Esu the trickster god (spelled Eshu in the following translation) Had power over even mighty gods, including Shango. This folktale explains how the failure of Shango's wife Oya to follow Esu's instructions resulted in tragedy for Shango's people while making him the god of lightning as well as thunder.

The orisha Shango ruled firmly over all of Oyo, the city and the lands that surrounded it. He was a stern ruler, and because he owned the thunderbolt the people of Oyo tried to do nothing to displease or anger him. His symbol of power was a double-bladed axe which signified, "My strength cuts both ways," meaning that no;one, even the most distant citizen of Oyo, was beyond reach of his authority or immune to punishment for misdeeds. The people of Oyo called him by his praise name, Oba Jakuta, the Stone...