Divination for Santeria is similar to the Western practice of tarot reading, numerology, and astrology. It is also identical to psychic mediums in the sense that it is a form of communicating with the spirits. However, Murphy was talking about an ancient kind of religious tradition that originated from the Santería. According to this African religious tradition that arose from Cuba, divination allows people to find sense and meaning to events and circumstances that take place in an individual’s life. In fact, for many of its believers, divination is the counterpart of “black magic”. In ancient times, it is believed that black magic causes illnesses and misfortunes, the role of divination is to counter the effects of black magic and render healing to the body and the spirit. Divination is an integral component of the Santeria. For many of its followers and believers, divination is a medium or a way for them to receive a message from the Orichas , as well as the spirits of their ancestors or the Egún . These messages serve as their guide as they go through their day-to-day lives and existence. The Orichas , being the intermediaries between the deities and human beings, possesses divine characteristics and are believed to demi-gods who embodies a few human traits and characteristics. However, many outsiders often mistake the Orichas as the god of Santeria. Contrary to this misconception, the Orichas are generally considered as saints, especially among the Cuban practitioners of Santeria.
Over the years, divination has shifted away from what it was initially intended for in the practice of Santeria. As mentioned earlier, there are more contemporary and Westernized versions of divination that has been shifted away from the Sentaria’s perspective. Divination is not fortune-telling, unlike its modern counterpart. The aim of divination is not merely prophesizing the future for amusement and entertainment purposes. Initially, divination begins with the devotee’s problem, and the santeros/santeras would address these problems depending on what areas of the devotee’s life it affects (Murphy, 2011, p.134). Since life is generally poor at that time, common problems would usually affect health, relationships, and finances. The practitioners this ancient religious ritual would turn to the orichas to aid in healing the devotee of their medical conditions. Modern santeros/santeras would nowadays send devotees to medical practitioners or qualified doctors for the physiologic. However, santeros/santeras are almost certain that whatever illness the devotee complains about will recur unless the message of the orichas has been disclosed and addressed (Murphy, 2011, p.134).
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On the other hand, problems like finances and infidelity are attributed to stubbornness and refusal to listen to the message of the orichas. Overall, for the Santeria, every human being has a mission to carry out to live peacefully and worry-free. The devotee has to live by and follow this message to avoid any conflict. Divination can only be meaningful for a practitioner after they have fully mastered the two significant forms of divination in the Santerian religion, which include the Ifa and the Dilogun (Murphy, 2011, p.118). This would consist of mastering at least 256 different signs for every reading to help direct the devotee to the true essence of the divine message.
The system of Divination plays a significant role during the displacement and diaspora. Ifá divination allows for the transmission of rituals from Africa to the diaspora. The displacement of the African tribes caused the disappearance of many of the native traditions and practices innate to the culture. However, through the preservation of the system of Divination, the African community has been able to preserve some of their traditions, at least as far as the practice of rituals and ceremonies. It became the vehicle of thought managed to sustain specific details and features of the Yorùbá language and sacred orature that was lost during the diaspora.
Reference
Murphy, J. (2011). Santeria (3rd ed.). Boston, MA: Beacon Press.
