Leadership and the Power to Begin Again
Hannah Arendt’s “Natality” and the Ifá Concept of Ìwà as Keys to Moral Renewal in Business
This is the first in a four-part series exploring the deep connections between the political philosophy of Hannah Arendt and the sacred teachings of Odu Ifá. At DAILY IFÀ, we believe that ancient wisdom is not a relic—it is a resource. Let us begin where all things begin: with birth.
About Ifá and African Philosophical Wisdom
Ifá is a spiritual, philosophical, and ethical system originating with the Yoruba people of West Africa. At its heart lies a vast oral literature known as the Odu Ifá — poetic, story-based teachings that guide individuals and communities toward alignment with destiny, character, and balance. Ifá is not just a religion or divination system. It is a comprehensive worldview, with concepts like Ìwà (character), Ashé (spiritual power or agency), and Ìtàn (ancestral story/history) that offer profound insight into leadership, ethics, and renewal.
At DAILY IFÀ, we integrate these Indigenous African frameworks into contemporary business and leadership conversations—bridging ancestral intelligence with modern strategy.
What if leadership wasn't about control or charisma, but about birth?
"The miracle that saves the world, the realm of human affairs, from its normal, 'natural' ruin is ultimately the fact of natality."
— Hannah Arendt, The Human Condition
In modern leadership literature, we hear a lot about vision, grit, strategy, and execution. Rarely do we hear about birth. Yet, for Hannah Arendt, natality—the fact that we are born, and that we can begin again—is the foundation of human freedom.
This insight may seem abstract, even poetic, but it has profound consequences for how we lead, govern, and build. Natality is not just a metaphor. It is a leadership principle.
In the sacred system of Ifá, this principle finds echo in the concept of Ìwà: the evolving essence of character. In the Odu Ifá known as Ìwòrì Méjì (one of the divinatory texts in the corpus), we are reminded that the self is not fixed. Destiny is not a script. Life is not a prison. As long as one breathes, one can be reborn through conscious choice and ritual alignment.
This isn't just about personal growth. It's about institutional renewal. It's about cultural reinvention. It's about remembering that in every system, there are moments where leaders must stop managing the past and instead midwife the future.
Why Natality Matters in Modern Leadership
In corporate and political life, we are trained to think in terms of continuity and optimization. What worked yesterday must be scaled tomorrow. Innovation is often reduced to iteration.
But what if your team doesn't need iteration—it needs interruption?
Arendt tells us that natality is a disruption of the status quo. It is the courage to do the unprecedented. It is the imagination to act where others merely react. She contrasts this with mere labor or work: routines that sustain life but do not renew it.
Ifá complements this with a moral dimension: we are not here merely to produce, but to transform. Through story, ritual, and reflection, Ifá teaches that rebirth is available not just to individuals but to collectives.
Ìwà: The Ethical Core of Rebirth
In Yoruba wisdom, Ìwà is often translated as "character," but this does not do justice to its depth. Ìwà is dynamic. It is your soul's relationship with time, action, and community. In Odu Ìwòrì Méjì, we learn that misalignment with Ìwà leads to stagnation, while alignment renews both self and society.
In business terms: your brand, your leadership culture, your decision-making frameworks—they all reflect a form of Ìwà. When strategy is no longer in alignment with deeper values, rebirth is needed.
But rebirth is not random. It is a conscious invocation of ashé—a Yoruba concept representing the power to make things happen, to speak and act with consequence.
Three Takeaways for Executive Leaders and Entrepreneurs
Design for Natality, Not Just Efficiency
Build spaces and moments in your organization where new beginnings are encouraged—not punished. Ritualize innovation. Allow for failure-as-rebirth rather than failure-as-death.Develop Your Leadership Ìwà
Reflect on your core character as a leader. Are you performing old scripts, or are you evolving with intentionality? Remember: destiny is not fulfilled through repetition but through alignment.Become a Midwife, Not Just a Manager
In times of disruption, your job isn't to force control. It is to hold space for emergence. Arendt calls this "the miracle of action." Ifá calls it "returning to the source."
A Closing Word: The Ashé of New Beginnings
Ifá teaches us that every dawn is a question: What will you give birth to today?
Arendt reminds us that action is not about dominance, but disclosure—revealing who we are through what we begin.
To lead in today's world is not just to guide. It is to renew. Not just to plan. But to birth.
Next in the Series: We explore how Arendt's notion of "the banality of evil" intersects with Ifá's warnings about forgetting Ìtàn (our sacred stories), and what that means for ethical leadership today.
What do you think?
Are today's leaders too focused on continuity and not enough on creative rupture? Have you experienced a moment of professional rebirth? Let's talk.
Ashé!
Tilo Plöger de Àjàgùnnà
DAILY IFÁ BUSINESS