Egungun Festival 2026 · 256 Ifa & Orisa Healing Temple

Egungun Festival 2026

Honoring the Ancestors • Remembering Our Lineage • Strengthening Our Spirit

Greetings 256 Family,

As the month of May arrives, we enter one of the most sacred and powerful times of the year within our spiritual tradition. This is the season where we come together to honor our ancestors, strengthen our connection to our lineage, and awaken the wisdom, love, and blessings that walk with us through our bloodline.

For those who are new, welcome.

My name is Chief Alaje, and every year our community gathers for our annual Egungun Festival, a sacred celebration devoted to honoring the ancestors.

This year our celebration will take place:

Egungun Festival Dates

Friday, June 5, 2026

Sunday, June 7, 2026

In between these sacred days, on Saturday, June 6th, we will also celebrate the Yoruba New Year.

This entire weekend marks the opening of our sacred festival season, a spiritually charged time dedicated to honoring Egungun, Òrìṣà, Ifá, and deepening our connection with ourselves and our spiritual path.

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Friday, June 5

Family Dinner for the Ancestors

Virtual & In Person

Friday evening will be an intimate gathering for the 256 family.

We will come together to cook, share, remember, and eat the foods of our ancestors.

This is one of the most powerful ways to honor those who came before us.

For those attending virtually:

You will prepare your ancestral meal at home and complete the cooking as we gather together online so that the food is fresh, warm, and spiritually alive when we begin our shared meal.

For those attending in person:

You will bring your prepared ancestral dish with you to share in the gathering.

During this evening we will:

• Share stories about our ancestors

• Talk about the foods they loved

• Remember family traditions and memories

• Reflect on the wisdom and love passed through our lineage

• Eat together as one spiritual family

• Build sacred ancestral altars together

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Building Your Festival Ancestor Altar

On Friday evening we will also create a special ancestral altar for the festival.

Even if you already have an ancestor altar in your home, this altar will be specifically dedicated to the Egungun Festival.

For our virtual family:

Choose a sacred area in your home where your altar will remain active throughout the festival period.

This altar will remain for:

• 7 days for women

• 9 days for men

More detailed altar instructions will be shared soon by email.

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Sunday, June 7

Egungun Celebration & Offerings Ceremony

Sunday will be our major ancestral celebration.

During this sacred gathering we will:

• Honor the ancestors through prayer and ceremony

• Present offerings to the ancestors

• Sing ancestral songs and chants

• Deepen our spiritual connection with Egungun

• Invoke blessings, protection, clarity, and guidance

A registration link will be posted soon for those who would like offerings made on behalf of their ancestors.

This is a sacred opportunity that happens once each year.

As we gather here, our spiritual family in Osogbo will also be beginning their ancestral celebrations at our temple there. Throughout the following months, compounds and temples throughout Yorùbáland will continue honoring their ancestors during this sacred season.

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Important Offering Information

Because many members of the temple community participate in ancestral offerings during this time, we encourage everyone to register early.

If you would like your offerings presented during the main festival day itself, please sign up as soon as possible.

For those who register after the main deadline:

Your offerings will still be given during the ancestral week, and your ancestors will absolutely still be honored and acknowledged.

There will be several offering options available so that everyone can participate according to their means and budget.

The important thing is participation, remembrance, and sincere connection.

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Egungun Festival Cloth Announcement

We are also beginning preparations for our official Egungun Festival cloth.

Due to delays connected to international tariffs and shipping, our festival cloth process began later than usual this year, but we are now moving forward.

A link will soon be shared for everyone to reserve their festival cloth material.

This cloth will be worn during the festival whether you are attending virtually or in person.

We will purchase the fabric collectively, and each participant will then take their cloth to a tailor to create their garment.

We strongly encourage traditional African-style attire that reflects the sacred nature of the festival.

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Clothing Guidelines

Because these garments are ceremonial and spiritual in nature, we ask everyone to choose clothing that is respectful, traditional, and modest.

We encourage garments that:

• Cover the body appropriately

• Reflect the dignity of the ancestral tradition

• Honor the sacred atmosphere of the temple and ceremony

If you are unfamiliar with African traditional attire, I will gladly help guide you.

You may contact me directly through the Skool community or by text message for recommendations, examples, and support.

During June and July, we will also begin preparing festival cloths for our future Òrìṣà celebrations including:

• Ifá

• Òṣun

• Ẹgbẹ́

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Sunday Masterclasses Throughout May

Every Sunday during the month of May we will be preparing spiritually for the Egungun Festival together.

During these masterclasses we will learn:

• Sacred ancestral songs

• Egungun chants

• Traditional prayers

• Ifá verses connected to Egungun

• Spiritual preparation practices for the festival

I will also be posting Odu Ifá verses for Egungun inside the Skool community so that each person can begin learning chants for their ancestors.

If you already know a particular verse, contact me and I will assign you another one.

Each year I want every member of our community to learn at least one new ancestral verse so that over time you build a living spiritual relationship with your lineage and traditions.

We will also be posting songs in the community so that everyone can practice singing and calling the ancestors into the home with power and reverence.

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Closing Blessing

This is one of my favorite times of the year because it marks the beginning of our sacred festival season, a time of deep spiritual connection, renewal, blessing, and transformation.

May our ancestors walk with us.

May they guide us.

May they bless our homes, families, purpose, and future.

May we see our prayers, goals, and dreams manifest with clarity and success.

I look forward to gathering with you all.

Ase

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