This is one of my favorite questions @Victor Zamacona because it tells me you're serious about learning the right way. There is a growing body of literature on Ifá, Lukumí, and Yoruba tradition, and some of it is genuinely excellent. Here are authors and scholars worth knowing: Scholarly & Ethnographic Authors - David H. Brown — Santería Enthroned is one of the most thorough ethnographic studies of Lukumí practice in Cuba and the diaspora - Lydia Cabrera — her work, especially El Monte, is considered foundational for understanding Cuban Lucumí and its plant/herbal traditions - Joseph Murphy — Santería: African Spirits in America is a solid, accessible introduction to the tradition from an academic lens - John Mason — prolific writer on Orisha culture, foods, ceremonies, and Yoruba spiritual life; deeply respected in the community - Miguel "Willie" Ramos — a practicing priest and scholar whose work on Lukumí liturgy and history is highly regarded - Wande Abimbola — one of the foremost authorities on Ifá from the Yoruba homeland; his work on Odu and Ifá philosophy is essential - William Bascom — his ethnographic studies on Yoruba divination and Ifa remain academically significant - Robert Farris Thompson — Flash of the Spirit traces African artistic and spiritual traditions across the diaspora beautifully A necessary caution though. Even the best books can only take you so far. Some of what is written — even by respected authors — reflects a particular lineage, a particular moment in time, or an outsider's interpretation of what they observed. Books cannot initiate you. Books cannot read your Ori. Books cannot tell you what your specific path requires. The most important thing you can do alongside reading is learn from your elders. A living, initiated, experienced elder in your lineage will always be your most credible source. What they pass down to you directly — through ceremony, through conversation, through years of relationship — carries an authority that no book can replicate.

Hello again, Quick question. If your discussing and offering made to Orishas during a reading is that something everyone should do or is that only for folks who have that specific Orisha? Forgive me if this is answered elsewhere I’m happy to look at that info just point me there instead.

Hi everyone I’m new so I wanted to introduce myself, as well as ask some first steps. My name is Nicole I’m 38 and a mother to 4 biological children and also one bonus kiddo who came with my husband. I’ve lived here for about 7 years now. Have never really made friends and have no community. I see myself as spiritually diverse but I’ve always felt something lacking and I feel very drawn in general to Santeria. I don’t specifically know what it is drawing me but something tells me this is important. But as a white girl, who currently resides in Utah I want to make sure that I’m doing things correctly. I don’t know anyone who is a devotee or practices Santaria personally. Watching Baba Victors videos has given me some info but I definitely worry that I’m over stepping my place. I had a reading some years back and was told that the Orisha would be happy to work with me but it would take work. But I don’t even know if the person who did the reading was actually a Santera. It took ten minutes and I don’t feel like I have much of a direction. So I guess my question in. Where do I start. Because reading other people’s experiences is wonderful but I don’t feel like I have any sort of compass. I feel lost and adrift with no community here in Utah. I have nobody, certainly not someone who understands. That was a long one.

This one is for @Marie Saez — and honestly, for every single person in this community who has ever stood in front of their altar and gone completely blank. You are seen. You are not alone. And I have something I want to share with you that I think is going to change the way you think about prayer forever. My grandmother used to say something that has stayed with me all of my life. She said that the Holy Spirit can interpret all languages — even the ones that sound like nothing more than a moan or a groan. I have never forgotten that. Because what she was really saying is that spirit doesn't need you to be eloquent. Spirit needs you to be real. Do They Know What You Mean? Marie asked the question that I think a lot of us are secretly afraid to ask out loud — do they actually know what I mean when I fumble through my words? Yes. They do. Your ancestors, your Orisha, your Ori — they are not sitting on the other side waiting for you to get the phrasing just right before they decide to listen. They are not grading your grammar. They are reading your heart. And your heart has never once fumbled. The sincerity behind your words is the prayer. The words themselves are just the vehicle. Three Words Said With Everything You Have I want you to think about this. If you stood at your altar and all you could get out was "I need help" — but you said those three words with every ounce of sincerity in your body, with tears in your eyes and your whole heart behind it — that prayer would be more powerful than a Baptist preacher on Sunday morning delivering a perfectly crafted sermon. I mean that. It's not performative. It's not about how it sounds. It's about relationship. It's about connection. And connection doesn't require perfection — it requires presence. Show Up and Say What You Can Sometimes you won't have words. Sometimes you'll stand there and go completely blank — and that silence itself is a form of prayer. Just showing up matters. Just lighting the candle and standing there matters. Just saying "I'm here" matters.