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Odinani
Ọdinani (), also ''Omenala'', ''Omenana'', ''Odinana'' or ''Ọmenani'', are the traditional cultural beliefs and practices of the Igbo people of south east Nigeria.Afulezy, Uj"On Odinani, the Igbo Religion", ''Niger Delta Congress'', Nigeria, April 03, 2010 These terms, as used here in the Igbo language, are synonymous with the traditional Igbo "religious system" which was not considered separate from the social norms of ancient or traditional Igbo societies. Theocratic in nature, spirituality played a huge role in their everyday lives. Although it has largely been supplanted by Christianity, the indigenous belief system remains in strong effect among the rural and village populations of the Igbo, where it has at times influenced the colonial religions. Odinani is a pantheistic and polytheistic faith, having a strong central deity at its head.Mbaegbu, Chukwuemeka (4 March 2015). "A Philosophical Investigation of the Nature of God in Igbo Ontology". ''Department of Phil ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Igbo People
The Igbo people ( , ; also spelled Ibo" and formerly also ''Iboe'', ''Ebo'', ''Eboe'', * * * ''Eboans'', ''Heebo''; natively ) are an ethnic group in Nigeria. They are primarily found in Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu, and Imo States. A sizable Igbo population is also found in Delta and Rivers States. Large ethnic Igbo populations are found in Cameroon, Gabon, and Equatorial Guinea, as well as outside Africa. There has been much speculation about the origins of the Igbo people, which are largely unknown. Geographically, the Igbo homeland is divided into two unequal sections by the Niger River—an eastern (which is the larger of the two) and a western section. The Igbo people are one of the largest ethnic groups in Africa. The Igbo language is part of the Niger-Congo language family. Its regional dialects are somewhat mutually intelligible amidst the larger "Igboid" cluster. The Igbo homeland straddles the lower Niger River, east and south of the Edoid and Idomoid g ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Obeah
Obeah, or Obayi, is an ancestrally inherited tradition of Akan witches of Ghana, Ivory Coast, and Togo and their descendants in the African diaspora of the Caribbean. Inheritors of the tradition are referred to as "obayifo" (Akan/Ghana-region spiritual practitioners) and its priests as "bayi komfo" and "bonsam komfo", which translates to "obeah priest/priestess". According to historians, Obeah (sometimes also spelled ''Obi'', ''Obeya'', or ''Obia'') is a system of spiritual healing and justice-making practices brought over by enslaved West Africans to the West Indies. Obeah is said to be difficult to define, as it is believed by some to not be a single, unified set of practices, since the word "Obeah" was historically not often used to describe one's own practices. Obeah is the justice-seeking arm of the Akan religion, and, in its original, traditional form (as opposed to its Caribbean form), is similar to other African diaspora religions such as Palo, Haitian Vodou, Santer ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ala (odinala)
Ala (also known as ''Ani'', ''Ana'', ''Ale'', and ''Ali'' in varying Igbo dialects) is the female Alusi (deity) of the earth, morality, fertility, and creativity in Odinani. In Odinani, Ala rules over the underworld and holds the deceased ancestors in her womb. Her name literally translates to "ground" in the Igbo language, denoting her powers over the earth and her status as the ground itself. Ala is considered the highest Alusi in the Igbo pantheon. Ala's husband is Amadioha, the sky deity. As the goddess of morality, Ala is involved in judging human actions and is in charge of Igbo law and customs known as ''omenala''. Taboos and crimes among Igbo communities that are against the standard of Ala are called ''nsọ Ala''. All ground is considered holy land as it is Ala herself. With human fertility, Ala is credited for the productivity of the land. Ala's messenger and living agent on earth is the python (Igbo: ''éké''), which is especially revered in many Igbo communities. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chukwu
Chukwu is the supreme being of Igbo spirituality. In the Igbo pantheon, Chukwu is the source of all other Igbo deities and is responsible for assigning them their different tasks. The Igbo people believe that all things come from Chukwu, who brings the rain necessary for plants to grow and controls everything on Earth and the spiritual world. They believe Chukwu to be an undefinable omnipotent and omnipresent supreme deity that encompasses everything in space and space itself. Linguistic studies suggest that the name "Chukwu" is a portmanteau of the Igbo words "chi" ("spiritual being") and "ukwu" ("great in size"). Conception of Chukwu According to the Igbo people, who are the majority in the southeastern region of Nigeria today, Chineke is the creator of the universe and everything good in it along with rain, trees, and other plants. Chukwu is a supreme deity represented by the sun. The ancient deity is not humanized in Igbo tradition belief. Many Igbo Christians refer to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ekwensu
Ekwensu is a trickster of the Igbo people, a trickster spirit of confusion,that serves as the Alusi (god) of bargains and the tortoise.Crafty at trade and negotiations. He is often invoked for guidance in difficult mercantile situations. He is perceived as a spirit of violence that incites people to perform violent acts. His companion was Ogbunabali. Despite contemporary interpretations, Ekwensu was not originally regarded as the devil. With the rise of Christianity, the more beneficent aspects of the deity were supplanted by missionaries who came to represent Ekwensu as Satan. Europeans influenced their beliefs of good and evil to convince Igbo that Ekwensu was Satan-like. The goal of European’s influence was to easily colonize the Igbo tribe, forcing them to be fearful of something.Originally, Ekwensu was highly honored as one of the benevolent lunar deities. The Igbo do not believe in God nor the Devil, nor heaven nor hell, nor demons nor angels because they do not have ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
New Yam Festival Of The Igbo
The New Yam Festival of the Igbo people (''Orureshi in the idoma area'', Iwa ji, Iri ji or Ike ji, Otute depending on dialect) is an annual cultural festival by the Igbo people that is held at the end of the rainy season in early August.Yam Festival Retrieved 11 May 2009. Daniels, Ugo. ''African Loft''. 6 November 2007 Iwa ji Ofu (New Yam Festival) In Igboland! Retrieved 11 May 2009. The Iri ji festival (literally "''new-yam eating''")Omenuwa, Onyema. ''TheWeek''. 22 Nov 2007. Republished by [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Religion
Religion is usually defined as a social- cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatural, transcendental, and spiritual elements; however, there is no scholarly consensus over what precisely constitutes a religion. Different religions may or may not contain various elements ranging from the divine, sacred things, faith,Tillich, P. (1957) ''Dynamics of faith''. Harper Perennial; (p. 1). a supernatural being or supernatural beings or "some sort of ultimacy and transcendence that will provide norms and power for the rest of life". Religious practices may include rituals, sermons, commemoration or veneration (of deities or saints), sacrifices, festivals, feasts, trances, initiations, funerary services, matrimonial services, meditation, prayer, music, art, dance, public service, or other aspects of human cultur ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Amadioha
Amadioha is the Arusi or Agbara of thunder and lightning of the Igbo people of southeastern Nigeria. He is amongst the most popular of Igbo deities and in some parts of Igboland, he is referred to as Amadiora, Kamalu (which is short for ''Kalu Akanu''), Kamanu, or Ofufe. Astrologically, his governing planet is the Sun.Uchendu, Victor C. ''The Igbo of Southeast Nigeria''. Page 96 His color is red, and his symbol is a white ram.Diala, Isidore. ''Ritual and Mythological Recuperation in the Drama of Esiaba Irobi''. Page 104 Metaphysically, Amadioha represents the collective will of the people. He is often associated with Anyanwu, who is the Igbo god of the Sun. While Anyanwu is more prominent in northern Igboland, Amadioha is more prominent in the southern part. His day is Eke, which is the first market day of the Igbo four-day week. Origins Literally Amadioha means man of the people. Most people from the eastern part of Nigeria ascribe the name to their local deity/god. Shrines t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Anyanwu
Anyanwu (''anyaanwū'', meaning "eye of the sun" in Igbo) is an Igbo solar deity and a surname given to people of the Igbo people of Nigeria. Anyanwu is also the name given to a major character in the Octavia E. Butler's '' Patternist series''. Anyanwu is also the name attributed to the "Spirit Face" (who is assertive) of Sunny Nwazue in Akata Witch and Akata Warrior by Nnedi Okorafor. See also * List of solar deities A solar deity is a deity who represents the Sun The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is a nearly perfect ball of hot plasma, heated to incandescence by nuclear fusion reactions in its core. The Sun radiates this ene ... References {{Odinani Igbo religion ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nigeria
Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea to the south in the Atlantic Ocean. It covers an area of , and with a population of over 225 million, it is the most populous country in Africa, and the world's sixth-most populous country. Nigeria borders Niger in the north, Chad in the northeast, Cameroon in the east, and Benin in the west. Nigeria is a federal republic comprising of 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, where the capital, Abuja, is located. The largest city in Nigeria is Lagos, one of the largest metropolitan areas in the world and the second-largest in Africa. Nigeria has been home to several indigenous pre-colonial states and kingdoms since the second millennium BC, with the Nok civilization in the 15th century BC, marking the first ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ikenga
Ikenga (Igbo literal meaning "strength of movement") is a horned Alusi found among the Igbo people in southeastern Nigeria. It is one of the most powerful symbols of the Igbo people and the most common cultural artifact. Ikenga is mostly maintained, kept or owned by men and occasionally by women of high reputation and integrity in the society. It comprises someone's ''Chi'' (personal god), his ''Ndichie'' (ancestors), ''aka Ikenga'' (right hand), ''ike'' (power) as well as spiritual activation through prayer and sacrifice. Ikenga is exclusively an Igbo symbol. Nevertheless, various peoples of Southern Nigeria have slightly different notions of the components of an individual personality, but all agree that these various aspects can only be affected through ritual and personal effort. Some variants of it are found in Ijaw, Ishan, Isoko, Urhobo and Edo areas. Among the Isoko people, there are three types of personal shrine images: ''Oma'', which represents the "spirit double" ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ancestor Veneration
The veneration of the dead, including one's ancestors, is based on love and respect for the deceased. In some cultures, it is related to beliefs that the dead have a continued existence, and may possess the ability to influence the fortune of the living. Some groups venerate their direct, familial ancestors. Certain sects and religions, in particular the Eastern Orthodox Church and Roman Catholic Church, venerate saints as intercessors with God; the latter also believes in prayer for departed souls in Purgatory. Other religious groups, however, consider veneration of the dead to be idolatry and a sin. In European, Asian, Oceanian, African and Afro-diasporic cultures, the goal of ancestor veneration is to ensure the ancestors' continued well-being and positive disposition towards the living, and sometimes to ask for special favours or assistance. The social or non-religious function of ancestor veneration is to cultivate kinship values, such as filial piety, family loyalty ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
