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Power, protection and authority; a boss, matriarch or strong older figure and the resources they command.

The monogram of Christ from the first two letters of the Greek Christos, used as a protective and triumphant sign from the fourth century.

Egyptian symbol of protection, royal power, and good health; represents the eye of the falcon god Horus

The fierce eye of the sun, a protective and punitive force associated with Sekhmet, Hathor and the uraeus.

Hand symbol offering protection against evil eye and negative energies

The jeweled parasol: protection from the heat of suffering and the shade of royal care.

Five-pointed star representing aether over matter, the five elements, and the human form

The five-pointed star drawn in one stroke: the four elements plus spirit, and the human figure with arms and legs outstretched.

The dung beetle rolling the ball of the sun: Khepri, the rising sun, and the self-renewing soul.

Elk, protection, spiritual defense, higher self, sanctuary

Yew, death/rebirth, protection, endurance, mysteries

Òdí is the fourth odù and the completion of the first four, which the tradition reads as the four corner-points of the universe: Ọ̀gbẹ̀ birth, Ọ̀yẹ̀kú death, Ìwòrì transformation, Òdí rebirth. It is the womb, and it is fertility, motherhood and childbirth, with the doubled sense that a womb is also a bounded space — so the odù speaks of restriction and limit as well as of increase. It brings a child, often a daughter, long life and Ifá's protection, and it warns of unresolved matter carried over from the past. Its characteristic instruction is to keep the feet on the ground and to use the voice — the odù's people are persuasive, and their success in a dispute comes from speaking well and truthfully.

Thorn, giant, protection, defensive force, gateway

Cross with circle, representing four directions unified in center, or sun and cross combined

The white conch: the sound of the dharma, the call that wakes and gathers.

Intersection of vertical and horizontal, representing union of heaven and earth, four directions

The wheel of the dharma: the teaching, the eightfold path, and the turning of the wheel that is the Buddha's first sermon.

The tet pillar of Osiris: the backbone, stability and the resurrection of the dead.

The knot without beginning or end: the interconnection of all phenomena and the continuity of the teaching.

Two triangles representing union of opposites, heaven and earth, masculine and feminine

Army, discipline, organization, collective effort

Ìká is the drawing in of power — ka as the act of pulling together — and the odù of àṣẹ itself: the breath taken before the ọfọ̀ is spoken, the gathering of personal power that makes prayer effective. It is the feminine principle of contraction, and it says that the same gathered power can build a life or destroy it according to the thought behind it. It brings long life when it is ìre, and when it is not it is self-hatred, gossip and cursing. It is associated with the Ìyàmi because power over the world is the Mothers' birthright, and with the collective power of Ẹgbẹ́. Its people are surrounded by haters and must not speak or think negatively.

The double-headed axe of the Minoan goddess and the labyrinth: the power to cut and to consecrate, and the axis of the sacred maze.

The seven-branched lamp of the Temple: the seven days of creation, the seven planets, and the light that is kept burning.

Ọ̀bàrà is the odù of the tongue, of eloquence, and of wealth that arrives out of something worthless. The verse the tradition tells is the one in which Ọ̀bàrà's companions push their pumpkins onto him and he finds that the king had hidden money and treasure inside them — so the odù is read as sudden fortune from a source nobody valued, and as the reward of the person who does not refuse what is given. It also makes the person a talker, which is both the odù's gift and its danger: the same tongue that wins the case can lose the friends, and the tradition's counsel is to use it to defend rather than to wound.

Òfún is the last of the sixteen and the principle of whiteness, which the tradition reads as pure consciousness in its first form: the àṣẹ that generates consciousness in the Irúnmọlẹ̀, and the point at which prayer becomes manifestation. It is sacred to Ọ̀bàtálá and to Òdùduwà, and the tradition places the birth of the fundamental principles of earth in it, where Ọ̀gbẹ̀ holds the birth of humankind — so the first and last odù stand in a special relation, the cycle closing on itself. Its main ìre is leadership and honour. Its people are generous and rich in wisdom, they carry Ọ̀bàtálá's traits, and they are often physically frail; the odù asks patience, compromise and an understanding of give and take.

Òṣé-Ọ̀gbẹ̀ is abundance arriving at the open road: collection of what is owed, payment in full for work done, and success in business shared with a friend. It is a prosperity odù with a sharp practical edge — the commentary's first instruction is to collect the debts and to refuse to work without a contract, which is unusually concrete for the corpus. Its warning is that abundance must not become greed, and that the person must not associate with bad people; it also says the person may be confiding in someone who is in fact an enemy. Èṣù Ọ̀dàrà appears in the verse because the road, and who one meets on it, is the odù's subject.

Celtic knot representing the triple goddess, holy trinity, or three-fold nature of existence

The three-pronged trident of Shiva: the three gunas, the three worlds, and the destruction that makes renewal possible.

The thunderbolt and diamond sceptre of Indra and the Vajrayana: indestructible power and the clear light of realisation.

The banner of victory: the dharma's triumph over ignorance, and the courage that raises it.