The Creation of the World (Yoruba)
In the beginning, there was only water and chaos. Olodumare, the Supreme Being, sent Obatala down from the heavens with a calabash filled with soil, a rooster, and a palm nut. Obatala poured the soil onto the waters, and the rooster spread it to create dry land at Ile-Ife, the cradle of existence. He planted the palm nut, which grew into a great tree with sixteen branches, symbolizing the sixteen sacred Odù Ifá. Olodumare then breathed life into the clay figurines Obatala had molded, creating the first humans. Thus Ile-Ife became the sacred birthplace of Yoruba civilization and the dwelling pl