Ifa Divination:

More than two decades after its first publication in 1969, William Bascom's landmark study of Ifá, the most important and elaborate system of divination of the Yoruba people of Nigeria, remains a monumental contribution to several fields of scholarship, including cultural anthropology, folklore, religion, philosophy, linguistics, and African and African-American studies. At the heart of the book is the most complete published collection of verses recited by Yoruba diviners in the practice of the Ifa Divination ritual. Included are the Yoruba Texts, transcribed by Bascom, with interlinear and free translations accompanied by extensive commentaries. Prefacing the verses is Bascom's meticulous analysis of the Ifa Divination System, the training and selection of diviners, the sacrifices, rituals, and paraphernalia associated with divination, and the religious and cultural values implicit in the verses.