Purple Hibiscus Research: Animism & Igbo Religion

(For more information about the Igbo ethnic group at large, refer to the "Igbo Ethnic Group" article on this site.)

The Igbo (EE-bo) people are the third largest ethnic group of Nigeria behind the Hausa and the Yoruba. The Igbo people are diverse and are scattered among many small villages and towns in southeastern Nigeria, lacking the larger cities and kingdoms that had been established by the Hausa and Yoruba people in Nigeria. They are mainly united by their common Igbo language. Although the origin of the Igbo ethnicity is obscure, the testament of the Odinani religion of the Igbo has survived many years.(3)

There are a plethora of theories when it comes to the origin of the Igbo ethnic group, however, there is an existing group of minorities in Nigeria that identify with the Igbo culture. There is also the phenomenon of an "Igboland" region in which all of the Igbo people live.(3)

The Odinani religion is a tribal religion of the Igbo people. All varieties of Igbo-speaking people can trace their faith back to the general beliefs of Odinani even though it is estimated that 98% of Igbo people are now followers of the Christian faith.(3)

Jordan, Sarah-Claire. “Roots of Igbo.” Alpha Omega Translations, 25 Apr. 2017, alphaomegatranslations.com/foreign-language/roots-of-igbo/. 

The Core Beliefs of Odinani

The people of the Odinani faith prioritize their extended families as the basic unit of religious life, with whom they engage in ceremonial worshipping and other religious activities.

Although there are many deities in the Odinani pantheon, making it, in a sense, polytheistic, there is one ultimate supreme god who created the universe and looks upon his children from a distance. People do not worship him directly; instead, worshippers pray to the individual deities and these prayers are believed to ultimately reach the supreme god. This supreme god has been given many different names, including Chineke, Chi Okike, Chukwu, and Chukwu Abiama.(3)

In Odinani tradition, the cosmos is split into four complex parts. The first part, called Okike, refers to the power of creation by the Supreme god, showing itself as the sun, the stars, the heavens, and the godly guardian to all beings, known as chi.(1)

This chi spirit is what sets out the destiny of each individual person and this energy weighs the good and bad done in a person's life. Sacrifice, be it of a human or animal, is also central to Odinani tradition as a way to thank the gods or ask the gods for a favor. Healing using herbs as natural medicines is also very central to Igbo tribal rituals.(2) 

Alusi refers to the deities of the Igbo pantheon, and Mmuo is the spirit of the ancestors who lived, died, and moved into the afterlife. Uwa is the spirit of our world; the living and non-living on Earth.(1)

(Right) Udeze, Chuka, et al. “Igbo People, Tribe, Language, Culture, Religion, Food, Women, Facts.” BuzzNigeria, 14 May 2018, buzznigeria.com/5-things-everyone-should-know-about-igbo-culture/. 

(Above) Thomas, Northcote W. “Odinani.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 26 Dec. 2020, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Odinani#/media/File:Igbo_ancestral_shrine_Onica_Olona.jpg. 

Odinani Deities

The Alusi, or deities of the Igbo religion are both nurturing and loving as well as short-tempered and violent, reflecting the natural characteristics of humans. Deities include Ala, mother nature, Anyanwu, the sun god, and Igwe, the sky god.(3) Odinani is an animistic faith in the sense that these deities are worshipped through the veneration of the spirits found in nature. 

Daderot. “Odinani.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 26 Dec. 2020, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Odinani#/media/File:Igbo_ancestral_shrine_Onica_Olona.jpg. 

Nwa-Ikenga, Omenka Egwuatu. “Honoring Your Ancestors.” Odinani: The Sacred Arts & Sciences of the Igbo People, 1 Nov. 2015, igbocybershrine.com/2011/01/26/honoring-your-ancestors/. 

1) Ené, M. O. The Fundamentals of Odinani, May 1997, web.archive.org/web/20020819010001/www.kwenu.com/odinani/odinani.htm. 

2) Arinze, Francis A., and Ogbu Kalu. "Igbo Religion." Encyclopedia of Religion, edited by Lindsay Jones, 2nd ed., vol. 7, Macmillan Reference USA, 2005, pp. 4365-4367. Gale In Context: World History, link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX3424501480/WHIC?u=tel_k_webb&sid=WHIC&xid=a43e4b09. Accessed 28 Feb. 2021. 

3) "Igbo." Worldmark Encyclopedia of Cultures and Daily Life, 3rd ed., vol. 1: Africa, Gale, 2017, pp. 310-317. Gale In Context: World History, link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX3648200059/WHIC?u=tel_k_webb&sid=WHIC&xid=81619073. Accessed 26 Feb. 2021.