THE OJISE INSTITUTE OF

IFA/ISESE STUDIES

INSTRUCTOR: PROFESSOR OLOYE “BABA” IFA KARADE

PROGRAM DIRECTOR: BABA “ORISAGBEMI” IFAGBADE

SEMESTER 1:  AN IN-DEPTH STUDY OF THE FUNDAMENTALS OF IFA/ISESE

DATES: FEBRUARY 6, 2025, TO APRIL 17, 2025

COST: $297.00

GENERAL OVERVIEW:

CLASSES WILL MEET WEEK FROM 7PM est. UNTIL 7:45 PM est.  VIA ZOOM SCHEDULED MEETINGS.

LECTURES WILL BE BASED ON GUIDELINES PROVIDED BY THE INSTRUCTOR SUPPORTED BY TEXTBOOKS,  SUPPORTING REFERENCES, AND ACADEMIC ESSAYS ON THE SUBJECT OF IFA/ISESE. PARTICIPATION IS REQUIRED AS IS COMPLETION OF ASSIGNMENTS.

TOPICS INCLUDE:

A.  FROM MISEDUCATION TO LIBERATION

1.    HOW AND WHY HAVE WE BEEN SUBJECTED TO NEGATIVE IMAGERY, DISTORTIONS, AND MISCONCEPTIONS OF IFA/ISESE SPECIFICALLY AND AFRICAN CULTURE GENERALLY. AND WHAT MUST BE DONE TO COUNTERACT THIS NEGATIVITY.

KEY TERMS: ASCERTAINMENT BIAS AND SELECTION BIAS

B.   AN IN-DEPTH STUDY OF THE ORISHA BASED ON MENTAL AND INTERNAL PERSPECTIVES ALONG WITH COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS.

INSIGHTS INTO THE STUDY OF ORISHA VIA SHIFTS IN CURRENT PERSPECTIVES.

KEY TERMS: ABSORB ACTIVITIES, DO ACTIVITIES, AND CONNECT ACTIVITIES 

C.   ORUNMILA AND THE PHILOSOPHY OF IFA

1.    AN IN-DEPTH STUDY OF ORUNMILA AND THE ODU-IFA CORPUS.

LEARNING THE SIXTEEN ODU AND APPLYING COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS WILL ALSO BE COVERED.

KEY TERMS: PHILOSOPHY, SACERDOTAL, RELIGION, SPIRTUALITY, AND WISDOM

METHODOLOGIES: A. ACCUMULATE

                                    B. APPLY

                                    C. ASSIMILATE

                                    D.  AFFIRM

PURPOSE:  A. RECALIBRATION

                     B. REDETERMINATION

                     C. REINVENTION

                     D. REFORMATION

                    REQUIRED READINGS:

1.    THE HANDBOOK OF YORUBA RELIGIOUS CONCEPTS

2.    IMOYE

3.    THE IFA/ORISHA RELIGIOUS TRADITION: A NEW GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE

4.    OJISE: MESSENGER OF THE YORUBA TRADITION

           BOOKS/PDFS ARE AVAILABLE ON AMAZON AND/OR OLOYEKARADE.GUMROAD.COM

Professor Oloye Ifa Karade has been active as a Babalawo, chief priest, and writer on the subject of Ifa/Isese for over forty years. He’s been a keynote speaker at colleges and conferences throughout the U.S. and the globe. His travels include Kenya, Nigeria, Trinidad, Puerto Rico, Brazil, France, The Netherlands, and England. He received his degree in Africana Studies from Rutgers University, NJ having studied with noted researcher Professor Ivan Van Sertima. Oloye was initiated in Ejibo, Nigeria under the auspices of Iyanla Keye and Araba Malomo Agbede in 1991. He returned in 1992 and visited Ile-Ife, Ibadan, and Badagri. Oloye established his ile/temple Ile Tawo Lona in New Jersey, USA. There he presided as chief priest for over two decades. In 2003 he was the recipient of The Lifetime Achievement Award in Ifa.  Oloye “Baba” Ifa Karade has written several textbooks and novels, and two audiobooks based on Ifa/Isese as an empirical source, anecdotal source and a creative source. He’s also a retired secondary school teacher and currently holds position as Professor of Literacy at Essex County College, Newark, NJ.