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Tope Alabi Advised To Undergo Ancestry DNA Test
Tope Alabi, a well-known gospel artist, has been told to take an ancestry Deoxyribo Nucleic Acid (DNA) test to confirm her origin.
The warning comes after Alabi was heard in one of her latest songs integrating a Yoruba traditionalists’ common greeting phrase, ‘Aboru aboye,’ into the supposed worship song.
During an earlier conversation with journalists, an Ifa-priest, Oluwo Jogbodo Orunmila, stated that it became crucial for the award-winning singer to take the DNA test to determine her origins.
In the popular music video, Alabi and her backing singers were cited as calling themselves “ebo.” ‘Ebo’ literally means “sacrifice.”
Tope Alabi and her vocalists, on the other hand, underlined in the song that they are ‘Aboru Aboye,’ which means that God has accepted them as sacrifices.
Orunmila, the chief priest of Iledi Imule Agba in Oyan, Odo Otin North Local Council Development Authority in Osun State, responded at a media talk on Monday, saying that Alabi has always been interwoven in the usage of traditionalists’ lexicons.
He recalled Alabi’s use of ‘Eledumare,’ as well as various other assessments for Orunmila (god of wisdom) other Yoruba deities.
The Ibadan-based priest said, “All these phrases showed that Tope Alabi needs ancestry DNA to confirm that she belongs to the Ifa tradition. Those words are forcing their way out, she only needs the right teachers to get fully on track.
“Ifa is ancestry. When a lineage known to be Ifa practitioners stop its practice, there will be a day when one of the family members will illustrate the doctrines of Ifa, knowingly or unknowingly.”
He stated that whoever has come out to label Alabi as an idol worshipper is simply fueling public opinion and is especially unaware that Ifa only identifies people who want to be identified because it values secrecy.
“Identifying with Ifa is discretionary. One can either let the public know or not. Ifa does not stop you from identifying with other religions even when you are under its supervision,” Orunmila reportedly said.
Speaking on whether the phrase is a usual lexicon that anybody could use, Orunmila said, “It is not. It is certainly used by the Ifa initiates.
“The Ifa worshippers (Babalawo and Iyanifa) are the ones that use that to greet one another because it was a legacy passed by Orunmila. In fact, ‘Aboru Aboye’ is often accompanied by ‘ni Ile Ifa’, meaning ‘May everything including sacrifices, be accepted in this Ifa household.’”
He went on to explain how the phrase became a customary greeting among Ifa initiates, claiming that Odu Ifa Ogunda’ meji’ in the Ifa corpus grew the stories of three women, Aboru, Aboye, and Abosise, who provided special assistance to Orunmila.
“It was said that in a bid for Orunmila to consult Olodumare, these three women were like guardians that must be appeased to help Ile-Ife be peaceful.