is equated with the devil) is preventing such a conception. The priest explains that Éshu demands that Mórimi make a sacrifice to him in exchange for a son. The sacrifice must be her only daughter, Adétoún.

Mórimi is shocked by this revelation. Although she longs for a son, she refuses to give up her only child to make this happen. She becomes bitter at the gods who would manipulate her in such a way, and she returns home to avoid the action that “love command[s], and love condemn[s]” (Wyndham 38). However, the trickster god Édi approaches Mórimi to remind her of the gravity of the priest’s words. Édi is known for his sly way with words, and he uses this quality to convince Mórimi to reconsider. Mórimi is defiant and questions the idea of using a person as currency and asks why her only daughter would be the only worthy sacrifice.

The priest, Édi tells her, is the messenger of Ífa, who is using the priest to convey the will of the gods. The word of Ífa, as relayed through his messengers, is just as important as it would be if Ífa spoke directly to Mórimi. Therefore, Édi says, Ífa’s statement cannot be disregarded. Édi continues by telling Mórimi that her decision would be critical for her people. The gods spoke to Odudúwa and told him that he must father the Yoruba people. By sacrificing Adétoún, Mórimi would be creating a house of kings for Obálufon and the entire Yoruba nation.

Mórimi accepts Édi’s comments as the truth, and Édi returns to the shadows while Mórimi sacrifices her daughter on the altar of Éshu. Her sacrifice brings her a son for Obálufon and helps strengthen the Yoruba people.

SIGNIFICANCE

Mórimi is considered one of the progenitors of the Yoruba nation. Mórimi was a member of the royal family of Odudúwa through her marriage with Obálufon. As such, Mórimi is considered larger than life, with each of her emotions powerful. Her grief for not conceiving a son, for example, is palpable since she experiences this pain year round, with every sight reminding her of the intense longing she feels. When Ífa, through the priest, tells her the reason she cannot bear a son for her husband, her grief is compounded by feelings of anger and even defiance. Such emotional strength illustrates Mórimi’s personal power and distinction among the Yoruba people.

The story is also indicative of the relationship between mortals and the gods in Yoruba tradition. Although she is virtuous and loving, Mórimi is unable to conceive a son due to the demands of the gods. The god preventing her from achieving this goal is Éshu, described in many other African stories as the equivalent to the devil. Although Éshu is clearly not among the more benevolent gods (including Ífa), he is nonetheless powerful and autonomous. Mórimi, for example, cannot ask the other gods to intervene or even intercede with Éshu in order to meet her needs. Instead, she must sacrifice her beautiful daughter or live the rest of her life grieving.

Furthermore, Mórimi’s experience underscores the enormous sacrifices that occurred in order to bring the Yoruba nation into being. Mórimi, although longing to provide a son for her husband and continue the bloodline of Odudúwa, nevertheless loves her daughter, Adétoún, too much to destroy her. Only after her third consultation with the messengers of the gods does she agree, but her acceptance comes after she is convinced to do so by Édi. This trickster god, speaking slyly and manipulatively, helps Mórimi come to understand that her sacrifice would benefit not only her immediate family, but the present and future generations of Yoruba people as well.

Mórimi’s sacrifice of Adétoún would not be her last such action. In a later story, the son she later bears is also placed in jeopardy. In that tale, Mórimi helps her people defeat an invading nation (the Igbo) with the assistance of the gods. She allows herself to be captured and enslaved by the Igbo king, who, captivated by her beauty and strength, soon reveals his army’s weaknesses. Mórimi escapes and shares this information with the Yorubas, who use it to defeat the Igbos. Mórimi attempts to thank the gods by making a number of offerings, but again, there is only one sacrifice they will accept: her only son. Mórimi reluctantly agrees, but when she commits the act, her son is brought back to life as a reward for Mórimi’s willingness to do what is necessary for her people.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Abrahams, Roger D., ed. African Folktales. New York: Pantheon, 1983. Print.

Dennett, Richard Edward. Nigerian Studies; or; The Religious and Political System of the Yoruba. London: MacMillan, 1910. Print.

“The Motherland—Moremi Ajasoro: Princess of the Yoruba.” Isikuro. N.p., 18 Sept. 2013. Web. 19 June 2013.

Rosenberg, Donna, ed. World Mythology: An Anthology of the Great Myths and Epics. Lincolnwood: NTC, 1994. Print.

Wyndham, John. “The Sacrifice of Mórimi.” Myths of Ífè. London: Erskine MacDonald, 1921. 35–39. Print.