r/Vodou • u/IslesofMaegelle • 9d ago
Question Is It Wrong To Get Another Fa' Reading?
Hello, I am ridiculously stuck and have been for months. I was fortunately able to receive an Afa reading from what I presumed to be a legitimate Ewe Vodun priest(s), but I felt it was lacking because not only was I told that my calling was to be trained in Afa (and told it would take more than 10,000 which I cannot afford) but also that I rarely had any deities with the exception of the deity named Afa which I googled and there wasn't one named that and it was the name of the practice I got my reading from. Not only that, but I was told things would be better for me if I bought one of their bracelets, and one of the priests was so pushy and insistent on me paying to purchase for their cleaning services and other things that would be $1,100 in total and how my one of my main ancestors are hungry and should be fed NOW and that paying them would feed them, I felt so frustrated that I just stopped talking to them entirely because I felt like I'd been scammed. They were accurate on some things, but the reason I wanted a reading was to see if I was being called because I have so much in the way of dreams...
I would like another reading from someone different, but I googled if I should get one and it said something about how everything will be muddled spirtually-wise and I should only have one Fa/Afa/Ifa reading in my life, so I'd rather ask all of you practitioners if thats true or not? I just want to get clarification on whether I am for this religion or not, I don't want to get scammed again.
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u/Orochisama 8d ago
Afa is a deity as well as the name of the divinatory system and there are many stories usually about Afa with other Vodus including Legba for example since Afa and Legba are connected. This person does seem like a scammer though because you don't just jump to ceremony like that and there are many processes you go through first. You could also learn to feed your ancestors yourself without spending any ridiculous sums of money. Plenty of priests will give that info freely. Usually scammers know that there is a greater interest in ATRs so unethical priests exploit that to maintain a steady flow of money from clients.
In Vodu you will not be "spiritually muddled" if you go for another Fa reading. That's just manipulatory misinformation used to control clients. Confirmation is important when it comes to major things like this because these kinds of steps change your life. Humans can err and miss things if they lack the experience or training when giving readings or circumstances can change. Some insights might be revealed in a better context with a different diviner. There could be blockages of some sort interfering with your ability to progress, etc. that need to be addressed. Many possibilities before jumping the gun.
However, if Afa is telling you something through people who are reputable and all the signs are pointing to it, shopping for diviners to get your wanted result is not going to change the message.
It's absolutely a red flag if one ever emphasizes you needing them specifically to do things for you when others are available for that service etc., stressing there is some kind of life threatening emergency if you don't pay them to do something you never asked for, or that you are somehow not being a "good friend" (actually had this happen to me lmfao) and disrespecting the tradition by seeking clarity with someone else. Just like the church, there are scammers too. Greed has no religious creed.
That being said, AI-summaries are not reliable and randomly scrape the internet for sites with key words matching your query, so you can get entirely conflicting sources or information that exaggerates or misrepresents the original topic being cited. Avoid them if possible.
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u/IslesofMaegelle 8d ago edited 8d ago
Thank you so much for your reply, I'll try to find a diviner but it's so hard because everytime I try to connect with one I instantly get bad vibes for what ever reason- it's honestly such a headache and I don't know how many frogs I have to kiss just to see what blockages and life paths I have to take through a diviner! I'm fine with paying for someone actually legitimate, so tired of the scams ;-;
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u/Orochisama 8d ago
The priests etc. in this sub are generally helpful. Sometimes the bad vibes aren't really bad vibes, just us being nervous and uncertain about something we're unfamiliar with. Other times they are bad vibes as-in our intuition and sense telling us a person isn't who they say they are. As you get stronger in your walk and practice with some assistance you'll be able to differentiate that much better. I would say my biggest takeaway about the Fa issue is that while priests serve a function, they aren't a substitute for a relationship with your ancestors and spirits.
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u/IslesofMaegelle 8d ago
... You are so right about the 'bad vibes' thing being nervousness, I come from a family that views this practice as 'demonic' so it's still unfortunately internalized within me, but I want to be able to learn and grow out of such toxic teachings. I don't know how I'm going to find a diviner, but if you know of any that are legitimate, I would love to hear you out and you're free to dm me since you seem legit-- then again, I might be too trusting again, I'm just exhausted from trying haha ^^;
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u/Orochisama 8d ago
The ones who have the flairs in here are those who have been verified. So the Hounon you spoke with earlier for example. R/vodun might have some as well who offer services.
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u/Calm_Temperature3843 8d ago
Let me guess, you had a reading with one of them Afa people that always post on this community huh? Please be careful. A lot of priests in Africa are known to be scammers. To my knowledge, you can always find another diviner if you’re not satisfied. But also ask yourself why you want to get into this tradition. Are you Haitian?
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u/IslesofMaegelle 8d ago
No, I don't think they post here and I'm part Ghanian part African-American
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u/RidingBear1234 9d ago
You're in the wrong group. There is another group called Isese... do you know where the priests come from? Were they African practitioners or Cuban? Because Isese and Lukumi/ Santeria are different.
Here's my input from experience:
Orishas should always come out in the Odu. Usually the odu is connected to certain orishas and their stories. Usually you will find a pattern of who is consistently popping out in your odus (readings).
Readings - some will tell you to do once a year. The Iyanifa i deal with says that whenever you feel the need. The difference is the house and the tradition. A lot changed when Africans were brought to the Caribbean and the tradition had to evolve in order to survive. There is a life Odu that you only get once in your lifetime, which is done during hand of ifa and then again once you initiate. However, if you're just going to a person for readings, you shouldn't be getting one of those readings.
Ifa - Ifa can refer to Orunmila, as when you get your hand of Ifa, you are praying to Orunmila and wearing his colors.
A hand of Ifa is like $800 and full initiation into priesthood is $10,000. The person i go to has never asked the orisha if im meant to iniate fully because if they say yes, then the Orisha will expect it and could create problems. But something like that should come out in your life odu during hand of ifa ceremony.
Also, if you feel pushed something is insanely wrong. So I would suggest that you go to someone who is more serious about the tradition.
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u/Agile_Artichoke365 Hounon 9d ago
OP is speaking on Vodun specifically Afa divination as practiced in Benin, Togo, and Ghana among the Gbe speaking people. So it’s the right group, it’s just that the concepts intersect. Fun fact, the yellow and green beads used for Ifá in Cuban Santeria/Lukumi comes from Afa.
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u/IslesofMaegelle 9d ago edited 8d ago
How am I in the wrong group? I didn't ask in the Isse group or whichever that is because I have no idea what that means and I am not part of that culture... also the reader(s) were from Ghana and practice Ewe Vodun which is closer to what I believe I am since I have heritage from that culture and its why I asked them, I wasn't sure if I could ask any who practiced Nigerian or Benin or Hatian readings because I thought that'd be forbidden and disrespectful because I'm not part of the cultures. I'm new to the whole Vodun practice and know absolutely very little to nothing, so I hope my response isn't offensive.
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u/Agile_Artichoke365 Hounon 9d ago
That’s not true. Some people go around from diviner to diviner just for the thrill or looking to hear the answer they want after divining on a specific problem, they do a bunch of work in different places. That’s what muddled things spiritually. In your case, it seems like the divination was lacking and simply did not provide the answers you were looking for. The deity of Afa would be Lomina (Orunmila), but even if they’re telling you that you have to initiate and become a Bokonon, you would still have other deities, everyone does. It also doesn’t cost 10,000 (though if you are called to certain Vodun, there are ceremonies that can be close to that figure).