Adelekan Olubuse I was the 46th

Ooni of Ife The Ooni of Ile-Ife (Ọọ̀ni of Ilè-Ifẹ̀) is the traditional ruler of Ifẹ, Ilé-Ifẹ̀. The Ooni dynasty existed before the reign of Oduduwa which historians have argued to have been between the 7th-9th centuries A.D. After the de ...

, a paramount traditional ruler of Ile Ife, the ancestral home of the

Yorubas The Yoruba people ( ; , , ) are a West African ethnic group who inhabit parts of Nigeria, Benin, and Togo, which are collectively referred to as Yorubaland. The Yoruba constitute more than 50 million people in Africa, are over a million outsid ...

. He succeeded Ooni Derin Ologbenla and was succeeded by Ooni Adekola.

Background

Olubuse was the founder of the House of Sijuwade which is a branch of the Ogboru Ruling House. Olubuse I was also the father of Omo-Oba Adereti Sijuade and grandfather of Oba Okunade Sijuwade the 50th

Historical significance

Adelekan Olubuse I was the first Ooni to vacate his palace since the inception of the Monarchy, said to date back to 500 B.C., the current dynasty of which is over eight hundred years old. Olubuse I was asked by the British governor, Sir William Macgregor, to travel to Lagos to settle a dispute and inform him regarding the status and well-being of his people in 1903. This event is said to have been Ile-Ife's first encounter with the extent of British colonial power. At this time, every Yoruba king along the Ooni's route to Lagos vacated their own palaces and towns, because the lesser kings refused to occupy their palaces while the god-king did not occupy his own.

Religious significance

In the

Ifá Ifá or Fá is a geomantic system originating from Yorubaland in West Africa. It originates within the Yoruba religion, traditional religion of the Yoruba people. It is also practiced by followers of West African Vodun and certain African diaspo ...

religion of the Yoruba people, the sacred city is layered inwards, from the city of Ife to the palace of the Ooni, to the Ooni himself. Ile-Ife is said, in the Ifa religion, to be the place where the gods descended to earth, the creator god,

Ọbatala Obatala is an orisha in the Yoruba religion that is believed to have been given the task to create the Earth but failed the task by being drunk on palm wine and was outperformed by his little brother Oduduwa. He was instead given the job of cre ...

, and the first god-king of Ife,

Oduduwa Odùduwà (Ooduwa, Odudua or Oòdua) was a Yoruba divine king, a creator deity (orisha) in the Yoruba religion, and the legendary figure who ushered in the classical period that later led to the foundation of the Ife Empire. His earthly orig ...

. It is said to be the center of the universe, and the seat of the king is the center of the city. All roads in Ile-Ife lead to the king's seat. His palace is the geographical center of their religion, and the most sacred space, while the Ooni himself is the object of worship, and the central figure of the religion. Jacob Olupona asserts that, for Westerners, the Ooni departing Ile-Ife is the same as God leaving heaven at the behest of a mortal. When asked by the British governor about the welfare of his people, the Ooni is said to have responded by telling him that they wept at his departure, and many awaited his return outside of the city. The governor replied that he did not believe the Ooni violated any traditions in leaving the city.

References

{{Rulers of Ife Oonis of Ife History of the Yoruba people