IBO CULTURE Religion and Other Beliefs

Spirituality ■The universe is divided into two levels –The natural level (human world) –The spiritual level (gods, goddesses, and spirits) ■Ibo spirituality affects everyday life; it is how they make sense of the world.

Three levels of diving beings: ■Chukwu= supreme god or high god (highest level) ■ágbàrà or álúsí = lesser spirits ■Ndi Ichie= the spirits of dead people

Chukwu ■Also referred to as the “great spirit” ■His symbol is the sun ■He is associated with nature and all its parts, like rain and plants ■Chukwu created the whole world and other gods, or deities

Chukwu continued... ■The rains he brings upon the world are used to help the Ibo people be prosperous when planting ■All good that happens in the lives of the Ibo is directly related to Chukwu ■Ala is the daughter or wife of Chukwu that is responsible for fertility as well as death ■Ala is the god that rules both at the beginning and at the end of life

Deities ■Chukwu created all earth, so in turn, all the deities of the Ibo originate from earth ■Deities can be made of wood and worshiped as gods ■There are many deities in the Ibo religion

Deities continued... ■Deities are said to be messengers of god to the people ■The Ibo people know and immediately fear the deities ■Although Chukwu is supreme, deities are feared because they can immediately affect the lives of the Ibo people

What is a Chi? ■Chi is the name for smaller gods and spirits (a person’s personal guardian spirit) ■A person’s Chi is their personal fate ■The purpose of a Chi is to care, and to determine successes, misfortunes and failures throughout life ■Similar to a guardian angel –Chi is usually in the form of a wooden idol

Chi continued... ■Every person has a personal Chi (female/male) from birth to death ■A person’s Chi is one way to connect with Chukwu –A person’s Chi is assigned by Chukwu while the person is in the womb –To survive spiritually, one must establish a special relationship with their Chi “... when a man says yes his chi says yes also.”

Chielo and the Oracle ■Chielo is the current priestess of Agbala, the Oracle of the Hills and the Caves ■When Chielo is not possessed by Agbala, acting as the Oracle, she's a normal woman ■When Chielo is possessed by the Oracle there is a whole other side to her personality ■Agbala choses to communicate with the Ibo through Chielo

Chielo continued... ■Just like our modern day priests, Chielo expresses the wisdom of a higher power ■Chielo’s entire countenance changes when she is possessed; instead of a regular, lovable, hardworking woman, she becomes a fierce, deep-voiced communicator of Agbala’s desires ■No one dares challenge or argue with her ■The villagers respect her and she plays a large role with in the community offering wisdom, communicating orders from Agbala, and basically telling people what to do

Ibo Birth ■Ibo strongly believe in reincarnation –If one has lived a “socially approved life” they will reincarnate ■A child is born after a spirit enters the womb –Evil spirits call Ogbanje will continually be born and die over and over again ■Ogbanje- a child possessed by an evil spirit that leaves the child's body upon death only to enter into the mother's womb to be reborn again within the next child's body ■An Iyi-uwa is an object from Ibo mythology that binds the spirit of a dead child (known as ogbanje) to the world, causing it to return and be born again to the same mother

Ogbanje ■Ogbanje is what the Ibo believe to be a wicked child ■This child is born, then dies in infancy, and then enters his mother's womb to be born again ■This belief caused dead babies to be mutilated to try and stop the wicked child from returning ■Okonkwo's wife Ekwefi lost nine of her children and the medicine man told Okonkwo it was because of an ogbanje ■Finally Ezinma is born to Ekwefi, and Ezinma lives although she goes through periods of illness ■This story helps to reveal some of the tribal culture and belief. It also shows us a very human side to Okonkwo and Ekwefi as they struggle with the loss of so many children and Ezinma's illnesses.

Ibo Death ■Dead spirits will return to the same family ■Funerals are the biggest of the religious ceremonies ■Funeral services vary based on type of death –For women who die during childbirth or people who commit suicide (both considered shameful), their ceremonies normally consist of being thrown in a bush (no burial provided) –The honor of the death varies dependent on the background, title, gender, relationship with family and circumstances around the death –Funerals consist of two burials; after the second burial rites, it is believed that the person can reach the spirit world

Other beliefs... ■The Evil Forest –Superstition is that evil spirits lurk in the mysterious forest –The evil forest is a sacred place where sick men are taken to die. Twins are left there to die. No one dares build or farm there, as it is land reserved for the gods ■Twins –Ibo feared the birth of twins –Ibo society viewed twins as a bad omen sent by the gods. They considered twins as supernatural beings that could bring devastation upon society