Baba Araba Ifayemi Elebuibon and others have spoken correctly that in the ancient days, you put two to three and visit the priest for divination
(O meji keta o gbale alawo lo).
There are different categories of people who come for divination.
1. Those who are serious with their problem and are ready for solution.
2. Those who have continous problems but will never perform sacrifice. They are only interested in the orikis( Ifa chants)
3. The colleagues priests/priestesses who understand the importance of Ebo and are always ready to perform the sacrice by the diviners
4 The colleagues priests/priestesses who will divine for you and claim they have done the Ebo themselves
5. Those who are comfortable enough to perform the sacrifice but will refuse to do the sacrifice for the reasons known to them. They are called "adeja"(perpetual ebo injunction breakers")
6. The less priviledged who are ready to follow divine instruction.
7. The ingrates who will benefit tremendously from the Ebo but will go to the churches/mosques for thanksgiving as Kareem Adetola Yusuf pointed out.
8. Others not mentioned above
Whether you belong to one category or the other, the necessity to include money in the divination process can be found in Odu Ifa Ejiogbe as follows
Ifa lo dalarun barun waye
Emi na lo dalarun barun waye
Adifa fun Orunmila oun ti ikole orun bo waye pelu opa osun
Esu Odara lo reru awo tele Orunmila.
Adifa fun Alarun
Nijo ti Esu Odara loun o gba gbogbo ere ise oga oun
Translation
Ifa says sickness follows the sick to the earth
I also say sickness follows the sick to the earth
Cast divination for Orunmila coming from heaven to the earth with his staff of Osun.
Esu Odara carried the sack of priesthood and followed Orunmila.
Also divined for the Sick
When Esu Odara decided to grab all the gains of his master.
The story
When Orunmila got to the earth, he first met Oluigbo, the king of the forest who was crying that the forest did not have ears. Orunmila commanded the forest to to have ears(Igboleti) Oluigbo gave nothing as financial reward. Esu was not happy. He thought "what an ingrate".
Secondly Orunmila met Olu Odan, the king of the desert. He was crying that the desert had no path. Orunmila commanded the desert to have path. It happened(Arin Odan). He too paid no money. Esu was not pleased because he was hungry.
Thirdly, Orunmila met Olu Odo, the king of the stream crying for the entry of the stream. Orunmila commanded the water to have entry. It happened(Oju odo)
Orunmila met a cripple and used his staff of Osun to strike his legs and the cripple walked again but he gave nothing for the miracle. Orunmila set to go but Esu waited behind. He asked the cripple what he would donate for his recovery but the cripple said he had nothing and asked Esu to beg his master. Esu was really offended. Orunmila called Esu and asked what was keeping him. Esu joined Orunmila and lied that the cripple who had just been healed had vowed to kill one thousand people who made him a cripple. Orunmila was surprised to hear this. He returned to the cripple to strike him with his osun and sent him back to the disability. This still did not satisfy Esu because he wanted food and money.
Orunmila met "Alarun"(Very sick person) who gave up the ghost on the arrival of Orunmila. Orunmila commanded him to rise again. It happened. The family of the ex-deceased paid nothing for this miracle. Esu could not accept this ingratitude. He told Orunmila that "the rise from the dead had threatened to eliminate two thousand people who contributed to his sickness which led to his death. Orunmila returned and sent him back to "the land of the dead".
Orunmila met a man whose pregnant wife was finding it difficult to deliver. Before anything was done, Esu came forward and asked for food and other things. They complied and Esu ate to his satisfaction. The woman delivered safely with the help of Orunmila. Esu confessed to Orunmila that he lied about the cripple and the dead man because of their ungratefulness. He advised Orunmila that it necessary that people put something for divination. Orunmila accepted. He returned to the cripple and made him walk again after money was paid for the divination and Ebo. He did the same to the dead and commanded him to rise again after money was paid for the divination and Ebo.
Yorubas say, "Dada ko le ja sugbon o ni aburo to gboju" meaning "Dada cannot fight but has a junior brother who always fight for him.
Orunmila is very gentle but his junior, Esu Odara will not watch him to suffer.
Stay blessed.