DIVINITIES AMONG THE IGBOS OF NIGERIA IN AFRICA
For you, O LORD, are supreme over all the earth; you are exalted far above all gods.Psalms 97:9 (NLT)
In the first place, the Igbos believed that there is a God in heaven who they called “Obasi di naelu”. They also believed that he is the creator of all things, hence they called him “ Chineke or Chukwu Okike”.
Now concerning divinities, which is lesser spirit beings or gods according to African mentality; the Igbos have few of them which include:
A. Ala: Ala is the arch divinity in Igbo land. She is the earth goddess, and she is differently called Ala, ani, or Ana due to dialect among the Igbos. It is believed that she is the spirit of fertility, and also the custodian of public morality, assisted by the ancestors.
She is represented often as carrying a child on her knees or in arm which is in consonant with her being the goddess of fertility and increase, the woman pray to her for children, while farmers must appease her before they till the ground. She is so important to men because on her we move, walk, sand, sit, sleep, and plant. A child drops on the land at birth, and as an adult at death return to the land.
As the guardian of public morality, crimes such as adultery, fornication, stealing of yam, murder,poisoning, giving birth to twins or abnormal children are all abomination to the Ala goddess. Wherever any of these things happens the Igbos will say “Ala aruola” ie. The earth has been defiled and must be propitiated by sanctioning the offender who would provide things for sacrifice.
Covenant or oaths are made in her name and must be fulfilled. Every Igbo village has communal shrine of Ala which ensures social unity and a priest will be in charge of it.
Her shrine is located in most cases at the bottom of cotton tree (Apu). There are eggs, water, or palm wine inside the clay-pot that is deposited at the shrine.
In the liturgy for Ala worship, Ala is mentioned always next to Chukwu as a matter of protocol. Eg. “Chukwu” (God) come and eat cola-nut, and Ala come and eat also. In time of farming it works with the god of yam “Ahiajioko” to make yam to produce.
B. Amadi-oha. This is the god of thunder. He is also called Igwe, Kamanu and Ikuku. People believed that he is the next to Ala, and he resides in the sun. he can be seen in the lightening and his voice can be heard in the thunder and therefore, he is feared by all.
Amadi-oha manifests the anger of gods and like the Yoruba Sango, he punishes moral offenders like witches, sorcerers, thieves etc. the victims of thunders are not mourned because they have been justly rewarded. Their corpses can only be buried by the priest of Amadi- oha and sacrifice must be offered at the spot the victim died.
C. Chi. Among the Igbos, the personality, soul or the essence of being is called “Chi”. It is God who puts chi in man. Chi also stands for man’s guardian angel. Each person has chi given him by God before he comes into this world.
Only the chi knows the individual’s destiny and so, a man’s prosperity or failure in life depends on the competence of his chi. Some misfortunes are attributed to the chi’s mistake, incompetence or negligence. Therefore, the Chi is worshiped by the Igbos.
D. Ikenga. This god is also important in Igbo land. Because it is believed to be god of power or strength. Ikenga is human male’s diety. Woman do not have it in Igbo land. This god guards a man and inspires in him courage, strength, ambition and achievement.
There are other deities in Igbo land but because of time we will stop here.
SPIRIT:
Why we said that African Traditional Religion is animistic is that they believed that everything that happens there is spirit behind it.
They believe that between God and man there are other beings and this beings are created by God.
They describe this spirit using human life to personify them.
We should remember that African Traditional Religion there is a faulty conception about God.
Nature spirit: these are spirit which people associated specifically with natural object and forces. Which includes:
Sun, Moon, Star, Thunder, Rainbow, Wind, Falling stars< lightening, etc.
They believe that these forces or objects may be spirit themselves or there is a spirit occupying them controls them.
Divinities and the nature of sky spirit concern the matter of the whole community not for individual.
Earth spirit connected with: hill water, earth soil, rocks and insect, these are believed to be ruled or control by the spirit. They believe that these could be offended, could be informed the higher once is the spirit of the sea, the lake and forest, the spirit of smallpox and death are regarded as major spirit.
The human spirit: it refer to these spirit of ordinary men, women and children.
There is wide spread belief in the existence of human spirit, one of the strongest belief in A. T.R is that human life does not terminate at death but continues after death.
John Moiti said the human spirit is of two kinds.
Long death spirits or ghosts.
The living deaths or ancestors.
In African Traditional Religion, the living death spirits are countless, they are many. Those call death spirit were because it has taken long since they died no one is alive to remember them who knew when they died. They are ghost or unknown to the living therefore the living are fearing them, because they don’t know what is in those spirit mind.
Since they are not known that is why they are called ghost, those remembered are called the living spirits.
The medicine man taps their power in those ghost or long spirits.
The living death or ancestors are those who died newly not exceeding 4 or 5 generations. And they are being remembered. These spirit can express their grievances. The ancestors worships are widely recognized in all African countries.
From time to time these death spirits visits the family.
Some of the ancestors are benevolent (helpful).
When they are a grieved the family will appease them. The cause of agrieviance may be, not giving them befitting burial or not heeding to their warnings.
There are bode of all the ancestors, the general believe is that they live underground, they believe that as we make our homes so the ancestors makes their family or homes there that is why they are not burying far from the house.
They don’t marry there.
The spirit world in the biblical perspectives:
The bible recognizes it.
It also affirms the activity of the unclean spirit.
In African Traditional Religion, there is much exaggeration in the belief of the spirit.
In African Traditional Religion God does not control or limit the activities of this spirits.
There is continue fear of spirit in the people in African Traditional Religion (but is not so in the bible).
In African Traditional Religion unusual activities are caused by the spirit Psalms 106:35-37. Behind every idol worships are unclean spirit. I Cor. 10:20.
Very good @praise-eu!
We must be alert about traditions that through ignorance claim truths of error!
For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
Ephesians 6:12
Thank you for your comment. Yes, as long as have the Lord Jesus Christ on our side, Victory is ours. It is also our responsibility to expose all the works of the dark kingdom. God is our help
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