Steps to the Throne: Understanding Lucumí Initiation - Xenia Rodriguez

The call to initiate rarely arrives as a gentle whisper. It shows up in a reading when health falters, legal trouble looms, or a deep restlessness refuses to quiet. We walk through that first doorway with X, a returning guest who speaks candidly about what Lukumi initiation actually requires: the blueprint revealed in Hand of Ifa, the real meaning of crowning, and the life changes demanded long before anyone wears white.

We dig into the year in white—one year and seven days of discipline where every choice is a test. No open waters, no late nights, no cursing, no shortcuts. X explains why these taboos protect a newborn priest and how breaking them can cost you later. From there we get practical about choosing elders: the birthing godparent’s duties, the role of the oyubona and Oriaté, and the signs of an ethical house that corrects with love, shows up after ceremony, and refuses to treat you like a transaction.

Lineage and learning sit at the heart of our talk. Regla de Ocha‑Ifa is built on rules handed down through lineages; knowing your rama keeps you grounded in a living chain. We contrast book knowledge with hands‑on formation—carrying water, watching elders work, and earning wisdom through service. And we draw a hard line on social media: what should remain sacred, why aleyos should not divine, and how clout chasing harms seekers. Finally, we face the hard stuff—racism, language barriers, and division across the diaspora—and share ways to build bridges that strengthen houses and elevate ancestors.

If you’re discerning initiation, seeking a trustworthy godparent, or trying to sort signal from noise online, this conversation offers clarity without hype and reverence without secrecy theatre. Subscribe, share this with someone who needs it, and leave a review with the one insight you’re taking forward.

Chapters

• 0:00 Welcome And Today’s Focus
• 2:40 Who Gets Called To Initiate
• 5:15 Readings, Hand Of Ifa, And Pathways
• 9:00 Ego, Aleyos, And Boundaries
• 12:35 Preparing The Mind And Life
• 15:50 The Year In White: Tests And Taboos
• 22:20 Newbie Divination And Social Media
• 25:35 Duties Of Godparents And Elders
• 31:20 What To Seek In A Godparent
• 36:10 Lineage, Rules, And Tradition
• 42:30 Book Learning Vs Hands-On Work
• 48:00 Hype, Titles, And Pandemic Trends
• 53:20 What Should Stay Sacred Online

Transcript

SPEAKER_00: 0:11

Peace world, peace world. Long time no see. It's your brother Mikey Fever. Welcome to another episode of NYP Talk Show. The toughest, the roarest, the realest. Conscious show in the conscious sphere. You know what I'm saying? We talk about the occult spiritual practices, philosophy, you know, psych, you know, psychology, and all that good stuff. Peace to the chat, peace of the world, peace to everybody. We have our good sister for the second time on this platform, Miss Zania Rodriguez.

SPEAKER_03: 0:44

You could call me X. You could call me Family Calls Me X. You could call me X. How are you doing?

SPEAKER_00: 0:50

We're good. We're good. Shout out to the baby in the cut. Yeah, we'll say the baby. We got some questions for the baby later on. Don't forget to comment, like, share, subscribe, people. You know what I'm saying? It's a beautiful, it's a yo, it's a beautiful day. It was a beautiful day and it's a beautiful evening. We're about to have a great show. Sister, what's going on?

SPEAKER_03: 1:11

Nothing, just vibing. Um, it was a great interview and a great vibe last time. It really didn't feel like an interview, it just felt like just family just chit-chatting. So when you told me if I was down to do another one, I definitely said, absolutely. Um, I'm not big on these, but I think that your your energy, what you guys are doing with your platform, um, it definitely needs to, you know, be spoken about and and be spread out. So I'm happy.

SPEAKER_00: 1:41

Thank you. Shout out to my brother Ron, Ron Brown. He knows he knows what's up too. Yeah, that's what we're here for, man. We're here to you know set that bridge amongst the continental African, the diaspora, and the and the black Americans here as well. Because you know, we're just one story that has been fragmented. We gotta learn to understand one another, man. It's get rid of all that diaspora war. I'm here, I'm this and that. Nah, we all won. So let's get into it, man. Tonight's topic is steps into the throne. Steps to the throne. Understanding the Luke, the locomie initiation.

SPEAKER_03: 2:16

Okay, well, that's a nice topic.

SPEAKER_00: 2:19

Yeah, man. We're not gonna get in too deep. We're not gonna disrespect, you know, violate, you know, oaks and all that and sacredness. We're gonna keep it clean, and you know, we're gonna keep it PG.

SPEAKER_03: 2:28

PG Aleyo. We gotta be a Aleo friendly. That's that's what I say in my videos. Aleyo friendly. I only speak about Aleyo friendlies.

SPEAKER_00: 2:38

Most definitely, definitely. So let's get into the first question. What signs traditionally indicate that someone is being called towards the initiation of Lokimi, of Lokemy, pardon me?

SPEAKER_03: 2:51

Well, to be honest, back in the day, and I don't like use the term, I don't like to use the term back in the day because now we're grabbing this term of back in the day, and people just throwing it everywhere, right? But at least from my experience, from what I've seen growing up, um, most of the people that would eventually end up initiating or having to initiate into, you know, lukumi, santeria, regla de ocha, whichever term you want to use, um, it was pretty much for two things. It was it was either the person was very ill, and for you know, the orichas were marked or would mark them for to get initiated to health, you know, to save their health or whatever, or to save their lives, sorry. Or if they had some issues with the law, you know, that was something very big, especially back in Miami in the 80s and the early 90s, you know, when when the movement of a lot of illegal stuff was going on, and a lot of people would go to pretty much reach out to religion, right? To save themselves from less time and stuff like this. Um, in my opinion, I think that initiating, whether it is receiving your Hanabi Fa or rather just initiating, whether it is by receiving your elekes. Some people enter by receiving olokum, who is a very, very important oritchia for us in Lukumin. Um, it's pretty much on what the person is going, is living that moment, right? I think everybody starts their journey. I think 99.9% of us start our journeys through a rating, right? Something is going on, and we go to get a rating, whether it's with a la lao, whether it's with uh mayumbero, whether it is with an Oriate, but that's where it all starts. It's through a reading.

SPEAKER_00: 4:54

Okay. So with the reading will determine what path he or she should take, right?

SPEAKER_03: 4:58

And some of the times, 90% of the time, yes. Um, for example, if you're going into you're getting the reading for anything, right? Um, it might tell you you have to receive certain orichas. You know, you have to maybe initiate in receiving your hand of ifa, right? And going through that ceremony. Um, or sometimes it could be as deep as, hey, or been waiting for you. It's your time, and you got to do cariocha, which is the initial the full initiation of crowning your hand or each other, because that can't happen. You know, I've seen um my godmother is one, you know. My godmother is very big on ifa, she's a firm believer of orumila, and that's how she started. She was very ill, doctors couldn't figure out what was going on, she was losing weight, you know. Everybody thought it was, you know, literally she was dying because they didn't know what was happening. And when she went to give her reading, Orula pretty much told her, You had to crown like yesterday. And within a week, she was initiated into crowning her Herodia, which is Ocho. So it all depends on what the person is going through, to be honest. You know, that's why I think that sorry to cutting you off. I think that's why everybody's journey is different. You know, I do believe everybody's journey is different, and and not everyone is destined to get their hand of if first or to get Iglequis first, or you know, some people start differently.

SPEAKER_00: 6:30

Really? The Hannah, the Hannah Ifa, right? What is that? Because I heard a lot of people.

SPEAKER_03: 6:38

The Hannah Ifa, it's a ceremony done to not only know your Herolica, which to me that's not the important thing, um, but it's pretty much your blueprint, it's your guide. You know, it's it's gonna talk to you, you know, you pull a sign or an oddu that pretty much determines who you've been your entire life and who you're going to be until the day you're no longer here. So to me, that's why I call it the blueprint. But nowadays, a lot of people are not focusing on that part, on how important that is. You know, that's a ceremony that is only conducted by Baba Laos. You know, it takes several days to do it. Um wow. But it is to me, that's the most important thing. But nowadays, everybody's just doing it just because they want to know who their hetero is. You know, that's more important than actually knowing, you know, your journey and and what you could pass away and what you could do and not do, you know, but things have changed.

SPEAKER_00: 7:47

That sounds very evil-driven and narcissistic for those who just I just want to know what my heterogeneous is, so they could just sit on these panels and talk reckless on social media and or do the or do the patakins, everybody does every I don't know how many aleos do the patakins, and I think that's just I've never seen it, never used to see it back in the day.

SPEAKER_03: 8:07

Aleos didn't speak on orichas back in the day, you know. Um, that's just something that it was only priests who would do it, you know, whether they were olor, which is santeros or babalaos, you know, now we have aleos making money off, you know, social media talking about, you know, the patakins, which is the stories of the orichas, and even oddums, which I always I I'm I get amazed by that because how can how can an aleyo be speaking on on certain things that you know they don't have license to do so?

SPEAKER_00: 8:43

That's just I don't know. Oh it sounds like a lot of chaos is taking place. I have this question right here. What emotional and psychological consideration should be should a person reflect on before committing and commit committing to initiation? Pardon?

SPEAKER_03: 9:03

That is a good question, and to me, it would have to be get mentally prepared to make life-changing things in your life. Um, a lot of us who go into these practices as adults, we have bad habits. I mean, and I include myself, right? Drinking, drugs, um having multiple partners, all these bad habits, right? And a lot of these odd dums, 90% of these oddums speak on things that we shouldn't be doing, that we that we know we shouldn't be doing, but we still do them. And it's it's very different from doing something without knowing you shouldn't, then already knowing you shouldn't and continue to do it. So I tell people, you know, when you come into these practices, come in with an open mind and an understanding that this practice takes a lot of commitment, it takes dedication, it takes consistency. Um, and those are things that a lot of us are not ready to do. You know, everybody thinks it's shifts and giggles.

SPEAKER_00: 10:25

Yeah. So it's like it's so when before they could step towards you, you gotta take 10 steps towards them by sacrificing many things that you like. Is that part of the process of going all white for that particular year for one year?

SPEAKER_03: 10:39

So the the the yawarahe, the the all-white, it's called yaworahe, right? That is done in lukumi. Um, and we do that for a year and seven days. So during that year and seven days, um what I've seen based on my experience, what I've seen with my godchildren, and what I've seen with friends and and and loved ones, it's a year that everything is tested, you know, from your patient, from your health, everything, everything, everything is tested. And and I think that you know, a lot of people go into it because they want the crown, but a lot of them are not ready for the weight that that crown has. So it's it's it's not a game, you know, and it's not meant for everybody either. There's there's a big wave right now, not only here in the states, because it would be very hypocrite of me to just say it's here in the states, even in Cuba, you know, right now it's it's popular to be a ia wo, which that's what you will be considered when you're wearing all white, right? It's it's sexy, it's cute to see a a man, to see a woman, you know, that's that's the hype right now, right? That's all in white, it's all in white with the elect is that's that's what everybody, that's the that's the you know, it's a fashion, but people don't understand that you know, whatever you do incorrectly during that year and seven days, you eventually will have to pay for it within your life. So it's definitely not a joke, you know, it's not a game or anything like that.

SPEAKER_00: 12:25

So it's it's like it's like a so walk, like a test of faith, as Christians will put it, like a passion of the Christ faith. Like you gotta be patient, turn the other cheek.

SPEAKER_03: 12:35

You can't curse, so it's very difficult, you know, because once you're an adult like me, some people don't curse, but I have a dirty mouth. So for me, it was very difficult being in Yahoo, not being able to curse. Every time I wanted to turn around and say something to somebody, I had to count to three, you know, so that's very difficult, you know. Yahoo says, shouldn't be smoking. So for those who smoke, that's difficult for them, you know. Especially, you know, I think smoking certain things you could remove yourself from, but for example, like nicotine, I know that's very strong. I've never, thank God, never smoked that. But for those who smoke cigarettes and stuff like that, it's hard. But yeah, what's it shouldn't be smoking? You are literally a newborn, you know. That's that's what you are. You are you are a newborn, you are starting life from zero, you know. This is why there's a lot of taboos on on several things that we can do, you know, and it's hard, it's hard, and I include myself because I I messed up a few times, you know. I was pretty good um majority of the year, you know, but as a human, I I I did my mistakes as well, you know. You know, for me, it was the anger. For me, it was that was the biggest thing because I don't smoke, so I didn't have an issue with that. You know, I'm not big on going out to the clubs because they can't go out past 12. I wasn't big, you know, on going out because I've been going out to the club since I was a teenager, since I was a kid, pretty much. So that wasn't things that were, you know, but the fact that you know I couldn't curse, the fact that I couldn't, you know, go to the beach, go to the rivers, you know, because you can't go to open waters, you know, there's a lot of things. It's it's a very it's a hard, it's a hard year, you know.

SPEAKER_00: 14:35

You can't go to the beach either places that what you can't hit the beach, not even like a little if it's hot, you can't take a little dip.

SPEAKER_03: 14:43

At all.

SPEAKER_00: 14:44

How about a pool? Is that different?

SPEAKER_03: 14:46

At all, nothing.

SPEAKER_00: 14:48

Damn, nothing.

SPEAKER_03: 14:51

So it's it's difficult. It's definitely, it's definitely a difficult year. It's definitely, definitely, definitely a a difficult year. Um, and that's why I say, you know, I I get amazed when I got on TikTok, I was shocked, you know, because you see them a lot. Y'all will say cannot be doing ratings or divination on anybody, and that's the biggest thing you see on TikTok is that they'll be on TikTok and they'll claim, well, my godfather gave me permission, my godmother gave me permission. Your godfather, your godmother don't they don't they don't make decisions, you know, those rules were state were there, they were they were put there, and the oricha is the only one that could tell you what you can and cannot do. And you see it, you see it nowadays, you see it on TikTok, you see, you know, it's like it's like this is the thing that I tell people. If during that year we are newborns, how can you possibly be learning anything from a newborn? These types of practices are common sense, you know. If our elders teach us and tell us, okay, you are a newborn, you need to not do this, this, and that. Well, how can a newborn be on social media teaching me about certain things? No, they need to wait when their year and seven days is done, and then they can do whatever they want to do, you know.

SPEAKER_00: 16:12

But you know, it's the it's the ego. And being that you spoke about elders, that's that's a perfect segue into this one. What responsibilities does a godparent have before, during, and after initiation?

SPEAKER_03: 16:25

I think the birthing god, so when we come to um initiating, when we do the kariocha, the full initiation of crowning your haroricha, um, a person has the birthing godfather or godmother, which is the birthing godparent. Um, you have a second godparent, which is called your oyubona, which is literally, you know, it's it's two, right? It's like your mom and your father. Or sometimes you're gonna have mom and mom because it's gonna be two women or two men, it doesn't matter, but you're always gonna have two, right? And then you also have your godfather who conducted the initiation, which will be the Oriate, um, which he's also an elder to you that you must respect. And to me, all three have a lot of responsibilities. But the birthing godparent has the most responsibility because the birthing godparent is the one that is in charge of pretty much getting everything ready and making sure this person is ready for their initiation, for their full initiation. And then once they initiate, they also are responsible for this person, you know, for this newborn and making sure that they that they know what they're doing. They are we have right now this thing that a lot of people are getting initiated and they don't talk to their elders ever again. And it breaks my heart because to me, I just see that as a money thing, right? You got your money and it's deuces, right? Like, forget you. But in reality, you you know, you still have to be very, very present because even though you initiated in lukumin, we have several other things that we have to do to conduct this person, you know, the correct way and walking them the correct way to um you know, priesthood that we just can't abandon the person just because. So it's a lot of responsibility, a lot of responsibilities with a lot of things.

SPEAKER_00: 18:32

Got you. So, what qualities define a trustworthy ethical god parent and local me? Like, what should uh uh a candidate that's looking to get crowned look for within a godparent?

SPEAKER_03: 18:46

I'm gonna talk about me and and what I what I looked and what I see in my elders. Um I see a parent, you know, my godfather and my godmother are literally that. They're they are my parents, right? And with that, they're not perfect, but they teach me discipline, they teach me right from wrong, you know, and that's what you should be looking for. You shouldn't be looking for a best friend, you know, a buddy buddy, let's go out to have some drinks, you know. No, it's an amazing thing because I do it with a lot of my godchildren that are local. Um, I chill with them, we do game nights, we go out, we chill here in the house. You know, I built a bond with my godchildren. And I think that's one another quality that people need to realize that if you are not having that bond with your elder, you have to sit back and say, okay, and is this person only here to collect godchildren, or is this person only here for money, or this person? Is really here because they love the orichas and they're and they're doing it to save you know the person, you know, because that's another thing, you know. We see people receive Hannah B and they don't ever again speak to their godfather.

SPEAKER_02: 20:18

Like that's a fact.

SPEAKER_03: 20:19

That that's mind-blowing to me, you know. Like, you don't have to be Betsy Betsy with the person, but you know, build a relationship with him.

SPEAKER_00: 20:27

Yeah, you know, meaning the guidance. I heard I have witnessed that before, you know. I might deep into the culture, but I've seen people who say they had godparents, and they will be out there doing the most outlandish, egregious behaviors, and they would not correct them. I'm like, oh, you're not a godparent. That person is a pain client. You just got a client, you know, a client and but you know, a relationship. You know what I'm saying?

SPEAKER_03: 20:52

I just think that you know, people just they are just we are right now seeing a lot of people just collecting god children. Like that's that's something that I I see a lot. You know, I see it a lot on social media. Like, why are you not getting corrected? Why is your elders allowing you to be on social media acting a fool? You know, because my godfather will be the first one to tell me, what are you doing? You know, my godmother will be the first one to tell me, What are you doing? You know, and I do it to my godchildren. If something has been done incorrectly, if they show up to a ceremony late, they're gonna hear my mouth, you know. If they do something incorrectly, they're gonna hear my mouth because that is my job. And I have many, many godchildren who are older than me. They could be my parents, and they still respect me because of how I carry myself as a priest, you know, and I'm not perfect by all means, and that's another thing that I want people to understand. None of us are perfect. Um, we're gonna argue, we're gonna disagree to agree, we're gonna, I'm not, I'm not here to get along with everyone. And and I and I want people to understand that I'm not, I don't need to get along, especially if I know someone is being, if someone is doing something wrong, if someone is is using their their space, their their their crown to scam others. Why do I want to be friends with them? Why do I want to associate with them? I don't care. You know, I don't care if we are priests, I don't care about none of that, you know? That's just me. Um, but I feel that it's just the way I was raised. A lot of people don't have morals, a lot of people don't have loyalty, you know, a lot of people don't have respect for one another. And and I'm not talking just in as elders, I'm talking about aleos, meaning those who are not initiated have to get the same respect. I can't deserve, I can't expect respect. I can't tell you right now, Mike, Mikey, I want you to give me respect, and I'm over here cursing you out. That's hypocrite of me. Talk about it, you know, and it's the same thing applies the same thing to religion, you know. I don't they know I don't, I'm not out here disrespecting anybody. You know, if I gotta tell somebody something, I'll get over here. You're not supposed to do this and this and that, you know. But a lot of things have changed, you know.

SPEAKER_00: 23:25

You're going with it. So I have this question I want to ask. Does is is the line is the lineage of the house that one person comes from or you choose to step into is important?

SPEAKER_03: 23:38

Absolutely.

SPEAKER_00: 23:39

It's that a big factor.

SPEAKER_03: 23:41

It's absolutely everything. Because remember, in our practices, even though a lot of people are trying to wash that away, um, especially the houses that is everything ifa and if you know our practice is called regla de ocha ifa, meaning regla is rules. That's the translation of that word. So there's a lot of things that we do in Lukumi that is based off rules of our ancestors. You know, they were established by our ancestors. So our lineages are very, very important because I just can't say, well, I just read in this old doom that you got to flip over a cup, but if my malina doesn't do it, I don't care what she does, I'm gonna do what the old doom says. You're cutting, you're cutting your lineage short by doing that. You know, yes, you got to respect the old dooms, you have to respect that, but we also have to respect traditions because our religion, and not only ours, you know, because I have good friends and and I know good priests that practice, you know, the traditional, what's known as Ishesha, and they have lineages as well, they have branches and they have certain things that they believe in, so it's it's similar to us as well. So to me, to answer you is very, very important. It's important for you to know that, to know where you're coming from. You know, people are getting initiated, and you ask them what's your Rama, which is what's your lineage, and a lot of them don't know it, you know, and you have to, you know, it's important for you to know, you know, who initiated your godparents, you know, and and who who initiated their their godparents, you know, and you don't see that a lot being told in Lukumi, you don't see that a lot being told in in Falomayombe. A lot of people are initiating everybody's like, Oh, I'm Mayombe, okay, you my yombe, but under my there's a lot of branches, you know. Under Briumba, there's a lot of branches.

SPEAKER_01: 25:47

Really?

SPEAKER_03: 25:48

Yeah, so it's it's you know, it's important, and and some people do it. I think uh a lot of elders don't so don't say it because a lot of them don't even know it, you know. So it's just they're keeping instead of taking back and say, Let me study a little bit about this and see where I'm coming from, you know. Um, they just continue, continue, and they just don't give that information. I don't think they really do it on purpose, you know.

SPEAKER_00: 26:13

Yeah, because maybe because they they don't know themselves that they haven't, you know, fully you know took a deep dive to understand what's taking place. And this question may, you know, may sound it'll come off as a double double-edged sword. Do you think a lot of the elders now are very young in age and wisdom, or or they just don't know?

SPEAKER_03: 26:37

I think that so for me, the beauty of our religion is that your age truly doesn't determine your full knowledge because you will meet elders who have 50 years crowned, and they haven't worked the religion, they just crowned for health reasons, and they're not they probably don't know much, but the basic, and then here comes someone who's been initiated a year and has been working ultras and has been working the religion as soon as they finish their year, and they probably have more knowledge and they could probably save that person who has 50 years. So to me, your experience comes from hands-on.

SPEAKER_00: 27:27

Hands-on, yeah.

SPEAKER_03: 27:28

That's why, you know, I respect, I remember when I first got on TikTok, um, a lot of these circuit clowns, they they were they were they would tell me that oh, X keeps everybody in a bubble, right? X X wants every because she don't read. It's not the fact that I don't read, you know, I can sit and read a book, but my experience comes from working with the elders. You know, my experience comes from sitting at a Mesa Blanca and seeing what they're doing. That's where my experience comes. My experience doesn't come, and I'm I don't I don't have no shame in it. I have never read, I said it before, I said it one time, and some guy got super aggressive with me because I was like, I've never read, you know, an Epritimo book. I've never, I've never read an Eperitimo book. You know, where does my priditimo you know experience come from? Hands on, you know, working with you know, my brother who's a bigger periodita, working with my aunt, working with, you know, other elders, you know, my godfather, my oyubona. That's where that comes from, you know. It's the same thing with the ocha. You know, a lot of these people are talking all these things on on social media based on things that they're reading, but a lot of our stuff comes from just hand downs, you know, comes from generations to generation. So you're reading something that maybe is not going to apply to one of our initiations. Not saying that reading is bad. My husband, for one, he's one that loves to read, he loves to read books, he loves, and I and I don't see nothing wrong with it. But me personally, I'm a person that I'm more hands-on, you know, I'm a person that I'm more, you know, I learned that. So I think that that's the issue that we're having now. It's not so much that the young ones have lack of understanding, is that they are refusing to get their hands dirty, yet they want to sit on a platform or sit somewhere and teach others. And that's hypocrite. You know, you can't do that because you don't have no experience, you know. And some of them have been practicing for a year or two, and they they say, Oh, I know I'm a medium, you know, and you I could sit them right now, and um and they probably, you know, a lot of people get funny laughs when I say this phrase, but they probably won't see a fly even if it's on the wall, you know, crazy. But it's just you know, but I think it's the hands-on, it's what makes you, you know, you're making what makes you have that experience.

SPEAKER_00: 30:07

And I only ask that question, I only say that because I know you know age doesn't play much of a factor in that. It's the wisdom, and as you said, the person's experience. But what you see now in many other practices is are a lot of young people, and not saying I'm not saying that they're not you know well seasoned or trained, but you know, on the human side, they display those young characteristics of age where you know you see them on social media in the street talking crazy. Yo, I I'll do this and that.

SPEAKER_02: 30:33

Like, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 30:34

Are you in a spiritual path or are you a gangbanger? Like it's it's just confusion to me. And then and they mixing things up, like you know.

SPEAKER_03: 30:42

It's a it's a it's a it's a fashion, it's it's it's a hype. It's a hype to say I practice 21 divisions, it's a hype to say I'm initiated in in the Heshad Voodoo, it's a hype to say I've seen people get initiated in Balo today, and they do in a video jumping up and down. I'm a ya, I'm a thata. You just got initiated 24 hours ago. Yeah, but that comes from the elders because if I catch one of my godchildren doing that dumb silly thing, I'm gonna be the first one. Like, what's good? You don't even know your full name without you looking at the sheet.

SPEAKER_01: 31:24

Exactly. So, how can you be doing it?

SPEAKER_03: 31:26

But I do agree on what you're saying. Uh, we it's a lot of young ones that I think what what I think what affected our practices a lot was COVID. Because when COVID hit, a lot of people got into spirituality, you know, a lot of people got into connecting with their ancestors, you know, and they ran with that. Yeah, and I noticed that from TikTok. I'm not a person that's been on TikTok for a long time. I've been on TikTok, I think it's about gonna be about to be three years. So I'm very new on TikTok, but I've noticed that, you know, I noticed that that a lot of people when when COVID hit, that was their hype, you know. So they read something. Oh, I know how to set up a war with that. Now they're teaching, and that's the problem which you just mentioned. That's the problem that we're having, is that we have the blind leading the blind, leading the blind, yeah, you know, and then the elders or the old or the people who have been practicing for a long time, they just sit back and say, you know what, I ain't wasting my time with this. Y'all do whatever you want because they don't they don't even want to entertain it.

SPEAKER_00: 32:35

You gotta correct it to preserve the culture because uh this happened all across the board, and then you're right with the with the pandemic, and it became very trendy to be involved in this ancestral thing. I'm telling people ever since Beyonce did that whole thing with the old shoon thing, people went crazy, like you know what? I'm gonna get involved in you know, Santeria and Voodoo, all that stuff. People pick up TV shows, they have the Sage. I know we don't use Sage in some of these practices, but okay, they're using Sage, you know, talking all this crazy stuff. You know what I'm saying? I'm seeing your altar with Spider-Man on it and all that. Yo, get out of here, B.

SPEAKER_03: 33:11

Listen, get out of here, like you know, and it's a lot of people like we were talking earlier before we jumped on here. A lot of these people that are guiding other people have literally mental issues, mental problems that they need to heal prior to doing these practices, and they're not doing it, and it's just eventually they're just gonna harm the other person. You know, I made my platform. The reason I dedicated my platform to red flags and dedicated my platform to spreading awareness was because of the craziness that I saw on TikTok. I had never in my life seen what I've seen on TikTok, and what's sad about it is that the people doing the crazy stuff is the ones getting the most views, the most likes, the most everybody in the comments is ache, ache, ache. Everybody, I don't I I wonder, and I'm I always wonder if they understand what the word ache is. Because, for example, in Cuba, we use Ache like we say, okay, we use Ache for everything. Mom, you good, Ache? You know, it's just it's something part, it's part of the culture. But I don't know if they're picking that up now here in the state, but some of the stuff like me and you know, me and Omar, we'd be watching stuff that have to do, for example, about Palo. And they use Ache. Nobody uses that term in Palo. That's not a term used in Palo. So that's how you know that a lot of these people don't know what they're talking about, don't have like the basics, you know. And and when I when I did my platform, I I I to this day, I still get a lot of heat. You know, to this day, I'm I'm the racist one, I'm the bully, I'm the I'm the mean one. I don't know how many other names I've gotten. You know, I'm the one who has no life, I'm the one who who doesn't do anything, who is bored. I get all all these all these things that and I'm just mentioning a little bit of the type of hate that I've gotten. But I don't that doesn't phase mean, you know. I always tell people, y'all gotta come a little harder because I you know, I was but a lot of people don't realize is that what I'm doing has always been done. Elders in all practices have always yo, you're doing something wrong, they'll stop you right there. Yo, what are you doing? Yeah, that's not how it is.

SPEAKER_00: 35:37

I've seen my uncle do it in voodoo. Trust me, I've seen him exactly. I've seen them thinking to people.

SPEAKER_03: 35:43

Thank you. And when you tell this to people, people like, oh no, she's just making it up. No, I'm not making it up. You could tell you guys haven't been in this long enough because if you've been in this long enough, you will understand that there's elders because they've done it to me. I put the scissors to the left and they start yelling, no, the scissors don't go to the left, they're gonna look right, and they'll correct you real quick, you know, they'll stop you real quick. So that has always existed. What I what I do has always existed. The only thing is that nowadays a lot of people don't want me to expose that because I'm hurting their pockets. That's the only reason, yeah, you know.

SPEAKER_00: 36:18

But so do you do you think social media um really affected these spiritual practices? Absolutely, like you know, I think social media overreaching.

SPEAKER_03: 36:31

I think the issue, okay, there's a lot of really, really, really good knowledge on social media, a lot of information on social media that that it could be helpful for a lot of people who unfortunately are alone for unfortunately are maybe in areas that they can't travel because they're on a budget, and social media is their is their best friends, that they're mentor, their elders, right? But that also could come with a lot of damage, yeah, because we have a lot of people that are promoting the religion on social media, you know, because they want clients. I don't really think they consider them god children, they're clients, so some of them will talk things that they shouldn't be talking on social media, like there's a lot of topics that I see on social media that they're not secrets, but I always sit back, me and my husband, and we say, should this be a topic that should be spoken to with non-initiated? And a lot of the topics shouldn't. You know, a lot of the topics should be spoken, for example, amongst priests, and it's yeah, initiates and those who have yeah, you know, so that's the part that it it's it's it's a dangerous area, you know. It's a dick, it's it it could be dangerous, you know. It could that's the only part that kind of sucks about social media, you know. It also they're showing so much on social media that those who are going to eventually have to initiate in whichever practice are going to lose the blessing of being surprised because they saw a video on TikTok, they saw a video on YouTube, they saw a video on Instagram. So that's the part that kind of low-key sucks.

SPEAKER_00: 38:36

So you're saying basically from how I see it, and again, you know, those that are watching or listening, please don't take offense to what's being said here. This is just our perspective on this. You know, nobody's coming here as the authoritative figure of whatever practice. But when I see things on social media, right, especially YouTube within Haitian Voodoo or any other spiritual practice on you know, YouTube, TikTok, whatever, you take away the element of surprise as you as you mentioned, right? And then it's like, yo, since when this thing became e-commerce, so now we're selling it online, like you know, it's kind of crazy. Like, yeah, it's just wild, like you know, no, it's it's it's they're promoting it, you know.

SPEAKER_03: 39:21

And I and don't get me wrong, there's a lot of things that you can promote on social media and stuff like that, you know. But this is my thing, for example, if you are a babalao, everybody knows you're a babalao, right? Because you're putting you're posting it up there, you're a babalao, like my husband. He has it on his platform, he's a baba lao, and right why would someone that's a baba lao have to put parts of the ceremony to bring that that? Those views in to bring that attention to them, they already know you you are all out. You don't need to expose our secrets. You don't need to expose, you know, what we're doing in the first day of Hanabi Phi. You don't need to expose the Yangarego, which is a ceremony done the day of your Ida. You that none of that needs to be exposed, you know. And and I and I get it. Some people take a nice little selfie, some pictures, something, you know, quality time. But no, the way that a lot of these people are doing it, like they are they're they're really marketing themselves. That's what they're doing. You know, they're marketing themselves. You know, the the whole thing of showing up I'm a big person and I'm still old school. You know, when it comes to follow, your your fundamentals, your pots, whatever you guys find it, understand the term, shouldn't be on social media. You know, they shouldn't. You know, that it's the same thing as now that we're seeing initiations into Haitian voodoo. Why are you recording this? This was never recorded back in the day.

SPEAKER_00: 41:03

It never was, but you know, gotta do it. I think like again, like I think with the age the things has progressed now, where people feel like we're no longer hiding this no more. You know, the world should know, and I get it, you know, we don't have to hide who we are, but there are certain things that should be kept sacred because not everyone should learn your craft, it's something that works for each culture, you know. Yeah, even down to certain things in masonry. I see some brothers out there exposing a little too much, you know.

SPEAKER_03: 41:33

I was like, wow, okay, there's nothing everybody's everybody's initiating everybody, like nobody's taking time to like let me do a little bit of research on this person. I'm gonna start bringing, I need you to print out your your police record, sir, you know, because I don't know. At this point, everybody's just initiating everybody, you know. I think it's just at least I feel like back in the day they were more selective. Yes, if if that, you know, and I'm not trying to be sound, you know, rude or offensive to anybody because eggas, they they don't, you know, probably sorry, they don't um they don't see color, they don't see race, right? Whatever you want to call it, but some of these folks are only initiating, and some could be black, white, latino, whatever. They're really initiating just for a title, just to say, I'm part of this, I'm part of this, and they're doing it, they're doing it everywhere, you know, everywhere, everywhere. And then it's it falls on us if we want to take that bite and say, you know what, effic, this person is coming with a lot of money, you know, forget it. They're not honoring you know, their elders, they're not honoring that energy, you know, they're not, and and I think that's what's that's what's killing a lot of our practices.

SPEAKER_00: 43:01

It's the greed before the greed before the um integrity. So how does initiation shift one's role within the ancestral line?

SPEAKER_03: 43:13

It shifts, I would say a whole 360. I think it does a lot, and I think the the the longer you've been initiated, it's like you know how wine, the older it gets, it's the better it tastes. That's I think that's that's the the the connection with your initiation. It's the the the longer, you know, the more years you carry it, it's it becomes more more pure, more effective, more you know, so it it it is very i I would say a lot.

SPEAKER_00: 43:49

Got you, got you. So that that's dope. So, like, for instance, that person becomes uh not only an elder within the family, but is it safe to say like how they deified him as a saint or something like that?

SPEAKER_03: 44:02

That does that happen, not necessarily as a saint, but a lot of them end up even pulling some of their own kids, family members. I know people that that are the first ones in their family to initiate, and a lot of their families, even older members of the family, didn't know anything, didn't believe in anything, and eventually end up initiating. And it's like a whole, it's like a rope, and they start just pulling it. It's and it's generations and generations just coming in. So to me, I think it it you know it's it's not something to be played with because you know it it builds it makes the bloodline right more connected once, and not all of them, because not all the time, not all of them are destined for, you know, if I crown, well, now everybody in my family has to crown. No, but if it happens, it's more beautiful because it's like it's like my husband, right? All his all his, you know, from his great-grandmother, his grandmother, his mother, him. I think that's a beautiful thing. If you can lose that, you know, I think that's a beautiful experience.

SPEAKER_00: 45:16

No, it is. I've seen that within families. It's a beautiful thing because I think it strengthens like that. As we call it in the um ceremonial magic, they say the eggar, like the person, the energy of that of that, you know, circle right there. Like it's like you have your room there, like the collective consciousness of that family right there is strong together.

SPEAKER_03: 45:39

I agree.

SPEAKER_00: 45:40

God got it.

SPEAKER_03: 45:42

And not only those who not only does it does it make stronger those who are alive, but I am a firm believer because I could speak from experience, it makes even those who are no longer with us stronger as well. You know, their their spirit, the the way they did they will, you know, go higher and get elevated. Our initiations will help a lot of them that were that you know were part of this, also elevate to a higher to a higher place when it comes to spirituality as well.

SPEAKER_00: 46:21

Got you. That's dope. We got yeah, we gotta get you back on here. And you know, we we got like about what 10 minutes or so left, right? We're gonna veer off a little bit, just for a few seconds, right? For the next show, right? This is something that's very controversial that we need to speak on, and it's for my people in diaspora. You know what I'm saying? We gotta get rid of all this ignorance amongst ourselves, but we do have to address the elephant in the room, and as your husband said last time, the racism within these practices, not all, but some practitioners, priests and priestess, will be online talking, and behind closed door, they are prejudiced.

SPEAKER_03: 47:03

They try to monopolize and I want people to understand that it is not just Latinos doing it because I did a post recently um I stitched another person's post that was talking about you know what African Americans should look for when joining Lukumi. Um, and I spoke from what I and how I am as an elder. Um 99.9% of my ille is black Americans or Latinos that don't speak a lick of Spanish. And I only I only speak from how I carry myself, right? Um, how I treat them. And I want people to understand that the this discrimination, this division is being it's happening all over. It's not just Latinos, you see blacks claiming, well, why are you black practicing luku me? If you knew the history of lukume, there's no issue with black Americans practicing luku me. That comes from a racist mentality. So you are you know speaking and projecting this negativity on another brother and another sister. So I feel that people need to understand that this is happening everywhere, it's happening in traditional, it's happening in Lukumi. You know, a lot of people say, Well, I've I've experienced this in Lukumi, and sometimes I question myself. And I I was gonna do a live about this, but I ended up never doing it. Um, when I did this video, I asked myself because some of the comments, I was like, is it really the you have experienced the race issue, or is it a language barrier problem? Because 90% of Lukumi practitioners are black, so but the only difference is they only speak Spanish. So I've always always asked that, but I do I am a firm believer that that is a big problem, especially here in the States, Mike. Like I think it's a big problem here, and people always get mad at me when they, oh, why are you always telling people to go to Cuba? Because I want you guys to experience how Cuba is Africa, how yes, there's gonna be racist people everywhere, right? But Cuba, it's they don't see if you're Black American, if you black from from another, like they don't see that, you know, everybody's welcome, everybody's treated the same, you know, and that's how that's my goal in my house, you know. And I remember this particular girl, she was like, Well, you can't speak on it because you don't know about, you know, you're not black. Well, you don't know anything about me, you know, and that's the first thing that a lot of them will get triggered. And well, you don't know, don't let the light skin fool you. You don't know my background, you don't know my parents, you know. But in my in my home, that's something that I'm very big. I want people to feel welcome. I want people to feel that we care, you know, and it's not just because my children are black, it's not because my husband is black, it's because I grew up like that. You know, my mother, there was no such thing as, well, this person you got to treat her different because she's Cuban and this one you can't, you know. I don't know if it's the fact that I grew up in the projects in a very bad area in Miami where 90% were black. So I don't see that, you know, but it is an issue, but it's an issue all around, you know, and that's something that nobody wants to talk about, you know, because everybody's so quick on talking about, well, Latinos are this, Latinos are this. Well, when are we gonna speak about the black Americans that are also projecting this hate?

SPEAKER_00: 51:19

You know, I think if we this thing is a cancer, there's the xenophobia, and it's amongst um so-called black, so-called Latinos, African and continent, you know, you know, diaspora Africans and the Caribbean and Continental. It's um it's miss, as you say, it's a it's a breakdown in communication with the language, misinformation, propaganda, fear, uh personal experiences where they tend to generalize everyone as one as one as one thing based on the experience. So this is something that needs to be um that needs to be corrected. Shout out to the to the um, we got somebody in the in the in the chat in the comments section say checking in from Toronto.

SPEAKER_03: 52:00

Oh wow, that's awesome.

SPEAKER_00: 52:02

Peace, peacewise.

SPEAKER_03: 52:03

I feel that you know that's why I love what you're doing, and I I literally spoke about this in my last class.

SPEAKER_00: 52:11

Peace wide, uh-huh.

SPEAKER_03: 52:12

I said this in my last class. If a lot of these black Americans that have this mentality of this hate will know the history about the Caribbeans, Haitians, Cubans, Jamaicans, if they knew our history, they will see how similar we are.

SPEAKER_01: 52:36

Of course.

SPEAKER_03: 52:37

And if we would instead of dividing one another, instead of hating on one another, and instead of coming together as one, we will be unstoppable. Like nobody would ever be able to like say nothing to us.

SPEAKER_00: 52:53

Tell them say that. Let's say that again. Because I only tell them more.

SPEAKER_03: 52:56

I I tell people I tell this all the time, especially I tell people like, if you guys understood the history of Cuba and what we Cubans went through, you would understand how Cubans can relate so much to what Black Americans experience. So, and and don't get me wrong, there's a bunch of racist Cubans, there's a bunch of racist Puerto Ricans, racist Jamaicans, they're all over the place. I'm not saying that, but I'm not focused on them. I'm focused on let's come together. If like I told the person in this particular polls, if this is what you experience, let's come together. Let's find, let's, let's, let's find a solution for this problem that our religion is facing. Instead of saying, Well, yeah, they're racist. No, no, they're racist, and I don't like these people, and I don't like no no. Let's find a solution, let's stop pointing fingers. And like that, maybe we will grow better and nobody will tell us nothing.

SPEAKER_00: 53:55

Definitely, most definitely. Definitely, yo, you you gotta we gotta come back on that. We gotta bring that next one, and I'll like to add some people onto that conversation because we have to address that.

SPEAKER_03: 54:05

Yeah, no, that's a topic that definitely, definitely has to be addressed.

SPEAKER_00: 54:11

Deaf to the zenith, deaf to xenophobia, prejudice, and racism amongst people, so-called people of color, because we we all are in the same hell at times with different devils. Your devil just spoke English, the other one spoke Spain, what you know was from Spain, and the other was um was from was from France. Um, it's systematic. Somebody say it's systemic, systematic and generational trauma, but now we've been brainwashed by politics, white nationalism. That's a fact.

SPEAKER_03: 54:42

That is a hundred percent true.

SPEAKER_00: 54:45

That's a fact, and misinformation and fear, because you know, we tend to stick the stick the um the knife in each other's back in a quick second. Yeah, we could say it's white, it's white supremacy, but it's us that perpetuate the behavior. We gotta bring, you know, we could think, yep, definitely. My sister Zanea, X. I appreciate you, beloved, for coming out, man. For real.

SPEAKER_03: 55:08

No, you're welcome, you're welcome, you're welcome.

SPEAKER_00: 55:10

You know, shout out to the baby, man. You know, baby thugged through with us, man.

SPEAKER_03: 55:14

No, the baby said, F this, I'm going out. Knocked out.

SPEAKER_00: 55:19

Definitely, but we gotta, you know, peace, peace to the husband, man. We gotta come back. We're gonna, you know, we're gonna talk more to get that show going.

SPEAKER_03: 55:25

Yes, we gotta definitely let me know with time, and I'll definitely make sure he's here. Um, he's one that is big on this topic that we were just talking about, like definitely big, big. I think it's a topic that has to be talked about. You know, I think it's a topic that, like they said in the comments, is certain traumas that if we don't choose to say, you know what, I'm gonna heal from this and I'm gonna break this and continue to be better, it's it's never gonna stop. And it's just gonna be carrying on from our children to their children and it's gonna keep going.

SPEAKER_00: 56:05

Um, somebody in the comment section, misery loves everywhere. 907 say, I want to if I want to read in, how can they get in contact with you?

SPEAKER_03: 56:14

Um, if they follow me on TikTok, um, in my bio, I have all the information. I don't promote my readings like on TikTok or anything like that, but they're you could you could book through with me through um can he give me a handle where they can reach you at? Yeah, it has the the TikTok. You guys could follow me on Oduaremu on TikTok, or Duaremu Botanica, which is on TikTok. And if you guys go on my bio, you guys could get all the information. I have my website is there, um, and then you have the the way of how you could book for a rating. So definitely.

SPEAKER_00: 56:46

And can he and sorry and badly, can he spell that for these for these people in case you know some are so odd is D, I'm sorry, O D U A R E M U, and then Botanica, which is B O T A N I C K.

SPEAKER_03: 57:14

I hope I spelled that right.

SPEAKER_00: 57:16

Now you got it for the people. Hopefully, they will find you. Definitely. I appreciate them, sister. You came out, you rocked it.

SPEAKER_03: 57:24

No, you're welcome. Thank you. Don't stop.

SPEAKER_00: 57:28

We're gonna build people. Don't forget to comment. I love what you're doing.

SPEAKER_03: 57:32

I love I love what you're doing. Love, love, love what you're doing.

SPEAKER_00: 57:35

And I appreciate that, sis. Appreciate it. I love what you're doing on there, man. You're over here, you're like the 50 cent of uh TikTok in this world.

SPEAKER_03: 57:43

I'm trying, I'm gonna go back. I've been I've been low-key, like a little bit disconnected from from social media because I've really been been all over the place. I've been really busy and I can't complain. But um, I'm definitely gonna jump more on lives. I used to do lives every day and I stopped. I've just been very busy. Um, but I've been I've been trying my best to go back on there and and stay focused because a lot of people they need it. A lot of people need guidance. A lot of people need, you know, to listen to positive energies and and you know, this that you're doing. I I love it. It's it's a vibe. I'm a person that I'm very big on energy and I pick up energy very, very easily. And I know a lot of people say this, but I'm I've always been like that. Even since I was a child, I've always been like that. And and you're a vibe, so that's why I said continue what you're doing, don't, don't stop.

SPEAKER_00: 58:37

Thank you, thank you. Likewise.

SPEAKER_03: 58:39

Yeah, keep doing it because a lot of people need to hear, you know, just other people, and and the and your questions and everything is pretty dope. So just keep doing it.

SPEAKER_00: 58:49

Peace and love, man. Appreciate that, sis. Don't forget to comment, like, share, subscribe, people, NYP talk show, and we out. Peace and love.

SPEAKER_03: 58:55

All righty, blessings, everybody.