The great Cuban babalawo Lázaro Faustino Cuesta Valdés (Awo Iwori Bofun) has agreed to answer eight questions from CiberCuba about the Letter of the Year from the Miguel Febles Commission, the independent Yorubas of Cuba, which he leads. The interview was made possible thanks to fellow babalawos Juan Antonio Blanco Alzola (Awo Osa Kuleya) and Iván Enrique Duany Hoyos (Awo Irete Kutan), who, along with Cuesta and the other leaders of the religious groups, gathered on December 31, 2024, at the Casona de Diez de Octubre for the Opening Ceremony of the Year, which keeps believers and non-believers alike in suspense.
The Letter of the Year from Casona de Diez de Octubre predicts, among various social issues, many related to family breakdown, child abandonment, crimes against children, infant mortality, low birth rates, and increased violence. What can we do in the face of such troubling predictions?
The word of Ifa indicates to us through a sign the challenges we may face throughout the year and allows us to propose solutions or improvements to them. Practicing believers can achieve better outcomes through the indicated works and Ebboses, but the solutions depend on the attention that those who can help to prevent or resolve these challenges can provide; in this case, the rulers.
It also talks about job dismissals and high-level positions. Are you not concerned that this prediction might create discomfort? Can we expect changes? Can we have hope that in 2025 there will be improvements for the Cuban people?
Predictions can be unsettling, but our responsibility is to express them, so that all who have ears may listen, and if they have the necessary will, solutions can be found to resolve or alleviate the situation. We can aspire to the necessary changes, but it is not in our hands to implement them; and of course we can nurture hopes, as the signs offer us that possibility, but it is essential that those in power and with the means commit to making the necessary changes to achieve the desired success.
Why does the Letter of the Year from the Miguel Febles Commission come out after the one published by the Yoruba Association? Has there been any kind of rapprochement between the two?
The process of the Year Opening Ceremonies takes time, and after conducting them and receiving the sign and Predictions, we gather to evaluate the Group Leaders, extracting from the Patakies the appropriate guidelines. Following previous analyses of the Literary Body of Ifa, we present our findings at the Press Conference. We do not aspire to be the first to present these guidelines, but we strive to convey the message in a way that is best understood by practitioners of religion and the general public. After the failure of the effort aimed at working together, we have never come together again to attempt it, although we maintain a respectful attitude towards their working methods.
In difficult times, religious fervor grows. Does the Yoruba religion notice this?
We know that in difficult times, people seek refuge in faith, hoping to find solutions, and we know this from our own experience, as we receive in our Temple Houses, a greater number of faithful in search of religious help.
As a Mason, what is your assessment of the scandal that surrounded Cuban Masons in 2024?
The Organizing Committee of the Letter of the Year does not have among its purposes the ability to address issues arising in institutions or organizations outside of our faith. I believe it would be disrespectful on my part to generate criteria or opinions.
This is the first time the Odibre sign has appeared. Should we be worried?
This is the first time this sign has emerged, but for many years, the different Letters have been warning us, albeit without much attention being paid. In my humble opinion, I believe we should be concerned, as each year the signs indicate greater challenges that, if not addressed in time, accumulate and become more dangerous.
Attachment to the past prevents us from seeing solutions; avoiding outdated procedures is among the advice that comes with the Letter of the Year. What happens if we don’t take it seriously?
As long as we have a problem and do nothing to solve it, the problem will persist; and if we try to resolve it in the same way that led to previous failures, we will never find different results.
Could you send a message of hope to the Cubans?
I, in my capacity as a practicing religious individual, have faith and hope that there are conditions for improvement, because to live without faith is to attend the burial of the soul while still alive.
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