Originally published in the Summer/Fall 2025 edition of the Virginia Defender, issue 77, printed December 11. Reproduced here for accessibility and archival purposes. To find other stories in the Summer/Fall 2025 issue or to download the full PDF, see this post. For other issues dating back to 2012, see the Full Issues page.

Staff Report

Participants from around the world attended Ifa Festival 2025 on July 18 at the Shockoe Bottom African Burial Ground.

The festival featured an Egun Masquerade, libations, offerings of flowers, live performances and a Black History lecture by Sacred Ground Project Chair Ana Edwards.

The Ifa Festival is an annual event organized by the Obafemi Institute of the Divine Universal Study of Ifa (OIDSI) and hosted by its founder and Babalawo, Chief Oluwo Obafemi Fayemi Epega. Learn more about the Ifa Festival here.