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BELIEF and RITUAL in the EDO TRADITIONAL RELIGION MICHAEL ROBERT WELTON B.A., University of British Columbia, 1964 a THESIS SUBM

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BELIEF and RITUAL in the EDO TRADITIONAL RELIGION MICHAEL ROBERT WELTON B.A., University of British Columbia, 1964 a THESIS SUBM BELIEF AND RITUAL IN THE EDO TRADITIONAL RELIGION by MICHAEL ROBERT WELTON B.A., University of British Columbia, 1964 A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS in the Department of ANTHROPOLOGY AND SOCIOLOGY We accept this thesis as conforming to the required staiydard^ THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA September, 1969 In presenting this thesis in partial fulfilment of the requirements for an advanced degree at the University of British Columbia, I agree that the Library shall make it freely available for reference and Study. I further agree that permission for extensive copying of this thesis for scholarly purposes may be granted by the Head of my Department or by his representatives. It is understood that copying or publication of this thes,is for financial gain shall not be allowed without my written permission. Department The University of British Columbia Vancouver 8, Canada ABSTRACT The primary purpose of this study is to describe the Edo traditional religious system. Four assumptions undergird the general theoretical framework of the study. 1. That the divinities are personified beings capable of responding to ritual action as well as manifesting themselves in culture. 2. That the interaction between man and divinity will be patterned after such relationships and obligations that characterize social relations. 3. That interaction with divinity will be related to the attainment of goals at different levels of social structural reference. 4. That the divinity-to-group coordination will reflect the con• flicts and competition within the social structure. I have first of all sought to determine what the Edo beliefs about divinity are, i.e. what personalized beings are believed to exist in the 'supernatural' or 'extra-social' world. This has been done through eli• citing of statements from priests and other representatives of the divini• ties, through an analysis of some myths and songs sung before the shrines of 01okun and Ogun. Closely related to the discovery of how the Edo re• present their divinities is the question of how these divinities are believed to manifest themselves in nature and culture. For if they are believed to be 'personalized' entities, then they will have intelligence, personality and speech. When the researcher studies the ritual interactional process between man and the divinities, one of his interests will be to see how the man to divinity communication process parallels the patterns of interaction on the social level. He will also be interested in what relationships there are between the goals an individual in the culture pursues at the different levels of social structural reference and the divinities as instruments to the attainment of this valued ends. Finally, we want to see whether there is any relationship between the ritual interaction with the divinities and the conflicts and competition within the social structure. If structural alignments in the social order are 'mirrored' in man's relationship to divinity in African cultures, then it could be hypothesized that changes within the social structure will also be reflected in changed or new rela• tions to old or new divinities. The 'multiplex' meaning of ritual may be taken for granted. Man's 'vertical' relationship with divinity cannot be interpreted as a cultural isolate, for belief and ritual intersect the .socio-political structure and are related to the ecological environment. This study is limited to ritual as it pertains to divinity. For example, I have not been able to examine rites of passage in the Edo culture. If I had I would have discussed changes of role as involving incorporation into new groups which usually have personal beings behind them who keep the group flourishing or weaken it in response to breaches of group norms. Therefore rites of passage involve ritual in order to bring the new member under their control. The questions I bring to the study of ritual are of a different order. I have chosen three broad categories as organizing devices: the Edo representation of Divinity; The Edo manifestation of Divinity; and the Edo response to Divinity. After giving a brief ethnographic introduction to the Edo, followed by an introduction to the structure of the Edo cosmology, I will examine the main divinities in the Edo cosmology, and conclude with an overview of the Edo religious system. TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER PAGE Preface vi A Note on the Orthography vii I INTRODUCTION TO AFRICAN TRADITIONAL BELIEF AND RITUAL 1 A General Definition of Religion 2 Themes in African Traditional Belief'and Ritual 7 Divinity in African Belief 7 Ritual in African Religious Systems 27 Introduction to the Study of the Edo Traditional Religious System 32 II ETHNOGRAPHIC OUTLINE OF THE EDO 35 General Introduction to the Edo 36 Main Features of the Economy 40 Social Organization and Political Structure 44 The Life Cycle 58 III THE STRUCTURE OF THE EDO COSMOLOGY 67 Introduction 67 Classification and Description of the Edo Divinities 72 Classification and Description of Some Religious and Magical Practitioners 93 IV OSANOBUA: THE SUPREME KING AND CREATOR OF ALL THINGS 97 The Edo Representation of Osanobua 97 Osanobua as He is Represented in the Mythology 98 Osanobua as He is Represented in the Osa-names 104 ii CHAPTER PAGE The Manifestation of Osanobua 107 Preservation of the Edo Value System 107 . Desperate Circumstances Particularly Related to the Birth Process 109 Health and Harmony in the Edo Nation 113 The Edo response to Osanobua . 114 The Holy Aruosa as Response to Osanobua 115 V OLOKUN: THE POWERFUL SON OF OSANOBUA 127 The Edo Representation of Olokun 128 01 okun as He is Represented in the Mythology 128 Olokun as He is Represented by the ohenOlokun 129 Olokun as He is Represented in the Olokun Songs 130 The Manifestation of Olokun 135 The Dream-Experience as a Manifestation of Olokun 136 The Possession-Experience as a Manifestation of Olokun .. 139 Divination as a Manifestation of Olokun 142 The Event as a Manifestation of Olokun 143 The Edo Response to Olokun 144 The Individual Approach to Olokun 144 The Cultic Approach to Olokun 145 VI OGUN: THE ARBITER OF JUSTICE 154 The Edo Representation of Ogun 154 Ogun as He is Represented in the Mythology 154 Ogun as He is Represented in the Ogun songs 155 Ogun as He is Represented by the OhenOgun 159 iii CHAPTER PAGE The Manifestation of Ogun 163 The Dream-Experience as a Manifestation of Ogun 163 The Possession-Experience as a Manifestation of Ogun .... 164 The Event as a Manifestation of Ogun 170 The Edo Response to Ogun 170 Sacrifice as Response to Ogun 172 Elements in the UgiOgun as Response to Ogun 178 VII ESU: THE DESTRUCTIVE ENEMY OF OSANOBUA AND MAN 180 The Edo Representation of Esu 180 Esu as He is Represented in the Mythology 180 Esu as He is Generally Represented by the Edo 182 The Manifestation of Esu 183 The Edo Response to Esu 184 VIII THE ANCESTORS: SPIRITS OF THE DEPARTED 189 The Erha 190 The Edo Representation of the Erha 190 The Manifestation 'of the Erha 191 The Eho Festival as Response to the Erha 196 The Ed ion 201 The Edo Representation of the Ed ion 201 The Manifestation of the Ed ion 203 The Edo Response to the Ed ion 203 IX THE. AZEN: BRIDGE BETWEEN AGBON AND ERIMWIN 205 The Edo Representation of the Azen 205 Characteristics of the Azen on the Social Level 205 iv CHAPTER PAGE Characteristics of the Azen as Erimwin Beings 207 The Manifestation of the Azen 210 The Edo Response to the Azen 214 X EHI: DESTINY IN THE EDO TRADITIONAL RELIGION 219 The Edo Representation of Ehi 219 The Manifestation of Ehi 226 • The Edo Response to Ehi 226 XI THE EDO RELIGION: AN OVERVIEW 230 Divinity in the Edo Religion 230 Ritual in the Edo Religion 232 BIBLIOGRAPHY 244 V LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Page 1. The Edo Cosmology 69 2. The Edo Cycle of Death 92 3. Olokun Shrine 126 4. Ogun Shrine and Ceremonial Area 164 5. Incarnation of Ehi 221 vi PREFACE I am grateful to have been able to conduct anthropological research in Nigeria while teaching with Canadian University Service Overseas. Two weeks after I arrived in the Mid-West State of Nigeria in September 1966, riots broke out in a number of important northern cities including Kano, Jos and Gusau. These riots were followed by a massive exodus of Igbos back to the Eastern Region and the inevitable alienation of the Igbo elite. The Aburi talks in January 1967 did not alleviate the Igbo losses and sense of injustice. Four months later the Eastern Region seceded from the Federation under the military leadership of Odumegwu Ojukwu. After un• successful economic embargoes against Biafra, fighting erupted on the northern front near the university town of Nsukka. Although there was considerable tension in the Mid-West I was able to continue my study of the Edo traditional religious system without inter• ruption until Biafra invaded the Mid-West in August 1967 and occupied the cities of Benin, Sapele and Warri. I was evacuated by my organization from Benin and posted to the far north at Sokoto. Fortunately I was able to return to Benin in April 1968 to fill in some gaps in my research. It is important to keep in mind that this study was not done on a full time basis. vii A NOTE ON THE ORTHOGRAPHY R. Bradbury's orthography will not be used in this work. There is no official agreement on an Edo orthography but I will use one that is generally accepted by literate Edo. Bradbury Weiton £ - e (Open e as in get) 3 .
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