Male priest carries sacred calabash at 2025 Osun-Osogbo Festival

By Deborah Oladejo, Osogbo –

In a historic moment at the 2025 Osun-Osogbo Festival, the Osun chief priest (Baba Osun), identified as Adesina, carried the sacred calabash to the Osun Sacred Grove—a departure from the usual practice where the votary maid, popularly known as the Arugba, performs the duty.

It would be recalled that in March 2025, a new Arugba Osun, Alimot Osunbunmi, was selected to replace Osuntomi Ewatomilola, who served in the role for about 12 years. Traditionally, the Arugba leads the spiritual rites and carries the calabash herself.

In this year’s procession, however, Osunbunmi walked ahead while the calabash-bearing priest followed. The calabash, believed to contain sacrificial items for the river goddess Ọ̀ṣun, was carried into the sacred grove under close spiritual observation by traditionalists and devotees.

It was gathered that the calabash was too heavy for the young Arugba, prompting the Baba Osun to assist. “When she carried it, it was obviously too heavy for her due to her strength, because she is still a child,” a source explained.

The development drew public attention, as it marked a rare change in the centuries-old festival tradition. Some onlookers initially speculated about deeper spiritual reasons behind the change.

However, a renowned Ifa priest, Ifatoki Elebuibon, dismissed such claims and explained that there is allowance within tradition to assist the Arugba if the load is too heavy.

According to him, “It is allowed to let another person carry the calabash if it is too much for the carrier, but the person will not be called Arugba.”

The Osun-Osogbo Festival, a UNESCO-recognised cultural event, continues to draw thousands of visitors annually, celebrating the heritage, spirituality, and traditions of the Yoruba people.