religion of the yorubas in relation to ancient egypt

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THE RELIGION OP THE YORUBAS

.

e s p e c i a l l y

i n r e l a t i o n to

t h e R e l i g i o n

of Ancient

3gypt

Being an account of the r e l i g i o u s b e l i e f s

and p r a c t i c e s

of

the Yoruha Peoples

of

Southern N i g e r i a , e s p e c i a l l y i n r e l a t i o n

t o

the

R e l i g i o n

of Ancient Egypt

By

THE REV. CANON J. OLUlvIIDE LUCAS,



i i i

CHAPTER C O N T E N T S PAGE

I n t r o d u c t i o n

1

I I

Olorun,

The Supreme

Dei ty

• •

37

I I I

The Major Orisas -

A.

E S U

•

60

IV

The Major Orisas

- B . IPA

•

81

V

The Major Orisas - C.

QBATALA

D. ODUDUWA

E

&

P.

AGINJU

and

YEMOJA

•

100

VI

The Major Orisas - G. SANGO

H. OGUN

I . ORISA

OKO

J. SOPONO

• • • •

Ilk

V I I

The D e i f i e d

S p i r i t s

of Ancestors

and other S p i r i t s -

A.

ORO

B. ELUKU

130

V I I I

The D e i f i e d

S p i r i t s

of Ancestors

and other

S p i r i t s

-

C. AGEMO

D.

EGUNGUN

E. ADIMU ORISA

P. GELEDE

Ikk



i v

CHAPTER

C O N T E N T S

P GE

X I I

X I I I

XIV

XV

XVI

X V I I

APPENDIX I

APPENDIX I I

APPENDIX I I I

Priesthood and

Worship

1 .

Death and

F u n e r a l

Customs

2 . Fun era l Guilds.

The Yoruba Conception of Man

Magic i n

Yorubaland

S u r v i v a l of H i e r o g l y p h i c s , Emblems

and other

Symbols

S u r v i v a l of

H i e r o g l y p h i c s ,

Emblems

and other

Symbols (continued)

C o n c l u s i o n

E g y p t i a n S u r v i v a l s

Yoruba Hieroglyphics-

B i b l i o g r a p h y

2Z+8

269

298

328

3U9

366

398

kk5

k52



LIST

OF

ILLUSTRATIONS

PIGU3H

D3SCRIPTI0N

Pacing

PAG3

1.

A t y p i c a l Yoruba

hut

6

2.

An

Oyo Yoruba

(Yoruba proper)

6

3.

An

jlgba Yoruba

o

o

k.

A wea lthy Ibadan Parmer

9

5

Yorubas

: S k i t i type

9

6.

A b i r d ' s eye view of Abeokuta

15

7.

A

Yoruba

: Lagos

(Jko)

type

32

8.

An image of Esu

61

9.

Another

image

of

Ssu

62

10. An image of Obalufon

•

77

11.

I f a U t e n s i l s

86

12.

Diagramatic

Representat ion of

I f a Odus

On 87-90

13.

Statues of

Odudua

on a

subordinate

D e i t y

106

1U.

Shrine

of

Yernoja

111

15.

Specimen of Sacred Axe of Sango

116

16.

Two

Native Hunters - Worshippers of Ogun, 118



27]

28,

29.

30,

31,

32,

33,

34,

35

36

37,

38

39

40

v i

DSSC/riPTIOH

Chief's

S t a f f ,

showing the

B i r d psahin

Temple

o f Osun at

oshogbo

A

grove

i n

l i e I f e

A grove showing

Mariwo

Images

of 13 su

A Path l e a d i n g t o a Deep Bush

A Procession of Ogbonis

A

Sacred Tree

Yoruba Pots

Babalav/o's

Paraphernalia

Specimens

o f

Yoruba Amulets

H i e r o g l y p h i c I n s c r i p t i o n s

H i e r o g l y p h i c I n s c r i p t i o n s

H i e r o g l y p h i c

I n s c r i p t i o n s









v i i

FIGURE

DESCRIPTION

Facing

PAGE

51.

52.

53.

5k

55.

56.

57.

58.

59.

60.

Sacred

Crocodile

Terra

Cottas i n l i e

I f e ,

Image of

Ololcun

Image

of

Olokxm

A

C o l l e c t i o n of

Sacred

Images

The Oni

of

I f e

Bronze

Heads at I j e b u

Ode

Specimens of Double-headed

Axe

.

i n

Yorubaland

Specimens of Double-headed

Axe

i n Yorubaland

C h r i s t i a n Women

i n

Native

Dress

3kd

3kl

356

356

358

360

361

363

364

396

Map

o f Yorubaland



C H A P T E R I .

I N T R O D U C T I O N .



THE RELIGION OF THE YORUBAS

CHAPTER

I

I N T R O D U C T I O N .

The question

has

o f t e n

been

asked

as

to whether the

r e l i g i o n s of p r i m i t i v e

peoples

owe

t h e i r

c h a r a c t e r

to

ar-

r e s t e d development or t o degeneration. A great divergence

o f o p i n i o n e x i s t s

among a n t h r o p o l o g i s t s as regards the

answer to

t h i s q u e s t i o n .

Some would

agree with Dr.

Menzies

t h a t

the theo ry th at

man was

o r i g i n a l l y

c i v i l i z e d

and

humane,

and t h a t i t v/as

by a

f a l l ,

by a degeneration from

t h a t

e a r l i -

e st c o n d i t i o n , t h a t the s t a t e

of

savagery made i t s appearance,

1

i s now

g e n e r a l l y

abandoned , or

w i t h D r.

S s t l i n Carpenter

t h a t whatever may be

the occasional instances

of degeneration

o r d e c l i n e , the general movement

of

t h i n g s

advances from

cruder

2

and less

complex to

the

more

r e f i n e d

and developed . Others



-2-

owing to the i r r e s i s t i b l e force v/ith which the current of

western c i v i l i z a t i o n flows i n t o the realms o f savagery. The

t a s k of c o l l e c t i n g such evidence thus becomes a matter of

urgent nece ssity, f o r w i t h i n the next few decades many va-

luable, ma te ri al s may be l o s t or so transformed as to lo se

t h e i r

value as evidence f o r comparative

r e l i g i o n .

I n

his foreward to Dr.

Farrow's

book F a i t h , Fancies

1

and

F e t i c h

Dr. Marett

r a i s e d

the question

w i t h

regards

to

Yoruba

Paganism

i n the

f o l l o w i n g s i g n i f i c a n t

Wordst

a r .

Farrow sometimes says 'degraded'; and, taken s t r i c t l y

t h i s term would imply t h a t there has been a c t u a l

b a c k s l i d -

i n g - a ' f a l l i n g away from grace'. This i s

q u i t e

a reason-

able assumption so lon g as

i t

i s

t r e a t e d

as such; and, i f

we proceed to

v e r i f y

i t

by

f u r t h e r

research, I

have

no doubt

t h a t i n the medley of Yoruba b e l i e f s many

elements

w i l l be

found to have 'come down i n the w o r l d ' i n the course of t h e i r

h i s t o r y . Especially i n t e r e s t i n g i s the question whether,'



- 3 -

f u r t h e r research, a t a s k to which the present w r i t e r has

addressed

h i m s e l f .

The purpose of

t h i s

t h e s i s

i s to

g i v e

an account o f research work conducted on the l i n e s i n d i c a -

ted

above

by Dr. Marett, to show what elements i n Yoruba

Paganism 'have

come down i n the w o r l d i n the course of t h e i r

h i s t o r y ' ,

and to i d e n t i f y the 'purer

f a i t h '

which has now de-

generated

i n t o

rank

f e t i c h i s m .

The t h e s i s w i l l

a l s o

c o n t a i n

c r i t i c i s m s of e x i s t i n g works on the s u b j e c t , t o g e t h e r w i t h

a d d i t i o n a l d e t a i l s

which the research has brought to

l i g h t .

I t

i s

h a r d l y

necessary t o say here

t h a t

the

c r i t i c i s m s

of e x i s t i n g works on the s u b j e c t which w i l l be found im

many

p a r t s of the t h e s i s are not

made

i n a

c a r p i n g

s p i r i t . The

w r i t e r r e a l i z e s h i s indebtedness to prev ious w r i t e r s and en-

t e r t a i n s

a

deep

sense

of

g r a t i t u d e

to

them.

A l l these

w r i -

t e r s ,

however,

must

have

recognised the d i f f i c u l t i e s under

which they had to l a b o u r .

They

cannot but

r e a l i z e t h a t

t h e i r

measure

of success must be

p r o p o r t i o n a l

to the e x t e n t



k

i s

the n a t u r a l resentment of t h e n a t i v e at t he i n t e r f e r e n c e

o f n o n - n a t i v e s w i t h t h e m y s t e r i e s o f h i s

r e l i g i o n ,

e s p e c i a l l y

when these are the tene ts

o f a

s e c r e t S o c i e t y .

The

p e n a l t y

a t t a c h e d to the divulg ence of se cre ts was,

p r i o r

to the

estab-

•

lishment of the Pax B r i t a n n i c a , i n e v i t a b l e d ea th . The t a s k

o f o b t a i n i n g i n f o r m a t i o n th us

becomes

d i f f i c u l t

and

p e r p l e x i n g .

Miss Mary Kingsley t r u l y s a y s : S t a l k i n g t h e West A f r i c a n i d e a

i s one of the most charming p u r s u i t s i n t h e w o r l d

as beset w i t h

d i f f i c u l t y as

g r i z z l y - b e a r h u n t i n g .

Another d i f f i c u l t y i s t h a t o f language.

Ignorance

of the

language or a p a r t i a l acquaintance w i t h i t accounts f o r a l a r g e

number of e r r o r s . For example, C o l o n e l

E l l i s

and Mr. R.E.

Dennett - whose

works

c o n t a i n a w e a l t h of v a l u a b l e i n f o r m a t i o n

and to whom much p r a i s e i s due f o r t h e courage, l a b o u r and p e r -

severance

n e c e s s i t a t e d by research work done i n those e a r l y

days

- had but a p a r t i a l

acquaintance

w i t h t h e

Yoruba language.

1

Some

of

t h e i r

e r r o r s have been c o r r e c t e d by Dr. Farrow and



- 5 -

f u l l y opened

up in t h e i r

days

as

i t i s

now, and

hence

t h e i r

f i e l d

of

research v/as confined w i t h i n

the l i m i t s of the

towns

and

v i l l a g e s

of the few

t r i b e s whom they could

s a f e l y

reach. Besides, n e i t h e r of

them t r e a t e d

the subject from

the p o i n t of

view

of

comparative r e l i g i o n .

Dr.

Farrow's

book F a i t h , Fancies

and

F e t i c h i s probably

the best

t r e a t i s e

on the

subject which

has

yet

been

published.

He l i v e d i n the country f o r a period of about f i v e years and

acquired a

working knowledge

of the

language. A l l t h i s enabled

him

to

obt ain informati on otherwise unobtainable

by the average

non-native.

Yet

his v/ork

s u f f e r s

from

some of the

d i f f i c u l t i e s

r e f e r r e d

to

above.

For

example,

i n s p i t e of

hi s study

of the

language, m i s t r a n s l a t i o ns

and

wrong expressions occur i n his

book,

which

n u l l i f y

the value of the explanation or theor ies

based

on

them.

Two

examples

may be

given here,

Dr.

Farrow

1

speaks

of Orun-Afefe - the

heaven

of cool

breezes .

There i s

no such expression in Yoruba. The c o r r e c t expression i s A f e f e -

r e r e - Favourable wind . Again, a f t e r

c r i t i c i s i n g

E l l i s for



Pig.1

A

t y p i c a l

Yoruba hut

fife



-6-

Not

o n l y does he

speak

h i s n a t i v e language

f l u e n t l y ,

but

he has a l s o had the p r i v i l e g e of s tu d yi ng i t from t h e p o i n t

o f

view of

p h i l o l o g y . He has l e c t u r e d on the

language

and

on

Yoruba paganism

f o r many

years.

His

acquaintance

w i t h

the b e l i e f s

and

p r a c t i c e s

of

h i s c o u n t r y i s a ve ry clos e one, as

he

had shared

some

of t he b e l i e f s d u r i n g

some

p e r i o d s

of

h i s

l i f e , and had had

occasion to take

p a r t

i n some

of the

p r a c t i -

ces which l i g h t and knowledge gained i n succeeding years have

shown

to

be s u p e r s t i t i o u s .

His

c o n t a c t w i t h t he u n s o p h i s t i -

cated n a t i v e s i s

d i r e c t ,

thus f a c i l i t a t i n g the task of o b t a i n -

i n g

f i r s t - h a n d and t r u s t w o r t h y i n f o r m a t i o n

when

necessary.

YORUBALAND AND

ITS

PEOPLES.

Yorubaland l i e s

on

the south-

western p a r t o f N i g e r i a ,

between

the

t h i r d and the s i x t h de-

grees

of

n o r t h

l a t i t u d e .

I t i s

bounded

on

t he n o r t h

and on

t h e e a s t , r o u g h l y ,

by

the r i v e r

Niger, on

the

south by

the

B i g h t

of

Benin, and on the west by the French P r o t e c t o r a t e

o f

Dahomey.

I t i s a f e r t i l e and w e l l - p o p u l a t e d r e g i o n

i n



the

names

of B i n i , J e k r i and I g a r a from the l i s t , because

these t r i b e s are c u l t u r a l l y i n f e r i o r to most of the other

t r i b e s . The exclusion

f i n d s

support i n the a t t i t u d e of the

remaining t r i b e s to

them.

As a matter of f a c t there are

some t r i b e s who are so ignorant of t h e i r r e l a t i o n to the

Igaras as to use the l a t t e r ' s name as a synonym f o r thiev es

or robbers. A study of the languages

spoken

by the three

t r i b e s ,

however,

show that they are

more

or les s remote dia-

1

l e c t s

of the

Yoruba

language,

w h i l s t a study of t h e i r be-

l i e f s

and practices

shows

t h a t

the di ff er en ce of

c u l t u r e

i s

a clear i l l u s t r a t i o n of degrees of degeneration.

The

Yorubas

are undoubtedly one of the lea di ng and

most

progressive peoples i n West A f r i c a . Before the

advent

of the

B r i t i s h , they

were

famous

f o r t h e i r leather work, chip-carv ing,

s m e l t i n g of ores, manufacture of

s t e e l t o o l s ,

spinning and

other a r t s .

They were

also

keen

a g r i c u l t u r i s t s , although

i n

some pa rt s of the country the d e t e r i o r a t i n g e f f e c t of the



- 8 -

The achievements of the Yorubas i n other p a r t s of the

w o r l d

are

a l s o

c r e d i t a b l e . Some

of

the slaves imported

i n t o

America

were

Yorubas. I t cannot

be

regarded otherwise than

j u s t

and

f a i r

t h a t

the Yorubas

at home

should

have

a

share

i n

the

c r e d i t due to t h e i r k i t h and k i n - the

black

men i n America.

Two

instances

may be c i t e d

here.

The l a t e

Booker

T.

Washington,

the d i s t i n g u i s h e d black man who

founded Tuskegee

I n s t i t u t e i n

South America

was a man of

r e a l

f i b r e and of

b r i l l i a n t achieve-

ment.

His

career

was one

which would b r i n g c r e d i t

t o any

n a t i o n which c o u l d

c l a i m

him as a member. There i s no doubt

t h a t

he was of Yoruba

e x t r a c t i o n ,

as hi s middle name T a n i f e -

1

a n i i s unquestionably

a

Yoruba

name

which i s s t i l l i n

use

i n

Yorubaland,

e s p e c i a l l y

among

the Egbas. Again, the negro

s p i r i t u a l s

which

have

t h r i l l e d

the western

w o r l d and

which

show the d e l i c a t e pathos

of

the

black man

are

a

development

o f Negro music

as

used

by

the Yorubas

and

other t r i b e s

i n

West A f r i c a .



Pig. 4

A

Wealthy l b a clan

P a r m e r



-9-

the

present time, the

number

of leaders

produced,

and the

manifest signs of determination to make improvement i n every

walk of

l i f e .

For instance, the

Church

Missionary Society

commenced evan ge list ic v/ork among the

Yorubas

i n 18U5. Within

e i g h t y - e i g h t years they

have produced

si x nativ e

Bishops,

one

o f whom

was the

l a t e Bishop Samuel A j a y i Crowther

who was

rescued as a boy by the B r i t i s h from a slave ship. Such a

r e c o r d

has no p a r a l l e l i n any other part of

modern A f r i c a .

Again,

b e a u t i f u l

comments have

been

made on t h e i r

m i l i t a r y

prowess

by several dist inguish ed

European w r i t e r s .

The

f o l l o w -

i n g

i s a

specimen:-

Throughout t h i s

campaign

the

conduct

of

2

the Af ri ca n

s o l d i e r s

of the Nigeria

Regiment,

and indeed of

a l l the West Afric an Frontier Force was

beyond

praise

Dozens

of instances could be given of the

g a l l a n t r y

of the

troops'.'^

Mr. Mollison recording hi s experiences i n

V/est

A f r i c a

said: The

ancient

kingdom

of

Yoruba

may be taken as one of



-10-

easy

to imagine how great must be the a g r i c u l t u r a l a c t i v i t y

o f

the

people

and how vast the proportionate

area

of land

under

c u l t i v a t i o n .

I t

must not be

f o r g o t t e n t h a t

the

Yoruba

i s by

custom

a f u l l y clothed mortal. I t i s considered i n the highest

degree

unfashionable to

appear

in the

p u b l i c s t r e e t s

without a

com-

p l e t e

covering of two or three

ample

and well-dyed clothes,

draped round the body i n not ungraceful f o l d s . ^

I t should be noted here t h a t the populations of the towns

and

v i l l a g e s have

since increased considerably, the population

o f Ibadan now being

300,000,

A f t e r

a v i s i t to

West A f r i c a

for l i n g u i s t i c

purposes

Prof.

D.

Westerman

thus described the

Yoruba

people: The

Yoruba

people are

remarkable

for t h e i r attainments.

They l i v e

i n

l a r g e communities (Ibadan has 300

,000

i n h a b i t a n t s ) , have a very

h i g h l y developed r e l i g i o n and mythology and know something

about t h e i r own

h i s t o r y ;

they

have always

been

e n t e r p r i s i n g

people, and as traders and s e t t l e r s exercise a considerable



t h e i r o r i g i n t h e r e f o r e becomes i m p e r a t i v e .

THE

YORUBA

LANGUAGE.

Before

an

attempt i s

made to trac e

t h e o r i g i n of

the Yorubas,

some

remarks about

the

character

o f t h e i r language may be made here. The language belongs

t o the a g g l u t i n a t i n g c l a s s , and to the f a m i l y known as Suda-

n i c . I t s s y l l a b l e s

are a l l

open, unless when the

f i n a l

consonant

i s

'n'. I t i s

a

t o n a l language

and has t h r e e

d i s -

t i n c t

accents,

v i z

the h i g h O the middle , and the low C* .

A s l i g h t change of

accent

may change

the meaning

to the

opposite

of

what

i s

intended.

The

c i r c u m f l e x (~) i s used

to

denote

a

double vowel

or an

a b b r e v i a t i o n .

I n

e i t h e r

case,

the

proper accent

of

each

of

the vowels composing the double

vowels

or

appearing i n the abbreviated s y l l a b l e s i s o m i t t e d .

These f e a t u r e s make the language d i f f i c u l t f o r Europeans to

a c q u i r e ,

and,

as a

matter

of f a c t ,

very

few

non-natives ever

l e a r n

to

speak the language w i t h

any

degree

of

accuracy.

As i t i s a pho net ic language, i t s orthography i s very

simple. Each

l e t t e r

represents

a

s i n g l e

d i s t i n c t

sound,

ex-



r

-12-

a i s pronounced l i k e -ar i n park

e

e

u

-

a

- e

- o

-aw

-

u

name

'

bend

rode

raw

r u l e

An important p o i n t to be noted i n connection with, o r t h o -

graphy i s t h a t the present system i s

i m p e r f e c t .

Some of the

words c o n t a i n

l e t t e r s

which tend

to

obscure

the

o r i g i n

of

th e words.

Before, the note on orthography i s concluded i t i s neces-

sary to e x p l a i n the r u l e s governing the m o d i f i c a t i o n s which

Yoruba words undergo before they

are

i n c o r p o r a t e d i n t o

the

Fore i g n

language. The r u l e s are almost the same as those

governing the m o d i f i c a t i o n s which l e d to d i a l e c t i c d i f f e r e n c e s

i n the language. I n order to f a c i l i t a t e

reference

t o them,

they

w i l l be summarized and

numbered

as

f o l l o w s

:

1)

Yoruba i s a phonetic language. Every consonant has



i n Yoruba (see

also

the

next r u l e ) .

The double consonant

' t h ' becomes e i t h e r

' t ' or

'd'. e.g.

' t h a t '

becomes

'dat'

i n

West A f r i c a n

languages

g e n e r a l l y .

I n Yoruba

i t

must

become

' d a t i

1

. But the form 'da* i s

w e l l

known i n the

p i d g i n

E n g l i s h

spoken i n

West A f r i c a

e.g. ' t h a t boy'

become

'da boy*.

F i n a l

vowels are

o f t e n n a s a l i z e d .

This

i s

e s p e c i a l l y

the

case

when

a f i n a l consonant has been

e l i d e d

or

the

word has

.been a b b r e v i a t e d .

The

s h o r t

'a' does not

e x i s t i n

the Yoruba language.

Whenever

i t

occurs i n a

f o r e i g n

word

i t

i s

g e n e r a l l y

changed t o the

l o n g

sound of

'a'

as i n

'bar',

or i s

d e f l e c t e d

i n

f

e'

as i n

'pet' .

The vowel sound

'er'

as i n

'her'

becomes

the

l o n g

*a'

i n Yoruba.

The vowels

' i '

and

'u'

are sometimes

s u b s t i t u t e d

fo r

one

another. This

a l s o a p p l i e s

t o the vowels

'a'

and



-Hi-

f o l l o w e d

by a consonant i t receives a vowel which

forms a new

s y l l a b l e w i t h i t

i n accordance w i t h

r u l e

2

above; i f i t

i s f o l l o w e d by a vowel and the word i s not

a monosyllable, the

'kh'

i s

o m i t t e d .

(10)

A

p r e f i x c o n s i s ti n g

of a vowel or a vowel and an

i n i t i a l

consonant i s

sometimes added

to an adopted

word t o denote a possessor or an agent.

(11) 'p'

(as i n pat )

sometimes

becomes

'b'

i n

Yoruba

e.g.

Bishop

becomes

'Bisobu'

i n Yoruba.

(12) The a s p i r a t e i s o f t e n e l i d e d .

(13)

'

r

f

i s

o f t e n s u b s t i t u t e d

f o r

'n'.

(11+) A pure Yoruba

noun

begins w i t h a vowel, unless i t i s a

noun

phrase. A

noun

adopted from another language may

be l e f t w i t h o u t any m o d i f i c a t i o n , or i t may have a

vowel

p r e f i x e d

to

i t ,

so

t ha t i t

may

l o o k

l i k e

an

o r d i n a r y Yoruba noun.

THE

ORIGIN

OP THE YORUBAS. The question of the hig her



-15-

as

we

possess carry

us

back only

t o the end of

the. eighteenth

century

or the

beginning

of the

nineteenth century. Various

speculations have been

made,

several theori es have been pro-

pounded by d i f f e r e n t w r i t e r s , bu t no one has y e t succeeded i n

i d e n t i f y i n g

the l o c a l i t y ao as t o e s t a b l i s h a connexion between

t h a t

l o c a l i t y

and th e

Yoruba

r e l i g i o n .

I n the absence o f records, the Yorubas themselves have

no

d e f i n i t e

knowledge o f

t h e i r

o r i g i n . Their popular myths

g i v e t o

l i e I f e

the honour o f

being

the

spot

where God

created

man, both white and black, and there can be l i t t l e doubt t h a t

I f e was th e f i r s t settlement of the Yorubas i n

t h e i r

present

1

country . Hence the epithet i l e home i s always attached

t o the name o f I f e . Prom

I l e I f e

the f i r s t home o f the

Yorubas

i n

Nigeria,

the

d i f f e r e n t t r i b e s

migrated north

and

south,

founding other towns and absorbing or d r i v i n g away the

o r i g i n a l

s e t t l e r s .

The Egba

kingdom i n Abeokuta which

was

founded

i n

1837 i s perhaps the l a s t kingdom t o be founded. The value o f



-16-

or

n o r t h - e a s t .

The o p i n i o n f i n d s a s t r o n g support i n myths

f r e q u e n t l y

r e l a t e d

i n

many

p a r t s

of

West

A f r i c a .

The

c o u n t r i e s

suggested as the o r i g i n a l home of

West

A f r i c a n s are p a r t s of

Asia,

Egypt

and

the

Sudan. I n the

case

of

the Yorubas

the

view

which has

h e l d

the f i e l d i n

recent

years and which has

been

quoted

by

prominent

w r i t e r s

w i t h

complacency

and

seeming

approval

i s t h a t of

Sultan B e l l o

of Sokoto. The

Sultan s t a t e s

t h a t th e Yorubas i t i s supposed, o r i g i n a t e d

from

the remnants

o f the c h i l d r e n of

Canaan,

who were of the t r i b e of Nimrod.

The cause of t h e i r

establishment

i n the West of A f r i c a was,

as

i t i s s t a t e d ,

i n consequence

of t h e i r being d r i v e n by

Yaa-rooba, son of Kahtan, out of

Arabia

to the western

coast

between Egypt and

Abyssinia.

Prom t h a t

spot

they advanced

i n t o the i n t e r i o r of A f r i c a , t i l l they reached Yarba, where

they f i x e d t h e i r

residence.

On t h e i r way they l e f t ,

i n

every

place they

stopped

a t ,

a t r i b e of

t h e i r

own people.

Thus i t

i s supposed t h a t

a l l

the

t r i b e s

of Soodan, who i n h a b i t the



-17-

c a l l

themselves Yoruba

because

they were d r i v e n out of Arabia

by

Yaa-rooba,

and do they

g i v e

t h e i r name

to the town of

Yarba?

I f there i s no connexion between the names then i t

i s

very c u r i o u s

t h a t

the Yorubas were d r i v e n out by Yaa-rooba

t

and they advanced u n t i l they reached Yarbal I f

t h e r e

i B

a connexion, then the view

l a y s

i t s e l f

open

t o a

s e r i o u s

o b j e c t i o n . I t suggests that the Yorubas adopted the

name

o f t h e i r conqueror. The adoption of such a name has no p a r a l -

l e l i n the

h i s t o r y

of the w o r l d , and anyone who understands

the

m e n t a l i t y

of the Yorubas w i l l r e a d i l y agree t h a t they

would be the

l a s t

people to adopt the names of

t h e i r

conquer-

o r s .

The view a l s o loses

c r e d i t

by r e c o r d i n g the s u p p o s i t i o n

t ha t a l l the t r i b e s of Soodan who i n h a b i t the mountains, are

o r i g i n a t e d

from them, as a l s o are the

i n h a b i t a n t s

of Ya-ory ,

a

s u p p o s i t i o n

which cannot bear e i t h e r a h i s t o r i c a l or a l i n -

g u i s t i c t e s t .

I n

s p i t e of the f a n c i f u l character of Sultan

B e l l o ' s

-18-



which

show

d i s t i n c t Semitic tra ces .

Commenting

on these f a c t s

he

says,

Whilst they do not ne ce ss ar il y imply any trace of

Semitic o r i g i n ,

they

would

seem t o

i n d i c a t e t h a t

the Semitic

Hebrews and the N e g r i t i c Yorubas belong to branches which at

some e a r l y stage were u n i t e d to a common stem.

1

S i r . A.C.

Burns,

f o l l o w i n g

Prof. Leo. Froebenius, the

German

explorer of

A f r i c a , says t h a t i t i s probable t h a t the Yorubas

were

not

2

o r i g i n a l l y o f negro blood. A l l

t h i s

suggests

t h a t

the Yorubas

were

at one time i n As ia , and t h a t Asia may be regarded as

t h e i r o r i g i n a l home. The p r o b a b i l i t y i s f u r t h e r strengthened

by the f a c t t h a t the name o f Nimrod, corrupted by the Yorubas

t o

Lamurudu,

f i g u r e s

prominently i n

Yoruba mythology.

There i s , however, one remark which must be added to the

comments

on

t h i s

statement. I n the

f i r s t

place, i t

must

be

pointed

out

t h a t

although the

Yorubas

might belong to the

t r i b e

o f Nimrod they must not be regarded as the c h i l d r e n of Canaan

as Sultan B e l l o suggested. Cush and

Canaan

were bro thers;



-19-

l a y i n g emphasis on

Hebrew

idioms and customs i n d i r e c t l y

suggest P a l e s t i n e . They

f o r g e t

t h a t the idioms and

customs

are

are not p e c u l i a r

to

the

Hebrews,

b u t / a l s o

found among

other

Semitic peoples. That the Yorubas came i n t o contact w i t h the

Chaldean i s , i n t h e i r o p i n i o n , s t r o n g l y suggested by some

t r a c e s which the Chaldean language

seems to

have l e f t

on the

Yoruba language. For example, the name Aki (o r

Akin

-

nasal

n) i s very common i n Yorubaland and s i g n i f i e s the name of a

hero.

There

are

myths about

the o r i g i n of

the

name and of

the superhuman

e x p l o i t s

of the

f i r s t

bearer of the name. I t

i s i n t e r e s t i n g to observe t h a t the name

occurs

i n Chaldean

legends as

the

name o f

the hero

who

rescued Shargani

-

Shar-

1

A l i , t h a t

i s Sargon the Elder, from being drowned. Further

evidence i s

supposed

to be given by

the

f a c t t h a t contact w i t h

the

Sumerian element

of

the Chaldean

p o p u l a t i o n

i s

a t t e s t e d

to

by the presence of a few Surnerian words i n the Yoruba language.

For

example, the Sumerian word _s i

means

l i f e . This

becomes

2

s i i n

Yorubsr

and possesses e x a c t l y the same meaning. Ko _si



-20

CONNECTION WITH ANCIENT EGYPT. Whilst i t i s do ubtful

whether

the

view

of an

A s i a t i c

o r i g i n

i s

co rr ec t, there

can

be no

doubt

t h a t

the Yorubas were i n

A f r i c a at a

very-

e a r l y

date. A chain of

evidence

leads to the conclusion

t h a t they must have s e t t l e d f o r many years i n t h a t part

o f

the

continent

known

as

Ancient

Egypt.

The

f a c t s

lead-

i n g to the conclusion may be grouped

under

the f o l l o w i n g

heads :-

A.

S i m i l a r i t y

or

I d e n t i t y

of

Language.

B. S i m i l i a r i t y or

I d e n t i t y

of

Religious

B e l i e f s .

C.

S i m i l a r i t y

or

I d e n t i t y

of Religiou s Ideas and Practic es.

D. Survival of Customs, and of names of persons, places,

o b j e c t s , et c.

A.

S i m i l a r i t y

or

I d e n t i t y

of Language. The

evidence under

t h i s heading i s very strong. There i s a very close resem-

blance between

the

language

of

the Ancient Egyptians

and

t h a t of the Yorubas. The

former

has been

described

as f o l l o w s :



- 2 1 -

Yoruba

mean

send

me or help me or i n f e c t me or

pain

me

1

or c a l l me ,

e t c . according

to

the p o s i t i o n

of

the accent

on

the

word ra n

or according to the context

i n

which

the words

occur. Another example

of t h i s i s the

word

wa which has as

many as

twelve d i f f e r e n t

meanings

which

may be determined by

the k i n d of accent placed

upon i t

and by i t s f u n c t i o n i n the

c o n t e x t .

The evidence i s not

l i m i t e d

to s i m i l a r i t y of

language.

There

are many

words i n Yoruba

which

are

i d e n t i c a l i n

s p e l l i n g

and meaning w i t h Egyptian words;

t h e r e are others which are

i d e n t i c a l i n meaning but whose s p e l l i n g presents d i f f e r e n c e s

which can e a s i l y be accounted

f o r

by the r u l e s of

m o d i f i c a t i o n s

given

above.

The

w r i t e r b e l i e v e s

t h a t

words

which

are

w h o l l y

i d e n t i c a l w i t h Egyptian words or c o n t a i n

r o o t s

of Egyptian

o r i g i n form

not

l e s s than

h a l f

of the

words

i n

the

present

Yoruba

vocabulary. A few

examples

of these

w i l l

be given

here.

2

22



i . e . a camp;

ibusun,

a

place

to

sleep

i . e . a

bed; other

s i m i l a r

words

are

i b u - j o k o .

a

c h a i r ,

ibu-so,

a

s t a t i o n ,

a-bu-le,

premises, etc.

I n

the Egyptian language the word anion

means to

conceal

or

concealed . This word e x i s t s i n

Yoruba

w i t h

the

same meaning

e.g. f i p

f

amon.

conceal

i t ( l i t ,

regard i t

as

hidden

or cause

i t

to be

hidden ). Other

examples are :-

( l ) U u =

wu,

r i s e

up,

s w e l l . 2)

M i r i =

water; i n

Yoruba

t h i s word

1

i s used only as an adverb, v i z : M i r i - m i r i . dazzling

l i k e

water

but

among

the Ibos

who are the

next door neighbours

of

the

Yorubas

i s 2

the w o r d / s t i l l used to denote water.

(3)

Ha, great

house

3

becomes

iga i n Yorubajwhich

means a

great house

or a

king's palace.

(1+)

Hor

to

be

high ,

t h a t

which i s hig h

becomes

o r i

(h i s

e l i d e d , and r

being

a

f i n a l consonant receives

an a d d i t i o n a l

vowel

to

form

a new s y l l a b l e ) . The

word

o r i

means

top

head .

(5)

Fahaka means a

globe f i s h which

has

s i l v e r y l i n e s

on

i t s

1+

s k i n . Fadaka

i n

Yoruba means s i l v e r . The word Fahaka

survives

i n modern Egyptian language

i n the

form

of

Faddah which

means

5

-23-



a s c e r t a i n e d or

have

become

obsucre

i n

the o t h e r .

Two

examples

o f

such words

w i l l be

given here.

Prof.

Sayce, commenting

on

Horus A h i , says

The

meaning

of

A h i ,

the

l o c a l

t i t l e

assigned

1

t o Horus the younger i s d o u b t f u l . The word Ahi becomes Ehin i n

Yoruba ( s h o r t

'a'

becomes

'

e' according to r u l e 5 above and

'

i

becomes n a s a l i z e d ) • The Yoruba word ghin which means behind

or

the back

of a

t h i n g

i s

g e n e r a l l y a p p l i e d

to a

j u n i o r

perso n,

e s p e c i a l l y to the younger of

t w i n s

who i s named K'ehin-de ( l i t .

t o come behind). The probable meaning of theKxyptian word

2

A h i ,

t h e r e f o r e ,

i s the younger

and

the word i s used probably

i n

the same way as the word J u n i o r when added to the name

o f a son bearing same name as h i s

f a t h e r .

Again, Prof. Sayce,

commenting on

N i n i

says the meaning o f the l a s t name ( i . e .

3

N i n i ) i s d o u b t f u l . The word n i n i i n Yoruba means p e r f e c t

e.g.

t u t u

n i n i ,

as

c o l d

as

po s s i b l e .

Hence the

word

N i n i

*

k

probably s i g n i f i e s

p e r f e c t i o n .

B.

S i m i l a r i t y

or

I d e n t i t y

of R e l i g i o u s

B e l i e f s .

Abundant proof

of

i n t i m a t e connection between the Ancient



-2U-

But the

words

Tramp, r a r a , r a r a , etc preserve the

i d e a .

The

l i t e r a l

meaning

of i - ra - wo, a

s t a r ,

i s

t h a t

which

v

appears

when the Ra ( t h a t i s , the sun) has

s e t ,

(wo - s e t ) . The

Yoruba expression, ra - r a , not at

a l l ,

i s probabl y an ol d

form of swearing by the god Ra. The word

r a - r a

dwarf bears

an unmistakable reference to the Danga dwarfs which, i n Egyp tian

Mythology,

h a i l e d

the

d a i l y , a r r i v a l

of the sun-god i n the

morning

w i t h g r e a t d e l i g h t .

Again, the

moon-god

Khonsu

must

have been known

to the Yorubas. The

i n i t i a l

l e t t e r

'kh' d i s -

appears i n

Y'oruba

(See

r u l e

9

and

the word

becomes osu

i n

Yoruba which

means

the

moon .

I t

has

been

observed

above t h a t

the v/ord amon

e x i s t s

i n

the

Yoruba language

w i t h

the

same meaning

as'

i t

had

in.

the

language of the Ancient Egyptians. The God

Amon

i s one of

the gods f o r m e r l y

known

to the Yorubas. The

Yoruba

words

mon, mimon, h o l y

or sacred , are pro bab ly

d e r i v e d

from the

name of the god. Thoth was the Egypti an god of t r u t h and



-25-

root-word i s designated

Ye

i n

t h i s

work. The word occurs

i n

s e v e r a l

of the

l e a d i n g West

A f r i c a n

Languages v i z : T s h i ,

1

Ewe, Qa, Yoruba, Sdo, etc. The vowel of the word i s s u b j e c t

to m o d i f i c a t i o n i n t he d i f f e r e n t languages t o i n d i c a t e shades

o f

meaning and may be

replaced

by any of th e

other

vowels or

these vowels

n a s a l i z e d .

J sometimes replaces Y , and a

nasal sound sometimes precedes i t e.g. Nye (Ewe language)

= t o be.

I t i s q u i t e probable

t h a t

the

word i s

of Semitic o r i g i n ,

and t h a t i t comes from a r o o t which

means

t o

l i v e

or t o e x i s t .

'The Hebrew word f o r to be , to e x i s t i s D*

1

f |

ha-ya.

The f i r s t p a r t o f t h i s word (ha) v a r i e s when the verb i s conju

gated and must have been l e f t out when the word v/as adopted by

the

peoples who

afterwards

migrated t o

Y/est A f r i c a .

I t i s

noteworthy t h a t a l l the changes which t he second p a r t undergoe

-26-



These

c o n s i d e r a t i o n s

w i l l help i n determining the meaning

o f

the

word Yoruba

which is made up of two

d i s t i n c t

words,

v i z : Yo and

ruba . Yo

i s a modified form of the word ye

and the word ruba

comes

from rpa. According to

r u l e

(1)

above,

a vowel

must

be

i n s e r t e d between

two consonants coming

t o g e t h e r ;

hence

the vowel u or

sometimes i

i s

i n s e r t e d

bet-

ween

r

and

p . According

to r u l e

11

p becomes

b .

Thus

rpa

becomes

ruba.

Nov/

the

word

rpa

was

the

name of

the hered i-

t a r y

prince

of

the

gods by

which

Seb was known

i n Ancient

Egypt

d u r i n g t h e

feudal peri od of

Egypt

when as yet there was no

1 2

Pharaoh who r u l e d

over the

whole

land .

The word Yoruba

t h e r e f o r e

means the l i v i n g rpa or the Creator of

rpa ,

and

i s adopted as a name by the worshippers of rpa or of the

c r e a t o r of rpa . That t h i s i s the t r u e

i n t e r p r e t a t i o n

of the

word

i s supported

by s i m i l a r

instances in other

West A f r i c a n

languages

to

which reference

w i l l be made l a t e r . The

Egyptian

gods

which are

s t i l l

worshipped i n Yorubaland

under

i d e n t i c a l

-27-



southwards and westwards from Egypt.

Some

of these ideas and

p r a c t i c e s

w i l l

now be

mentioned

1) The idea of a f u t u r e l i f e and that of judgment a f t e r

death. Reference has been made above to the

f a c t t ha t

the

Egyptian god

Thoth

was w e l l

known

to the Yorubas as the god of

t r u t h

and

righteousness.

I n

consequence

of

t h i s

the

Yorubas

have a strong b e l i e f i n judgment a f t e r death, when every

person

w i l l have

to render an

account

of his actions in the present

w o r l d , and when both the good and the wicked w i l l receive t h e i r

due reward or

punishment.

The wicked

w i l l

be consigned to Orun

Apadi i.e. H e l l . H e l l , says T y l o r , i s unknown to

savage

thought . The existence of a

b e l i e f

i n a

f u t u r e l i f e

and i n

h e l l

among

the Yorubas i s t h e r e f o r e a s u r v i v a l from

some

higher

r e l i g i o n which

i n

t h i s case

may be

r i g h t l y i d e n t i f i e d w i t h

the

r e l i g i o n

of Ancient

Egypt.

There are many Yoruba proverbs showing the existence of

these ideas. The f o l l o w i n g are

examples:

Gbogbo ohun t i a ba

-28-



u s u a l l y addressed as Oluwa mi, Qba i . e . my Lord , the King .

1

Sango,

one of the

d e i t i e s

worshipped i n

many

part s of

Yoruba-

l a n d , i s a deified Icing.

I n t h i s connection the existence, i n Yorubaland, of a form

o f double

government

such as e x i s t e d i n Ancient Egypt may be

2

mentioned. This has p e r s i s t e d a l l through the ce ntu ri es , and

although the system i s f a s t dying out,

y e t / . s t i l l

e x i s t s i n such

important town

as

I s e h i n ,

where i n 1913 i t

r e s u l t e d

i n bloodshed

and murder owing t o the unr est raine d des ire of the v i z i e r to

usurp

powers

belonging to the

Alasehin

or

paramount

c h i e f .

3 ) The importance attached to names. This i s

q u i t e

as

great as i t was i n Ancient Egypt. A

man's

name i s supposed to

3

have a r e a l force i n determining hi s character. For example,

Oruko nro

o His

name

i s urging him on to

such

acts .

Names

are not given haphazardly but according to the

p r e v a i l i n g

circum-

stances at the time when the c h i l d r e n were born. Every person



-30-



l i f e and q u a l i t y . A f t e r death, the

Khu

becomes l i b e r a t e d .

The wicked

s o u l ,

which

had not responded to the

promptings

o f the Khu passes through a s e r i e s of s u f f e r i n g s u n t i l i t

dies

the second death, and i s a n n i h i l a t e d f o r ever. The good

s o u l ,

on the other

hand,

which has

l i s t e n e d

to the voice of

t he d i v i n e i n t e l l i g e n c e

i s permitted

to see

God

face

1

to face and to lose i t s e l f i n His i n e f f a b l e g l o r y . This

i s the idea which forms the background of the

Yoruba

s a l u -

t a t i o n s . 0 ku, t h e r e f o r e , means May your soul become a

luminous s p i r i t ; i n other

words,

the

s a l u t a t i o n

i s a wish

t h a t the soul of the person to whom i t i s addressed may be a

the

good soul which w i l l receive/reward described

above.

I n the

same way ku ±§ means May your soul become a luminous s p i r i t

as a reward f o r the work which you are now doing . I n the

same way the meanings of s a l u t a t i o n s prefaced by Ku become

q u i t e i n t e l l i g i b l e . I t i s note-worthy t h a t the s a l u t a t i o n s

- 3 1 -



i n

support

of t h i s :- Bi t i baba mi ba gun mi When or

i f

my

f a t h e r ' s

s p i r i t

spurs

me to

take

a c t i o n

( l i t .

When

that

w&ich

belongs to

my f a t h e r r i d e s

me).

The b e l i e f

a l s o

f i n d s

expression

i n

an

i n t e r e s t i n g custom p r a c t i s e d

by

the

Yorubas on

important occasions.

A

hole which i s about 15

t o

18 inches

deep

and

about

8

to

10

inches wide i s dug.

I n t o

t h i s

hole

o f f e r i n g s i n k i n d are thrown i n order

t o

secure the help

of

departed s p i r i t s who have been ceremoniously i n v i t e d to occupy

t h e

h o l e .

The o b j e c t o f the i n v i t a t i o n i s explained and the

help of a l l the guardian s p i r i t s of the f a m i l y w i l l be e a r n e s t l y

s o l i c i t e d . F a i l u r e

to observe

t h i s

customary

r i t e

i s regarded

as f r a u g h t w i t h

serious consequences, f or i t w i l l

evoke the

displeasure

o f

the guardian s p i r i t s whose customary help

may

be thereby withdrawn.

D. S u r v i v i a l

of

Names and Customs. The

connection

between

t h e Ancient Egyptians

and

the

Yorubas may be c l e a r l y

i l l u s t r a -

t e d under t h i s heading. F i r s t

of

a l l , t h e r e i s

a s u r v i v a l



-32-



s e r v i c e

o f Kin g Khufu

were

regarded as absolute waste. Other

1 -

s u r v i v i n g

names

are (a) Pasht which

survives

i n

Pasi

(Pashi)

( b ) Danga e.g. l o b i Danga go as q u i c k l y as a Danga dwarf

( c )

A t t h a r ,

which

survives

i n the form of Ata, e.g.

The

Ata of I g b i r r a .

Secondly,

t h e r e

i s a

s u r v i v a l

of

names

of

animals.

The

Yoruba word f o r l i o n i s Kini-Un which i s d e r i v e d from two

Egyptian words, v i z : Qimi,

black ,

and Un, being . The

2

Egyptian word f o r hippopotamus i s R i r i t

from

which the Yoruba

word R i r i d i r t y i s d e r i v e d . The

d e r i v a t i o n

i s due, no doubt,

t o

the d i r t y appearance u s u a l l y presented by a hippopotamus

on emerging

from marshy

waters. The sacred animal of the

c i t y

o f On (Aunu)

survives

i n the word Qni c r o c o d i l e , a

name

used as the t i t l e of one of the paramount

c h i e f s

i n Yoruba-

3

l a n d , t h a t - i s ,

the Oni o f I f e .

Nokit

- a fabulous beast -

also

survives

i n the Yoruba word I n o k i , a fabulous

beast,

o f t e n

k

-33-



o f the A s i a t i c

t r i b e s engaged

i n domestic service i n Ancient

Egypt; Sua

( S u a - n i t ) ,

a nome i n Ancient Egypt. The

phrase

i s

a contemptuous term which preserves the idea of the wa ste fu l-

ness

of f o r e i g n domestic servants in Ancient Egypt who hardly

knew the value of the crockery and other a r t i c l e s which they

sometimes

smashed

to pieces.

F o u r t h l y ,

there i s a

s u r v i v a l

of

customs.

Two of these

w i l l be mentioned here. Polygamy e x i s t e d i n Ancient Egypt

j u s t

as i t

does

now i n Yorubaland. A notev/orthy p o i n t of

s i m i l a r i t y

i s the

p o s i t i o n

of the

f i r s t

w i f e .

I n Ancient

Egypt

she enjoyed r i g h t s and p r i v i l e g e s denied to other wives. I n

Yorubaland t h i s i s also the

case.

She occupies a p e c u l i a r p o s i -

t i o n i n the house and i s addressed as

I y a l e

mistress of the

house

- a

t i t l e

corresponding in

s i g n i f i c a n c e

to the

n i b i t

1

p i r u of the Ancient Egyptians.

The

b u r i a l

customs

are also s i m i l a r . Previous to

b u r i a l

-31+-



1

has put

an end to

such

p r a c t i c e s , but the idea s t i l l

s u r v i v e s

and corresponds

to a

s i m i l a r

idea

l e a d i n g

t o a

s i m i l a r

custom

i n

the

e a r l y

days

of Ancient

Egypt, the

p r a c t i c e being s l i g h t l y

m o d i f i e d

by the

s u b s t i t u t i o n

of u s h e b t i

f i g u r e s

f o r l i v i n g

persons.

One more

piece

o f

evidence

may be

added here. I t

i s

remarkable

t h a t

the

very

words used

t o

denote Egypt

and

the

Egyptians

e x i s t

i n

m o d i f i e d

forms

i n

the Yoruba language.

The

Greek word f o r Egypt,

Aiguptos, i s s a i d to be d e r i v e d

from K h i -

Khu-ptah

i . e . the temple

of

the

s o u l

of Ptah .

Now

f i g u r e s

o f

animals,

p a r t i c u l a r l y of

sheep,

are s a i d to be

carved

on

th e

outer w a l l s

of Ptah's temple and i t i s

q u i t e

p o s s i b l e for

t h e p r o l e t a r i a t to

apply the

name of

the temple

to the

animals

whose

f i g u r e s

were carved

on

i t s

w a l l s .

I t i s

q u i t e

p o s s i b l e

t h a t i n

t h i s way

the Yorubas

d e r i v e d

from the Greek word

Ai -

gup

-

to s the word

a - g u - t o ( n )

which

means a

sheep .

Again, the Ancient Egyptian word f o r

an

Egyptian i s Rotu

-35-



A f t e r an i n q u i r y i n t o West A f r i c a n

R e l i g i o n s ,

i n c l u d i n g

t h a t

of the

Yorubas,

Si r Harry Johnston wrote as

f o l l o w s

:-

The more one i n q u i r e s i n t o those i n t r i c a t e r e l i g i o n s of West

A f r i c a e s p e c i a l l y

i n the whole region

of

the Niger, the

more

we come i r r e s i s t i b l y to the conclusion t h a t they are founded on

ideas which

have

t r a v e l l e d a l l

the way from

Egypt

or from the

1

Southern Mediterranean Shores .

Dealing w i t h the

.same

subject another w r i t e r says When

one thus s u p e r f i c i a l l y has surveyed our present knowledge of

these Gold

Coast

people,

one

cannot

but

remark

a most

neglected

s i d e

of our s t u d i e s . I t i s

t h a t

of the

r e l a t i o n s h i p c u l t u r a l l y

w i t h the c u l t u r e of the gre at

kingdoms

w i t h which they have

been

-in contact. No thorough examination has

been

made of the

2

impress of Egypt, nor of t h a t of the Greek and Roman Empires....

These

remarks

apply not only to the Gold Coast and Yorubaland,

but

also to

West A f r i c a

i n general.

-36-



c e n t u r i e s antecedent t o the establishment o f the Old Egyptian

Period

Kingdom to the end o f the Greek/and the beginning of the Roman

Period.



CHAPTER

I I

OLORUTT,

THE SUPREME

DEITY.

37.



CHAPTER

I I .

OLORUN,

THE SUPREME

DEITY.

L i k e a l l

p r i m i t i v e

r e l i g i o n s , the r e l i g i o n o f the

Yoruba

people i s

o f a

wh ol ly absorbing chara cter . Every stage

o f t h e i r

l i f e being hedged i n by some r e l i g i o u s observances, they l i v e

c o n s t a n t l y

w i t h

a

keen

consciousness

o f

t h e i r r e l a t i o n

to the

unseen powers. Of

them i t

may

t r u l y

be

s a i d

t h a t

they l i v e

r e l i g i o u s l y , eat r e l i g i o u s l y , and die r e l i g i o u s l y . "

Their

r e l i g i o n

i s mainly a n i m i s t i c . The mysterious, the

uncanny,

the

u n f a m i l i a r

as

w e l l

as

the

grea t force s

o f

nat ure

are regarded

as

being ind we lt

by

s p i r i t s through whose agency

they possess the p e c u l i a r forms o r supernatural powers which

mark them out as o b j e c t s

o f

veneration. Fetichism and

polydaemonisra

i n the

form

o f

worship

o f

a n c e s t r a l

s p i r i t s

play

a grea t p a r t i n the

r e l i g i o n ,

and thus ar is es the worship o f

gods many

and

l o r d s many.

Some

o f these are worshipped by

the people as a

whole,

others are worshipped by some t r i b e s only,

38.



I t i s

t r u e t h a t a

l a r g e number o f Yoru ba

d e i t i e s

cannot

be

graded.

But

there i ?

no

doubt t h a t gradations

o f

status

o f

some

s o r t e x i s t s i n n a t i v e minds, and t h a t

some

d e i t i e s stand

so pre-eminently

above

a l l o th er s

t h a t t h e i r r e l a t i v e p o s i t i o n

t o one another and t o

th e

other d e i t i e s can be d e f i n i t e l y

a s c e r t a i n e d .

A f t e r

a

c a r e f u l

and

exhaustive research

the

w r i t e r

b e l i e v e s t h a t the gradations

o f

st at us recognised

by

th e nat ive s

as

e x i s t i n g

between

t h e i r d e i t i e s

a r e

as fol low s

1.

The

Supreme

D e i t y - Olorun.

1

2.

The

Major

Orisas, o f whom •Esu and

I f a are

th e

most

i m p o r t a n t .

3.

The D e i f i e d S p i r i t s o f Ancestors and oth er

S p i r i t s , o f whom

Oro, Eluku, Agemo

and

Egungun

are

th e most

important.

k»

The

Minor Orisas.

The

gradations o f status e x i s t i n g

between the

d e i t i e s

c l a s s i f i e d under number k above vary among d i f f e r e n t t r i b e s ,

e s p e c i a l l y as

t he

worship o f

t h e minor

d e i t i e s

i s n o t

general

39.



the

j u s t

and i m p a r t i a l

Judge,

sometimes meting o u t judgmen t

on t h e wicked i n

t h i s

w o r l d and c e r t a i n l y

b r i n g i n g

a l l men t o

judgment i n t h e next

w o r l d .

He i s

Olorun

adake - dajo God,

the

s i l e n t

b u t

a c t i v e

Judge.

He i s

Qlqr un Olore

God, the

benefactor.

He i s

Qlorun

Alanu, the

m e r c i f u l

God. The

c r e a t i o n o f t h e

u n i v e r s e

i s

a s c r i b e d

t o Him. He

t h e r e f o r e

bears t h e t i t l e o f

Eleda

Crea tor . Other t i t l e s g i v e n t o Him

are

e q u a l l y

s i g n i f i c a n t . He i s Alaye th e

L i v i n g

One. Elemi

Owner o f S p i r i t " ,

t h a t

i s t h e s p i r i t

g i v e n

t o human

beings,

Qga-ogo the High One o r t h e L o r d o f Glory.

These

l o f t y

ideas

r a i s e

one's

s u s p i c i o n against

th e

p o s s i b i l i t y

o f

t h e i r

being t h e product o f Yoruba thou ght.

I t

i s

q u i t e p o s s i b l e ,

as s e v e r a l persons have argued, f o r a

p r i m i t i v e

people

t o

possess some idea

o f a Supreme

D e i t y ,

i n b o r n

o r

i n g r a i n e d

i n mankind.

Bu t an

e x p l a n a t i o n

i s

necessa ry

f o r t h e presence o f these l o f t y idea s about Qlgrun among t h e

p r i m i t i v e Yprubas,

e s p e c i a l l y

among the v e r y p r i m i t i v e Yoruba-



who

made

an improper stu dy of the su bj ec t were i n c l i n e d t o

c l a s s i f y

Qlorun

as one o f the l e s s e r

d e i t i e s known

as Ori sha s

or as one o f the nat ure d e i t i e s . On the ot he r

hand,'Dr.

Farrow

who ac qu ir ed a wor kin g knowledge of the

language

and enjoye d

a f a i r l y c lose con tac t w i t h na ti ve thought emph atic ally

asserted t h a t the

Yorubas

have a

c l e a r

con ce pt io n o f the one

1

Supreme De it y. The pre sen t w r i t e r who i s i n clos e con ta ct

w i t h the r e l i g i o u s th ou gh t o f h i s own pe opl e f i r m l y believes

t h a t Dr. Farrow i s r i g h t .

What,

then , i s the o r i g i n of th e co nc ep ti on ? To v/hat

source can we t ra ce th e l o f t y ideas whi ch the Yorubas hold

about

Olorun?

Dr. Andrew Lang has d e f i n i t e l y proved t h a t such

. 2

a co nce pti on cannot have been evolved from sheer animism.

The Qlorun of the Yorubas i s not the

d e i f i e d

firmam ent or

merely a na tu re god or a

sky-god

or a development o f §ango

Dr.

Farrow

has

compared

the

word

Qrun

( p a r t

of the

word

Olorun) w i t h the Greek O^^cKvaS and w i t h Varuna of the



Egyptians and the

Yorubas,

expressed i n the prece ding chapter ,

w i l l be found

h e l p f u l .

The

word

Olorun may be

d i v i d e d i n t o

two

p a r t s , v i z . 01' - orun. The word Orun means sky and the

s y l l a b l e

01 i s only a r e d u p l i c a t i o n o f the

i n i t i a l l e t t e r

o f

orun together w i t h the

l e t t e r

'1' g e n e r a l l y

used

to

deno te

ownership

or

agency.

The

word

Olorun

t h e r e f o r e

means Lord of

the

sky or o f th e

heavens.

This

i s the

sense i n

w hi ch i t

i s

used by the Yorubas.

How

the Egyptian w or d f o r 'sky' or

'heavens' i s Horu. Before the establishment o f the Egypt ian

dynasties and during the e a r l y p a r t o f the dyn as ti c period',

the

name

Horu

was

a p p l i e d

t o the

Sun-god

( t h e

eye o f

Horu)

who

was:

afterwards-, known as the e l d e r

Horus

(Horu). The

changes

which the word underwent i n Egypt are c l e a r l y i l l u s t r a t e d i n

the

Yor uba langu age. From Horu i s d e r i v e d the word Qru(n),

sky

or

heavens.

When

the

word

was

a p p l i e d

to the

sun-god

the f o l l o w i n g words were

der ive d from

i t : -

Oru(n), the sun,

%

0ru

" n i g h t " (absence

o f the

s u n ) ,

Oru. heat

( o r i g i n a l l y

a p p l i e d t o the heat o f the sun and afterwards to heat i n

42.



t o other pa rt s o f Egypt, and according t o P r o f . Sayce, i t was

a t

one time u n i v e r s a l i n Egypt. Horu the sun-god was displaced

by Horu

(Horus)

th e Younger, son o f

O s i r i s . L a t e r

on,

O s i r i s

who was o r i g i n a l l y t h e god o f th e dead was t r a n s l a t e d t o the sky.

With t he transference of the O s i r i a n heaven from Daddu t o the

1

sky

O s i r i s became

t h e Lord o f th e Sky, and t h i s very

t i t l e

was a p p l i e d t o him

when

the

f u s i o n

o f the O s i r i a n and th e

s o l a r

f a i t h s

was e f f e c t e d . I t has been p o i n t e d o u t above t h a t the

meaning of

Olorun

i s t h e Lord o f th e Sky. This i d e n t i t y o f

meaning of

Olorun

w i t h

t h e

t i t l e

o f O s i r i s

c o n s t i t u t e s

a

prima

f a p i e evidence f o r assuming the existence o f

some

connection

between the

Olorun

o f th e Yorubas and t he Egyptian

Lord

o f

Daddu.

No sooner d i d th e present

w r i t e r

perceive the above

evidence than a s e r i e s o f

f a c t s

unfolded

i t s e l f

t o him . So

s t r o n g

i s t h e support giv en by the f a c t s t o th e above assumption

t h a t the view o f a d e f i n i t e connection between Olorun and O s i r i s

i+3-



The ideas of Omnipotence, Omniscience, and Omni-

presence may be tr ace d to elements i n the Os ir ia n

f a i t h . Qlorun i s Eleda,

Creator;

so a ls o was

O s i r i s . Olor un i s the i m p a r t i a l Judge; men have to

g i v e an account of t h e i r doings i n His judgment

h a l l ;

men are commended to Him o n l y by up ri gh tn es s and

goodness. A l l these are

r e l i c s

from the fe at ur es

connected w i t h the Os ir ia n judgment h a l l . The

importance o f god

Thoth

i n connection w i t h the

judgment has i t s echo i n the

words O - t i - t o " t r u t h "

and e-to, uprightness or " j u s t i c e , " derived from

2

h i s name.

2. The id eas o f the Yorubas about heaven are

i d e n t i c a l i n many respects w i t h those h e ld by the

worshippers of O s i r i s . For example, the

Yorubas

u s u a l l y say

Ole

l i aiy e ko gba, t i orun ko An

i d l e

man the world refuses a place and heaven also r e j e c t s "



The id ea here i s t h a t anyone who, i n th e days o f the

slave

trade

a nd i n t e r - t r i b a l

wars, dared

t o go beyond

the

town

o f Bode Sadu

l i t e r a l l y went

t o t h e

abode

o f

departed

s p i r i t s .

One o f t h e g r e a t o b j e c t s o f t e r r o r i n p r i m i t i v e

Yorubaland

i s what i s known as Ohun Didu.

Even

a

courageous

animal

l i k e

t h e

l i o n

i s

s a i d

t o

dread i t s

approach and i s b e l i e v e d t o use th e f o l l o w i n g words

when

r o a r i n g :

Biko§e e r i n , bikose eni a,

bikoge

ohun

( o r nkan) d i d u , on ko

beru en ik an . Except

th e

elephant,

except

man,

except

Ohun

d i d u ,

he

does

n o t

1

f e a r anybody. Dr. Farrow

t r a n s l a t e s

Ohun Didu

l i t e r a l l y as th e

b l a c k

t h i n g , "

the

uncanny,

such a l i t e r a l

t r a n s l a t i o n does n o t seem t o be t h e

o r i g i n a l meaning o f t h e phrase. The word didu should

be

t r e a t e d

as a noun i n t h e g e n i t i v e

case

r a t h e r than

as a

d e s c r i p t i v e a d j e c t i v e .

The c o r r e c t meaning seems

45.

5. Another

name

f o r the

abode

of the dead wher e

O s i r i s

r u l e d



was „Alu3- Here was the

abode

of the O s i r i f i e d B u l l . The

Yoruba word

f o r

" b u l l "

i s

mjalu.

which i s a

c o n t r a c t i o n

of

omo - ^ a l u ,

a na ti ve of

A l u ( l i t e r a l l y ,

a

c h i l d

of

A l u ) .

The

word m in t h e r e f o r e contains an unmistakable ref eren ce t o the

wor shi p o f the

o s i r i f i e d .

B u l l ( O s i r i s - a p i s ) at Alu.

6. The Egyptian

word

f o r the tomb of O s i r i s -

ben

- su rv iv es i n

the for m of

b i n i

which i s the name of an important c i t y i n

Yorubaland.

7. Jus t as the name of the

Supreme

Deity of the Yorubas i s

i d e n t i c a l w i t h the t i t l e of

O s i r i s

and compounded fro m t he

name of the sun-god

Horu,

so the names of the Supreme D e i t i e s

o f

the l e a d i n g

t r i b e s

i n

West

A f r i c a are de ri ve d fro m the

names

of

Enyptian

d e i t i e s or from Egy pti an

words.

The

f o l l o w i n g

s e l e c t l i s t may be gi ve n i n support of th e statement

( i ) NYISUA. This i s the

G-rebo

4

word f o r G-od. I t i s deri ved from

two words v i z : - Njri and Sua.

Nyi comes from the West A f r i c a n

word

ye t o l i v e " ' and Sua

46.

The

meaning of Nyisua, t h e r e f o r e , i s t h e l i v i n g



( s o u l of) Sua - n i t 3 -

r x 2

( i i )

NYANIOTPON. This

i s t he

P a n t i

v/ord f o r God.

I t c o n si s ts

of

three

words,

v i z : -

Nyan-ku-po ( n ) . Nyan i s a form of th e

4

word

yei; k u

i s

the

mod ifi ed form

of the

Ancie nt Egypt ian

word Khu, Soul , and po(n) comes from the word Pua » ni t

a

nome

i n Anci ent Egypt.

N yj ff lk uj ao n, t h e r e f o r e ,

means

t h e

l i v i n g

s o u l of Punt5

( i i i ) This

i s the Ga

6

word

f o r God.

I t c o ns i s ts

of two

words v i z : - Nyon

-mon

. Nyo(n) i s a mod ifi ed form of y e

7

Q

aad

mo

(n)

i s

an

abbrev iate d form

of

Amon,

the

name

o f

a

god i n

Anci ent Egypt.

Nyon-mon, t h e r e f o r e , means the

l i v i n g

Anon

J

l o

( i v ) MAU.

This

i s the Ewe

word

f o r God.

I t

i s derived d i r e c t l y

o r

11

M WU

from

the

name

of

the

Egyptian

goddess

Maut

,

the

goddess

o f t r u t h .

12

( v )

PRISE.

This i s the J e k r i word f o r God. I t

w i l l

be shown

j

^ * w .

m

t h a t ,

t h i s j f f o r d

i_s de ri ve d fro m Horus.

1 .

This

i s a common

d e s i g n a t i o n

bYThV'prVsTding d e i t y of nomes

2+7.

( v i ) CHUKU. This

i s the

Ibo*

word f o r God. The f i r s t



s y l l a b l e app ears t o be a s o f t e n i n g down o f the

word Khu

(Egyptian

Khu,

luminous

s p i r i t ,

" s o u l " ) .

The o r i g i n a l word,

then,

wo ul d be Kuku. The

doubling o f the word k u shows t h a t God i s

regarded

as th e lumi nous s p i r i t p a r

excellence .

Khu has

been

modified also

i n t h e

Ibo

language t o C h i ,

S p i r i t . Hence

Chu-ku

has been taken t o mean

Chi

- uku. th e Gre at

S p i r i t " .

( v i i ) CHINEKE.

This

i s

another

I b o

Word

f o r God -

C h i -

neke(n).

The

f i r s t

s y l l a b l e

here

also

i s a

m o d i f i c a t i o n o f th e wor d ku . The second

s y l l a b l e

comes from Nekhen,

a nome i n

Ancient

Eg ypt . The

l i t e r a l meaning o f Chinek e,

t h e r e f o r e ,

i s th e

1

s o u l

o f

Nekhen.

2

( v i i i )

AYIBA.

This

i s t h e I j a w wor d f o r God.

A = he who; y i = ye, t o

make;

ba i s

an ot her v/ord

48.

(*)

ABASI.

This i s the E f i k

1

word

f o r God,the

d e r i v a t i o n

o f

g



which may be t r a c e d t o the Egyptian

word

Bast. The E f i k

term f o r Almighty God - Abasi I b u ( n " ) - seems to be d e r i v e d .

from 3u - b a s t i s w i t h a r e v e r s a l of the order o f i t s •

component p a r t s .

Further

evidence i n support o f the theory of a close connec-

t i o n between Olorun and O s i r i s i s contained Sn one of the t i t l e s

borne by the

former.

He i s

s t a l e d Olodumare.

The

meaning

of t h i s

t i t l e has b a f f l e d many w r i t e r s . Dr.Farrow thus

comments

on the

t i t l e : -

The d e r i v a t i o n of the word i s u n c e r t a i n . I t i s generally

taken t o denote *the Almighty One' . Bishops Srowther. and

Johnson so regard

i t , b u t

the l a t t e r gives an a l t e r n a t i v e

'The

Ever-righteous

One

1

''

3

The

d i f f i c u l t y

about

i t s • d e r i v a t i o n , and

consequent ly about

i t s meaning, ar is es from

f a i l u r e

t o understan d the

meaning

o f

i t s component pa rt s which are as f o l l o w s : - 01'odu-ma-re. The

word

Odu

4

means a

c h i e f " ,

an

e x a l t e d

person age . Olodu

i s

i t s

5

i n t e n s i v e form, i n d i c a t i n g completeness(e.g.Obiri, woman''

o l o b i r i ,

a woman i n the f u l l bloom of woroanhb-.od «) Ma-re means

49.

given

t o the

good

soul i s t o be p e r m i t t e d

t o

see God face t o

1



face and t o l o s e i t s e l f i n i t s i n e f f a b l e

glory'.'

A

r e t u r n

to

O s i r i s

f o l l o w e d

by

i d e n t i f i c a t i o n

w i t h

him

i s

the

d e s i r e

o f

every devout worshipper o f

O s i r i s .

Among

t h e Yorubas,

the ide a

o f the sou l goi ng or

r e t u r n i n g

t o t h e Supreme D e i t y a f t e r death

i s i n existence and

i s

enshrined

i n t h e word

Olodumare, as i t s

meaning

c l e a r l y

shows.

The

idea

i s one

which

may be

r i g h t l y

regarded as a r e l i c o f the

O s i r i a n

f a i t h .

An

i m p a r t i a l c o n s i d e r a t i o n of

t h e above f a c t s

cannot but l e a d

t o

the conclusion

t h a t

a close connection

e x i s t s between

Olorun

o f

t h e

Yorubas

and

O s i r i s

o f

t h e

Ancient E gypti ans

and

t h a t

there

must

have been

a time

when

the former was i d e n t i f i e d w i t h th e

l a t t e r . ... ..... • —

There

are one or two

questions,however,which

must be r a i s e d a t

t h i s

p o i n t .

I f

the

connection between Olorun and

O s i r i s

i s so

c l o s e ,

why i s i t

t h a t

Olorun i s on ly reverenced

b u t

h a r d l y

worshipped by t h e Yorubas ?

O s i r i s

had temples where worship was

r e g u l a r l y

o f f e r e d t o

h i m ,

and i t i s q u i t e n a t u r a l t o expect

t h a t

50.

The

peasant

could not

soar t o th e

heights

o f p r i e s t l y

specu-

l a t i o n or be

content w i t h emptyabstraction;

he

could not f o l l o w



a l l the i n t r i c a t e n i c e t i e s o f organi zed worship. He t h e r e f o r e

clung

t o the

d i v i n i t y

which

he

could

see and

handle,

and

con fined

h i s worship

t o

such

a d i v i n i t y .

I t

i s

q u i t e p o s s i b l e t h a t there

was a small p r i e s t l y cla ss fo r Olorun among the Yorubas, for

t h e r e i s a

f a i n t

t r a c e o f the worshi p o f

Olorun.

But a knowledge

o f

the

r i t e s

and

ceremonies

o f

th e v/orship

has

vanished

w i t h

th e

t r a n s f e r e n c e and l i m i t a t i o n o f r e l i g i o u s worship t o the le sse r

d e i t i e s .

Again, the question may be asked: I f the connection between

O s i r i s

and

Olorun

i s

so^close

t h a t

at one

time

th e

l a t t e r

was

i d e n t i f i e d w i t h t h e former,why i s i t t h a t th e name of O s i r i s was

not

adopted

and r e t a i n e d by t he Yorubas as the name of t h e i r

Supreme

D e i t y

?

A f t e r the lap se

o f so many c e n t u r i e s

i t

may not

be

easy

t o

give

a

s a t i s f a c t o r y

answer

t o the

q u e s t i o n .

2

But

t h i s

d i f f i c u l t y does not m i l i t a t e against the theory o f a close connec-

t i o n

between O s i r i s

and

Olorun si nc e the

name of

the

l a t t e r was

coined from the t i t l e o f the form er.

5 1 .

The name o f O s i r i s , however, i s well-known t o t h e Yoru bas who



use

i t i n a sense which shows t h a t they are conversant w i t h the

myth of

O s i r i s .

The

name s u r v i v e s

i n

i t s o r i g i n a l form

o f O s i r i

1_

2

i n the

expression

gba 6 a i r l r e or da o s i r i bo o which means t o

p l o t against an innocent person w i t h a view t o murd er him . The

meaning of t h i s

expression

i s c e r t a i n l y

de ri ve d from

t h e myth of

O s i r i s p a r t o f

which

i s

reproduced from

S i r J. G. Prazer's

Golden Bough :-

Reigning

as a k i n g on

e a r t h ,

O s i r i s

reclaimed

th e

Egyptians from savagery, gave them laws, and taught

them t o worship t h e gods

O s i r i s

i s s a i d t o have

been the

f i r s t

t o

gather

f r u i t s

from

t r e e s

:

. t o

t r a i n

the v i n e

t o

poles

and t o

t r e a d grapes.

Eager t o

communicate

these bene ficen t di sco ver ies

t o

a l l

mankind, he committed t h e whole government o f Egypt

t o h i s

w i f e

s i s and

t r a v e l l e d

over t h e w o r l d

Loaded w i t h

w e a l t h t h a t

had. been showered upon-

hi m

by g r a t e f u l

n a t i o n s ,

he

r e t u r n e d

t o Egy pt and, on

account of th e b e n e f i t s he had c o n f e r r e d he was

unanimously acclaimed as a d e i t y - But h i s bro ther

Set(whom t h e Greeks

c a l l e d

T0kcp~ w i t h

seventy-two

others

p l o t t e d

against

him.

Having taken

the measure

o f

h i s good

b r o t h e r

1

s

body by

s t e a l t h ,

t he bad

b r o t h e r Typpn fashioned and h i g h l y decorated a c o f f e r

o f t h e same s i z e , and once

when they

were

a l l

d r i n k i n g

and maki ng

merry

he

brought

i n t h e

c o f f e r

and j e s t i n g l y

promised t o g iv e i t t o th e one whom i t s ho ul d f i t

e x a c t l y . Well they a l l t r i e d one

a f t e r

t h e o t h e r , bu t

52

Further

evidence., o f the f a c t

t h a t

t h e myth of

O s i r i s

i s



well-known t o the Yorubas i s contained

i n . t h e f o l l o w i n g

Yoruba

legend :-

The saicred c i t y o f I f e was once plunged

i n t o

great

a f f l i c t i o n and misery owing t o t h e frequent r a i d s

o f t h e Igbos who presented themselves i n a super natura l

guise.

A l l

e f f o r t s

to check t h e

r a i d s

were unsucces sful.

A l l prayers f o r help were unanswered. The o r a c l e gave

no

h e l p f u l

response. Moved w i t h g r i e f , but f i r e d w i t h

p a t r i o t i c z e a l , Moremi, the

w i f e

o f one o f t h e m y t h i c a l

k i n g s

o f

I f e ,

made

e f f o r t s

t o save th e

c i t y .

The key t o

th e s a l v a t i o n o f the c i t y l a y i n t h e

discovery

o f t h e

t r u e nature o f the invader s. This discove ry Moremi

determined t o make. Before s e t t i n g out from I f e , she

went t o th e r i v e r O s i m i r i and

vowed

t o o f f e r a

c o s t l y

s a c r i f i c e t o th e god. o f th e r i v e r i f her e f f o r t s should

be d i v i n e l y crowned w i t h success. Her prayers were heard.

Her search

f o r

the secrets o f the Igbos was succe ssful.

She

discovered, t h a t they

were

mere

men covered w i t h

grass or rushes. She

r e t u r n e d

and d i s c l o s e d t h i s secret

t o

her compatriots who defeated t h e Igbos by s e t t i n g

t h e i r

grass cloaks

on f i r e . She r e t u r n e d t o the r i v e r t o

f u l f i l her promise. The god , however, was no t s a t i s f i e d

w i t h a l l t h a t she

brought,

b ut he

demanded

t h e

s a c r i f i c e

o f her only son Ela' or Olurogbo. The son was duly

s a c r i f i e d ; bu t he managed t o r e v i v e , and ascend ed i n t o

the.heavens by means o f a rope.

Commenting

on t h i s myth Dr. Johnson says:-

We may d i s c e r n i n t h i s

legend

a

confused idea

o f t he

s t o r y o f Jephtha, and t h a t o f t h e Blessed V i r g i n and

her

sonr

53.

Moremi represents I s i s and E l a or

Olurogbo

represents

Horus,



the son of I s i s whom Set t r i e d to destroy. The

Yoruba

legend

s t a t e s

that i t

was the son of

Moremi

who

ascended

into

the

heavens

I t should be observed th at the word Egbeji, the a l t e r n a t i v e name

of the son of Moremi means the son of the

l i v i n g

one .

According

to the

Egypt ian legend,

O s i r i s was the

person whose

»

body

was cut in

pieces

and who

afterward s r ev iv ed and,

through

the influence

of Ra,

ascended into

the

heavens.

The tran sference

of these d e t a i l s to h i s son may be due to the f a c t that O s i r i s

had been given another part to play i n the

myth.

The

most

important point

i n the

legend i s

the

reference

to the

r i v e r

Osi miri . This

r i v e r

i s

the

Nile

and the

N i l e

god

i s

1

O s i r i s . . .The wor d O s i r o i r i c o n s i s t s ,

of

two

p a r t s ,

v i z : - Oai and

m i r i .

Osi i s an

abbreviation

of

O s i r i s

and

mir? comes

from the

3 .

Egyptian

word

m i r i t . -

the

name of

the

goddess

of the

banks

of the

Nile. The word

Osimiri,

therefore, means the e f f l u x of

O s i r i s

or the Ni l e overflowing i t s banks about whi ch P l u t a r c h wrote as

54.

The name survives i n Orisa Osi. the i d o l of the god

1



O s i r i s ,

-ac national god of the

Yorubas.

I t was

worshipped

by

Oranyah?

the son of Odudua

3

the mythical

founder

of the

Yoruba

race.

There

i s a

legend

that when Oranyan was setting off for an

expedition he gave

s t r i c t

injunction to

h i s

locum ten ens to

observe the customary worship of the gods I d i and Orisa OsiT

The Yorubas therefore regard the worship of Orisa Osi as a

national obligation.

The relegation of the worship of Olorun to the

background

does

not l e a d to an entire ignorance of Him as the Supreme Deity.

Although He i s

regarded

as too holy and exalted to be approached

d i r e c t l y

with s a c r i f i c e s and apart from the instances to be

not ed below His ai d i s invoked

only,

on rare and s p e c i a l

-

occasions, yet He i s

regarded

as taking cognizance of, and

a c t i v e i n t e r e s t i n , the

a f f a i r s

of men when necessary. He i s

not an absentee God Who, a f t e r creating the world, refused to

be bothered w it h i t s a f f a i r s and

saifegaardfid Himself

by locking

Himself

up behind the metal sheet of the clouds. His exal ted

55.

and a rec ogn iti on of gr at it ud e to Him as a

s p e c i a l

duty

incumbent

upon man. A few of the

prayers

w i l l be given here:-



Qlorun gba mi May God save me and Qlprun sanu are p ray ers

usually offered in times of great d i s t r e s s : K i Olorun .11 wa re

May God wake us up well'? i s a pray erfu l wish on r e t i r i n g to bed

a t

night;

K l

a ma r l i

which

i s a cont rac tio n of K i Qlprun ma

.ie

k i

a r i

1.

God fo rb id ,

l i t .

May God not allow us to see such

a t hi ng .

The

Yorubas

a t t r i b u t e t h e i r

presevation

to the d i r e c t

agency

of .Olorun. Before

r e t i r i n g

to bed they entrust one

another

into

His keeping as i s shewn above. E a r l y in the morning the f i r s t

complimentary

express ions are

those

of gr at it ud e to Him. For

example,

the

morning

s al ut at io ns are: 0 ko .11 re Do

you

wake

well

?

Ara ko l e bi ? Are you w e l l ? Awon ara

l i e

nkp ?

How are the members of the family ? . To each of these saluta-

tions

the

reply i s

dupe

lowo

Olorun,

l i t e r a l l y ,

We

thank

God.

This i s sometimes cont racte d to A dupe Thanks.

B e l i e f

i n Olorun's Omniscience i s very strong. Th is i s we ll

Olorun ko r i o?

56.

RELATION BTgnPSKN OLORUN .AND

HIS WORSHIPPERS. A p o i n t has now

been reached where the question o f the r e l a t i o n betv/een Olorun



and H is worshippers may be r a i s e d . Love f o r th e D e i t y c e r t a i n l y

does no t

e x i s t ,

nor

i s . f e a r

as a

d i s t i n c t emotion ever e n t e r -

t a i n e d towards him. Hence t h e r e i s no need t o p r o p i t i a t e Him

w i t h

s a c r i f i c e s ,

no need t o e r e c t temples and consecrate

p r i e s t s

f o r H i s worship. Peel ings of awe and reverence

e x i s t ,

and these

show

themselves

i n t h e

t i t l e s given

t o Him

8nd

i n th e

f r e q u e n t expressions

o f

g r a t i t u d e

t o Him.

B e l i e f

i n Hi s

omnipotence leads

t o humble dependence upon Him f o r

p r o t e c t i o n

and p r e s e r v a t i o n , and f o r help i n times o f

d i r e

c a l a m i t y when

t h e character

o f t h e need or th e

exigency

o f

time

demands

r e s o r t t o the g r e a t e s t

l i v i n g

power known t o man. Apa rt from

t h e o f f e r i n g o f s h o r t prayers and the r e t u r n i n g o f thanks,

worship i s n o n - e x i s t e n t .

A

god v / i t h

whom-such

a meagre

r e l a t i o n

i s

mai nta ine d cannot

s a t i s f y

t h e deep and

co nstant

yearnings of th e human

soul

f o r a c t i v e dependence on t h e Unseen.

The absence of

o rganiz ed worship

o f

Olorun

by

means

o f

which f u l l

and u n i n t e r r u p t e d a l l e g i a n c e t o Him could be secured has l e d t o

57.

CONCLUDING

REMARKS. I n view of th e

c h a r a c t e r

o f Qlqru n

sketched

above

i t i s easy to see

t h a t

the

f o l l o w i n g d e s c r i p -



t i o n of Him i s

i n c o r r e c t : -

Olorun i s merely a nat ur e-g od, th e

p e r s o n a l l y d i v i n e

sky, and he

o n l y c o n t r o l s

phenomena

connected

1

i n the

n a t i v e

mind

w i t h

t h e

r o o f

o f heaven. I f Oloru n had

been the

p e r s o n a l l y d i v i n e

sky who

r a i n e d

and thundered upon

t h e

sons of men,

r e g u l a r

worship

a r i s i n g

from

f e a r

would

have

been

o f f e r e d

t o Him, and i n vi ew o f the

f r e q u e n t

occure nce of

r a i n ,

thu nde r and l i g h t n i n g He

c o u l d

not

have

ta ke n a backward

place

i n the

n a t i v e r e l i g i o u s

system. Besides, i t has

been

.shown

above

t h a t

the word i s

d e r i v e d

fro m Horu, th e name of the

Ancient

Egyptian

sky-god.

I t i s

c l e a r ,

however,

t h a t

i t

i s not

t h e a n i m i s t i c

sky-god

t h a t

the Yorubas borrowed from the

Egyptians. Rathe r, the conceptio n of

Olprun

i s connected w i t h

t h a t of

O s i r i s

the s p i r i t u a l i z e d supreme bei ng of the Anc ien t

Egyptians d w e l l i n g

i n the

heavens

f a r beyond human ke n. No

n a t i v e would admit t h a t Olorun " on l y c o n t r o l s phenomena connec-

p

58.

nor

does

the

w r i t e r f i n d

any support f o r i t

among

the

Yorub a

p r i e s t s and m y t h o l o g i s t s . That a man cannot cause

r a i n

t o

f a l l



and Olorun cannot give

jiou

a

c h i l d , " i s

perhaps the

chance

remark

of a few

u n i n t e l l i g e n t

pers ons, and may not imp ly an yt hi ng

more than a

r e c o g n i t i o n

o f

d i v i s i o n

of labo ur

among

the

d e i t i e s

and of

Olorun's

r el uc ta nc e to perfo rm the d u t i e s wh ic h He had

assigned to an i n f e r i o r d e i t y . I t

c e r t a i n l y

does not i mp ly

i n a b i l i t y

or

l i m i t a t i o n

of

power,

i n view o f the well-known

Yoruba proverb A k i

r a

omo

l i

o.la;

Qlorun

n i fun n i Childre n

ar e no t bought at market pl ac es ; th ey ar e th e g i f t of Olorun .

The foregoing e l u c i d a t i o n of th e ch ar ac te r of Olor un and o f

t he

o r i g i n

of His

name make

i t

q u i t e c l e a r

t h a t

the

l o f t y

ideas

about Him must be tr ac ed t o

Egypt.

Wi tho ut the hy pot hes is of a

connection between

th e Egyp tia ns and the Yorubas, the existence

o f the l o f t y idea s remains a p u z z l i n g and i n e x p l i c a b l e phenomenon

observed

among

p r i m i t i v e

peoples. The

r e l i g i o n

of th e Anc ien t

Egyptians

passed

from pol yth eis m t o

henotheism, u n t i l

i t became

monotheism

i n

essence when

the

f r a n k

polytheism of the

Egyptians could speak of the one and only and incomparable God

59.

The r e l i g i o u s thought

of the

Yorubas

must have been affected

when

i t

came into

contact wi th Egypt ian

r e l i g i o u s

thought,



e s p e c i a l l y with the monotheistic ideas described

above.

The

unv arn ish ed conception of the

Yorubas

as'

regards t h e i r Supreme

Deity must have

become

enr ich ed by contact wi th the

O s i r i a n f a i t h .

I t

i s true

that

the

Supreme

De it y of the

Yorubas,

l i k e

the

Supreme D e i t i e s of other

primitive

peoples, tends to recede

into

the

background

because, as i n the case of the Eg yptians the

mind

of the

uneducated c l a s s

could ne it he r understand nor

r i s e

to such l o f t y heights. Human i n t e l l i g e n c e supports with

d i f f i c u l t y

so

pure

an

idea of an absolute

beingT

Yet i t i s also

time: that, i n s p i t e

of the conten tion of

writers l i k e Menzies,

Huxley and Spencer, there

i s abundant

evidence of the ex is te nc e

of the conception of a Supreme Being

among

the Yorubas, a being

who at one time appeared to

have been

i d e n t i f i e d with

O s i r i s

and

who corresponds, in

many

important

p a r t i c u l a r s ,

with the

'one

only

g

God*

as concei ved by the Ancie nt Eg yp ti an s.



C H A P T E R

I I I .

MAJOR DEITIES :

A. E S U.

- 60 -

CHAPTER I I I .

THE

ORISAS.



A. E S' U, the

D e v i l .

Next t o Olo run the

Supreme

D e i t y ,

Esu, (Eshu) i s th e

o n l y

d e i t y accorded general r e c o g n i t i o n throughout Yorubaland.

Between th e con cep tio n o f Oloru n and t h a t o f Esu, however, t h e r e

i s

a gr eat d i f f e r e n c e . The concep tio n o f Olor un i s t h a t o f a

pure s p i r i t , an

e x a l t e d

personage to o remote t o be worshippe d. .

There i s no

r e p r e s e n t a t i o n

o f him i n any shape o r fo rm . On t he

other hand, E su belongs t o th e a n i m i s t i c system. He i s an

Oriaa

which occupies the most important place among the ot her o r i s a s .

He i s rep res ent ed by d i f f e r e n t kinds of images. He re ce iv es

wor-

s h i p i n the form o f

o f f e r i n g s

and p r a y e r , and must f i r s t be pro-

p i t i a t e d bef ore any ot he r

o r i s a

rece ive s an o f f e r i n g . Hi s worsh ip

a r i s e s c h i e f l y from

f e a r .

As the supreme power o f e v i l , the

f e a r '

t h e

a r i s i n g

from^abhorrence o f h i s malevolence leads t o

p r o p i t i a t o r y

o f f e r i n g s

being c o n s t a n t l y o f f e r e d t o him. He i s g e n e r a l l y des-

c r i b e d as buruku wicked t o de at h , be in g ever read y t o do m i s c h i e f .

61 -

sometimes i n s p i r e d by f e e l i n g s o f admirat ion f o r hi s great s t r e n g t h ,

i n consequence of.

which pra yer s and

g i f t s

are

o f f e r e d

t o him, n ot



o n l y t o av oid hi s malevolence but also t o secure h i s

a c t i v e

favour,

e s p e c i a l l y against

enemies.

There i s a strong b e l i e f i n hi s

power and readiness t o confer b e n e f i t s on. hi s wor sh ip per s, and

t h i s

accounts for the

f a c t

t h a t the f o l l o w i n g names are borne by

Yorubas : -

i ) E s u - b i - y i . A s c i o n - o f Esu

i i ) Esu-ri-ohun-bi, A worthy s c i o n ,

of Esu

i i i )

Esu

g b a

-yi-la,

o f t e n

abbreviated to Esugbayi, A person

saved by Esu

^

i v ) Esu-to-sln,

Esu

i s s u f f i c i e n t to worship .-^

I m a g e s.-

The


o f Esu

assumes

d i f f e r e n t forms.

i ) A common form of r e p r e s e n t a t i o n i s by means o f a stone slab

or a piece o f rough l a t e r i t e stuck i n t o the ground i n . a

s l a n t -

i n g manner..

The ceremony of s t i c k i n g a stone i n

t h i s

way i s

known as gigun Esu " s t i c k i n g the stone o f Esu on the ground . •

Such.,a stone

i s

fou nd near

the

entrance

t o

every town'and

i n

62 -

i i i )

The

most

common

form

o f

represen tation is t h a t

o f a p i l l a r

o f

mud. Sometimes the

p i l l a r

i s a

s o l i d

one, at oth er



times i t i s hollow. Sometimes i t i s erected wit hou t any

mark on i t . At other times i t i s adorned wi th three rounded,

holes. I n Benin

C i t y

and i n a few oth er places thr ee

s h e l l s rep lace the hole s.

The p i l l a r

i s us ua ll y covered

i n

t h e

same way as the

stone des cri bed above,

i v ) The images o f Esu

f o r

household use ar e

g e n e r a l l y

made o f

mud or

wood,

and ar e

set

on orupo or

c l a y couches.

Here

o f f e r i n g s o f blood or palm o i l are made to them.

The d e i t y i s ge ne ra ll y represented as a naked human being,

s i t t i n g

on h i s f e e t w i t h

f l e x e d

knees

and f o l d e d

arms

or

s i t t i n g w it h the hands r e s t i n g on the

knees,

v ) The

p o r t a b l e

images o f Esu ar e

also

made

i n

human

form.

Two

kinds

o f

such

images:

are thus d es cr ib ed

by

Dr. Farrow

:-

a )

The

f i r s t

f i g u r e

shows

the

d e v i l

i n

a

knee lin g p ostur e,

s u p p o r t i n g w i t h i t s hands breasts

o f the female

type.

The idea

expressed i s

t h a t

t h i s

d e i t y giv es nourishm ent.

I t i s t o be noted t h a t f i g u r e s o f the

d e v i l

are always

given a h a i r dressed

a f t e r

the

f a s h i o n

of women.

63

The numbers f i v e and seven

engraved

on the sides are

s i g n i f i c a n t sin ce they ar e od&i numbers; the number seven, e j e

1

,



s i g n i f i e s " p e r f e c t i o n " i n wickedness, and the

number f i v e ,

which

i s the

number

o f days forming a complete cycle of a Yoruba w e e k

2

,

contai ns a refe ren ce t o the idea of

E s u

1

s

malevolence

being

o p e r a t i v e on every day of the week.

W o r s h i p .

The wo rsh ip o f Esu i s ve ry sim pl e, but i s sometimes

very dr ea df ul . Sa cr if ic es are gene rally made to him i n . the form

o f cowries thrown i n t o his shrine as a mark of respect. Sometimes

cocks, he-goats, and dogs are k i l l e d and t h e i r blood i s splashed

on the stone

image

of Esu. He i s o f t e n con ten ted t o re ce iv e a

p a r t of the g i f t s off ere d to other or is as . When he i s con sul te d

f o r the purpose o f d i v i n a t i o n , a simple o f f e r i n g which sometimes

tak es th e form o f a few cowri es i s enough. But on some occasions

among

h i s

most

devoted

worshippers

i n

I l e s a

or

Ondo

and

even

i n

the comparatively more

c i v i l i s e d

town o f Abeokuta, human

s a c r i f i -

ces

used

t o be of fe re d to

p r o p i t i a t e t h i s

supreme power of

e v i l .

k

But Dr. Farrow admits

t h a t

the O

n

do people

were

the most

c r u e l



worshippers o f Esu, and

t h a t

during hi s

sojouxm

at

Abeokut a

t h e r e

was a

p u b l i c s a c r i f i c e

of a human

v i c t i m .

1

I t

w i l l

be

shown

l a t e r

t h a t t h i s s o l i t a r y

instance o f human

s a c r i f i c e

recorded by Dr. Farrow i s only one o f the many instances o f

human s a c r i f i c e t o Esu.

HISTORICAL

PlUSHr.

Since

the

worship

of Esu i s so

widespread

and

regu lar

i n Yorubaland, i t i s n a t u r a l t o expect t h a t the character o f the

d e i t y

should be

w e l l

understood and should pres ent no d i f f i c u l -

t i e s

i n

i t s

d e l i n e a t i o n .

T h i s ,

however,

i s not the

case.

I n the

account

given above i t has been found d i f f i c u l t t o lea ve

out some o f the incongruous

elements

i n the character o f the

d e i t y . The d i f f i c u l t i e s about

his character

w i l l now be

s t a t e d

:-

i ) The f i r s t

d i f f i c u l t y concerns

t he meaning o f hi s gen eri c

name as

v/ell

as

those

o f

h i s

s p e c i f i c names. The

generic

name

65

But others

have

represented the

term

*Orisha' as derived

from the circumstance of a seriou s diffe ren ce on a pa r ti c ul a r



occasion

between

two fr ie nd s, over a potsherd, I s h a ,

which the one had made a present of to the other, but a

return of

which

the giv er

afterwards

from envy

demanded,

and which a fte r i t s return was accounted sacred and became

an object of

worship;

and

they

say that from t h i s

every

object of worship has

been

called 'Orisha'

( O r i - i s h a ) ,

an

a l l u s i o n to the

potsherd

over which there had

been

a severe

difference •

Mr. Dennett;

1

conjectures that i t

means

the beatified

departed

one . The Rev* D.O. E p e g a

2

believes that the term

contains, a ref ere nce to the p ra ct ic e of si nki ng a pot to

mark

the

shrine

of a deity.

A l l the above,

being

fa nc if ul and mythological

interpretations of the term, have no h i s t o r i c a l foundation.

Esu's

s p e c i f i c name Elegbera,

Elggbara, Elegb a or Legba

also

presents a d i f f i c u l t y . I t has

been supposed

to mean

He who s e i z e s , He who

s t r i k e s

with a s t i c k , the one who

takes the body or the one who saves . The meaning of the word

Esu, the deity's popular name, has also

been

found d i f f i c u l t to

explain. I t i s

supposed

to be derived

from

shu to emit, throw

66 -

The f a c i l e explanation t h a t the saying means t h a t Esu i s no t

as black as he i s painted i s d e f i n i t e l y

u n s a t i s f a c t o r y .

Whenever



he i s pai nte d black, he i s

r e a l l y

black.

i i i ) Some

of

h i s images represent

him as a male d e i t y ,

others

as a female

d e i t y .

The

f i r s t f i g u r e

of a p o r t a b l e

image

of the

d e i t y described above i s t h a t o f a female, w h i l s t the second

f i g u r e i s t h a t o f a

male.

Struck by these co nt ra di ct or y fea tur es,

Dr.

Farrow

thus

commented

on the

feminine

c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s

o f the

f i r s t

f i g u r e :

This

( i . e .

the h a i r dressed a f t e r the f a s h i o n of women)

might lead t o th e s u p p o s i t i o n t h a t Esu i s regarded as a

female personage, or t h a t

there

i s a male and a female

d e v i l .

The t r u t h i s ,

hov/ever,

t h a t he i s regarded as the one and

o n l y

such

being

and i s

alv/ays

spoken

o f as

'he'

;

but t h i s

does n ot preclude him from possessing c e r t a i n feminine

c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s " .

1

Quite apart from any other

c o n s i d e r a t i o n ,

the mistake in vo lv ed

i n the use of th e masculine pronoun

'he

1

i s s u f f i c i e n t t o n u l l i f y

the value

of t h i s

explanation.

Yoruba

i s a

Sudanic

language;

i t i s

t h e r e f o r e

not i n f l e c t e d

f o r

the purposes o f g e n d e r .

2

The

Yoruba word f o r the t h i r d personal pronoun f o r a l l genders i s

'0*

or



- 68 -

w a i t e r s o n A n c i e n t E g y p t i a n R e l i g i o n a lw ay s s a y t h a t "S et i s the

enemy o f O s i r i s .

1



I t must be noted t h a t the word o r i s a i s used in st ea d of

Olorun. This demands a n e x p l a n a t i o n *

I n

the cas e o f An ci en t

E g y p t i a n

R e l i g i o n

t h e o p p o s i t i o n e x i s t e d o r i g i n a l l y between the

e l d e r

H o r u s ,

and th en between O s i r i s and subsequently between the

younger

Horus on. th e one hand, and Se t on the ot he r* So too i n

the case of the Y o r u b a r e l i g i o n , t he o p p o s i t i o n i s t r a n s f e r r e d

from

O l o r u n

to the

l e s s e r

d e i t i e s known as o r i s a s .

What, then , i s the o r i g i n of the term o r i s a ?

F i r s t o f a l l , i t should be noted t h a t the re are three forms of the

term, v i s * , o r i s a , o y i s a

2

and o r i s e ^ , each of w h i c h s i g n i f i e s a n

i d o l , a d e i t y o r a god. The word

1

o r i s a

1

may be d i v i d e d into

two parts v i z * o r i and s a . The f i r s t p a r t i s a m o d i f i e d form o f

t he a n c i e n t E g y p t i a n word

horu

4

"*

The s u r v i v a l o f t h i s word i n

Y o r u b a

has

been

po in te d out i n th e pr ev io us chapte r* The

c o n c l u s i o n t h a t the

word

o r i i s connected w it h the

word

horu

i s

f u r t h e r

strengthened by the f a c t

t h a t

the Eg yp ti an god H o r u s -

- 69 -

The second p a r t of the word,

s e ,

i s d e r i v e d d i r e c t l y f r om S e t

1

,

a nd i t s o t h e r f or m, s a , i s d e r i v e d from th e name of the animal

s h a »

w h i c h i s

the

animal

r e p r e s e n t a t i v e

of S e t . The

word o r i - s a

or o r i - s e , i s t h e r e f o r e , a modified form of the word

'Horus-Set',



t h e name of a double

d e i t y

whose worship e x i s t e d f o r

c e n t u r i e s

i n

A n c i e n t Egypt.

The groun ds o f i d e n t i f y i n g

" O r i s a "

with Horus-Set

r e q u i r e s a m p l i f i c a t i o n .

I t

w i l l

be

remembered

t h a t

Horus

r e p r e s e n -

t e d the A s i a t i c i n v a d e r s who s e t t l e d i n A n c i e n t E g y p t , w h i l s t

S e t re pr es en te d the po pu la ti on which had been conque red by the

P h a r a o n i c

E g y p t i a n s " ^ .

Horus

became t he t i t l e o r part of the

t i t l e

of th e

d e i t i e s

worshipped i n Sou the rn Egy pt. The wors hip

of

Horus

was widespread, and

t h a t

of the

Horus

gods was a t one time

g e n e r a l . Se t the

r e p r e s e n t a t i ve

o f the Nor th was w id el y worship ped

t h e r e , but was re ga rd ed as th e enemy of Horus, t he

r e p r e s e n t a t i v e

o f

the Sou th. H is wor shi p was not co nf in ed to the North of Egypt,

but was sp re ad t o oth er

p a r t s

o f Eg yp t, Nub ia and

E t h i o p i a .

Hence

Dr. Menzies s a y s " t h e

e v i l power

Set was

much

worshippe d, and

would

be approached i n

p r i v a t e

as

w e l l

as i n the

p u b l i c a c t s

d e p i c t e d o n

-

70 -

d i s t r i c t s

p e r s i s t e d

i n t h i s d o u b l e worship down to t h e l a t e s t

times

o f

p a g a n i s m

1

.

The

Y o r u b a s must have migrated

from

one or

more

o f such d i s t r i c t s .



F u r t h e r evidence i n support o f the


of

E s u w i t h

Set i s

s u p p l i e d

by the

f a c t t h a t E s u i s r e p r e s e n t e d

by a

stone which i s of te n adored

by

p a s s e r s - b y

as

Oluwa

mi My

Lord.".

Set was also r e p r e s e n t e d by a ston e. According to Wieldem an,

"another Egyptian g o d

2

who was o c c a s i o n a l l y regarded as i n c o r p o r a t e

i n a stone was S e t " . E s u i s

a l s o r e p r e s e n t e d

by

p i l l a r s ;

so

also

was

Set**.

I t

i s

q u i t e

p o s s i b l e a l s o that

the

word

" O r i s a "

i s

d e r i v e d

from

Horus

the

G r e e k

form

of th e

A n c i e n t E g y p t i a n word

"Horu". The

d e r i v a t i o n , then, would

be as

f o l l o w s

:-

H o r u s ;

h i s e l i d e d , and the f i n a l consonant r e c e i v e s a vowel which

i s

e i t h e r

'a' or

' e*.

The word thus

becomes

0 - r i - s a or 0 - r i - s e .

I t s h o u l d be not ed here that t h e r e a r e

s e v e r a l

words, i n

West A f r i c a n languages which denote

d e i t i e s

and ar e t r a c e a b l e t o

the

same

o r i g i n . F o r

example,

the words

0 - r i - s e

( S e k i r i language),

- 71 -

a few images of Esu which a r e made w i t h d i s p r o p o r t i o n a t e l y l o n g

p h a l l u s .

I n

consequence

of these

images,

C o l o n e l E l l i s has



d e s c r i b e d

Esu as a

p h a l l i c

god. The pr es en t

w r i t e r

has seen a

few of the

images,

but he i s con vin ced

t h a t

E s u i s not a p h a l l i c

d i v i n i t y

and the stone re pr es en ta ti on s of the

d e i t y

are no t cru de

i m i t a t i o n s o f the p h a l l u s . N e v e r t h e l e s s , t h e images l en d an

i n d i r e c t support to the the ory of a

c l o s e

c o n n e c t i o n

between

Esu

and Se t. I t

must

be admitted,

however, t h a t

some

degenerate

t r i b e s do pay undue a t t e n t i o n t o t h e p h a l l u s i n t h e

images.

Whence

once the foreg oin g theory i s accep ted, i t i s easy

(logy

to s o l v e the remain ing

d i f f i c u l t i e s .

According to Eg ypt ia n

mytho-

there

was a god named Shu who

came

f o r t h

from

the pri mae val w ate rs.

He f o r c i b l y s e p a r at e d S i b u

1

, the god o f the e a r t h , from Hu it , the

goddess of the s t a r r y s k y

2

. He th us became th e god o f th e spa ce

between

ea rt h and sky. His re pr es en ta ti on was

t h a t

o f a god i n a

kn ee li ng post ure hol di ng up the sky wi th both hands.3 L a t e r on

he became fused with R a the

sun-god,

and t hus became a

sun-god.

As a

sun-god

he was reg ard ed as a be ne fi ce nt

d e i t y

and an impersona

- 72 -

"He thus

became,

as the god of the s co rc hi n g s un- hea t,

the dread sun-god, most c l o s e l y a l l i e d to S e t ; and the

a s s , the animal of S e t , which i s a l s o c a l l e d Shu,



appears to

have belonged

to him as

w e l l

1

The

d e r i v a t i o n

of the name Shu i s gi ve n as fo ll o ws : The ro ot

whence

h i s

name

i s de ri ve d has a twofold s i g n i f i c a t i o n ,

f i r s t

2

t h a t o f s c o r c h i n g , and s e c o n d l y t h a t o f s t r e t c h i n g out,growing. .

The above c o n s i d e r a t i o n s show t h a t Shu i s regar ded both a s a

ben evo len t and as a ma le vo le nt deity-^.

The r e s e m b l a n c e between t h e c h a r a c t e r o f t h e E g y p t i a n

god Shu sketched above and t h a t of the

Y o r u b a

god E s u ( E - s h u ) ^

w i l l h e l p i n u n r a v e l l i n g the myste ry surr oun din g the

l a t t e r .

I t i s c l e a r that the conce pti on o f Es u i s a f u s i o n of the c o n c e p -

t i o n of Set and t h a t o f Shu. The

Y o r u b a

word s u ( s h u )

means

t o s t r e t c h out over something" and

hence

"t o cov er up, t o dar ken ".

F o r example, t h e

Y o r u b a

e x p r e s s i o n ,

'Orun

s u

means

the sk y i s

covered up",

t h a t

i s ,

w i t h c l o u d s ; i n o t h e r

wordB,

clouds

have

s t r e t c h e d out ove r the sk y. The

Y o r u b a

v e r b meaning " t o

f a l l

i s

su-bu

( s h u - b u ) ,

t h a t

i s ,

s t r e t c h

out ov er o r cove r up the p l a c e

- 73

to Se t.

An

i l l u s t r a t i o n

of the

fusion,

of elements

i n

Egyptian



mythology i n Y o r u b a

r e l i g i o n

can be given i n . sup por t of. the above

c o n c l u s i o n s by quoting a

passage

from De nn et

T

s At the

Back

of

the Black Man's Mind". The

passage'

1

', w h i c h

c o n t a i n s a d e s c r i p t i o n

o f a

"3u3u

house" at I d r i g e n a , - n e a r B e n i n

C i t y ,

runs thus :

"As'you e n t e r you n o t i c e the f i g u r e of a man without

l e g s

( O k e )

2

,

the

door-keeper;

then turning

to the l e f t , you

w i l l se e a f i g u r e i n

c l a y

d r e s s e d i n c h a i n

armour

as in. the

days of E l i z a b e t h , ,

r i d i n g

a horse. He i s c a l l e d OKAKWU

3

or an o f f i c e r . Pa ss in g along the l e f t w a l l we f i n d a

f i g u r e dressed as a prime m i n i s t e r of

IYASE.

Then i n the

Open space i n the centre of the square the re are two f i g u r e s ,

one on

y o u r r i g h t

and one on

y o u r

l e f t as yo u sta nd wi th

y o u r

back

to th e door

f a c i n g

AKE. The one

on.

y o u r l e f t

r e p r e s e n t s OYISA (god) and t h a t on y o u r

r i g h t

ESU, the

d e v i l .

E§U

i s

dressed

as a

s l a v e

i n a hat and

c l o , t h

B

c a r r y i n g

a

k n i f e

at

h i s w a i s t

and a s t i c k c a l l e d UKPOPO*

i n h i s

r i g h t .

OYISA

on the o t h e r hand i s d r e s s e d

l i k e , a

k i n g •

We

how

s t a n d

before the throne o f AKE, who

d r e s s e d

l i k e a king

seated with a v / i f e

(IREBU)

w i t h her babe on e i t h e r s i d e o f

him".

Ake i s the name of a god. The

meaning

of the word i s

"an axe". I t

w i l l

be

remembered

t h a t an axe ( ,

neter-*)

i s the

symbol o f a god i n A n c i e nt

E g y p t .

l y a s e means the

l i v i n g

s e t

( y a from the word ye w h i c h means to e x i s t and se an a b b r e v i a t i o n

- Ik -

O s i r i s

and I s i s (son, father and

m o t h e r )

1

.

I r e b u i s derived

2

from

Rebu

, the name of a people who

dwelt

on the

west

of

Egypt



who were o f t e n r e f e r r e d t o i n h i e r o g l y p h i c i n s c r i p t i o n s .

I t

may be remarked in. pas sin g th at the pr ac ti ce of

s y m b o l i z i n g a god by

means

of an axe or by

means

of a f ig ur e

r e s e m b l i n g

an

axe;

i n form i s well-known i n o t h e r parts of Benin

and of

Y o r u b a l a n d

i n ge ne ra l. The

name

i s

sometimes

g i v e n

to '

the cen tre of a de i ty ' s worship or to the d i s t r i c t inh ab it ed by a

k i n g

who i s r e g a r d e d as wielding

supreme

au th or it y on beh alf

of the deity.

The

d i f f i c u l t y

a r i s i n g

from

the

f e m i n i n e

c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s ,

gen era lly at tr ib ut ed to Es u and

from

the o r i g i n and meaning of •

the name E l e g b e r a or ^ l e g b a r a w i l l now be e x p l a i n e d .

I t has been n o t e d above that the c o n c e p t i o n of E s u i s

p a r t l y d e r i v e d

from

that of the

E g y p t i a n

god Shu. I t has a l s o

been p o i n t e d out t ha t Shu became a sun-god by b e i n g

f u s e d

into

the body of Ra. Now Ra i s known by two o t h e r names, w h i c h are

- 75 -

from Khep era. F o r the sa ke o f

c l e a r n e s s

t h e p r o c e s s o f

d e r i v a -

t i o n w i l l be

f u l l y given here.

The i n i t i a l l e t t e r Kh i s a t h i n

sound which,

when

f o l l o w e d by a vowe l, i s e l i d e d i n Y o r u b a ,

u n l e s s i t o c c u r s i n a m o n o s y l l a b i c w o r d ,

1

When f o l l o w e d by a



vowel i n the midd le o f a word i t i s h a rd e ne d i n t o k. When

f o l l o w e d

by a consonant', i t i s

a l s o

hardened

i n t o

k , b u t i t

musV

be g i v e n a-"Vowel to form a new s y l l a b l e s i n c e e V e r y consonant must

2

h a v e i t s own v o w e l i n Yoruba, K h i n Khepera i s

t h e r e f o r e e l i d e d ,

l e a v i n g e p e r a . T h e l a b i a l sound £ does not e x i s t i n Y o r ub a , i t s

p l a c e be in g t a k en by b or by a t h i c k l a b i a l

£

s p e l t

k g

i n other

West

A f r i c a n

l a n g u a g e s o r

by

gj>,

a n o t h e r

t h i c k

l a b i a l

p e c u l i a r

to West A f r i c a n l a n g u a g e s . I n t h e

c a s e

o f E p e r a , £ i s changed

-to

gb,

and the word becomes•egbera.

"As

a s u b s t i t u t e fo r "Shu who,

as was noted above, sy mb ol iz ed

power,

the word

becomes

a

synonym

f o r

power.

A r e d u p l i c a t i o n , o f t h e i n i t i a l vowel o f a word

t o g e t h e r w i t h t h e l e t t e r 1 i s

o f t e n

made, w h i c h when added t o the

o r i g i n a l w o r d , s i g n i f i e s f u l l n e s s , c o m p l e t e n e s s " ^ . I t i s t h u s

1

-

76

-

The

name El eg ber a, Ele,gbara, E l e g b a

o r

'Lqgba

( t h e

l a s t

two being m o d i f i e d forms o f t he f i r s t two words) i s thu s c l e a r l y -

shown

to be derived , from

K h e p e r a .

T h i s s t a t e m e n t i s further

confirmed by the

f a c t

that the a d d i t i o n a l word Ba-Ra

means

"the



s o u l o f

E a " ,

a

word

which

shows

a c l o s e co nn ec ti on between

E l e g b a r a

and Ra, and the reb y thr oug h

E l e g b a r a

and Khepera.

T h i s i d e n t i t y o f

E l e g b e r a

w it h Khepera

w i l l

e x p l a i n the

r e a s o n why E s u i s c r e d i t e d w i t h f e m i n i n e

c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s .

Kh ep er a i s a god, and no t a go dd ess . Why th e Gr ee ks chos e t o

g i v e h i s

name

a f e m i n i n e

t e r m i n a t i o n

i s

unknown.

The

f a c t

that

he was

r e p r e s e n t e d

by female im ag es

1

p r o b a b l y l e d

.the

Gre eks to

p r e f e r the fe mi ni ne to t h e ma sc ul in e form of the name.

One noteworthy"

f a c t

i n

t h i s connectibni

i s t he d e r i v a t i o n

o f

the Yoruba

word

f o r

woman

from Kho pr i, which i s the

o r i g i n a l

E g y p t i a n word

f o r Khepe ra. The

d e r i v a t i o n

i s a s

follows :-

K h

2

i s

e l i d e d , l e a v i n g

o j g r i ,

p.

becomes

and as Yo ru ba i s a

p h o n e t i c

la ng ua ge , any two c ons ona nts

coming

t o g e t h e r i n a

word

must be s e p a r a t e d by a vo we l. The word t h u s

becomes

o b i r i ^



- 77 -

OBA'UFON o r OBALUFON.

The i d e n t i f i c a t i o n . o f E s u w i t h S e t w i l l a l s o throw



l i g h t on. t h e o r i g i m and c h a r a c t e r o f a d e i t y known as Oba'u fpn

o r O b a - l u f o n . The d e i t y has been d e s c r i b e d as 'the god o f

a pro sp er ou s emp ire ', ' the god o f the peace o f the kingdom', o r

'the L o r d o f Spee ch'. Dr.. Fa rr ow thus w r i t e s about the d e i t y :

"Although not so

w e l l known

as

some

of the

o t h e r s ,

he

i s

the

p o s s e s s o r

o f

c o n s i d e r a b l e

power.

He i s th e on ly

d e i t y to wh ic h a human

s a c r i f i c e

was p u b l i c l y offered",

d u r i n g

the

w r i t e r ' s s o j o u n n

i n

Abeok uxa".

The o r i g i n - of th e

d e i t y

and the re as on f o r the considerable

power

a t t r i b u t e d t o

him

can.be e x p l a i n e d

on the

same l i n e s

as

t h e


a l r e a d y

e x p l a i n e d .

R e f e r e n c e has been made above to the pre va le nc e of the

w o r s h i p o f S e t .

Now

the Greek

name

f o r S e t i s

Typhon,

and i t

should

not be

s u r p r i s i n g

i f

t h i s name

s u r v i v e s

iru Yorubal and,

i n view of the i d e n t i f i c a t i o n , o f S e t w i t h E s u . The f a c t i s

t h a t t h e word

Oba'Ufon

o r

O b a l u f o n

i s

p a r t l y

d e r i v e d from

Typhon.

The

word

may be

d i v i d e d i n t o ;fcwo p a r t s ,

v i a : Oba and 'ufon or

-

78 -

the

i n i t i a l

l e t t e r

t or z was e l i d e d

1

i n

keeping wit h

the

r u l e

that

e v e r y noun i n Yoruba

must

begin wi th a vowel. To the

word 'ufon

the

word

oba i s added, and th e compound

word

becomes

oba'ufon, and i s pronounced by some Y o r u b a s i n t h i s way

t i l l

today.

The p l a c i n g o f two

vowels

together

i s

u n u s u a l

i n

Yoruba. Hence the l e t t e r 1 i s

i n s e r t e d f o r

the

sake

o f euphony

http://can.be/

http://can.be/

http://can.be/



and

the

word becomes

o b a - l - u f o n .

The name.

Oba'ufon

or

Obaluftjn

i s t h e r e f o r e

another name f o r E s u and i s d e r i v e d

from Typhon

t h e G r e c i a n name f o r S e t or S ut .

I n

c o n f i r m a t i o n

o f the


j u s t made, i t

s h o u l d

be

noted

that t he

p i g ,

an

animal

whose

form S e t sometime s

assumes i n mythology,

b e a r s

a Yoruba name w h i c h a s s o c i a t e s

i t with

Typhon. The Y o r u b a word

f o r

a p i g i s

e - l e - d e .

T h i s word i s

derived*

from, the E g y p t i a n

wbrd deb

"to

p i e r c e " or " p i e r c i n g "

2

,

^ l ^ d e

t h e r e f o r e means

w

h e

who p i e r c e s " or he who p o s s e s s e s th e

i n s t r u m e n t f o r

p i e r c i n g " .

When i t i s remembered

t h a t

i t was i n

the form of a p i g that

Typhori,

w h i l e h u n t i n g by n i g h t , p i e r c e d

the eye o f O s i r i s , the r e a s o n f o r th e name g i v e n by th e Yor ubas

t o the p ig becomes obvious.

-

79

One o f the g r e a t bleasdngs a c c r u i n g from the e s t a b l i s h -

ment

o f

B r i t i s h P r o t e c t o r a t e

over Y o r u b a l a n d

- i s

the

stoppage

o f

human s a c r i f i c e s . A few i n s t a n c e s o f human

s a c r i f i c e s

made to



O b a l u f o n ( E s u )

l a s t

century.may be g i v e n h e r e , e s p e c i a l l y as:

*

c o p i e s o f the newspaper from

w h i c h

t h e y are t a k e n are now very

r a r e .

They ar e as f o l l o w s :-

( i )

Iwe

I r o h i n

1

.

Oc t. 3,

1861.

Human S a c r i f i c e : We h e a r t h a t from some cause or

o t h e r the p r i e s t of Q b a l u f p n , who o f f e r e d the human

s a c r i f i c e

i n I k e r e k u , d i e d about a week a f t e r w a r d s " •

( i i ) Iwe

I r o h i n .

Nov. 1861, Append ix.

We have

a g a i n

t o d e p l o r e the f a c t o f a human s a c r i f i c e

which took p l a c e a t I k e r e k u on Tuesday m o r n i n g the 12th".

T h i s

town

a n n u a l l y

s a c r i f i c e s

a

s l a v e

to

Obal ufon.

" T h e v i c t i m i n t h i s c a s e i s the t h i r d intended

f o r -

th e

.purpose

t h i s y e a r ; t h e f i r s t d i e d , and the secon d

escaped.

" R e g a r d i n g human s a c r i f i c e s i n t h i s town by the Egb as,

we

hiave

o b t a i n e d the f o l l o w i n g

information,

w h i c h we

b e l i e v e

to be c o r r e c t . Of the two

hundred

townships

i n Abeokuta the

f o l l o w i n g

were accustomed to

s a c r i f i c e

human

bein g befor e they

l e f t

t h e i r

town

:-

I g b e i n 1.

a n n u a l l y .to

Obalufon

I k e r e k u 1 a n n u a l l y t o

Obal ufon

Iwo 1 a n n u a l l y t o Oranmiya n~

Owu 1 a n n u a l l y to

Amunibuwa-5

Oko 7 a n n u a l l y to l o c a l d e i t i e s ; not



CHAPTER IV.

T H E

M A J O R

D E I T I E S (Cont inued)

B.

IPA.

81.

CHAPTER IV.

The

O r i s a a

- continued.

B. IFA , the Ora cul ar Deity.



I f a , the o r a c u l a r d e i t y i s by f a r t he most popular and

the most important d ei ty i n Y o r u b a l a n d . A l t h o u g h h i s r e c o g n i -

t i o n i s not

a s

g e n e r a l as t h a t of Esu, and h i s s t a t u s ,

a c c o r d i n g to some e x i s t i n g myths, i s i n f e r i o r i n some r e s p e c t s

to that of E s u , y e t h i s p l a c e i n the l i f e of every

Yoruba

i s

unique.

Among some of the t r i b e s h i s w o r s h i p i s not as frequent

as that of

E s u

or of th e l o c a l d e i t i e s , but h i s

importance

i s acknowledged by a l l . He i s worshipped and c o n s u l t e d on a l l

important occasions, and h i s

d i c t a t e s

cannot be disregarded

with impunity.

B e l i e f i n him i s a ve ry important st ra nd i n the warp and

woof

of th e r e l i g i o u s

l i f e

of the people. I t i s a v i t a l f a c t o r

i n t h e i r

p s y c h o l o g i c a l background,

even up t i l l today.

Despite

a century

of

i n t e n s i v e

C h r i s t i a n

e v a n g e l i z a t i o n

and about two

82.

n a t u r a l l y

t o I f a f o r

g u i d a n c e

i n re gar d to th e fu tu re . He

c o n s u l t s

him on a l l mat ter s gre at and sm al l. Hence there:

has-, come i n t o e x i s t e n c e an o r a c u l a r system, i n v e s t e d w i t h

such great importance t h a t modern i n f l u e n c e h a s

done

very

l i t t l e to minimize.

IPA

PRIESTS.



The p r i e s t s ; o f I f a a r e known

as

babalawo

(baba-alawo)

•

"The f a t h e r or the b i g man who d ea l s wi th s e c r e t s , "An

adept

i n m y s t e r i e s " .

Owing

to the po pu la ri ty of the c u l t , the number

o f i t

a

p r i e s t s ; i s v e r y l a r g e .

he

I f a p r i e st h o o d i s a l s o .<•:.

a t t r a c t i v e b e c a u s e i t i s l u c r a t i v e . T h e r e i s a popular proverb

among

the Yorubas; th at an I f a ,

p r i e s t

c an n e v e r s t a r v e -

E b i

ko l e pa

babalawo.

Another p r o v e r b say s th a t the wi se st

p r i e s t

i s he who adopt& the

w o r s h i p

o f I f a .

I n i t i a t i o n to the pr of es si on i s a very expen sive th in g.

The student of I f a c u l t must undergo a. lo ng p ro ce ss of t r a i n i n g ,

extending over a pe ri od of th re e to s e v e n year s. Before commen-

c i n g h i s co ur se he has; to pay a sum ra ng in g b e t w e e n £100 and

£150 acc ord ing to h i s f i n a n c i a l c a p a c i t y o r t h e r e p u t a t i o n

83.

Pinodu.

Fo r the p u r p o s e o f

t h i s t e s t

the can did ate di ps h i s

h a n d s i n t o

c o n s e c r a t e d I f a

water.

He th en

r e c e i v e s

on t he

palm

o f h i s

hands-,

f l am i ng o i l

from

a new

lamp

and ru bs i t on

h i s

body. I f he

s u s t a i n s

no i n j u r y , the n he becomes an I f a

p r i e s t

who has; gi ve n pr oo f

that

he i s s e cu r e a g a i n s t a l l

i l l s

and w i l l t her eby be abl e to saf egu ard o t h e r s a g a i n s t them.



T h e r e

a r e

three,

g r ad e s o f I f a p r i e s t s - .

T h o s e

of the

f i r s t

grade a re

c a l l e d O l o r i , those

o f th e

Becond O r i s a .

and

those of the

t h i r d , Awon

t i a t e n i

I f a . Those

of the f i r s t

grade are e n t i t l e d to worshi p t h e i r I f a always, but not to

d i v i n e

w i t h i t o r

s u f f e r

i t to be so

employed. Those

of the

second grade can bot h wor shi p t h e i r own and

d i v i n e

w i t h

i t ,

or

s u f f e r

i t to be thu s used

w h i l s t

thos e of th e

t h i r d

c l a s s ,

who

have

b e e n brought

1)6 t h e i r p o s i t i o n

thr oug h th e

s e r v i c e s of

O l o d u s

o r C h i e f Babalawos, a r e , b e s i d e s be in g en-

t i t l e d

to. wo rs hi p

t h e i r

own I f a and

d i v i n e

w i t h

i t , also

p r i v i l e g e d to eat of any s a c r i f i c e

that

may be of f e r e d to o r

before the

I g b a

Odu.

or the ca la ba sh or

gourd v e s s e l

sa cr ed to

J J



-85-

A n o t h e r i n t e r e s t i n g

myth i s giv en by t he l a t e Mr.

F e y i s a r a

S o p e i n i n t h e N i g e r i a n C h r o n i c l e o f

March

12, 1909:-

I f a

was* b o r n a t

I f e ,

the c ra dl e of the Y o r u b a people.

He was a

s k i l f u l

me di ca l man, who had an e x t e n s i v e

p r a c t i c e and was an em in en tl y s k i l f u l d i v i n e r .



A f t e r

he had

become

famous

he

founded a

town

c a l l e d

I p e t u and

became

k i n g o f the place

People from every part of the Y o r u b a c ou n t r y f l o c k e d

to

him Out of th es e, we a r e

t o l d ,

he chose only

s i x t e e n

men The

names

o f t h e s e a p p r e n t i c e s

a r e s a i d

to be

i d e n t i c a l

with the

names

o f t h e s i x t e e n

d i v i n i t a t o r y s i g n s c a l l e d Odus, and th e or de r o f

precedence among them, which was probably based

upon

p r i o r i t y

o f

appointment,

i s

s a i d

to be

s t i l l

p r e s e r v e d

i n

the pr es en t ord er of the

Odus.

A n o t h e r myth showing t h e i n t i m a t e

r e l a t i o n s h i p

between

I f a

and Es u i s gi ve n by

Dennett

:-

As; t h e s t o r y goes,

Odudua.

has. no o t h e r O r i s a except

I f a ;

and,

whenever

he co ns ul te d any one, he co ns ul te d

I fa *

I f a

came one day t o s a c r i f i c e to

Odudua,

and he

was very

s a t i s f i e d

w i t h t h e o f f e r i n g ...... so , on

t h i s o c c a s i o n ,

Odudua

gave

I f a

Esu.

Thus

Es u was th e

s l a v e

o f

Odudua,

and

became I f a

1

s

messenger. And

when

anyone w a n t s

to

s a c r i f i c e

t o I f a t h e y s a y t h a t i t i s

bes t tojsquare h i s messenger, as he i s a ve ry wicke d

p e r s o n .

Other Names

o f I f a .

The Yoruba people a re ve ry fond of gi vi ng t i t l e s to

d e i t i e s

a nd d i s t i n g u i s h e d p e r so n s .

They

a r e

als o relu ct an t



-86-

MODE

OF DIVINATION.

T h e m a t e r i a l s u s e d f o r d i v i n a t i o n a r e a whitened

c i r c u l a r hoard

known as. Qppn I f a and s i x t e e n palm nuts.

Stometimes a r e c t a n g u l a r

board

or a rec ta ng ul ar fa n i s used.



At other times the number of palm nut s i s in cr ea se d by one.

When the d i v i n e r h a s s e c u r e d a l l t h e n e c e s s a r y m a t e r i a l s h e

proceeds i n e i t h e r of the following ways :-

( i ) He puts a l l the palm nuts on h i s l e f t palm and att emp ts

to t a k e

them

up wi t h one gr as p of th e palm o f h i s r i g h t

hand. Or

( i i )

He holds the sixteen

p a l m - n u t s

l o o s e l y i n t he r i g h t

hand and throws them through th e h a l f - c l o s e d f i n g e r s

i n t o the

l e f t

hand. When e i t h e r of th es e processes, i s

adopted i f

one palm-nut

rem ain s, two

marks

11 or 00 are

made

wi th the fi ng er on the di v in i ng

board;

i f two nu ts remain, a

s i n g l e mark 1 or 0 i s made. The pr oc es s i s repeat ed eig ht

times and the figure formed by rec or di ng the

r e s u l t s

i s

c a l l e d

an Odu a c h i e f , a head , a de it y repr esen ted by a palm-

nut. Beh ind each of t h e 16 Odus a r e s i x t e e n s u b o rd i n a te Odus.

-87-

' '

F i g . 12.

The f o l l o w i n g ar e the diagrammatic r e p r e s e n t a t i o n s of

the Odus :-

1.

E j i

Oghe



1 1

0 0

1 1 or 0 0

1 1 0 0

1 1 0 0

2.

Oyeku

Meji

1 1 0

0

I 1 or 0 0

I I 0 0

1 1 0 0 .

3. I w o r i

.Meji

1 1

1 1 0 0 0 0

1 1 0 0

o r

1 1 0 0

1 1

1 1 0 0 0 0

-88-

5. I r o s h u Meji

1 1 0 0

1 1 0 0

or



1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0

1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0

6* Owara

Meji

1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0

1 1 1 1 o r 0 0 0 0

1 1 0 0

1 1 0 0

7.

B a r a

Meji

1 1 0 0

1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0

1 1 1 1 o r 0 0 0 0

1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0

8. Okara(n)

Meji

1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0



-90-

15. Ose Meji

1 1 0 0

1 1 1 1 or

0 0

0 0



1 0

1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0

16. Ofu

Meji

I

1 1

1.

0 0 0 0

I 1 o r 0 0

I I 1 1 0 0 0 0

I I

0 0

The

o r a c u l a r

response

of

I f a

i s

g i v e n

i n t h e

form

of

a p a r a b l e . Hence t h e sayi ng

Owe n i I f a i pa

Omqran n i imo;

B i a ba wipe mo

Qmoran a

mo

N i g b a t i

a ko ba

mp

A n i , ko se.

I f a always speaks i n p a r a b l e s .

I t

i s t h e w i s e man who understands h i s speech .

When

we say,

u n d e r s t a n d

i t ,

9

t o

be

expected, qu ic kl y chan ts

t h e

f o l l o w i n g words

:-

B i

a ba bo

oju

B i

a ba bp

imu

I s a l e

agbqn n i a

p a r i

r e .

A

da f u n

Orunmila n i g b a t i

o

nlq

gba

ase.

lowo

Olodumare.

0



rubo.

Olodumare s i wa f i as e f u n u. N i g b a t i gbogbo aiye

gbo

pe o

t i

gba

ase

lowo Olod umare,

nwon

s i nwo t o o

Gbogbo.eyiti o wi s i

nse.

L a t i

igbana

wa n i a

nwipe,

A

se.

1

When we

wash

our fa ce,

When we

wash

our nos e

We

f i n i s h

o f f b e n e a t h the c h i n .

I f a

was- c o n s u l t e d

f o r

Orunmila,

when the

l a t t e r was g o i n g

t o

r e c e i v e a u t h o r i t y

from the

Almighty.

He

s a c r i f i c e d .

And

the Almighty gave him a u t h o r i t y . When a l l . t h e worl d hea rd

t h a t he had r e c e i v e d a u t h o r i t y t h ey

came

to him. A l l t h a t

he

s a i d came to

pass. Ev er si nc e then

we say,

'Amen

1

o r

So

be i t i «•

Opele.

T h e r e

a r e o t h e r

d e i t i e s

which

are. co ns ul te d

as

o r a c l e s

by

th e

Yorubas.

The c h i e f of

t h e s e i s Opele

who i s

regar ded

as

I f a * s

messenger, and i s c o n s u l t e d f o r

m i n o r

matters,

-92-

HISTORICAL

ORIGIN.

An enqu ir y in to th e h i s t o r i c a l

o r i g i n

of the c u l t i s

an easy ta sk i f the theor y of

a

c l o s e c o n n e c t i o n

b e t w e e n

the

r e l i g i o n

of the

Y o r u b a s

and t h a t of the Anc ien t Eg yp ti an s,



w h i c h

was

proposed and ap pl ie d in the prec edin g ch apt ers , i s

a l s o applied, here. A l t h o u g h the e xi st en ce of the system a&

a

complete whole

cannot he tr ac ed i n Anci ent Egyp tia n re cor ds,

ye t i t s e s s e n t i a l elements can he found i n v a r i o u s r e c o r d s .

Most

of the ide as connected w i t h i t a r e ,

unquestionably,

r e l i c s o f t he O s i r i a n f a i t h .

The

fi£st

poi nt to note i s the ve ry name of the d e i t y -

I f a , T h i s word i s d e r i v e d d i r e c t l y from nef er . the t i t l e o f

O s i r i s . The d e r i v a t i o n i s as

follow©

:- S i n c e ever y

Yoruba

noun

beg ins wi th a. vowel, the i n i t i a l consonant of a

noun

borrowed from

another language

e i t h e r

r e c e i v e s a

v o w e l - p r e f i x

o r i s dropped,

e s p e c i a l l y

i f i t i s a weak n a s a l consonant.

Hence

the

i n i t i a l

consonant

i n n e f e r i s

dropped

l e a v i n g

e f e r .

An 'e* sound i s r e p r e s e n t e d i n Y o r u b a by

i * ,

and th e sound

* e r '

b e i n g n o n - e x i s t e n t i n Yoruba i s changed to 'a'.

Hence

the

9 3

Dead c o n t a i n f r e q u e n t

a l l u s i o n s

to t he Aats> o r

Domains

o f

H o r u s and Se t , and

l i s t s

of th e Aats; of Sekh et - Aaru ove r

w h i c h O s i r i s

p r e s i d e d . I n v i e w o f t h e

s u r v i v a l

o f elem ents

o f t h e O s i r i a n f a i t h i n Yoruba r e l i g i o n po in te d out i n the

p r e v i o u s ch ap te rs i t should not be

•

s u r p r i s i n g i f t he

b e l i e f

i n the Aa ts over which O s i r i s p r e s i d e d a l s o s u r v i v e s . As a

f a c t b e l i e f

s u r v i v e C u l t .



matter of the

d o e s

i n t he I f a

Most

o f

the words, connected wi t h the

c u l t

a r e d e r i v e d

d i r e c t l y

from

t h e names of th e Aats. o f Sek het - Aaru. The word odu i t s e l f

i s

d e r i v e d from Aat ( o r ot , od) the

d e r i v a t i o n f o l l o w i n g

the

p h o n e t i c r u l e s o f m o d i f i c a t i o n o f

f o r e i g n

words to be in co rpo r-

a t e d

into the Yoru ba lang uag e. The d e r i v a t i o n i s a s f o l l o w s :-

Aat; the

f i r s t 'a'

i s u s u a l l y

r e p l a c e d

by 0 i n s e v e r a l

books;

t h e

second

'a'

i s e l i d e d ; t h e d e n t a l ' t '

becomes

'd', and

r e c e i v e s

a vowe l to form i t s own

s y l l a b l e ,

th er e be in g no

c l o s e d s y l l a b l e s

i n the Yoruba language. Hence the word

becomes

Odu. Ot or Od i s fou nd i n books on Eg ypt as th e

e q u i v a l e n t

of Aat.

e n q u i r e r

who,

a c c o r d i n g

to th e

O s i r i a n

f a i t h , would expect t o

f i n d

a p l a c e i n the f i e l d s of

A a r u

a f t e r

de at h. They would

s i m i l a r l y

add. one t o the

number

i n the second l i s t f o r O s i r i s ,

and alth oug h they

do not add one more f o r t h e e n q u i r e r to b r i n g



t h e number

t o s e v e n t e e n , ye t the need f o r an odu to r e p r e s e n t

t he e n q u i r e r i s r e c o g n i z e d by th e f a c t

that

many

I f a

p r i e s t s

a l w a y s

p r o v i d e

s i x t e e n p l u s one palm-nuts. The e x t r a one i s

known

as the A d e l e or

the

odu which watche s t he house , and

i s

n e v e r u s e d

f o r

t h e

purpose

o f d i v i n a t i o n .

I t

i s

noteworthy t h a t e a c h of the

Odus

i s d e s c r i b e d a s

i

h a v i n g

a

t w o - f o l d

c h a r a c t e r e.g.

O b a r a

m e j i ,

Ofu

m e j i . The


o f t h i s

l i e s

i n t h e

f a c t

t h a t

each-odu

r e p r e s e n t s

a domain and th e d e i t y

p r e s i d i n g o v e r

i t , as

shown

i n t h e l i s t s -

r e f e r r e d

t o above.

I t has

b e en p o i n t e d

out

above

that as

soon

as an Odu

t u r n s up th e babalawo

( I f a

P r i e s t )

r e c i t e s

an

a p p r o p r i a t e

s t o r y o r

c o u p l e t .

A

number

o f s u c h

s t o r i e s

or

r e l i g i o u s

songs

i s g i v e n by t h e

Rev. D.O.

Epega

i n

h i s

book

e n t i t l e d I f a ,

-95-

that i s , strok es or c i r c l e s - I I I or 000^-.

The de ri va ti on of the names of the Odus

w i l l

now

he

given. To f a c i l i t a t e t h i s , a comparative t ab le of fou r

l i s t s of the si xt ee n p r i n c i p a l odus

w i l l

be inse rt ed here.



I t

w i l l

be seen that the dif fer enc es between the names of the

Odus

i n the fo ur

l i s t s are, i n

almost

a l l c a s e s ,

phonetic

differences. The l i s t s are as

follows :-

E l l i s

Johnson's

P h i l l i p s '

Dennett.

1.

Buru

Ogbe Ogbe

Ogbe

2.

Yekun

Oyekun

Oyeku

Oyeku

3.

Ode I w o r i Iw or i

Iwori

4.

Di

E d i Odi Odi

5.

Losho

U r o s i

Iroshu

I r o s h u n

6.

Or

on

Owara

Owourin Owourin

7.

A b i l a

Bara

Obara

Obara

8.

A k a l a

Okaran Okauran

Okouron

9.

Kuda

Ogunda

Oguda

Oguda

10.

6a

Osa

Osa

Osa

11.

Ka Eka

I k a

I k a

12.

Durapin

Oturupon Otu

rupo n

Oturupon

13. Ture Eture

Otura Otura

14. L e t i Erete

I r e t e

I r e t e

15. Shi

Ose

Oshe

Oshe

16.

Pu. Ofu Ofu

Ofu

1,

Ogbe i s derived

from uben- f.

a

t i t l e

of O s i r i s see

Book of the Dead p . 5 7 8

B

. Compare

Nefe r-ub en-f . 'u'

becomes

'0',

and 'b'

becomes

l a b i a l

1

gb'. B uru

-96-

4. Odi comes from Atu. A

s i m i l a r d e r i v a t i o n

h a s been

given above; see Aat = Odu, above. Atu a p p e a r s i n the

2nd l i s t ,

i n t r o d u c t i o n

p. 181.

5.

Iroshu

- I r o - shu, t h e P i l l a r of Shu.

See. page 9 3

1

.

6. Owara comes from

U a r

- t . 'U' becomes

f

w and

r e c e i v e s an i n i t i a l vowel, ' r

1

r e c e i v e s

a vowel to



form a s y l l a b l e , and ' t ' i s eli ded , Uart i s the

name of th e 13 th Aat i n the 1 s t s e t ,


p . 1 8 1 .

1

7. A b i l a

i s

wrong s p e l l i n g .

Ba - Ra = the

soul

o f Ra.

'O

1

i s

only

an i n i t i a l vowel.

8.

Okaran

comes

from Kher - aha. I n i t i a l vowel 0,

t h e n a

( e r ) ,

t h e n ' r '

i n s e r t e d

to

separate

two

v o w e l s and a ( n ) , a c o n t r a c t i o n o f aha. See t he

14th

Aat i n the 1 s t l i s t ,


p.181.

9. Kuda, Ku - Da = the soul o f Da, an A n c i e n t Egyptian

god. See 5 t h Aat, 1s t l i s t ,

i n t r o d u c t i o n ,

p. 181.

10.

Osa comes

from

Ha - s e r - t . Ha

becomes

'0'

( h

e l i d e d ) ,

s e r becomes s a, and '

t *

i s

elid ed.

See 7 t h Aat, 2nd l i s t , i n t r o . , p.181.

1

11.

Ka = Soul.

12. D u r a p i n a p p e a r s to be a wrong s p e l l i n g of Oturupon.

Oturu comes

from A t r u or Otru and pon from pua - n i t .

See

13th Aat,

2nd

l i s t ,

i n t r o . ,

p. 18 1.

1

13. Eture or O t u r a p r o b a b l y comes from Atru or fro m

a

c o m b i n a t i o n o f Atu and Re o r Ra. See 4 t h Aa t,

2nd l i s t ,

i n t r o . ,

p. 1 8 1 .

1

-97-

The d e r i v a t i o n of t h e

Odus

e x p l a i n e d above

c l e a r l y shows

t h a t the ingenio us guesses

c o n t a i n e d

i n p o p u l a r wo r k s on the

s u b j e c t have no

h i s t o r i c a l

foundation.

I t i s i n t e r e s t i n g to compare the t i t l e s of I f a

wit h those



o f

O s i r i s

g i v e n i n c h a p t e r s 141 and 142 o f the

Book

o f the

Dead. Many of the former a r e

d e r i v e d

from

those

of the l a t t e r

o r from E g y p t i a n words. A few examples of t h e s e

w i l l

be

g i v e n

h e r e :- ( i )

Orun-mi-la.

The l i t e r a l t r a n s l a t i o n of t h i s

word i s Heaven

knows

t h o s e who w i l l be saved '. T h e r e i s no

doubt t h a t i t i s d e r i v e d from Horu-m-la,

one of th e

combina-

t i o n s o f the names o f E g y p t i a n gods (compare

Hor-m-Khuti).

L a i s th e name of the E g y p t i a n

l i o n

god.

( i i )

E l a . T h i s i s

d e r i v e d from L a . ( i i i ) Edu, a


of

e y i - d i d u

That w h ic h i s b l a c k . The word i s d e r i v e d from Did u, the b l a c k

image of O s i r i s

( I v )

Olodumare.

T h i s

ha s been

e x p l a i n e d

i n

c h a p t e r two.

The

m y t h o l o g i c a l

s t o r i e s

g i v e n

above

a l s o

c o n t a i n

elements from the myth o f

O s i r i s .

. The

s t o r i e s r e f e r

to th e

goodness o f

I f a ,

t h e b e n e f i t he c o n f e r r e d

upon

o t h e r s , h i s

-98-

"between

O s i r i s , Ra, Shu and

Set

"has "been

explained

i n the

preceding chapter,

and

i t i s i n t e r e s t i n g

to see that a

further

proof of t h i s r e l a t i o n i s given by the refer ences

to these gods, i n the

I f a

s t o r i e s .



CONCLUDING

REMARKS.

The s u r v i v a l of the

O s i r i a n

f a i t h

i n Yorubaland i s

nowhere better i l l u s t r a t e d than i n the case of I f a , the god

of divination.

The o r i g i n

of th e

I f a system must

be

traced to Egypt.

I t s basis l i e s i n the

O s i r i a n

f a i t h i n general and i n t he

doctrine

of the Aats i n

p a r t i c u l a r .

The i d e n t i c a l system as a

complete whole

has not

yet

been traced, but a

s i m i l a r system,

known as-

Derb

e l fu.1 or

Derb

e l rami. has= been discovered i n

modern times by Mr. James Hamilton and .escribed i n h i s book

e n t i t l e d "Wanderings

i n North A f r i c a

1

,

The I f a system

of divination

i s

not

confined

to the

Yorubas.

Among

the Ibbs i t i s known

by the

older t i t l e

of

E f a (E pronounced as i n E-phraim) and by the l a t e r t i t l e of

-99-

and

t h i s corresponds

to

the

sixteen

palm

nuts used

by th e

Yoruba

di vi ne r. The word

'Osing'

i s also

noteworthy,.

I t

i s the word Osi nas al iz ed and i s derived

from O s i - r i s

who,

as

pointed

out above, was the ch ie f pr es id in g dei ty of the

Aats (Ots) of Sefchet - Aaru

from

which the

I f a

system

originated, and also

from whose

t i t l e (hefer) the system

derived i t s

name.

The

t i t l e

of the di vi ne r

Mbo-ni

should



also be noted. Mbo i s deriv ed

from

ba or bau, soul or soul s,

andun, a being, person.

Mboni

therefore

means

"The people

of the ba or bau", that i s the

people who-possess

in an

e s p e c i a l manner

the so ul or souls of the ancestors. A .

s i m i l a r

t i t l e e x i s t s

among

the Yorubas and i s app lied to

the

pri est s of

Sango,

a deity

which w i l l

be descri bed i n a

l a t e r

chapter.

The

t i t l e

i s

Magba

that i s ,

Ma-gba,

Oma(n)

or Omo(n) agba,

''people

of the ba".

A similar

system

i s also

found

among

several

peoples

of

Southern Nigeria,

namely,

the Ij aw s, the

Popos,

the

Ibos,

the Ibio-bios, the

Ekois,

the Iy a las and others.

Many

of

these

TV

-

80 -

linked

with

the name of

Typhon

i n

Anci ent Egypt. According

to

Plutarch, " I n E i l e i t h y a p b l i s they used

to burn l i v i n g men to

ashes

^ . . . . c a l l i n g them Typhoneian; and the

ashes they

winnowed

away

and

scattered. T h i s ,

however,

v/as

done

p u b l i c l y

and at one



s p e c i a l time

11

-

1

-.

Th is statement

may be

consider ed together w it h

the following

extract

from

Maspero's New

Light

on

Ancient

Egypt;-

Human S a c r i f i c e . The victims may be seen c a r r i e d on a sledg e,

then strangled

and

perhaps afterw ards burnt".

Human s a c r i f i c e s

s i m i l a r

to

those i n Anc ient Egypt su rv iv ed in Yorubaland

up to the

end of the

l a s t

century.

2

CONCLUDING REMARKS.

The foregoing

remarks

supply adequate

grounds

for regard-

ing Esu as

being

c l o s e l y

connected w it h the Eg yp ti an

god

S e t ,

and

therefore

with Shu,

Khepera and Typhon. The conceptions of Es u

i s

a f u s i o n

of

ide as connected wi th each

o f the

three Egyptia n

gods

who had been

i d e n t i f i e d wit h Set

i n

Ancie nt Egypt.

His

worship

i s

another

r e l i c of the

O s i r i a n f a i t h ,

which has

su rv iv ed through

the cen tur ies with

some of

i t s gruesome elements.

Rooted i n the



C H A P T E R

'

V

THE

MAJOR ORISAS (continued)

C.

Obatala.

D. Oduduwa

E .

and F.

Aginju

and

Yemoja

-100-

CHAPTER

V.. .

The

Major

Oriaas - continued.

,C. OBATALA

Next

i n importance to

I f a

cornea Obatal a who i a po pul ar ly

described

as "the gr ea t god". He belongs to the animistic



system, and

commands

the worship and re sp ec t of a

large

number

of

Yorubas. He

e a s i l y

evokes t h e i r

r e l i g i o u s

f e e l i n g s . The

anthropomorphic

description of h i s ch ar ac te r bri ngs him very

near t o the imagination of simple pea san ts who are never t h r i l l e d

by abstractions. The more

l o f t y

and nebulous the conception of

Olorun

becomes,

the more .popular the worship of Obatala

becomes.

Tradition says that Obatala i s r e a l l y the vice- ger ent of Olorun,

and as such he should

take

precedence over a l l

other

d e i t i e s .

I n

actual p r a c t i c e , however,

Obatala's importance does not

e c l i p s e that of

e i t h e r

of the

animistic

gods desc ribe d i n the

previous

chapters.

MYTHS.

The

myths

about

Obatala are

numerous.

.One

of th ese

represents him as Olorun's vice-gerent . Olorun, i t i s s a i d ,

created a l l things, including the god Obat ala. But he di d not

-101-

and hence a l l physical defects

are regarded

either

as h i s

mistakes

or as sure s ig ns of hi s desire to

punish

some gu ilt y

persons. Persons

having

physical defects (e.g. albinos) are

dedicated

to him.

Another function generally attributed

to



him

i n the myths

i s that

of

Protector

of the town gates* He

i s ,

therefore,, frequent ly represented by a

horseman

with a spear,

attended by a serpent,

f i s h ,

tortoise and leopard.

WORSHIP. Obatala

i s the

only Yoruba deity

which

enjoins

uniformity of colour i n respect of h i s worship* "His worshippers

must wear white clothes, and eat white food, usin g shea-butter

( i n s t e a d

of the usual red palm o i l ) i n

t h e i r

cooking, abstaining

from

red meat, and

using

and

offering

the white (or b i t t e r )

1

kola instead of the red one .

.

.

His worship i s very simple. Inexpensive o ffe rin gs of edib le

s n a i l s are

made

to him. On important

occasions his

worshippers

indulge i n feast ing

and

dancing.

Prayers

fo r the

g i f t

of

children are frequently offere d to

him

by would-be mothers.

He i s one of the Yoruba gods worshipped outside Yorubaland.

102.

the highest moral conception a tt ai ne d by the Yorubas. Hi s

influence

perhaps exp lain s the

s u p e r i o r i t y of

the Yorubas

to

many of t h e i r neighbours, a f a c t a t t e s t e d to by sever al

observers.

1



TITLES. The follow ing are the t i t l e s of the god :-

1.

OBATALA.

This word has been t r a n s l a t e d as the "King of

Whiteness", "Lord of the White Cloth", "Lord of

the Vi si on s" , according

to

the natu re

of the

accents placed on the l a s t two vowels by each

t r a n s l a t o r . The r e a l meaning of the word w i l l

be given

l a t e r .

2.

ORISA POPO.

"Orisa

who

kneads

c l a y , or ORISA ALAMORERE

~~" "^The Orisa who owns the best c l a y . These two

t i t l e s are given to him in the

myth

which

depicts

him

as the

creator

of

the f i r s t

man

and

woman

whom he formed out of c l a y .

3.

ORISA

OJ*

ENIA.

The

o r i s a

who

causes

man to

l i v e ,

that

i s , he who breathes

l i f e

i n t o man and thus br ing s

him into existence.

4. ALABA-NI-ASE. Be who proposes and al so dispose s". Thi s

t i t l e

r e f e r s to h i s great power.

5. ORISA NLA The great orisa"»

6.

OBABA ARUQEO.

The ancient King-Father " or "Father Greybeard".

7. ORISA GBIGBINIKI. The

huge

(or bulky) Orisa.

HISTORICAL ORIGIN.

The h i s t o r i c a l o r i g i n of Obatala may be

103

to the

grave ( a l a ) .

Another

secondary meaning derived from

i t

i s a l a

which

means"a Boundary".

What,

then,

i a the o r i g i n of t h i s

word a l a

?

The ideas

associated

w i t h

the god

whose

name

incorporates

the

word str ong ly suggests

an

Egyptian o r i g i n .

No

sooner i s

t h i s



suggestion taken

into serious

consid eratio n than i t leads

to the

discovery

that

Obatala was

formerly

a N i l e god. The

word al a

i s a

modified

form of

Iatur-au,

Iaur-au

which i s

the name

give n

.by

the

Ancient Egy pti ans

to the

R i v e r

Nile. The

Ancient Egypti an

word becomes I a r o ,

I a l o i n the Coptic. Timon, the

mathematician,

used

the

very word a l a

i n

designating

the

sources

of

the

Nile

which

he c a l l e d P h i - a l a

2

- p h i

5

being

the

masculine

a r t i c l e i n

Ancient Egyptian language

and

a l a being

a

modified

form

of

I a l o .

Obatala, then

means

"the King

of

the

Nile" i n a l i t e r a l

sense

and

"a Nile god in a

r e l i g i o u s sense.

Which

of

the

Nile

gods i s

the

prototype

of

Obatala

?

When

once

the

true


of the name

i s understood,

the

N i l e god of

which Obatala i s

a

s u r v i v a l ,

i s

not

f a r

to

seek.

Obatala

has

been

described

as

"the pot te r"

(Orisa-popo,

1 k

"the creator of the heaven and the earth, the lower world, the

water

and the mountains

1

' who has formed the male and

the female

of fowl and f i s h , wild beasts, c a t t l e and creeping things". To

him i s assigned the function of infusing l i f e into babesT

I t i s c l e a r from the above remarks that the ideaa asso cia ted



with

Khnum and

those as so ci at ed wi th Obatala

are

i d e n t i c a l

i n

almost every d e t a i l . The conclusion may therefore be made

that

Obatala i s

a

s u r v i v a l

of the

Ancient Egyptian

god Khnum.

A few other

facts.may

be added here i n support of the

conclusion.

Writers

on

Egyptology a s s e r t that

a

large number

of

negroes resided

at

Elephantine. I t i s quite possi ble that

the

contact

of the negroes wi th the Ancient Egypt ian Re li gi on

took

place here,

r e s u l t i n g

i n the

worship

of Khnum

under

the name of

Obatala.

Khnum has been

described

as

"the f at he r

of the gods, who

i s

himself,

who moulds men, and models

(masu)

the

gods".

Now

there are

two

words

i n

Yoruba

which

mean

"to

model",

or to

mould", and they are

ma

and su? I t i s remarkable that the two

words

are

derived

from

the Ancient Egyptian word

masu

which means

1 0 5

a

vowel, hence

the

i n i t i a l vowel

o i s

added;Kh

becomes

K,

and a suitable vowel i s inserted between K and n, since Yoruba

i s a phon etic language. N i s

changed

to r - the

change

of a

nasal to

l i q u i d

being a

well-known

phonetic feature i n

some

languages

. A

suitable

vowel

i s then

added

to r , the vowels

i n

Ancient Egyptian Language being often int erch ang ed i n



d i f f e r e n t text-books on Egyptology. I t i s thus that the word

p

okuri or okunrin or okonrin i s obtained .

. . . •

The use of white i n connection with the worship of Oba tala

must

have

been suggested by the white co lo ur of the River Nile -

I t i s probable that the Yorubas l i v e d on the bank where the

white N i l e flowed unmixed wi th the blue Nile.

The s u r v i v a l of Obat ala who i s regarded as a great god by

the Yorubas strongly suggests that Elephantine

must

have

been

one of the c i t i e s where Ancient Egyptia n culture impressed

i t s e l f upon

Yoruba

primi tive cul tur e.

1. Cp. Enu, which i s often

pronounced eru.



106

D.

ODUDUWA

Oduduwa

i a one of the most important Yoruba d e i t i e s . She

i s the c h i e f female o r i s a , dust as Obatala i s the c h i e f male

o r i s a .



She i s reputed as the progeni tor of the Yoruba r a c e . The

Yorubas

therefore us ua ll y s t y l e themselves a s 0M0 ODUDUWA

"Descendants of Oduduwa . Every Yoruba who has rendere d some

distinguished s e r v i c e to his country or has

shown

i n a marked

degree some

f i n e

human a t t r i b u t e i s gene rall y greeted with the

t i t l e as

a

compliment.

MYTHS. The

myths

about t h i s

d ei ty contain c o n f l i c t i n g d e t a i l s .

Some

depict the de it y as a

male

o r i s a , and others as a female

o r i s a * The former

myths

are of

a

l a t e

o r i g i n .

They are

supported

by

the l a t e Peyisara

Sopein whose

accounts of the

Yoruba

d e i t i e s

are sometimes f a n c i f u l and str ong ly euhe meri stic .

The

myths

depi ctin g the dei ty as a female

o r i s a

are

more

o r i g i n a l i n cha rac ter , and are more wid ely accep ted. There i s

hardly

any

doubt

that

Oduduwa

was o r i g i n a l l y a female de it y.

107

that Oduduwa

was, o r i g i n a l l y , the

worthy

wife of Obatala, the

god of puri ty. Like her husband, she possessed

many

f i n e

a t t r i b u t e s . . Later, when her worship became degenerated,

s t o r i e s were inv ent ed i n defence of the

revolting

featu res

associated wi th her worship.



Some of the l a t e r

s t o r i e s

also suggest that the bad

a t t r i b u t e s of another

goddess

1

no longer worshipped were

transferred

to he r. The

amorous

escapades

associated

with

her

name,

e s p e c i a l l y i n the legend r e l a t i n g to her

i l l i c i t

passion f o r a hunter and the foundation o f the

town

of Ado ar e

so

revolting that

i t i s c e r t a i n

that

the

Yorubas

would never

have

adopted

such a person as the

worthy

progenitor of

t h e i r

race.

The con ject ure i s not remote

that

the id ea of immo rali ty

i s suggested-by the conception of Obatala and Oduduwa as being

locked in inseparable

embrace

symbo lizi ng the union between

earth

and sky. «

I n the

e a r l i e r

myths she i s

credited

with p r i o r i t y of

existence as compared wi th Obat ala. She i s regarded as having

108

.'V

She i s always re pre sen ted i n a

s i t t i n g

posture, nur sin g a c h i l d .

Hence

pray ers are sometimes addressed to her by would-be

mothers.

HISTORICAL ORIGIN. The goddess Oduduwa i s the s u r v i v a l of an

Ancient Egyptian deity.

The

derivation

of

her

name has

been

de scr ibe d by pre viou s



writers

as un ce rt ai n. The

name

has been taken to

mean

"the

Black One", the derivation being as follows :-

dudu.

"bla ck"

and iwa "exis tenc e". I t has

also

been regarded as a co nt ra ct io n

of Odu t i o da

wa,,

that i s , a

s e l f e x i s t e n t

personage". Ne it he r

of these deri vat ion s i s

co rrect.

I t should be noted that the forms Oduduwa.

Odudua.

and Odua,

r e f e r to one and the same person

-

the f i r s t i s an enlarged form,

and the

t h i r d

a contracted form, of the second.

The name may be divided into two parts,

namely,

Odu and dua.

The

word

Odu

1

, as has been expla ined before, means "a chi ef" ,"a n

exalted personage". The

word

dua

comes

from the Ancient

Egyptian

word d u a - t

2

which means "the underworld". Odu-dua.

therefore means

"Lord of the

Underworld"

or "M is tr es s of the

109

has been exp lai ned befo re. The word Mut i s the Anc ient

Egyptian

name

f or a very

well-known

goddess. I t i s customary

among t he Yorubas to omit the

l e t t e r

' t

1

wherever poasible^

Hence

the

word Mut which

should

have become Mutu becomes

Mu-u or

Muhu,

h being su bs ti tu te d fo r t , the omission of

which

brings

two

vowels

together, contrary to the r u l e s governing the

structure

of

s y l l a b l e s

i n

a phonetic

language.



I t i s noteworthy that

j u s t

as the Yorubas speak of "Mother

Mut" so the Ancie nt Egyptian apeak of Mut , the "Mother".

The second f a c t i s tha t the union between Obatala and

Oduduwa

i s

regarded as symb olizi ng tha t

e x i s t i n g

between the earth and

the sky. I t i s remarkable that such a conception existed in the

r e l i g i o u s

thought

of the Ancient Eg yp ti an s, and that one of the

d e i t i e s so un it ed i s Mut or N u t

2

, the other being Shu or Khnuro

or

Seb?

E a r l i e r i n t h i s

Chapter Obatala, the other de it y of the

union

4

, has

been

i d e n t i f i e d

with

Khnum.

An Egy ptia n

t e x t

at

Esua

which i d e n t i f i e s

Shu with

Khnum s t a t e s

that he

r a i s e d

Nut and put himself

under

her

l i k e

a

great

column of a i r " and

110

CONCLUSION: The

foregoing remarks

show

that

Oduduwa

derives her name

from

the t i t l e of O s i r i s or Ra as "Lord of

the

Underworld",

and that she

i s

the s u r v i v a l of the

goddess



Nuit or Mut the

"Mother",

a popular

deity

i n Southern

Egypt.

•

The

s i m i l a r i t y between the

Ancient Egyp tian

deity

and

the

Yoruba deity which

j u s t i f i e s

the


of the

l a t t e r

with

the former i s an additional

evidence

in

support of the theory of a

close

connection between the

Religion of

Ancient Egypt ian

and the Religion of the

Yorubas.



I l l

E. and P. AGINJTJ AND YEMOJA.

These two d e i t i e s are the o f f s p r i n g s of Obatala and Odudua.

Agin;Ju,

a male d e i t y , i s the d e i t y rep res enting land. The

word

Agandu

or

A g i n j u

means

a desert , and

i t

i s

q u i t e

p o s s i b l e t h a t the

e a r l y

Yoruba who l i v e d i n the desert had no



o t h e r idea of the nature of la nd . The worship of the

d e i t y

has

f a l l e n i n t o

disuse. This i s not

s u r p r i s i n g ,

as the worship of

t he god of the desert must be supplanted by t h a t of the god of

f e r t i l i t y when the Yorubas migrated southwards.

Yemaja, a female d e i t y , i s the

d e i t y

representing water. The

word

Ye-mo-ja i s a c o n t r a c t i o n of

Yeye

-

omo

- e.1a. The

mother

o f Fishes , the

word

omo being

used

here i n

a

generic sense

There

being no other persons t o marry, Aganju and Yemoja

married

one another and had a son named Qrungan.

Orungan i s s a i d t o

have

committed i n c e s t w i t h her mother. She

f l e d

from him i n h o r r o r , but was

h o t l y

pursued by her wicked

son,

u n t i l

she

f e l l backward

to the ground owing to exhaustion.

Streams of water began to pour f o r t h from her

body,

and these

112

The

o r i g i n

of several of the well-known Yoruba d e i t i e s i s

thus tra ced to Obatala and Odudua.

HISTORICAL

ORIGIN. The d e r i v a t i o n of Aganju i s uncertain. I t

i s probable t h a t the name was adopted from the dwellers i n the

wilderness a f t e r the

Yorubas

had

l e f t

the

f e r t i l e

lands of

Egypt



The h i s t o r i c a l connection of the goddess Yeraoja i s s t r o n g l y

suggested by her

name.

As the Mother of

Fishes ,

she i s a

s u r v i v a l

of one of the Nile-goddesses, probably of the

goddess

M i r i t

Qimait or

M i r i t

M i h i t

who, together

w i t h

the

male

associates - the Hapis -

were

described as guardian d e i t i e s of

f i s h e s

1

.

The name

Orungan.

Noonday Sun , has

been

explained i n the

previous chapters?

Many of the names of the d e i t i e s who sprang from

Yemoja

can be tr ace d to the names of Egyptian d e i t i e s or from

Egyptian words.

( 1 ) O-l'-o-sa,

Owner

of the lagoon . Sa i n Ancient Egyptian

language means a pond, a la ke .

( 2 ) 0 - l

f

- o - k u ( n ) ,

Owner

of the sea Khu(Anicient Egyptian)

=

s o u l . Oku(n) i s the Yoruba

word

for the sea, which i s

regarded as the o r i g i n of the watery vapour resembling

H3

( 5 )

O-ya.

Y§ i s a m o d i f i c a t i o n of the West A f r i c a n word Ye.

This has been noted i n Chajpter I I above.

O-shu(n),

from Shu, Ancient Egyptian

god.

O-ba. Ba i n Ancient Egyptian language = s o u l . See

Chapter I I above.



1

O-so-si s O-shu-osi. Shu and Oai are names of

Ancient Egyptian D e i t i e s .

Oke

s

Mountain. The god of the

mountain(HoruB

Ba-khu)

has been noted

Ade Seluga, The L i v i n g one of Salug t h a t i s , the God

( o f

Wealth)

of Salug. See Chapter,I above.

Sopono.

This

w i l l be

explained l a t e r .

O-ru(n)

from Horu = Sun.

O-su

(Oshu,

Moon-goddess),

This

word

i s

d e r i v e d

from

Khonsu, the

Moon D e i t y

i n Ancient Egypt.

See Chapter I I

above.

CONCLUBIHG

REMARKS. I t

may be s a f e l y

concluded

t h a t

A g i n j u and Yemoja are s u r v i v a l s of Ancient Egyptian D e i t i e s .

1 .

Osi i s a c o n t r a c t i o n of O a i - r i r e f e r r e d to i n

Chapter

I I I

above.



C H A P T E R V I

THE

MAJOR 0RISA3 (continued)

r

Sango H.

Ogun

I

Orisa Oko J, Sopono

•

•

• •

CHAPTER

V I .

THE MAJOR

ORISAS

-

continued,

a

Sango.

One of

the p rimary

emotions

c o n s t i t u t i n g

the

complex

emotion

known

as

the

r e l i g i o u s

emotion

i s the

emotion

o f

f e a r .

I n regard

t o

Olorun

t h i s

emotion

has l o s t

i t s energy. I n



regard to Sango

i t s energy reaches i t s climax

and r a i s e s the

emotion

to

the l e v e l of dread

or t e r r o r .

No d e i t y i s

more

dreaded i n Yorubaland f o r i t s malevolence as Sango,

the god

of

Thunder.

I t has been suggested t h a t Sango i s not s t r i c t l y of

Yoruba

o r i g i n . The suggestion a r i s e s from the

f a c t

t h a t one of hi s

wives i s Oya, the

goddess

of the Ri ver Niger . The ground f o r

t h e

suggestion i s f l i m s y , and

no

r e l i a b l e

a u t h o r i t y

has ever

been produced i n support

of i t .

Sango

i s the

god of

l i g h t n i n g and thunder. He i s

a l s o

known

as Jakuta. The Stone Thrower or

The F i g h t e r w i t h

Stone . He

has t h r e e wives, namely, Oya(the goddess

of

the R iver N i g e r ) ,

Osun(Oshun) and

Oba(the goddesses

of

r i s e r s i n Abeokuta). He t

115

Shango

I s purely

anthropomorphic. He

dwells

i n

the clouds

i n an

immense brazen palace

where he

maintains a large r e t i n u e

and keeps

a great

number

o f horses

From h i s

palace Sango

h u r l s upon

those

who have

offended

him

red-hot chains

o f

i r o n

but

t h i s ,

i t should be observed, i s seemingly a

modern

notion,

and t he

red-hot chains fu rn is he d

by Ogun

have

a

auspicious

resemblance t o the

t h u n d e r b o l t s

o f J u p i t e r , forged by

Vulcan l

'



MYTHOLOGICAL ORIGIN. Various myths abound i n regard to Sango,

Mr. R. E. Dennet

reproduced

a few of them, bu t

they

are

a l l

o f

modern

o r i g i n .

The most

important

myth i s the

one

contained

i n Iwe

Kika

Ekerin

and thus summarized by Dr. Farrow :-

About two centuries

ago (?)

there reigned

as

King i n the ol d town of Cyo (known t o e a r l y

e x p l o r e r s

as

Eyeo

or

Katunga), which

was

s i t u a t e d

near th e

south

bank

of

the

River

Niger, t o the north o f the Yoruba country,

one

Shango,

who was a

powerful

and

wise

monarch. He was a

great medicine

man or

w i t c h - d o c t o r ,

and claimed t o be able t o

k i l l

people

by e j e c t i n g

f i r e from

h i s mouth. His

r e i g n was t y r a n n i c a l

and

c r u e l . He had two

m i n i s t e r s

o f whom he was jealous, and

set

these

t o

f i g h t

against

each

other, hoping

both might be s l a i n ; but was himself deposed

by the one who

came

o f f v i c t o r i n the f i g h t .

Sango f l e d ,

accompanied by h i s

three wives,

Oya, Osun and Oba, and some of h i s l o y a l

i:i;6

They

took

a

number

o f

small calabashes

or

hollow

gourds, and f i l l e d them w i t h gunpower. They then

covered them

w i t h

cocoanut f i b r e and

put.slow

matches

t o them and waited f o r the next tornado.

When

t h i s

came

they i g n i t e d t he bombs and threw them i n t o

th e

thatched roo fs

o f

many houses. The r e s u l t a n t

explosions and

f i r e s

caused the panic s t r i c k e n people

t o

cry out why are

a l l

our houses

burning

? The

f r i e n d s of Sango then came forward , saying, Oh, you

s a i d

Oba

so fthe King

has hanged

himself)

Oba ko so ,

( t h e King has not hanged h i m s e l f ) . He i s angry w i t h

you

f o r t h i s . He has become a god and has gone up



i n t o heaven and sent down t he l i g h t n i n g t o punish you.

You must

b r i n g

out oxen, sheep, fowls, palm o i l , etc .,

and o f f e r s a c r i f i c e s t o him, and henceforth worship

him and then he w i l l f o r g i v e you .

HISTORICAL

ORIGIN.

I t

has not been

possible

t o

trace

a

d e i t y

i n

Ancient Egypt bearing name of

Sango

or a name from which the

word

can be derived. The name Sangu occurs i n the r e l i g i o u s

h i s t o r y

of Chaldea, and denotes one who i s bound t o a god ,

the representative

o f

vice-gerent

o f a god . The

view maintained

by

some observeBS

has been expressed i n an e a r l i e r chapter that

t h e

Yorubas seem t o have had some

contact

w i t h the Chaldeans.

The

s i m i l a r i t y

between th e Yoruba word

Sango

and the Chaldean

wordpangu

seems

t o

support

the

view

and t o

suggest

th e need

f or

research based on the data now

a v a i l a b l e .

•

117

Another noteworthy Yoruba word i s A-pa-ta a rock . I t

c o n s i s t s

o f two

Egyptian words,

namely pja a

house

and t a a

1

m o d i f i e d

form of Ptah.

The

f u l l

form

o f

the

word

Ma-gba

i s

Oma(n)

or

O,mo(n)

a-gba,

t h a t is, people o f the ba , agba o r e l d e r l y persons being



regarded

as

possessing i n

a

s p e c i a l

way

the

s p i r i t or

soul

o f

t h e ancestors.

Professor

Leo

Frobeniua

regards

Sango

the

ram-headed

god

o f thunder as t h e c h i e f Yoruba d e i t y . This i s i n c o r r e c t , i n

view o f what has been w r i t t e n

above

about the other

d e i t i e s .

g

I t seems probable t h a t t h e worship o f Sango was

o r i g i n a l l y

d e r i v e d from

t h a t o f

Ptah. I t

became

considerably modi fied

i n

l a t e r

times, and the a d d i t i o n o f the name Sango must have

synchronized

w i t h

the marked

change

i n t h e conception of th e

d e i t y .

1 .

The

i n i t i a l

consonant

i s

e l i d e d / h

1

i s

redundant

i n Yoruba.

2. Compare

t h i s

god w i t h the Egyptian goddess Pasht,

t h e devouring one , and

Secket

she t h a t kind les



1118

H. OGUN

One of the

d e i t i e s s t i l l a c t i v e l y worshipped i n Yorubaland

i s Ogun. In some parts of the country he i s worshipped by

i s o l a t e d i n d i v i d u a l s or by v i l l a g e s , but at

I l e s a

he i s s t i l l

worshipped as a n a t i o n a l god. I n t h i s town elaborate

r i t e s

and ceremonies

are

performed annually

by

the

Owa -

paramount



c h i e f of the

town

- and by p r i e s t s duly appointed for the

purpose.

Ogun i s the god of

I r o n

and

of

War. He i s

t h e r e f o r e

the

patron

god of hunters and s o l d i e r s . No hunter ever dares to

proceed on a hunting expedi tion withou t

f i r s t

o f f e r i n g the

a p p r o p r i a t e s a c r i f i c e . t o

t h i s d e i t y . His

worship i s t h e r e f o r e

kept a l i v e

by

hunters.

S o l d i e r s , blacksmiths and others who make use of i r o n

implements also worship the d e i t y .

They

look up t o him f or

p r o t e c t i o n

and

fo r help

t o

achieve

success i n

t h e i r

work.

The symbol of the god i s i r o n . The s o l d i e r t h e r e f o r e

regards h i s

a

i r o n spear or sword as sacred. The blacksmiths

a l s o

regards his a n v i l and forge as sacred.

119

on

the

b e l i e f t h a t

the

ground,

the

f i n a l

r e s t i n g place

of

man's mortal remains, w i l l punish the p e r j u r e r by h u r l i n g him

i n t o

an e a r l y grave, and p a r t l y on the b e l i e f held by the

worshippers

of Ogun

t h a t swearing

by the

ground which contains

deposits

of

i r o n

ore i s as

sacred

and

e f f e c t i v e

as

t h a t

of

swearing by the god himself or a piece of i r o n .

WORSHIP.

The god Ogun i s one of

the

d e i t i e s

t o

whom

human

s a c r i f i c e s used

t o be made

i n

Yorubaland. I n

times

of

great

c r i s i s ,

e s p e c i a l l y when the

t r i b e s decide

/3 to wage

e i t h e r

an



o f f e n s i v e or a defensive war, a human being i s o f f e r e d t o

p r o p ^ i t i a t e the god and to

ensure

success. The

v i c t i m

i s u s u a l l y

a

slave purchased

w i t h money

taken from

p u b l i c

funds.

The day

before

the

s a c r i f i c e ,

he i s

paraded l i k e

a

king

w i t h

great

ceremony

and pomp

through the

s t r e e t s

and

market

places

1

The

honour thus conferred

on the

v i c t i m i s

an

expression

of the

death

b e l i e f t h a t

the

reward f o r h i s ^ o r

p r o p i t i a t o r y

s a c r i f i c e w i l l

be t h a t

he

w i l l

be

born again

as a

k i n g .

The animal sacred to Ogun i s the dog. This animal i s u s u a l l y

s a c r i f i c e d

t o the d e i t y together w i t h sheep, or goats or fowls

120

the worshippers

w i l l

assemble

i n a large

square

i n f r o n t of

the

A f i n ( p a l a c e ) .

The

p r i e s t s

appointed f or the purpose w i l l

h o l d a dog str etched out at

f u l l

length by having i t s f r o n t

legs

t i g h t l y drawn

forward and i t s hind legs

s i m i l a r l y drawn

backwards.

When

the dog has

been

stretched almost t o a breaking

p o i n t ,

the Owa or a

p r i e s t

cuts the dog asunder by a stroke of

the sword, the crowd immediately

r a i s i n g

a tumultuous shout.



Every

blacksmith

s a c r i f i c e s

a dog annually to the

d e i t y .

A

dog

1

s

head

fastened to the top of the door of the blacksmith's

shop

denotes t h a t

the

annual s a c r i f i c e

has

been

made.

HISTORICAL ORIGIN. I t has been noted above t h a t Ogun i s

m y t h o l o g i c a l l y

regarded as one of the offs prin gs of Yemojja and

a

t h a t

the

word 0-gu(n) i s / m o d i f i e d

form of the Egyptian

word

Khu.

The

d e r i v a t i o n

of the word suggests

t h a t

the god i s a

s u r v i v a l

of an ancient Egyptian god. The

d e t a i l s

given

above

a f f o r d

a clue for

i d e n t i f y i n g

i t w i t h i t s prototype.

The

f i r s t

point to note i s ifos name,

which

i s derived from

khu. Now Horus, the patron god of several fiaoBee in

Ancient

Egypt,

was known by his worshippers as Khu. He i s the same

:2

They are bot h warrior-gods; and j u s t a s t h e f o l l o w e r s o f

Horus

were workers i n i r o n , so N i n - i p al so was the god o f i r o n .

Prof.Sayce f u r t h e r s t a t e s t h a t Horus o f Edfu, i t w i l l be

remembered, was served by smiths and the shri nes he founded

t o commemorate h i s conquest o f Egypt were known as s m i t h i e s



Such

an

i d e n t i t y

o f d e t a i l s can only le ad t o the con clu sio n

t h a t Ogun i s t he s u r v i v a l o f Horus, the pa tr on god o f the

Pharaonic

Egyptians

who w i t h

t h e i r

weapons

o f

metal

conquered

t h e n a t i v e s o f

Egypt

and who as the fo l l o w e r s of the god were

known

as smi ths .

One oth er su r v i v a l may be poi nt ed out here -

Horus

has been

i d e n t i f i e d

above

w i t h N i n - i p , t h e god o f

i r o n .

Now the

Yoruba word f o r i r o n i s i - r i n

which

i s c e r t a i n l y d e r i v e d f r o m

the

N i n , / d e r i v a t i o n

f o l l o w i n g t he r u l e t h a t every Yoruba word must

b e gi n w i t h a vowel and th e r u l e t h a t t h e l e t t e r

f

r ' i s o f t e n

s u b s t i t u t e d f o r t h e

l e t t e r

' n' i n Yoruba and some other

4

West A f r i c a n languages.

122

I

ORISA OKO

As the god of the farm,

a g r i c u l t u r e

and harvest

Origa

Qko

i s

a

popular

d e i t y

i n Yorubaland. Nearl y every v i l l a g e

or

town

has a

temple devoted

to

him. His worship u s u a l l y evokes

g r e a t r e l i g i o u s enthusiasm which

o f t e n

leads

to

excesses.

He

i s

represented

by an

i r o n s t a f f symbolizing s t r e n g t h . Honey



bees,

i n d i c a t i n g happiness,

are

hi s messengers.

The p r i e s t h o o d connected

w i t h

the worship of the god i s

open

to both men and women, but as he i s p a r t i c u l a r l y worshipped

by women Ahe

number

of

p r i e s t e s s e s

f a r

exceeds

t h a t of

p r i e s t s .

The

p r i e s t e s s e s r e a l l y

form a

s e c r e t s o c i e t y

of

t h e i r

own, an

are

so

p o w e r f u l ,

and so

h i g h l y respected, t h a t

no man

dare

i n j u r e , or

o f f e n d ,

any of

them. They

are

d i s t i n g u i s h e d

by

wearing,

stuck

on to

the middle

of

the forehead,

or

small

v e r t i c a l

badge,

about l i n c h l o n g

and

i n c h wide h a l f - r e d

and

* 6

h a l f - w h i t e

I t i s accounted

the

highest honour

t o have

t h i s p r i e s t h o o d i n the f a m i l y , although the expense

o f

i n i t i a t i o n i n each case costs from

£40 t o

£50(a l a r g e

sum

1

123

T h

e

i n s i d e

of one of them w i l l remain white

w h i l s t

the

i n s i d e

condemns the owner of black calabash and

k i l l s

her by means of

an i r o n club? This club must be purchased by the innocent

woman

at a great cos t, and she thereby becomes the br id e or

p r i e s t e s s

of Orisa Oko.

o f the other w i l l

be found black

when

o f

opened. The p r i e s t then



ANNUAL FESTIVAL. Orisa Oko i s worshipped

r e g u l a r l y

by

women

a t the new moon. He i s worshipped by the whole

town

or

v i l l a g e i n connection

w i t h

the annual harvest

f e s t i v a l .

Before

the

products of the farm are gathered f o r sale the

f i r s t - f r u i t s

must be

o f f e r e d

t o the god. The occasion i s one of great

r e j o i c i n g .

Some

of the new yams cooked on the occasion

w i l l

be

o f f e r e d

t o the god,

some w i l l

be consumed by the worshippers,

and others

w i l l

be given to the poor and

needy.

Needless to

say t h a t a lar ge

q u a n t i t y

of palm

wine w i l l

be consumed t o

water

down

the

s o l i d s .

The consumption of food i s foll owed by

general merriment

i n c l u d i n g

pu bli c processions and

dances.

I n some

other part s of West

A f r i c a ,

the Yam f e s t i v a l i s

V

3.24

HISTORICAL

ORIQIN.

The

Egyptian proto type

of

Orisa Oko

i a

undoubtedly

O s i r i s , but th e c e l e b r a t i o n

of

the

harvest

f e s t i v a l

i n honour of the god

contains

elements

connected w i t h

the

worship

of

other Egyptian

gods,

some

o f whom were

i d e n t i f i e d

w i t h O s i r i s .

I t

should

be

noted, i n the f i r s t

place,

t h a t O s i r i s i s

a



god o f vegetation.

He

i s s a i d t o have taught the Ancient

Egyptians 'Hhe ar t

o f making

a g r i c u l t u r a l

implements - th e

plough

and

the hoe,

-

f i e l d labour,

the r o t a t i o n

of

crops,

1

t h e

harvesting

o f wheat

and

barley

and

vine

culture.'

Secondly,

the l i c e n t i o u s £ cbe- orship

of

the

d e i t y

should

be

noted. Orisa

Oko

1

a

p h a l l i c

d e i t y . I n l a t e r

Egyptian

times

O s i r i s whom

the Greeks i d e n t i f i e d w i t h Bacchus

was

worshipped

w i t h

elaborate p h a l l i c r i t e s ?

I t w i l l

be

remembered

t h a t

Horus the

son of O s i r i s and

I s l s

was

i d e n t i f i e d w i t h

Min, the god of th e negroes

worshipped

at

Coptos.

Professor Erman says:-

when the

harvest

was

gathered

i n and the peasant

s a c r i f i c e d

the f i r s t

f r u i t s

t o Min the god of

125

The chief elements i n

t h i s

A n c i e n t E g y p t i a n c e l e b r a t i o n

s u r v i v e

i n the wors hip o f Or is a Oko.

T h i r d l y ,

i t has

been

p o i n t e d o ut

t h a t

t h e p r i e s t e s s e s o f

t h e g od a r e d i s t i n g u i s h e d b y wearing, st uck on to midd le o f

the forehea d, a small v e r t i c a l

badge

and

h a l f

red and

h a l f

wh it e . The col our s of the

badge

are s i g n i f i c a n t . Now i n



c o n n e c t i o n w i t h t h e w o r s h i p o f Min, w h i t e i s t h e c o l o u r o f

the

b u l l sa cred t o the god. At a p o i nt i n the course o f the

ceremonies connected

w i t h t h e wo r s h ip o f t h e

d e i t y

t h e

p r i e s t

would d e c l a r e

t h a t

Horus, t h e son of

I s i s

and O s i r i s has

rec eiv ed the wh it e and the re d crowns .

I t

i s n o t i c e a b l e

that

t h e c o l o u r s o f t h e crowns o f

Horus

who has been i d e n t i f i e d w i t h

Min, the A f r i c a n god of

f e r t i l i t y ,

s u r v i v e s i n t h e

c o l o u r s

o f

t h e

badge

of the pr ie st es se s of Ori sa Oko, the Yoruba god o f

harvest and

f e r t i l i t y .

T h e f o r e - g o i n g

remarks show t h a t

OrisaOko i s a

s u r v i v a l

of

O s i r i s and

t h a t

h i s w o r s h i p

i s

a m i x t u r e o f t h e

r i t e s

and

ceremonies connected w i t h t h e w o r s h ip o f O s i r i s , o f Horus and

of

Min, the A fr i c a n god of Coptos.

1 26'

J. SOPONO

§opono i s on of

the

most

dreaded

of Yoruba gods. As the go

o f the disease

of

smallpox,

he

i n s p i r e s

t e r r o r

not

o n l y

i n hi s

worshippers but

a l s o and

s p e c i a l l y i n those

u n i n i t i a t e d

t o

the

c u l t .

He

i s the

o n l y

god

whose

worship

has

been

f o r b i d d e n

by

the B r i t i s h

Government.



MYTHS. Sopono

i s

one of

the

d e i t i e s

which are

b e l i e v e d to

have

sprung from the body of Yemaja.

A

popular

myth

about

him i s

as f o l l o w s

:-

Shankpanna i s o l d

and

lame

and

i s depicted

as

l i m p i n g

along

w i t h

the a i d

of a s t i c k .

According

to a myth, he has a wooden

l e g .

One

day,

when a l l

the

gods

were

assembled at the

palace

of

Obatala

and

were dancing

and making

merry Shankpanna

endeavoured

t o J o i n i n

the

dance; but

owing

to

h i s

d e f o r m i t y ,

stumbled

and

f e l l .

A l l the

gods

and

goddesses

thereupon

b u r s t

out l a u g h i n g , and

Shankpanna

i n

revenge

s t r o v e to i n f e c t them w i t h

small-pox,

but

Obatala

came t o

the rescue

and

s e i z i n g h i s spear,

drove Shankpanna

away. From

t h a t

day

Shankpanna

was

f o r b i d d e n t o

associate

w i t h

other

gods,

and

he

became' an o u t c a s t , who has

since l i v e d i n

1

desolate and u n i n h a b i t e d t r a c t s of

the

country'J

1

Another

myth

given

by Mr. Peyisara

Sopein under the

pen

name

of

Adesola i s

as

f o l l o w s

:-

X2

WORSHIP.

The

worship

of

the

god

r e f l e c t s h is dreaded

c h a r a c t e r .

Temples,

s h r i n e s

and paraphernalia of worship

are found only outside the

ifeowm,

e s p e c i a l l y i n the bush. The

worship

of

the

god

consists

c h i e f l y

i n the secret dissemination

o f

the germs

of

the f o u l disease.

y

This i s the

work of the

p r i e s t s who always

seek

secluded or s h e l t e r e d places to

work



t h e i r

e v i l purposes.

The p r i e s t s

claim not only the v i c t i m

of

the disease/ but also h i s prop erty f o r the purpose

of

mediation

on behalf

of

the

f a m i l y a f f e c t e d .

The

foulness

of

the disease

and

i t s

h i g h l y i n f e c t i o u s character i n s p i r e s such a dread i n

t h e people

t h a t

they are

w i l l i n g t o

accept

any

terms,

and

they

are ready

t o surrender

the

v i c t i m s and

t h e i r property

t o the

p r i e s t s .

As

soon

as the

epidemic

ceases

to

rage,

the

r e l a t i v e s of the v i c t i m s

have

to send a congratulatory

message

to the

p r i e s t s . Hence the

god

i s known

as Alapadupe ,

one

who

k i l l s

and

i s thanked f o r k i l l i n g .

The

f o l l o w i n g

materials

are

used

by

the

p r i e s t s

i n

spreading the disease 1) calabash c o n t a i n i n g

some

p o r t i o n

1128

A few year8 ago, outbreaks of the disease became frequ ent

i n

Lagos,

Dr. Oguntola Sapara, a son of the s o i l who had

received medical education i n England, became i n i t i a t e d i n t o

the

small-pox c u l t and thus had f a c i l i t i e s for. studying the

modus operandi of the

c r u e l

worshippers of the god. He

discovered the

method

of spreading the germs of the disease

and the

p a r t

played by the

p r i e s t

or nat iv e doctor who

under

the pretence o f he al in g the disease was the

most a c t i v e

agent

i n spreading i t since the pro pe rty of the un fo rt un at e v i c t i m



who succumbed became the pro per ty of the p r i e s t s .

Dr.

Sapara

placed hi s

f i n d i n g s

at the di sposal of the

Government who immediately declared the worship of Sopono

i l l e g a l .

Outbreaks

of the.disease

have

since

become

very

r a r e .

HISTORICAL ORIGIN. Before t r a c i n g the h i s t o r i c a l

o r i g i n

of the

1

god a note on hi s

name

seems necessary. Dr.

Farrow

sharply

c r i t i c i z e s Colonel E l l i s f o r

s p e l l i n g i t

as

Shan-kpan-na.

He

says

t h a t

the c o r r e c t

s p e l l i n g

i s

Sho-po-no.

The

f a c t

i s

that

both of

them

are r i g h t , each i n h i s own

way.

Colonel E l l i s

1:2.9

For the purpose of pronounciation i t may be s p e l t p h o n e t i c a l l y

as

Shaw(n)-paw(n)-naw(n)

1

or Sha(n)-pa(n)-na(n)

2

, the

n

i n bracket being nasalized.

The

word

Sopono

seems

to be derived from two Egyptian

words,

namely

Shu and

PUa-nit. Reference

has already

been made

t o

the f a c t t h a t the god of Punt survives

among

the Fafctis as



Nyan-ku-po(n)

(the l i v i n g soul of Punt) . Po-no appears to be

the Yoruba

m o d i f i c a t i o n of the word Pun-t or Pua-ni t. This i s

confirmed by the

f a c t t h a t

among the

Ewe-speaking

peoples, the

god i s known as So-po-to(n), pot o(n) being another mo di fi ca ti on

of

the

same word w i t h

the

l e t t e r

1

1 '

re ta in ed and a

vowel added

to i t . So {Shaw) i s a mo di fi ca ti on of Shu, the change of vowel

being made probably f or the sake of euphony. Sopono then

..

• .

appears t o denote Shu of Punt which i s probably the t i t l e of

A t t h a r ,

the Southern Arabian god of Punt who was in tr od uc ed i n t o

Ancient Egypt by the

name

of Hathor, the

Lady

of Puanit.

The t i t l e survives

among

the

Yorubas

who use i t i n

naming

a

strange god who came t o existence a f t e r t h e i r migration i n t o



C H A P T E R

V I I

THE DEIFIED SPIRITS OP ANCESTOR(3 AND

OTHER SPIRITS

-

A. ORO.

B.

ELUKU.

130

C H A P T E R

V I I .

I t has

been remarked above

t h a t

f e t i s h i s m

and daemonism

i n

the

form of

the

worship of the s p i r i t s of ancestors p la y a great p a r t

i n

the

r e l i g i o n

of the Yorubas. An

account

of the worship of

departed s p i r i t s

w i l l

now be given.



The fundamental b e l i e f of the Yorubas i n connection

w i t h t h i s

worship i s t h a t they are

a c t i v e l y

i n touch

w i t h

the s p i r i t world,

t h a t the departed s p i r i t s of ancestors

s t i l l

take a c t i v e

i n t e r e s t

i n the

a f f a i r s

of

t h e i r

descendants, and t h a t contact between the

two can be very r e a l , f o r good or i l l

Organizations

e x i s t

i n d i f f e r e n t parts of the country f o r the

worship of ancestral s p i r i t s , so t h a t t h e i r p r o t e c t i v e , d i s c i p l i -

nary, and

h e l p f u l i n f l u e n c e

may be secured f o r the

b e n e f i t

of the

whole community. These organizations are secret s o c i e t i e s , open

o n l y

to

male

members a f t e r due i n i t i a t i o n . Before the

e s t a b l i s h -

ment

of

the

B r i t i s h

Government i n

Nigeria

the

penalty

f o r

i n t r u -

s i o n i n t o these secret s o c i e t i e s by women or by the u n i n i t i a t e d was

3

not

always

i n s p i r e d by

I t i s t r u e t h a t the t e r r o r i n s p i r e d

.by. the

Of

IsastLs^the s p i r i t s

of the

dead.

But i t should be noted t h a t t h e l e a d i n g a n c e s t r a l

s p i r i t s are regarded as ..deities, although no generic name i s

a p pl i ed t o a l l of

them.

I t has

a l s o

been

s a i d

by some

w r i t e r s t h a t t he

Yoruba

secret

A

s o c i e t i e s are c u l t s

connected

w i t h male

mysteries?

No s p i r i t -



worship i n Yorubaland c on ta in p h a l l i c r i t e s or i n s t r u c t i o n s on

sex, and no

s e c r e t

s o c i e t i e s are c u l t s i n v o l v i n g i n i t i a t i o n i n t o

male

mysteries.

The

erroneous

impression i s

created

by the

existence of s i m i l a r male c u l t s .in

other

p a r t s o f

West

A f r i c a and

t h a t membership of the Yoruba

s e c r e t

s o c i e t i e s i s

c o n f i n e d

to male

persons.

A c t ua l l y i n a l l cases i n i t i a t i o n

takes

place before or

a f t e r puberty, t h a t i s at any age.

S p i r i t - w o r s h i p assumes d i f f e r e n t

forms

among t he d i f f e r e n t

t r i b e s . The f o l l o w i n g i s a d e t a i l e d account of t he d i f f e r e n t

c u l t s

connected w i t h t h e worship :-

A. 0R0

Oro i s one of t he s p i r i t - g o d s

worshipped

i n

Yorubaland.

His

i;3.2

Oro i s a g od r e s i d i n g i n t h e

bush.

He

comes

t o t h e

town

only

by means o f h i s r e p r e s e n t a t i v e - The Oro-sfcick or th e b u l l - r o a r e r

- through which he

makes

h i s v o i c e

heard.

Dr. Farrow giv es a

good

d e s c r i p t i o n o f t he b u l l - r o a r e r as used by th e Yorubas:

The Instrument as

used

by th e

Yorubas

i s

a

wooden

l a t h

v a r y i n g i n s i z e f ro m 6 in c h e s i n l e n g t h by £ i n c h

broad

t o 2 fe et 6 inches i n l e n g t h by 4 inches i n br ea th . The

l a r g e r s i z e s a r e g e n e r a l l y somewhat ov al i n form , and

s l i g h t l y

rounded

on one si de , w hi le ne ar ly f l a t on the



other. The edges a r e n o t s e r r a t e d

nor(as

a r u l e ) ar e

t h e r e any s p e c i a l

marks,

or

designs engraved

on

i t ,

as i n

the

case

of the Churinga o f th e A u s t r a l i a n a b o r i g i n e s .

The l a t h i s pe rf or a te d at one end, thr ough which a s t r i n g

i s

passed,

v a r y i n g i n l e n g t h f r o m 6 f e e t up t o 10 y a r d s .

I n t h e

case

of th e sma ll and medium-sized l a t h , or Oro-

s t i c k , the cord i s att ach ed at the other end t o .a

somewhat f l e x i b l e r o d , o r wand, 6 f ee t or more i n l e n g t h ,

so t h a t t h e i n s t r u m e n t i s r a i s e d i n t h e a i r when i n use.

The cor d of the la rg e po we rf ul

o#es

i s a t t a c h e d , a t t h e

end remote from th e

l a t h ,

t o a

b a l l

o f

c l o t h , grass

or

s t r i n g which i s h e l d i n t h e hands of the ope rato r

The smal l instr ument g ive s a hi gh ,

s h r i l l

no te ; but the

p i t c h

can be made t o vary g r e a t l y a c c o r di n g t o t h e

speed

at which i t i s made t o r e v o l v e round the op er at or . The

l e n g t h

o f t h e c o r d a l s o a f f e c t s t h e

p i t c h

- the big ger

t h e c i r c l e d e s c r i b e d , t he deeper i s t h e tone produced.

I t i s i m p o s s i bl e t o r e a l i z e w i t h o u t h a v i n g experienced

i t how i n t e n s e l y w e i r d and a w e - i n s p i r i n g a t h i n g i t i s ,

t o l i e awake i n t h e s t i l l n e s s of the ni gh t and t o hear

t h e

deep

booming

o f a

f u l l - s i z e d

b u l l - r o a r e r

I t i s p o s s i b l e t o ,:awing the instrument w it ho ut produ cing

an audible

sound.

The s ecr et of prod ucing t he note i s

t h a t

i t i s r e v o l v i n g i n a c i r c l e . T h i s i s e f f e c t e d by

g e t t i n g a t w i s t on the s t r i n g , which, once s t a r t e d , w i l l

133

the

m a j o r i t y

i n the

p o l i t i c a l

council

known

as the

Ogboni

Council.

They

met

p e r i o d i c a l l y

to

s e t t l e

c i v i l disputes and to deal w i t h

c r i m i n a l

charges.

As the executive of the god Oro, the

Ogbonis

who w r

members

of the

g u i l d

dealt wi th persons convicted of

serious cr im in al offences. The penalty imposed

might

be banish-

ment,

execution, dep ri va ti on of property or any other form of

punishment commensurate

w it h the

magnitude

of the offence. The

Ogbonis

functioned

not only i n a

j u d i c i a l

capacity by

t r y i n g

the

cases in Council and f i x i n g the punishment, but also i n an

executive capacity by

a c t u a l l y

i n f l i c t i n g the punishment on the

c r i m i n a l .



The King o f the

Egbas

i n

those days

was

known

as the Make •

His

p r i n c i p a l

Chiefs

were

the Nlado or the Prime Mi nis ter , the

Jaguna

or the

Commander-in-Chief

of the Army, the

Mogaji

or the

probable

successor

to

e i t h e r

of the former chiefs. The

Alake,

Chiefs and

p r i e s t s

were a l l

members

of the

Ogbon'i

Council.

WORSHIP. Rites and

ceremonies

are

performed

both i n the

town

and

i n the

bush.

Ceremonies performed

i n the

town

are

preceded

by a proclamation

134

On

o r d i n a r y

occasions

or on the

occasion

o f

the

Yam

f e s t i v a l

the ceremonies

c o n s i s t s o f

parade round

t h e

town

by t he members,

dancing,

drumming,

d r i n k i n g and ceremonially swinging t h e Oro-sticls

on t h e i r way t o and from t he Council

H a l l

or l i e Osugbo

(House o f Oshugbo).

The

f o l l o w i n g

important ceremonies are performed i n t h e town:-

1 . Ceremony connected w i t h Irana(Calabash o f I r a n a ) . This i s a



ceremony

by means o f

which

an

e v i l s p i r i t

i s

exorcised from

the d w e l l i n g .

2. Ipade Ceremony. Thi s i s performed

o u t s i d e

an exorcised

d w e l l i n g on the wearing apparel and other belongings o f

the

exorcised

s p i r i t

p r i o r

t o

t h e i r removal i n t o

t h e

bush.

3. Ceremony f o r the banishment or removal from town of a

c r i m i n a l or an unwanted person. The house o f the person

concerned

i s

surrounded

by the members o f t h e Oro

g u i l d

swinging

t h e i r O r o - s t i c k s . The person i s then a r r e s t e d

and c a r r i e d away i n t o t h e bush e i t h e r f o r banishment or

fo r

execution.

I t

i s

u s u a l l y s a i d

o f a

person thus

banished

Nwon f i

Oro l e e n i

i l u .

He i s

banished

by

means of Oro'

4. ' B u r i a l ceremonies. Corpses of members o f th e

g u i l d

can-

not

be b u r i e d

u n t i l

t h e necessary ceremonies have

been

performed.

For th e

performance

of the

ceremonies

th e

r e l a t i v e s

of th e

deceased have

t o pay a fee t o th e

Ogbonis.

B u r i a l

w i l l

no t be

sanctioned u n t i l

the fee

i s

p a i d and valuable presents o f d r i n k s are made t o

the

Ogbonis. This custom i s

now

being viewed w i t h

d i s f a v o u r and may

soma

be

wiped out .

135

1 .

Ceremony

of

Pro

Doko.

This

ceremony

1

performed i n

the

Igboro at Ondo, probably i n connection wifch the yam

f e s t i v a l . I t used to l a s t three luna r months.

1

2.

Ceremony

of Pro Pagi. (Pro destroys the

t r e e )

or Pro Jeg i

(Pro eats the t r e e ; . This

ceremony

always takes place at

n i g h t . A t r e e i s

sele ct ed f o r the purpose.

At

dawn every

l e a f , every tender branch, every

young

shoot w i l l e n t i r e l y

disappear from the

t r e e .

Pro

i s then

s a i d

t o

have

devoured

the t r e e . A l l the

remnants

of the leaves s t r i p p e d from the

thee are u s u a l l y

removed

from the spot

and

hidden;

hence

the

proverb A k i i r i ajeku Pro No one ever

sees

the



,

remnants

of the food eaten by Pro .

3. Ceremony of

executing

c r i m i n a l s . Pn t h i s

subject Adesola

thus

w r i t e s

:-

Pro worship has a

p o l i t i c a l

side. The god assi ste d the

State

t o give c a p i t a l punishment t o

c r i m i n a l s

i n r e t u r n

f o r services rendered i t by the State

The

Pro

decap itates (pa) i n which

case

the

head of the

c r i m i n a l i s

n a i l e d

to a

t r e e

as a warning t o others; or

takes away (gbe) the c r i m i n a l

body

and

s o u l ,

out of the

arena of l i f e

when

n f t i t h e r the l i v i n g man nor the l i f e l e s s

i s

ever

seen

a f t e r

/ Their s p i r i t s ( i . e . of c r i m i n a l s ) are supposed t o be the

Pro they

r e v i s i t

the ear th

on f e s t i v e

occasions only

to

wander

about i n corner plac es. Hence they are

c a l l e d

Pakoko

( l o i t e r e r s i n the corner )

The Pro i s also employed as an instrument 6f banishment.

LEGENDS.

A legend s tat es

t h a t

Pro came

i n t o

existence as a r e s u l t

o f the anguish caused to parents i n olden days by a sore a f f l i c t i o n .

Nearly a l l the c h i l d r e n die a short time a f t e r t h e i r b i r t h . Thejt

136

Another legend states

t h a t

some

people

were

l i v i n g

i n

a

bush

c a l l e d Akin-Oro. One of

them

dreamt t h a t Olorun asked

them

to

leave the place. They

a l l

decided

t o

o f f e r s a c r i f i c e

t o appease

Oro.

F o r t u n a t e l y Oro himself, who was a hunter, appeared t o

them

and taught

them

how to worship him and how to make the O r o - s t i c k .

He

also asked

them to

o f f e r

s a c r i f i c e s t o him

every seven days,



and

t o l d

them t h a t the r e a l name of the place was

I b u

Mole

1

( o r Male

2

).

On the occasion of a f e a s t the king's wi fe peeped at

t&e--«Oro-

ceremonies from the King's c h a i r where she had concealed

'hSBi^If.

The people c a l l e d

upon

I t a (another

name

f o r Oro),

but

there

was

no

answer. On

t h e i r t r y i n g

t o

swing the Oro- stic k, the piece

of

f l e s h which Oro had

t o r n

o f f from himself and

w i t h

which he had

made the

s t r i n g

f o r the

O r o - s t i c k s ,

flew of f and returned to Oro,

since

the r u l e t h a t women should not be allowed t o see the

mysteries had been broken. The piece of f l e s h cut the woman's

t h r o a t before r e t u r n i n g t o Oro.

Oro the hunter came back,

blamed

the people f o r t h e i r

137

and

considers i t the best.

He

then

goes

on to say

i n regard

to

the o r i g i n of the Oro

c u l t

t h a t the simplest exp lana tio n, and

perhaps

the most r e l i a b l e , i s t h a t the Hausa people used the

b u l l - r o a r e r

to scare the

b i r d s away

from t h e i r farms, and the

ingenious

Yoruba

adopted i t as a form of

s p i r i t - w o r s h i p .

No

Yoruba can read these

words

witho ut resentment. The tendency to

accept the simplest explanations as the best

always

betrays a

d e s i r e to

avoid the drudgery

of

adequate

s c i e n t i f i c

research,

and

t h i s tendency

shown

i n some parts of Dr.

Farrow's

work r a t h e r



minimizes the value of an otherwise

good

work. I n the same

1

2

passage

Dr. Farrow , quo tin g Dr.

Andrew Lang

as hi s

a u t h o r i t y ,

says

t h a t we f i n d t h i s instrument used i n connection w i t h s p i r i t - w o r s h i p

i n the various c oun tri es; I t i s remarkable, however t h a t i t was

unknown i n Yorubaland u n t i l the Hausas used i t to scare the

b i r d s

and the ingenious ( s i c )

Yorubas

then adopted

i t

as

a

form of

s p i r i t - w o r s h i p .

I t would n ot be wise to dismiss a l l Yoruba

myths

and legends as

u n r e l i a b l e . . Some of

them

bear the

stamp

of l a t e o r i g i n . Others

have been so modified as to lose t h e i r value for p r a c t i c a l

138.

That

god i s Orion or

Orion-Sahu

1

.

The

Yoruba

god Oro i s a

s u r v i v a l of the Egyptian god Orion. The d e r i v a t i o n of the

name i s as f o l l o w s :- to incorporate a

f o r e i g n

word i n t o

Yoruba language, the f i n a l consonant of the word ( i f any)

must

receive a

vowel

so as to form a

s y l l a b l e

or

must

be

e l i d e d .

Hence

'n

1

i n Orion i s

e l i d e d

lea vin g Orio.

I n

Yoruba, two

vowels

coming together are e i t h e r separated by

the

a d d i t i o n a l of a

consonant

or reduced to one by the

omis-

s i o n of any one of them. Following

t h i s

r u l e Orio becomes Oro .



I n one of the legends given above Oro is said to be a hunter^.

The Egyptian god Orion is also a hunter^. I n connection w i t h

Oro worship, Oro i s said to devour the t r e e used f o r the s a c r i -

f i c i a l

ceremony and i n the case of execution, to

devour

the

the

c r i m i n a l . Orion i s s a i d to devour/gods, some i n the morning,

others

at .midday, and others i n the evening. Such a co-

incidence

cannot be regarded as a c c i d e n t a l , e s p e c i a l l y i n view

o f the theory which has

been

propounded and succes sfull y applied

1 39

The

d e r i v a t i o n

i s

as f o l l o w s : -

A l l

Yoruba

nouns

commence

w i t h

a

vowel,

hence

n i s

e l i d e d ;

e = i and er = a i n Yoruba;

hence

the

word

becomes

I t a . I t should be noted, however, t h a t as i n the

1

case

of neter

p oi nt ed out

above

the

n

i s not

e l i d e d

when

the

word

i s

i n

combination

w i t h

another

word

or

i t i s

used

as an

/ 2 3

a d j e c t i v e .

For example in the Oba-nita or Qbanta (Div ine King)

which i s the name of a god worshipped by the I j e b u s , the.

l e t t e r



n re-appears. I t a i s another name f o r Oro.

One of the

t i t l e s

of Oro i s

Omo

Ye-Nu(n), t h a t i s the son of .

Mother

Nu.

Now Nu-i t i s the name of the goddess of the

sky

and

the

mother

of

the

s t a r s , one of

which i s Orion.

The t i t l e of Oro

i s s i g n i f i c a n t ,

f o r i t corresponds

t o

the

d e s c r i p t i o n of

Orion

i n

4

r e l a t i o n

to Nuit

as

given

by

Egyptologists

.

g

Another

t i t l e of Oro i s Imale , t h a t i s , Son of the Eart h, Geb

the god

repr esen ting the ear th i s the

husband of N u - i t , the

goddess repre senti ng the s t a r r y sky and the mother of Orion. I t

i s easy t o see the reason why Oro i s described as the Son of the

E a r t h .

The s i g n i f i c a n c e of the f o l l o w i n g words should also be noted :-

140

ISJS.

I - s e . I

i a

the

i n i t i a l

vowel

required

by

a l l

Yoruba

nouns.

f

se' i s the Ancient Egyptian

word

f o r

'son'

3

-

I s e i s the name

of

the smaller

of the two

i n s t r u -

ments

used f o r Oro worship and may be f i g u r a t i v e l y

described

as

the

son

of the bigger instru ment.

AGBE. A-gbe. A i s the i n i t i a l

vowel

described above, gbe

i s a mod ifi ed form

o f

b a u ( s p i r i t s ) , e being


f o r

au.

Agbe,

t h e r e f o r e ,

means

that

which contains the s p i r i t s (o f ances tors) .

2

NLADO. N-la-do

or Oni-la-do. l a =

Ancient Egyptian

god.

do

»

Ancient Egyptian

word

fo r settlement.

Oni =



the

possessor. Onilado,

t h e r e f o r e , means He who

possesses

the d i v i n e s p i r i t i n the

settlement".

JAQUNA. Ja-gu-na. Ja a

the

l i v i n g ; Gu

i s

a

mod ifi ed form

of

Khu.

Jaguna,

t h e r e f o r e , means

"the

l i v i n g

s p i r i t

of

the

way

and

i s applied

to the

Commander-in-Chief

of

the

army.

IBU MALE Bu i s the Ancient Egyptian word f o r place. I t

i s

used

i n the same sense by the

Yorubas.

I b u

Male,

t h e r e f o r e , means

"the place

of

Imale"

and

i s

applied

t o

the grove

of Oro.

CONCLUDING-

REMARKS.

The d e t a i l e d

account

of

the

Yoruba god Oro

shows

t h a t

he i s a s u r v i v a l

of

the Ancient Egyptian god Orion.

The l a t t e r i s regarded as a PSwercftiL god

-

powerful

enough

to

hunt

and

devour the other gods

4

. I t i s t h e r e f o r e , easy

to

see the reason

why

Oro, the s u r v i v a l of.such

a

powerful

god,

wields

a

very great power in Yorubaland.

t 4l

B.

ELUKU.

L i k e

Oro, Eluku i s worshipped i n

more

than one d i s t r i c t He

i s worshipped by the

Egbas

i n

Abeokuta,

where h i s worship has

been ecl ips ed by t h a t of Oro. He i s worshipped oc ca si on al ly by

the Aworis. But the country where he i s a c t i v e l y worshipped,

l i k e Oro

among

the Egbas, i s I j e b u .

Eluku i s a d e i f i e d s p i r i t of an ancestor. Great secrecy i s



e n j o i n e d i n connection w i t h his worship. There i s a g u i l d

c o n s i s t i n g of i n i t i a t e d persons, and these have so far j e a l o u s l y

guarded t h e i r r i t e s and ceremonies

t h a t

very l i t t l e information

has f i l t e r e d through to the world of the

u n i n i t i a t e d .

The c h i e f obstacle i n the way of o b t a i n i n g information i s

t h a t

the performance of the ceremonies takes place outside the

town

only, at n i g h t , and only once a year. Before the ceremonies begin,

a confinement s i m i l a r t o

t h a t

of Oro i s . proclaimed. A l l women

and the u n i n i t i a t e d have to hide themselves i n t h e i r

houses

and

see

t h a t

they are not caught i n an attempt t o i n t r u d e

i n t o

the

e s o t e r i c ceremonies. The members of g u i l d assemble i n t h e i r

g u i l d house and then make a procession through the

town

to the

1:42

I t -

i s i n connection

w i t h f u n e r a l

rites,however,

t h a t

gome

i n t e r e s t i n g information

concerning

Ellaku worship can be gleaned.

I f a member of the Eluku g u i l d <Sies, the s u r v i v i n g

members

meet

t o

perform solemn f u n e r a l

r i t e s .

Unli ke the f u n e r a l r i t e s

connected

w i t h

Oro worship

e x o r b i t a n t

fees are not charged by the

performers.

The

ceremonies

are performed on the

t h i r d ,

seventh and f o r t i e t h



days

a f t e r the death o f the member. Three, seven and. f o r t y are

sacred

numbers to the Yorubas. The ceremonies on the f o r t i e t h day

are f a s t

f a l l i n g

i n t o disuse; i n

some

cases the day i s

changed

t o

the

f o u r t e e n t h , probably

because

the f o r t i e t h

days

seems t o be too

f a r

d i s t a n t

from th e day of death. The

ceremonies

on the seventh

day are the most important. They have been w e l l summarized as

f o l l o w s :-

"The c o f f i n , w i t h the corpse or bones of the deceased, or

a bare plank t o represent the

same,

i s placed an hour

a f t e r sunset, i n a w e l l - l i g h t e d compound, and the s p i r i t

i s

invoked, and questions asked and answered about him.

This chorus i s sung :-

J' epo

l ' a i y e

o

\

B

1

a i jeun

l ' g r u n

a ko mo

Se 're'1* aiye o

B' a i sere 1*' orun, a ko mo

MYTHS:.

Most

of

th e myths

about Eluku

are

euhemeristic.

He i s

s a i d t o

have been

born at

I r a y e

i n the

r o y a l house

of Oniloku,

t h e

k i n g

of I r a i y e .

During h i s l i f e t i m e

he

showed such s p i r i t u a l

power t h a t a f t e r h i s death h i s s p i r i t u a l power

was b e l i e v e d to be

s t i l l a v a i l a b l e

to

h i s

f o l l o w e r s .

HISTORICAL ORIGIN.

I t should

be

noted t h a t both

Oro and

Eluku

may be

worshipped i n the

same

town,

but may not be

worshipped



t o g e t h e r at the same time. Where one i s the

l e a d i n g

d e i f i e d

s p i r i t

r

the other takes a subordinate

p o s i t i o n ,

and the

worshippers of each pay deference to one another according to

t h e place occupied by the

d e i t y

i n the l o c a l i t y .

I t has

been s a i d t h a t Eluku

means

"wicked

t o

death"

or

"beat

him

to

death". Nei the r

of

these meanings

i s

c o r r e c t .

The

word

E-lu-ku c o n s i s t s

of three p a r t s : e i s an i n i t i a l vowel, l u i s a

m o d i f i e d form

of

th e word

ye ,

which

means

" t o l i v e " ,

and

ku.

i s

a

m odi fie d form

of Khu

which

means a.

"luminous

s p i r i t . The

word

Eluku,

t h e r e f o r e ,

means The

l i v i n g

s p i r i t .

I t i s

not

possible

to

i d e n t i f y the worship w i t h

any



C H A P T E R

V I I I

THE

DEIFIED SPIRITS

OF ANCESTORS

AND

OTHER SPIRITS

(continued)

-

C. AOEMO D. EGUNGUN

E.

ADIMU

ORISA

F. GELEDE

144

CHAPTER

V I I I .

The

D e i f i e d S p i r i t s of

Ancestors

and

other S p i r i t s .

C.

AGEMQy*-

The previous chapter contains an account of the disembodied

s p i r i t s

worshipped

in

Yorubaland..

An

account

of

the

s p i r i t s

which

assume materialized forms

w i l l now be given. The

forms

.

vary among the d i f f e r e n t

t r i b e s .



- Among th e I j e b u s the c h i e f ancestral',

s p i r i t

i s known as Agemo.

I t has been

asserted

by

previous

w r i t e r s t ha t

Agejnojys the

m a t e r i a l i z e d form

of Eluku. As

far

as

the present

w r i t e r has

ascertained

the two

.gods are

d i s t i n c t from

each

other

and are

worshipped w i t h

d i f f e r e n t r i t e s and ceremonies.

There i s no

d e i t y which

excites" so great a t e r r o r among the

I'jebus as Agemo. .As soon as

i t becomes

known

t h a t

there i s

an

Agemo

outing,

women and u n i n i t i a t e d men

f l e e i n t o

t h e i r houses,

or i n t o sheltered

places

i n the bush.

I n t r u s i o n

i n t o the secret

worship i s punishable

by

death.

The

l i g h t of c i v i l i z a t i o n

has,

however,

reduced the

darkness

surrounding the

c u l t . Agemo

...procession can.

now be

witnessed

by

th



11+6

The

Agemp

p a r t y

then

r e t i r e

to the lodge

house where

dancing

and

me.rriment continue throughout the day. A l l through the

ceremony great

nespect

i s

shown

to the

Agemo.

Even

c h i e f s

p r o s t r a t e before; i t . Women, who are allowed t o witness the

dancing

have

to

p r o s t r a t e

themselves

sideways.

On the-

f o l l o w i n g ; day

the

Aggmq

p a r t y c a r r y

t h e i r

paraphernalia back to the

bush

and conclude the f e s t i v a l

w i t h



the

performance

1

o f

rites-

and

ceremonies

i n the bush.

I n timea

of

c r i s i s t h e r e

are

Ag§mg

outings: i n . order to

make

p r o p i t i a t i o n or atonement f o r the people*

MYTH.

The popular myth i s t h a t

Agemo,

i s a very old? man

hidden i n the

bualu

I f any

one

tries; to see him, he

l i e s

hidden

i n the ea rt h or

becomes t r a n s p l a n t e d

i n t o the sky.. He is.

i n v i s i b l e t o human

beings, but his,worshippers

know

how.

to

invoke: h i s

s p i r i t

by means- o f sac-red objects. He has several

c h i l d r e n and'

i s :

regarded as- the proge nito r of a l l mankind. He

blesses hi s worshippers, but

punishes

i n t r u d e r s

i n t o h i s

s e c r e t cult..

H I S T O M G A I J

Q3RIGIN.

What

i s

the

o r i g i n

of

t h i s d e i t y

and

147..

i t w i l l be found t h a t Agemo i s a s u r v i v a l of an Ancient Egyptian

d e i t y

or

d e i t i e s .

The word Agemo may be d i v i d e d i n t o three p a r t s , vi z:

1

A-GE-MO(N) . A i s t h e i n i t i a l vowel common t o

Yoruba

nouns, GE i

a


of

GEBf

the Ancient Egyptian god representing th e

e a r t h ,

and

MQ(N).

i s

a


o f

AMON

S

,

the

god

b'f Thebes,the

4

s u r v i v i a l

of whom has been noted i n a previous chapter.



The f o l l o w i n g po in ts should be noted :-

( I ) The word Amon i s

r a r e l y found alone; i t

i s

always found

i n compounds, e.g. Amon-Ra, etc., the compound Geb-Amon i s found

i n Egyptian w r i t i n g s .

I n Ancient

Egypt

Amon was confused w i t h

Sibu(Geb)

the god.

whose


was a.horse. Hence the compound word

Geb-Amon .

( I I ) The above myth states

t h a t

Agemo i s an ol d man hidden

i n the bush, hidden i n t h e e a r t h , or hidden i n the sky. The

word Amon means

hidden,

and the Egyptian god bearing the name

i s regarded as being hidden i n the earth or as t he hidden

p r i n c i p l e of the.universe . I t i s n o t s u r p r i s i n g t h a t the

148

7

because Geb i s t h e god r e p r e s e n t i n g t h e e a r t h i n which Amon

l i e s hidden.

.

( i l l ) The god Amon i s al s o worshipped by t h e Gas of t h e

Gold.

Coast i n West A f r i c a . There he i s known as Nyon-mon, t h a t i s ,

"the l i v i n g

Amon and

worshipped

as

t he

Supreme

D i e t y .

He i s

a l s o

regarded

as

b e i n g

connected

w i t h t h e s ky.

He

causes

rain'

1

t o

f a l l ,

t h e l i g h t i n g t o

f l a s h ,

and t h e thunder t o sound.

(IV)

The use of ram's

horns

as p a r t of Agemp's head-gear i s



s i g n i f i c a n t , i n view

of

t h e

f a c t

t h a t

the

animal r e p r e s e n t i n g

•Amon

i n A n c i e nt Egypt

was a

ram.

2

• (v) The use of f e a t h e r s as p a r t of Agemo

1

s head-gear and the

e x i s t e n c e of a f e a t h e r e d Agemo are noteworthy. The

animal

JZ

r e p r e s e n t i n g

Geb

i n A n c i e n t Egypt

was a goose. The

i d e n t i f i c a - .

t i o n

of Geb

w i t h

a

f e a t h e r e d a n im a l, t h e r e f o r e , s u r v i v e s i n

the

f e a t h e r e d d e c o r a t i o n o f Agemcj.

CONCLUDING

REMARKS.

I n view

of

t he d e r i v a t i o n

of

t h e

word

Agemo

g i v e n above and

the

comments t he re on i t may be s a f e l y concluded

t h a t

Agemo i s a s u r v i v a l of the Ancient Egyptia n gods known as

Geb and Amon or

the

god known as Geb-Amon.

M9> •

D.

'

EGUNGUN.

The b e l i e f i n , the

existence

of the s p i r i t s of

departed

ancestors

and of

other

persons among the Yorubas i s nowhere

1

b e t t e r i l l u s t r a t e d than i n the case of the Egungun c u l t and of

the

Adminu-Orisa

c u l t

which

w i l l

be

described

l a t e r .

The c u l t of Oro, Eluku, or Agemo i s t h a t of a s i n g l e

s p i r i t .

The Egungun c u l t i s t h a t of numerous

s p i r i t s

who may appear.at



any time

and e s p e c i a l l y on

important occasions.

The l a t t e r

c u l t

shows

t h a t

the Yorubas

p i o u s l y

believe

t h a t the

s p i r i t s

of

departed members of the f a m i l y are never f a r away and they are

ready t o take an a c t i v e p a r t i n a l l matters p e r t a i n i n g t o th e

w e l f a r e

of the f a m i l y or of the community.-

W h i l s t the

sentiment prompting the worship

of

the

s p i r i t

d e i t i e s described

above i s c h i e f l y t h a t of f e a r , the c h i e f s e n t i -

ments i n th e case of Egungun are those of a f f e c t i o n and reverence,

The sentiment of f e a r i s not e n t i r e l y absent, f o r the persons of

Egungunsnare regarded as sacrosanct and i n v i o l a b l e on pain of

death. But th e dominant sentiment i s t h a t of a f f e c t i o n f o r the

departed ones,

and

the appearance

of t h e i r s p i r i t s

i n

the

D i s t i n g u i s h e d

Egungunsjwear a wooden

mask.

No

p a r t

of th e

Egungun's

body must be

v i s i b l e .

.

An Egungun may appear at any t i m e . He may do so .-.'singly,

accompanied

o n l y by one or two

persons

known as

Atokun

"Escort"

When

going

about

the

s t r e e t s ,

he c a r r i e s a

f l e x i b l e whip

and

speaks

i n a

v e n t r i l o q u i a l

v o i c e ,

thereby

g i v i n g

the

impression

t h a t he i s a r e a l "Ara-Orun" .'-All

persons

s c r u p u l o u s l y a v o i d

touching h i s

dress.

Those who are Egungun Worshippers p r o s t r a t e



or

g e n u f l e c t

on h i s

approach. Others

o f f e r him presents.This

p r a c t i c e

o f

g i v i n g

presents

t o Egunguns has l e d t o the

degenera

t i o n

of the c u l t i n t o a

form

of beggary i n modern times. Would-

be

beggars

who are ashamed o f being so

described

now

f i n d

i t

convenient t o

assume

t he r o l e o f d i g n i f i e d beggars, under th e

cloak of an Egungun.

Small

companies of

Egunguris

may

appear.

They

parade

the

s t r e e t s i n the

same

way as the

s i n g l e

Egungun and r e c e i v e

homage and

presents

i n the same way.

In

some towns the Egunguns

form

themselves i n t o g u i l d s . Over

each

g u i l d t h e r e

i s a

c h i e f

Egungun. The. number of

members

may

be l a r g e or

small

but they a l l owe obeisance t o

t h e i r

chief..

5

The Qya wears a much f u l l e r and more picturesque dress than

the other

Egunguns.

He wears a

mask

which

gives

him a

weird

appearance.

Egungun Oya i s supposed to

have

been imported from tne Niger

D i s t r i c t . Oya i s the

name

of the goddess of the Niger and

f

Egungun Oya i s regarded as the incarnate form of the

s p i r i t

of

the

goddess who assumes the

form

of a

man.

Hence the appearance

of the Egungun -is heralded by a bevy of women, and

hence women



are allowed at a l l t o take par t i n the parade:

. No g u i l d can hold an 'Egungun play i n a town without the

permission. of the chief Egungun of the town. Failure to do t h i s

may lead t o serious consequences.

Sometimes

the guilds i n a town

may

be.

at enemity,

and the

play

of one

g u i l d

may be

forbidden

by

another on pain of serious consequences.

An Egungun play i s

i n t e r e s t i n g

to watch. Quite apart from the

d u t i e s of the members of the

g u i l d . i n r u s h i n g . a t

the crowd

assembled to witness the play, the

drumming

on the occasion i s

always the best t h a t the Yorubas can produce. The play gives the

drummers an opportunity of showing

t h e i r s k i l l .

Various

ffhythros

He i s

s a t i s f i e d

t h a t

there i s

no

genuine case

of

r e a l

metarmorphosis.

A l l

t h a t

can be

observed i s

a

"make-believe"

by means

of

dress

or s k i n of

animals

worn,by a

person

who

t r i e s

t o i m i t a t e an

animal.

The human

form behind the clock

or

dress

i s

c l e a r l y

d i s c e r n i b l e .

This

p o i n t i s

emphasized

because

there

.are several

s t o r i e s

i n Yorubaland

c r e d i t i n g

Egunguns

w i t h

super-

n a t u r a l powers

f or r e a l

metamorphosis.

The

s t o r y

i s

t o l d of an

Egun

who,

without

the

permission

of

the

c h i e f Egungun' i n the town, metamorphozed himself

i n t o

a



c r o c o d i l e . I t i s s a i d t h a t by means of

enchantment

the offended

Egungun prevented the' metamorphosed Egungun from r ega ini ng hi s

human form and t h a t the l a t t e r was compelled to sprawl

i n t o

a

pond, and

t h a t

i t was not u n t i l due -'propitiation• f o r the offence

has been made was the offender allowed to come out of the pond

and t o regain h is o r i g i n a l human form. I t may be granted

t h a t

by

the

use of black a rt

the

offended Egungun could enchant his

o f f e n d e r .

But t h a t

r e a l metamorphosis took place

i s i n c r e d i b l e ,

i n

view

of

the f a c t . t h a t f o r

a

period

of

over t h i r t y years

n i e t h e r

the w r i t e r nor

any

r e l i a b l e person w i t h

whom he has

discussed the matter

has

ever witnessed

a

case

of

r e a l metamor-

Large

numbers

of Egunguns appear and the whole town i s en f ete .

There are parades and plays which l a s t f o r seven days. The

f e s t i v a l

has been r i g h t l y described as the Yoruba A l l Souls"

f e s t i v a l , a l t h o u g h i t i s , i n a

sense,a f e s t i v a l

of mourning fo r the

dead,yet i t i s a

j o y f u l f e s t i v a l

because i t gives a

f i r m

assurance

t h a t

the

s p i r i t s

of the dead

are

a l i v e

and are capable of mani-

f e s t i n g themselves i n th e

form

of Egunguns.

The Egunguns

u s u a l l y

perform ceremonies i n connection w i t h



f u n e r a l obsequies.

These

ceremonies w i l l be described l a t e r .

I n

modern

times

the

s i n g l e

Egungun

i s

regarded

as a

mere

mas-

.querader. The respect

u s u a l l y

given t o him has been considerably

diminished.

He h i m s e l f sings amusing songs,begs f o r presents,chats

w i t h

an

acquaintance,and

sometimes converses i n

E n g l i s h

The c h i e f Egungun^however', are s t i l l given a measure of respect

and worship,by those who belong to the c u l t , a n d the plays organized

by such persons s t i l l

a t t r a c t

l a r g e crowds which are composed of

u n s o p h i s t i c a t e d

persons and those who l a c k any other form of amuse-

ment .

HISTORICAL

ORIGIN.

The h i s t o r i c a l o r ig i n, of the Egungun c u l t i s

easy to t r a c e . F i r s t of a l l , i t should be

noted

t h a t the

t r a n s l a -

.154.

The

word.for

the

masquerader i s egungun, the f i r s t

vowel'is

a

middle tone

vowel

and

the remaining

two are

hig h tone vowels;

-hence

the hi gh accents placed on them. The v/ord t h e r e f o r e

d i f f e r s

e n t i r e l y

from

egun

- gun which means a

bone .

I n order t o explain the o r i g i n of the

word

i t i s necessary t o

break i t

up

i n t o

i t s

component

p a r t s ,

thus e-gu(n)-gu(n). E.is

t h e i n i t i a l vowel required by a l l Yoruba nouns, gu i s a modi fied

form

of

Khu,

the

Ancient Egyptian word f o r

aluminous s p i r i t .



Gu(n-gu(n) i s t h e r e f o r e

a

d u p l i c a t i o n

of

the word

to

denote

p l u -

r a l i t y

or

p e r f e c t i o n ^ :

S i m i l a r l y

the

word

i-ku-ku i s app lie d

to

mists because- they correspond,in regard

t o t h e i r whiteness-and

u n s u b s t a n t i a l i t y ,

t o the Yoruba idea of a s p i r i t . I t i s probably

because the

word

ku-ku i s already

used

i n t h i s sense t h a t the

word

f o r

the

incarnate

s p i r i t

i s

M o d i f i e d

t o

e*gu(r).)-*gu(n)

2

p

a

word which'in

accordance w i t h i t s

d e r i v a t i o n

given above, means

s p i r i t s .

The egungun c u l t i s t h e r e f o r e the s u r v i v a l , i n a p r a c t i c a l

form,of

the

f u s i o n of the

Ancient Egyptian

b e l i e f s t h a t

a f t e r

death righteous persons become luminous

s p i r i t s

(Khu) and

t h a t

t h e i r Kas ( s o u l

bodies)

are

capable

of

moving about

and of

155

E. ADIMUORISA

.

The c u l t of

A&imuorisa

or Adarnu-orisa i s connected w i t h

f u n e r a l obsequies. A s h o r t time a f t e r the b u r i a l of a l e a d i n g

member of a

town

an Adimuarrisa f e s t i v a l

i s arranged i n h i s

honour.

The

c e l e b r a t i o n

of t h e . f e s t i v a l

i s expensive,

and

t h e r e f o r e takes place on r a r e occasions when the f a m i l y of a

deceased person

can a f f o r d

the

cost

of

the

r i t e s and

ceremonies

i t

e n t a i l s .



The c u l t i s p e c u l i a r to the Aworis who d w e l l near the

coast.

I t resembles t h a t

of Egungun i n

t h a t i t i n v o l v e s

the

appearance

of s p i r i t s i n i n c a r n a t e

forms,

but i t d i f f e r s

from

i t i n

t h a t

the

members of the g u i l d cannot appear at any time as

masqueraders,

except on f e s t i v a l

occasions.

An

Adamuorisa f e s t i v a l

i s

c e l e b r a t e d

i n

the

f o l l o w i n g

way. A

proclamation

i s made t h a t an Adamuoris f e s t i v a l w i l l be

c e l e b r a -

t e d i n honour of a deceased person whose.name i s g i v e n , and the

l a t e r

date

of

the

f e s t i v a l

i s announced.

A few days^people are f o r -

bidden to go out on a c e r t a i n . n i g h t . Any persons caught on

that

n i g h t . willjbe

used f o r the purpose

of the f e s t i v a l . I n

the olden



Pig. 8

Ada muo ris a - a Group o f

Eyos.

Note 0PA3ATA (Wand

137:--

The aropale must e n t i r e l y cover the Eyo

1

s f e e t and t r a i l

behind him at

a l e n g t h not l e s s than

two

f e e t . Some Aropales

are about, ten f e e t l o n g . The

wand

i s calledQpabata and i s made

of the t h i c k p a r t of a

l o n g

palm l e a f .

The Eyos appear

s i n g l y or

i n companies.

As they

parade

the

s t r e e t s they accost

passers-by i n

a v e n t r i l o q u i a l , v o i c e as

f o l l o w s :- I - h a - h a l I-ha-ha'. I I - h a - h a i l l E

s'erukeru.

0 se

mi t i b a l a k a t i b a l a k a , 0 se mi t i b o l o k o t i b o l o k o .

I

- h a - h a - a r a l l "



H a l - l o l Hal-lo

'.I

H a l - l o l l I

There

i s no cause f o r f e a r . I f e e l l i k e dancing t h i s

way.

I

f e e l

l i k e

dancing t h a t way. H - a - l - l - o - o - o l

11

The

s p e c t a t o r s

u s u a l l y r e p l y by

saing

A-gogoro Eypl Mo yo

fun

e,

mo yo fun ar a mi What a t a l l

or

imposing Eyol

I .

c o n g r a t u l a t e

you,

I

c o n g r a t u l a t e

myself ,

t ha t i s , on

having

.

the good l u c k

t o

p a r t i c i p a t e

i n

or t o witness the f e s t i v a l .

Some of the

important

s p i r i t s appear

i n

the form

o f

Agere

( S t i l t - w a l k e r ) ,

Oniko

(a

masquerader

whose

dress i s

made

of

or

:u

s h e

s)..

,

Qlogede

(a masquerader

whose

dress

i s

made

o f

banana

l e a v e s ) .

Each of

these

i s

escorted

by a

number of

Eyos,

158-

There i s no a p e r t u r e i n f r o n t of h is face and hence he cannot '

move

about

e a s i l y . He has to be

l e d

by a

number

of e l d e r l y

members

of t h e c u l t who are not i n costume. He i s also escorted

by

a

s t r o n g f o r c e

of

Eyos,

sometimes numbering-over two hundred,

who run up and down i n f r o n t and

behind

him, thereby pre ve nti ng

any but

the

i n i t i a t e d to come t o o near him.- Even the o t h e r Eyos

and

s p i r i t s have to run away'at

h i s

approach. He

i s

c r e d i t e d

w i t h

s u p e r n a t u r a l

powers

to

p u n i s h

those

who

o f f e r

him

i n s u l t

or

d i s r e s p e c t .



The

Adtou

i s t h e

c h i e f mourner at the f e s t i v a l . He

i s a l s o

known

as

0 - g u ( n ) - r a (n ) . Formerly the Adimu

and

t h e

Ogunran were

1

two d i s t i n c t

i n c a r n a t e -

s p i r i t s and, acco rdin g

to

t r a d i t i o n ,

the

two used to appear on the occasions of

Adamuorisa f e s t i v a l s .

At present the two

terms

are a p p l i e d to the same

masquerade.

There are some

people-, how.ever,

who b e l i e v e t h a t t h e y

must

be

kept d i s t i n c t .

Drawings i n w h i t e and r e d c o l o u r s are made on t h e mask worn

by the

Adimu.

E a r l y on the

day

of t h e f e s t i v a l , the Adimu f i r s t goes t o

Throughout

the day of

f e s t i v a l ,

the greate st resp ect,

amounting to

d i v i n e

honour, i s pa id by a l l t o the Adimu. Even

t h e Oba

( k i n g

or paramount c h i e f ) who may himself be an Ey'o on

t h a t day has to pay him great re spect. A f t e r the

f e s t i v a l

he

r e t u r n s

to h i s st at us as an ordi nary person and

i t

has

been

s a i d

t h a t , a.s a r e s u l t of

the-

ceremonies,

he

has had t o undergo before

t h e f e s t i v a l , he w i l l

e i t h e r

become an i d i o t .or he w i l l die

w i t h i n a few days.



The pr ie st ho od connected w i t h the c u l t i s drawn from the

Akarigbere and

I d e j o

Chiefs of

Lagos.

The

p r i e s t s

are

always

s c a n t i l y

c l a d and clean shaven.

The Eyps and other masqueraders are

sometimes

escorted by

l a r g e

r e t i n u e s .

I f

t h e i r

f o l l o w e r s are

c h i e f s

they must be-

bare from

t h e i r l o i n s

upwards.

Other

f o l l o w e r s

must

not

wear

a

head-gear. I n the olden

days

a l l thosfe who

come

across an Eyo

must take off

t h e i r

hats; those who f a i l t o do so used t o be .

m e r c i l e s s l y beaten. This

demand

f or compulsory

homage

has been

g r e a t l y

modified,

owing

t o the in ru sh of

c i v i l i z a t i o n

and the

presence

of a la rg e non-native element i n the popu lati on.

'

1601'.-

I t may be i n t e r e s t i n g to note the f o l l o w i n g pasages describ-

i n g

the b e l i e f s i n Ancient

Egypt

which have survived i n

Egungun

and

Adimuorisa

s p i r i t worship i n Yorubaland :-

1 . Professor Wiedeman says - the soul might take

up i t s abode i n i t s former body and r e t u r n to

e a r t h under t h a t form and thus r e v i s i t the

spots

where

i t had

once

d w e l t .

1

Again the

same

w r i t e r says The power of the soul(ka)

t o incarnate i t s e l f at pleasure became one of the

c h i e f

reasons

for embalming the

dead ^

2.

W r i t i n g

about the nat ure and func ti on s of the

Kas



(soul' bodies) Professor Fl in de rs P e t r i e says -

t h a t each person

r e c e i v e d

a

p a r t

of the

f a m i l y s p i r i t which guided, him and was

t h e inner p e r s o n a l i t y , and on dying he

r e j o i n e d

the whole

f a m i l y

s p i r i t which

r e c e i v e d

and preserved

him ?

The object of the appearance of the

Eyps

i n connection w i t h

Adamu

Orisa

c u l t , t h e r e f o r e , seems

to be t accord a ceremonial

welcome

to the s p i r i t of the deceased back i n t o the whole

f a m i l y

s p i r i t .

The f o l l o w i n g

p o i n t s , r e f e r r i n g p a r t i c u l a r l y

to the

Adamuorisha

c u l t ,

should also be noted :-

1 . The respect pa id to the Adimu, regardless of class

i6i

—.>- '.<

2. The word Adimu i t s e l f which i s a s u r v i v a l of the

Atumu or

Adumu,

the name of a well-known Egyptian god.

I t should

be

observed

t h a t t h e ' l e t t e r

t

i s

o f t e n

changed .a,-.i,-and u are o f t e n used s u b s t i t u t e d f o r one

another by Egyptian w r i t e r s .

The reason fo r th e

d i v i n e

honour paid t o Adimu thus

becomes

obvious. Atumu

was one-of

the most revered gods

t



i n Ancient Egypt. He was always depicted i n the form of

a man

The a l t e r n a t i v e name of Adimu, t h a t i s , O-gu-ra(n) i s

noteworthy. Gu i s a m o d i f i c a t i o n of

Khu,

and Ra i s the

name of the

Egyptian

sun-god.

O-gu-ra(n),

t h e r e f o r e ,

means

the

soul

of

Ra . Now i n

Ancient

Egyp>t

Atumu

was a

sun-god.

According

t o

Professor

Maspero

- The sun

e x i s t i n g before the wo rl d they

( i . e .

the Egyptians)

2

c a l l e d

Creator

-

Tumu,

Atumu . i n the

theology

of

H e l i o p o l i s , Atumu and Ra were i d e n t i f i e d under the

s i n g l e

name of Atumu-Ra, t h a t i s , the sun-god

163-

I t

may be

added here

t h a t

Atumu

or

Adumu

s u r v i v e s

not

o n l y among the Yorubas but a i s o among other West

A f r i c a n T r i b e s . For example, an important

D e i t y

among the I j a ws i s known as Adumu.

3. The

c o l o u r s

of the

drawings

on the mask

worn

by

Adimu, namely, white

and

red.

These c o l o u r s

agree,

w i t h . t h e

sacred

c o l o u r s of the

r o y a l

crown of Horus

as described i n

the f o l l o w i n g

passage :-



Horus,

the son of

O s i r i s

and I s i s has

r e c e i v e d the

white

and red crown. ^-

4. The phrase Oju

Elegbara.

Elegbara has been

i d e n t i f i e d

above

w i t h

Khepera, the sun-god. Oju

Elegbara

t h e r e f o r e

means

the

eye or

eyes

of

Khepera .

Now

the

eyes of Horus or the eyes of Ra and th e eyes

o f

Khepera were

wel^known

phrases i n Ancient Egypt.

I t i s i n t e r e s t i n g to note t h a t a s i m i l a r

phrase

s u r v i v e s

i n

Yorubaland.

I t i s

a l s o

noteworthy

t h a t

i n

connection

w i t h

the

c u l t

the names of the Egyptian

16$.

•

P. GELEDE.

The s p i r i t s who appear i n the form, of Gelede bear great

resemblance to those of the

Egunguns

and

Eyos. U n l i k e

these,

however, t h e i r

ceremonies are not connected

w i t h f u n e r a l

obsequies. The

Gelede

s p i r i t s appear only on f e s t i v a l occasions

arranged by members of the c u l t .

The dress of the Gelede i s smarter and

more

a r t i s t i c than

t h a t

of the

Egungun

or the Eyo. He i s represented by a human



being., wearing clean-and c l o s e - f i t t i n g dress and a wooden

mask

the

top of which i s

e x q u i s i t e l y

carved in wood and

w e l l

ornamented. The mask i s made t o represent the

head

of a man or a

woman

w i t h a l l

the app ropri ate t r i b a l marks, and sometimes to

•

represent

any of the lower animals,

such

as b i r d s , a l l i g a t o r s

and others.

Most of the Geledes

assume the

form of a

f u l l - g r o w n

woman

w i t h

magnificent busts and

p l a i t e d h a i r .

Some Geledes are

more

g a i l y

dressed than the ot he rs , female ornaments such as ear-rings

bangles,

beads

and

j i n g l e s

placed on the ankles being

used

i n

l a r g e r q u a n t i t i e s

than i n the

-

cage of the, others.

164

HISTORICAL

ORIGIN.

I t

i s

d i f f i c u l t

t o

l o o k

at th e

Geledes

w i t h o u t t h i n k i n g of the forms which the

Horus

Gods used t o .

assume i n Ancient

Egypt whenever

they

paraded

the

s t r e e t s

on .

f e s t i v a l

occasions f o r the b e n e f i t of the peasants,

e s p e c i a l l y

those who

c o u l d

n o t grasp the a b s t r a c t

teaching

of the p r i e s t s

r e g a r d i n g

the

gods

who r e s i d e d i n t h e temples. The masks o f

some of the Geledes resemble .some o f t he masks worn by th e Horus

gods

and

the

f u n e r a r y

gods

i n

Ancient Egyptian

p i c t u r e s .

.



The

word Gelede

i t s e l f

appears

t o

be

o f Egyptian o r i g i n . I t

c o n s i s t s o f two

p a r t s , namely

Ge and

' l e d e ,

Ge i s an abbrevia-

t i o n of Geb and 'lede i s an a b b r e v i a t i o n of

e-le-de.

The l a s t

s y l l a b l e

de has

been

explained i n a previous

chapter

as

being

de-rived from the Egyptian

word

deb

which

means

t o

p i e r c e

8

E-le-de, t h e r e f o r e , means one who p i e r c e s . Thw

whole word then

means Geb who p i e r c e s . As a l l . the.

myths

connected

w i t h

the c u l t

have

disappeared,

i t

i s d i f f i c u l t t o know why

such

a name was

given t o

such

a

harmless

i n c a r n a t e s p i r i t as Gelede.

I t

may be concluded, however, t h a t the Gelede c u l t i s a

s u r v i v a l

o f . a

s i m i l a r element

i n Ancient

Egyptain

R e l i g i o n .

166--

ABIKU •

The

Yorubasbelieve t h a t t h e r e

i s a

c e r t a i n c l a s s

o f s p i r i t s ,

which enter

i n t o new-born

c h i l d r e n ,

causing them t o di e i n

i n f a n c y according t o a pre-arranged p l a n . These s p i r i t s are

regarded as t members of a f r a t e r n i t y . They l i v e i n the woods,

i n

b i g and shady

t r e e s ,

the

c h i e f

of

which

i s

I r o k o .

I f

any

o f these s p i r i t s were t o

enter

i n t o a new-born c h i l d

or i n t o

a

c h i l d

i n

u t e r o . t h e c h i l d would

die i n

i t s i n f an c y .

Hence

th e word

Abiku born

t o

d i e .

The


o f

t h i s



b e l i e f

i s

t h a t

the

s p i r i t

has had

i n s t r u c t i o n s

from

the

f r a t e r -

n i t y of Abiku s p i r i t s t o r e t u r n t o them on a pre-arranged

date.'

I f a woman loses s e v e r a l c h i l d r e n , she i s s a i d t o be t r o u b l e d by

Abiku s p i r i t s .

These

s p i r i t s

must,

t h e r e f o r e ,

be

p l a c a t e d .

Means

must

a l s o

be found t o n u l l i f y , t h e i r

i n f l u e n c e

on th e c h i l d . The

mother

o f

en A b i k u , c h i l d c o n t i n u a l l y o f f e r s s a c r i f i c e of

food

t o the Abiku

s p i r i t s . The u n d e r l y i n g b e l i e f o f t h i s s a c r i f i c e i s t h a t the

other

Abiku s p i r i t s

who are no t

p r i v i l e g e d

t o

e n t e r - t h e c h i l d

normally, demand t h e i r share

of the

c h i l d ' s food

and

w i l l

compel

the

c h i l d t o j o i n them by up

a l l

the

e s s e n t i a l p a r t s

of

166

I t i s also belie ved

t h a t

the

c h i l d

can be saved i f i t can be

preserved beyond the pre-arranged date f o r i t s death.

U n f o r t u n a t e l y , t h i s

date i s always

unknown.

I f , i n s p i t e of

a l l e f f o r t s ,

the

c h i l d di'es,

i t s body

i s maletreated, -wounds and blows which are be li ev ed t o make

i n d e l i b l e marks L

being

i n f l i c t e d : on

i t - • .

Sometimes

the

body i s hacked to pieces and i n every c a s e - i t

must

be thrown



i n t o the bush. The idea behind such maltreatment i s t h a t the

Abiku s p i r i t thereby

s u f f e r s

and becomes incapable o f

r e - e n t e r i n g

a human body.



CHAPTER IX.

T H E M I N O R 0 R I S A

JS.

1i67

CHAPTER

IX.

THE

EJINQR

ORISASi.

The

number of Yoruba d e i t i e s

i s

s a i d to be f o u r

hundred

and

one.

Of these, some are

so

g r e a t

as to command

the

worship

of

every

Yoruba

or

o f

the

m a j o r i t y ,

of the

Yorubas. Others

are mere l o c a l d e i t i e s

worshipped

by a

tew t r i b e s or

towns. Others again

have become so

nebulous

i n

character

as t o command

t he worship

of only, a few i n d i -



v i d u a l s o r . t o

l o s e t h e i r

names and worship.

An account of the worship of the major Orisass and of

s p i r i t worship i n d i f f e r e n t p a r t s of. Yorubaland has

been

given i n the previo us chapters. An account of the minor

Orisas

which deserve a t t e n t i o n w i l l now be

g i v e n .

A. A\ja?. -

A\ja> i s a

b e n e f i c e n t

d e i t y .

She i s supposed to be a

s p i r i t who

c a r r i e s

o f f persons whom she

meets

i n t o deep

bush w i t h a view to teach

them

the medicin al

p r o p e r t i e s

of herbs and p l a n t s . Those who are thus f o r t u n a t e become



168

who

c a r r i e s

persons

into

the wilderness and

i n s t r u c t s

them i n magic and

a l l

kinds of medicines *

B. Aja Saluga.

Reference has already been made to

t h i s deity

i n

a

previous chapter. There i t i s pointed out that the name

means The l i v i n g one of Salug . Salug i s the name of an

i s l e t

i n Anci ent Egypt.

Ajje

Saluga i s ther efor e the

s u r v i v a l

an ancient Egyptian deity.



I n

Yorubaland he i s the god. of wealth. Trade rs

and others who a c t i v e l y seek a f t e r v/ealth adore him as;

t h e i r

patron, but they regard him a s

f u l l

of whims and

caprices. I n

t h e i r

opinion, there i s no truth i n the

proverb,

:

the e a r l y b i r d catches the worm'

1

, f o r they say

that Aje

Saluga sometimes favours the person who comes

behind as against an ambitious f orerun ner. Hence the

Yoruba proverb, t'A je Salugai f i eni iwaju s i l e , ose en i

ehin

l i

oge .

Aje Saluga oft en passe s

by the

f i r s t

person

as

i t comes to market, and leads the l a s t with blessings,

1,69

p r o f i t s i

from

the

s a l e

of

t h e i r

wares.

C i v i l i z a t i o n has not yet

succeeded i n

o b l i t e r a t i n g

the l a s t vestige

of the worship of t h i s deity among the

educated elements i n Yorubaland. On important

occasions;

when large

sums

of money

have

been

spent,

i t i s

usu al

to

hear shouts

of

A.ie O l A.1e

Ol

implying

that

such

expenditure or l a v i s h

display

i s

only

possible

through

the

blessing

of the god and

that such occa sion s give

a



p r a c t i c a l

demonstration

of

h i s munificence.

Further,

i f a s t r e e t hawker*8 offer of goods i s

declined by

anyone,

the usual reply i s AMe. implying

a

wish that the hawlcer may be favoured by the god.

C

Afconi.

Like Aja,

Aroni i s a god o f

medicine

who

dwells

i n

• f o r e s t s .

Unlike /A'j'a,«

however^ he i s

credited with

benevolence and malevolence a l i k e . He i s a

great

admirer

of

courage. Whenever he comes across a courageous pers on,

he takes him into the f o r e s t s and

t r e a t s

him kindly,

170

such persons h i s malevolence i s implacable*

The god has been des cri bed as an e l f pos ses sin g the

head

and t a i l of

a

dog and only one l e g , the other pa rt s of i t s

body

being of

human form*.

I t s

monstrous appearance would

account

f o r

the

t e r r o r

which

i t i s

supposed

to

s t r i k e

into

cowardly

minds.

The

h i s t o r i c a l o r i g i n

of Aroni cannot be

d e f i n i t e l y

i

stated.

Theword

Aroni i s a compound word consisting of two



words, namely, Ara and Qni» Ara means A. na ti ve and Qni

i s

probably de ri ve d

from

the Ancient Egyptian

c i t y

On (Annu).

The word, therefore,

meejns

a native of On and i s probably

the s u r v i v a l of a deit y connected wi th the famous c i t y of On.

D. Dadav

Dada i s the god of new; born babies,

e s p e c i a l l y

of

those

who

are bom wi th cur led

h a i r s . Such

children are

named

Dada. P e r i o d i c a l l y the parents of such c hi l d r e n

have-

to

cook

veg eta ble s and

beans

i n

honour

of the

children.

Hence the

god came to be regarded as the

god

of vege tabl es,

171 .

word

Da. I t

survives

as the

name

of a Yorubai

deity

having

very

l i t t l e

i n common with i t s ancient Egyptian

namesake;

E. Ekun and AmqtQkun.

Animal worship

does

not

e x i s t

to any grea t ex te nt

i n Yorubaland. A-few animals,

however,

a re held wi th

veneration

almost

amounting

to worshi p. One of th es e ani ma ls

i s the

leopard.

The

Yoruba word

f o r a leopard i s ; Amotekun.but the

word

Ekun Tiger i s

sometimes

substituted f o r i t .



The leo par d i s regar ded by the Yorubas a s a king* When

i t i s

k i l l e d

i t s

face

i s covered and i t s

pardon

asked.

This:

b e l i e f '

accounts for the assumption by the

A l a f i n

of

pyp

('the

paramount

c h i e f of Oyp) of th e t i t l e of

Leopardi

and the

payment

of

what

almost

amounts

to

divine

honours

to him by almost a l l the Yorubas. The Yorubas: also hold the

b e l i e f

that a man

T

s s p i r i t may be reincarnated i n

a

leopard

or

t i g e r . The word E--ku(n))

1

i s derived

from

the Anc ien t

Egyptian word

Khu

(luminous s p i r i t ) , and the word i s used

as

the

name

of the anima l which i s of te n regarded a s the



172

Ketiinde

1

.

' Twins a re paid, respec.t and honour i n Yorubaland.

Unlike

some

other par ts of

West

A f r i c a where they are regarded.

as obj ec ts of horror and ar e c r u e l l y

treated,

Yorubaland

to

gives twins a degree of reverence almost

amounting^worship.

This statement i s tr ue of Yorubaland as a

whole,

wi th t he

exception

of

Ondo where contact between the Ondo peopl e

and some neighbouring degenerate t r i b e s has l e d to the



practice of destroying one of any

p a i r

of twins*.

The r eve ren ce pa id to twins i s due to the f a c t that

they are regarded as

persons

s p e c i a l l y protected by

Twin

goda

( O r i s a

I b e j i ) * Images

of the

Twin

god

e x i s t

i n

some parts

of Yorubaland, but twin ch i l d r e n are regarded to

some

extent as t h e i r

r e a l

representatives* Hence the reverence?

paid to twins and the offerings made to them.

To such an extent i s the b e l i e f i n twins as

representative®

of the

Twin

gods

c a r r i e d

into

practice

t ha t i f one of the

twins happens to die, a

wooden

image i s subs titu ted fo r the



j S

1

1



G. I g i . ('Trees).

Yorubaland has i t s sacr ed tr ee s. Of

these

the

most

important

are the fo ll ow in g :-

1. Peregun, the

s i l k - e f t

ton tr ee .

The si lk -c ot to n tr ee i s one of the gian t tr ee s i n

West

A f r i c a .

I t s

majestic appearance

cannot but evoke fe el in gs of

awe and reverence from primitive

peoples.

I t often grows to

a height

approximating

300 fe et , f a r

out-topping

a l l other

1



trees

of the

f o r e s t ,

2i» Isoko, African Oak*

The Iroko i s

another

giant tree. I t i s often

marked

With a white p iec e of. cl ot h,

about

nine to

f i f t e e n

inches

Wide, t i e d

around

i t s

trunk

a t a height of

about

f i f t e e n f e e t

from the ground.

S a c r i f i c e s are often made to

i t .

I t s shady trees make i t s

surroundings

the meeting pla ce of guil ds.

3»

Ayan.

Thi s tre e i s sacred to

Sango, the

god of lig htn ing . I t i s

175

of uses* I t

i s .

therefore regarded as sacred*

Reverence

t

i s

pa id to a sp ec ie s of the t r e e

which isregarded

as a

representative of a l l the others*

Palm leaves are emblems of

sacredness.

Any pl ace or

object

to

which

they are

t i e d

thereby

becomes sacred. They

are used to mark groves and shrines.

I t should be noted that the Yorubas reg ard the sac red

trees

as being indwelt by s p i r i t s which give them

t h e i r



majestic

appearance

or the pe cul ia r qu al it y

which marks,

them

out as object of veneration.

H,

Ob

a.

Obai i s a r i v e r goddess. She has been de sc rib ed as the

t h i r d

wife

of

Sango

and i s

i d e n t i f i e d

with a

r i v e r

flowing

near Ibadan i n a south-e asterly d i r e c t i o n towards the lagoon.

The word O-ba i s derived

from

the Ancient

Egyptian

word ba which means

a

sou l or

s p i r i t . With

i t s accents

reversed, the

word

means

a king

3

- the kin g being regarded

by the

Yorubas.

as the inc arn ate sou l of th e nat ion.

176

Abeokuta

where

the

town

i s

b u i l t

on

rocks

and

h i l l s ,

the god i s much worshipped. One of the h i l l s i s known

as;

Olump,

t ha t i s ,

a

h i l l made

by the

lord

or deity.

U n t i l

a

few decades ago i t was beli eved that a hole on t h i s h l . i l could

serve

as a

hiding place f o r a l l

the

e a r l i e r s e t t l e r s

a t

Abeokuta

and

would

become her meti call y seal ed should the

enemy

a s s a i l them there.

At

Ibadan

also

the god Oke

i s

worshipped. The

town

i s

b u i l t on two mountains, and i t s inhabitants

would

natur all y

http://hl.il/

http://hl.il/

http://hl.il/



turn to the deity of the mountains f o r a i d .

H i s t o r i c a l Origin.

I t has;

been

pointed out i n a prev ious chapter tha t the

Ancient Egyptian god of the

mountain

survives i n Yorubaland.

1

He

i s Horu8-bakhu,

and

i s

known i n Yorubaland

as.

Qrisar-beku.

the

god of the mountain. Oke may

possibly

be a

distant

s u r v i v a l of the same Egyptian god.

J . Olarosa.

Olarosa

i s the

tute lary deity

of houses. I n a

country

where

b e l i e f i n witchcraft i s strong and the dread of

e v i l

t77

Olarosa probably

means

the god l a stan ds (a t the door)

as

a means of pro tect ion .

K.. Olokun.

Olokun

i s one of the

d e i t i e s

springing

from

the

body,

of the

goddess

Yemoja.

The word

Olokun (Oni-Okun)

1

denotes

the

owner

or l o r d of

the sea.

Olokun

i s therefore the pre sid ing deity of the sea

and i s worshipped

c h i e f l y

by residents near the sea and by



those who

have

much

to do w ith the sea,

that

i s , fishermen

and

canoemeru.

I n

Lagos s a c r i f i c e s

are

made

to the

deity

at

V i c t o r i a

beach. I n th e old en days human

s a c r i f i c e s

used to be

made

to

the deity.

The

writer*

wi tn es sed t he ceremonies

performed

by the

devotees of the deity at V i c t o r i a beach a few years ago. The

ceremonies,

began e a r l y

i n the

morning

and conti nued

t i l l

l a t e

i n the afternoon. The

male

worshippers

were

c l a d i n

black,

or blu e-b lac k dr es se s, bla ck being the col our of the deity's

dress'.

The femal e worshipp ers

were

c l a d i n white,

that;

178

the wo rs hip pe rs was thrown

i n t o

th e se a as a s a c r i f i c e

to the deity. Danci ng and general merriment concl uded th e

ceremonies.

Olokun-su

or Elusu, the wife of Olokun i s the gua rdi an

deity

of th e ba r between th e Lagos lagoon and the

Bight

of

Benin.

She i s supposed to dwell i n the bar. A l l

f i s h e s

i n

the v i c i n i t y a r e sacred to her.

ITo

fis herm an can trespass

by f i s h i n g on the ba r with impunity. Hi s canoe

w i l l

be upse t



and he

himself

may be

drowned.

J u s t

as a rough se a i s supposed to be an

i n d i c a t i o n

of

the anger of Olokun, so i s th e rough ba r supposed to be due

to the anger of h i s wife*

Wear Benin

C i t y there

was an a l t a r

dedicated

to'Olokun.

L

o

I n f r o n t of the a l t a r were chalk marks. These marks w i l l

be

explained

l a t e r . The; Be ni n people

believe

that the deity

of

the

r i v e r

Oha i s th e

f i r s t

wife of Olokun, and that the

deity

of the

r i v e r

Sapoba or Igbagon i s h i s second

wife.

Myths.

179

numbers

when Qbatala i n t e r f e r e d to

save

the

remainder,

forced.

Olokun back

to

h i s

palace, and

bound

him

i n

seven i r o n

chains

u n t i l he' promised

to

abandon hi s'

design,

1

H i s t o r i c a l

Origin.

The h i s t o r i c a l o r i g i n

of t h i s

deity w i l l

be discussed

l a t e r , but

i t should

be

noted h ere that

i t s name

i s

derived .

from

an Egyptian

word.

The name

c o n s i s t s of.

two

parts, namely,

Oni, Oku(n). Oni

(often, changed

to

01' f o r euphonic

reasons)



means owner

or

l o r d . Oku(n)

i s derived

from

the

Ancien t

Egyptian word

khu, which

means a

luminous

s p i r i t . The word

Okun

must have been

applied to the sea on

account

of the

water y

vapour, conveying

the idea of s p i r i t s ,

which i s

often

found

f l o a t i n g

above i t .

L. O l o r i Merin.

The

words O l o r i Merin mean The

owner

of four

heads .

They are

applied to a

deity which i s regarded

as the

t u t e l a r y

deity

of

towns

and c i t i e s .

The figure

representing t h i s

deity i s that

of a

monstrous

180

rounded

tops

i s

regarded

a s a

s u f f i c i e n t

representation

of

the

deity.

The

deity i s

supposed to appear sometimes a t

night

i n the form of a

serpent.

The four heads

of the

de it y point

to the

four poi nts

of

the

compass

or to the

d i r e c t i o n s

of the

four

winds

known

to the Yorubas. The de it y i s thus a ble to keep watch i n

a l l d i r e c t i o n s and to protect

each

town from war and

pestilence..

I n

some p a r t s of Yorubaland the figure i 3 regarded as



the representative of a si ngl e deity, but i n other par ts , i t

i s

regarded

as a

combined

1

, representation

of the

four

d e i t i e s

Jakuta, I f a , Qbatala and

Odudua

who are

regarded

as repre-

sentatives

of the E a s t , West, North and South wi nds

respectively and as j o i n t custodians of towns.

Worship.

O l o r i Merin i s one of the few minor d e i t i e s to

whom human s a c r i f i c e i s offered.

Pour

times a year an i n f a n t

three or .four days old

used to be

offered

to the

deit y.

The

s a c r i f i c e

must

be performed

i n the presence

of the

c h i l d

1

s

mother, and i t

must

be made by a p r i e s t who would cut the

181.

four

Yoruba

d e i t i e s r e f e r r e d to

above

are elemental

d e i t i e a

J u s t

as the

a u x i l i a r y gods

to Thoth i n Hermopolis

were

regarded

as

elemental

d e i t i e s .

Secondly,

the

Egyptian d e i , t i e a

-<r

were represented

by

baboons. I t i s s i g n i f i c a n t that t h i s

representation survives i n the Yoruba figure, the lower pa rt

of

which

resembles the

f e e t

and legs of a baboon. Thirdly,

the Yoruba deity i s

sapposed

to

appear

at night i n the form

of a serpent. I t

w i l l

be

remembered

that the

wives*,

of the



2

four

Egyptian d e i t i e s r e f e r r e d to

above were serpent-headed.

This s u r v i v a l i s

noteworthy.

Fourthly,

the

fo ur Egyptian

d e i t i e s were regarded as the impersonation of the four p i l l a r s

consisting

of the

arms

and

legs with

which

Sibu supports

the

roof of the earth at i t s four corners. The four

heads

of

the Yoruba d e i t y

are

regarded as representations

of the

fou r

corners of the earth. F i f t h l y , i n Ancient Egypt ian mythology,

the god Shu, when separ atin g Sibu from Geb, had to

make

use

of a mound. I t i s noteworthy that the Yorubas use a mound

182

i l l u s t r a t e d by the

gruesome

s a c r i f i c e offered to the Yoruba

deity.

I t i s the

connection

between the d ei ty and Shu,in the

myth

j u s t

referred to that explains t h i s e v i l

custom.

I t

has been point ed out i n

Chapter

I I I that the Yorubas derive

some

of

t h e i r

ideas

about

Esu

from

those

r e l a t i n g

to the god

Shu, and t ha t as the l a t t e r was i d e n t i f i e d with Sut or Set

by the Yorubas, the same gruesome human

s a c r i f i c e

offered

1

to Set; or

Typhon

i n Ancient Egypt

was

often offered to Esu



i n

Yorubaland.

The need f o r human

s a c r i f i c e

to O l o r i

Merin

must

have a r i s e n from h i s connect ion wit h Shu.

M» -Qlosa.

OlpSffi i s

a;

beneficent goddess. L i k e Olokun, she sprang,

from the body of Yemoja, the goddess of waters generally.

She i s thus the s i s t e r of Olokun, and she i s al so hi s ch ie f

wife.

The

word Olosa

means the owner of the Lagoon

(Qsa).

The

goddess

Olqsa

i s the ref ore the pr es id in g deit y of the

lagoon

which surrounds

Lagos, the c a p i t a l of Nigeria, and flows,

t.83

Temples i n her

honour were b u i l t

along the shorescQf

the lagoon, but very

few

of th es e now remain. I n t h e s e

temple© offerings of food are

placed

p e r i o d i c a l l y , and these;

are sonsumed by crocodiles who are supposed to convey the

food t o her.

The

deity

iss

supposed to

l i v e

on the bed of th e lagoon.

I t would be interes/fcing; to

know what

became of her when the

lag oon was dredged so as to ensure safe passage to large

ocean-going l i n e r s .



H i s t o r i c a l

Origin.

The h i s t o r i c a l o r i g i n of Olosa cannot be

d e f i n i t e l y

traced but there i s no doubt that she i s the s u r v i v a l of one

of

the

r i v e r d e i t i e s

i n Anc ien t Egypt.

Reference

has

been

made

above

to th e

word

Sa which

means

W

A.

SacrecH, protective

f l u i d

, r

. This f l u i d was supposed to

be ob ta in ab le from "the pond of Sa"

:

. I t i s probably fo r

t h i s

reason that the Yorubas app ly the word O-sa (Awr-eah) to the

lagoon and the

word

031.'

-osa to t he lagoon

deity.

N, Orun and Osupa.

184

The

word Osu

-pa i s derived

from

two Ancie nt Egypti an

words, namely, Khonsu and pa.. Khonsu i s the

name

of the

Moon-god i n

Ancient

Egypt and i t becomes Osu i n

Yoruba

by

the following process.

Kh

is elided since nouns i n

Yoruba

usually begin with a

vowel;

On-su i s further modified by

the e l i s i o n of the weak nasal consonant which i f i t had been

a hard

consonant

would have received a vowel to

form

i t s

own

s y l l a b l e ;

the

word

thus

becomes

O-su (the

moon).

Pa

means a

house

or a d i s t r i c t . The word Osupa, therefore,

means

"Khonsu

(the god) of the house or d i s t r i c t .



0. Osahin.

Osahin

(or Osayin) i s one of the

Yoruba gods

of

medicine.

Unlike Aja

and

Aroni,

he

does

not car ry

people

into the

f o r e s t

fo r in st ru ct io n, but he heals those who

pray

to him ei th er by in sp ir in g them to use s ui ta bl e medicinal

herbs

or without material medium. His

worship

i s general,

since health i s

regarded

by

a l l

as

precious

wealth.

I n some

pa rt s of

Yorubaland, Osahin

i s consulted on

185

H i s t o r i c a l

Origin.

The or ig in of

psahin

must be traced to-

Egyptian

mythology.

The

word O-sahi(n)

i s derived from the

Egyptian word

Sahu

which i s the

name

of a st ar god id en ti fi e d with Orion. The

Egyptian

god i s sometimes

designated

Sahu-Orion. Reference-

has

been

made

to the god

Orion

i n

a previ ous ch apter

where

i t

i s

pointed

out that he surv iv es as Pro i n

Yorubaland.

There i s another

Ancient Egyptian

word Sahu which

means

a s p i r i t u a l body. This s p i r i t u a l body was said to

"'germinate" .

from

the

mummified body.



The ide as underlying the

conception

of the Yoruba god

Qsahin

are derived from

those

associated

with

the god Sahu

and the . s p i r i t u a l body known as

Sahu.

I t w i l l be remembered

that

Sahu-Orion

was

i d e n t i f i e d

with

O s i r i s ,

and his

wife

with

Sothis., Sahu-Orion and Sothis had no son, and th er ef ore

the figure of Horus, the son of O s i r i s and I s i s was us ua ll y

placed between

the fi gu re s of the former god and

goddess.

Professor

Maspero

gives a pi ct ur e containing

Orion

and the cow

Sothis separated by the sparrow-hawk.

1

The fi gu re of Horus i s

the sparrow-hawk

mounted

on an i ron rod. I t i s t h i s same

186

mere association

of

figures always seen together.

Osahin.

i s

the god of

medicine

w h i l s t

Sahu was

not. I t

i s

probable that

the

idea

of medicine

became asso cia ted with

Osahin from

the

f a c t

th at var iou s chemicals

were used

to

embalm

or to

heal (as i t

would

appear

to

unsophisticated

minds)

the body from which

the Sahu

i s "germinated".

P.

Ososi.

Ososi has been

described

above as one of the

sons

of

Yema^a.

Lik e h i s brother

Ogun, he

i s

a

patron

of

hunters.



He a s s i s t s

h i s worshippers

i n

various

ways,

e s p e c i a l l y

by

protecting

them

w h i l s t engaged

i n

hazardous

hunting

and

by

driving

animals

into

snares

and p i t f a l l s . He

collaborates

wit h h i s brother

i n

giving e f f e c t i v e assistance

to

hunters.

He has two modes of

representation.

He

i s r epresent ed

simply

by a bow or by a man

armed with

a bow.

I t

has been

pointed

out

above that the

name

Ososi

i s

a contaction

of two words,

t ha t i s ,

Osu(n) and Osi

(Osun- osi).

O-su(n). i s derived from the

name of the

Egyptian

god Shu and

187

The

name

may be

divided

into two

parts

-

Osu

(Oshnu)

and

Mare.

The f i r s t part

comes

from the Ancient Egyptian wordl

Shu which means

,f:

to

gather,

to

c o l l e c t ,

to

c o v e r " ,

1

The

second part has

been

explained i n Chapter I I i n

connection

with

the

word Olodumare.

The

f u l l

form

of

i t

i s ,

emi

y io r e

• I w i l l

go or return"'.

Osuraare,

therefore,

means

"The

deity

2

to whom I s h a l l return" The deity i s prob ably a, s u r v i v a l

of an Egyptian

deity

with whom the f a i t h f u l Egyptian

hoped

to be united

a f t e r death.



R. Osun.

Qsun (Oshun) i s the name of the

goddess

of a r i v e r bearing

the same name.. She i s regarded a s the second wi fe of Sango*

The

r i v e r

f low s near the

town

of

Osogbo

(Oshogbo) where

the

goddess

i s a c t i v e l y worshipped. The name of the town

i t s e l f i s compounded from

the word Osun,

namely,

Osun-ogbo..

The

goddess,

i s worshipped i n

many parts of

Yorubaland,

e s p e c i a l l y

a t

Abeokuta where

her worshippers

may be

seen

wearing the

d i s t i n c t i v e

badge of her worship, that i s , a

188

Oshun

i s one of the d e i t i e s to whom human s a c r i f i c e s are

made i n

time

of need.

The origin

of t h i s goddess

i s

not

d i f f i c u l t

to

trac e.

Her name -(J-su(n) or Q-shu(n) ±

s

derived

from

the name of

the

Ancient

Egyptian

god Sut or Shu

described

i n a

previous

chapter.

1

S. Oya.

The goddess

Oya

must

be

distinguished from

Oya the

s p i r i t

of

ancestors described

i n the

preceding

chapter.



The

goddess

Qya i s : t h e

goddess of the

River Niger

which

i s named af te r her, (Odo Oya). She i s supposed to be the

f i r s t ,

and therefore, the favou rite wife of

Sango,

the god

of Thunder. Tra dit ion says that

the r i v e r was

formed o r i g i n a l l y

by the

copious

tears which she shed on the death of her

husband.

She has a messenger c a l l e d

Afefg,

"gentle breeze". This

idea must have originated

from

the

comparatively

cool

breeze

which

those

who

s a i l

on

i t usually enjoy.

1.89

T. Oye.

The dry

s i r r o c o wind which

comes

from

the Sahara dur ing

the

months

of December and January has made such an. impression

on the mind of the Yorubas as to wrest

from

them the

honour

of a

deity.

The d e i t y belongs to the

c l a s s

of

d e i t i e s ; whic h

the Yorubas began to recognize on t h e i r a r r i v a l i n Yorubaland,

As such he r e c e i v e s no worship. He i s supposed to dwell i n

a cavern near I l o r i n .

At

l a t e r

t r a d i t i o n

says that

he

dwe lls

on the

mountain

named I g b e t i , near palace of Esu or Eleg bara.

The word pye i 3 derived

from

the West A f r i c a n word

"ye"



1-

which

means "to

l i v e ,

to

exist '.

U.. ^ugudu (or

S i g i d i ) .

Opinion i s divided among w r i t e r s on

Yoruba

heathenism as

to the exact nature of

Sugudu

(Shugudu) or

^ i g i d i

( S h i g i d i ) .

For example, E l l i s says that

Sugudu

i s

a d e i f i e d nightmare",

and regards; i t as an

O r i s h a .

2

Dr»

Farrow,

a f t e r denying

that i t i s an Orisa, says; that i t i s an u t t e r l y had

form

of

demonology

or witch cra ft, perpetrated through the agency

190

of

f u l f i l m e n t ,

the §ugudu

made

for

the, oc ca si on cea ses

to be an

Orisa

and

-is

destroyed.

Whenever

anyone wishes,

to revenge himself

on

another

s e c r e t l y , he co ns ul ts a

babalawo.

The babalawo then makes a

short and bulky image of a human being. The image i s

made

of

c l a y and i s adorned with cowrie s h e l l s .

Sometimes

a t hi ck

blunted

cone

of c l a y i s used. The babalawo then s e t s to

"develop" the image or c l a y in to an

Orisa.

By way of

preparation for t h i s , he had mixed the c l a y with some drugs..

When the

image

i s

completed

or the

cone

of

c l a y

i s selec ted



he applie s se ve ra l charms to i t and r e c i t e s some inca ntation

over i t . Thi s proc ess of "development" sometimes' takes about

a week

to complete. At l a s t the image or c l a y has attained

to the s ta tu s of Orisa .Sugudu. I t has become endowed with

supernatural power to i n f l i c t

i n j u r y

on the person for

whose

r u i n i t was made. I t i s c r e d i t e d

with powers

of motion.

I t

l a be li ev ed that i t can be sent out a t night to ca r ry out

i t s e v i l

mission.

The person against whom i t i s sent may escape

i n j u r y

i f

1i91

The sender of the

Sugudu must

remain

awake

while i t i s

on i t s

mission.

I f he were to f a l l asleep, the e v i l that he

had

planned fo r another pe rson

would f a l l

on h i s own

head.

The Sugudu w i l l immediately return and

i n f l i c t

grievous

bodily

harm

or the

punishment

of death on the sender.

The writer does not be li ev e i n the ex is te nc e of a

§ugudu

who

moves,

about and

performs deeds

such as are described

above or are

more

v i v i d l y described by Mr, I . C D e l a n o in h i s

book

e n t i t l e d ,

"The Soul of

Nigeria".



The best explanation of the phenomenon i s that

which

has been o ff er ed by the l a t e Professor

Abayomi

Col e of

S i e r r a Leone. He be li ev es tha t the

Sugudu

denonplogy operates

on .the ba si s of

thought projection.

A l l the babslawo)

does

i s too.

project

h i s

thought

to another person, v/ishing him

serious

i n j u r y

or

death.

He develops h i s w i l l power i n

projecting

the

thought

by c oncentr ating hi s at te nt io n on

Sugudu as a ma te ri al medium f o r accomplishing h i s

purpose,

the medium gr ea tl y helpin g to strengthen h is w i l l .

Under

192

The; word

E-pu-gu-du c o n s i s t s :

o f

three partav §u£Shu)

i s

a modified,

form of.

Sut

eac

Shu,

the:-

Ancient Egyp tian

god

1

wiiose;

c h a r a c t e r

has; been

sketched , abQnre. @ui

i s

a

modif iedL

faanaa: of

Khu„ s p i r i t ,

and

du

i s

the; an ci en t Egy pti an w.or& for'

mountain* The;

v/orJd SXigudu* therefore, means;

r

Su ('Shu), th e

s p i r i t of

the;

mountain,"

Hi:

may be;

thus seen

that

S^lugudu i s

also

a

s u r v i v a l

o f

the-

god.

Sut:.

our Shu whi ch

has.-

been

i d e n t i f i e d with thee Yoamba

god; Eteu (Eshu),



The;

worship;

o f

Sugudu

i s

similar.'

to;

that

of

ESAU,

Hence)

• 2

BlV Wariatow says;

that

Sugudu

i s

akin

to

E'au,

The; image; o f

Elsu

i s ; decorated,

wi th cowries;;

so also i s the; image; of

S^ugudtai.

E$u

i s an

e v i l

and

f i g h t i n g d f e i t y s

he

received, human: s a c r i -

f i c e s This: i s ; also true;

o f

Stagudu,

towhorai

human s a c r i f i c e )

use&l

to

be offered

i n

bygone days;

when

i t s ;

image was.

s t i l l .

i«:.the; process,

of "MI eveiapment"

to

the; status

of a n

Orisa,^

According

to the

Anci ent Egyptians;

:

S i t

was

the

s p i r i t

o f

the::

mountain,,

stone

and.

sand ,

the

redl

and.

a r i d , ground, as;

193

the

redL

eart h.

These?

considerations

SELOW

that Siugudu i s

another'

s u r v i v a l of the? worship? of Slut, or Shtfe i n

Anciemt

Egypt,



C H A P T E R

PRIESTHOOD

PRAYER

PLACES OF WORSHIP.

X.

4. IMAGES OR IDOLS.

5. TOTEMISM. ,

6.

SECRET SOCIETIES.



194.

CHAPTER X. PRIESTHOOD AND

WORSHIP.

"Man i s the creature of r e l i g i o u s

i n s t i n c t s ,

and must'

worship something", says

Immanuel

Kant. This nec ess ity finds

expression among

"the Yorubas i n the worship of sev eral an imis tic

d e i t i e s

and

s p i r i t s

of ance st or s and i n the r evere nce pa id to

Olorun, the Supreme De it y. The modes of worship va ry i n the

d i f f e r e n t parts of the cou ntr y, but

a l l

spring from the impulse

to worship the higher powers from a sense of need.

Religious

worship has

been

d efin ed as

"a

ki nd of

commerce

P



between

men and

gods".

The inadequacy of

t h i s

d e f i n i t i o n has

been

shown by several w r i t e r s , but the re i s no

doubt

that some

primitive forms of worsh ip l a y undue s t r e s s on the

benefits

derivable from a due performance of the acts of worship. The

c h i e f object of Yoruba r e l i g i o u s worship i s to secu re the a c t i v e

favour

of the

gods,

thereby ensuri ng the p h y s i c a l , mental and

s p i r i t u a l we lf ar e of the worshipp er. The b e l i e f i s strong that

i f

worship i s duly give n to the

gods

and

s p i r i t s ,

they i n

t h e i r

ovnx

195.

consequences

t o th e i n d i v i d u a l or t o th e community. The

e s s e n t i a l

goodness o f t h e gods i s ,

t h e r e f o r e ,

a fundamental' ide a

i n Yoruba r e l i g i o u s worship.

I n t h i s work, t h e word worship i s used i n i t s w id es t sense.

I t embraces b o t h p r i v a t e and corpor ate worship, and includes t he

usual elements

of

worship,

namely,

prayer,

p r a i s e ,

a d o r a t i o n

and

s a c r i f i c e .

I n a book e n t i t l e d The

R e l i g i o u s

Consciousness ,

P r a t t

d i s t i n g u i s h e s

between

two

types

o f

worsh ip which

he

describes

as

t h e

o b j e c t i v e

and the

s u b j e c t i v e .

I n

o b j e c t i v e

worship,

th e



l e a d i n g idea i s t o have i n some way an e f f e c t on God or t o

communicate w i t h Him; w h i l e i n

s u b j e c t i v e

worship, th e aim i s

t o have some s o r t o f e f f e c t on the minds o f th e worshippers .

W h i l s t the sharp d i s t i n c t i o n drawn by P r a t t i s

open

t o c r i t i c i s m

as a drawing i n bl ac k and white o f what can o n l y be represented

t r u t h f u l l y by th e use o f v a r i o u s shades o f gr ey , i t may be used

f o r d e s c r i b i n g the two types found i n Yoruba r e l i g i o u s worship.

The two types do not e x i s t i n w a t e r t i g h t compartments, but i n

some forms o f worship the o b j e c t i v e element i s most prominent

196.

minds

of the wors hipp ers, el ab or at e and

sometimes

grotesque

paraphernalia t o g e t h e r

w i t h s i m i l a r r i t e s

and

ceremonies

form

the e s s e n t i a l f e a t u r e s of the

worship.

Thi s ty pe o f wors hip

g r e a t l y

strengthens the f a i t h of th e worshippe r bo th i n th e

e f f i c a c y

o f th e worsh ip and i n the goodness of the d e i t y .

i s

Yoruba r e l i g i o u s wo rs hi p/ of an emo tio nal ch ar ac te r. The

emotions of ad mi ra ti on , awe and revdrence play a

p r i n c i p a l

p a r t

i n the wors hip.

Whichever

of these

emotions

i s

c a l l e d

i n t o play

u s u a l l y

throws the

i n t e l l e c t u a l

si de of the wors hip

i n t o

the



background. The emotio n o f f e a r i s wfttKm o f t e n e x c i t e d as a

simple emotion; but i t i s

sometimes

fused w i t h ad miratio n,

r e s u l t i n g

i n the complex emotion of awe. Th is ex pl ai ns th e

worship of malevol ent

d e i t i e s

such as Ele gba ra who i s worsh ipped

owing to the f e a r o f h i s malevolence and t o th e ad mi ra ti on o f

h i s g r e a t s t r e n g t h .

The sent imen t of lo ve i s

s t r o n g l y

manifested i n Yoruba worship,

i s

b u t

i t / n o t

so overwhelming as t o

deepen

i n t o

mysticism.

PRIESTHOOD.

197„

Among th e Yorubas, p r i e s t s occupy p o s i t i o n s of gr eat re spe ct

i n

t h e community. Dr.

MacDougall

considers

t h a t

there

ar e a few

human

bein gs able t o exercis e reverence, and

t h a t

those who do are

g e n e r a l l y

regarded as th e m i n i s t e r s and dispensers o f d i v i n e power.

The c h i e f

p r i e s t s

i n

Yorubaland

enj oy gr ea t re sp ec t almost

amounting

t o reverence, e s p e c i a l l y t h e Babalawos and those who

o f f e r p r o p i t i a t o r y s a c r i f i c e s t o much dreaded d e i t i e s . They are

given

t i t l e s

which place them on a high pedestal i n society. I n

1

some

p a r t s of t he coun try, they ar e more powe rfu l than t h e c h i e f s .

I n

a l l i mp o rt a nt

Yoruba towns

there

a re Ogboni o r

s i m i l a r

2



s o c i e t i e s . The Ogboni G u i l d has been described above as a

s e c r e t

s o c i e t y w i e l d i n g

tremendous power i n each to wn or v i l l a g e .

I t s

f u n c t i o n s have a l s o been described. I t should be not ed h ere ,

however, t h a t th e Ogboni G u i l d o f t e n performs the f u n c t i o n s o f

p r i e s t s .

The head o f the Ogboni G u i l d i n each town or v i l l a g e i s

known as

E k e j i Orisa,

Next t o the Gods , and t h i s t i t l e i s an

i n d i c a t i o n of the

p r i e s t l y

character of the

G t t i l d .

An acc ount o f th e

orders

i n the Yoruba

priesthood w i l l

now

be given.

198.

W i t h i n t h i s

order the re a r e va ri ou s grades. The f i r s t

grade

i s

t h a t

o f Oluwo o r t h e

senior

c h i e f

t o

whom

a l l

t h e

members

o f

t h e

order owe the d u t i e s o f l o y a l t y and obedience. Next somes

t h e A.iigbona. t h e

c h i e f a s s i s t a n t

t o t h e Oluwo.

A f t e r

h i m

comes

t h e Odofin, t h e

Oluwo's

deputy, who i s second i n rank t o Oluwo;

when a c t i n g as a deputy, t h e Ajigbona fu nct ion s as th e Chi ef

a s s i s t a n t t o hi m. The t h i r d p r i e s t i n

rank

i s t h e Ar o, who

acts

as deputy f o r h i s t wo s e n i o r s , when both a r e absent. The next i n

rank i s t h e Asare-Pawo, t h e messenger who

summons meetings

and

prepares

t h e

l i e

Osugbo or

l i e

Odi

(t he place

o f

meeting);

he

has a deputy

named Asawo.

The

c h i e f

p r i e s t e s s o f

t h i s

order i s

known as Apetebi o r Esu or

Awayo

a nd i s regarded as th e wi fe

o f Orunmila although i n r e a l i t y she may be t h e w i f e o f t h e c h i e f

p r i e s t or o f any

other p r i e s t .

The p r i e s t who

f u n c t i o n s

as

executioner

i s known as Aworo; he takes precedence over a l l the

remaining p r i e s t s o f t h i s order who have n o t been

s p e c i f i c a l l y

mentioned. A l l these

p r i e s t s

and

p rie ste sse s belong

t o t h e

f i r s t

rank.



The second rank o f t h e f i r s t order con sis ts o f t h e p r i e s t s

199.

A Babalawo's i n s i g n i a o f

o f f i c e

are a

w r i s t l e t

o f

palm

f i b r e

o r o f w h i t e , b l u e a nd r e d

beads,

an

I r u k e r e

b u l l o c k ' s o r

cow's

t a i l , and a sa cr ed

s t a f f .

The s t a f f may assume one o f th e f o l l o w -

i n g

forms

- (a) a p l a i n

wooden

r o d ( b ) a r o d w i t h a

rounded

t o p

( c ) a

wooden

o r i r o n r o d o r s t a f f shaped

l i k e

an Ukere s t i c k

d e s c r i b e d i n a

l a t e r

c h a p t e r ( d ) a s t a f f shaped l i k e an Ada o r

c r o o k d e s c r i b e d a l s o i n a l a t e r c h a p t e r .

1

The

second Order.

The second o r d e r o f p r i e s t s i n c l u d e s .

( 1 ) t h e

p r i e s t s

o f

Sango

(Shango).

These

a r e t h e

Magbas,



t h a t i s , a c h i e f p r i e s t and h i s t w e l v e a s s i s t a n t s .

They r e s i d e near t h e town o f Kuso, t h e s p o t a t which

§ango i s s a i d t o

have

descended f r o m heaven i n t o the

e a r t h .

I n

t h e i r

absenc e, each

town

o r

v i l l a g e

h as i t s

own

Magbas.

The p r i e s t s a r e a l s o known as Oni-Sango o r Odu-

Shu-Sango.

(2) The p r i e s t s o f a l l t h e o t h e r Orisas except Orisa Oko.

These f o r m t h e second r a n k o f t h e o r d e r .



201.

Babalawo, the course i s long and expensive. Th is has been

described i n

Chapter IV

above. The course i s sometimes shortened,

and no one has been found who has

gone

through such a long and

thorough course

as t o

enable

him t o

perfo rm the

f e a t o f r e c i t i n g

the

4096

I f a St or ies from memory.

Candidates f o r

t he

other priest hoods also

undeggo a n o v i t i a t e

o f a more or less dur ation . The t r a i n i n g , e s p e c i a l l y i n t he cases

o f

the p r i e s t s o f Arpni and Osahin, i s considered indispe nsable .

Among the Eguns o f

Badagry,

the next door neighbours o f th e

Yorubas - th e priesthoo d i s

w e l l

organized arid the period o f



t r a i n i n g

i s long. Youths

are

sent

t o

heathen c o l l e g e s

and

tak e

a course o f i n s t r u c t i o n i n heathenism f o r a p e r i o d o f

seven

years. This pe ri od has now been shortened t o f i v e o r threeye ars.

The

t r a i n i n g

given du ri ng the pe ri od i s

so

thorough

t h a t a

century

o f C h r i s t i a n t e a ch i ng has made very l i t t l e impression on the people

o f Badagry. Mohammedan i n f i l t r a t i o n also has been n e g l i g i b l e ,

w h i l s t

heathen temples f a r

outhhine many o f

the other bu il di ng s

i n

the

town

and

heathen

p r i e s t s

engaged

i n propagating

t h e i r

tenets

as a c o u n te r a c t i o n t o C h r i s t i a n propaganda can be seen i n th e

?,02,

v a r i o u s

methods. Some

us© th e method known as Keke T h i s i s

done

by

c a s t i n g

l o t s by means o f

s m a l l

s t i c k s

and

s t a l k s

o f

g r a s s ,

each r e p r e s e n t i n g an i n d i v i d u a l . Others use t h e

method

known as

Gogo. T h i s i s

done

by drawing l o t s by means of a number o f gra ss

s t a l k s , one of which i s b e n t , the g u i l t y person b e i n g b e l i e v e d

t o

be

a b l e

t o

draw

the

bent

s t a l k

w i t h o u t f a i l .

( 3 )

They

conduct

t r i a l s by o r d e a l , th e re b y e n f o r c i n g m o r a l i t y ,

prepare and s e l l charms,

.

amulets and

o t h e r j u j u s

i n

t h e i r

s t o c k - i n - f c r a d e .

I n o r d e r to p e r f o r m these d e l i c a t e and i m p o r t a n t f u n c t i o n s

s a t i s f a c t o r i l y ,

p r i e s t s

are

regarded

as

s a c r o s a n c t

and

t h e i r

persons are

i n v i o l a b l e .

I n s u l t or

v i o l e n c e o f f e r e d

to

p r i e s t s

i s



always

s e v e r e l y

punished.

The o f f i c e o f a p r i e s t or p r i e s t e s s i s h e r e d i t a r y i n the

f a m i l y . I t i s regarded as an honour t o the f a m i l y . I n the case

o f O r i s a Oko, t he o f f i c e i s c o m p u l s o r i l y h e r e d i t a r y , as the

i r o n

s t a f f

-

emblem

of the god -

cannot

be got r i d of when once i t

i s

i n t r o d u c e d i n t o the f a m i l y .

The p u b l i c p r i e s t h o o d

does

not

c o n f l i c t

w i t h or

e l i m i n a t e

t h e f a m i l y p r i e s t h o o d .

Almost

w i t h o u t e x c e p t i o n , every f a m i l y

-

203.

H i s t o r i c a l Connection of Prie stho od w it h Ancient Egypt.

The

account

o f

the

Yoruba

priesthood

j u s t

given

cannot

b u t

r e f l e c t the i n f l u e n c e o f the r e l i g i o n o f Ancient Egypt on t h a t o f

the Yorubas.

A few p o i n t s o f s i m i l a r i t y i n regard to the priesthood may now

be noted.

-

o f p r i e s t s

F i r s t , there

i s

s i m i l a r i t y

i n

regard

t o the

p o s i t i o n / i n

each

country. On t h i s s u b j e c t , Diodorus says about the Egyp tian

p r i e s t h o o d - The p r i e s t s are i n great c r e d i t and a u t h o r i t y

amongst the i n h a b i t a n t s o f the country as w e l l because they

have



the cure and care o f d i v i n e t h i n g s , as f o r t h a t they are

f u l l

o f

knowledge and

d o c t r i n e

and do

teach oth ers

These

p r i e s t s

are

c a l l e d

t o

a s s i s t

the Kings w i t h t h e i r counsel i n matte rs o f

great importance, f o r e t e l l i n g things t o come

u l

Compare

t h i s statement wi t h account o f the p o s i t i o n and f u n c t i o n s o f

p r i e s t s

given above.

Secondly, the

o f f i c e

o f a p r i e s t e s s was h e r e d i t a r y i n

Ancient

Egypt.

According

t o

S i r Fli nde rs Pe tr ie the

t i t l e

2

204.

s i n g e r s ,

the inmates of the house o f women. The

s i n g e r s f o r m

th e

harem o f

t h e

god.

F o u r t h l y ,

the ceremony of

c o n s e c r a t i n g

a young v i r g i n t o

g

O r i s a Oko i n Yorubaland i s

i d e n t i c a l

i n almost

every

r e s p e c t

w i t h

t h e

ceremony o f

d e d i c a t i n g

a v i r g i n of th e

g r e a t e s t

beauty t o

Amen.^ The l i c e n c e g r a n t e d t o

each

o f them and t h e ceremonies o f

p u r i f i c a t i o n are i d e n t i c a l .

The

o r i g i n o f the

w h i t e

and th e r ed

c o l o u r s

or of th e

w h i t e

c o l o u r of th e

p r i e s t l y i n s i g n i a

has

been

t r a c e d to A n c i e n t Egypt

i n Chapter V I ,

S e c t i o n

l

O r i s a

Oko.



A few words used i n c o n n e c t i o n

w i t h

t h e p r i e s t h o o d a l s o

deserve

a t t e n t i o n . The t i t l e o f an

o r d i n a r y

p r i e s t

i n A n c i e n t

Egypt was ue-b or

u-eb,

t h a t i s

pure

one or washer .

I t

i s

remarkable

t h a t

two Yoruba words are d e r i v e d f r om

t h i s

word. The

f i r s t i s we wash , p u r i f y , and the

second i s

ebo s a c r i f i c e ,

t h a t

which has

been p u r i f i e d

and

o f f e r e d

to a

d e i t y .

Sua

( P l u r a l Suau) another t i t l e of

E g y p t i a n

p r i e s t s

s u r v i v e s

i n

Yoruba.

Sua means

c o n s e c r a t e , s e t a p a r t

by

washing .

The

wo rd

s u r v i v e s i n the Yoruba word S a ( n ) which means t o c l e a n s e , t o

205.

The

word Kher-ib

or Khar-ib was t h e t i t l e o f a p r i e s t or

magician i n Anc ien t Egypt. Some Yoruba

words

a r e de ri ve d from

the t i t l e .

For

example: A-ka-ri-gbo,

(K h become K, er

becomin g

a and b

becoming

t h e t h i c k

l a b i a l

p e c u l i a r t o West A f r i c a n

Languages),

and

Akarigb e-re. Akarigbo

was,

according

t o

Yoruba

t r a d i t i o n ,

f o r m e r l y a

p r i e s t ,

b u t t h e t i t l e i s now

used

f o r t h e

paramount c h i e f o f I j e b u Remo, a d i s t r i c t i n Yorubaland.

A-ka-ri-gbe-re

i s t h e

t i t l e

o f one o f t h e

c h i e f p r i e s t s connected

w i t h Adamu-orisa

i n

Lagos.

The

phonetic

m o d i f i c a t i o n o f

Kherib

t o

A-ka-ri-gbe-re

i s

almost

i d e n t i c a l

w i t h t h a t

o f

Akarigbo

;just

noted;

t h e

f i n a l

s y l l a b l e - r e

which

i s

de ri ve d from

Re, t h e Sun-

god, suggesting t h a t Akarigbe-re was

o r i g i n a l l y

t h e c h i e f p r i e s t

o f

Re or Ra,

t h e Sun-god,

as

i n An ci en t Egypt.



Another

word

de ri ve d from Kher-ib

i s

Ke-ri-bo,

a

popular

name

among t h e

Egbas.

Some o f t h e p r i e s t l y t i t l e s

which

a r e o f

Egyptian o r i g i n

have

been explained

i n t h e

prece ding chapt ers.

P R A Y E R .

y

The

Yorubas f i r m l y b e l i e v e

i n t h e

e f f i c a c y

o f

prayer.

They

806 o

prayers.

This proneness t o pr ay er i s due to th e op er at io n of th re e

important f a c t o r s . The f i r s t of these i s th e ope ra ti on of the

n a t u r a l human impulse t o seek f o r hel p from the unseen powers

b e l i e v e d

t o

possess

o b j e c t i v e

exi st en ce . The

second

i s the opera-

t i o n

of the

i n s t i n c t

f o r

s e l f - p r e s e r v a t i o n

which i s

c o n s t a n t l y

s t i m u l a t e d

i n a p r i m i t i v e

community

where

l i f e

i s

much exposed

t o

danger

owing t o the ign ora nce of

many

o f th e laws of nat ure . The

t h i r d

f a c t o r i s the oper at io n of the

b e l i e f f i r m l y

roo ted i n the

mind

o f

West

A f r i c a n s g e n e r a l l y

t h a t

ther e i s constant

i n t e r a c t i o n

between s p i r i t and matter, t h a t s p i r i t s and gods take a c t i v e



i n t e r e s t

i n human be in gs and t h a t t he fa vo ur of the for mer

can

be

secure d by the l a t t e r by appro priat e means, and t h a t th e fo rc es

o f

the wo rl d are

d i r e c t e d

by

i n t e l l i g e n c e .

Such

a

b e l i e f

as

t h i s

i n e v i t a b l y te nds t o devel op one o f t h e

g r e a t e s t

o f Roman v i r t u e s ,

namely, p i e t a s

or submiss ion t o th e

w i l l

o f God or of t h e d e i t i e s

and

s p i r i t s .

Prayers are o f f e r e d to O loru n, the

Supreme D e i t y .

As the

D e i t y

i s on ly revere nced and not worshipped, pr ay er s t o him are

207.

i n

i t s

w a l l s j

lamps

were c o n t i n u a l l y

kep t bur nin g before them, and

small

d a i l y o f f e r i n g s

were

made t o

them,

over

and

above

what

f e l l

t o t h e i r share on solemn f e a s t

days.

I n r e t u r n they

become

t he

t s

p r o t e c t o r s ,

i t s g ua r di a ns ,

and/counsellors.

Appeal was made t o

them

i n ev ery exigency:.:' of d a i l y

l i f e .

1

Thi s statement i s

t r u e i n almost every d e t a i l i n regard t o the Yoruba worship o f

household d e i t i e s t o whom prayers and o f f e r i n g s are c o n s t a n t l y made.

Pour postures o f prayer are recognized by the Yorubas. These

are p r o s t r a t i o n , g e n u f l e x i o n , k n e e l i n g , and postu res determined b y

rhythmic movements o f the body when dancing.

The

d i f f e r e n t

o r i s a s

have

separate days o f worship. Th is i s



e x a c t l y

as i t was i n Anci ent Egypt. Pro f.

Wiedemann says

about

t h e A ncie nt Egyptians - Each month was pre sid ed over b y a c e r t a i n

d e i t y

Late

t e x t s

r epre sent every

day of

the

month

as

dedicated t o a c e r t a i n d e i t y . This

system

of

a l l o t t i n g

a

p a r t i c u l a r day t o each d e i t y serves as a basis f o r the c a l c u l a t i o n

o f the Yoruba

week

and f o r the r o t a t i o n o f

mar ket days.

The

day

sacred

t o any

p a r t i c u l a r d e i t y

i s observed

as a day

as

208.

nine

days

and of seventeen

days

r e s p e c t i v e l y .

The

l i s t

of

days

and t h e i r p r e s i d i n g d e i t i e s

are

as f o l l o w s : -

l s t .

Day: Esu o r I f a or Awo.

2nd.

Day:

Qbatala

or O r i s a l a

3 r d .

Day: Odudua or Ogun

4 t h . Day:

Jakuta.

I t

i s

e.asy

to

see

t h a t t h e

above system i s o f Egyptian o r i g i n .

The names of a l l the

d e i t i e s

i n the l i s t are a l l

d e r i v e d

from

Egyptian

words and

the d e i t i e s themselves are a l l s u r v i v a l s

o f

Egyptian

d e i t i e s .

E$u i n the above l i s t i s

a

s u r v i v a l

o f Shu

who,

as

i t

has



been

p o i n t e d

out b e f o r e , was i d e n t i f i e d

w i t h

Ra and through him

w i t h O s i r i s .

Hence the t i t l e o f

O s i r i s ,

I f a

( A n c i e n t

Egyptian

N e f e r ) ,

i s

used a

s u b s t i t u t e

f o r

Esu.

Awo

(A-wo, A-hwo,

A-khu-o) i s probably

d e r i v e d

from Khu; i t means an unknown

e n t i t y , a

s e c r e t

Qbatala i s the same

d e i t y

as O r i s a l a . Odudua means Lord or

Mistress

o f the under-world and i s a t i t l e

a p p l i e d

t o

O s i r i s

o r

h i s consort

as

the p r e s i d i n g d e i t i e s

o f

the underworld. Ogun i s

Yoruba • Anc ien t Egy pti an

1 . Esu (E-shu) ' Shu (husband of

T a f n u i t )

1

2.

Obatala

Sibu

(husband

of Nu it )

3. Odudua O s i r i s (husband o f

I s i s )

4. Jakuta S i t (husband o f Nephthys) or

Ptah or Mih.

Esu

corresp onds t o Shu,

Qbatala

corresponds t o Si bu , since

qbatala

has been

i d e n t i f i e d

w i t h Khnum and bo th Sibu and Khnum are

c r e a t o r

gods;

Odudua

i s here reg ard ed as a

male

d e i t y

and corres-

ponds to O s i r i s Lor d of the unde rwor ld ; Jakut a correspond s t o

1

S i t , the Egypt ian

w a r r i o r

god, o r t o Pt ah o r Min.

The exi ste nce o f

Thot

the

p r e s i d i n g d e i t y seems

t o be reco g-

n i z e d by the Yorubas, i n view o f t h e i r co nst ant use of the word



f i v e

ins tead of

f o u r

as the

number

o f days. The i n s i s t e n c e on the

word

f i v e may not be e n t i r e l y due to

i n c l u s i v e method

of reckoning.

The Hermopolitan Ogdoad seems t o surv ive i n the ex tensi on of

Yoruba

week

from

f o u r

t o

e i g h t

days. The

s u r v i v a l

o f the wives o f

the

gods as serpent-headed d e i t i e s has been noted i n a pre vio us

chap ter. I t should not be s u r p r i s i n g i f the male and fro g-head ed

d e i t i e s

a ls o su rv iv e i n Yorubaland. As a mat ter o f

f a c t ,

they

s u r v i v e

i n an

i n d i r e c t

way. I n a

p i c t u r e

drawn

by

Faucher-G-udin

from a phot ogra ph by Beato and reproduced by Pr ofe sso r Maspero the

210.

word Ogdo-ad

i s

a p p l i e d to

another

o b j e c t c o n t a i n i n g f r o g s

whi ch

have

come to be

regarded

as

d e i t i e s .

That

o b j e c t

i s

a

pond,

and

hence

the

Yoruba wor d f o r

a

pond c o n t a i n i n g f ro g s

i s

O-go-do

which

i s c e r t a i n l y a m o d i f i c a t i o n o f the Greek wor d

Og-do-ad.

Egypt tm as

The e i g h t gods were known c o l l e c t i v e l y i n Ancien^/ Khominu.

This

word s u r v i v e s i n Yoruba i n the name Qsi-Kominu, O s i r i s ,

(one)

o f the e i g h t

gods.

The word

Monad a p p l i e d t o

Thot

the l e a d e r of the

e i g h t gods

s u r v i v e s i n t h e Yoruba words mu-na sharp ,

s t r o n g and

A-mona a

l e a d e r ,

a guide

words r e m i n i s c e n t of

the

s t r e n g t h

and l e a d e r s h i p of Thot .



The Yoruba wor d f o r

a f r o g

i s

d e r i v e d from

t h e

c o l l e c t i o n of

frog-headed

d e i t i e s i n the

Ogdoad.

The

w or d f o r

a

f r o g i s

Q

-pq-lp;

p

_2

i s a

m o d i f i e d

form o f pau, many , and l o i s a

m o d i f i e d

form

o f l a ,

, , n

Egyptian

godV.

O-po 19 t h e r e f o r e means

many

gods

-

an obvious r e f e r e n c e t o the

l a r g e

number o f gods c o l l e c t i v e l y

f o r m i n g th e

Ogdo-ad.

The

s u r v i v a l

of the name of the

Egyptian

god

Thot

has

been

noted

i n Chapter

1

above.

211.

hence they usually have

a few

ad di ti on al days, ranging between

two

and

f i v e i n number, which are

known as

Ako-pjo

and are

observed

as

days

of

r e s t .

The

claims

of the

gods

to

which

the

days

are

sacred are superseded.

The

only

god who

could

be

worshipped

on such days i s

0-s^. The

days

do not

enter into

the

calcu latio n

of the. '.•week

and

are t herefo re intercalatory.

Later Ako

3 became i d e n t i f i e d with

the

f i r s t

day of the

week ,

thereby giving i t s name and c h a r a c t e r as a day of r e s t to

the l a t t e r .

I t

should

be

observed tha t the

word

O-se

comes

from

Set,

the

Greek form of

the Egyptian de it y S i t

or

Sut

who has

been confused



with Shu by the Yorubas.

Some of the

minor o r i s a s

may be

worshipped

on the

same

day

as

the one

appointed fo r

a major o r i s a .

Care must

be

taken,

however,

to

offer

the

prayer

or

s a c r i f i c e appropriate

to

each deity.

PLACES

OF WORSHIP.

Some of the Yoruba gods can be worshipped anywhere, but others

BH^wggwtTdsgax^ TPXffxw g nfywi tini

must

be

worshipped

i n

appropr iate

places.

212

of a s i m i l a r custom among the Ancient Egyptia ns. According to

F l i n d e r s P e t r i e I n

the houses (of the

Ancient Egyp tian s) there

were

permanent

places of worship,

marked

by a recess i n the main

h a l l ,

about 2

f e e t wide coloured red.

The shrine

of

Esu,

as

i t

has

been pointed

out

above, i s made

outside

the

house

or

town.

I d o l

houses may be seen i n towns. These are g e n e r a l l y con-

stipucted with

palm

leaves and roofed w ith thatch.

I n some of the large towns

where

the worship of the god i s

c a r r i e d

on by

t r a i n e d

and well-established

priesthoods,

more

s o l i d b u i l d i n g s

are

erected.

For

example,

the

temple

of

Osun



a t Osogbo

i s a s o l i d b u i l d i n g

where

the paraphernalia of the

god are scru pulo usly kept by the

p r i e s t s ,

although the god i s

worshipped p r i m a r i l y on the

bank

of the r i v e r bearing the name

of the god.

Some of the gods are worshipped i n groves . These are

places

where

the

thickness

of the

bush lends i t s e l f r e a d i l y

to

the occult

and

sometimes nefarious practices c a r r i e d

on

there in.

Not far

from

the grove there i s a warning by means of a red

f l a g



213.

the e f f i c a c y of the j u j u serves as an e f f i c i e n t

check

to the

would-be

intrud ers.

The Yoruba

word f o r

a

grove

i s

Igbo.

To

t h i s word

i s

attached the appropriate name of the god

worshipped

i n any

p a r t i -

c u l a r grove. For example, Igbo Pro, ( u s u a l l y

contract ed to

Igboro) i s the

grove

of th e god Oro ,

Igbo AgeraoXn),

the

grove of Agemp(n) , Igbo Elu ku, the grove of Eluk u and so

f o r t h .

.

The s o l i d

temples

to

which

p r i e s t s are attached are

f a i r l y

clean;

they are swept

p e r i o d i c a l l y , e s p e c i a l l y

on

Ako-ojo

extra-

ordinary or

i n t e r c a l a t o r y

days and al so i n prep arat ion for



approaching f e s t i v a l s . The stench of groves where there have

bee n

animal s a c r i f i c e s i s inde scri bable , but

some

of the other

groves

are kept

clean.

The

temple

of O risa Oko i s

found

i n every

town

or

v i l l a g e .

I n

order to

f a c i l i t a t e

the sett leme nt of dis put es between

p a r t i e s ,

elaborate

accommodation

i s provid ed for the

o f f i c i a t i n g p r i e s t s

and the pa ra ph er na li a of the god. The method of s e t t l i n g

disputes

i n

t h i s

temple

has been des cri bed i n a previ ous chapter.

214.

±

Omo-a-riwo. The word riwo

seems

to be a modifie d

form

of

r i v o ;

the

phrase a r i v o then means

from

the

r i v e r

i.e. the

River

Nile. Omo means a c h i l d . The

palm

frond i s ther efor e

regard ed as the

c h i l d from

the

r i v e r , that i s , what grows

i n

t h e s o i l a f t e r

innundation.

The phrase a r i v o also seems to survive i n the

Yoruba

word

a

- riwo .

noise

l i t e r a l l y ,

that

which

comes

from

the

r i v e r ,

that

which i s produced by the ru sh in g of the wa te rs of the

r i v e r

( N i l e ) . Another

s u r v i v a l

o f the ph rase may be found i n the word

a-riwa,

north i . e . the d i r e c t i o n i n which t he

River

Nile

flows.

That

t h i s

explanation i s probably correct i s suggeste d by

the f a c t

the

Yoruba

word fo r south i s gu-su, that i s IQiu-su.



Su i s a

part

of the

word Am-su,

a

r i v e r

god i n Anc ien t Egypt.

Gu-su

therefore means the soul of the

r i v e r

i . e .

the.source

of

the

River

Nile

which

l i e s

i n a count ry south of Anci ent Egypt.

Another

s u r v i v a l from

the L a t i n

Language which

may be noted her e

word

i s

the Yoruba^turari, frank incen ce ; the L a t i n word for frank-

incence i s t u r a l i - s or

t u r a r i - s .

The

L a t i n word

fere almost

survives

i n

i t s

e n t i r e

form

815.

and even of Roman in fl ue nc e penetr ated to the Gul f of Guinea

on the Gold Coa st and i n Ben in

The

word

Igbo i s of Egy pti an o r i g i n ; i t comes from the

word

bau

( s o u l S ) ,

the thick

bush

bein g rega rded a s the abode of souls

or s p i r i t s . The word Odi comes

from

the

name

of the E gy pt ia n

god Od or Ot (A at ) . The

word Osu-gbo means

the cons ecra ted

persons - to the 'ba' or inc arn ate so ul of the

t r i b e

or nation

and i s use d by the wo rshippers of the god Oro who has

been

i d e n t i f i e d i n a prev iou s cha pte r wi th Orion - sahu.

IMAGES OR

IDOLS.

Most images i n Yorubaland are

made

of wood or c l a y . Some



of the wooden images are

b e a u t i f u l l y

carved; thes e

show traces

of Egypti an o r i g i n . The images of Sugudu and a few other

d e i t i e s

are

made

of

c l a y .

Esu ( or Elegbar-a) i s re pr es en ted by a stone

which i s treated as an i d o l . Iron i s used both as a

symbol

and

as

an

i d o l

of the god Ogun.

I t may be noted here that j u s t as i n Anc ien t Egypt t her e

were

p e r i o d i c a l

processions of the

Horus-gods,

so

also

there are

processions of o r i s a s , e s p e c i a l l y of the s p i r i t gods i n Yoruba-

216.

courtyard

of each compound.

Portable

images

e x i s t ,

and these are used more as protective

o r t u t e l a r y d e i t i e s than fo r the purpose o f wor shi p.

When one of twin

c h i l d r e n d i e s ,

the mother has to make a

wooden image o f the decease d c h i l d and c a r r y i t about; otherwise,

e v i l w i l l

b e f a l l

the

s u r v i v in g c h i l d

or i t

w i l l

di e and

r e j o i n

the

company

of twins i n the s p i r i t world.

Images f o r a

p a r t i c u l a r i n d i v i d u a l

are destroyed

a f t e r

the

person's death; the s p i r i t or the gu ar di an ang el of the images i s

supposed to have

l e f t

them,

thereby

reducing

the images to the

l e v e l

of mere material

substances.



The Yoruba word fo r an

i d o l

i s

O r i s a ,

the Egyptian

o r i g i n

o f

which has been given .in chapter

I I I

above. The word f o r an

i s

image i s ere. This/probably derived from the Egy pt ia n q.-ere-s,

an image - - q. i s dropped because most Yoruba nouns begin with

a

vowel; the f i n a l consonant which does not

r e c e i v e

a vowel to

form a new

s y l l a b l e

i s always dropped i n Yoruba.

I

0 T E

II

I 8 M.

2 1 7 .

a great pa rt i n

moulding

the

shape

of the

Yoruba r e l i g i o n

and

l e f t i t s

traces

i n the lar ge

number

of tabus or ewos observed

at present by the Yorubas.

Totemism,

as several writers have poi nte d out, i s a stage o f

society

through

which

every ra ce has to pas s.

Some

ra ces or

t r i b e s

pass

from

t h i s

stage to

that

of animal worship. The stronger the

t o t e r a i s t i c

b e l i e f , the e a s i e r the

t r a n s i t i o n

to animal worship.

For example,

among

the Ancient Egyptian s where totemism was strong ,

2

animal worship was widespread and pronounced.

Although

totemism

i s

not so strong in Yorubaland, ye t i t develops to the stage of

animal worship

among some

of the

t r i b e s .



I t

should be noted

that

i n Yorubaland as

well

a s i n other

parts

of

West

A f r i c a , the

totem

i s not regarded as a god. I t i s

regarded

more

as a fa t he r or a gran dfat her or a bro ther . For

..example,

i n Ashanti on the Gold C oas t, the

totem-animal

i s

addressed as

grandfather ,

and

t h i s same t i t l e

i s app lie d to the

King of As hant i who, acc ord ing to a

well-known West

Afr ica n idea ,

i s

the inc arn ate so ul of the

t r i b e .

Among

the Yorul>;as the leopa rd-

totem

i s regarded as a bro ther ; any

member

of the leo par d

c l a n

218.

more

/ c i v i l i z e d

communities,

r e s t s

on an agreement to a common b e l i e f .

The re as on f o r the acceptance of the totem may not be easy to

t r a c e . I t may be

that

the c l a n or t r i b e i s regarded as possess ing

some a f f i n i t y with the totem; i t may be that the totem i s

regarded as the incarnate form of ancestors of the t r i b e .

1

I t may

be

that

an ancestor or a

leading

person i n the

community

i s

believed to have been metamorphosed into the animal-totem which

must therefore be never injured. Whatever the reason may be, the

influence of

the totem saf egu ard s the

unity of

the t r i b e .

a

The Yoruba word for/totem i s O r i l e . The v/ord denotes a



parent

stock, a

family

o r i g i n or a totem. A few of the o r i l e

names

are:

Iji-mere

( r e d monkey or baboon); Agbo (ram); Ekun

( t i g e r ) ; Aniotekun (leopard); Efon

( B u f f a l o ) ;

A-gbo(n)-ri(n)

h a r t or s t a g ) ; Edu(n) (monkey); E r i ( n ) (elephant); Ika(n)

(rope); Opo (post or p i l l a r ) ;

Ogu(n)

( i r o n , o r i g i n a l l y the god

of i r o n ) ; Ele-gu-gu ( c r o c o d i l e ) .

I n most parts of Yorubaland the tabus and the proper reg ard

due to the totem have been forgotten; the

o r i l e s

merely remain as

family or c l a n names and as symbols of unity. Among t he

E k i t i s

the

8 1 9 .

O r i - l e

means

the c h i e f quarter i . e . headquarters ( o r i comes

from

the Egyptian word hor top, head ).

The Egyptian o r i g i n of

Ekun, Amoteku(n)

and

Ogun

has

been

noted i n the preceding ch ap te rs . The

f u l l form

of the

word

Iji-mere

i s

Iji-omo-ere;

I j i comes from

the West

African word 'ye'

and denotes a

l i v i n g

being ;

qmp

means

a

c h i l d ;

re i s the

name.of the Egyptian god Re. Iji-mere therefore

means

a

l i v i n g

being, the c h i l d of Re .

This name d e f i n i t e l y

r e f e r s to the h i s t o -

r i c a l f a c t

that i n Anci ent Egypt

apes

or

baboon

which used to

adore the s o l a r

disk

i n h i s bark w ith songs

were

regarded as the

children

or favourite se rv an ts of Ra.



A-gbo (ram) i s a mo di fi ca ti on of the Egy ptia n word ba or bau

( s o u l

or

souls ,

the ram totem be ing reg ard ed as an

incarnation

of

the

soul

or

souls

of the

c l a n .

E-fon

i s probably derived

from

Ty-phon. A-gbo (n)- ri(n) contai ns the word ba or bau (gbo) i n a

modified form.

E-le-gu-gu means

the pos ses sor of s p i r i t s

(khus,

gu-gu

being a

form

of the

p l u r a l ;

cp. Ku-ku, clouds).

Other

names

of totems can

s i m i l a r l y

be

traced

to Egy ptia n

words.

Animal worship i s

rare

i n Yorubaland; but an animal totem

220.

with mankind he(i.e. a god) must of necessity

become

incarnate,

otherwise

he

cannot

express himself in

human

speech,

nor act with

v i s i b l e

e f f e c t .

Th is idea has su rvive d i n Yorubaland.

Legitimate chi ldr en i n Yorubaland i n h e r i t

t h e i r

father's

totem. Il l eg it i ma te ch il dr en who are not

acknowledged

by t h e i r

father

cannot

i n h e r i t

t h e i r

father's

totem,

but

they

must i n h e r i t

t h e i r mother's totems.

Closely associated with

totemism

i s exogamy i n Yorubaland.

Prohibitions of marriages contrary to the Yoruba tab le of a f f i n i t y

are

c r y s t a l l i z e d

i n the

form

of

tabus

or

ewos,

but as Dr.

Johnson

t r u l y says , interm arriag es wit hi n the same clan-was-originally



not allowed, as

coming

wi th in the degree of consanguiMtgjbut now

«2

the ru le i s not

r i g i d l y observed.

SECRET SOCIETIES.

A notable featu re i n the s o c i a l l i f e of West A f r i c a i s the

existence of secret s o c i e t i e s . No v i s i t o r to West Af ri ca could

f a i l to not ice some of these s o c i e t i e s and the

power

or inf lue nce

they wield i n t h e i r respective communities.

821.

i n s t i n c t o f s e l f - e l a t i o n r e s u l t s i n th e s e l e c t i o n o f a sub-group

which considers

i t s e l f superior

i n i n t e l l i g e n c e to t he other

members

of the

group.

The

sub-group

always

l a y s c l a i m t o e s o t e r i c

knowledge

and l a t e n t

power

denied to others. T h i r d l y , t he i n s t i n c t

o f curioBity. i s always e x c i t e d b y these s o c i e t i e s , with t he r e s u l t

t h a t t he u n i n i t i a t e d a r e impelled to- seek

admission

t o t h e s o c i e -

t i e s wherever or

whenever

i t i s p o s s i b l e t o do s o .

West A f r i c a n s e c r e t s o c i e t i e s c an be divided i n t o three

c l a s s e s , namely,

totemistic,

r e l i g i o u s , and s e m i - r e l i g i o u s .

Exam-

p l e s o f t o t e m i s t i c s o c i e t i e s a r e t he Leopard , the Crocodile ,

Leone

the A l l i g a t o r and s i m i l a r s o c i e t i e s found i n t h e S i e r r a/Protec-



t o r a t e , o n t he

Gold

Coast, e s p e c i a l l y among t he T c h i

speaking

peoples a n d i n

various

p a r t s o f N i g e r i a . T he

members

of

such

s o c i e t i e s

wear masks

or

dresses

symbolizing

the

animal

totem.

T h i s

p r a c t i c e i s

reminscent

o f

animal worship

i n

Egypt.

Examples

o f r e l i g i o u s s o c i e t i e s a r e th e Oro g u i l d s o f t he

Yorubas, t h e Ibudu s o c i e t i e s o f t he

Ijaws

and Ibos and th e Egbo

s o c i e t y o f t he E f i k s . I n

these

cases

the

worship

of a god or

s p i r i t

i s most prominent.

223.

be added the °risa Oko guild, a section of which i s reserved

e x c l u s i v e l y

for

women, and

the wit chc raf t gui ld.

Some of

these

gaixxfi

guilds have been establ ished for the due performance of fu neral

ceremonies,

others for the maintenance

of law and

order

i n the

community and others

seem

to have been aimed a t keeping the women

i n

subjection.

Some of these s o c i e t i e s have been described i n the preced ing

chapters.

D e t a i l s

about

b u r i a l ceremonies and

witchcraft

w i l l be

given l a t e r . I t

must

be s tat ed here, however, that the f e s t i v a l s

of

some

of the

gu il ds such

as

Adamu-orisa,

Gelede,

Egungun

and

Agemo

are occasions of general r e j o i c i n g

when

various ceremonies

are performed. I n

some

cases the f e s t i v a l s

l a s t

only a day,

w h i l s t



i n

others the period of cel ebr ati on ranges from a

week

to thre e

months.

Since the

membership

of more than one g u i l d i s

open

to/single

person,

s o c i a l

statu s i s often

determined

by the

number

of

s o c i e t i e s to

which

a person i s admitted and the positions assigned

to

him i n the

s o c i e t i e s .

Admission to the

guilds i s i n

most

cases,

preceded

by i n i t i a t o r y

r i t e s ,

including the administration of an

/ s i n g l e

223.

of

them

have already been given i n the

preceding

chapters. A few

other points of connection with Ancient Egypt w i l l now be given.

S i m i l a r i t y i n reg ard to the scrupulous guarding of secrets

can be i l l u s t r a t e d by quoting the following passage wr it te n by

Clement

of Alexa ndria: The Egyptians neith er entrusted t he ir

s e c r e t s

to

anyone,

nor

degraded

the s ec re ts of div ine

matters

by

d i s c l o s i n g them to the profane, reserving them for the heir

apparent to the throne and for

such

of the pr i e s t s as excel led i n

v i r t u e and wi&dom . The Yorubas are equally scrupulous about

guarding

the se cr et s of t h e i r gui lds again st

profanation

by the

u n i n i t i a t e d . \ \

The

word

jgbjg. denoting society in general

demands

attention.



I t i s probably derived

from

the Egyptian word ba or bau which

i n several

West

African

languages

have

been

modified

to i-ba,

e-gba, i-bo,

i-gbo, e-gbo

and s im il ar words. The forms

ending

i n

o are derived

from

the pl ur al bau

1

^, souls, and they usually

denote

a crowd of souls or

persons ,

or plac es where

such

a

crowd can be

found .

The

word e-gbe

i s a fu rt he r modi fica tion of

the

same

word ba u

, e

an d

i t

denotes

an

assembly

of

persons

or s oul s,

224.

those of Onitsha c a l l i t

O-bo-do,

land or town ( o r i g i n a l l y the

place i n h e r i t e d by a c l a n or g u i l d ) . The

Onitsh a Ibos

also use

the

word

M-gbo-du,

Oracle.

Other

t r i b e s

use

s i m i l a r

words

i d e n t i -

c a l i n meaning and

genera l ap pl ic at io n with those given

above. The

widespread

use of the o r i g i n a l word and

i t s modifications

i l l u s -

t r a t e s - the

impress

of

Egypt

on West

A f r i c a n culture,

e s p e c i a l l y

i n

regard

to r e l i g i o u s or

semi-religious

s e c r e t s o c i e t i e s . The

o r i g i n a l i s

probably

bu-du the

place

or

shrine

of Od or Ot.



\

C H A P T E R XI.

P R I E S T H O O D

&

W O R S H I P (continued)

1, Service

and

S a c r i f i c e ,

2.

Cannibalism.



3» Tabus.

225

CHAPTER. X I .

PRIESTHOOD

AND WORSHIP

(continued)

SERVICE

AND SACRIFICE.

The

r e l i g i o n

of the Yorubas covers the whole period

o f

l i f e from the cradle t o the grave. Rites and ceremonies are

performed

at

each

stage o f exi stence

and as

circumstances

r e q u i r e .

The frequency of these r i t e s and ceremonies c l e a r l y show the

s t r e n g t h of the

b e l i e f t h a t men

are i n a c t i v e touch w i t h the

unseen

w o r l d

and t h a t r i g h t r e l a t i o n s h i p

w i t h

the unseen powers

ie.

a pre-

r e q u i s i t e f o r

human

happiness.

The b i r t h of a c h i l d i s greeted w i t h prayers and thanks

t o

Olorun.

The

usual expression are

-



Qlprun, ku ise Well done, Olorun

I

K i Qlprun May Qlorun number the c h i l d w i t h us , t h a t i s ,

Ka

a

kun wa,

May

the

c h i l d

not die

young ;

K i Qlorun b.a v/a v/o o. May Olorun a s s i s t us i n l o o k i n g a f t e r

t he c h i l d . '

On. the t h i r d day a f t e r the b i r t h o f a new-born c h i l d the

ceremony

of appointing

a

t u t e l a r y d e i t y

f o r the

c h i l d

takes place.

226

be

compared

w i t h a s i m i l a r custom i n Ancient Egypt which has thus

o f

been described by Prof. Erman - a t the b i r t h ^ a

c h i l d come

the

seven Hathor goddesses and

discover

what fat© h is god has a l l o t t e d

t o

him, and even though a man attempt to escape hi s d e s t i n y ,

t he god v e r i l y does what he

w i l l -

1

-

On the seventh day a f t e r the b i r t h o f a g i r l or on th e

n i n t h day i n the case of a boy an important ceremony i s performed.

This ceremony i s

known

as

I-kpmp-jade

a c h i l d ' s ( f i r s t ) o u t i n g .

For the purpose o f t h i s ceremony the babalawo who has been

summoned

f o r the purpose

b r i n g s

consecrated water. When t h i s

water

i s thrown t o the

r o o f

o f the new-born

c h i l d ' s

house, the



mother

and the

c h i l d

w i l l ru n out of the house t o catch t he

d r i p p -

ings o f the water. This i s done t h r e e

times,

and on each occasion

the

babalawo pronounces the c h i l d ' s

name.

The

r i t e

i s known as

Iwenumo

P u r i f i c a t i o n and i s

perforned

a f t e r the babalawo has

o f f e r e d s a c r i f i c e t o I f a and t o the i n d w e l l i n g s p i r i t of the c h i l d ' s

head

e i t h e r

i n h i s own house or a t the new-born c h i l d ' s house.

The

r i t e

o f

p u r i f i c a t i o n

i s

f o l l o w e d

by the

ceremonial

p u t t i n g

out

227

Egyptian

c u l t

1

.

Other instances of


among the

Yorubas

w i l l be

noted

l a t e r .

The ceremony of


is f o l l o w e d by the ceremony

o f

naming

the c h i l d , when

each

member of the

f a m i l y g ives i t

a

name and at the same time

o f f e r s

i t a present and p r a y e r f u l wishes.

Service t o the o r i s a s may take place i n the house or i n

the

groves

or

temples.

The p r i e s t

performs

the d a i l y s e r v i c e i n

the

temples

j u s t

as the i n d i v i d u a l or the f a m i l y

does

i n his house.

P u b l i c s e r v i c e

i s of a h i g h l y emotional charaigter. I n the

temples

some of

the p r i e s t s

and p r i e s t e s s e s

chant

songs of two or

t h r e e notes u n t i l they work themselves -into a f r e n z y . Such



persons are regarded as being t e m p o r a r i l y i n d w e l t by the god.

The usual expression i s

Orisa gun ft

the

god has

taken

h o l d of

his personality

• The idea i s

s i m i l a r

t o t h a t of the Greeks who

regard

the god as t e m p o r a r i l y d w e l l i n g i n a f r e n z i e d worshipper

(enthumos, a word from which the E n g l i s h word enthusiasm i s de rive d)

Just as

i n Ancient Egypt,

some of

the p r i e s t s

and p r i e s t -

esses are

known

as

s i n g e r s

, so

a l s o

i n Yorubaland they

are

known

228

t h a t th e crude elements i n th e worship o f by-gone c e n t u r i e s have

s u r v i v e d

w i t h

possible

a d d i t i o n s

There

i s no

doubt

t h a t

a

p a r t

o f

the

l i c e n t i o u s worship

c h a r a c t e r i s t i c o f the

popular r e l i g i o n

i n

Ancient Egypt

has

s u r v i v e d i n Yorubaland. Testimonies

t o

the existence

o f

such

a

worship have

been

borne

by

several w r i t e r s

o f Egyptology. The f o l l o w i n g are a few

examples

o f the t e s t i -

monies which show s i m i l a r i t y between Ancient Egypt and Yorubaland

i n

regard

t o

l i c e n t i o u s worship

:-

(1 )

P l u t a r c h says

:

And

when

they

( t h a t i s , the

Ancient

Egyptians) keep

the

f e a s t

Paraylia,

which i s p h a l l i c

they

b r i n g

o u t and

c a r r y

round

an

image

having

a

p h a l l u s

t h r e e times

the s i z e o f

i t .

1

( 2 ) Herodotus

says:

This f e s t i v a l

t o Bacchus

( O s i r i s ) . . . . . .

the

Egyptians celebrate much as the Greeks do, b ut



o n l y i n s t e a d

o f

p h a l l i they

have

invented c e r t a i n

images, as much as a c u b i t i n

h e i g h t ,

moved by

s t r i n g s ,

which women c a r r y about t h e

v i l l a g e s ,

and which have

the

member

nodding,

i n

s i z e

n o t much

l e s s

than

th e

r e s t

o f the

body;

a pipe leads the way and the

women

f o l l o w ,

s i n g i n g the

praises

o f Bacchus . 2

A s i m i l a r custom e x i s t s i n Yorubaland i n connection

w i t h the

f e a s t

o f

Orisa-Oko.

(3) Prof.

'Wiedemann

says:

The f e a s t s o f

Hathor

were

f e s t i v a l s at v/hich

d r i n k flov/ed

f r e e l y and much i n t o x i -

c a t i o n p r e v a i l e d . 3

S i m i l a r

i n t o x i c a t i o n

may be observed i n Yorubaland

d u r i n g

the


o f the

harvest

f e s t i v a l .

229

o f

the town, or group dancing a t a selected spot.

These dances u s u a l l y appear a t f i r s t s i g h t t o th e non-

n a t i v e as grotesque and confused. A close study o f

them,

however, w i l l

show t h a t they involve i n t r i c a t e rhythmic movements

t o the beating o f the

drum

and r i p p l e s o f

b o d i l y

movements which

can

be

described

as

g r a c e f u l ,

e s p e c i a l l y

i n t h e

case

o f

group

dances.

The importance o f dancing i n t h e

r e l i g i o u s

worship of

the

Yorubas i s

s i m i l a r

t o t h a t of the Ancient

Egyptians.

According

t o

Prof.

Ermann No

f^as.twas

considered complete without

dancing. To th e Egyptian mind i t was the n a t u r a l expression o f

j o y - t o r e j o i c e and t o dance were synonymous expressions i n



p

t h e i r p o e t r y . This statement i s

t r u e

i n almost every

d e t a i l

i n regard

t o the

Yorubas. I t should

be

noted t h a t

the

Yoruba

words y_p_ t o

r e j o i c e and jjo

t o dance

come

from

the same

West A f r i c a n r o ot word y_e

which

means

t o

l i v e , t o show

signs

o f

l i f e , t o be a c t i v e . The Yoruba A-jp-yo general

r e j o i c i n g

a l s o

ccntains dancing

as an

underlying idea.

230

The

f i r s t

po in t to note i s

t h a t

s a c r i f i c e

among

the

Yorubas has both a p o s i t i v e and a negative aspect. The p o s i t i v e

aspect is shown i n the o f f e r i n g of g i f t s to the

gods;

the negative

aspect may be seen i n the observance of

ewos

or tabus, by which

the worshipper

shows

a s p i r i t of

s e l f - d e n i a l

by r e f r a i n i n g from

t h i n g s which are

i n d i f e r r e n t

i n themselves.

The next poin t to note i s t h a t i n theory, s a c r i f i c e s

must be performed by the p r i e s t s or

p r i e s t

ki ng ; i n pract ice

o n l y the

major s a c r i f i c e s

are performed by the

p r i e s t s

or p r i e s t

k i n g s ,

while ordi nary

s a c r i f i c e s

may be offered by any i n d i v i d u a l

or f a m i l y or town or country i n the

absence

of the

p r i e s t s

or



p r i e s t king.

On important occasions the p r i e s t is consulted, and

he not only intercedes f o r the worshippers but also in di ca te s

the w i l l of the god. . Sometimes an audible appeal i s

made

to

the god. The worshipper stands or pr os tr at es

near

by, whilst*,

the

p r i e s t

c a r r i e s on conversation with the god t o the hearing

o f a l l who may be present. The god

r e p l i e s

i n a b i r d - l i k e

231.

The

temple

had a

c l a s g

of p r i e s t s

v/hose duty

i t was to

do

these

t h i n g s .

Their

f u n c t i o n

was not

s e c r e t ,

they perform i t

i n the s i g h t and w i t h the knowledge of a l l and a l l the

people

knew t h a t the

voice

or

hand

of the god was t h e i r s ( i . e .

the

p r i e s t s )

1

'

1

.

Further

i t should

be

noted

t h a t w h i l s t o f f e r i n g s

are

many and

v a r i e d ,

care is taken to o f f e r the o b j e c t or object s

a p p r o p r i a t e to

each

d e i t y .

Appropriate

o f f e r i n g s to some of the

d e i t i e s are as

f o l l o w s

:-

O f f e r i n g s

to Esu (Eshu)

include he-goat,

dog, sheep, pi g

and

cowrie

s h e l l s .

Those

to I f a

incl ude p i g , goat, fowls

and

pounded

yams.

Those

to

Obatala incl ude

s n a i l ,

white

or b i t t e r k o l a ,



f o w l , goat, sheep

and a few

a r t i c l e s

of

food.

To the

worshippers of t h i s d e i t y , dogs, palm wine, pink ko la

are

ewos or tabus,

ThoBw

uO

Ogun include dogs and beans.

Those

to Sango

(Shango) include

ram, f o w l ,

kola

and dry

fish.- *

Those

to Odudua

include

sheep and palm

wine.

Those

to

Orisa

Oko

include d r i e d meat, s n a i l ,

yams and

beans.

*

238

Just as appropriate o f f e r i n g s must be made to d e i t i e s , so

a l s o

must

appropriate

o f f e r i n g s

be

made

for

p a r t i c u l a r

purposes.

Bishop James Johnson, who has studied the subject of

Yoruba

s a c r i f i c e

«§c c l o s e l y writes :

For every

p a r t i c u l a r

s a c r i f i c e a c e r t a i n

v i c t i m

i s

p r e s c r i b e d ,

and sometimes the same animal may be prescribed

f o r

more

than one

s a c r i f i c e ;

and so i t i s wi th

meat

and drink

o f f e r i n g s

e.g. against death i n sickness, a

sheep,

and for

l o n g e v i t y , a dog; f o r st re ng th to the body, a ram,

sheep

and

a

cock;

against losses, a basket of

eggs,

most of which are

u s u a l l y employed

with leaves sacred to

I f a ;

against being

l i e d

upon

( i . e .

being slandered), domestic

pigeons

and

palm nut

s h e l l s ;

against

t r o u b l e

and misfortune,

r a t s T

against drought,

small crabs from

which

water

drops each

time

each

makes a leap;

against a

f l o o d

from incessant

r a i n

or f o r confusion of a

p l o t ,

s n a i l s ;

against a f i r e accodent, a w i l d hog or a duck wi th

d i f f e r e n t kinds o f I f a leaves; f o r v i c t o r y i n a time of war

a ram sheep and an old

cock

together; against the death of a

very

young

c h i l d , a hen t h a t had had chickens; to be permitted

t o

come to a t i t l e and f or the d e s t r u c t i o n , of a p l o t , a

w i l d



hog. l

An analysis of these

o f f e r i n g s shows t h a t

they are

connected

wi th the sacred animals i n

Egypt.

For

example,

the

s a c r i f i c e of a

w i l d

hog i s necessary f o r the. d e s t r u c t i o n of a p l o t .

I t

w i l l

be remembered

t h a t

i t was i n the form of a pig or hog

t h a t

Set or Sut

t r e a c h e r o u s l y ' i n j u r e d

the eye of

O s i r i s ,

his

enemy.

The de st ru cti on of a pig or hog i s therefore regarded i n

Yorubaland

33

p r i v a t e ;

and

secret

as

w e l l

as

public vows were

made

i n the hope

of

f u t u r e f a v o u r s .

1

S a c r i f i c e s

can be

described

from the

point

of

view

of

the

range

of

persons

f o r

whom

they are intended

or

from the

purpose?

f o r

which

they are intended.

S a c r i f i c e f o r

an i n d i v i d u a l

i s usu all y described

as

Bbo

O r i

( s a c r i f i c e t o

one's guardian s p i r i t ) .

A

family, s a c r i f i c e is

known as Ebo Agbole

S a c r i f i c e

o f

the household .

A

township s a c r i f i c e i s

known as Ebo

Igboro S a c r i f i c e

o f

the open

s t r e e t *

A

c i t y

s a c r i f i c e

i s

known as Ebp

Agbalu S a c r i f i c e

of

sweeping

the

town or Ebo 9ba S a c r i f i c e o f

the ki ng .



S a c r i f i c e s which derive

t h e i r t i t l e s

from objects f o r

which

they are off er ed are

many and

varied.

Bishop

Johnson's

c o l l e c t i o n s o f such s a c r i f i c e s

i s

very repre sentat ive

and

i s given

i n the f o l l o w i n g passage

:-

There

i s

a

great

v a r i e t y of s a c r i f i c e , and.each

prescrib-

ed' s a c r i f i c e , or

each set

o f such a s a c r i f i c e ,

takes i t s

name

gener ally from which i t i s o f f e r e d .

Among

them

may be

mentioned the f o l l o w i n g

:-

the redemption s a c r i f i c e ;

3k

o f i t

w i l l

not be long;

t h a t

f o r securing the sign

or

mark

ojn~

one's

forehead

t h a t would assure him of hi s safety from the approach

and touch of the angel of death, and of v i c t o r y and

triumph

over

d i f f i c u l t y and t r o u b l e ; and

t h a t f o r acquiring s u p e r i o r i t y to others etc.

These

various s a c r i f i c e s

mentioned,

being

atonement

s a c r i f i c e s ,

suggest

the existence o r i g i n a l l y

i n

the mind of the Pagan Yoruba,

t h a t

s in and the

anger of an offended god are the cause of the various

i l l s i n c i d e n t a l t o human

l i f e ,

t h a t lDlessings are only

t o

be

had from him and according t o his w i l l , and

t h a t f o r t h i s he is to be

p r & p i t i a t e d by

means of

s a c r i f i c e and o f f e r i n g , since he who desires them i s

a sinner .

1

MODES OF

SACRIFICE.

Modes

of s a c r i f i c e

vary according to the nature

or

o b j e c t

of

the s a c r i f i c e .

When the object of the s a c r i f i c e i s t o redeem or to



make

an

o f f e i i h g

i n exchange f o r the l i f e of the person the

f o l l o w i n g

modes'

may

be

adopted

:-

(a) The s a c r i f i c e

w i l l

be taken to a s t r e e t , a cross-

road®

r

highway and l e f t there. The a c r i f i c e usually

c o n s i s t s

of food or animals. A noteworthy s a c r i f i c e

t r e a t e d

i n

t h i s way

i s

t h a t of

seven young

chickens

o f f e r e d i n the b e l i e f t h a t t h e i r death w i l l replace

235

(c) I n the

case

o f

Ebo

IparQ

Ori The s a c r i f i c e of the

exchange

o f one's f a t e o r

d e s t i n y

( l i t . one's head), the

o f f e r e r

l a y s

h i s

hand

on th e

animal

v i c t i m . Sometimes

he

touches

the forehead of the

animal

wi t h h is own

head

and rubs the

whole

body of the

animal

w i t h h i s hands.

This done, the animal i s c a r r i e d f a r away i n t o t he bush

and

allowed

t o escape. The be li ef

u n d e r l y i n g

the

s a c r i f i c e i s tha t the fa te of the of fe re r is tr an s-

f e r r e d t o t h e v i c t i m .

O f f e r i n g s

of the

type

j u s t

described

are known as-

Igbo Irapada Redemption

or Exchange S a c r i f i c e .

When

the ch ie f o b j e c t of the o ff er er is the t r a n s f e r e n c e o f



g u i l t from t h e o f f e r e r t o t h e o f f e r i n g th e f o l l o w i n g modes are

adopted

:-

(a) The animal v i c t i m may be taken across a r i v e r ( i f

any) and le d i n t o a

deep

bush.

(b) The v i c t i m may be

thrown

i n t o a r i v e r o r b u r i e d

a l i v e w i t h o r

w i t h o u t chains

around

the

neck.

236

When

the

c h i e f

o b j e c t i s

to

secure

d i v i n e

help f o r

accomplishing

a

purpose, the

f o l l o w i n g

method

i s adopted

:-

The blood

of

the

v i c t i m

i s s p r i n k l e d upon the l i n t e l s

and

upon

the door hanging

on one of

them. I f

a bird-

i s used

as a v i c t i m and

i f

a f e a t h e r e d

animal i s used,

i t s f e a t h e r s are hung on v a r i o u s p a r t s of the blood-

s t a i n e d s u r f a c e . The f l e s h of the v i c t i m must be

b o i l e d or r o a s t e d , and must be e n t i r e l y consumed as

q u i c k l y as p o s s i b l e by the o f f e r e r , i n a standing

posture.

Such

a s a c r i f i c e

i s

known

as

Ebo/

Aba,

that

i s

a

purpose s a c r i f i c e

or Ebq Ase,

t h at i s , accomplish-

ment s a c r i f i c e , each being o f f e r e d

to a

d e i t y regarded



as associated w i t h

or

i n t e r e s t e d i n the f u l f i l m e n t

of

purposes.

I t

should

be

noted t h a t

q l o r u n

(the

Supreme D e i t y )

is .

o f t e n

described

as Alaba-lasg.

but

s a c r i f i c e s

are no t

o f f e r e d

t o him as

such.

An

i n t e r e s t i n g mode of s a c r i f i c e

i s adopted i n th e case

o f s a c r i f i c e f o r p r o t e c t i o n against enemies or f o r the suppress-

237

c h i e f s are being i n s t a l l e d

to t h e i r

o f f i c e ,

and

i t s d e t e s t a t i o n

by

c h r i s t i a n s

has

proved

an

impediment

to t h e i r

acceptance

of c h i e f t a i n c i e s .

A

somewhat

s i m i l a r

method i s adopted i n the

case

of

Ebp

I s a m i . The Babalawo and

his a s s i s t a n t , the Ajigbo na, usual-

l y

k i l l some v i c t i m s and mix t h e i r

blood

w i t h mud and some

sacred I f a leaves.

The

mixture thus

made

i s used i n marking

the forehead

of

the o f f e r e r s

who had been

w a i t i n g outside

the

grove

w h i l s t

the prepa rati on i s being

made.

This marking

i s

a

v i s i b l e

si gn assuring the

o f f e r e r of

escape

from death.

Hence a f t e r the

ceremony

the o f f e r e r s u s u a l l y chant the

song:

Edu

t i

sa

n i l i ami,

a ko ku

mp. I w e r e j e j e n i

Edu

f i

sami.



Edu has

marked us,

we

s h a l l not di e again. I t i s the l e a f

of

I w e r e j e j e

herb

t h a t

he has

used

i n doing the marking.

I t i s worth no ti ng t h a t i n some

cases

the s a c r i f i c e

i s eaten

at

once,

as

i n the case

of Ebp Osu,

w h i l s t i n other

cases

some of

which

have been

po int ed out

above, the

s a c r i f i c e

i s

thrown

away

or

must

not

be

eaten.

In some

cases

the

238

Commenting

on the p a r a l l e l s between

the.Yoruba

and.

the Hebrew s a c r i f i c e s , Dr. Farrow says

:

These

various resemblances to Hebrew r e l i g i o u s cus-

toms

and l e g i s l a t i o n , p a r t i c u l a r l y when taken i n

' conjunction

w i t h . t h e

Hebrew native t r a d i t i o n of immigra-

t i o n

from the east or

n o r t h - e a s t , have

considerable

cumulative f o r c e . While they do not necessarily imply

any tra ce of Semitic descent, they

would seem

t o

i n d i c a t e

t h a t

the Semitic

Hebrews

and the

N i g r i t i c

Yorubas belong to branches which at some e a r l y stage

were un it ed to a common

stem,

and whether t h i s i s so

or no t, i t i s very po ssib le, i f not probable, t h a t

Hebrew

and ear ly Ch ris tia n infl uence have many

c e n t u r i e s

ago

been brought

down

through the

Sudan,

but the traces of Ch ri st ia n infl uenc e

which

may be.

found are too f a i n t and too

degenerate

to have been

i n t r o d u c e d by

European

voyagers

to the

West

Coast ,

1

This view traces the

o r i g i n

of the resemblances to contact

between the Yorubas and the Hebrews at some a r l y stage

1 1

.



On the other hand, P. Amaury Talbot seems to trac e

the

o r i g i n

of the resemblances

t o

the f a c t

t h a t

the Yorubas

have migrated from Egypt and the f a c t

t h a t

th ere was close

contact between Egypt and the Sudan

down

to the Gulf of

Guinea f o r many years a f t e r the mi gr at io n of the Yorubas and

other West African t r i b e s from

Egypt,

2

F u r t h e r , Professor Leo Frobenius believes

t h a t

the

239

between the Yorubas

and

the Hebrews w h i l s t both

of

them were

i n

Egypt. During th e

e x i l e

sever al colonies

of

Jews

resided

i n

v a r i o u s

parts

of

Egypt

and many

Jews s e t t l e d i n

Egypt

a f t e r

the

D i s p e r s i o n , some of

whom were included i n

the

comprehensive

term

Jews, devout

men, out of

every na ti on

under

heaven

1

.

The

resemblances

are so

close

as to

suggest a c t u a l contact r a t h e r

than mere i n f i l t r a t i o n .

The s a c r i f i c e s resemble

not

onl y the Hebrew s a c r i f i c e s ,

but also

some of

the Egyptian s a c r i f i c e s .

A t t e n t i o n has

already

been

c a l l e d t o

the f a c t

t h a t


plays

an

important

p a r t

i n

the r e l i g i o u s ceremonies.

I n

the case

of

several s a c r i f i c e s ,

t h e

o f f e r e r

i s o f t e n

f i r s t

p u r i f i e d w i t h water. This i s q u i t e



i n keeping w i t h Ancient Egyptian custom. Another important

resemblance

may be

pointe d out here.

A

Yoruba

s a c r i f i c e

o f

seven

chickens

to some

nameless goddesses

has been

described above.

The goddesses are undoubtedly

the

seven Hathor goddesses

who

decide the f a t e

of

each person born

i n t o

the

w o r l d or

the seven

s p i r i t s f r e q u e n t l y

mentioned i n the

Book of

the

Dead, to whom

prayers were o f t e n

made

f o r s a f e t y

or

maintenance•

of one's l i f e - * .

2k

caused

ox, goose, wine to be brought; he made a b u r n t - o f f e r i n g ,

a

d r i n k o f f e r i n g

before

I s i s

of

Ooptos

and

Harpokrates

1

.

Again,

i t

was the duty of the prince i n Ancient

Egypt

who was

a l s o the high p r i e s t to o f f e r burnt s a c r i f i c e to the l o c a l god.

2

Reference has been made i n Chapter

I I I

to the prevalence

o f human

s a c r i f i c e i n Yorubaland before the advent

of

B r i t i s h

Government.

A

l i s t

of instances of

such

a s a c r i f i c e was also

g i v e n , showing how

c l o s e l y

a l l i e d was the s a c r i f i c e to the

wor-

s h i p

of

Esu,

the

s u r v i v a l

of


god Sut or

Set.

A t t e n t i o n

was

also

c a l l e d

to the s i m i l a r i t y

between

the

p r a c t i c e

o f human s a c r i f i c e i n Ancient Egypt-' and the same p r a c t i c e i n

Yorubaland.



D e t a i l e d

descriptions of the s a c r i f i c e as witnessed

or experienced

by

various

w r i t e r s

or

observers

w i l l

now be

given:

?

W r i t i n g

about

the

p r a c t i c e i n

Lagos at

the close

of

t h e - e i g h t e e n t h

century Captain

John

Adams

says

:-

The

h o r r i d custom

of impaling a l i v e a

young

female to

p r o p i t i a t e

the favour of the

goddess

pre sid ing over the

r a i n y

season,

t h a t

she may

f i l l

the horn

of

plenty,

i s

p r a c t i s e d here annually. The immolation of the

v i c t i m

241

Hindu

women who are also

"burnt

with t h e i r husbands.

One was impaled while I was a t Lagos, but of cou rse

I di d not witn es s the ceremony. I passed by

where

her l i f e l e s s body s t i l l remained on the stake a few

days afte rwa rds" . 1

I n a l e t t e r dated 20th August Mr. Bickersteth who paid

a v i s i t to Abeokuta described a

human

s a c r i f i c e

which

was *

performed

as a

means

of

p r o p i t i a t i o n

fo r the

e l e c t i o n

of a new

king. The

ceremony

contained fea tur es

which

would

shock

the

most

hard-hearted person, unl es s he be li ev es tha t such a

gruesome i nc id en t i s necess ary for the well-bei ng of the

community,

in clu din g himself.

Bishop James Johnson who had st ud ie d the su bj ec t ve ry

c a r e f u l l y

and had probably witn es sed the dr ea df ul

ceremony

on



several occasions gives the

following i n t e r e s t i n g

account of

the v i c t i m and of the mode of s a c r i f i c e :-

"the human victim....... i s commonly

le d and

paraded

through the s t r e e t s of the town or c i t y of the sovereign

who would s a c r i f i c e him f or the we ll -b ei ng of h i s

government and of ev er y f am il y or i n d i v i d u a l under i t ,

i n order th at he may c a r r y off the g u i l t , misfortune

and death of everyone without exception. Ashes'and

chalk would be employed to - hide hi s

i d e n t i t y

by the

one

being

f r e e l y

thrown

over hi s

head

and face painted

with the l a t t e r ,

w h i l s t

individuals

would

often rush

242

of his l a s t word, or his l a s t groan, heard and

taken up "by the people,

would

be a s i g n a l f o r

joy

and

tha nksgiv ing and f or

drum

beating and dancing,

as

an exp res sio n of

t h e i r g r a t i f i c a t i o n ,

because

t h e i r s a c r i f i c e has

been

accepted, the di vi ne

wrath i s

appeased

and the prospec t of pr os pe ri ty

or increas ed pro spe rit y

assured,"

1

Sometimes the v i c t i m i s offe red by means of a basket

i n t o

which he i s hu rl ed and which

would

then be

f o r c i b l y

thrown

flown

from

a great height. Thi s i s

known

a t

Abeokuta

•

as

Basket

S a c r i f i c e .

Dr. Farrow thus de sc ri be s the

human

s a c r i f i c e which

he experienced at

Abeokuta

:-

"The l a s t public

human

s a c r i f i c e i n

Abeokuta

was

offered i n 1891 A s l a v e . was purchased who was

to

become the v i c t i m

and

was kep t shut up f o r a week

or ten days before being

k i l l e d . . . .

The

v i c t i m

during the days of his

incaceration

was c a l l e d by



the honourable

t i t l e

Oluwo (a

t i t l e

given to a

r u l e r of the co un tr y) , and was allow ed (a cco rdi ng

to

the usual

custom)

to

have

ever y wish

g r a t i f i e d ,

excepting

only

l i b e r t y

and

l i f e .

On the day

immedia-

t e l y

preceding the'death, he was taken i n proc ess ion

round

the township, made much of , and a llowed t o

g r a t i f y hi s every

d e s i r e .

On the

f a t a l

day he was

brought

out and

p u b l i c l y

clubbed^ to death.

.

The

body was then to ss ed

about,

kicked, mocked and

abused;

but afterwards worshipped as an o r i s a . " 2

I t

may be

added

here

that

the

more

u s u a l

custom

2k3

with cam-wood

and

treated

i t with the

great est

honour". 1

Human s a c r i f i c e

was t he supreme

s a c r i f i c e

of th e

Yorubas. I t was a p r a c t i c a l

demonstration

of the d e s i r e ,

to give the best to the d e i t y to secure h i s a c t i v e favour.

Although

i t

was most

prevalent

i n

I f e ,

Ondo

and

Benin,

ye t

i t

was

p r a c t i s e d

by the

other t r i b e s . Nowhere

i n

Yorubala nd

did

i t

reach

the

c o l o s s a l s c a l e which made

Dahomey

notorious.

The deity to whom

human

s a c r i f i c e was most often

offered was E s u or Elegbara or

Obalufon,

the

Yoruba

counter-

part

of Sut or Se t or Typhon.

2

I t i s

also offered

to

d e i t i e s

such

as I f a , Olorimerin, Sango and

6gun,

i n times of

s t r e s s or urgency. Infants a s i n the case of the annual



s a c r i f i c e to Qlorimerin, were offered j u s t as w e l l as grown

up

persons.

I n

time

of war

when

a

human s a c r i f i c e ,

i s

offered to

Ogun,

th e s o l d i e r s must

take

the f i e l d

before

the

corpse of th e v i c t i m became rot ten ; otherwise the s a c r i f i c e

becomes i n e f f e c t u a l .

In-the case

of

human

s a c r i f i c e to Esu or ElQgbara,

2Uh

Yorubas emerged into the l i g h t of c i v i l i z a t i o n , they had reached

a stage of refinement which made cannibalism

abhorrent

to them.

Traces of the

p r a c t i c e ,

however, sur vi ve , and these are

found c h i e f l y i n connect ion wit h r e l i g i o u s worship. Co lo ne l

E l l i s giv es the fo ll owi ng inst anc e :-

"the

P r i e s t s

of

Ogun usually

take out the hea rts o f

human

v i c t i m s

1

,

which

are dr ie d , reduced to powder,

then

mixed

wi th rum and sold to person who wish to

be endowed

with gre at

courage

and who dri nk

the

mixture. The rea son of t h i s i s that the heart i s

believed to be the seafi of courage and to in he re nt ly

possess that

q u a l i t y ;

and that

when

the hea rt i s

devoured and

swallowed

the

q u a l i t y

with which i t i s

imputed

i s

also

taken into the

system"2

•

..,«...

Dr. Farrow thus rec ord s hi s experience during h i s

sojourn at

Abeokuta

:-



On

the

death

of

a ki ng hi s he ar t was taken out and

had to

be

eaten by h i s successor. Also the head of

the deceased

monarch

was pr es er ve d and had to be

worshipped

by the new r u l e r " .

Dr.

Farrow

could not say

that

the hear t was

a c t u a l l y

eaten. Exhaustive enquiries and i n d i r e c t method of res ear ch

have

resulted

i n a d i r e c t negati on t ha t the heart was eve r eat en

raw or sodden. Usually

the

heart

was

preserved i n a sacred

245

I t

has

been

poin ted out i n a previ ous chapter

that

the word

comes

from

the

West

African

root-word "ye" which

means

"to

e x i s t ,

to l i v e " .

The word " j e " i n

Yoruba a l s o means

"to

become ,

and

therefore

" j e Qba merely means "to become king ". I f " j e oba"

means

"to eat the kin g" , then " j e

a i y e "

must

mean

"to eat the

world", " j e oga" must mean "to eat the master"

even

where a

person

assuming

the post of a master has no predec essor, and

" j e oye" must mean "to eat a c h i e f t a i n c y . A s i m i l a r mistake

w i l l be made i f the root-word "ye"

i s

t r a n s l a t e d

l i t e r a l l y

i n

some

of the other

West African

languages. For

example,

i n the

Ga language spoken a t Accr a, ye gb i "to l i v e , to

e x i s t " ,

i s

l i t e r a l l y "to eat a day"; f e i ye "to be c ol d" i s "t o ea t co ld ".

The t r a c e s of cannib alis m are s u r v i v a l s of Ancient



Egyptian

b e l i e f s

and

p r a c t i c e s .

I n Ancient Egypt the hea rt of

a deceased person was

sometimes

taken out before mummification

and kept i n a vase. Se ve ra l

examples

of

t h i s

p r a c t i c e

have

been found

i n tombs, and re fe re nc e to i t can be seen i n the Book

of the

Dead,

Chapters

XXVI

to XXX B.

1

Wr it in g on

t h i s subject

,

Professor E.A.

Wallis

Budge

sa ys :-



247

i t i s an ewo. The ewos may be moral or ceremonial, or merely

imposed

by

custom.

Some

of them are

very

i n t e r e s t i n g ,

and

i t

i s

remarkable t h a t c i v i l i z a t i o n has KB* proved powerle ss i n a b o l i s h -

i n g them.

Whatever

may be t h e i r nature or scope, the ewos are

regarded as pre-requisites for the welfare of the i n d i v i d u a l or

group

and as

necess ary cond itions for maintaini ng

r i g h t r e l a t i o n -

s h i p with the d i f f e r e n t

d e i t i e s .

Neglect of ewos i s regarded as

fraught with d i r e consequences. Anyone caught

w h i l s t

i a f r i n g i i g

the t r i b a l or n a t i o n a l ewos w i l l have himself to blame for the

s e v e r i t y of the p u b l i c

punishment which

may be

exacted

for the

offence.



P A G E S

2^8 -268 .

C H A P T E R X I I .



P R I E S T H O O D AMD

WO

R S H I P.

269

Chapter

X I I I .

The

Yoruba

Conception

of Man.

oooo

Religion

dominates

the

whole

l i f e of the Yorubas,

and therefore their

conception

of man i s e s s e n t i a l l y -

r e l i g i o u s . Man i s viewed from the standpoint of his

r e l a t i o n to the

gods;

h i s l i f e i n the present st at e of

exi ste nce and h i s des tin y in the fut ure l i f e are a l l

brought into the orbit of religious conceptions.

L i ke a l l other races of the world, the

Yorubas

believe that man's nature i s pa rt ly mat eri al and pa rt ly

immaterial.

They

bel iev e th at man has a ma te ri al body

by means of which he a ct s and r ea ct s on hi s ph ys ic al



environment.

They

also believe that he has an immaterial

e n t i t y .

Various writers have explained how the notion of

an immaterial entity f i r s t arose i n the human

mind.

For

example,

Mr.

Herbert

Spencer in hi s "Pr inc ipl es of Sociology"

has tr ac ed the or igin of the

notion

to

dreams.

Primitive

270.

The b e l i e f i s thus extended t o include b e l i e f i n t he

possession

of a

second

i n d i v i d u a l i t y by every human

being .

Such

a b e l i e f a s t h i s i s

bound

t o be f u r t h e r

developed.

T he f a c t t h a t c h i l d r e n a r e born who showjphysical c h a r a c t e r i s -

t i c s possessed by t h e i r parents t o

such

an

extent

as to

suggest

t h a t

they

a r e

re-incarnations

o f t h e i r

parents

or

ancestors

leads to the idea t h a t t h e

second

i n d i v i d u a l i t y i s a

double

e n t i t y , a p a r t o f which may be incarnated i n a

new-born

c h i l d ,

w h i l s t t h e other p a r t contains t he existence of th e man as an

i n d i v i d u a l .

I n West

A f r i c a , t he b e l i e f i n a

second

i n d i v i d u a l i t y

e x i s t s . Among

some

o f t he t r i b e s t h e

second

i n d i v i d u a l i t y i s

dual i n character, but among others, man i s the possessor o f



s e v e r a l s o u l s o r

s p i r i t s ,

one or two o f which

corresponds

with

the

second

i n d i v i d u a l i t y or t he dual i n d i v i d u a l i t y described

above.

The study of the West A f r i c a n conception of man re qu ir es

a

f a i r amount

o f psychological knowledge. I t a l s o

requires

a

f a i r

knowledge o f

comparative

r e l i g i o n , s i n c e i t i s

obvious

271

t h e i r

r e f l e c t

d i s c r e d i t a b l y ,

on authors, as they throw

the

blame due to

the

authors' own f a i l u r e on Af ric an mentality

and they

seem

to give t he

impression

that Afric an mental ity

i s

sub-human

or e s s e n t i a l l y

d i f f e r e n t

from any other ment alit y.

Constituent

-parts

of human nature.

According to Yoruba conception

the

constitut ent pa rt s

of

human

nature are :- ( I )

Arm, "physical

body'".

(2) 0.1i.1i

Shadow

(3)i IZ£, "mental body, mind" k) Okai(n) "heart ",

"heart-soul"

(5))

Emi(n) " s p i r i t " " s p i r i t u a l

body",

" s p i r i t u a l .

aou£".

Ara , " p h y s i c a l body" i s the medium

through

which man



acts

or

reacts

on h i s p h y s i c a l

environment.

During a

man's

l i f e t i m e

i t

can

be

nourished

and

caressed. Aft er death i t

perishes. I t i s what

man

possesses

i n common

with the phys ical

world, although i t has i t s

peculiar human

form.

Odi.ii."shadow"

i s

the constant companion of

the

body

during

a

man's

l i f e t i m e .

I t

i s

the

v i s i b l e

representation

272

a f t e r

sunset.

Qkan

"hear t", "h ea rt -so ul ", i s an immaterial part of

man*

The word i s used i n two senses. I n the f i r s t sense i t

denotes the ma te ri al heart, i n the second sense i t denotes"an

i n d i v i d u a l ent ity ", "the heart -soul ", "the seat of in te ll ig en ce ,

thought and act ion" . I n t h i s

l a t t e r

sense i t forms pa rt of the

imm ateria l and imperishable p art of man. I t i s be lie ved to be

the s p i r i t u a l or minor ego of the man.

Okan i s beli eved to

e x i s t

before a

man*

s b i r t h . I t may

be the

Okan

11

of an ancestor or of any deceased

person.

I t

may be the

Qkan

of an abiku, th at i s "one who i s born to di e"

and thereby

causes

the c h i l d into

which

i t has entered to di e

young.



The word i s used i n a

wide

sense. I t inc lude s th at part

of man known as i y e " r a t i o n a l i t y , " "mind" and al so

what

i s

known as; inu "inn er par t" ," in ne r s e l f " . I t i s beli eved to

possess

a

concrete

form

containing a l l the ch ar ac te ri st ic s

of the body. I t - i s a su bs ta nt ia l part of man which uses

the

body

as the medium of -

communication

with the e xt er na l

273

part of the conception of man i s not

f u l l y ,

worked out to

show

whether

the same

otean

can

belong

to two

persons.

The

Yorubas

believ e that as man's

okan

or heart- soul

may leave the body and become incapable of re-entering i t .

This idea can be i l l u s t r a t e d by two examples. A. wi tc h i s

supposed to prey upon her victim by means of her okan

which

metamorphoses into a bird. I f the b i r d i s seized, the

witch w i l l not wake; i f i t i s k i l l e d , the witch w i l l die.

Again i f

a

person

becomes demented or

i d i o t i c ,

unable to

take

any i n t e l l i g e n t

i n t e r e s t i n h i s surroundings or to

take any i n i t i a t i v e action, the

Yorubas

w i l l say

about

him,

Okan

re t i l o "His heart-soul i s gone .



Another

important

part i n the human economy i s Emi(n) ,

" S p i r i t " .

This

i s

regarded

as the

seat

of

l i f e .

I t i s the

part of man

which

i s

c l o s e l y r e l a t e d

to the gods. Olorun

the Supreme Deity i s known as Elemi Owner of s p i r i t s ? ' . A man's

s p i r i t i s thus tra ced to OjLqrun, and i s therefore regarded

as

the

divine

element

i n him. I t i s

also

regarded

as the

274

glean

i s used

for

th e purp ose. Fo r example, okan r e gun

u

"He i s stung by his conscience". The word e r i - o f t a n "the

witness of the heart-soul" which i s now being used to

denote conscience has been s p e c i a l l y coined to

make

up fo r

the deficiency i n th e Yoruba vocabulary and i s u n i n t e l l i g i b l e

to

the unsophiscated nati ve .

I t

appears that the word

Iku

was formerly used i n the

sense of a s p i r i t . The word now survives i n rar e cases which

strongly suggests that the word formerly denotes s p i r i t . For

example, I k u mi

my,

s p i r i t "

"something

which i s part and par-

c e l of me" and hence "something very easy f o r me to deal with".

Minor Indwelling S p i r i t s .



The pa rt s sketched above comprise the

e s s e n t i a l

elements

i n

man.

Several Yoruba

t r i b e s ,

however, b eli eve that man i s

indwelt by other s p i r i t s which are subordinate to h i s Emi(n)

or s p i r i t , which

max

be described as great i n comparison

with the others. The subordinate s p i r i t s are as follows:-

(1) O l o r i ,

"the owner or

l o r d

of the head" whi ch i s

275,

Every one who

d e s i r e s ;

good

fortune

makes

offerings

to

O l o r i .

The offer ings usu all y c o n s i s t of fowls, the blood of

which

i s

mixed

with

palm

o i l

and-rubbed

on the forehead.

The offerings must be

made

p e r i o d i c a l l y

i n fro nt of h i s

symbol,

which

i s

h a l f

a calabash, studded with cowries.

(2:)

I p i n 1.1 eun '"Sharer of the food". This d e i f i e d

s p i r i t

which

claims i t s share i n every food i s supposed to

reside i n the

stomach,

and the ref ore

needs

no

s a c r i f i c e s .

Hence

the

proverb:;

Orisa

bi ikun ko

s i ;

O.io.iumo

n i o

ngba

ebp.

"There i s no o r i s a l i k e the stomach, i t r e c e iv e s s a c r i f i c e

everyday."

Dr Farrow, fol low ing Colonel E l l i s thinks that hunger'



i s

personified

as the servant of

I p i n - I j e u n ,

fo r the

Yoruba

equivalent of " I am hungry" i s "Ebi npa mi"

i

e."hunger i s

k i l l i n g me".

1

Th is opinion,

which

due to inadequate knowledge

of

Yoruba

Idioms,

i s i n c o r r e c t . There are no

Yoruba

idiomatic

forms

corresponding

word

for

word

to the

English

expressions

276

Again

r e f e r r i n g

to the proverb

"

;

I p i n

I j e u n

k i

j e

k i in a

ku

l i aiye"

1

,

l ,

I p i n I j e u n does not all ow

f i r e

to depart from

the earth". Dr Farrow suggests

that

f i r e too seems to be

personified i n the expression

"Ina

1

n j a J

r

which he t r a n s l a t e s

as

" f i r e i s dancing." This also i s i n c o r r e c t . The f a c t i s

that the word j o of which n.io i s the i o

the

pr ogressive

form

i s

used,

l i k e

several

other

Yoruba:

verbs, i n

more

than

one sense. The word jo may

mean"dance*

or "burn" or " s e l l

a t

a give --away-price"'.

With

the accent rev ers ed i t has

other meanings which need not be

enumerated

here.

(3) I n o r i * "the path of the

head"

or "the locus of the

head when i t moves on the

f e e t " .

This

d e i f i e d

s p i r i t i s supposed



to

dwell, i n the g rea t toe of

e i t h e r

foot. Offerings are made

to

i t by those who wi sh to undertake a journey. These are

made

by the sla ug ht er of a

fowl

- not

a

water

fowl

which i s

a taboo or ewo i n the ca se of

I p o r i .

The blood of th e fowl,

i s mixed with palm o i l and

rubbed

on the great toe of e i t h e r

foot.

277

t h e t h r e e s p i r i t s , 3 p o r i i s t h e l e a s t i m p o r t a n t .

Prayers; are o f f e r e d t o the O l o r i . and t o E p o r i , h ut no*

t o I p i n

I j e u n

which r e c e i v e s s a c r i f i c e s o f f o o d d a i l y . The

f o l l o w i n g i s

a w e l l known p r a y e r p a r t l y o f f e r e d t o O l o r i and

I p o r i : —

O r i r i i h i i r e ghe mi dej,

Ese r i i b i i r e gbe m i r e ,

Edumare

masati.

ghe i r e ko mi" •

u

May my

head

d i r e c t

me t o a p l a c e o f good l u c k

May my f e e t

c a r r y

me t o a

place;

o f good

l u c k

May the a l m i g h t y g r a n t me good l u c k " .

W r i t i n g

about

t h e

c o n c e p t i o n

of the

s o u l

among t h e

Peoples o f Southern N i g e r i a , Mr.P.Amaury T a l b o t

says "There

i s a g e n e r a l b e l i e f t h a t

each

person

ppssesses

f o u r s o u l s :

f i r s t , an e t h e r a l one, t h e double and i n n e r frame o f th e



p h y s i c a l f o r m ;

secondly,

t h e

s o u l p r o p e r ,

the

consciousness,

t h e t h i n k i n g o r mental body; t h i r d l y , t h e s p i r i t u a l o r minor

Ego; and

f o u r t h l y ,

t he

Over-Soul,

o r C h i , the g r e a t s p i r i t ,

which o f t e n in c l u d e s

s e v e r a l ,

l e s s e r Egos and

always

stays

w i t h

God The shadow i s

c o n s i d e r e d

the

s i g n ,

u s u a l l y

278

t o th e

0.11x11

o f

the Yorubas which, though u n s u b s t a n t i a l

i n

c h a r a c t e r , i s i n t i m a t e l y connected

w i t h

the human p e r s o n a l i t y

The second s o u l corresponds t o t h e

okan

" h e a r t - s o u l * of th e

Yorubas

which i s regarded as enveloping the second s o u l and

c o n s t i t u t i n g

i n

a

sense,

a

man's r e a l

s e l f .

The

f o u r t h

s o u l

corresponds t o t h e ]fmi(n)> o f the

Yorubas

which r u l e s a l l th e

other soul&

Units:

o f man

1

a personal

i t s .

I t

must

no t be

supposed

t h a t

t h e

Yorubas

have

s p l i t

man's:

nature i n t o s e v e r a l

incoheren t elements

o r s e l v e s ^ The u n i t y

o f man's p e r s o n a l i t y i s an

e s s e n t i a l

element i n the

Yoruba

conception o f man. The p e r s o n a l i t y i s n ot d i v i d e d up i n t o



separate

and

opposing selves such

as ar e

described i n

th e

psychology o f i n s a n i t y . A l l t h e selves

or-

souls c o n s t i t u t e

w u n i t y which

o f t e n

expresses i t s e l f through the medium o f

the body (ara) and through t h e

agency

of the h e a r t - s o u l

( o k a n ) , the whole i n d i v i d u a l i t y being regarded

as S p i r i t

(Emi)

1

279

o p i n i o n as t o t h e

presence

o f s e v e r a l

consciousnesses

i n one

person

s u b o r d i n a t e t o t h e

dominant s e l f says

I b e l i e v e

t h a t

we ar e

compelled

t o recognize; t h a t

sometimes,

and no t

i n f r e q u e n t l y ,

a s i n g l e

human organism

o r

person

i s t h e

seat of

more

th an one

stream

o f

conscious knowing, f e e l i n g

and s t r i v i n g , more tha n one stream o f

mental

a c t i v i t y . . . , I ,

who consciously, address you, am o n l y one among s e v e r a l s e l v es

o r egos which my organism, my person comprises:";

Professor

W i l l i a m

James,

another

g r ea t a u t h o r i t y ,

saysi'Apart fr om a l l

r e l i g i o u s

c o n s i d e r a t i o n s , t h e r e i s a c t u a l l y

and l i t e r a l l y

more

l i f e i n o u r

t o t a l

so ul tha n we are a t

any time aware of . The ex pl an ati on of the

t r a n s - m a r g i n a l



f i e l d

has ha rd ly ye t

been

c o n s c i o u s l y

undertaken...

Our

i n t u i t i o n s , hypotheses,

fa n c i e s , s u p e r s t i t i o n s ,

persuasions*,

c o n v i c t i o n s and i n g e n e ra l a l l o ur n o n - r a t i o n a l o p e r a t i o n s ,

come from

i t . . . .

I n i t a r i s e

whatever

m y s t i c a l o p e r a t i o n s

we may h a v e . . . . . I t i s a l s o t h e f o u n t a i n

head

o f

much

t h a t

880.

possessed

by i n d i v i d u a l s must be

traced

t o

t h e i r connection

w i t h

t h e i r

respective

f a m i l y groups

seems t o be

confirmed

by t he f o l l o w i n g

suggestion

o f a

"Larger S e l f " made

by

S i r O l i v e r

Lodge i n t h e

Hibbert Journal

o f October

1923:-

**We are,

each

o f us,

l a r g e r

than

we know; t h a t

..each

of us i s

only

a

p a r t i a l

i n c a r n a t i o n

o f

a

l a r g e r

s e l f .

The

i n d i v i d u a l

as we know him i s

an

incomplete f r a c t i o n ;

a p o r t i o n

only

of th e

whole s e l f

i s

brought,

a t &B& one

period,

i n t o

i n t i m a t e contact

w i t h

matter and close associa-

t i o n w i t h a m a t e r i a l body

"As

regards Reincarnation i t

i s

probably

a

mistake

t o

suppose

t h a t

the

same i n d i v i d u a l

whom

we knew

i n b o d i l y

form i s l i k e l y t o

appear

aga in

a t some

f u t u r e

date.

There may be

exceptions

b u t as

a

r u l e

t h i s seems

u n l i k e l y

t o happen. What may

happen, however,

i s t h a t

some other

p o r t i o n o f th e

l a r g e r

s e l f becomes

incarnate

How

large

a s u b l i m i n a l s e l f may be, one

does



not

know; bu t one can imagine t h a t i n

some

cases

i t

i s

very

l a r g e ,

so

t h a t

i t contains

t he

p o t e n t i a l i t y

f o r t h e i n c a r n a t i o n n o t only o f a succession o f

o r d i n a r y

i n d i v i d u a l s , b u t of

r e a l l y great

men "

L i f e a f t e r

death.

Without

a

consideration

o f man's l i f e a f t e r

death

or

o f

h i s

destiny

i n t h e

l i f e

hereafter

a

d e s c r i p t i o n

of th e

conception

o f man

would

be

incomplete.

281

i s regarded as the seat of i n t e l l i g e n c e and courage and the

residence

of

d i v i n i t y

or

genius i n the case

of a k i n g or any

other d i s t i n g u i s he d

person. I n the case

of a

k i n g the hea rt

i s preserved i n a vase and worshipped as an emblem of d i v i -

n i t y ; otherw ise i t i s reduced to powder and mixed

w i t h

rum

t o

be

drunk

by

the ki ng 's successor

who

thus preserves

the

t r i b a l or n a t i o n a l d i v i n i t y r e s i d i n g i n the deceased

k i n g .

The dead body i s

known

as Oku, a

term

which has

been

explained

above.

1

A f t e r death, O . l i . i i . shadow,

man's

image which

accompanies him

d u r i n g

l i f e t i m e , ceases to e x i s t as soon

as th e corpse i s i n t e r r e d . I y e

"mental

body, mind

consciousness" al30 ceases

to

e x i s t

at

death.

As a matter*

0

f

f a c t i y e may be b l u r r e d or l o s t

d u r i n g

l i f e - t i m e and i s



c e r t a i n l y

destroyed before death.

The imperishable p a r t s

of man

are h i s oka(n)

and e m i ( n ) .

Sometimes the

two

terms are used

interchangeably. A man's

h e a r t - s o u l proceeds to the Dead-land a f t e r death, but

i t

cannot

r e s t

unl ess the proper

f u n e r a l

r i t e s

have

been

282

members

of the

f a m i l y ,

e s p e c i a l l y

to those to

whom

the death

o f i t s possessor

has not

yet been announced. I t a l s o remains

i n

close a s s o c i a t i o n

w i t h

the

souI&

of

the

other deceased

members

o f

the f a m i l y .

The

h e a r t - s o u l

does

not

a l l o w

the

H i v i n g

members of

t h e f a m i l y t o f o r g e t i t .

I f

the f u n e r a l

obsequies

are

neglected,

i t

w i l l haunt

the l i v i n g members and

torment them

u n t i l

they

do the n e e d f u l . I f

the

obsequies

are

performed

i t assumes

m a t e r i a l

forms, such

as have

been described

above, and comes

t o

bless them.

The

h e a r t - s o u l

of a

parent always

comes to

bless the c h i l d r e n . Hence the

song

: Oku Olomo

k i

i sun gbagbe

"The

s p i r i t . ' of a

parent never sleeps

and f o r g e t s

hi s



c h i l d r e n " .

I t should

be

noted t h a t a f t e r death the h e a r t - s o u l i s

no

longer c a l l e d glean. I t i s then

known as

O.ii "disembodied

s p i r i t

r e s t i n g

i n

a

grave"

or i w i n

"disembodied s p i r i t

wandering about i n

a n t i c i p a t i o n of

customary ceremonial b u r i a l ,

o r eml(n) "disembodied s p i r i t viewed i n r e l a t i o n

to the

other

283

The a c t i v i t i e s of a h e a r t - s o u l may be t e r m i n a t e d by i t s

r e — i n c a r n a t i o n i n a new-born c h i l d . As i t has

been

p o i n t e d

out

above,

t h e Yorubas b e l i e v e s t r o n g l y i n metempsychosis,

and use

i t

to e x p l a i n what otherwise would

have

been

d e s c r i b e d

as the

i n f l u e n c e

of

h e r e d i t y .

Several

Yoruba

c h i l d r e n have

-tunde as

p a r t

of

t h e i r

names.

For example, baba-tunde " f a t h e r

has come

a g a i n " , ye-tunde

"mother has come a g a i n " i. e. f a t h e r or mother has

been

r e -

i n c a r n a t e d .

A. prayer u s u a l l y heard d u r i n g t h e performances of f u n e r a l ,

obsequies i s as f o l l o w s : Ma ma se pe k i o wa KS lodo wa

" Do not

delay

i n

being

r e - i n c a r n a t e d ; i n our home or

family ."



The

a c t i v i t i e s

may

a l s o

be

t e r m i n a t e d

by

t r a n s m i g r a t i o n .

The,

Yorubas

b e l i e v e t h e Pythagorean

d o c t r i n e ,

o f t r a n s m i g r a t i o n

of souls.

The human

s o u l

may be

born i n t h e form

of a

lower

animal. Some of them are the t i g e r

n

^ k u ( n ) " and the leop ard

"Amp(n)-tQku(n)", both of which a re c r e d i t e d w i t h "khus"

284

one thousand cowries. On the way homeward the

e l d e r b r o t h e r

murdered the younger

and

took hi s

cowries;.

I n response t o e n q u i r i e s he s a i d t h a t

he had l e f t h i s b r o t h e r behind on the road. As

search f a i l e d t o

y i e l d

any t r a c e of the la d i t

was supposed

t h a t

he had been kidnapped and sold .

From

h i s decaying bones sprang up a very

l a r g e

Olu or e d i b l e fungus, which was discovered by h is

mother,

and, as she was about t o pluck i t , the

fungus sang:

Do not pluck me, Mother,

.Do

not pluck me, Mother ,

Do not pluck me, Mother ,

I am a l o w l y p l a n t

on

the ground.

I

went

to

the

v i l l a g e

f r o l i c : ,

I went

to the

v i l l a g e f r o l i c ,

I

am a l o w l y p l a n t on the ground:

I was given a thousand cowries*

I

am a

l o w l y p l a n t

on the

ground.

Do not pluck me,

Mother,

Do not pluck me, Mother,



Do

not

pluck

me,

Mother,

I : am a

l o w l y p l a n t

on the ground.

My b r o t h e r r e c e i v e d a thousand cowries,

My

b r o t h e r r e c e i v e d

a thousand cowries,

I

am a

l o w l y

p l a n t on th e ground:

But he slew me f o r my cowries,

I

am a

l o w l y p l a n t

on

th e ground.

285

Heaven and

H e l l .

Souls and

s p i r i t s

do

not

merely go

t o the

Deadland.

Their

f a t e i s determined by th e l i f e they had l e d w h i l s t

i n

the

f

l e a n .

The

Yorubas;

b e l i e v e

i n two

kinds

of

heaven.

The

f i r s t

i s known as Orun

r e r e

"Good Heaven". This i s where th e righteous

go* Hence immediately a f t e r death prayers

are

o f f e r e d that

• the s p i r i t of t he deceased may meet

w i t h af ef

r e r e

" c o o l

breezes**.

The

s a c r i f i c e

of

a

fowl,

i s

o f t e n made to

secure

a; safe jjoumey

f o r

the deceased. This f o w l i s known as;

Adie Irana- The f o w l t h a t buys th e way"'.

The

other

heaven i s known

as Orun

Apadi. l i t e r a l l y



^Heaven

o f

potsherd"",

hence

"HelDL".

I n order t o a s c e r t a i n which of these heavens t h e s p i r i t

must

go,

th e

h e a r t - s o u l

must

go to

the judgment

h a l l of

heaven known as Asaln

Orun*and

there i t must give an account

o f the deeds done i n

the f l e s h .

286

B e l i e f

i n a

f u t u r e

judgment i n the h a l l of

heaven

i s

s t r o n g l y

entrenched i n the

minds of

the

Yorubas. I t

contains

the idea

of a

righteous

judgment, of a

place

where

wrongs

w i l l

be r i g h t e d and

grievances redressed.

The b e l i e f '

acts

as

a

deterrent

t o

e v i l

doing

and

check's

a

reckless;

d e s i r e f o r vengeance while soothing the

mind

of one who

f e e l s

h i m s e l f incapable

of

wreaking his vengeance

on a

b u l l y

or an

unknown a s s a i l a n t .

I n

heaven

as w e l l as

the land

of

the

dead

man i s

supposed to l i v e

the

same

kind

of l i f e as he

le d i n the

present world. Hence arose the

need

of slaves and

wives

i n

the other world

and

the d esir e

of such persons to commit



s u i c i d e

i n order t o

accompany

t h e i r

masters

or

husbands

t o

the

other world.

On

the occasion

of an

A l a f i n

of Oyo

about;

two

hundred of hiejslaves and wives were

reported

to have

committed suicide

t o

accompany t h e i r l o r d

and to

render

him

.-

•

s e r v i c e

i n the other world. I t i s

w i t h

d i f f i c u l t y

t h a t the

[

287

3.

That th e

i m m a t e r i a l

p a r t l y e "mind, mental

body"

which

i s

c l o s e l y connected w i t h the body may p e r i s h even d u r i n g

l i f e t i m e , and

c e r t a i n l y

perish es at death.

4.

That th e

i m m a t e r i a l

p a r t s Oka(n) "heart-soul?'

and Eml(n)

' s p i r i t

are imperishable, Okan and

Emin

bein g used

interchangeably

as the

r e a l

essence of

p e r s o n a l i t y .

5.

That th e m a t e r i a l

h e a r t

i s p e r i s h a b l e , bu t as t he seat

o f

courage and

d i v i n i t y i t

may be preserved according t o

t h e methods

described

above.

6. That death i s no t the end of

e x i s t e n c e .

A. man's:

s p i r i t

continues

t o

e x i s t w i t h e s s e n t i a l

c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s which

preserve h i s i d e n t i t y . His name remains unchanged.

7.

That each

s p i r i t

can

i d e n t i f y i t s

own body or

i t s representative



3Et can re-appear i n a form

recognizable

by o t h e r s . '

8.

That th e Adimuorisa, Oro and Eluku c u l t a show the existence

o f

a b e l i e f , i n the

r e s u r r e c t i o n

of the

s p i r i t .

9

That the

s p i r i t

of man i s

a k i n

t o God and t h a t

i t

belongs

t o

a

l a r g e r

s e l f

or a group of

s p i r i t s .

288

t h e

next wor ld

depends upon

the.

judgment

i t receives

at:

t h e judgment h a l l of

heaven.

12.

That t he ki ng duri ng hi s l i f e t i m e i s d e i f i e d and worshipped.

A f t e r ' death the s p i r i t of man may he d e i f i e d and worshipped.

Hence

there are anthropomorphic

d e i t i e s .

13.

That the

s p i r i t - w o r l d

i s i n contact

w i t h l i v i n g

persons. That

the.

dead

s t i l l take

a c t i v e

i n t e r e s t i n the welfare of t h e i r

;

f a m i l y *

That t h e i r s p i r i t can be invoked,

t h a t

appeals can

be made t o them, and

t h a t

s a c r i f i c e

a v a i l s

i n securing t h e i r

f a v o u r .

11*. That the h e a r t - s o u l , goes t o r e - j o i n the f a m i l y group and may be

r e — i n c a r n a t e d

or may transmigr ate

i n t o

a

p l a n t

or animal.

1£. That the s p i r i t

goes back

to Olorun the

Supreme

Deity who i s



known

as Elemi. Owner of Spirits?'* The s p i r i t

ia.

immortal.

16» That the re i s reward f o r good conduct i n the present worl d and

j u s t r e t r i b u t i o n i n the next wor ld where wrongs committed i n the:

present

l i f e w i l l

be

r i g h t e d

and

even j u s t i c e

dispensed.

289

1.

The p h y s i c a l

body which

was

c a l l e d

Khat.

i.

e.

t h a t

which

was l i a b l e t o

decay, and

cou ld on ly be preser ved

by

mummification.

2. The ka , a

word

which by ge neral consent i s t r a n s l a t e d

"'double" an a b s t r a c t i n d i v i d u a l i t y or p e r s o n a l i t y

which possessed

t h e a t t r i b u t e s of th e man t o

whom i t

belonged....•

i t c ou ld

wander

a t

w i l l . . . .

and was

supposed

to eat and d r i nk , and t he gr ea te st care was u s ua ll y

t a k e n t o l a y

abundant

s u p p l i e s o f

o f f e r i n g s

i n

tombs.

3. The ba o r h e a r t - s o u l , was i n

some

way

connected

w i t h

t h e Ka.... I t seems t o have been a b l e t o assume

m a t e r i a l

o r i m m a t e r i a l f o r m a t

w i l l .

k

The

aib

o r h e a r t was c l o s e l y a s s o c i a t e d w i t h t h e s o u l

and

V

was he ld t o be the

source

bo th of the animal

l i f e :

and of

good

and

e v i l

i n man. The p r e s e r v a t i o n o f

th e he ar t of a man was h e l d t o be of the gr ea te st

impor-

tance;, and i n the judgment i t i s t h e one member of th e

body

which

i s s i n g l e d

o$t

f o r s p e c i a l e x a m i n a t i o n; h e r e ,

however,

the he ar t i s regarded as having

been

t h e c e n t r e

of t h e s p i r i t u a l and

t h i n k i n g l i f e

and i t t y p i f i e s

e v e r y t h i n g which

t h e

word ""conscience"

s i g n i f i e s t o us.



The n e c e s s i t y o f p r e s e r v i n g t h e m a t e r i a l h e a r t was v e r y

g r e a t

5. The

K h a i b i t

o r

shadow,

was c l o s e l y

connected

w i t h t h e ba

or soul

6. The Khu o r s p i r i t u a l s o u l i s o f t e n mentioned i n c o n n e c t i o n

w i t h

t h e ba o r h e a r t - s o u l , and i t

seems

t o

have been

r e -

garded

as a n e t h e r a l b e i n g , i n f a c t t h e

SOUL which under

no c i rc u ms t an c e s c o u l d d i e ; i t d w e l t i n t h e

Sahu

o r

s p i r i t u a l body.

290

The

resemblance

between

the Ancient Egyptian conception and:

t h e Yorubtt conception of man can now be tra ce d i n d e t a i l .

F i r s t ,

there i s the phy sic al

body, known

as

Khat

i n

Ancient Egyptian and as Ara i n

Yoruba.

Both are l i a b l e t o

decay.

The

Yoruba word A-ra

means

" t h a t

which belongs to

Ea";

t h i s s t r o n g l y suggests t h a t the worship of

R®.

was so st rong

i n some pa rt s of Ancient Egypt where the Yorubas had resided

t h a t

they regarded

t h e i r

bodies as the property of

Ra,

the

Sun-©od..

Secondly the

word ka

i s noteworthy. From the d e s c r i p t i o n

given of

i t above,

i t i s obvious

t h a t

the ideas connected

w i t h i t are

i d e n t i c a l

w i t h those connected w i t h the Yoruba

word

Q-kgi(n). The

word

o-ka(n) i s c e r t a i n l y derived from



ka; o i s only an

i n i t i a l vowel'

c h a r a t e r i s t i e of Yoruba nouns,

and n i s a nasal consonant.

Both ka and o-ka(n) denote an

a b s t r a c t, p e r s o n a l i t y

or

p e r s o n a l i t y which possesses the a t t r i b u t e s of the man to whom

each

of

them

may belong. Both could

wander

at

w i l l

a f t e r

291

Both

a re

supposed

t o

be c l o s e l y associated w i t h

t h e sxaul

and

t o

be "the source both of

t h e

animal

l i f e

and of good

and e v i l i n man? The p r e s e r v a t i o n of

t h e

h e a r t was

deemed

t o

be of

g r e a t

importance i n both

c o u n t r i e s .

Also

the

two

words; ab_ and

o-ka(n)&

t y p i f y "'everything which the word

conscience

s i g n f i e s

to us .

The i d e n t i f i c a t i o n

of

t h e

h e ar t w i t h

t h e Ka

by

th e

Yorubas

i s

supported by a passage

i n th e Book

of

t h e Dead

.

where

the

deceased says to h i s h e a r t "Thou a r t my Kaf

1

'.

1

T h i r d l y ,

t h e

s u r v i v a l of

the

Ancient Egyptian word ba

has

been

noted i n

t h e

previous chapters. Somehow

among

t he Yorubas t h e r e e x i s t s

the

b e l i e f t h a t i t

i s

o n l y

th e

wicked s o u l t h a t

w i l l become

a ba a f t e r death .



I n t h e

present w o r l d

the ba i s a h e a r t - s o u l among t h e

Yorubas.

For example,

Qj

-ba "Xing"

1

i s supposed

t o

be the

i n c a r n a t e s o u l of

t h e t r i b e

or n a t i o n .

The

word

i s

used

i n t h e same

sense as

kai

- Yoruba oka(n)-

which i s supposed

t o assume

m a t e r i a l or i m m a t e r i a l form at.

392

shadow, viewed e x t e r n a l l y , peri shes at death; w h i l s t the

Egyptian shadow, viewed i n t e r n a l l y and connected w i t h the

h e a r t - s o u l , i s imperishable.

F i f t h l y , the Khu, " S p i r i t u a l

soul"

:

"luminous s p i r i t

i s one of the

most

important

words

t h a t

have

s u r v i v e d

i n

t h e

Yoruba language from t he Ancient Egypti an language.

I t s s u r v i v a l as a form of s a l u t a t i o n has been noted i n

Chapter 1.

Over

two hundred d i s t i n c t s a l u t a t i o n s

c o n t a i n

t h e word. So

f r e q u e n t

i s th e use of these

s a l u t a t i o n s

t h a t

the Yoruba people who s e t t l e d i n Sierrai Leone are

known as. "A-ku" people

i.

e. those who use the word A-ku

o r

O-ku

f r e q u e n t l y i n t h e i r

s a l u t a t i o n s .



The

Yorubas

b e l i e v e

t h a t

a man possesses a

Khu.

When

a person

d i e s ,

the usual expressi on i s 0

ku

"He or she

d i e s "

t h a t i s , he or she gi ve s up the Khu or becomes a luminous

s p i r i t , accor ding t o Ancient Egypti an

idea.

The word used by the

Yorubas

f o r

s p i r i t '

o r

n

s p i r i t u a l

293

a k i n

t o

that

of a

d e i t y .

The

word

may be

taken

a s a

further'

i n d i c a t i o n of th e c o n n e c t i o n of th e Yorubas w i t h

Coptos;

i n Anc ien t Egypt where

th e god Min was

a c t i v e l y

w o r s h i p p e d ,

1

A corpse o r a

disembodied

s p i r i t i s known a s O-ku.

"that

w h i c h

has become a

Khu

lt

.

" D e a t h * i s

"T-ku"

i n Yoruba,

that

i s t h e p r o c e s s o f

becoming

a

luminous

s p i r i t o r of

g i v i n g

up t h e

Khu.

S i x t h l y ,

t h e word 3-ekhe-m s u r v i v e s i n Y o r u b a

a s

ekf

-

i n i t i a l

and

f i n a l

consonants ar e e l i d e d . The word eke

means " c o n f i de n c e " . I t s

meaning becomes

c l e a r e r

when

one

c o n s i d e r s

t h e f o l l o w i n g e x p r e s s i o n : -

Mo gbe

gbogbo

eke mi

l e

T put th e

whole

o f my

c o n f i d e n c e

i n

him,

l i t e r a l l y , I

t r a c e t h e w h o l e of my power t o him"' i . e. he a l o n e ca n

support me o r g i v e me

power

to a c h i e v e s u c c e s s .



S e v e n t h l y , a t t e n t i o n

has

been

c a l l e d I t o

t h e

gre at

to names

importance

a t t a c h e d Z i n

Yorubaland

and

i n Anc ien t Egypt.

I n t he l a t t e r country, the Eat name i s

of th e

g r e a t e s t

importance. T h e Y o r u b a word f o r a name i s Oruko. T h i s

894

L a s t l y ,

Sahu

or

s p i r i t u a l

body has no cou nte rpa rt

i n

Yoruba. I t

must

no t be

confused

w i t h Sahu

i .

e.

Orion

w h i c h has sur viv ed i n Yoruba as O - s a n h K n ) . The absence

of the coun terp art i s

p r o b a b l y

due to t h e

f a c t

that the

word

e,-mi(n)

a l s o connotes the idea of a

s p i r i t u a l

body.

.Apart

from t he s u r v i v a l s connected wi th the con sti tue nt

pa rt s of man de ta il ed above, ideas w h i c h may be

r e g a r d e d

a s

E g y p t i a n s u r v i v a l s e x i s t i n

Y o r u b a l a n d

i n

c o n n e c t i o n

with

the c o n c e p t i o n of man and h i s de st in y i n the fu tu re world*

The fo ll ow in g ar e a few of them:—

1. The idea of heaven* Att ent ion has b e e n

c a l l e d

above,

to the su r v i v a l of elements i n the Osi ria n f a i t h . I t

has

b e e n

p o i n t e d out that the O s i r i a n heaven h as no



place for the i d l e , tha t the re i s a

b e l i e f

i n

judgment

a f t e r death,

and th at the

s p i r i t

of the

good p e r s o n w i l l ,

return to O s i r i s . £ these idea s sur viv e i n Yorubaland.

The

s p i r i t

r etu rns to E l e m i 'Owner of S p i r i t s " and

Olodumare

"the exal ted

p c e r s o n a g e

to whom I

w i l l

or

295

The Yoruba

word

f o r heaven i 3

o — r u ( n )

w h i ch i s d e r i v e d from

the a n c i e n t E g y p t i a n word horn, "sk y, he aven".

The s u r v i v a l of th e god Thot ha s been n o t e d i n Gftaptd? I I .

and that of th e f i e l d s of I a l u i n C h a p t e r I I a n d IV.

H e l l

i s known

by

t h e Y o r u b a s a s

Qrun

Apadi. u s u a l l y

t r a n s l a t e d "Heaven of Potsherd

1 1

", A p ad i i s o f E g y p t i a n o r i g i n .

I t s f u l l , form i s Ar-pa-odi; p a p e r

5

house; Odi, an E gy p ti an

d e i t y rega rded as wicke d and alw ays r e v e l l i n g i n tormenting.:

o t h e r s .

A-pa-di,

t h e r e f o r e , i s " t h e abode of Odi"

:

.

2.

The s u r v i v a l of the i d e a of gu ar di an and f a m i l y s p i r i t s has

been noted i n Cha pter I . The f o l l o w i n g p a s s a g e f u r t h e r

i l l u s t r a t e s t h e p o i n t : -

I t

seems,

then, b e s t to re gar d the

Ka.

a s an



a n c e s t r a l

emanation,

which was

a s s o c i a t e d

w i t h

e a c h man fr om b i r t h an d b y i t s s u p e r i o r i t y would

gui de and h el p him thr ough t h i s l i f e and th e ne xt ". •

idea

3 . The

i d e a

of metempsychosis.

Compare

the Yor uba^ wit h the

E g y p t i a n i d e a

e x p r e s s e d a s f o l l o w s : - "The

E g y p t i a n s

were

the f i r s t

who

a s s e r t e d

th e d o c t r i n e t h a t the

s o u l

o f man i a

296

the

b i r d s ,

and ot her s t h a t he remained on e a r t h

where h i s bones were l a i d to r e s t The pe as an ts

b e l i e v e d . . . . . t h a t

he

went

to the f i e l d s of

Earu..

•

here he would

p l o u g h

the la nd and reap the ha rv es ts ,

and

when

t i r e d i n the eveni ng, he would s i t unde r

the sycomore, and p la y draughts wi th h i s

companions".

1

These

d i f f e r e n t

c o n c e p t i o n s s u r v i v e i n Yo rubaland.

The

most

p r e v a l e n t c o n c e p t i o n

among

the Yorubas i s

t h a t i n the othe r world, th e dead l i v e much the same

k i n d

of l i f e .

Hence

t he

n e e d

f o r the nob le and the

r i c h t o be accompanied by

s l a v e s

and wiv es. T h i s

was the ca se i n An cie nt Egypt where i n the

l a t t e r

days

2

s l a v e s and wives were r e p l a c e d b y u s h e b t i f i g u r e s .



5.

The ex is te nc e of

s e v e r a l i n d i v i d u a l i t i e s

i n one an d

the

same

Ego. T h i s i s the

same

i n Yorubaland as i n

An cie nt Egypt. Prof .

Erman

w r i t i n g on t h i s s u b j e c t says

"They ( i . e . the Anc ien t Egy ptia ns) ) d i d not

c o n s i d e r man a s a si mp le i n d i v i d u a l i t y ; he

c o n s i s t e d

o f a t

l e a s t

t h r e e

p a r t s ,

the

body,

297

with the

l o f t y r e l i g i o n

of Anci ent

Egypt.

L o f t y ide as of

i m m o r t a l i t y , heaven, and judgment a f t e r deat h are not of te n

found among p r i m i t i v e people, and

t h e i r

presence i n Yoruba-

land can only f i n d so lu ti on i n a theory of con tac t between

the Yoruba c i v i l i s a t i o n and a hi gh er c i v i l i s a t i o n . That

c i v i l i s a t i o n i s the Ancient Egy ptian c i v i l i s a t i o n , a s may

be se en i n the po in ts of s i m i l a r i t y and i d e n t i t y noted

above

i n

t h i s

chapter.



C H A P T E R

X I I



PRIESTHOOD AND WORSHIP (continued)

1. D e a t h

and

B u r i a l Customs

-2U8-

DEATH AND BURIAL CUSTOMS. S p i r i t worship i s pa rt of the r e l i g i o u s

wors hip of the Yorubas. Great i m p o r t a n c e i s t h e r e f o r e attached to

the pr oc es s of t r a n s i t i o n

from

t h e i n c a r n a t e s p i r i t to the

disembodied s p i r i t . E v e r y

e f f o r t

i s made to se e th at the

disembodied s p i r i t e n j o y s t he b l e s s e d n e s s dependent upon t he due

performance o f h i s f u n e r a l o b s e q u i e s .

A

common s a l u t a t i o n

i n Yorubalan d i s "0 ku". T hi s has been

ex pl ai ne d i n Chapter one and i t

means

"May you

become

a Khu" i . e .

a

luminous

s p i r i t a f t e r death . The wish ex pr es se d by the s a l u t a -

t i o n i s qui te i n keeping wi th the

b e l i e f

and hope of the An ci en t

E gy p ti a ns who at one sta ge i n

t h e i r

r e l i g i o u s h i s t o r y e a r n e s t l y

prayed and hoped t o

become

a Khu "luminous s p i r i t " in st ea d of a

ba " a mere disembodied s p i r i t " . The two i de a s sur vi ve i n

Y o r u b a -

l a n d ,

f or in ad di ti on to the

good

wi sh c on ta in ed i n "0 ku" the

use the ma le di ct io n "Yio ba 9 t h at i s " i t

w i l l

turn you



Y o r u b a s

t o

a ba o r you

w i l l become

a ba" i n s t e a d of a Khu.

An

example

of Anc ient E gyp tia n pr ay er f or the p r i v i l e g e of

becoming a khu i s con tai ned i n the fo ll ow in g passage taken

from

the

Book

of the

Dead:-

"Let me

remain

on

e a r t h

and no t d i e i n an

-249 -

I n

the ca se of th e de at h of an aged per son who i s

s u r v i v e d

by

one or

more c h i l d r e n ,

j o y

r a t h e r

than sorrow

c h a r a c t e r i z e s

the

cer emon ies . Dea th i n such a case doeB not wear a somber hue.

As a ma tt er of

f a c t ,

death

does

not

evoke

the

same

degre e o f

s o r r o w f u l

f e e l i n g s a s i t

does among

the

h i g h l y c i v i l i z e d

p e o p l e s .

I t i s reg ard ed merely as a pr oc es s of t r a n s i t i o n . As th e D e j i o f

Afcure once

s a i d "Death and

s l e e p

a r e

a l i k e .

D e at h i s male and

sleep

i s female". I t i s only in the case of a

young

person

that

deep s o r r o w f u l f e e l i n g s a re evoked, but th es e soon s ub si de when,

a c c o r d i n g

t o the

u s u a l

p r a c t i c e , the

babalawo

has succe eded i n

p o i n t i n g out the wi tc h or wi za r d

r e s p o n s i b l e

f o r the death and

t h e

c u l p r i t

has

been

made

t o pay the p e n a l t y . The reas on why the

f u n e r a l ob sequi es are more or l e s s o f a j o y f u l

c h a r a c t e r ,

marked

w i t h

f e a s t i n g and merriment, i s that the s p i r i t of the de ce as ed has

gone

t o

j o i n

t h e

great

f a m i l y

of a n c e s t r a l s p i r i t s .



I t sh ou ld not be thought t h a t t h e r e i s a t o t a l absence of

sorrow. When the dea th of a po pu la r per son or a c h i e f occurs

the

f r i e n d s and

r e l a t i v e s

assembled by the

deathnbed

u s u a l l y

r a i s e

lo ud mournful shout s and la me nt at io ns .

Some

of

them

a s s i s t

-250-

de i t a , k o s i

n i

i t a . Mo de i l e , ko s i n i i l e . Ng ko n i r i i

mo 0. 0 d i gber e, 0 d i ar in ak o. "

"Alas

1

.

1

.'.

Or

o i l ' .

Our

father

h a s

gone

today

1

. We ca nn ot f i n d him -

A l a s

Oro 1 I go t o

t he

marke t, he

i s

root i n themarket. I go t o t he

s t r e e t s ,

he i s not

i n

t h e s t r e e t s . I go to th e house, he i s not i n th e house.

N e v e r s h a l l I se e him. He ha s become a disembodied s p i r i t t o be

met at by -p at hs ."

The corpse must be l e f t untouched f o r at

l e a s t

th re e hours

a f t e r death has occ ur red .

The e l d e s t son or the br ot he r of the decease d i f th er e be no

son send s f o r the babalawo who w i l l

consult

I f a o r a c l e as to

whether the deat h i s due to n a t u r a l cau se s or to w i t c h c r a f t , and i f

t h e l a t t e r i s t he c a s e , to po in t out the c u l p r i t . I f t he oracle

d e c l a r e the s p i r i t of the de ce as ed to be i n danger, th e babalawo

perf orms two imp ort ant cere mon ies . He

s a c r i f i e s

a goat or a



sheep, and ca us es the c a r c a s e t o be c a r r i e d outs ide the town and

d e p o s i t e d a t a j u n c t i o n o f s e v e r a l r oad s, the

i d e a

b e i n g that the

e v i l L s p i r i t s endangering t h e s p i r i t of the dec eas ed w i l l thereby

be

d i s p e r s e d

i n

d i f f e r e n t d i r e c t i o n s .

The

babalawo

a l s o

performs

-251-'

corpse w i l l

t i l i n g

irremovably

to

the

re

- i n c a r n a t e d body, h i s

ceremony

of


i s

t h e r e f o r e regarded

es

indispensable.

* f t e r

washing

the

corpse

i s

rubbed

w i t h

camwood

and wat er.

t i s then cl oth ed i n i t s best garments and l a i d on a mat spread

on the bare f l o o r

or an orupo

(mud bed). Among some t r i b e s the

hands

are placed by the si des , and t h e

f e e t r>.re

t i e d close

together. The corpse

i s

then wrapped up wi t h mat up t o the neck

and

t i e d i.n th re e or fou r pla ces , the whole

f i n u r e s t r o n g l y resembling

an Egyptian

mummy

AmonT other t r i b e s , the corpse i s

l a i d

w i t h i t s

back on the

mat,

i t s hands are plac ed over the chest and. the

thumbs

t i e d

together,

i t s

f e e t

are

brought

close together and the

great toes likewise t i e d , the

mouth

and

nose

are

gag

-red w i t h

cot ton -wo ol, and a

bandage

i s passed

belov;

th e lo wer jaw and

t i e d

on the

head,

so as t o br in g the two jaws close together. Rlach of the

c h i l d r e n then covers the corpse w i t h

a

f i n e n a t i v e c l o t h , the



idea being t o prov ide ex tr a cl ot hs f o r the use of the

deceased

i n

th e next wo rl d.

The corpse u s u a l l y l i e s

i n

s tate fo r

about

two

or

three days,

i n the

case

of an impor tan t person, the

l y i n g - i n - s t a t e

may

l a s t

for

a f u l l week. Daring t h i s p e r i o d f r i e n d s and neig hbou rs are i n v i t e d

-252-

L o u d drumming

takes plac e out side the house, and

v o l l e y s

of shots

ar e f i r e d

as a mark o f

honour

i n the case of a dis ti ng ui sh ed person.

P o o d

and dr in ks are pro vid ed f r e e l y , and gue sts ar e sometimes seen

who

have

become

i n t o x i c a t e d

wi th an ino rd in at e qua ntit y of gin,

be er , rum or palm

wine

g r a t u i t o u s l y pr ov id ed by the decease d's

r e l a t i v e s .

Sometimes p r o f e s s i o n a l mourners are employed to

make

l a m e n t a t i o n s .

The c h i e f mourners are not all ow ed to tak e pa rt i n the g en er al

merriment; they are shut up i n a nei ghb ou rin g

apartment.

They utter

o c c a s i o n a l

w a i l s , and th er e th ey remain du ri ng the whole p e r i o d

between

t h e washing of the corpse and i t s b u r i a l .

They

a r e

f o r -

bidden to

wash,

and to t ak e fo od at

l e a s t

f o r the

f i r s t

twenty-four

hours. The male members of the f a mi l y who have some other work t o

do are often

exempted

from the observance of

t h i s

unhygenic

custom.

The

women,

too, ar e

sometimes

persua ded to take

some

nourishment.



The work of dig gin g the grave d evol ves upon the sons or the male

r e l a t i v e s of th e dece ased . The grave i s almost i n v a r i a b l y dug i n

the

house

of the deceased; sometimes i t i s dug on hi s pre mis es.

1

-253-

T h e p r o c e s s i o n

r e t u r n s

to the

house

i n the even ing , ready for

t h e

in ternment of the cor pse . Befo re

t h i s

i s done, a sheep or a

goat i s pro vid ed for a s a c r i f i c i a l ceremony. As

soon

as th e cor ps e

i s l a i d i n the grav e(whi ch i s . u s u a l l y

s h a l l o w ) ,

th e anim al

pr ov id ed fo r the purpose i s

k i l l e d

and i t s blood i s all owed to

drop

over the co rp se . The

c h i l d r e n

of the deceas ed a l s o shed

t h e i r t e a r s i n t o the gra ve, whi le wi sh in g him

safe

jo ur ne y to the

l a n d of the dead.

I t i s almost ne ed le ss to add

that funeral

expenses in Yor ub al an d

a r e

ve ry heavy. Be si de the gr ea t

cost

o f p r o v i d i n g ample food

and

i n t o x i c a t i n g

dr in ks the re i s "the

amount

that

must

be paid the

v a r i o u s s o c i a l ,

r e l i g i o u s

and

p o l i t i c a l g u i l d s

to whi ch th e

deceased i s at tac he d, apart

from

the pr es en ts of

yams, o i l ,

goats,

and other c a t t l e and p r o v i s i o n s w h i c h must be made a t

some

d e f i n i t e

time

a f t e r

i ntern ment or du rin g the


of the

funeral



ceremonies". Sometimes a whole fa mi ly i s plunged i n t o r u i n by

f u n e r a l

expen ses, and

members

of

some f a m i l i t i e s have s o l d

themselves

i n t o s l a v e r y t o meet up th e exa ct io ns of the f u n e r a l g u i l d s . And

yet

the heavy

burden

i s

borne

w i t h complacency, the

b e l i e f

being

-254-

Of a l l these g ui ld s the Ogboni gu il d i s the most i m p o r t a n t .

To t h i s g u i l d b e l o n g s a l l the ch ie fs and lea ding p e r s o n s i n t he

comnunity. Admission

t o i t i s

open

to a l l f r e e born men and

confers a

measure

of

honour

and d ig ni ty . When a member of th e

g u i l d d i e s , h i s r e l a t i v e s have to pay a l a r g e sum of money and

other pr es en ts to the o t h e r members of the g u i l d f o r the

performance

of the necessary

ceremonies.

B u r i a l i s

sometimes

d e l a y e d

by th e

i n a b i l i t y o f th e r e l a t i v e s t o p r o c u r e the pres ent s in good time,

and

much

i n c o n v e n i e n c e i s ther eby ca used to a l l and

sundry.

The

u n i n i t i a t e d

are f o r b i d d e n to touch the

corpse,

and pres sure i s

thus

i n d i r e c t l y

exerted on the re l a t i v e s to

hasten

the c ol l ec t i o n of the

pr es en ts so as to fr ee

t h e m s e l v e s

from the

i n c o n v e n i e n c e

of a

f a s t -

r o t t e n i n g corpse i n a hot c li ma te .

Hence

the song often h e a r d from

the r e l a t i v e s of the

d e c e a s e d

:-

Otalelegbeje ro gba



Omo

re a san l i g b e h i n 0

The large amount you have received

W i l l some

day be pa i d by

your

c h i l d r e n .

T h i s means th at the

same

presents

given

to the sur vi vi ng

members

of the

Ogboni

g u i l d by a

d e c e a s e d

member's

r e l a t i v e s

w i l l

have

to be

-255-

" O t a l e l e g b e j e i s 1460

cowries

or 36 s t r i n g s and

h a l f . I t i s n ot i n t e n d e d to be i n t e r p r e t e d

l i t e r a l l y The amount i s f o r making etutu

( p r o p i t i a t o r y

s a c r i f i c e s )

f or the

dead;

the

provision;

. to m a i n t a i n the members when they

meet. There i s no n a t i v e but belongs to one or

another of these g u i l d s .

Some

belong to several

and

a man's

rank

i s

e s t i m a t e d a c c o r d i n g

to the

g u i l d

or

g u i l d s

to which he

belongs. Whatever

amount

remains

a f t e r the

ne ce ss ar y expenses

ar e

made i s

d i s t r i b u t e d

among the members and

every

i n d i v i d u a l

i s given a p o r t i o n , however s m a l l , i n

p r o p o r t i o n to h i s

o f f i c i a l s t a t u s .

The enjjoyment

of t h i s b e n e f i t i s regarded a s an accumulated

debt f o r every i n d i v i d u a l arid imposes an o b l i g a t i o n

upon t h e i r c h i l d r e n t o make s i m i l a r c o n t r i b u t i o n

to the g u i l d

towards

t h e i r p a r e n t s ' f u n e r a l s at

t h e i r deaths. Th is

song^

r e p e a t e d a t f u n e r a l s i s

to

keep

them always i n r e c o l l e c t i o n of t h i s

f a c t .

T h i s

i s

both

a p o l i t i c a l , s o c i a l and a s e c r e t

s o c i e t y *

I n

f a c t

i t i s t h e

K i n g ' s

c h i e f

c o n s u l t a t i v e

chamber i n a l l m at te rs and i t s

p r i n c i p a l

members

form

a

C a b i n e t .

They l a y the

corpse w it h f u l l

masonic

r i t e s .

I n

t h e i r passage

to and from th e

house of

mourning they

sound

alarm with t h e i r s t a t e

drums of

v a r i o u s h e i g h t

and sounds so that

every

woman or u n i n i t i a t e d man might f l e e t h e i r presence

e i t h e r i n the s t r e e t or i n th e

house

of mourning,.. .

D u r i n g

the

p r o c e s s

of

co rp se -l ay in g they continue

b e a t i n g



t h e i r drums and so at i n t e r v a l s w h i l s t the

corpse i s s t i l l l y i n g i n s t a t e when they go to make

t h e i r e t u t u . At eac h time they a r e g e n e r a l l y

p r o v i d e d w i t h

palm wine

and n a t i v e b e e r . The members

a r e sometimes c a l l e d

Oshugbo.

A few e l d e r l y

women

are

always admitted

and

these

are

g e n e K a l l y

d i s t i n g u i s h e d

from

o t h e r s

by

having

c e r t a i n s t r i n g s ( o k u n ) t i e d down

t h e i r

w r i s t s ;

such

women

are

supposed

t o be f o r

ev er

-256-

"While

t h e mounning

r e l a t i v e s

are asse mble d, a person

who a c t s as Efgun l i e s hidden i n the

a d j o i n i n g

room.

P r e s e n t l y one o f t h e mourners s t r i k e s on the ground

t h r i c e and c r i e s out, Baba, baba, baba

1

. Da mi loh un i

i . e .

F a t h e r ,

f a t h e r , f a t h e r

Answer

me

1

.

From

the

a d j o i n i n g

room

comes

an answer i n

'Egungun

Voice'

( v e r a t r i l o q u i a l ) ,

and a l l are comforted and

f i l l e d

w i t h

j o y ,

on the su pp os it io n

that

the

s p i r i t

of the dece ase d,

although unseen, i s indeed pre sen t wit h them. Food

h a v i n g been

p la ce d by the women i n the Egun's room

(he h a v i n g c o n c e a l e d h i m s e l f , or depa rted ) a f t e r he has

answered, ea ch gue st goes i n and hel ps h i m s e l f , thus

perf ormi ng an a ct of

communion

w i t h the dec eas ed. The

Egun does

not

wear

h i s

d r e s s

w hi le con ceal ed i n the

room; but s ho ul d he

d e s i r e

to

come

out and

j o i n

i n the

f e s t i v i t i e s ,

he

dons

i t and

w i l l

then speak as, and

s t a t e hi ms el f to be, the

s p i r i t

of th e one who i s be in g

mourned Some

days

a f t e r

the

b u r i a l

an

Egun comes

a t n i g h t

and

c a l l s

out th e

name

of th e dec eas ed; and,

a f t e r f u r t h e r

days have pa ss ed , he

comes

i n the dayti me,

accompanied by

f o l l o w e r s ,

and pro cee ds to the

house

of the

deceased,

where

he

r e p o r t s

that he has s a f e l y rea che d the

s p i r i t

w orld, and i s w e l l and happy. I n resp onse to t he

good news, he i s pr ov id ed w i t h food, rum and

palm

wine,

of which he part ak es i n p r i v a t e s i n c e s p i r i t s

must

not

be see n t o e a t I When he and h i s

f o l l o w e r s

have

f i n i s h e d ,

l o u d

groans i n d i c a t e

that

he i s d e p a r t i n g . "

1

These cer emonies ar e re ga rd ed as

r e a l i t i e s ,

but

a c t u a l l y

i t i s



only the c h i l d r e n and simpl e-min ded pe rs on s who do not

r e a l i z e

t h a t

they ar e not more than p r a c t i c a l demonstration of

b e l i e f s .

The ceremonies

j u s t

d e s c r i b e d a r e u s u a l l y perfor med on the

" s e v e n t h " day

a f t e r

a per so n' s dea th or b u r i a l . The word

-257-

W r i t i n g

on th e s u b j e c t of

I s e k u ,

Mr. I.O.Delano, auth or of

"The Soul

of

N i g e r i a "

g i v e s

a

g r a p h i c

and

elab or at e account

of

the

ceremonies which

he was p r i v i l e d g e d to

w i t n e s s

on two

o c c a s i o n s .

H i s

account gi ve s

an

i m p r e s s i o n

of

h i s b e l i e f

i n the r e a l i t y of th e

deceased's

r e t u r n ,

e s p e c i a l l y when

he

s a y s : -

" A l l of a

sudden

the

crow d swayed

and

someone

shouted:

He i s coming.

Y e s ,

he was coming.

And

at

that

moment

t h e r e

was s

solemnity

that

was almost

i n d e s c r i b a b l e .

Dead S i l e n c e .

The

man came

s l o w l y

He

was

i n

v e r y

t r u t h the

man who had

departed

t h i s l i f e j u s t

f o r t y

days

ago H i s

f a c e

was no t

c o v er e d . I t must

have been

s u c c e s s f u l l y p a i n t e d ,

f o r the

w r i n k l e s and

s c a r s

were

a l l t he re

as

evidence

o f

i d e n t i t y . "

The present

w r i t e r has

w i t n e s s e d

the

ceremonies

on several

o c c a s i o n s

and i s co n v i n c e d that clo se o b s e r v a t i o n would

have

r e v e a l e d

to Mr.

Delano

that the f i g u r e

which

he saw on

each

o c c a s i o n was a mere

impersonation

an d not an o b j e c t i v e

r e - i n c a r -

n a t i o n of the

deceased pers on.



The f u n e r a l ceremonie s connected w it h Oro w o r s h i p are al so

i n t e r e s t i n g .

I f a member of the Oro

g u i l d d i e s , a l l

the

oth er

members of th e

g u i l d

are bound t o

assemble

and

proceed

t o th e

deceas ed perso n's house.

The c h i e f

mourners

welcome them

and

-258-

The

ram i s then

ceremoniously

slaughtered and i t s blood i s

caught

i n a bowl or calabas h, fro m whi ch the

c h i l d r e n

take

small

q u a n t i t i e s

and rub on t h e i r heads. The f i g u r e of a man

c l o s e l y

resembling the

deceased

i s

drawn

on the

w a l l

near

the

deceased person's grave and the

ram's

head i s

o f f e r e d

t o t h i s

f i g u r e . These

s a c r i f i c i a l

ceremonies must be repea ted an nu al ly

by the c h i l d r e n .

As

soon

as the

ceremonies

i n the house are over, the mourners

are

asked

t o leave t he house. The

members

o f the Oro g u i l d perform

c e r t a i n

secret ceremonies and then lo c k the door as soon as they

are ready to proceed t o the Oro grove f o r f u r t h e r

ceremonies.

The pa rt u s u a l l y pl ae d by the Oro g u i l d i n th e Oro grove has

a l s o been

w e l l

described by Mr. Sopein (anonymously known as

Adesola )

i n the Ni ge ri an Chr oni cle : The

whole company

of

gods

and men

proceed

outside to what i s

c a l l e d

the

Oro-pagi

('Oro

k i l l s



t h e tr ee ') or

O r o - j e g i

(Oro eats the t r e e ) ceremony. For i t s

1

performance

the

newly

d e i f i e d take s the

company

to the h i g h e s t -

t r e e

i n the

neighbourhood

i n order to show proof

o f h i s

d i v i n i t y by

-259-

ghoot anywhere about t h e

t r e e

up t o th e

l o f t i e s t

branch, o r on

t h e

surrounding surf ace, or anywhere about the

v i c i n i t y

o f th e

t r e e . These leaves a re supposed t o have been l i t e r a l l y eaten up

by

t h e go d. Suspended on t h i s

t r e e

between two o f

i t s

branches

which are topmost, or sometimes

l e f t

streaming on one o f i t s

branches

which

I s

the h i g h e s t , i s a new mat or a white or a r e d

piece o f c l o t h . . . . What these mats or c l o t h s are intended t o

symbolize ought t o be evident Un li ke t h e

Egungun

and t h e

Agemo.

t h e

incarn ate form

o f th e Oro i s

never ha bi te d

i n

c l o t h s

or

mats. What i t s n at ur e and habiliments are i s supposed t o be

a

mystery

and

j e a l o u s l y guarded,

up t o th e

present from

t h e gaze

o f women.

I n

f a c t

Oro i s worshipped more i n i t s i nane and s p i r i t u a l form

than

i n a

materiallze d' sharp ©. I t

i s t o t h e

former t h a t s a c r i f i c e s

are

o f f e r e d ,

not t o th e

l a t t e r .

Among

t h e Egbas, who ar e th e



o r i g i n a t o r s

o f t h i s

c u l t ,

t h e Oro Awe ceremony i s t h e on ly

f u n e r a l r i t e performed i n connection w i t h t h i s worship, when th e

s p i r i t i s supposed t o pass from t he 'unburied'

i n t o

t h e

' b u r i e d '

s t a t e .

Viewing i t

i n

t h i s

connection,

th e mats or

c l o t h s ,

-260-

1

remove the rnariwo fr om the gate,

march d i r e c t

to the Aboro s and

thence t o

t h e i r

own

house,

ere break of

day.

I n the morning th e

inmates r e t u r n t o the

house

of mourning, set a mark t o the

d e d i -

cated

spot,

and c o n g r a t u l a t e one

another t h a t

the

departed

has

passed

i n t o

the Oro

a t

arte

and can be

invoked at

any

time fo r

Worship.

Another f u n e r a l

ceremony connected,

w i t h

Oro

worship

i s the

ceremony

of e r e c t i n g a s h r i n e i n

honour

o f

the

deceased member of

an Oro

g u i l d .

I n

t h i s

s h r i n e , which i s u s u a l l y made of t h a t c h and.

i s

about

t h r e e

f e e t

h i g h , are

placed

a mud image of the deceased,

and

some of

hi s belongings

and o f f e r i n g s of

f o o d .

The image i s

c a r e f u l l y

made so as t o

resemble

the deceased as much as

p o s s i b l e ,

and

hence

i t u s u a l l y

d e p i c t s

the

t r i b a l marks

or scars p e c u l i a r

t o the deceased.

I n

a d d i t i o n

t o the above

ceremonies,

t h e r e i s a set o f

ceremonies

known as Pegbeda t u r n i n g

over from

one s i d e t o the



o t h e r .

These ceremonies are performed

p e r i o d i c a l l y a f t e r

a

number

o f

years f o l l o w i n g

the

death

and b u r i a l of a deceased

person.

The

r e l a t i v e s and

f r i e n d s

of th e deceased v i s i t the

cemetery

or the

-26I

T

A c t u a l l y the

Yorubas

now bur y

t h e i r dead

w i t h the l a t t e r

l y i n g

on t h e i r backs, and the need f o r th e ceremonies of t u r n i n g the

corpse over fr om one si de t o th e ot he r sh ou ld n ot

have

a r i s e n .

The ceremonies,

however,

are a

s u r v i v a l

of the anc ient custom o f

making

the dead

l i e

on i t s

l e f t

s i d e , a custom already abandoned

by the Yoruba s.

I t

should be n>oted

t h a t

f u l l

b u r i a l

ceremonies are de ni ed t o

persons who d i e o f

i n f e c t i o u s

dis eas e. For example, i n the old en

days, a man who

d i e d

of lep ros y

w i l l

not be accorded f u l l cere-

monial b u r i a l .

P r o f e s s i o n a l

Undertakers would be

employed

who

would perform

c e r t a i n

ceremonies on the corpse and then burn i t

t o

ashes. The Undertakers r ec ei ve pres ents o f money, kolan uts ,

f o w l s and other animals.

Cremation i s no t

p r a c t i s e d

i n Yorubal and except i n the

case

o f

persons dy in g fro m

i n f e c t i o u s

diseases.



The duty of a proper b u r i a l of th e dead i s regarded w i t h

g r e a t sole mnit y i n Yorubaland. I t i s b e l i e v e d t h a t those who

f a i l

t o d i sc h ar g e i t w i l l

s u f f e r

f o r

t h e i r

negl igen ce; they w i l l

be haunted and j j e s t e d by the

r e s t l e s s

disembodied s p i r i t i n

262

COMECTION WITH ANCIENT.

EGYPT.

Anyone v/ho has stu died both th e

r e l i g i o n

o f

Ancient Egypt

and

the r e l i g i o n

of

Yoruba lan d cannot

f a i l

t o

detect poi nts

of

s i m i l a r i t y

or

i d e n t i t y

i n

regard

t o

death and b u r i a l

customs.

I t

has

been poi nte d out

above t h a t

the Yoruba words Ku and Ilcu

d i e

and

death

are

de ri ve d from the Ancie nt Egyptia n word Khu.

This d e r i v a t i o n shows at the outset t h a t there i s some connection

between the two r e l i g i o n s .

Next

one

may note

the

f a c t

t h a t

i n Yorubaland ther e

i s the

b e l i e f t h a t no one

need

t o di e; death can only be

caused

by some

unseen

power

or a

wicked

l i v i n g

person.

Such a b e l i e f

e x i s t e d

i n

Anc ien t Egypt. Prof

Maspero

thus w r i t e s

.:-

The Ancients long ref use

t o

b e l i e v e

t h a t

death

was

n a t u r a l and

i n e v i t a b l e .

They thought t h a t l i f e , once

begun, might go on i n d e f i n i t e l y ; i f no acc ide nt stopped

i t s h o r t ,

why

s ho ul d i t cease

o f

i t s e l f

? And so men d i d

not die

i n

Egypt; they

were assasinated. The

murd erer

o f t e n

belonged t o

t h i s

w o r l d , and was

e a s i l y

recognized

an other man, an animal



Hence i n Yorubaland

when a

person di es th e Babalawo

i s summone

t o determine whether the deceased has been the v i c t i m of some

malicious

person.

I n

Yoruba land th e disembodied

s p i r i t

i s b e l i e v e d

t o

r e j o i n

the

-263-

The f o l l o w i n g i s a de sc ri pt io n of the custom as given by w r i t e r s on

Egyptian customs :-

( a )

When

an i n d i v i d u a l die d, i t was usual f o r the

women

t o

issue f o r t h from the house, and th row in g dust and mud

upon t h e i r heads

to u t t e r c r i e s of lame ntat ion

They sang a d o l e f u l d i r g e . . On these occas ions, the

s e r v i c e s of

h i r e d

performers were u n c a l l e d f o r ; t h o u g h

d u r i n g

the p er io d of seventy

days,

wh il e the body was

i n

the hands of the

embalmers,

mourners were employed,

who sang the same p l a i n t i v e

d i r g e . ^

( b )

When a man of any co ns id er at io n di es , a l l the female

sex of t h a t f a m i l y besmear t h e i r heads and faces w i t h

d i r t beating themselves as they go w h i l s t , the

male,

on t h e i r

p a r t ,

form another

company,gird

and beat

themselves i n

l i k e manner.

2

( c ) When any o f them i s

dead,

a l l hi s kindre d and f r i e n d s

(who put

d i r t

on

t h e i r

heads

u n t i l

such

time as t he

corpse i s i n t e r n e d , go every day

round

about the

c i t y

weeping and lamenti ng) do n ei th er wash themselves a l l

t h a t wh il e, nor d ri nk wine, nor eat any but lo w- pr ic ed „

meats, n e i t h e r put on any cl ot he s t h a t are wo rt h

o u g h t .

0

Compare these d e t a i l s w i t h those of th e Yoruba

custom

given abov<

Wi th the excep tion of the ref ere nce t o the pe ri od of

embalming

and



the modi fi ca ti on of the pra ct ic e of besmearing oneself w i t h d i r t ,

n e a r l y a l l the

d e t a i l s

survive i n Yorubaland and may be

seen

i n

p r a c t i c e

among a l l the Yorubas or among some of the t r i b e s .

The du ty of the son h is fat her i n i s als o

-26k

I t has been

remarked

above t h a t when an important man died, i t

was

usual i n

Yorubaland

f o r

some of

hi s slaves

and wives t o be

b u r i e d w i t h hirn. The p r a c t i c e i s

s i m i l a r

t o t h a t of Ancie nt

Egypt

described

as

foll ows

During

the

ea rl y periods

o f

Egyptian c i v i l i z a t i o n ,

th e

r i g h t t o a f u t u r e

l i f e

would

only

be

claimed

by the

wealthy. The l i v e s of many women, c h i l d r e n , slaves and

animals had t o be

s a c r i f i c e d

t o accompany h i s

double

i n t o

the

other wo rl d .

1

Later the p r a c t i c e o f s a c r i f i c i n g the l i v e s o f human beings i n

t h i s way was replaced by the p r o v i s i o n of clay f i g u r e s

known

as

ushabtis

and

modelled

l i k e the f i g u r e s of human

beings.

The

number o f ushabtis was at one

time very la rg e

but was l a t e r f i x e d

2

a t

four hundred. I t i s noteworthy t h a t 400 i s an important

f i g u r e i n Yoruba enumeration, i t being regarded

as a very

important

square,

t h a t i s the square o f twenty an important u n i t i n Yoruba .

Egyptian funerals

were

ve ry expensive.

So

also

are

Yorub a



f u n e r a l s . The only dif fer enc e l i e s i n the

degree

of wealth possessed

by

each

country;

but

there i s

no

doubt t h a t

i n

p r o p o r t i o n

to the

wealth

possessed by each

country

the

f u n e r a l expenses

are heavy .^

S i m i l a r i t y

also

e x i s t s

i n

respect

of modes o f

b u r i a l ,

A f u r t h e r d e s c r i p t i o n of the f i r s t mode i s thus given by the

same w r i t e r :-

the

body

was almost

i n v a r i a b l y

placed on i t s

back,

w i t h th e

hands by the sides or f o l d e d

over

the breast No trace

o f m u t i l a t i o n of the

corpse

was found. Prom the abundant

remains of c l o t h , we i n f e r t h a t every body was wrapped i n

c l o t h

before b u r i a l , and

where

we d i d f i n d

c l o t h

i n any

s t a t e of pr e s er v at i o n, i t was manifest t h a t the body had

not

been

simply dressed i n

a

s i n g l e garment,

but

swathe d

i n

many

f o l d s

o f

l i n e n ' . '

1

The use of mats i n connection w i t h

t h i s

mode of b u r i a l i s

s i g n i f i c a n t , as i t i s a t t e s t e d t o by Maclver i n the f o l l o w i n g

passage :-

The body i s wrapped i n a skin and a reed mat. Most

commonly

there i s

a t t o l p p T e

l a y e r o f coverings,

v i z .

c l o t h

next t o the body, then sk in or le at he r, outside

which i s a

wide mat'.'

2

The Yorubas do not use a s k i n , but they use the other two.

coverings. The colour o f the c l o t h s to o are well-known Egyptian

c o l o u r s ,

t h a t

i s , w hi te and red,

which

are th e respe ctiv e

colours rep res ent ing the No rt h and the South of Ancient Egypt



r e s p e c t i v e l y .

3

4

The custom o f burying c h i l d r e n i n pots and of p u t t i n g vases

5

-266-

The Yoruba

word

f o r a p o t i a I-ko-ko. Th is

seems

t o be a m o d i f i c a -

t i o n o f Kau-kau, t h a t i s , t h e p l u r a l o f Ka. The idea prevalen t i n

Ancient Egypt t h a t th e Kas o f deceased

persons

could enter t h e pot s

and eat th e food prov ided

t h e r e i n

f o r them i s als o found i n

Yorubaland.

Hence t h e

word

I-ko-ko

means

t h a t

which belongs

t o

t h e Kas or

s p i r i t s

o f deceased persons. .

I t i s noteworthy t h a t when the Yorubas wish t o consecrate a

place they sometimes s i n k a po t i n t o t h e place and the re pl ace

o f f e r i n g s

f o r t h e

o r i s a

or god or t h e s p i r i t o r

s p i r i t s

t o be

worshipped. I n

cases

o f

emergency,

when t h e help

o f

a n c e s t r a l

s p i r i t s

i s

u r g e n t l y needed,

t h e

s p i r i t s

a r e

u s u a l l y

summoned and

asked f o r help by addressing them through t h e medium o f a hole dug

i n

t h e ground or through t h e medium o f a p o t sunk i n t o t h e ground.

A t t e n t i o n has been drawn i n t h e pre vio us chapters t h a t th e

names o f

f u n e r a l g u i l d s , t h a t

i s

Ogboni,

Egungun and Oro a r e a l l

o f Egyptian o r i g i n . The le ad in g ideas connected w i t h t h e f u n e r a l



ceremonies o f t h e

g u i l d

a r e also o f Egyptian o r i g i n .

C e r t a i n

words used i n

connection

w i t h f u n e r a l s

should

be

noted.

The f i r s t shout o f r e l a t i v e s and f r i e n d s when death has occurred i s

-267-

Ancient Egyptian

wo rd meaning

place .

O j i i s

deriv ed from

the

West

A f r i c a n r o o t

wor d ye

which means

t o l i v e , t o

e x i s t ,

t o

become , i - b l - o . i i . t h e r e f o r e

means

t h e

place

of th e l i v i n g ones

or

s p i r i t s . The wo rd i s a

c l e a r i n d i c a t i o n

o f t he Yoruba

b e l i e f

t h a t a

man's s p i r i t continues

t o

l i v e a f t e r death.

U n t i l recen t times th e Yorubas are n ot known t o have us ed

c o f f i n s .

But

t h e i r

word f o r a

c o f f i n

s t r o n g l y

suggests

t h a t

they

must have known what

c o f f i n s

were

several centu ries

ago.

This

i s

s t r o n g l y suggested

by th e

f a c t

t h a t t he Yoruba word f o r a

c o f f i n

i s

o f Ancient Eg yptian o r i g i n . The word i s p o s i . t h a t i s

p a - o s i . Pa i s a m o d i f i c a t i o n of the Ancient E gyptian word pe r,

which means

a house. Osi i s a c o n t r a c t i o n o f

O s i r i s . Posi

t h e r e f o r e means

th e house o f an O s i , t h a t i s t h e

place

where

one who has become an O s i r i s i s encased.

The ceremonies known as Pegbeda described above are a s u r v i v a l

o f

t he

Egyptian

custom o f

h o l d i n g

p e r i o d i c a l

feasts

i n honour o f



the dead and of p e r i o d i c a l

renewal

of the

food

o f f e r e d t o t h e Kas

o f

deceased

persons.

The

Ancient Egyptian

custom i s

th us

described

by P e t r i e :-

-268-

The word

pegbeda t u r n i n g over fro m

one

side

t o the

other

i s

a

s u r v i v a l

o f th e custom

s i m i l a r

t o

t h a t

o f the

Ancient

Egyptians

o f making a

corpse l i e

on

i t s

l e f t

side.

The

p o i n t s

o f s i m i l a r i t y and o f i d e n t i t y between the

Anc ient

Egyptians

and th e Yorub a

f u n e r a l

customs

described

above

c o n s t i t u t e a f u r t h e r

evidence

i n

support

of the

theory

o f a

close

connection

between the r e l i g i o n s o f

Ancient

Egypt and

o f Yorubaland.



CHAPTER

XIV.

M A G I C

Y 0. R U

B

A. L. AY N D.



298

CHAPTER

XIV.

MAGIC IN

YORUBALAND.

Closely

ass oci ate d with the r e l i g i o n of the Yoruba

peoples ar e magi cal

b e l i e f s

and p r a c t i c e s . So close i s the

association

that

i n some

respects,

r e l i g i o n and magic i n Yoruba-

land seem to be indistinguishable. The one i s so do ve ta il ed

into

the other that the

r e s u l t i n g b e l i e f

or

practice

may be

associated

wi th the one ncyLess than wi th th e other. The

o f f i c e s

of the

p r i e s t

and of the magi cian ar e

sometimes

he ld

by one and the

same

person, and ceremonies ar e

sometimes

performed

wi th an admixture of

r e l i g i o u s

and magical elements.

The Yoruba r e l i g i o n i s a primitive r e l i g i o n . As i n the

case of other primitive

r e l i g i o n s ,

the antagonism

between

p r i e s t

and magician

does

not e x i s t . According to S i r

J.G. Fraser, such an antagonism seems to have made i t s



appearance

comparatively

l a t e

i n the h i s t o r y of

r e l i g i o n .

At

an

e a r l i e r

stage the

functionspf p r i e s t s

and sorcerer were

often combined,

or to speak perhaps

more c o r r e c t l y , were

not

299

a

c e r t a i n number

of r i t e s , s a c r i f i c e s , prayers and chants,

which the god himself had revealed and which obliged him to do

what

was demanded of him . T h i s statement about magic i n

Ancient Egypt applies i n i t s e n t i r e l y to magic i n i t s r e l a t i o n to

r e l i g i o n i n Yorubaland. Even i n the case of black magic

success i s always at tr ib ut ed to the possession of mysterious

means of obtaining he lp

from

the

gods

or

e v i l

s p i r i t s

worshipped

or

acknowledged

by the magician.

Professor

B r e a s t e d

1

s

d e s c r i p t i o n of magic i n Ancient

Egypt applies equally well to Yorubaland. The description i s

as follows :-

I t i s d i f f i c u l t for the modern mind to understand

.how

completely the b e l i e f i n magic penetrated the

whole substance of l i f e ,

dominating

popular

custom

and

constantly

appearing i n the simplest ac ts of

of

d a i l y household

routine . I t constituted

the very atmosphere i n which the men of

e a r l y

o r i e n t a l world livedo Without the saving and salu tary

- influ ence of such magical agenc ies co ns ta nt ly invoked,



the l i f e of an ancient household i n the East was

unthinkab le .

As i n the case of

Yoruba

r e l i g i o n , the foundation of

b e l i e f r e a l i t y

300

Negative magic

takes

the form of taboos. The se taboos have

beeri,described

i n a p reviou s chapter

where attention

has been

calledto t h e i r importance as a cohesive factor i n the s o c i a l

l i f e

of the

community,,

P o s i t i v e

Magic

assumes the

foams

of

sorcery,

exercise of mysteri ous powers for good or i l l use of

charms and practice of occultism f o r therapeutic or ot he r pur-

poses', an d performances based, on a claim to

possession

of

e s o t e r i c and mys te ri ou s knowledge. B e l i e f i n the i n t e r a c t i o n

between

mind

mat ter and the

interdependence

of bo th on one

another i s an important factor i n the Yoruba p r a c t i c e : of magic*

This

i s not expressed t h e o r e t i c a l l y , but the p r a c t i c a l working

of

magic i n Yorubaland i s inexplicable without such a b e l i e f

as i s so c l e a r l y seen i n a l l aspects of Yoruba magic.

I t shou ld be noted also that the Yorubas b e l i e v e i n the

e f f i c a c y

of

s a c r i f i c e

a s a

means

of

s e t t i n g

s p i r i t u a l

forces

i n motion* They

sometimes

perform s a c r i f i c e s wi th the wish



that

the desired

b l e s s i n g s

shou ld be

proportional

to , or as

unceasing

as,

t h e i r s a c r i f i c e s .

Hence the

saying ISE-BQ NI

301

to v i s i b l e objects, l i v i n g or dead, which a re worshipped on

account of t h e i r supposedly inherent supernatural

q u a l i t i e s .

The terms used i n des ign at ing i n v i s i b l e objects include

WITCHCRAFT , SUPERSTITION , OCCULTISM , MAGIC , MEDICINE ,

MANA

ORENDA , and o t h e r s / Of thes e, the terms medicine

and Mana deserve comments.

I n connection wit h magical practices i n Yorubaland, the

term medicine ha s been applied t o the supernat ural means

of compassing one* s ends. The Yoruba word

usually

translated,

medicine i s

ogun .

1

The t r a n s l a t i o n i s obvi ously inadequate,

and has.

been

adopted through l a c k of a

better

or more s u i t a b l e

word.

The term

' OGUN r e a l l y means

an occult,

mysterious

or

supernatural power by

means

of which

one* 8

end

i s

achieved .

I t connotes the idea that suc h an end cannot be ach ie ve d by

ordinary

pr oc es s. The term

must

be

distinguished

from

egbogi

which i s

also

t r a n s l a t e d medicine and which r e f e r s primarily



to

material

medicine. I t must be stated,

however,

that the

terms egbogi and

ogun

a r e now bein g use d indiscriminately for

302

"Medical Doctor"

i e

used

i n

a

good

sense; ELEGBOQI

i s

used

i n d i f f e r e n t l y ; BABA-ALAWO

and

ADAHUNSE

are used

i n d i f f e r e n t l y

according

t o

the

use

made

by t he

persons

so

designated

o f t h e i r

knowledge

and

powers;

0L0Q0N Owner

o f

medicine",

i s

always

used i n

a bad sense;

Ologun

Buruku "Owner o f

bad medicine"

i s

d e f i n i t e l y a

BLACK

MAGICIAN".

The term

Mana

i s also

t r a n s l a t e d

"Medicine". Th is term

has been

widely^ised by a n t h r o p o l o g i s t s Bishop Codrington

f i r s t

c a l l e d a t t e n t i o n t o i t He discovered t h a t i t was widely used

by the na ti ve

t r i b e s

o f

Melanesia, A u s t r a l i a

and other islands;

i n

t h e

south-west

P a c i f i c ,

The

term,

however,does

n o t

appear

t o be confined t o the t r i b e s Just mentioned.* I t i s probably

the

the

same term which

was

applied b ^

Hebrews;

to t h e strange

m a t e r i a l obje ct which

was

supplied t o

them

as

food i n t h e

w i l d e r -

ness.

This objec t was designated Manna, a Hebrew word which



means "What i s t h i s ? " . The word mana e x i s t s i n the

Yoruba

language

e j a c u l a t o r y expression for

what

i s uncanny'is "KI RE ?

or

"KINI

YI"? "What i s t h i s " ? . I t i s q u i t e possible t h a t

the"

3 k

shootingo" Thi s i s a common form of Sympathetic Magic and i s

used, c h i e f l y as secret means of revenge. Dr. Farrow thus des-

c r i b e s ,

i t :

A

person

d e s i r i n g

to

k i l l

anyone

against

whom

he

has a grudge makes a mud image of h i s intended v i c t i m , and at

n i g h t

sets

t h i s

up, c a l l s the name of h i s foe thr ee times, and

then shoots; at the f i g u r e w i t h a mi nia tu re how and arrows. At

t h a t i n s t a n t

the

v i c t i m

f e e l s

a

sharp pain i n the reg ion of the

body

which, i n the f i g u r e representing

him,has

been s tr uc k by

the arrow.

A- wound,

or

abscess,

q u i c k l y develops, from which he

Boon dies, unless he recognizes the nature of the i n j u r y and can

apply a counter-charm, a

more

powerful

'medicine' (ogun)

than

t h a t

which has i n j u r e d him".

Instances

known

to the

w r i t e r have

occurred when the

v i c t i m s

have died w i t h i n a few days of t h e i r being warned

against " i n v o c a t i o n - s h o o t i n g " .

A

confirmatory evidence of the e f f i c a c y of sympathetic



magic was given by the Rev. J. Buckley

Wood

who spent

f o r t y

years as a Missionary i n Yorubaland. He r e l a t e d how he v i s i t e d

a c h i e f who said of a man who had offended him a t a great

305

The native doctor was. c a l l e d i n again and he pointed to a

stone which he had t i e d up p e n s i v e l y

i n

a corner of the

room.

He remarked t h a t the man* s s p i r i t had been t i e d up by

means of

t h e

rope

and

stone

and

t h e

man

would

not di e

u n t i l

the rope had

been

c u t . The na ti ve doctor

cu t

the rope, the

stone f e l l

on the ground, and the

pati ent died

w i t h i n a few

minutes*

( 3 )

Ogun

Ifo.lu or supernatural means o f

i n f l i c t i n g

b l i n d n e s s .

This i s done i n two ways* A mud image of the intended v i c t i m

i s made. A f t e r t he

r e c i t a l

of appropriate incantat ions the

eyes

are

speared

w i t h

a

sharp

k n i f e .

The

intended

v i c t i m

1

s

eyes

w i l l immediately become

b l i n d .

Another

method

of doing t h i s

i s

by means of a wooden

image with

b l i n d

eyes. Incantations are chanted on t h e image

u n t i l

i t acquires;

the

intended

v i r t u s .

I t

i s

then

wrapped

up

w i t h a piece of c l o t h . Whoever i s th e

f i r s t

person t o see the



u n v e i l e d

image

w i l l

become b l i n d .

An e f f o r t

was;

made recently to use

the

l a t t e r

method

i n

306

w h i l s t

th e operator

r e c i t e s

the

f o l l o w i n g i n c a n t a t i o n :-

I k a

ko l o j u ,

0 ko ma

l o j u

I k a

k i

i r i r a n ,

0 ko

ma

r i r a n .

A f i n g e r

has

no

eyes;

.you

w i l l

have

no

eyes.

A f i n g e r never sees;

you

w i l l

never see ( a g a i n )

1 1

( 5 )

Asun-fonfon.

This i s a "medicine" used f o r causing people

t o

f a l l i n t o a deep sleep. I t i s used c h i e f l y by b u r g l a r s .

The "medicine" i s made i n

t h i s

way. The b u r g l a r s d i v i d e

themselves i n t o two

s e t s ,

£wo pieces of

t h i n

s t i c k s are

stuck

on the ground and a heavy

s t i c k

i s placed on them.

Some

robbers

remain

at home

cha nti ng somniferous i n c a n t a t i o n s over

t h e s t i c k s as f o l l o w s :-

Asun-fonfpn

n i

t i i f

on,

Asun-fpnfpn

n i

t i i g i

a j a .

0

k i y i o

s a i

sun-fpnfon.

Soundly sleeps

sound

sleep,



Soundly sleep the

house

r a f t e r s *

Soundly you must sleep.

As soon as th e remaining robbers reach the scene of

t h e i r

307

( 7 ) Ikoko

gbjgbona*

or hot pot .

This

i s

a.

medicine consis-

t i n g of decotions of herbs and other

ingredients

which are

boiled i n a

pot.

I t i s used fo r two

purposes*

I t i s used for

promoting a

s t r i f e

between husband

and wife by an

interested

t h i r d

party* The b e l i e f i s

that

as long as the pot i s b o i l i n g ,

s t r i f e and misunderstanding w i l l develpp i n i n t e n s i t y , A

common threat among the Yorubas i s A TI QBE IKOKO Hff KA INA

Your pot i s

already

on the f i r e , that

i s ,

supernatural

forces have

beenjset

i n motion bymeans of the hot pot for the

disruption of your domestic peace and

happiness*

The second

purpose

for which the hot pot i s used i s

the achievement of v i c t o r y * The

herbe

ueed for t h i s purpose

d i f f e r from those used for the

purpose,

described above* The

underlying

b e l i e f

i s

that a s long as the pot i s kept b o i l i n g ,

fortune

w i l l

smile on

the

person or persons for

whom

the

medicine i s

made*

I n the cas e of

a.

duel or a

contest, success



goes; to the person or party which has the more powerful

pot

on the

f i r e *

When a team

loses

a f o o t b a l l match, the taunt

generally l e v e l l e d on the players by the d e r i s i v e crowd i s

308

Where

the

a t t e n t i o n ,

de si re and v i r t u e of a

r a t i o n a l

s o u l ,

which i s wor thi er than the

s t a r s ,

concur

w i t h

the

power

of the sky, i t i s

i n e v i t a b l e

t h a t

e i t h e r

a word or

some

othe r instrument o f

marvellous

power

he produced which w i l l a l t e r the

t h i n g s

of t h i s world, so

t h a t

not only

n a t u r a l

objects but also souls

w i l l

be

i n c l i n e d

to those

ends

which the wise operator desires;".

To

t h i s passage

P.

Amaury

Talbot

adds

:- "Again, i f

some

malignant soul

t h i n k s

hard of i n f e c t i n g another, and longs

f o r

t h i s

ar de nt ly and has

f u l l

confidence, i n h i s own

power

to

i n f l i c t such i n j u r y ,

'there i s no doubt

t h a t

nature w i l l

obey

thought

1

;

I n view o f the

a v a i l a b l e

evidence i t

must

be admitte d

t h a t

t h e

Yoruba

adahunse

(medicine-men) have

developed t h e i r w i l l

power

to such a hi gh

degree t h a t

wonderful

r e s u l t s have

foll owed

i t s exercis e. T his w i l l power i s co ns ta nt ly being developed by

t h e use o f charms and

i n c a n t a t i o n s ,

and

e s p e c i a l l y

by the use

o f

^UGUDU

o r " S i g i d i "

which serves as a concrete object on



w h i c h j a t t e n t i o n

i s concentrated f o r the streng thenin g of the

w i l l

power.

Thought-projection

i s thereby e f f e c t i v e l y prac tised.

309

Among

the

Ijebus the use of Epe i s common. The users

have

so

developed their

w i l l

power that inhabitants, of the neighbouring

d i s t r i c t s sometimes

go to buy

11

epe from them. . I t i s believed

that in the case of

powerful epes

the

range

of thei r efficacy

i s

hot

limited by distance and that thei r action i s immediate*

The

fear

of epe i s so strong that a loose expression

of the

evil'consequences

of an act may be twisted into an epe .

and may bring

a

sharp rejoinder that one i s uttering a curse -

0 sepe fun u You are cursing him .

The

use of epe i s considered here because i t i s often

accompanied by imitative acge. For example, a man who wishes

smother

to collapse through paralysis may

demonstrate

the

intendeds effect by the

movement

of his hands or by gestures or

by a pr ac ti ca l imitation of a

collapse*

According

to the

Yorubas

an

important

principle affecting

the efficacy of thought projection i s that Like associates



with l i k e . They believe that the projection of e v i l and harm-

fulthoughts; by an e v i l person cannot affect a

good

person. This

310

EXAMPLE OF CONTAGIOUS

MAGIC.

The Yoruhaa

b e l i e v e

i n the e f f i c a c y o f contagious

magic.

They exer cise gre at care i n keeping t h e i r wearing apparel

or

other belongings which,

by a

s t r e t c h

of

i m a g i n a t i o n , can

p o s s i b l y

be

used f o r e v i l purposes.

The f o l l o w i n g

examples of

contagious Magic

may be

give n

here

:-

( l ) BIBU-LESE. "The use of

f o o t p r i n t s f o r harmfu l purposes".

There i s

a s t r o n g

b e l i e f t ha t

a

person

1

s

f e e t

or

legs

can

be i n j ur e d i f h i s f o o t p r i n t s

on

the sands

or on

s o f t

e a r t h

be

t r e a t e d w i t h

ogun

( m e d i c i n e ) .

Persons

s u f f e r i n g

from

acute rheumatism

or

e l e p h a n t t i l s very o f t e n

t r a c e

t h e i r

s u f f e r i n g

to

mal ici ous treatment

of

t h e i r f o o t p r i n t s .

This use of f o o t p r i n t s i s o f t e n r e s o r t e d t o

by

malici ous

persons

who f a i l to

secure

a

d i r e c t

means of

wreaking vengeance

o f t h e i r

o f f e n d e r s . A

law of

r e t a l i a t i o n

i n Yoruba i s

:-



" Bi

o ba ba

a. k i

o pa a:

b i

o ko ba ba a. bu u 11

ese."

I f

you meet him,

t h a t

i s your enemy

or

o f f e n d e r , k i l l him; i f

was at one time regarded as be in g

caused e x c l u s i v e l y

by

t h i s means* Hence the

Yoruba

equivalent f o r consumption

i s

a r u n - i k o t p

"disease a r i s i n g from the magical

treatment

of s p i t t l e " . The a l t e r n a t i v e terms

Iko^egbe

"wasting or consumptive cough" i s of comparatively l a t e

o r i g i n *

( i i i ) Qbigbe pako. bata etc, "Removal of t o o t h brush, boots,

shoes and other

a r t i c l e s " *

The Yorubas believe

t h a t

p h y s i c a l

harm may be done t o ' a person whose property i s removed and

t r e a t e d magi cally,

( i v . )

Bibuje-a.1a. "dog's

b i t e " .

I n the

case

of a dog's

b i t e ,

t h e r e i s a b e l i e f t h a t the wound from a dog's b i t e w i l l be

q u i c k l y healed i f a piece of bread i s

soaked

w i t h the blood

f l o w i n g

from the

wound

and the dog i s persuaded to eat the

piece of bread w i l l set hea lin g p r o p e r t i e s

r a d i a t i n g

from

t h e dog i n motion and thereby r e s u l t i n the

v i c t i m ' s



r a p i d h e a l i n g *

( v . )

Bibu-enia-.le* " b i t e

from

human

beings", A. method of

3 2

a w a l l * This i s supposed to he a symbol of the p h y s i c a l

or mental

powers

of the

owner

tied, up i n a p a r t i c u l a r manner*

The owner becomes incapable of

movement

i n a p a r t i c u l a r

d i r e c t i o n

or maintains an

i n e x p l i c a b l e

form

of

movement

fo r

which he i s not responsible* Hence when a person f a i l s to

a c t when he

ought

to act

or

behaves i n an i r r e s p o n s i b l e

way the Yoruba taunt i s Nwon di t a b i nwon

ndi

o

n l Have

you been magically

bound

or are you being so bound? This

remark w i l l put the person concerned, i n h i s r i g h t sense.

i f he i s not r e a l l y under magical influence*

-

•»

( v i i . V

Ma

kan So not touch* Untouchable .

Some

objects

are regarded as untouchable

or

i n v i o l a b l e * I f these ar e

touched,

immediate

death may be the r e s u l t * Otherwise

the magical force i n the objects

will,

continue to operate

on the

objects

they

have

touched, although contact has. long

been severed* An

example

of such a sacrosanct, object i s



1

the dre ss of an

egungun

. The v i r t u e i n the dress continues

to

ac t on the person who has touched i t u n t i l the destruc-

313

I t

i s noteworthy

t h a t animals

a re used, as

p r o t e c t i v e

charms. I n

I l e s h a

the monkey i s used

as;

a p r o t e c t i v e charm.

The

b e l i e f

i s

t h a t t h e r e

i s a

f o r c e

emanating

from

the

animal

which can n u l l i f y powerful medicines o r ogun.

Hence

the animal

may be found at the entrance o f a c h i e f or anyone who has th e

meansjbf keeping

one. I n January, 1940 when t he house o f a

powerfuljchief

i n

I l e s h a

was

a t t a c k e d

by a

v i o l e n t

mob, the

f i r s t

objectjof

a t t a c k

was the

c h i e f ' s monkey.

A.

l o u d shout

was

r a i s e d

when the animal was k i l l e d . The u n d e r l y i n g

b e l i e f

was; t h a t th e

p r o t e c t i v e

death

o f the/animal

would

a l l o w the house t o be

stormed

w i t h

impunity.

Snakes are. a l s o used f o r p r o t e c t i v e

purposes.

Some o f them

are kept

i n bedrooms, a f t e r they had been tamed. They are

c r e d i t e d , w i t h g r e a t power f o r p r o t e c t i n g the

inmates;

from

harm,

e s p e c i a l l y from a c c i d e n t s .

A few of th e inanimate charms used f o r p r o t e c t i v e purposes



may be

mentioned

here.

Chains o f l a r g e s i z e a r e l a i d across

doors

or across

would dare to s t e a l them. The

charms

are known a s al e

protective

Juju ,

and the

process

of securing a property i n

t h i s

way i s

known

as pe

ale

l e

l i

o r i

i n v i t e

al e to protect

i t . Ale therefore,

seems

to be an ancient or long l o s t and

much dreaded god or goddess, of vengeance, probably the

same deity,

Me worshipped by the Ibos as: a powerful Ea rt h Goddess

1

.

The dread of these

a l e s

made

i t

possible

i n the olden

days to hold

what were

then known as wayside markets . I n

these

markets .which may be found on lonely roads, wares are)

exposed for s a l e without anybody being placed i n charge of them.

They

are simply protected by Al es . The value of each

ware

i s

indicated by the number of stones placed near i t .

The/buyer

comes along, assesses the value of the

ware

by counting the

stones.,

puts,

down

the required sum of money and takes away

nothing more than that fo r which he had paid. The t r i b a l or

national moral ity thus enforced was very e f f e c t i v e . Cases of



t h e f t were r a r e ; BO great was the dread of the j u j u s or a l e s .

One of the painful r e s u l t s of the contact between western


and

primitive culture

i s the removal of powerful

3 5

possesses

Non-natives

often say t h a t the

p r i m i t i v e

native/a nigher

standard of mor ali ty than the

c i v i l i z e d ,

n a t i v e .

Whilst

such

a

g e n e r a l i z a t i o n

i s not wholly admissible, the

f a c t must

he state d

t h a t

the unsophisticated nat ive

s t i l l

has the

p r i v i l e g e

of being

guided by e f f i c i e n t sanctions of mo ra li ty

which

the

c i v i l i z e d

or

s e m i - c i v i l i z e d

na ti ve had

been

deprived of and f o r

which

an

e q u i v a l e n t

which

would operate w i th the same force i s

l e f t

un-

provided or i s being gradually understood. A. form of

c i v i l i z e -

•

tioifyrhich

destroys

age-long

pra ct ic es and sanctions of mor al it y

w i t h o u t

providing

adequate

s ub st it ut es i s a curse ra the r than

a bles sing t o

Yorubaland

or to

West

A f r i c a

i n general.

Charms

used

as

mascots

f o r

good

l uc k are known as

AWURE.

Those used

as

r e j u v e n a t o r s . are known as

AJIDEWE

A-means of

ever becoming

as

young

as a l i t t l e

c h i l d " .

Those used as a means

o f pr ote ct io n against

sudden

death are known as "Maku" "Do not

d i e .

Several other

charms e x i s t , .

and are

named a f t e r

the



purposes

include

acquirement

of

s k i l l ,

wisdom, speech, immunity

from

gun-shot

woundsore

from the

poisonous e f f e c t

of

snakes

or

31i6

emerge Into f a l l consciousness and express

I t s e l f

in the us e

of charms.

Reference

must

be

made

here to the

images

used

by

the

Ogbonis

as charms* These are known as, edas. and are used both

as

offensive and as

defensive

charms. The edas are usually made

of

brass and are

images

of human

beings, male

or female. They

are

miniature

r e p l i c a s

of a

p a i r

of

i d o l s

known

as Eda

Moles:

which are

figures;

of a man and

m

woman

whose

heads

were

connected

by

a.

chain and

whose

lower extremities are

f i t t e d

with

iron

prongs. The Eda Mole® are

usually

placed i n the centre of the

shrine

i n every

Ogboni

house.

I t i s on

these

i d o l s

that

the

Ogbonis and t h e i r High P r i e s t place t h e i r

s a c r i f i c i a l

offering.

I t i s i n front of these i d o l s that the most solemn ceremony of

i n i t i a t i o n

takes

place.

The

Eda

images

may be

compared

with the Ibo

images

which

are.

known as Agu or Egu and which are used by

medicine men

1



for

almost the same purposes,

Charms used as

love p h i l t r e s

are numerous i n

Yorubaland,

317

He or she has eaten the h e a r t - s o u l of hi s or her p a r t n e r " ,

i . e ,

he has secured absolute c o n t r o l oyer th e other

person's

s o u l

by

means

of a powerful magical lo ve p h i l t r e ,

WITCHCRAFT.

The sub jec t o f w i t c h c r a f t must be considered along w i t h

t h a t of magic.

Witches

and wizards c l a i m the possession of

magical or supernatural

powers,

These

powers

may be exe rcised

f o r

good purposes. For example, witches have

been

found who

s t a t e t h a t the magical powers were acquired f o r the

purpose

o f

p r o t e c t i n g t h e i r own c h i l d r e n . Very o f t e n , however, the powers

are used wholly and s o l e l y f o r e v i l and a n t i - s o c i a l purposes,

A few years ago the E d i t o r o f

a

Nigerian newspaper,

arranged f o r the p u b l i c a t i o n of a symposium o f views on

w i t c h c r a f t . The symposium show t h a t w i t c h c r a f t i s s t i l l a

t e r r i b l e r e a l i t y

i n

A f r i c a n

l i f e . C o n t r i b u t o r s

t o the

symposium

are agreed t h a t w i t c h c r a f t i s used almost e x c l u s i v e l y f o r

e v i l



purposes and t h a t b e l i e f i n i t

s t i l l

holds sway i n

c i v i l i z e d ,

or

s e m i - c i v i l i z e d communities.

3t8

Hence the well-known r e t o r t to the effusions of any angry •

woman: Ma f i mi da

a.lp

Do not use me for the ceremonial

open-

ing of your witchcraft meeting , i . e . Do not bewitch me.

Witches a re cr edi ted with the power

of

transforming t h e i r

heart-souls (okan) into bir ds

or c a t s .

I n these objective forme

they prowl around for t h e i r prey

and

suck the blood

of

t h e i r

would be victims. When a

witch has

metamorphosed h e r s e l f

into

a

b i r d or a

cat she

f a l l s

into

a deep

sleep

or

she becomes

unconscious, since her heart-soul i s

gone.

I t i s popularly

believed that i f the

b i r d

i s

k i l l e d

the witch

w i l l

die

immediate-

l y .

I f i t i s

detained,

she

w i l l

be

unable

to

wake

or

become

conscious.

The weird cries; of birds at night are often regarded

a s d e f i n i t e signs, of the presence of

witches. Should

a person

become i l l

or

die sh ortly afterwards, the witch-doctor

or

babalawo (medicine man)

must

be summoned to detect

the

witch



responsible for

.the

crime.

The

underlying b e l i e f i n t h i s respect

i s

well

i l l u s t r a t e d

by

the saying e

ke

lana. pmp

ku

l o n i

319

Wizards are not

as

active or

as

numerous as

witches

i n

Yorubaland. They are also credited with supernatural powers,

and

they have t h e i r

secret guilds:,

t h e i r

favourite

haunt

"being

the foot of the African

Mahogany

tree

known

as Apa. Th is tree

i s

sacred in Yorubaland. I t i s regarded as an emblem of

vengeance and

must

not be cut

down

u n t i l the ind wel lin g t re e

s p i r i t ha© been duly pro pit ia ted by the of fe rin g of a

fowl

and

palm o i l .

Wizards are als o credit ed

with

the

power

of

converting

t h e i r heart-souls

into

owls.

I n

t h i s

objective form

they

carry

out

t h e i r

nefarious

pr ac ti ce s at night

There, i s no doubt that somnambulism i s pra ctis ed by witches

and

wizards,

but the

b e l i e f

i n

metamorphosis

i s a

r e l i c

of

super-

s t i t i o n . Thought-projection,

operated by a. well developed

w i l l

power,

i s

undoubtedly

an

important

element

i n wi tc hc ra ft and

wizardry.

I t

must be

added

here that, although the average Yoruba



i s a

happy

and merry person, yet the numerous

occasions

of dread

i n s p i r e d

by supposed a c t i v i t i e s of

witches

and

wizards

are dark

320

I n addi tion to these the re ar e a few other

methods

of •

devinipg the future.

. The f i r s t of these i s by the use of ceremonial water. T h i s

i s known a s Wiwo

ami,

l i t e r a l l y , "lo oki ng at water", i . e . the

proce ss of f o r e t e l l i n g the future;

by

interpreting si gn s or

figures

rendered

v i s i b l e

i n water by magi cal pro ces se s. Fo r

t h i s

purpose

the

babalawo

puts water i n a la r ge

bowl*

He *

then r e c i t e s - a lar ge number of incanta tions

u n t i l

he be li ev es

that the water

has

been developed thereby in to a supernatural

condition.

He loo ks in to the water a f t e r hearing the question

of h i s

c l i e n t

and by

means

of the signs; or

figures

which

he cl ai ms

to

be

v i s i b l e

to

him,

he

proceeds,

to giv e the correct

answer.

She

writer once

had. th e

p r i v i l e g e

of see ing a

babalawo

a t

work'

with h i s ceremonial water. He had been approached by

an anxious father

whose

only

daughter

was

reported

i l l

i n a

boarding school about one

hundred

and

twenty

m i l e s away. Both



the babalawo and the father were

unknown

to each other p r i o r to

t h i s ;

occa sion . The

father

enquired,

about

the con diti on of

M B

321;

Another method i s that

of

using

l u s t r a l

water*

T h i s

has

been well described

by

Dr. Farrow young c h i l d I s taken

by the p r i e s t ,

and a f t e r

the offering'of

a

s a c r i f i c e , the

c h i l d ' s

face i s

washed

with l u s t r a l water, which i s prepared with

sheen

butter

and

edible

s n a i l s *

The

c h i l d ,

i n

a

tranc e, sees

and

hears what i s going, on i n the s p i r i t world, and reports, to th e

p r i e s t .

The

c h i l d

1

s work being f i n i s h e d , the p r i e s t ,

by

the

us e

of appropriate

charms,

r e s t o r e s i t

to

normal

consciousness, when

the medium

no

longer remembers anything

of what he

has repor ted,

the p r i e s t alone

retaining

the knowledge.

11

The method j u s t descr ibed bears

a

strong

resemblance to

the method

of

hypnotism

and

clairvoyance. I t i s also

an


of the great extent to

which

the babalawos; develop

t h e i r w i l l

powers,

thereby fo rci ng oth ers into a s t a t e of

s u g g e s t i b i l i t y .

There i s another i n t e r e s t i n g method

of

d i v i n a t i o n known

as Wiwo l i e l i t e r a l l y "looking

a t

the ground" , i . e .

a

precau-



tionary

measure

fo r asce rta ini ng the future before embarking

on a

project

or i n order to f i n d out explanations of

u n i n t e l l i -

322

RAIN-MAKING-.

Among the magica l powers cla ime d by Yoruba magicians

i s

that of rain-making. I n every

African

Society the r a i n -

maker

or the rai n-d oct or i s a

well-known person.

I n Yorubaland

there

ar e no

professional

rain-makers, but the re ar e several

babalawos, powerful

c h i e f s

or

members

o f

s e c r e t s o c i e t i e s

who

claim the power of causing r a i n f a l l a t prescribed hour or

prescribed days.

R a i n f a l l

being abundant i n Yorubaland, th er e

i s no need f o r ev ol vi ng an order of

p r i e s t s

who

would

mag ically

or s a c r i f i c i a l l y cause r a i n f a l l . But the

f a c t

that r a i n f a l l

i s

copious and i s

l i m i t e d

to

c e r t a i n

seasons

off

e r a

strong

inducement to the claim or power to cause i t at any prescribed

hour.

I t sometimes happens

that there i s a f e s t i v a l or an

outing

which i s viewed with d is fav ou r ay

a

section

of the

community. The popular b e l i e f i s that un le ss the c h i e f of that



section i s plac ate d by means of g i f t s , he may cause a heavy

downpour of r a i n to mar the oc ca si on . Pers ons int en di ng to sta ge

323

NECROMANCY.

Necromancy i s practised,

by

the Yorubas,

who

stro ngly

believe

i n the

p o s s i b i l i t y of

communicating

with

the

dead*

I t

i s

practised i n a mild fiorm by the heads of f a m i l i e s .

Reference

has.

been made above

to

the practice

o f t a l k i n g to

the '

dead about

any Important

step

to be taken by one of

i t s

members.

For

t h i s

purpose

a

small

hole,

some

nine inches

deep

and

fo ur

inches wide, i s

dug and the

blood

of a fowl o r some other

feathered

fowl

i s poured

into i t . The

head

of the family

the n

invokes

the s p i r i t s of the deceased members of the fami ly

explains

the

step

t o be

taken,

and

asks

f o r

t h e i r

approval

and

help.

Necromancy, however, assumes

a

professional form. This

has

been

well

described

by

Bishop

James

Johnson: "Th ere

ar e

amongst

the heathens those i n our

country who

profess to exer-

c i s e

the

off c e

of speaking wit h the

dead

and of

be in g media

,J

of

communications from

them to the

l i v i n g

and who are known as



Awon Abokusoro

- 'Speakers

with the

dead

1

-

and whose deliverances

have generally been found

to be true. But the

system do es

not

324

The practice of necromancy i s s i m i l a r i n

many respects;

to

what obtains

among

modern s p i r i t u a l i s t s i n Europe and America .

The

necromancers:

claim

that

t h e i r

intercourse

with^/dead^and.

'

they

sometimes

furnish the proof of i t s

r e a l i t y .

The practice

commands

universal assent. The means of holding

t h i s

mysterious

intercourse

i s a

s e c r e t

j e a l o u s l y

guarded

by the

p r i e s t s .

A-

form

of

necromancy

connected wi th

b u r i a l

customs

i s known

as Iyaku "parting with the

dead.

I t has

;

.

been v i v i d l y

described

by the

l a t e

Mr. Feyisara Sopein i n the Nigerian Ch ronicl e under

the psendonym of "Adesola". His aceount has*,

been

thus

summarized

by

L r .

Farrow

:-

"There i s a form of

necromancy

practised, i f the

deceased has died i n t e s t a t e , to f i n d out what i s

h i s w i l l concerning h i s property and the disp osal

of h i s

dependant r e l a t i v e s . council

of el ders

i s

appointed and two days are decreed, wi th a week's

i n t e r v a l between

them, for the ne ce ss ar y ceremonies.

On the

f i r s t

day

s a c r i f i c e s

are offered and a white

fowl i s

t i e d

to a pole . A figure i n white dashes

from

the room of the

deceased, seized

the

fowl

and

f l e e s into the bjush, while the friends c ry out,

F i l e , F i l e i . e . "Leave i t , Leave i t I " They fol low,



but none

overtake.the

" s p i r i t " .

Only

the

feathers:

of

the fowl remain to mark the course taken. A week

l a t e r , further s a c r i f i c e s are off ere d, kola-nut s

a r e s p l i t i n divination and

t h e i r

fragments

thrown

3&S>

Into

the body of an

Ogbugbu

(wild-duck) etc . "Then a a t r i l l

voice

i s hea rd i n a neighbouring grove,

which

a f t e r repeated

s&riklngs

on t he

ground,

declares h i s

w i l l ,

as request ed.

n

The above account shows evidence of c o l l u s i o n and, although

i t s genuineness i s supported as an eye- witn ess account, i t i s

d i f f i c u l t

to regard i t as a

genuine

case of

necromancy.

GOKWECTIOH

WITH

ANCIENT EGSPT.

I t has been noted above

that

i n Yoruba land , a s i n Ancient

Egypt, the opposition between the

p r i e s t

and the magician

does

not

e x i s t ,

and

that

i n

both

countries

magic i s

the very

founda-

t i o n

of

r e l i g i o n .

i n

Porfessor Uaspero

writing

about magiciana/Ancient

Egypt

says;

"The extent of

t h e i r

power

exposed

the mag ici ans to

t e r r i b l e

temptations:

They were

often l e d to use i t

to

th e detriment of others, to

s a t i s f y

t h e i r s p i t e

or to g r a t i f y t h e i r grosser appetites. Many, however,

made a gain of t h e i r knowledge, put tin g i t at the

s e r v i c e

of the ignorant who

would

pay f or i t . When

they were asked to plague or get r i d of an

enemy,



they had a

hundred

d i f f e r e n t

ways

of surrounding

him

without h i s suspec ting

i t . • • • • • • I n

order to compose an

i r r e s i s t i b l e charm they merely re qu ir e a

l i t t l e

Some

other points: of resemb lance or i d e n t i t y i n regard

to

magic i n Yorubaland and i n Anci ent Egypt

w i l l

now be

noted,

1*

The pre val enc e of

magic.

I n reg ard to Anc ien t Egypt

Professor

Maspero

says

"Magic

entered into a l l acts of l i f e

with a l l

i t a passions,

love,

hate, ambition,

revenge, into

the care of the sick"^'. Professor Upmaa

also

says that

"The

objects

f o r which

magic

was

c a l l e d

upon

to

serve

were

aa

numerous

as. the requi reme nts of

l i f e "

.

These statements a re

also

descriptive of the pre val enc e

of magic i n Yorubaland*

2*

Divination. Professor

Maspero

says

that

"The

Egyptians.

•• •

did nothin g without consulting the gods" . This i s al so

true of the Yorubas.

3* Medicine.

Magic

i s used, i n both countries f o r therap entic

4

purposes•.

4* Extensive use of arm let s. Armlets were used extensively



i n Ancie nt Egypt. Over 2000 specimens have been pres erved

at University Co ll eg e and Cata logued by Professor ^landers

6. I n j u r i o u s Magic.

The use of figures of a person f o r

i n j u r i o u s magic

was- usual i n Ancie nt Egypt as; i t now i s i n

Yorubaland.

Black

magic

i n the

form

of

witchcraft

and

sorcery, the

a r t

of i n f l i c t i n g

persons wit h bli nd nes s

and

of

making

oneself

i n v i s i b l e

f o r the purpose- of

p erpetrating

crimes, and the

idea

of a person suc kin g another pers on's

blood magi cal ly

and

i n v i s i b l y

were

a l l

found i n Anc ien t

Egypt as they ar e now found i n

Yorubaland.

1

CONCLUDING REMARKS. The

above

description of magic i n Yorubaland

shows that i t has much i n common with magic a s practised i n

other

parts

of the

world,

but th e

Impress

of

Anci ent Egypt

on

i t

i s c l e a r l y d i s c e r n i b l e . The p o i n t s of s i m i l a r i t y and

i d e n t i t y cannot but form at part of the cumulative evidence i n

support of the theory of a

c u l t u r a l

connection

between

the

Yorubas

and

the Ancient Egyp tia ns.

1.

S:ee

Deveris, Membires i i 308:;

Athenaeus,

( Ed. Bonn) x i

1,58;



Herodotus

( t r a n s l a t i o n

by L i t t l e b u r y ) l i i , 1 1 .

CHAPTER

XV.

SURVIVALS

OP HIEROGLYPHICS,

EMBLEMS AND OTHER SYMBOLS,



388.

CHAPTER XV.

SURVIVALS OP HIEROGLYPHICS, EMBLEMS

AND OTHER SYMBOLS.

Some

s u r v i v a l s

of

elements i n Ancient Egyp tia ns

culture,

supporting

the

theory

of a

close connection

between

the Anci ent

Egyptians

and the Yorubas, have been

noted i n the prece ding cha pte rs.

Another

important

s u r v i v a l

w i l l

now be

discussed. i t i s

the

s u r v i v a l

of

Ancient Eg ypti an Hie rog lyp hic s.

Various writers have seen the hieroglyphics, but t h e i r


has

hitherto

been shrouded i n mystery. Th ei r i d e n t i t y

with Egyptian hie rogly phic s i s a

s u r p r i s i n g

revelation to the

present

writer.

The

s u r v i v a l

of

these

i n s c r i p t i o n s

i n

s j i t e

of the

lapse of so many ce nt ur ie s cannot but

e x c i t e f e e l i n g s

of admiratio n

for the I n t e l l i g e n c e and conservatism of t h e i r preser vers.

The hieroglyphics

may be

found

i n

d i f f e r e n t

parts of the

country,

e s p e c i a l l y

at

Benin

and

l i e

I f e .

SURVIVAL

OF

HIEROGLYPHIC

8 AT

BENIN..



A c o l l e c t i o n of hieroglyphics has

been

made by Mr. R.E.

Dennett who, not knowing t h e i r

s i g n i f i c a n c e ,

simply descr ibed

them



'389.

(a)

The lower

symbol

of ( a )

J

^ n e f e r )

1

i s the Egypti an

hierog lyphic

meaning "good". The h a l f moon

<3 I s

the symbol, for the h a l f part

2

of Egypt.

Each of the th ree symbols st uc k to the h a l f moon i s the Egyptian

3

4

symbol

Onku usually

held

by

d e i t i e s .

The symbols, therefore,

denote a

t r i a d

of

d e i t i e s

- prob ably the

t r i a d

of

O s i r i s , I s l s

and Horus - reigning over Southern Egypt.

(b)

The

symbol

i s an Egyptian

symbol

•

•(a)

The

symbol

marked ( c )

Hffff

i s the Egypti an word

heap

or sen t,

a 'nome'

0

(d) An Egyptian symbol

f o r "

the

land

on one side o f the N i l e " i s

a t e b j *

*

the

symbol, f o r

a l l

Egypt,

being

t>

• The

fig ure

consisting

of one ateb

inverted

over the other and

joi ned

together by a c i r c l e - ,

therefore,

denotes the "unions of both

parts

of

Egypt. "

(e)

W i s the Egyp tia n

l e t t e r

' a *

7

, the

i n i t i a l

of the god s a t or

8ttt«

The h a l f moon

o i s

the

symbol

of

Northern

or

Souther n

Egypt. The figure

therefore,

denotes. "Set

reigning

over

Northern Egypt".

'

( f )

Figu re ( f ) i s probably a representation o f the f ou r elem enta l

d e i t i e s .

8

worshipped i n Anc ien t Egypt and surviving i n Yortiba-

land

as

O l o r i Merln

"The four-headed d e i t y * .

9



(g)

Fig ure (g)

-\)r

i s a s u r v i v a l of a c l u s t e r of lotus f l o w e r s .

1 0

330

The above insc ript ion s are made on the ground in front

of Ake, a de it y i n Benin, Figu re (a) re fe rs to Egypt ian

d e i t i e s ,

probably

the

t r i a d

of

O s i r i s .

Figure (e) re fe rs to Set .

Fig ure (d) r e f e r s to the Union of a l l Egypt. The fi gu re s, when

considered as a whole, give a s t r i k i n g conf irma tion to the theory

of a close connection

between

the Ancient Egyptians and the

Yorubas.

2.

I n s c r i p t i o n s ' ^

page

221.

These

ins cri pti ons are generally found at the foot of

trees,,

the

whole

forming a

group

of objects known as

Ake."AXE".

The lean to sheds (a) are in the shape of an axe:

(—"J nete r, a g o d )

1

. Figur es (b) / r e f e r and (c ) Se kl et have been

explained above. Figu re (d) I s a re pr ese nt ati on of the Egyp tia n

lotus

flower.

3.

Ins cri pti ons on

page 192.

Figures (b )/ re fe r and (c ) Se kle t



The figure

marks

the entrance to Arovia, a

grove

sa cr ed to

Ovia. The

name

of the pla ce i s Omi- ihi (wrongly s p e l t

Omey).

J



«31.

5. The f i g u r e on page 202 strongly resembles the Egyptian

s y l l a b i c

word

?K

mas.

1

6. The f i g u r e on> page 221+.

The f i g u r e s a t the top and a t th e bottom, may be regarded

as

sym boli zin g the union of both parts of Egypt.

2

3

The sign c: — i s the Egyptian l e t t e r s?. The f i g u r e s ?

described by

Dennett,

as cows' heads are prob ably crude re pr es en -

t a t i o n s

o f the head i n the hi er og ly ph f o r

Set.**

7. The

f i g u r e ^ on\page

225.

strongly resembles the Egyptian character

daterraina-

t i v e of land. ^ a l s o resembles the character determ inative

of

nu,

c i t y . 7

0 survives i n the Ph oe ni ci an Alphabet as the

l e t t e r

z

8.

The

f i g u r e

on page

226.

Compare

the

symbol

or WW

with

the Egy pti an

sign

f or water .^

SURVIVAL OP HIEROGLYPHICS

IN; OTHER

DISTRICTS.

1. A few

years

ago the w r i t e r v i s i t e d a

c h i e f

a t Isagatedo



and. noticed the following i n s c r i p t i o n s on the w a l l near the couch

332

2 .

I f a symbols. I t has been noted i n chapter IV above t h a t

i n r e c o r d i n g

the

r e s u l t s

of hi s

d i v i n a t i o n

the babalawo uses

s t r o k e s or c i r c l e s I I I or 0 0 0

1

.

These symbols correspond

w i t h Egyptian

symbols f o r numerals.

2 .

Yoruba T r i b a l Marks. I t i s i n t e r e s t i n g to note t h a t most

o f th e Yoruba T r i b a l Marks are

Egyptian h i e r o g l y p h i c

symbols as ma

be seen i n

s e v e r a l

works on

Egyptology.

A few examples o f

the

marks

w i l l ,

be

given here.. . .. »

QYO MARKS.

(a)

Ahaja

i n sets o f

t h r e e

~—: irv

^rEE

:Er

(b)

Abaja

i n sets o f f o u r «rv

^ ~

( c) V a r i a t i o n s

o f the

Abaja — «

VI

(d)

Pele

i

(e)

Ture

III

( f ) Keke

or G9mbo

i n



* 333~

I F E MARKS.

OHDO

MARKS | (One thick stroke on e i t h e r cheek)*

I3esh'a

Marks

'== .

"

." -~ (Three long strokes)

(Four hor izo nta l stro ke s)

If911 Marks; g|_ (Eigh t th in stro kes)

(Three thick strokes)

V

(Three long strokes)

(Three short strokes)

The above examples show that most o f the strokes a r e hieroglyphic

strokes

i n

sets o f three o r four,

arranged im p a r a l l e l

l i n e s

e i t h e r v e r t i c a l l y or h o r i z o n t a l l y , as im Egyptian writings.

the

Variations are made e i t h e r

by doubling^sets

or increasing the

Igbomina Marks

Jebu.

Marks

Egba Marks :

~ r i

H : -7:. - TT.-

™ * *

( V e r t i c a l

&

hori zont al stro kes)

Yagba Marks



number o f strokes o r by bending the strokes

s l i g h t l y

into curves*

1



As

compared

with other

f a c i a l marks

i n West

A f r i c a ,

the

Yoruba

marks

may be s a i d to be very

neat,

Egyptian

Emblems

i n Benin,

Egyptian emblems also survive i n Yoruba-lan d.

UKHURE.

The

f i r s t

of these i s the sacred emblem

known

as

0YI3 A

or

ESU or UKHURE.

This

i s a

long

bamboo

with

a

wick er basket

at

the

top.

The words Oyisa and

E su

have been explained i n a

previ ous

chapter.

1

The word

Ukhure

i s of Egyptian o r i g i n l i k e the preced-

ing

two. I t

c o n s i s t s

of

three pa rt s,

namely, IMShu-re;

U i s the I n i t i a l vowel c h a r a c t e r i s t i c of Yoruba nouns , Ehu i s the

Egyptian word Khu meaning "soul", "luminous s p i r i t , and r e i s

the

name of

the E gyptia n

god Ra or

Re.

The worft

therefore

means

"The soul

of Re or Ra".

2

.

The

shape

of the emblem i s suggestive of i t s

o r i g i n .

I t

w i l l be r emembered that the lot us plant was regarded as s acred i n

was



Ancient Egypt. I t s flower/often used i n connection, with the

335

The

next emblem

i s

another form

o f Ukhure,

This

i s

a

s t i c k made o f bamboo, but d i f f e r i n g i n shape from the one described

above. Near th e top o f i t are t a s s e l s resembling the p e t a l s

o f

a

l o t u s

f l o w e r .

Such

s t i c k s

are

found

on

nearly

a l l

a l t a r s

i n

Benin.

They are

also found

i n the

p r i v a t e

houses o f

c h i e f s , some

of

the

Chiefs having as many as s i x .

They are

c a r r i e d about on

ceremonial occasions and are sometimes venerated

as

sacred o b j e c t s .

The Ukhure

bamboo

and s t i c k s are s u r v i v a l s of the Egyptian

l o t u s

p l a n t , together

w i t h the b e l i e f s

about

the god

Re associated

w i t h

i t

Ukhure

survives

i n

other

p a r t s

o f

Yoruba-land

as

A-WU-RE.

1

An Awure i s

a

3u;ju

- an

armlet,

a

waist-band,

a

r i n g o r anything

worn i n some

p a r t

of the body

- as a s i g n

o f good

luck..

A strong b e l i e f i n the potency o f Awure e x i s t s i n Yoruba-land.

When

a

person

i s

successful,

the Yorubas say

"Awure

re

je "

"His awure i s successful".

By doubling the word U-Khure the Yorubas o b t a i n the word



kure-kure. a f a i r y ,

e l f , . o r

nobgoblin". The i n i t i a l vowel

i s



336-

At the top of the s t a f f i s a bunch of

f i g u r e s

surmounted by what

has been described as the representation of a horse and a

b i r d .

The

emblem

i s

a combination o f seve ral Egyptian

emblems.

The c i r c u l a r top

o f

i t i s a

s u r v i v a l

of the

l o t u s

flower i n f u l l

bloom.

1

The d i f f e r e n t parts of

the c i r c u l a r to p are s u r v i v a l s

o f Egyptian emblems. Dennett has given

p i c t u r e s

o f the d i f f e r e n t

p a r t s ,

and i t

i s easy t o

see those which he

numbered

'6

and

8

are

^

the f l a i l and the crook, Egyptian symbols

2

which

are u s u a l l y , c a r r i e d

by Egyptian kings and d e i t i e s .

The

b i r d

in. the

f i g u r e

i s a

s u r v i v a l

of the Egyptian

b i r d

known

as Bennu.^

A

comparison

of

the f i g u r e

of

the b i r d w i t h the

f i g u r e o f

r

t h e bennu

b i r d

as i t i s found i n books on

Egyptology^

c l e a r l y

proves

t h i s

statement. The long

beak

of

the l a t t e r

as

w e l l

as i t s general appearance survives i n t he former.

I n

the

v i g n e t t e

given by Prof. Maspero in. the Dawn of

C i v i l i z a t i o n , Ra i s seen

s p r i n g l y

from a

l o t u s

flower i n the form

o f

a.human being and holding the crook and the f l a i l . ^ I n the



pfipyruS o f Ani (sheet 28) a head i s seen s p r i n g i n g from a l o t u s .

" 337 -

Th is i s al so the case i n the papyras of Tu rin ( see Lap si us ,

Todtenbuch,

B1 .3 1) . I n other vig net tes Ra spring s from the

lo tu s i n the

form

of a

bennu

b i r d ,

1

by

means

of

which

he i s

often

represented.

The fi gu re of a bird on. a fi gu re

s i m i l a r

to

a lotus in shape i s a fu rt he r confirmation of the Egypt ian

o r i g i n

of the emblem.

Further,

a par t of the

emblem

has

been

des cri bed as

the representation of a horse. This descri ption i s . incorr ect.

A close study of the part seems to suggest a crude

representation

of a bark. I n books on Ancient Egypt there are vignettes

showing

2

the bird

bennu

standing

OBI

the

bark

of

Ra.

The two fea th ers on

the right hand side of the

bark

are ei th er a rep res ent ati on of the

ulualif^^Sund on the

back

of the

head

of the

b

ennui or crude

representation of the prow and the s t e r n of the bark.

PILLARS.

P i l l a r s can be

seen

i n

many

par ts of

Benin.

The

noteworthy

point about

them

i s that se ver al of

them

are us ua ll y three i n

number when found together.



For example, at, Esu le i n the Kukuruku country north of



"338

:

The images i n the j u j u house

at.Idungena

have been

commented

upon

i n Chapter I I I . They c l o s e l y resemble the images

o f

O s i r i s * I.sis and

Horns

given by Professor

Maspero

on

page

175

of

the

Dawn of

C i v i l i z a t i o n . I t i s noteworthy

that i n the

case of the

l a t t e r , j u s t

as

i n . the case,

of the

former, O s i r i s ,

the father, squats on a p i l l a r .

The

p i l l a r s

i n Ben in which

are

regarded

by the

people

as representations

of a

t r i a d

of deitieB may also be

regarded

as

a s u r v i v a l of the t r i a d of O s i r i s , I s i s and Horus .

The

s u r v i v a l of the

above

emblems constitute a further

evidence

of the

impress

of Ancien t

Egypt

on

Yoruba

primitive

culture.

EGYPTIAN EMBLEMS AND

SYMBOLS

IN I L E

I F E .

OPA

ORANYAN

AND OTHER

PILLARS.

Reference has been made above to Oranyan

1

(the l i v i n g Ra)

the

mythical

founder

of

the Yoruba

nation.

I n l i e I f e there i s an obelisk known as Opa Oranyan.

o . . .



The word

Opa comes from

the

Egyptian

word

per (0

i s

an

i n i t i a l

330

"The ob el is k i s about

10 to 12 f e e t

i n h e i g h t ,

and

about

f o u r . f e e t

square i n w i d t h

at

t he

base;

i t t ape rs

to a

p o i n t , and has upon one face of i t , s e v e r a l s p i k e

n a i l s

d r i v e n

i n t o

i t , and some

c a r v i n g s

as of

a n c i e n t c h a r a c t e r s .

The n a i l s

are

arranged

i n

such

an ordered

manner

as to

render

them

s i g n i -

f i c a n t .

F i r s t , t h e r e are

61

i n a

s t r a i g h t

l i n e from the bottom

upwards

at i n t e r v a l s of

about

2

i nc h es i n t h e m i d l i n e ;

and

n e x t ,

a t

about

a

d i s t a n c e

of

inches

on

e i t h e r s i d e

of t h i s and

from

the same l e v e l on t o p , two

p a r a l l e l l i n e s

of 3"1

n a i l s ,

each

r u n n i n g

downwards and

c u r v i n g

below to meet those of

t h e m i d l i n e .

Then i n t h e

space between

these t h r e e

rows of p a r a l l e l l i n e s and

about the l e v e l where they converge, i s

found

most conspicuous

of th e carvings

*~1

"What i s c o n j ec t u r e d as most probable i s t h a t

the carvings

are

the anci ent characters;

Resh and Yod

which s t a n d f o r

Oranyan".

1

T h i s c o n j e c t u r e

i s

ingenious

but i n c o r r e c t .

I t i s o n l y an i m p e r f e c t knowledge of

Hebrew

characters

t h a t

can l e a d to

such

a c o n j e c t u r e . The

f i r s t

symbol

d i f f e r a

considerably from the Hebrew l e t t e r Resh; i t s t op i s t h i c k and

does not

curve

up l i k e

Resli

*~) . The second symbol has t o be

t u r n e d

round

b e f o r e

i t

can bear

the

s l i g h t e s t resemblance t o

Yod.

2

The p r e s e n t

w r i t e r

b e l i e v e s

t h a t

the two

symbols

are the

emblems

of dominion and

s o v e r e i g n t y , u s u a l l y h e l d

by

Egyptian

d e i t i e s .



( 2 ) Q

(1)



...

341

To confirm th e meaning o f the words given above, t h a t

i s

"the

house o r th e

obelisk

of the l i v i n g Ra"

1

, a t t e n t i o n

should

be

c a l l e d

t o the f a c t

t h a t

the shape of the

p i l l a r

i s

s i m i l a r

to

t h a t

o f an Egyptian obelis k as shown i n books on Ancient

Egypt.

2

The p i l l a r may be compared w i t h the obelisk of Usirtasen I s t i l l

standing on th e p l a i n o f H e l i o p o l i s . 3

W r i t i n g

on th e

subject

o f

obelisks

i n th e Old Kingdom o f

Egypt Dr. CP. T i e l e says "The sin gle obelisk of the Old Kingdom

t h a t

we know o f was erected there

( i . e .

H e l i o p o l i s ) by Usertasen I .

Obelisks l i k e t h i s had a two

f o l d

purpose; p r i m a r i l y , they symbo-

l i z e d

the

rays

o f th e sun

t h e i r

other

purpose was t o

express,

stedfastness and

d u r a b i l i t y

They were a stone representa-

t i o n o f the

props

o f Shu, upon which Ra walks.

Hence

a t Heli opoli s

they were found i n great

number."**

This passage i s s i g n i f i c a n t .

I t

shows, i n th e

f i r s t

place,

t h a t

obelisks regarded

as houses or

haunts o f the sun-god existed i n Ancient Egypt. Secondly, i t

throws l i g h t on th e f i g u r e formed by the n a i l s stuck on Opa Oranyan.

The f i g u r e s resembles a modified form o f sekhet, \xlij , the

http://xlij/

http://xlij/

http://xlij/



-342

F o u r t h l y ,

the ideas

of stedfastness and d u r a b i l i t y

have

s u r v i v e d ,

A

well-known Yoruba expression i s

0 l e

koko,

o

duro gboi n b i

Opa

Oranyan".

"

I t

i s

as s t r o n g or

dura ble as,

and

i t stands

s t e d f a s t l y as, the o b e l i s k

of

the l i v i n g

Ra .

F i f t h l y ,

j u s t as

the o b e l i s k s

i n Egypt were

made of

stone,

so

also were the

o b e l i s k

i n l i e I f e .

I t

would

be

w e l l

to

repeat here

t h a t

i n \

a d d i t i o n ,

t o

Opa

Oranyan,

there

are

other

stone p i l l a r s

i n various

p a r t s o f l i e

I f e .

Most

of

these

appear to

have been erected -for the

same

purpose

as-,

t h a t of Opa Orajnyan,

but there

are a few

which the

n a t i v e s

descri be

as the

symbols

of

Ogun.

Among the form er the

most

note-worthy

i s the I k e r e monolith,

whose

shape

has

s t r o n g l y suggested the idea

of r e p r e s e n t a t i o n

of elephant tusk to vari ous w r i t e r s .

The word

I - k e - r e

i t

may be

noted,

i s a s u r v i v a l of

the Ancient Egypti an

word

q.ere-s

which means a

s t a t u e ,

an

image".

To

sum

up:

Opa

Oranyan

and

several other p i l l a r s i n

l i e

I f e are known

as

the " p i l l a r s

of Shu and

regarded

as

the houses

or

haunts

o f

the

sun-god Ra. The

f i g u r e formed

by

the n a i l s

on



•

1

3 4

the

work

of a stone mason, and that the

myth

must

have

been

invented when the knowledge of such masonry

had

vanished.

The sta tu e i s

1,

about t h i r t y inches high, with hands

folded over the abdomen, which i s covered by a ki nd of apron,

whi le at the other s ide

hangs

an

appendage consisting

of

tasseL-

l i k e

ornaments.

A neck lace i s carved round h i s neck, while

another

hangs

from

i t

over

the abdomen and ther e are armlets on

the

w r i s t s .

The

head

has

been

much defaced and the forehead

and

upper

part

worn away,

probably by the constant

l i b a t i o n s

poured over i t . There i s a hole i n the forehead,

s a i d

to

have

been

caused

by a

b u l l e t f i r e d

against him by

rebels.

The h a i r

i s represented by l i t t l e i r o n pegs i ns er te d int o small holes ,

while the ears are rather large."

1

"The treatment of the h a i r

i n t h i s

granite

head

i s

s p e c i a l l y

of the greatest

i n t e r e s t . .

The

h a i r

i s represented by

l i t t l e

i r o n

pegs

ins erte d i n small holes" .

The in te re st in g pa rt . i s decidedly i t s

head...

the thick-lipped, broad-nosed face i s negroid i n type. .The

ears are

large.

A long lo ck of

h a i r ,

missin g on the

right,hangs



.344 .

I n

these two stat ues there i s a s u r v i v a l of repr esen ta-

tions of the god Re or Ra. The word O-re, i s a l i t e r a l su rviva l

of the

word

Re, 0

being

the

i n i t i a l

vowel

c h a r a c t e r i s t i c

of

Yoruba nouns.

The in te re st in g thing

about

the sstatue; of Ore

I P

i t s

s i m i l a r i t y to the figure of the c h i l d

Horus

i n whose form Ra

spr ings out of a lo tu s flower i n the vignet te

reproduced

by

Maspero

on

page

136 of the

Dawn

of C i v i l i z a t i o n . The points of

s i m i l a r i t y are as follo w?: I n both figures the god wears

neck-

l a c e s ;

i n the case of Ore the necklaces are

merged

into a kind

of

r u f f - l i k e

ornament.

I n

both

figures the god

wears

w r i s t l e t s .

Also in

both

fig ur es there i s a loc k of h a i r

hanging down

one

of the ear s; i n the case of Re, the hair i s on the ri g h t si de

w h i l s t

i n the case of

O-re,

i t i s on the

l e f t .

Th is loc k of

h a i r

i s

known

i n Ancient

Egypt

as "the divine lock of the god

Ra",

which

was

once

hidden i n a rel iq uar y of

stone

at

Pa-Aart

(House

of

Lock)

and afterwards ca st in to the great lake of Pa-aart where

i t became

a croco dile.

2

The s u rv i v a l of

t h i s

loc k of h ai r i n



- 346

The deity represented here i n a crude form i s probably the

constant

companion of Re (or Horus) known as the Eye of He

(or

Horus)

I t may be

remarked

i n passing that the negroid features;

of the two sta tue s very c l o s e l y resemble the negroid fea tur es of

the great sphinx

of Gizehl

Th is should

not

cause

any surpr ise

i n

view

of the

complete

i d e n t i f i c a t io n s

of

Ra

with

Horus.

2

The Sphinx which i s an image of

Horus may,

therefore, be regarded .

as the image

of Ra and may

r i g h t l y

have

features

i n

common wi th

statues

representing Ra or Re.

•

OTHER

SYMBOLS.

Among

the

other r e l i c s

the

most important

are the

symbols found

i n the crocodile

temple

a t l i e I f e . These c o n s i s t

of stone representation of crocodiles and

eggs

placed i i a rudely

constructed

temple.

"Symmetrically placed there

i s a

stone

the

crocodile to£right- and l e f t i n front of a stone block a r t i f i c i a l l y

. rounded, s e t on end. These

blocks.••••••••I would

l i k e to

c a l l



drop-stones

1. • .Before

each

of

these drop-stones,

- 346-

The symbol of the egg i s well-known i n connections with the

ancient Egyptian r e l i g i o n s

symbolism

and i s co ns ta nt ly appl ied

to

the

sun-god,

p a r t i c u l a r l y

to Ra or

O s i r i s

and

Horus

who are

i d e n t i f i e d

with him. Representative examples may be give n he re .

Ra i s thus desc rib ed i n the

Book

of the Dead:

O

Ra i n h i s

egg-

who sh in es through h i s d i s k , who g l i t t e r s on the horizon".

1

The sun was regarded by the Ancient Egyp ti ans as an egg

which was

l a i d d a i l y

by the

mate

of Sibu. The egg. was

regarded,

as an

emblem

of f e r t i l i t y , and

also

as an

abode

of the sun-god

e s p e c i a l l y of Ra .

2

Equally

s i g n i f i c a n t

i s the vi gn et te and the

description

of the nin th Aat of Secket

Aaru

ini the Book of the Dead. The

vignette conta ins the figure of a cr oc od il e touching wi th i t s

snout a figure which has

been

de sc ri be d as a vase but the shape

of which str ong ly suggests that i t i s an egg. I n the description

of the Aat the re are frequent re fe re nc es to a di vi ne egg. The

god

O s i r i s ,

who had been i d e n t i f i e d with Re or Ra i s adored as

"0 thou hol y god who dwel lest i n thine

egg".3

i t i s hig hly



347

Ancient Egypt, e s p e c i a l l y when the great

development

of s o l a r

worship caused

Sebek,

the crocodile god, to be I d e n t i f i e d with

Hal

L a s t l y ,

i t should

be

noted that blocks

of

stone

were

often

found

i s

i n

Egyptian Temples*

This/well

supported

by the

following

quota-

t i o n :-

"Se ver al blocks

of

stone wi th

marks of f e e t were found

i n the temple

1 1

.

1

I n view

of the

connection

of the

crocodile

and the egg,

with

the

Egyptian r e l i g i o n s

symbolism and i n

view

of the

exi stence

of crocodiles

and eggs i n the temple found i n the grove of O-re

( t h e s u r v i v a l , of the sun-god

Re),

the l a t t e r

crocodiles

and eggs

may be

s a f e l y regarded

as

representations;

of the sun-god Re and

as

s u r v i v a l s of

Egyptian

emblems*

A b r i e f

reference

may be made

here

to the

other

r e l i c s

i n l i e I f e *

Among

these

i s the bronze head of

Olokun* This

e f f i g y

c l e a r l y

shows the s k i l l and

d e x t e r i t y

of the Yorubas

i n making

statues of

bronze.



The features

of the e f f i g y are d i s t i n c t l y negroid*

348. .

archaeological value and who could hardly be induced to par t

with t h e i r precious treasures.

L a s t l y , reference must be made here to the stone

c h a i r

presented

by a

former

Oni of

I f e

to

S i r William Macgregor

and placed, together with other r e l i c s ,

i n the

Egy pti an Court

of the B r i t i s h Museum where a l l the r e l i c s appear at f i r s t

glance t o be among kindred works of a r t .



CHAPTER XVI.

SURVIVALS

OF

HIEROGLYPHICS,

EMBLEMS AND OTHER SYMBOLS.



- - 349 -

CHAPTER XVI.

SURVIVAL

OF HIEROGLYPHICS, EMBLEMS AND

OTHER

SYMBOLS

(continued).

HISTORICAL CONNECTION OF I F E RELICS WITH ANCIENT EGYPT.

The existence of the

r e l i c s

described above i n l i e Ife

has r ai se d se ve ra l

questions.

One can hardly

help

asking :

What

i s the o r ig i n of the sc ul ptu re s? Who

were

the

masons?

What i s the

h i s t o r i c a l

connection of the r e l i c s

with

the

a r t i s t i c

cultur es of other parts of Afrida? What i s their

r e l i g i o u s s i g n i f i c a n c e ? "

Some

of these

questions

have been

partly

answered

i n

connection

with

the description of the r e l i c s . At ten tio n has

been ca ll ed to the fac t that objects si mi la r to, or i d e n t i c a l

with, the r e l i c s existed

in-Ancient Egypt.

Some

writers

suggest

that the

high

cul tur e ind ica ted by

the r e l i c s was imported to

l i e

I f e by

Phoenician-traders

from the

North who must have tr av el le d extensively and se tt le d i n Yorubalan d

u n t i l

they

executed a l l the

stone

and bronze

work which

has



- 350 -

t e s t and can be

dismissed

as a

mere

conjecture

without

any sound

foundation.

Professor Leo Proebenius be lie ve s that the importers of

t h i s

high

culture have a l l died out; that

they were

not the

n e g r i t i c

Yorubas; that their

descendants

have

become

mixed

with

the

"pure"

Yorubas, but the s t r a i n of t h e i r sto ck can be

seen

i n

the light- colou red s ki n of some of the

Yorubas.

This be li ef i s

based on the assumption.', that once a nation i s c i v i l i z e d , circum-

stances and environment cannot

cause

i t t o degenerate and th at

any degree of culture found i n Yorubaland must be tr ea te d as non-

native.

These

assumptions cannot

be

proved.

Unless

i t can be

d e f i n i t e l y ' s t a t e d

that

those

who

executed

the

stone

work i n

l i e

I f e

l i v e d

j u s t long enough

there

without

i n any way

influencing

the native inhabitants, and dying

with

t he i r a r t , the be li ef of

Professor

Proebenius

must

be treate d as an

inadequate

explanation

of the phenomena.

Over ag ain st these

suggestions

and b e l i e f there i s the .

unshaken

evidence

of the n ati ves of I f e tha t the

r e l i c s were

the



- 351 —

by those of the Egy pti ans , i t i s d i f f i c u l t to

deny a c t i v e

contact

between

the Yorubas and the Eg yp ti an s. This contact was c l o s e ,

and uninterrupted

f o r

a long period.

According to T

a

l b o t , there was much

intercourse

between

Egypt and the Sudan between 2000-500 B.C.

1

I t was probably

during t h i s period that the

f i r s t

wave of Yoruba immigration

took

place.

One important f a c t should be noted here. The stone-

p i l l a r s are objects of wors hip to the Yorubas. Around

them

i s

a c ha in of r e l i g i o u s sentiment which has remained unbroken fo r

several centuries.

I f the

p i l l a r s

have been

e n t i r e l y

the

work

of

v i s i t o r s

or

s e t t l e r s

and the Yorubas themselves have had

no t r a d i t i o n a l connection wi th t h e i r erection, the non-native

character of the p i l l a r s would have prevented the growth of such

a

strong

r e l i g i o u s

sentiment around

them.

A l l the a v a i l a b l e data poin t c l e a r l y i n one d i r e c t i o n ,

namely, that the r e l i c s are remnants of the culture brought

by the Yorubas

from

Egypt and mainta ined by

successive

waves•



- •;

- 352'-

Smith,

spread i n a l l d i re c ti o ns

from

Egypt -

from

the t h i r d

to the

f i r s t

millenium B.C. I t involves the production of

stone

sculptures

and

stone

worship.

Professor Ferry gives

the

c h i e f elements

of the

culture as

follows

:- ( l )

Agriculture

(2) The use of

stones

for dolmens, stone

c i r c l e s (3) the carving of

stone

images

k

Pottery

making

(5)

Metal-working

and*

pearl fishi ng

(6)

The use of Polished stone

implements

(7) Rulers cons isti ng

of (a)

The

children

of the sun

(b)

A

c l a s s associated with

the

underworld, who

survived

as

war-chiefs

(8) The

sun-cult

(9)

The

p r a c t i c e

of

raumunification

(10) The

great mother

goddess (11) Human S a c r i f i c e , connected with agric ultur e and

the c u l t of the

mother

goddess (12) Mother r i g h t (13)

Totemistic clans (1k) The dual*-organization (15) Exogamy.

A l l these

elements survive

i n Y

0

r u b a primitive

culture,

with the exception of

those

which are ruled out by

geographical conditions.

The a f f i n i t y of the

Yoruba

p i l l a r s at l i e I f e to



-

353 -

popular

favour u n t i l

the

l a t e s t period

of

Egyptian

h i s t o r y .

The obelisks which stood

at the

entrance

of the

tem ples were

dedicated

to the

s u n " .

1

*

But more

elements from

the

Heliopolitan

sun

worship

seem to have survived i n Yoruba land than from any

other

form

of

Egyptian

sun worship .

An important

s u r v i v a l

from Heliopolis may be noted here.

Plutarch

t e l l s

us that the ox that i s kept at Heliopolis which

2

they

c a l l

Mnevis - sacred to O s i r i s , i s black a l s o " .

I t i s i n t e r e s t i n g to note that the Greek word Mnevis survives i n

Yorubaland

by way of

Egypt.

The i n i t i a l

consonant

and the

f i n a l consonant of

the

word

are

dropped

i n

Yoruba,

following the

r u l e

that a

pure Yoruba

noun

begins with

a

vowel

and the

r u l e

that a

f i n a l consonant whi ch does

not receive a

vowel

to

form

a

s y l l a b l e

i s

dropped.

The

word

thus

becomes

clipped into

" e v i " .

Now the l e t t e r v does not e x i s t i n the Yoruba alphabet. I t i s

therefore changed to w. Hence the word becomes EWI , the name

of

a Yoruba King or Paramount c h i e f who, i n former years, was



statues

shows that

they ar e

A close examinatio n of some of the/ s i m i l a r to th e

Memphite

Egyptian work of the f i f t h cen tur y B.C.

Among

those

found by Leo Proebenius

there

i s one which

S i r

FlincBersi P e t r i e

believes to be "obviously a copy of Roman

work of

about the

second

century.

1 1

'

This i s another Roman s u r v i v a l , but there i s

no

doubt

that i t has t r a v e l l e d to

Yorubaland

by way of

Egypt,

DERIVATION

OF

I L E

I F E .

An


of the extent to which the

H e l i o l l t h i c

culture has permeated Yoruba primitive culture i s furnished by the

large number o f Yoruba

words

embodying elements i n the former

culture. Nearly

a l l

the names of the

gods

associated wi th sun-

worship i n

Heliopolis

and Hermopolis have survived i n Yoruba.

Some of

the

names are Ra, or Re, O s i r i s , Horus, Khepera, Khopri,

Shu,

Adumu

or

Atumu,

Turn and Th ot. Some s u r v i v a l s o f these names

or

derivations

from

them

have been noted above. Here a few

i n t e r e s t i n g s u r v i v a l s may be noted. J u s t as Heliopolis the c h i e f

centre

of su n worship i n An ci en t Egypt was known as Pa r a

"The House of Ra", so also i s l i e I f e the

Chief

centre of sun-



- 355 -

Yoruba

i s phonetically writ ten i . )

That

t h i s i s the cor rec t

derivation i s supported by two f a c t s . F i r s t , the

word

nefer,

the sin gul ar of neferu surv ive s i n

Yoruba

as

I - f a

or

- n i f a .

1

The s u r v i v a l of the p l u r a l neferu

cannot

be regarded as impossible.

Secondly, the word nefer survives in the name of a d i s t r i c t i n

l i e

I f e i t s e l f . That d i s t r i c t i s known as Oramfe (O-RA-MFE or

O-Ra-NIFE

m

being often

used

as a co nt ra ct io n of n i , and 0 being

an i n i t i a l

vowel

c h a r a c t e r i s t i c of a pure Yoruba noun).

Oramfe

i s thus

modificationi

of Ra n ef er , a well-known Egyptian

phrase.

2

l i e

I f e may, th er ef or e, be regarded as a

s u r v i v a l ,

i n

an abbreviated

form

of "Pa neferu-ksu~Ra". "The House of the

divine

souls of Ra."

Two other s u r v i v a l s may be noted. The f i r s t i s the

word

Wura

"The Khu or the soul of Ra". The

word

wura means "gold" i n

Yoruba and i s der ive d from the colour of the golden orb of the

sun at su nr is e or at suns et . The

second

i s the word B i r i - k i t i

"round". The

word

appears to be derived from Kho-pri Kuti



- 35-6 -

. at

t h i s

grove that the antique works of a r t

were

excavated

by Professor

Leo

Proebenius

and

h i s co-workers.

The

r e l i c s

excavated

include

a large quantity of g l a s s beads, a large

number

of t e r r a - c o t t a s

depicting

human and animal

heads

fragments of urns, j a r s , pottery, jugs, pipes and other objects.

The most important

object

excavated at

Ebo-Olokun

i s

the bronze head

of

Olokun himself. This valuable r e l i c i s thus

described by Professor Leo Proebenius :

I t

measures fourteen

and a h a l f

inc hes from

the

t i p

of the

diadem

to the neck l i n e ; the

face

from the edge of the fore head

to the chin, s i x t e e n and three quarter inches. I t i s c a s t i n

what we

c a l l " a . c i r e perdue"

, or

hollow

c a s t , and

very

f i n e l y

chased indeed, l i k e the

f i n e s t

Roman examples. I t cannot be

s a i d

to be

'negro'

i n

countenance, although i t

i s

covered wi th

quite

f i n e

tattoed l i n e s , which

at

once contradicts

any

suggestion of

i t s

having been brought from abroad. The s e t t i n g

of the l i p s , the shape of the e a r s , the contour of the fac e,

a l l

prove, i f separately examined,

the

perfection

of a work of

true

a r t , which the

whole

of i t obviously i s . The

diadem

sur-

rounding the head i s s p e c i a l l y remark able. There i s a flow er

i n i t s centre behind which r i s e s

an

entwined s t a f f , ending

i n

a

button".^

Myths

current

among the people of l i e I f e suggest that

Olokun

was the

creator

of the

world

and of the

major d e i t i e s

Odudua and O r i s a l a .



- 357 -

One

cannot

but

ask: What I s

the

o r i g i n

of

these r e l i c s ? "

One can

e a s i l y understand

why the

people

at Lagos who

dw el l near

the

coast

worship Olokun,

the god of the sea or

Ocean.

But why

should the peoples of

l i e

I f e and Benin

l i v i n g

i n I n t e r i o r c i t i e s

f a r away from the sea and who perhaps had never seen the sea be

ardent

worshippers

and

admirers

of the god of the sea or

ocean?

The answer to these question s l i e s

i n the h i s t o r i c a l

connection e x i s t i n g between Ancient Egyptian


1

, and

Yoruba

primitive

culture*

According to E g y p t i a n mythology, Turn or

Atumu

(Adumu)

was the god of the primordial ocean,

1

the

soul

of the deep watery

abyss. At Heliopolis he was

i d e n t i f i e d w i t h

Ra and was known as

Atum-Ra or Ra-Tum. The

s u r v i v a l

of Ra i n

Yorubaland sugg est s

the s u r v i v a l

of

Turn.

So close i s the

resemblance between Turn

and Olokun that i t i s d i f f i c u l t to regard the

l a t t e r

oth er tha n

as

the counterpart of the former. I t w i l l be remembered that

Turn, the Egyptian god of the primordial ocean

i s

o fte n desc ribe d

i n

Egyptian

books as the "soul

(khu)

of Ra , the "soul

(Shu)

of



..- ;358- -

supposed to have)

been created. I n Eg yp t, Turn was

also

supposed to

dv/ell

on a .

mountain,^ I n i l e s h a i n Yorubaland, Olokun was supposed to dwell

on a mountain where an a l t a r i s

dedicated

to him.

Olokun, as the

counterpart

of Turn, i s an element of

s u r v i v a l

i n Yorubaland of the H e l i o l i t h i c culture of Egypt .

The above description of the bronze of Olokun given above

c a l l s

fo r a

b r i e f

comment.

Professor

Froebenius

says

that

i t

cannot be regar ded as 'negro' i n countenance, although i t i s

covered

by f i n e tattoed

l i n e s .

Now the f a c i a l

c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s

of a 'negro' or black man are :- a receding forehea d; broad f l a t

hose;

f u l l ,

thick

and

everted

l i p s .

An

impartial

st ud y o f the

figure w i l l show that

these

c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s are i n evid ence,

though not i n exag gera ted form s. The figure c l o s e l y resambles

that of a f i n e West African black man, a t y p i c a l example of whom

may be. found i n

West

A f r i c a n

books and newspapers.

Besides,

the

f i n e

tattoed

l i n e s corr espon d to the f i n e

tattoed f a c i a l

and

t r i b a l marks found i n

some

parts of Yoru bala nd.

The name Ebp-Olokun i s also noteworthy. I t has been

2



• -.

359 -

The e xi st en ce of

s a c r i f i c e s

to Olokun

(Ebo-Olokun)

and

s a c r i f i c e s

to

Ra (Ebo-Ra) on the

same

spot constitute a further proof of

the i d e n t i t y of Olokun with Turn Ra*

The

word

Imole has been explained above. I t

means

the c h i l d of the Ea rt h or of the l i v i n g one , i t s

f u l l form

being

Qmd-ile.. l i e i s probably a modified form of l y e that which

e x i s t s ,

the

l i v i n g

one .

The mass of r e l i c s found a t

Ebo-Olokun

st ro ng ly suggests

that i t was an anc ien t cemetery. The r e l i c s include

glass

beads,

terra-cottas

of a l l ki nd s, de pi ct in g men and a nimal s, j a r s , pipes,

urns,

d i f f e r e n t

kind s of po tt er y and a

deep

l a y e r

of ashes. A l l

these

are objects l i k e l y to be found i n an Egyp tian Cemetery.

Professor F l i n d e r s F e t r l e

writing

about

the Egyptian

funeral

says:

A gr eat burning took pl ace at a funeral and the ashes of the

vegetable matter* and even the burnt sand beneath i t

were .

gathered up and bu ried i n the grave .

1

These ashes

were

often deposited into a lar ge

number

of

j a r s .

.The position of these

ash-jars

generally was at the north or

foot end o f the grave .

2

The terra-cottas of animal

heads

are rem ini sce nt of laahebtl f ig ur es



- 360 -

THE

ONI

OF I F E .

The ONI, the King or paramount chief of

I f e ,

i s a

prieBt

king. He i s regarded by the othetf king s or

paramount

chiefs

as

the chief p r i e s t , . I n h i s absence, hov/ever, another p r i e s t may

offer

important

s a c r i f i c e s

i n the

d i f f e r e n t

towns and

v i l l a g e s .

T r a d i t i o n

says t hat a l l other kinds or Obas used

to

go to I f e f o r

t h e i r

coronation

ceremonies;

U n t i l

quite

recently

the

sword

of

state njust be obtained

from

I f e before the cor ona tio n ceremonies

of an Oba (K in g or paramount chief) could be considered v a l i d .

The

t i t l e

of the kin g of I f e and the importance of the

sacred

c i t y

i n re gar d to co ro na ti on ceremonies

f i n d

close

p a r a l l e l s

i n Anc ien t Egypt . The t i t l e of an important p r i e s t i n Ancie nt

Egypt i s

Onnmit-f (An-mut-f)

or On-kenemet

(An-kenemet)

• I t should

be noted also tha t the Egy pti an

word

for Hel io po li s and

the name

of

an

ancient

god

of

the

c i t y

was

©n-

1

-

or An.

The importance of

l i e

I f e i n regard to coronation

ceremonies may-be compared with tha t of Heliopolis. According to

Dr.

T i e l e

:

Heliopolis

was he ld in the gr ea te st

esteem;

coronation



Next to the r a t t l e s come the I f a Trays. These are used

b y I f a P r i e s t s i n d i f f e r e n t p art s of

Yorubaiand.

They are

made

of wood'* Eac h of

them

has four ca rved h e a d s

1

pointing to the

four points ©f the

compass.

There

i s no doubt th at cosmological ideas are as so ci at ed

with the

heads

carved on I f a

t r a y s .

They rep res ent , accor ding to

native ideas, the four

d e i t i e s

pre si di ng over the four cor ner s

of the earth and whose domains are the fo ur c h i e f

Odus

of I f a ,

namely, Ogbe,

Oyeku,

Iwori,

Odi.

The

Odus

are gen er al ly arranged

to

form

the four points of the

compass.'

The

arrangement

i s as

0<3i

Meji

follows «

i

Oyekan = =

E j i

Meji . — - —-~

Ogbe

•

• •

Iwori

Meji

The p oi nt s of compass rep res ent ed and the gods presid ing

over the r esp ect ive corners are as follo ws :-

1.

E j i Ogbe

Bast ••• E-su



- 362 -

The Yoruba oracular system, cosmogony, and guardianship

of the

four corners

of the world are cl os el y lin ked together

as su rv iv al s of the

same

ancient cul tur e.

I t should

be noted

here

that E-su

(Eshu)

the

guardian

of the Eas t i s not su -t , *

n e

warrior god, but Shu, the god

of the r i s i n g sun.

I n using the t ra y for ora cul ar purposes the

babalawo

faces the east and turns the head

representing

E- su (Shu)

and his domain towards the Ea st . Th is custom of turning to the

Eas t i n imit atio n of upper and lower heaven, i s si m i l a r to the

i n

custom of turning^that direc tion by the pr ie st s of Hel iop oli s

when performing ceremonies

to

shu,

the god of the r i s i n g sun.

Impressed by' t h i s s i m i l a r i t y Gerald Massey

in his

work

en title d

A

Book

of Beginnings , i n which he

attempts

to reconstruct and

recover

the l o s t origins of the

myths, with

Egypt for the

mouth

and A f r i c a as the birt hp la ce , says

ti I f e i s a

region

of north or lower heaven, out of which

the sun issu es fo rt h, and i s reborn from his burial place, 1

Thi s i s quite s i mi la r to ideas current about the

sun-god

i n



elements

of the Templura

system found

among the

Ancie nt

Etruscans

and

belonging to

a

North-West A t l a n t i c

c u l t u r e .

1

A detailed c r i t i c i s m of h i s

argument

cannot be undertaken here .

B ut i t must

be

observed

that

whatever

may be the ultimate o r i g i n

of

the

system as

a

whole, i t

has come to the Yorubas by way of

Egypt, and i t bears the i n d e l l i b l e stamp of Egypt on i t i n Yoruba-

land

both

as

regards i t s phraseology

and

i t s

leading

ideas*

THE DOUBLE-HEAPED

AXE.

Of great r e l i g i o u s Importance i s the

s u r v i v a l

of the

double-headed axe.

This i s i n

connection wit h

the

worship of

Sango,

the god of

Thunder*

I n an e a r l i e r chapter

Sango

was

i d e n t i f i e d wit h Ptah

whose symbolic animal

was the

ram*

The

other

name of

Sango i s .

Ja-ku-ta*

The l i v i n g

soul

of

Ptah .

The

s u r v i v a l

of an axe

symbolizing

ram's

horns

I n

Yorub aland sh ould not,

therefore,,

be

s u r p r i s i n g .

Commenting on the sacred

double

axe i n Nigeria P.

Amoury Talbot

says:



« 36k--

dating as far

back

as the reign of

Minoan

I of Crete and the

age of

Pyramids

i n Egypt. According to Pr of es so r George F.

Moore

:

Egyptian Cretan

wares

or re pres enta tion s of

them

in Egyptian

tombs

securely

e s t a b l i s h c e r t a i n

fundamental

synchronisms,

and made i t po ss ib le to a ssi gn dates to the

p r i n c i p a l epochs

i n

Cretan a r t and

architecture. ....Commerce

with

Egypt was e a r l y established; Egyptian decorative

motives

may

be recognize d i n Cretan a r t at

several

stages 1.

Among the

symbols

to

which r e l i g i o u s s i g n i f i c a n c e

attaches

are

a

conventionalized

p a i r of

b u l l ' s

horns,

which have been

c a l l e d , somewhat

awkwardly,

horns

of con se cr at io n and the

bipennis or double-bitted axe,

which

occ urs with such great

frequency as to be a

c h a r a c t e r i s t i c

fea tu re of the

Minoan a r t 2 .

These extracts

not only

show

that the

c u l t

of the

double-

headed

axe i n connection w it h the worship of

Sango,

the

ram-headed

deity,

has su rv iv ed i n Yorubaland

from

Cr et e by way of Anc ient

3

Egypt , but they

also

r a i s e the question of the impress, of Grec ian

and Cr etan cu lt ur es on

Yoruba

p r i m i t i v e

culture.

A

s a t i s f a c t o r y

answer

to

t h i s

question can

'only

be the

r e s u l t

of

adequate

research

work.

The

importance

and the

degree

of sacredness attached to

the

double-axe

can be

gauged

by the l ar ge

numbers

of the axe, the



„,

-.-. -

365 -

. CONCLUDING REMARKS.

The

s u r v i v a l of'

elements inv Ancie nt Egyptian culture

descfc^bed

i n

t h i s

chapter

shows,

i n a

measure,

the

degree

of

permeation of

Yoruba

culture by elements i n the former. The

elements described i n the chapter do not constitute an exha ustive

l i s t . .The s u r v i v a l of ancient Egyptian d e i t i e s

i n Yorubaland

and

i n

other

parts of

West

A f r i c a as well as the s u r v i v a l of

Ancient Egyptian words i n West A f r i c a n languages i n gener al,

and

i n the

Yoruba language i n

p a r t i c u l a r ,

i s

i l l u s t r a t e d i n

an appendix to

t h i s work*



CHAPTER XVII.

C O N C L U S I O N .



366

CHAPTER

XVII

-

CONCLUSION,

Science i s n e i t h e r f i n a l nor absolute* I t i s only a

recent

method

of lo ok in g at th in gs . The

truth

of

t h i s

statement cannot be over-emphasized* The studen t of r e l i g i o n

must occasionally review

h i s ; dat%,

to see

whether

they afford

adequate support f o r h i s theory. He must

t e s t his=

theory i n

the

l i g h t

.of new

knowledge.

He

must

ever be on th e

watch

a s

to the

existence

of new materials, new date, new

phenomena

which would

t e s t

the soundness of h i s theory.

However

v

a t t r a c t i v e

or convincing

his,

th eo ry may be, however smashing

i n

i t s

e f f e c t

on

r i v a l

or preceding th e o r i e s h i s theory may be/

he must not

s t r i k e the

note of

f i n a l i t y .

Science knows no

f i n a l i t y .

The pet theor y of today

may

be the laugh ing- stoc k

of tomorrow.

The tone of

t h i s

t h e s i s

has; i n

some

p a r t s

been

c r i t i c a l .

This i s due t o two rea sons.

F i r s t ,

the r e s u l t s achieved by

previous w r i t e r s , hi gh ly app rec iat ed as th es e are , can only

be greeted with interim cheers, and not with

prolonged,

appla use



367*

The

description

of Yoruba Religion

given

i n the

prece-

ding chapters can lead to only one

conclusion,

namely, that

the impress of Egypt on i t i s

c l e a r

and

i n d e l l i b l e .

The

f a c t s leading

to the conclusion

have

been s e t out

i n d i f f e r e n t parts? of the work. I t has been pointed out

that the r e l i g i o u s

ideas

of the Yorubas ar e

s i m i l a r

to , and

i n some

cases

i d e n t i c a l

with, tho se of

Ancient

Egyp t.

The

r e l i g i o u s

phra seol ogy of t he Yorubas

i s

thorough ly

permeated with

Ancient Egyptia n

words.

A l l

th e Yoruba words;

applied t o elements i n

r e l i g i o u s

or s o c i a l

l i f e

ar e of

Egypt ian

o r i g i n .

Fo r example, the Yoruba words, f o r the sun, the sky,

the

heavens, the s t a r s , man, woman, boy,

g i r l ,

death,

s p i r i t ,

water,

heart, head,

body

and a host of others ar e

a l l

of

Egyptian o r i g i n .

I t has been s a i d above that words of Egyptian o r i g i n form

not l e s s tham^ one-half of th e words i n the Yoruba. vocabular y.

The extent to which such words, have been incorporated into

the Yoruba language can

best

be demonstrated by an exa min ati on

of a few pas sag es chosen a t random from the e x i s t i n g Yoruba



368

And God s a i d , l e t u s make

man

i n our own image,

a f t e r

our

l i k e n e s s :

and

l e t them have

dominion over

the f i s h of the sea, and over the fow ls of the a i r ,

and over the c a t t l e , and over a l l the ea rth , and

over every creeping th in g

that

creepeth

upon

the

earth *

3* Egun k i y i o s i s i mo:

i t e

Olorun a t i t i Qdo - Aautan n i

y i o

s i ma

wa n ibe :

awon lranse

r e

yio

s i man s i n

i

Rev, XXII -

v.3.

And

there

w i l l

he no more cu rse : the throne of God

and of the

lamb

s h a l l

be i n

i t ;

and h i s ser van ts

s h a l l

serve him .

The words underline d i n the above passages: are o f E gyp tia n

o r i g i n . They include words derived

from

Semiti c root

ha-ya

( o r cha-ya) to e x i s t

from which


word

c h a - p a r

1

or

che-per,

to e x i s t , i s probably derived* The

the

derivations

of

most of^wbrde

underlined, above have been given

i n

the

preceding

chapters; those of the remaining words

w i l l

be

found

i n the

s e l e c t -

l i s t

of

Yoruba

words

given i n

Appendix

3

of t h i s work*

4* I b i t l

agbara

awon ogun

t i t u n

tft

B r i t e i n gbe wa n i

i d a l o j u

i s e

a t i y i y a v i

awon

to a n f i keke-ogun ,1a ninu won. -

Yoruba War P i c t o r i a l

No.16,

p.8.

The str en gth of the new B r i t i s h offensive

l i e s

i n the



36©

5* De al in g with animals i n Yorubaland i n a Yoruba reader

e n t i t l e d Iwe Kika Ekarun a writer says :-

Eranko

i l e

Yoruba

po pupo:

Ewure, Agutan,

Malu, Ologbo,

A;}a, KLede, Adie,

ppppiye,

eiyele....$kun,

kini un,

igbo,

gunugun,

.....pepeiye-odo, ogbugfcu*

Animals i n Yorubaland ar e

m a n y : . g o a t s ,

sheep,horses,

e t c .

The words underlined i n

Wo.4 above

and the names of animals

given i n No.5

above

are a l l of Ancient Egyp tian o r i g i n . A

f u l l e r

l i s t of

names

of animals i s given i n Appendix 1 of

t h i s

work.

I t should be noted that i n the

above

passages a l l the

important

wo&ds

are

s u r v i v a l s

of

Ancient Egypt ian

words.

Some of the monosyllabic words which are not underlined may,

a f t e r further research, be shown to be of Egyptian o r i g i n . '

The s u r v i v a l of the Ancient Egypti an d e i t i e s has-, been

noted. Nearly a l l

the

leading

ones

among

them

survive

i n

Yorubaland i n name and i n a t t r i b u t e s . I n most cases the essen-

t i a l features of the d e i t i e s survive. I t i s s i g n i f i c a n t that

the great gods of Egypt are also the great gods

8

of Yorubaland.



3

e

testi mony to the va lu e of the work of Young, Champollion and

others

who

have

deciphered the Egyp tia n Hieroglyphics*

Professor

P e t r i e ,

1

a f t e r poi nti ng out how l a r g e l y the

e a r l i e s t stratum of Egy pti an ide as ha s been a t one with t he

r e s t

of A f r i c a , gives

f i f t y - e i g h t

odd examples-

from

which

Egypologists have

recently been able to obtain a c l e a r e r

v i s i o n of the an ci en t ceremonies of the Egy pti ans of

old*

More tha n seventy per cent of the

examples

he g iv es ar e found

among

t he Yorubas*

I n

view of the

abov©

f a c t s the conclusion i s i r r e s i s t i b l e

that the r e l i g i o n of the

Yorubas

stands i n geneti c r e l a t i o n

to the r e l i g i o n of Ancient

Egypt*

I t i s a s u r v i v a l of the

l a t t e r * I t i s a meddley of the worship of d i f f e r e n t - d e i t i e s

i n d i f f e r e n t homes and

epochs

of Egyptian

h i s t o r y * I n

i t s

e s s e n t i a l f e a t u r es i t r e f l e c t s the conservatism c h a r a c t e r i s t i c

of the Ancient

Egyptians*

The o ld i s never disca rded i n

favour

of the

new;

both ar e place d side by side without any attempt

a t symthesis

or

r e c o n c i l i a t i o n *

Gene rall y speaking, i t i s a

c l e a r

37$



t o

develop having been

a r r e s t eefe

by the

i n f l u e n c e

of environment,

and the tendency t o

d e t e r i o r a t e

having been

checked

by t h e i r

p r a c t i c a l and s o c i o l o g i c a l value. On the other

hand,

some o f

the

l o f t y

elements i n Ancien t Egyptian

R e l i g i o n seems

to have

degenerated i n Yorubaland

i n t o

rank

animism

or

fetichisiru

The general impression i s t h a t the

Yoruba

r e l i g i o n has degenera-

t e d from a

more

l o f t y r e l i g i o n , the

more

p r i m i t i v e

p a r t s

o f i t

showing close a f f i n i t y w i t h the Egyptian monot heisti c b e l i e f

i n one and o n l y god .

The evidence sup pl ie d by

Yoruba

r e l i g i o n confirms Dr.

Menzies' statement t h a t the

debased,

t r i b e s t r i b e s of

A u s t r a l i a

and

West

A f r i c a

show

signs of a. higher


they

have

l o s t ,

but

c o n t r a d i c t s

h i s conclusion

t h a t

the general tendency

o f

t h i n g s

i s upward.

A\

comparison of

Yoruba

r e l i g i o n

w i t h i t s

p r o t o t y p e c o n t r a d i c t s the

e v o l u t i o n a r y

hypothesis supported

by

Dr. Carpenter and

shows

d e f i n i t e l y

t h a t

there has,

been

a

decadence. Any statement c o n t r a d i c t i n g the f a c t of decadence

o f

r e l i g i o n must e i t h e r be due to an examination of data

under

the

i n f l u e n c e

of a.

s u b j e c t i v e

the ory, or to th e attachment of

378



The

decadence

of r e l i g i o n adversely affected the

whole

of

Yoruba culture.

This

f a c t

i s atte sted to by S i r

F l i n d e r s .

P e t r i e

when

he says: The discoveries

made

by Leo

Proebenius

show

that there was. considerable

a r t i s t i c

c i v i l i z a t i o n somewhere between 1000 and

3000

years ago, and

that

the present

West

African

i s , much degraded below hie

former

s t a t u s

1

.

Thi s statement applies with equal force to

Yorubaland and the Yorubas.

There i s a

c l e a r

evidence of the existence of a

monotheistic

b e l i e f

i n

Yorubaland.

Attention

had^een c a l l e d

to t h i s

i n a previous chap ter

2

,

where

i t has;

been

pointed out

that,

the Supreme Being must have been i d e n t i f i e d with

O s i r i s

i n

the course of the h i s t o r y of the r e l i g i o n .

I d e n t i f i c a t i o n

with

O s i r i s resulted

i n the t i t l e of

O s i r i s

as Lord of

Heaven _

being

given to the Yoruba Supreme Deity and i n the transference

of

some

of the l o f t y ideas associated with the Egyptian deity

to

the Yoruba deity. The conception of Olorun,

however,'

did

not thereby

become anthropomorphic

or

a n i m i s t i c .

I t remained



373

Egypt

are:

t h e

Osirian f a i t h ,

the

c u l t

o f

ancestors

o r anthro=

pomorphic gods, and

the

h e l i o l i t h i c

c u l t u r e .

Of

these three

elements,

the

Osirian

f a i t h

occupies: the

most

prominent

p a r t .

The

c u l t o f

ancestors i s wide ly

d i f f u s e d , w h i l s t t h e h e l i o l i -

t h i c

c u l t u r e ,

wide-spread through

i t s r e l i c s

may he,

i s

no

longer as a c t i v e o r i n f l u e n t i a l i n regard t o r e l i g i o u s worship

as t h e two preceding

ones.

I n the case o f Egyptian r e l i g i o n

t h e r e

i s no absolute d i v i s i o n between t he elements: th e

t h r e e

elements eventually became assimilated as f a r as-, possible or

continued t o be placed side by side. Thi s i s als o tru© b£

Yoruba r e l i g i o n , but th e Osirian

f a i t h

occupies? the most* pro-

minent p o s i t i o n .

ATLANTIC CULTURE.

discussion of the theory t h a t Yoruba p r i m i t i v e c u l t u r e

i s

a degenerate form o f the l o f t y c u l t u r e o f Ancient Egypt and

t h a t Yoruba r e l i g i o n bears on i t an unmistakable

stamp

o f

Ancient Egyptian r e l i g i o n cannot be concluded with out some

reference t o what seems t o be a r i v a l

t h e o r y .

This l a t t e r

t h e o r y ,

proposed by Professor Leo Eroebenius th e German

374



the

p i l l a r s

of Hercules or the S t r a i t s of G l l b r a l t a r , and then

along the

West

coast of

A f r i c a

i n a southerly dire ctio n u n t i l

i t reached Yorubaiand,

where

i t has

for

centuries;

defied

attempted o b l i t e r a t i o n by r i v a l

c u l t u r e s .

I n support of

t h i s

theory Prof.

Froebenius

gives sev era l

reasons.

He maintains that, there i s no record of trans-

continental dissemination of culture

from

North A f r i c a i n

a

South-Westerly

d i r e c t i o n *

On the other

hand,

he says that

there i s ample evidence of v i s i t s paid by the f l e e t s of North

African or Mediterranean powers to the West Coast of A f r i c a

as far as the Gulf of Guinea. As a

r e s u l t

of t h i s intercourse

between

the

North

and the

West

of

A f r i c a ,

remmants

of

t h i s

A t l a n t i c culture can be found i n various parts of West A f r i c a .

I n the case of Yorubaiand he gives the following proofs :-

1. Water Storage

Construction. He points out that Yoruba

houses

are constructed

i n . a s t y l e c h a r a c t e r i s t i c

of the

Etruscans, that i s , a s t y l e which provides an

impluvium

i n

the centre whilst apartments having

verandahs

are b u i l t

round

i t i n a rectangular form.

375



6, The existence of the Templum idea i n

Yoruba.

This idea

agp^eaips i n the

b u i l d i n g

of houses round a temple or sacred

e d i f i c e . Whole town may be planned i n t h i s way, houses

being grouped and

b u i l t

around the temples i n the town.

The Templum idea i s found i n North

A f r i c a

and i n

l i e I f e .

The r e l i g i o n at l i e I f e

i a

shown to be

based

upon the

templum idea.

He then says: We c e r t i f y t h a t : F i r s t l y : A l l the

monuments

o f ancient c u l t u r e are concentrated on the coast;

Secondly:

There

i s ,

apparently,

no

o r i g i n a t i n g i nflu enc e by way of the

I n t e r i o r ;

and T h i r d l y : D e f i n i t e and c h a r a c t e r i s t i c signs at

t h e

Northern edge o f A f r i c a , such as the construction for

water storage, the handloora f o r women, and the F r o n t a l bow,

are recurrent i n d i c a t i o n s of the

f a c t t h a t

i d e n t i c a l elements

o f


were

predominant both i n the North and South

a t an extremely remote p e r i o d .

Later i n a tone of assured co nvic tion and

f i n a l i t y

he says

£x

cathedra :-

376



the

home

of

Poseidon*

a- posterity, the

Sea-God

by them

named

Olokun; the land of a people of whom Solon

declared:

They had

even extended t h e i r

lordship over

Egypt and Tyrrhenel

n l

.

There i s no doubt that the works of Prof.

Proebenius

are of i n c a l c u l a b l e value to students of

r e l i g i o n

and arche-

ology. His discovery of valuable

r e l i c s

at l i e

I f e

has won

the admiration of students

of

Yoruba archaelogy. With the

exception of inferences coloured by

negrophobic

prejudice

which prompted him to ascr ib e almost every valuable idea or

a r t i c l e

to

non-negritic

or

11

un-African

o r i g i n

and other

inferences i n s p i r e d by a n t i - i B r i t i s h sentiment which prompted

him to regard

magnanimous

acts of enlightened

c o l o n i a l

adminis-

t r a t i o n as specimens of unwise generosity shown to and

unde-

served by

Negroes , his:

conclusions are generally acceptable.

His theory of the s u r v i v a l of A t l a n t i c culture i n Yorubaland

however, has: not met with any thing

l i k e

acceptance by students

of the subject.

The f i r s t c e r t i f i e d

statement that a l l the

monuments

of

ancient culture are -ojoneentrated on the Coast

must

be accepted

377



Over against t h i s statement

t h e r e

i s

a mass of

weighty

and over-whelming evidence. F i r s t

of

a l l t h e r e

i s the

evidence

o f the

Yorubas

themselves

who say

t h a t their-

a n c e s t r a l home

was

i n the

North,

or North-East. Unless i t

can he

proved t h a t

they came to

Yorubaland^by

.way

of

the sea,

t h e i r c u l t u r e

can

h a r d l y escape being untouched

by

the c u l t u r e

of

the Nor th

or

North-East, e s p e c i a l l y as i t has been proved t h a t they have

very l i t t l e i n common, i n

regard

to the s u r v i v a l of f o r e i g n

c u l t u r e , w i t h

the

t r i b e s of the Sudan. Their m i g r a t i o n to

Yorubaland

by way of

the

Sudan

i s

a f a c t of h i s t o r y , a t t e s t e d

t o by

Sultan

B e l l o of

Sokoto

and^others.

F u r t h e r , t h e r e

i s

ample

evidence

t h a t

the

Ancient

Egyptians.

migrated

southwards

and

penetrated deep

i n t o

the h e a r t

of A f r i c a .

According to T a l b o t , These m i g r a t i o n s may have been set i n

motion

by

events i n Egypt such as the Nubian wars;

of Amenemhat

;

U

who

overthrew

among

others

the

Wawat, and

Matzieu

Negro

t r i b e s

about

1870 B.ci

1

Again the

same

w r i t e r says:

Many

Egyptians migr ate

to

the

south

and

south-west

when t h e i r

country

was a t t a c k e d and

378



respectively penetrated far into

the

Sudan

and

probably

reached

the approaches of the

Gulf

of Guinea*'

I t i s

inconceivable that

Egyptians, who imigrated i n

large numbers

to the

South West

and

carried

on commercial i n t e r -

course with the remotest regions of the Sudan did not exert;

any cu lt ur al influence

on the people among whom some of them

must hatfe s e t t l e d .

Dealing

with

the spread of the cu lt ur al influence of

Egypt

Sirj, Harry

Johnston

st at es that there

are

traces

of

Egyptian influence reaching

down to the

Gold Coast

and the

Gulf

of Guinea.

Intercourse

between

Egypt

and

West Africa during

the

close of the l a s t era and the beginning of the present one.

i s a

fact

of

history ? Influence

cannot be

separated

from

intercourse^

the

fact

of

influence originating

from

Egypt i s ,

therefore,undeniable.

The greatest argument against

the second c e r t i f i e d

statement l i e s i n the fact that

the Yoruba

r e l i g i o n ,

language,

customs

and other

cultural

elements c l e a r l y

indicate influence

379



The existence o f these Etruscan

elements?

must be admitted*

Yoruba

I n a d d i t i o n i t

should be observed

t h a t ^

f u n e r a r y

customs' resem-

b l e d

those

of the

Etruscans ,

The

question,

however,

i s

- By

what way do these elements t r a v e l t o Yorubaland ? I t w i l l be

h e l p f u l

i n

t r y i n g

t o answer

t h i s ,

question t o note

t h a t

th e

Etruscan elements form only a small

p a r t

of the c u l t u r a l

elements which

have been

impressed

upon

Yoruba

c u l t u r e .

I f

the

Etruscan elements come by way o f th e sea, i t w i l l be

neces-

sary t o e x p l a i n t h e presence o f

such

a l a r g e volume o f Egyptian

elements,

a

f a c t

which

t he

theory

o f

Proebenius does

not e x p l a i n .

On th e

other

hand,

i f

t h e

theory

o f

p e r c o l a t i o n

o f

Egyptian

i n f l u e n c e

i n t o

West

A f r i c a

by way o f th e Sudan i s accepted,

the presence

o f

Etruscan elements f i n d s

1

a

ready expl ana tio n

i n

the

theory,

Etruscan

c i v i l i z a t i o n f l o u r i s h e d

i n Crete,

Between

Egypt

and Crete there

was

close i n t e r c o u r s e f o r several

c e n t u r i e s .

I n Cambridge

Ancient H i s t o r y i t i s

s t a t e d , t h a t There

a re c l e a r

connections between t h e

Egypt

o f

Rameses

and the Minoan w o r l d

1

380



An important point worth noting i s that the Etruscan

implurium s t y l e of buildi ng had been introduced into Egypt,

that the

women's hand-loom

existed i n Ancient

Egypt

1

and that

the

H

templum

H

town

planning existed at Heliopolis i n Ancient

Egypt, a

town

which appears i n many respe cts as the prototype

2

of l i e I f e * I n addition there: i s the f a c t that Etrus can

communities, known

as Turs or Tursh or Turishas existed i n

Ancient

.Egypt

3

,

These facts-

make

i t

reasonable

to

suppose that

the Etruscan elements t r a v e l l e d along with Ancient Egyptian and

other c u l t u r a l elements to

Yorubaland

by way of the I n t e r i o r ,

that i s , through the Sudan,

The absence of

s i m i l a r

elements; may be explained by the

supposition that immigrants

from

Egypt

would f i n d

i t hard to

s e t t l e i n the a r i d desert of a sub-tropical

climate*

Their

influence

could only be

permanently

f e l t

i n Yorubaland and other

parts of West

A f r i c a

where geographical conditions

favoured,

a

prolonged

v i s i t

or a temporary

settlement*

The


of

Olokun

with Poseidon i s supported

381



i s

the s u r v i v a l of the Ancient Egyptian d e i t y known as Adimu

or Adurau Lord of the

p r i m o d i a l

abyss . This i d e n t i t y

places

him i n the

n a t u r a l

r e l a t i o n

w i t h

other

Yoruba d e i t i e s

who are

s u r v i v a l s of Egyptian

d e i t i e s .

Prof.

Proebenius r e f e r s t o the

s i m i l a r i t y

between the Yo-

ruba I f a c u l t and a system of d i v i n a t i o n i n

A l g e r i a

and other

p a r t s

of

Nopth A f r i c a .

The North A f r i c a n o r i g i n of I f a

c u l t

i s not dispute d. I t has been shown above, however,

t h a t

the

c u l t i s Egypti an i n form and i n

name.

The c u l t o f the

ram-headed

god, to o, could

have

dome by

way of Egypt. Ram-headed d e i t i e s

were

worshipped i n Ancient

Egypt

8

.

I t should be noted

a l s o ,

t h a t

Daddu

or Diddu

3

l a t e r

known

as B u s i r i s

4

, was; described i n the

s e a l - c y l i n d e r

belong-

i n g to the old est pe ri od of Egyptian h i s t o r y as; the c i t y of

the ram .

A f t e r

examining Prof. Proebenius theory of A t l a n t i c

c u l t u r e

i n Yoruba

lan d, P.

Amaury

Talbot

f e e l s

t h a t

i t

i s

more

probable

t h a t ,

i n the same way as Minoan and Mycenean ideas had penetrated

382



To sum up: Yoruba primit ive culture

does

not

appear

to be

a s u r v i v a l of an A t l a n t i c culture e x c l u s i v e l y , a culture

which

i s supposed to

have

t r a v e l l e d down the West Coast of

A f r i c a , from North A f r i c a . The weight of evidence i s i n -favour

of the theory that

Yoruba

primitive culture i s

a

s u r v i v a l

of

Ancient Egyptian cu lture containing, among others, elements

of the culture which prevailed in North A f r i c a many centuries

ago.

Evidence i s also

a v a i l a b l e

that the transmission of the

Ancient Egyptian cul tu re followed a trans-continental route

from

Egypt to the

Western

shores of

A f r i c a .

The theory of a clo se connection

between

the Egyptians

and the Yorubas, proposed,

proved,

and

i l l u s t r a t e d

in the

preceding chapters,throws l i g h t on some questions

which

w i l l

be discussed here.

ORIGIN

OF THE YORUBAS.

The

question of

the o r i g i n of the

Yorubas

has

been

discussed i n an

e a r l i e r

chapter. The view of Sultan

Bello

of

Sokoto has been examined. The view of an Egyptian o r i g i n or

383



a

feu dal prince i n Egypt,_ I t covers

the

period

of

the

Old

Kingdom, The

Middle

Kingdom,

the

New Kingdom, the Greek

Peri od

and the Roman p e r i o d . The worship c h a r a c t e r i s t i c of the

d i f f e r e n t periods as w e l l as other d i s t i n g u i s h i n g elements

s u r v i v e

i n Yorubaland, producing

a medley of

b e l i e f s

r e p r e s e n t i n g

va ry in g stages

of developnent,

a l l

of

which

were

to be seen among peoples which successiv ely i n h a b i t e d the

Mediterranean area from p a l a e o l i t h i c to c h a l c h o l i t h i c times

and, on th e whole, resembling

t h a t

of the Ancient Egyptians,

who combined a b e l i e f

i n the existence

of an

omnipotent

and

omniscient supreme God c a l l e d Neter, w i t h th a t i n mult itude s

of

subordinate

d e i t i e s ,

mostly

p e r s o n i f i c a t i o n s

of

n a t u r a l

phenomena .

1

Mere

intercourse

between

the

Yorubas and

immigrants from

Egypt cannot produce such a deep impress on Yoruba c u l t u r e ,

e s p e c i a l l y

as

there i s

no

evidence

of

c o l o n i z a t i o n

by

such

immigrants.

I t would appear

t h a t the Yoruba

migrated gra dua lly

from Northern

Egypt to

Southern Egypt,

and

then

to

the

Sudan

u n t i l they reached t h e i r present

home,

384

may u l t i m a t e l y s e t t l e the question as to whether the Ancient



Egyptians were Caucasians,

Semites

or Negroes . I n the

meantime i t i s s u f f i c i e n t to agree

w i t h

some of the l ead ing

E g y p t o l o g i s t s

1

t h a t

they were not

Caucasians,

hut

t h a t t h e i r

c h a r a c t e r i s t i c features

show

them to

be

more n e g r i t i c than

S e m i t i c . U n t i l the guestion i s f i n a l l y s et t l ed i t w i l l not

be

easy

to say whether

the Yorubas belong

to

the older race

found by successive waves of immigrants to

Egypt

and gradu ally

pushed

southwards, or to any of th e immigrant nations afterwards

known

c o l l e c t i v e l y a& Ancient Egyptians.

S u f f i c e

i t t o say

t h a t from the p o i n t of view of language,

r e l i g i o n ,

magic and

other c u l t u r a l elements as w e l l as from the p o i n t of view of

physiognomy,

Yoruba

c u l t u r e

and the

t y p i c a l

Yoruba

bears

a

close resemblance to the c u l t u r e and the

physiognomy

of the

1

Ancient Egyptians

r e s p e c t i v e l y;

thereby supporting the theory

t h a t the home of the Yorubas f or several cent urie s

must

be

t r a c e d to Ancient Egypt.

There

are f a i n t traces and records suggesting

Asia

as the

o r i g i n a l home of

the Yorubas,

but the

evidence

as

a whole

i s

385

i f f



Words;

i f f

these languages, which are de ri ved from the Ancient

Egyptian language, are of the

same

type as those which, surv ive

i n Yoruba. Sometimes the words; derived from Ancient Egyptian

language

are found

w i t h e x a c t l y

the same

meaning

i n two or

more

languages. For example, the word ku t o d i e i n Yoruba i s

d e r i v e d from the Ancient Egyptian

word

Khu, a luminous s p i r i t ,

death being regarded as a process of

becoming

a disembodied

1

luminous s p i r i t .

I n

the Tchi language, spoken on the

Gold

©oast, the verb t o die i s ku,

e x a c t l y

as i n

Yoruba . i n

the

Ibo language

kh

i s modi fied t o w and the

word

becomes wu

t o d i e .

I n the Ewe language spoken on the

Gold Coast,

the

verb to die i s

ku.

I n

Egun

Alada

Bpoken i n Dahomey the same

word

Tm i s used f o r the verb to di e . Again,the

word

a-mon

i n

Ancient Egyptian

language

means hidden . I n

Yoruba

i t

s u r v i v e s as

o-mp

seed, c h i l d , l i t e r a l l y t h a t which i s hidden

i n

the

s h e l l

or i n utero . I n Ga, i t surv ives as p a r t of the

name of the Supreme Deity, namely Nyon-mon The l i v i n g Amon .

I n

Ibo, i t survives as

umu(n)

or o-mu(n),

c h i l d .

I n

Igabo

386

1

d e r i v e d from Fanti or F e n t i , an Egyptian God-.



The names of most of the

Yoruba

d e i t i e s

are s u r v i v a l s - of th e

names of Egyptian d e i t i e s . This i s the case a l s o with West

A f r i c a n

t r i b e s .

2

A> close study of Beveral

West

African languages,

shows t h a t

the words common t o

them

are a l l of Ancient Egyptian o r i g i n .

Several other point s of i d e n t i t y or s i m i l a r i t y of

f e a t u r e s

i n

the

c u l t u r e

of

some

West

African

t r i b e s

i n c l u d i n g

the

Yorubas

may be given. Those already given lead only t o one conclusion, '

namely,

t h a t the other t r i b e s are c lo se ly associated w i th the

Yorubas,

and i f

i t is

agreed t h a t the

Yorubas-

must

have

migrated

from

Egypt,

t h e i r

mig rat ion from

Egypt

may be accepted as a

reasonable theory.

The

names o f

the

Supreme

d e i t i e s of these t r i b e s

seem

to

suggest

the respective l o c a l i t i e s where they had s e t t l e d i n

Ancient

Egypt.

For

example,

Chi-neke(n)

the soul of

Nekhen

i s the name of the Supreme De it y of the I b o s . This suggests

Nekhen as; the settlement o f the Ibos i n

Egypt.

Again, N.yi-sua

the l i v i n g (so ul) of Sua-nit ,the name of the Supreme Dei ty



388

o f a t r i b e

i s not peculiar to the I b o s

1

.

Among

the

Yorubas



t h e r e i s

a t r i b e

having

a

s i m i l a r name.

That t r i b e

i s the

ijpigba people

of

the

ba or

ancestral

soul, or

s p i r i t .

Near

the

Yorubas

there are the Ba-riba

1

s the

people

belonging to the a n c e s t r a l soul of rba, an Ancient E&yptian feu-

dal

d e i t y •

The

word

ibo is

used

by the Yorubas i n

connection

w i t h

the practice

of l o t t e r y ,

with

a view

to detecting

a

malefactor

or

selecting

an

o f f i c i a l .

The

idomatic term i s

dibo

or

d i ibo. t h a t

i s ,

to compel the ancestral s p i r i t s

or

occult

powers to s e t t l e the matter.

I t may be

added t h a t there are several other Ibo

words,

^.identical i n

s p e l l i n g

or

meaning

or

i n both with

Yoruba

words

which have survived from the Ancient Egyptian language. A*

select

l i s t of such words, i s given i n Appendix 1. G. The l i s t

includes a member of

words

the o r i g i n of which has

b a f f l e d

several

writers*

Another

example

of the r e s u l t s which would accrue from the

application : of the same theory w i l l now be given from a Gold

Coast

language.

Several w r i t e r s have

expressed t h e i r

i n a b i l i t y

389



l e t t e r g being added because the

a s p i r a t e

i s pronounced i n a

peculiar way corresponding to the

o r i g i n a l

Ancient Egyptian

l e t t e r h (h w i t h a do t).

The

word

bohnsum or bonsum or

bosum i s

also derived from

Ancient Egyptian language.

I t

may be divided i n t o two parts

bo-

sum: bo i s derived from the Ancient Egyptian word ba or bo

s o u l or

s p i r i t

and su-m from su-t, the name' of an

Ancient

Egyptian d e i t y ;

bo-sum

or boh-nsum or

bo-sum,

t h e r e f o r e means,

the soul of But,

a

phrase which points to the widespread

worship of S l i t i n Ancient Egypt and of his s u r v i v a l

;

i n

d i f f e r e n t p a r t s of West A f r i c a . The word bo-sum or bohnsum

i s applied generally t o i d o l s or objects of worship*

Other s u r v i v a l s of Ancient Egyptian language i n Tchi w i l l ,

be found i n

.the

select l i s t given i n Appendix l.G.

The

w r i t e r

has studied at

l e a s t

a dozen West A f r i c a n

languages i n c l u d i n g Edo, J e k r i , I3aw, Ibo,

Igabo

Isoko, Egun,

Ga, Tchi, Adangbe, Genyin, Ewe, Grebo and others. He

has<

also

examined a number of others i n c l u d i n g I b i b i o , E f i k , Limba,

390



Dr. H.J. Melzian and others. Some of the


which

confronted them

w i l l vanish when

approached i n the

l i g h t

of

the

theory

proposed i n t h i s work. There

i s .

no doubt t h a t the

a p p l i c a t i o n of the

theory

would l e a d to a r e v i s i o n of the clas-

s i f i c a t i o n s and

conclusions

set f o r t h i n t h e i r respective works.

. I n view of the

close

resemblance of the r e l i g i o n and

language of the Yorubas. to

those

of some of the other West

A f r ic a n t r i b e s , p a r t i c u l a r l y the

Tchi-speaking peoples,

the Gas,

the Ewes, the Eguns and the

Ibos, one

can s a f el y i n f e r t h a t the

t r i b e s are c u l t u r a l l y r e la t ed to the Yorubas and t h a t they must

have migrated,

from

d i f f e r e n t

p a r t s

of Egypt j u s t l i k e the Yorubas.

IMPRESS

OP

OTHER ANCIENT

CULTURES.

The impress of Egypt on Yoruba c u l t u r e

has

been

delineated

above.

Yoruba

c u l t u r e however,

shows

the impress; of other

cultures.

Reference has been made above to the s u r v i v a l of Etruscan

elements, which must have; come by way of Egypt. Instances of

s u r v i v a l of Greek or Roman terms have also been

given.

The sur-



398

The moral system of

Yoruba

heathenism teaches reverence to

the



gods which i s to show

i t s e l f

i n , amongst other t h i n g s , a

daily-

e a r l y morning worship to

them

before t h e i r

images

before any

business i s

done,

the exercise of

f a i t h

i n

them

and t h e i r

guidance,

and

other assistances

by

c o n s u l t i n g

them

on

a l l

important matters; respect and reverence for age and for a l l

a u t h o r i t y ;

f i l i a l regard and reverence for age and obedience

to parents on the part of c h i l d r e n always, and care and concern

for

them

under the i n f i r m i t i e s of

sickness,

and old age, and

i n times of necessity produced by other circumstances; a great

regard f o r marriage

and

the

p e r p e t u i t y

of

the

bond,

submission

to t h e i r husbands on the p a r t of wives, and care and p r o t e c t i o n

on -the p a r t of the

husbands;

the exercise of the d u t i e s of

h o s p i t a l i t y

to a l l , e s p e c i a l l y to strangers;

f i d e l i t y

to

f r i e n d s h i p under a l l circumstances;* cha stit y, truthfulness; i n

speech, honesty, kindness, and among some t r i b e s courage also;

w h i l s t

under

i t s

influence,

murder

and

t h e f t ,

and

sometimes

the

p r a c t i c e

of w i t c h c r a f t ,

are punished w i t h

death; adultery

and

f o r n i c a t i o n

w i t h a. severe

s o c i a l

disgrace

and f i n e s and

s e l l i n g i n t o

slavery,

and where

the

honour o f a k i n g

1

s

wife

i s

concerned, w i t h death

sometimes;

suicide, with

a

dishonoured

b u r i a l ; and

neglect

and i n d i f f e r e n c e to pay a

debt,

and

insolvency,

w i t h

much

s o c i a l

dishonour;

and

i t

discountenances,

among

other t h i n g s , p r i d e

and

v a n i t y

and extravagance*

393

for the l i f e

of

polygamy which have r u l e d the country

for



c e n t u r i e s and for the very long incessant i n t e r - t r i b a l

warfares which

have

ruined i t .

The motives for v i r t u e are

a

b e l i e f i n

a

r e t r i b u t i v e

providence, e i t h e r for good

or

for-evil;, the fear

of

socia l

disgrace and of punishment also, which would

f a l l

not only

upon

an i n d i v i d u a l wrong and e v i l doer, but

upon

his relatives-,

and other connections also; the prospect

of

a long l i f e

on

earth,

desire for

prosperity

and dread of the anger of the

gods and of punishment from them

1

.

This

system

i s enforced by means of

Tabus

and by means of

;}U.1UB which are regarded as supernatural

powers

acquired from

the gods

or

ancestral s p i r i t s .

Dr. Parrow,

a f t e r

enlarging upon Bishop Johnson's

d e s c r i p t i o n , points out the f o l l o w i n g defects i n the r e l i g i o u s

system of the

Yorubas

:- .

I t

does not,

and

cannot

b r i n g man into

close

touch

and

communion w i t h

a God of

love

and

goodness.

I t teaches m o r a l i t y of

l i f e ;

but cannot give the

power to p r a c t i s e

t h i s .

I t has

n©<

conception of

d i v i n e

grace

working e f f e c t u a l l y i n them

that

394

I n

the same s t r a i n he might as w e l l blame C h r i s t i a n i t y f o r a l l x



the horrors of the I n q u i s i t i o n .

I t must he admitted

that the

Yorubas

o f t e n f a l l

f a r below

the

standard

i n d i c a t e d

by

the

above

system,

.

Gruesome

pract ices

and immoral acts may be witnessed among some of the t r i b e s ,

and

t h i s

f a c t has

prevented

some observers

from seeing

very

l i t t l e beyond

the gruesome

p r a c t i c e s of

the

heathen

world

enumerated

by

St. Paul i n t h e

f i r s t

chapter

o f h i s e p i s t l e

t o the Romans. A dispassionate survey of t h e f a c t s cannot but

produce

testimony

to

the

existence of

the

moral system

sketched

above. The

d i f f e r e n c e

between

Biafcop

Johnson's

d e s c r i p t i o n

and

the

dark

p i c t u r e

drawn

by

others

l i e s

c h i e f l y i n t he d i f f e r e n c e

between t he

accepted

i d e a l of the t r i b e or n a t i o n and a c t u a l i t y

as

i l l u s t r a t e d by

actions

of i n d i v i d u a l persons or tribes:,

f a l l i n g below the

i d e a l .

Such a

d i f f e r e n c e i s

discernible

even

i n h i g h l y

c i v i l i z e d

communities

outside A f ri ca , irrespec-

t i v e

of the centur ies of C h r i s t i a n c i v i l i z a t i o n forming the

background of t h e i r

c i v i l i z a t i o n .

395

that

and t o the f a c t / t h e . i n d i v i d u a l i s regarded

only as a

l i n k



1

i n a chain

of

l i f e which

binds

together

the generations .

This

sense of

s o l i d a r i t y

i s

strengthened

by

b e l i e f

i n the

same

d e i t i e s and

by

the

b e l i e f

that the bond of union between

a n c e s t r a l and departed s p i r i t s

on

the one hand,, and l i v i n g

or

the

other

members

of the

t r i b e

or

n a t i o n a l s

i n d i s s o l u b l e

by death or

distance. Such a b e l i e f

imposes; r e l i g i o u s and

social

o b l i g a t i o n s on

every i n d i v i d u a l wherever

he may be.

CONCLUDING REMARKS.

Students

:

of Anthropology i n A f r i c a have

r a i s e d

the question

as to what

w i l l ,

happen to the

peoples

of

Africa,

under the

i n f l u e n c e

of Western

C i v i l i z a t i o n .

This question has been

described by General Smuts

as one

of the most i n t e r e s t i n g and

e n t h r a l l i n g problems of the

t w e n t i e t h century . What

w i l l

happen t o the

r e l i g i o n s

o f

A f r i c a n

peoples

i s

one

of the

impor-

tant factors

which w i l l , determine

what w i l l happen to them

on the whole. I n the case of Yoruba

r e l i g i o n ,

the foun dation

and the

superstructure

have been adversely a f f e c t e d .

The

ol d

396

the Missionaries.

The

f i r s t

two

of these c i v i l i z i n g

agencies'



introduce much t h a t i s

m a t e r i a l ;

they destroy without

adequate

p r o v i s i o n

for substitutes

or

for the r e - b u i l d i n g

of

what

i s

destroyed.

That

task i s l e f t c h i e f l y t o the Missionaries.

They have

to see

t h a t

a new

system

of morality i s

b u i l t ' u p ,

and t h a t adjustment from the old to the new i s done without

detriment.

I n

handling

t h i s

d e l i c a t e

s i t u a t i o n

a dispassionate

study of the r e l i g i o n of the Yorubas sketched above w i l l be

found u s e f u l . A wholesale condemnation of the r e l i g i o n w i l l

meet with b i t t e r resentment

and

f a i l u r e . I t s

good elements

should be retained, and

i f

necessary, r e f i n e d .

The bad

elements should be discarded.

Christianitytfeas boat

introduced

i n t o

Yorubaland

about

a

century ago. I t has

made much

progress and has spread to

d i f f e r e n t parts of the country. I t i s supplying a

r e a l

want

-

the best s u b s t i t u t e for what the Yorubas have l o s t r e l i g i o u s l y

and morally. I t i s supplying valuable s p i r i t u a l help such

as

the

people

have

never had

before. I t i s

l i a b l e , however, to

397

i t s adaptation to l o c a l conditions and

circumstances

as to



make i t a poor and

degenerate

form of what i t

r e a l l y

i s .

T h i s , as i t has pointe d out above, i s what has happened t o the

l o f t y

r e l i g i o n of

Ancient

Egypt. Mohammedanism

i n

Yorubaland

i s sharing the

same

f a t e .

Forces

are already at

work

t o

make

C h r i s t i a n i t y share

the

same

f a t e .

Unless; these

forces

are

e f f e c t i v e l y checked Yoruba

C h r i s t i a n i t y may become a degenerate

form

of

the

o r i g i n a l C h r i s t i a n i t y

introduced i n t o the country.

The t w e n t i e t h century i s A f r i c a ' s ,

says

Professor

Aggrey. There

i s no

doubt

t h a t A f r i c a i s d e s ti n e d t o p l a y an

important pa rt i n world a f f a i r s during t h i s century. Whether

i t w i l l

play that p a r t e f f i c i e n t l y and successfully depends

upon the f orce s at work and the e f f o r t s made by the Afri cans

themselves. The A f r i c a n i s a grand m a t e r i a l , i f we g i v e him

our best

says

a former Secretary of the I n t e r n a t i o n a l

Missionary Council.. T h i s i s

t r u e ,

but the Af ri ca n must help

himself*

The Yoruba. n a t i v e has

shown

capacity f o r progress. He



APPENDIX

1. EGYPTIAN SURVIVALS,

- 398

-

A P P E N D I X I



E G Y P T I A N S U R V I V A L S .

A.

A SELECTION OP YORUBA

DEITIES

i n whose forms Ancient Egyptian d e i t i e s survive i n Yorubaland

or whose names are derived from Ancient Egyptian

words.

1. O-RA(N) -YA(N), the L i v i n g Ra. (Chs. I & IX ).

2. ORISA -

BEKU,

derived from Horus-Bakhu (Chs.

I &

IX)

3. AJE SALUGA,

derived from

Salug, an i s l e t

i n

Ancient Egypt

(Chs.I & IX).

4. OLORUN

Oni-Orun,

Owner of

Heaven. Oru(n) is derived from

Horu.' Lord of the sky = t i t l e of O s i r i s (Ch.Il).

5.

O-SU(N)

OSI =

Ososi, derived from Shu and O s i ( r i ) .

( C h s . I I , I I I , V &

IX).

6. O-SU The moonrgod, derived from

K3b»»onsu,

the moon-god

i n

Ancient Egypt.

7. OLODUMARE = Almighty. (Chi I I ) . Du = Mountain, hence

an exalted

personage.

8.

ESU

derived from Shu, Sut or Set ( C h . I I I ) .

9. OBA-'UPON oba i s derived from ha, a s o u l ; *ufon or l u f o n ,

or ' from Typhon (Greek,t-u-ph-o-n)

( C h . f l l ) .

OBA-LUFON

399 -

15. SUGUDU de ri ve d from Shu, Khu,and.Du(Chs.III &

IX)



16. IPA derived from nef er; compare ope-nifa

(Ch.IV).

17.

ORU(N)GA(N)

Oru(n) i s derive d from Horu. Ga(n), from ga,

t o he high . (Ch.IV).

18. ORU(N)-MI-LA derived from Horu-m-la (Ch.IV).

19 ODI derived from

ot

(Ch.IV).

SO. OBATALA a s u r v i v a l

of

Khnum (Ch. V)

21. ODUDUA deri ved from Du

and

dua-t. A s u r v i v a l

of

Mut.^Ch.V

22. YEMOJA traceable

to one

of

N i l e goddesses (Ch.V).

23.

OLOKDN Oku(n)

i s derived from

Khu (Ch.V).

also Chs.IX,XV &

24. OLOSA deri ved from sa, a

pond.

(Ch.V)j, al so

Ch.IX.

25. DADA derive d from

Da.

(Chs. V & I X ) .

26.

OGU(N)

deri ved from

Khu

(Ghs. V & V I ) .

27.

OSU(N)

der ive d from SHU (Ch.V).

28. SOPONO deri ved from Shu or Sut, and Pua-nit or Punt.

(Ch.VI).

29.

JA-KU-TA

der ive d from

Khu and

Ptah (Ch.VI).

30. OSU-MARE (Chs.VI

&

I X ) .

31. ORISA 0K0

a

s u r v i v a l of O s i r i s and

Min

(Ch.VI).

-

4 66

-

B



A SELECTION OP EGYPTIAN DEITIES

which

have

Burvived i n Yorubaland.

1.

Amon

( I

&

V I I I ) .

20.

N i n - i p

(VI )

2.

Bast ( I

&

I I )

21.

Nu (VII)

3.

Geb ( I I & V I I I )

22.

Pash-t ( I )

4.

Hathor

( I I & V)

23.

Pt ah (VI)

5.

Horn

-m

- l a

(V)

24.

Ra

(I?

I I

&

I I I ) .

6.

Horus-Bakhu

( I I & V)

25. Rpa ( I )

7.

Horus ( I I I )

26.

Set (V)

8.

Hapi

M i r i t

(V)

27.

Shu I I I ,

V & IX)

9.

Hapi Quaimit

(V)

28.

S i t u

(V)

10.

Khepera ( I I & I I I ) 29.

Sokaris (see

below)

11.

Khonsu (IX )

30.

Sut

( I I I )

12.

Khnum (X)

31.

Sahu (IX)

15.

Khopri

i l l

& V )

32. Sekri

( I I )

14.

K h e r t i

( I I )

33.

Turn (see below)

15.

I s i s

(XI)

34.

The L i v i n g One of Salug

( I & IX)

:uoi

-

NOTES.



1. PTAH also survives i n such words as :-

Ye-gba-ta, (the

l i v i n g

soul

o f

Pta h), the

name of one

o f

the chiefs i n

Ode Ondo;

O-ta,

a

cannon-ball.

2. MNEVIS survives i n Yorubaland as EWI, i n I b ol a n d as

NNEWI.

EWI

=

Mnevis.

ADO =

settlement.

EKITI

=

K h u t i ,

the two

horizons (a well-known term i n Ancient Egypt ).

EWI ADO

EKITI

= Mnevis of the settlem ent of the two horizons.

Khuti (Yoruba,

K u t i )

survives i n the

name of

important

f a m i l i e s

i n

Abeokuta

(Y

0

rubaland)•

3. TUM survives i n such words as : tun (again) t i t u n (new),

o-tun

( r i g h t

hand).

The

survivals suggest t h a t

the

worship

of

Turn

was

introduced late into t h a t p a r t

of

Ancient

Egypt

where the

Yorubas

s e t t l e d .

lu

The

s u r v i v a l

o f

BARA

as

p a r t

of

the

name of

Elegbara

has

been

noted above.

The word Bara

is also

used

t o

denote a

mausoleum.

5.

SO-KA-RIS.

So,

the

ka of O s i r i s . The word So

(o r

So)

U 2

C.



A SELECTION OF DEITIES

i n

other p a r t s of

West

A f r i c a

which

are

s u r v i v a l s of Ancient Egyptian

D e i t i e s

of

whose

names are

d e r i v e d

from Ancient Egyptian words.

ABASI

Supreme D e i t y of the

E f i k people i n Calabar,

Southern

N i g e r i a .

A

s u r v i v a l

of Bas-t.

AYI-BA

Supreme D

e

i t y of the

I;Jaw people i n Southern

N i g e r i a .

Ba =

s o u l .

CHI-NEKE "The

s o u l

o f

Nekhen", the Supreme D e i t y

o f the

Ibo

people

of

Southern

N i g e r i a . See

Chapter

I I

above, and

Budge, Book

of

th e Dead,

pp.338 3^-0.

MAU

or

Supreme D e i t y

of

the

Ewe people of Dahomey and

MAWU

Gold Coast. A

s u r v i v a l

of

Mau-t.

NYI-SUA The l i v i n g

s o u l

o f Sua-nit",

the Supreme D e i t y

o f

t h e Grebo

people i n

L i b e r i a .

NYON-MON

The l i v i n g

AMON , Supreme D e i t y

of

the

Ga people

-v UQ 3:~

D.

A SELECTION OP EGYPTIAN DEITIES



which have survived i n other par ts

o f West A f r i c a .

1. Amon

2. Bast or

Pasht

3• Horus

k Horus-Set

5.

Mau-t

6. Amsu

7. Mnevis

8. Sob-ku

9. Tanen

10.

The

l i v i n g

Soul of

Nekhen

11. The l i v i n g Soul of

Punt

12. The

l i v i n g

Soul of Sua-nit

E.

A SELECTION

OP WEST

AFRICAN TRIBES

whose

names

are derived from those

o f

Egyptian

d e i t i e s or from Egyptian words.

I .

N i g e r i a .

Name of Tri be.

1.

YO-RUBA

Yo

(from the r o o t

word

ye)

=

l i v i n g

r p a , an Egyptian god. See Chapter I I .

2.

I - B l ( N ) N I

ben-nu, an Egyptian b i r d , rep resentative

o f O s i r i s .

Name o f

T r i b e ,

kOk-

D e r i v a t i o n ,



5 .

BA-RIBA

6. I-GA-RA

7. E-G-BA

8.

A-WORI

9 .

I-JE-BU

10.

I-JE-SA

11..

E-KI-TI

12.

YA-G-BA

13.

15.

16.

I-GBO-MINA

E-GUN

I-BO

ON-DO

ba =

s o u l ,

r p a ,

see No.

1 above.

Ga, a m o d i f i c a t i o n o f lea; Ra, the sun-god.

ba = s o u l .

H a - o i r i - t

Je (from the r o o t ye) = being, person,

and bu = place.

Je, same as 9 above;

and

sa ( s h a ) ,

th e

typhonian

animal r e p r e s e n t a t i v e o f Set .

See Chapter I I I .

K h u t i , the

tv/o ho ri zo ns , See Note 2 under

B above.

Ya

( f r o m

the

r o o t

ye) =

l i v i n g ^ ,

gba

= ba =

s o u l .

Gbo =• bau = s o u l s .

Mina

= Min.

Gu(n)

= Khu,


Bo

=

bau

= s o u l s .

On=un

= being or beings; do = s e t t l e m e n t .

-

1+05 -

A SELECTION OF YORUBA WORDS

w i t h t h e i r

der iva tion s from

the



1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

Ancient Egyptian Language,

Yoruba

ade

(crown)

ako

(male)

abo

(female)

a l a

(boundary,

white)

1 . General,

Ancient

Egyptian

ade-f

or ate-f •

ak

ab

a l a or

I-arau

a l a I - a l a u

( p a r t of the

I - a r o

name of a d e i t y )

/Amu Amu

( a

native of

Amu)

Anion

amon

= crown, plumes,

d i x .

= male

=

female

see chapter V above.

The word i s found only i n

combination with other

words e.g. Apa

amu

sua

see chapter 1 p, 32 above.

Also, da

n i

amu = confuse,

t r o u b l e .

hidden.

The word

i s found

c h i e f l y

i n combination

w i t h

other

v/ords

e.g.

- 1+06

Ancient

Egyptian.

Yoruba



Ha

Ra

Re or Ra

10. a-ra

(thunder)

11.

a-ra

(wonderful

performance)

12.

a-re

(a wretched

or m i s e r l y

person)

13.

a-ro I - a r o or

( r i v e r , I - a l o

name of a town

near a r i v e r )

11+. a-sa sa

( s h i e l d )

15.

a-se se-b

(door,gate)

16.

a-ke

qe-h

(axe)

17. a-dua dua or

( p r a y e r ) tua

18.

a-ga qa

Thunder

was regarded as

the voice

o f Ra, the sun-god, who was also

"The Lord

o f

the sky".

Superior

s k i l l

i s

regarded

as a

g i f t of

the

god Ra.

Wretched persons or beggars are

regarded i a Egypt as

i n c a r n a t i o n s

of

d e i t i e s .

See Lane,Modern

Egyptians.

see

No. k and 5

above

and

Chapter

V. pp

=s

a

d i v i n e

f l u i d regarded as being

capable of p r o t e c t i n g

gods

and men

from

e v i l .

= door, gate. See Budge, Ancient

Egyptian Language

p.

77 Nos

.1+3

1+1+;

See a l s o Yoruba

B i b l e ,

Isa:ch:LX

verse

11.

= axe. Budge

Op.Cit.P

.8 5 Nos.

7

8 q

=

k

i n Yoruba..

=

to

pray,

prayer. Budge,

o p . c i t .

P.1+3

Nos.

5 6.

=

to be h i g h , t h a t

which i s

h i g h .

- 1+07 -

Ancient

Egyptian.

Yoruba.



28.

ba

29. ba-ra

(beg)

ru-ha ,

ba

23. a-ru-gbo

(an o l d man)

21j.. a-wu-re

2 5 . A-gu-ra

26.

A-ka-ri-ghp Kharib

or Kherib

2 7 . ade-nibi

evening)

a-ru-gbo

s o u l ;

the evening

o f

th e ba i. e.

the

l a t e r

stage

of

l i f e .

Khu & Re Awure = the soul o f Re. I t i s an

amulet o f j u j u f o r good l u c k

.See Ch.XV.

Khu & Ra

Agura =

t h e soul o f

Ra;

th e

name

o f

a d i s t r i c t i n Abeokuta.

= high p r i e s t i n anc ient Egypt.

Akarigbo i s t h e t i t l e of the paramount

c h i e f o f I j e b u Remo. See

Chapter

X

a t e f & Ade-nibi

=

a t e f n i b i - t = the crown

n i b i - t of the mistress. A Yoruba name

given t o a

g i r l

whose

b i r t h

i s a

source o f

p r i d e

t o h e r mother.

(The mistress o f the house.)

ba ba i s used as a form o f curse o r

H & a l e d i c t i o n e.g. Y i o ba o e v i l w i l l

meet you", l i t . you w i l l , become a

"ba", as

opposed

t o 0 ku, y ou

w i l l

become

a"Khu,

luminous s p i r i t *

ba

& Ra = t h e

soul

o f Ra. See

No.12

above.

ba-ra =•• t o ask f o r alms; beggars

being regarded i n Ancient Egypt as

i n c a r n a t i o n s

o f d e i t i e s . See

Lane's

Modern

Egyptians.

1

-

2+08 -

Yoruba.

Ancient

Egyptian.



k

didu

or

dudu

( b l a c k )

d i d u or

dudu

( t a t )

35. enia or un

eni-yan

or

uni-yan

(human being,

mankind)

36. e-re Re

(play,games)

37.

e-re

qere-s

( i m a g e , i d o l )

38. e-re ere or ara

(species

of

serpen^

python)

39

•

e-gu(n)-gu(n) Khu

or e-gu(n)

(masquerade)

1+0.

e-bo

e-00

( sacri fice)

u-eb

1+1• e-ku(n) Khu

( d i s t r i c t )

J+2. e-mi(n) Min

d i d u

or

dudu i s the black image

of O s i r i s .

See

Chapter I I above.

= eni

or

uni

=

being;

yan

(from

the

root 'ye')

= l i v i n g .

Enia

-

l i v i n g being, hence, mankind,

human

being.

probably

a s u r v i v a l of games

played

on

f e s t i v a l occasions

i n

honour o f

the

god Re or Ra.

= image.

See Budge,

O p . c i t .

p.

1+5,

no.

27.

See

Budge,

Op.cit. p.68, Nos. 11

16.

See Chapter V I I I above.

See Chapter

XI

above.

e.g. Ekun 0 s i

9

the

Khu of

O s i r i s ,

i . e . the d i s t r i c t over which the

god

of O s i r i s

presides.

That which pertains

to Min,

- k09

-

Yoruba.

Ancient

Egyptian.



(blow)

kQ.

to

( f l y )

( h i g h )

50.

gbo

nef

or naf

af

bau

( t o be old) or

bou

( s o u l s , s p i r i t s )

51

• gbo ba

(hear, smell)

52.

ge-le-de

53.

I b a

b i r i

G-eb

<£t

deb

ba

5km Igbo-raina Bau & Min

= wind, breeze, a i r , breath,

to blow, The

Yoruba word

a-fe-fe

= wind, breeze, i s probably

d e r i v e d from t h i s

word.

=

f l y .

I n Yoruba,

a

verb begins

w i t h

a consonant.

= high

o l d men being regarded as

possess-

i n g ,

i n

a s p e c i a l

manner,

the

s p i r i t s of the na ti on or t r i b e .

cp.No.22

above.

gbo,

d e r i v e d

from

ba or bau:

means " to take i n the soul of a

t h i n g , hence

i t means "hear"

s m e l l . This w i l l explain the

d i f f i c u l t y found i n an idiom

p e c u l i a r to some West A f r i c a n

languages, t h a t i s , " to hear a

s m e l l .

See

Chapter

V I I I .

I b a B i r i

=

the soul

of

B i r i

The t i t l e of a c h i e f .

Igbo = bau. Mina = Min. The

name of a

t r i b e .

Yoruba.

60.

I f a

-

1+10

-

Ancient Egyptian,

Nefer See chapter IV.

http://cp.no.22/

http://cp.no.22/

http://cp.no.22/

http://cp.no.22/



6 1 .

I t a

62. I - k i - r e

63. I - l a

61+.

I - s e - h i n

(a

town)

65. I - t a - b o

(a

town)

66. I - t o - k u

(a

d i s t r i c t )

67. I - t e - b u

68.

I - t e

( t h r o n e )

69. I t e s i

( a

d i s t r i c t )

Neter

Khu & Re

La

sa-hu

Neter & u-eb

Neter & Khu

Ne.ter

bu

Te-s horu

N e t e r - o s i r i

Neter = a god. I t a = place

o f

worship. Later I t a

means

s

s t r e e t .

=

the

soul of Re. A

town

i n

Yorubaland.

La, an Egyptian

d e i t y . .

I - l a ,

a

Yoruba town

or t r i b e .

See chapter X

I t a ( n e t e r )

and §bo (u-eb)

place of s a c r i f i c e i . e . a

s h r i n e . See chapter X No.

1+6 above.

I - t o - k u = I t a - o k u . Neter-Khu.,

a

well-known Egyptian phrase.

See

No.65 above.

=: a sacred place,

w r i t t e n Ntebu.

Sometimes:

= the throne of

Horus,

d e r i v -

ed from the Egyptian through

the

Greek

language.

See

Sayce, R e l i g i o n o f the

Ancient Egyptians p.22l+.-

= the

d i v i n e

O s i r i s . I t e s i =

I t a

Esi or O s i ( r i )

-

U11

Yoruba.

76.

Ka-ra(n)

Ka & Ra

Ancient Egyptian.

Kara(n),

a famous Yoruba k i n g .



(the name of a kin g)

77. Ka-ra

(apartments)

78, Ka-Nla

79.

K o b i t i

80. Ko

( b u i l d )

81. ku

(die)

82. K u t i

( a name)

83. Kemta

Ha & Ra

Ka & l a

Qobt or Kobt

qp-t or qe-t

Khu

K h u t i

Khu & neter

81+. ku-re-ku-re Khu & Re

( f a i r y , h o b g o b l i n )

85. Koro Konb- or ken-b

Ka-ra

=

ha-ra

=

the

house

of

Ra.

Kara

=

r e t i r i n g

apartments i n

the houses of great, men.

=• the great ka. The name

©f

a

place i n Yorubaland.

K o b i t i , a

Yoruba

name;

Qobt,

the name o f am Ancient Egyptian

town, from which the

word

Copt

i s d e r i v e d .

—

b u i l d . The f i n a l consonant

t

i s e l i d e d i n Yoruba.

Khu = luminous s p i r i t . Ku =

t o become a

luminous

s p i r i t .

The

word

appears

i n the same

sense i n several

West

A f r i c a n

languages.

=

the

two

horizons.

=: d i v i n e

Khu.

Kemta,

a

d i s t r i c t

i n

Abeokuta.

= soul of Re or Ra. See

Ch.

XV.

=

corner, kon; n takes a vowel

Yoruba.

- 1+12

-

Ancient Egyptian.

Khu

la-ku, do not d ie .



89.

Maku

(A

Yoruba

name)

90*

Ma-gba

Anion

and Va

( I f a jbriest)

91. mon

mimon

( h o l y clean)

Amon

92. mo(n)or'

ma(n)

(mould

shapen)

93. Ntebo

94.

Odi

(a d e i t y )

95.

Odu

( c h i e f ,

an exalted

personage)

96.

odo

raa-su

Neter & u-eb

Qt

or Od

du-

do

Ma-gba =

Omon-agba, people

of

the

ba,

i.e.' those

who

possess;

i n

a

s p e c i a l manner,

the

s p i r i t

of

the tribe.See

Ch. IV.

mo(n)

or

8&imp(n)

i s an

adjec-

t i v e which

means

clean, hol y.

The idea i s probably derived,

from the cleanliness of a

hidden

seed

which cannot be

touched by

d i r t

or

p o l l u t i o n

from the o u t s i d e .

=•-

mould,

shapen*

See

Chap.V

above f o r f u l l , e x p l a n a t i o n .

Ntebo

t

sacred s a c r i f i c e . The

name of a" place i n Ijebui Ode.

Chap

.x No.-65 above.

a a

d e i t y . «t

or

d. receives?.

a

vowel

to

forra

ja new

s y l l a b l e .

=

mountain.

See Chap.V

= lake,

r i v e r , a e t t l e m e n t .

-

1+13 -

Yoruba

Ancient

Egyptian,



103.

0

-ke

104. Omi

105. Oni-sua

or Oli-sua

ba-khu

l-oma,

mi

or

mu

Sea-nit

Re

hor

Orion

106. O-re

107. O r i

108. Oro

( a d e i f i e d

s p i r i t )

109. Oru(n) Horu

(sun)

110.

oru

ru-ha

( e v e n i n g , n i g h t )

111.

oru

( h e a t )

Horu

112. Ooru(n) Ooru

(name

of a or

f i e l d i n

Aaru

see c h a p . I l l above.

=

water, See

Masp.

Dawn of

C i v i l i z a t i o n ,

p

. l 6

Budge,

Ancient Egyptian Language,

pp.

75 76.

=

a home

i n Ancient Egypt.

Sua

i s a d i s t r i c t i n Yoruba-

l a n d .

Oni-sua or Olisua

=

owner or c h i e f

o f

Sua.

Ore

=

f a i r y ,

e l f ,

disembodied

s p i r i t .

=

to be

h i g h . O r i

=

head,

top,

s u r f a c e .

See chap. V I I above.

= sun-god.

evening.

Oru

=

heat,

t h a t

which

i s

crused by

t h e

sun.

= the E l y s i a n

F i e l d ,

U1U -

Yoruba.

Ancient Egyptian.

116. 0-so

S o - k a - r i

=

So, the ka of

O s i r i s .

The



( w i z a r d , p a r t

o f

a name)

117. O-u(n)

o r O-hu(n)

( v o i c e ;

118. o-ba

( k i n g )

119.

o-ba

ISO.

Oba-ni-sua

121.

o-kan

( h e a r t )

122. o-ga

(master)

125. O-de

( h u n t e r )

124. o - l a

(honour)

125.

omo(n)

or'oma(n)

( c h i l d )

Kher-ou

ba

ba

ba & s u a - n i t

ka

qa

de-b

La

A-mon

word

So i s

found c h i e f l y

i n

combination

w i t h o th e r

words.

= v o i c e .

Only

one s y l l a b l e i s

r e t a i n e d by

the

Yorubas

#

S i m i l a r

examples

can be

g i v e n ;

compare

masu,

No.92 above.

=»

s o u l . T he k i n g i s regarded as

the ba or the i n c a r n a t e s o u l of

the t r i b e or n a t i o n .

oba

= name of a

p l a c e

or r i v e r .

Oba-oni-sua s

T lie k i n g , the

owner of Sua. See No.118

above.

= h e a r t - s o u l . Okan = h e a r t ,

conscience,soul, innermost

being.

= to be h i g h ; Oga = a c h i e f ,

a n e x a l t e d

person, master.

=

p i e r c e . Ode = one who p i e r c e s

animals w i t h spears or arrows

i . e . a

h u n t e r .

Ola = t h a t

which belongs

to the

god La.

=

hidden. Omon

i s a p p l i e d to th

hidden

seed

of a f r u i t , and hence

to a c h i l d i n embryo, and to any-

- 415 -

Yoruba.

Ancient

Egyptian.

130. o-ko

Kho-t

boat.



( b o a t )

o r Khe-t

131.

Sabe

Sabe-s

( a

Yoruba

t r i b e )

132.

s i - g i - n i b i ahu,

Khu, &

n i b i t .

133. Su

ma-su

(mould.

shapen)

134.

t a ptah

. (to

break

open)

135. we ue-b

.(wash,make

. clean)

136.

wui

( r i s e , s w e l l )

137. y i (n) hin

praiBe>)

138. yq hoo

( r e j o i c e )

139.

wombia

nubia

=

d i v i n e he ra ld . See Budge,

Book

o f

the

Dead,

p.443.

S l g i n i b i

a»

Bu-gu-nibi

=

Shu, the

khu.

o f the

mistrese.

cp. S i - g i - d i

=• su-gu-du.

cp. also

Ade-nibi,

No.27 above.

s

mould,

shapen.

See

No 92 above

and

Chapter V.

at to break open. See

Budge,

Op.

c i t . p.69 No.37.

=

wash,

pure, clean .

= r i s e , s w e l l .

B pr ai se . See Budge, o p . c i t . p.

41

No.7.

H i s

e l i d e d

and

y,

i s


i n

Yoruba.

'=

r e j o i c e . See Budge, o p . c i t . p.

41

No.8

wombia

s

iwo

Nubia = you, a

-

M

Yoruba.

1 4 1 . Suru

Ancient Egyptian.

Suru-d

p r o s p e r i t y ,

patience,

forebearan

ce.



( p a t i e n c e ,

forebearance)

142. 0-go

( g l o r y ,

radiance)

143. O-l-otu

(Manager)

144.-.Ta.

( s e l l )

Khu

Ot

Ta

145. 0-pa-ba-ta per ba and

( S t i c k

used.

Ptah

b y Adamourisa '

masquerade:)

146. O-gu-ra(n)

(An

Adamu-

o r i s a

masquerade)

147.

. B i r i - k i t i

(Round)

Khu & Ra

Khopri &

K h u t i

»•

g l o r y ,

radiance.

Kh

becomes

g,

and u

becomes

o. .See Budge,

Ancient Egyptian Language, p.74

No.9.

s

aa t = d i s t r i c t . Ot becomes Otu,

0-1-otu a owner o f th e d i s t r i c t ,

hence, Manager, one who i s i n

charge

o f a group o f persons or

o f

a

place.

= g i v e ; hence to g i v e i n exchange

f o r

money

or an

e q u i v a l e n t ,

t o .

s e l l .

pa. =• per = house; ba =soul; t a

ss

P-tah.

.O-pa

ba t a

=-

th e house

o f the

Soul

o f

Ptah. O-pa

ba t a

s t i c k

i s used f o r

f l o g g i n g

those

who f a i l , t o pay th e customary

respects t o Adamourisa

masquerade:

Qu

= Khu. O-gu-ra(n)

=

the s o u l

o f Ra.

Khopri

Khuti=

T he sun-god o f

t h e two horizons. B i r i - k l t l

means l i k e the s o l a r orb a t

- 1+17 -

Yoruba.

Ancient Egyptian.

149* I-gba

ba A f t e r twenty the next important

( t w o hundred) u n i t i s two-hundred. The hun-



. . dreds

f o l l o w i n g

i t up to 20,000

are

m u l t i p l e s

of i t . e.g.egberin

=

igba

merin

=

200

times 4 = 800;

edegbejo

= ogorun

d i - n i - i g b a -

mejo =

100

taken

frSm 200

times:

8 - 1500; ogbokanla = igba mokan-

l a = 200 times 11 =

2200.

The;

o n l y

exception

1

, t o

t h i s

r u l e

w i l l

be noted i n the next number.

150* I - r i n - w o Nin

( f o u r

hundred)

=* An Egyptian god. The word ni n

o r n i n i i s used by the Yorubas

t o denote p e r f e c t i o n . Wo i s an

a b b r e v i a t i o n o f Ow.o

"money"

or

"cowrie s h e l l s ,

1

I - r i n - w o ,

t h e r e f o r e

means

"a

p e r f e c t

num>-

ber" and i s so regarded

because

i t i s the Square of twenty, an

important

u n i t

i n Yoruba

numerals;.

Hence, f o u r

hundred

does not

f o l l o w the r u l e

t h a t

numbers

above two hundred should be

m u l t i p l e s of

t h a t f i g u r e ,

=*

wash,

consecrate, c.p. I b o .

Sua » waBh

I t a a Neter; See Chapter V I I .

gbe =• ba or bau.

Ita-gbe

=

s o u l .

151, Sa(n)

Sua.-u

(wash)

152, i t a - g b e Neter and

( a sacred ba

..

emblem

used'

by chiefs; of

Ogboni Secret

Society)

Yoruba.

- U 1 8 -

Ancient Egyptian.

155. I r e l e * e-nen

(submission, (submission,

e-nen; "e" becomes

i

i n

Yoruba;., the

f i r s t

* n V i s change



.humility) ..humility)

156. 0 ku

( a . s a l u t a -

t i o n i n d i c a -

t i n g good

wishes) '

157. So

(watch)

158.

6 - b i r i - k i t i

Khu

Sa or So

Khopri and

K h u t i

t o

the l i q u i d

f

r '

and the

second

t o 1 ' , , E-nen, there-

f o r e

=

i-nene

( r )

r e c e i v i n g

a

vowel

t o form a hew

s y l l a b l e

= i r e l e . I t should be noted

t h a t i n some d i a l e c t s , the

word

i s

s t i l l ,

pronounced as

i-ne-ne. See

Gh.I

p. 1U

r u l e s

13 and 14.

0

lea

i s a s a l u t a t i o n meaning

"may you

become

a Khu" (a nd

not a

b a ) .

I t i s

s i m i l a r

t o

the Ibo s a l u t a t i o n I-gu-e or

Igwe. See Chapter I f o r f u l l

e x p l a n a t i o n .

- pages 29

30.

s watch. See Budge, Ancient

Egyptian.

Language

9

p.50.

T5he

d e r i v a t i o n o f - b i r i from

Khopri has been noted above

(Chapter

I I I ) ; t h a t

o f

K i t i

from Khu ti has been noted i n

t h i s Appendix under s e c t i o n

B above. Khopri

K h u t i =

Khopri ( t h e sun-god) o f the

two horizons.

-

M9 -

I I

Names of Animals.

Yoruba.

Ancient Egyptian



1 .

I n o k i

(ape

or baboon)

2. A-gu-ta(n)

or

A-gu-to(n)

3. K i n i - u n

(lion)

4.

0-b9

(monkey)

5.

A-gbo

(ram)

6.

Adiye

(hen,cock,

f o w l )

7.

Malu

( b u l l )

8.

Olo-gbo

(.cat)

" N o k i - t

Ha-khu

Qimi + Uh

Bau

o r

Bo-u

Ba

or bau

or bo-u

Khadu

Gmo(n) + a l u

Ba or bau

or

bo-u

a. fabulous

beast,ape,baboon.

See Chap. I . p. 3k<

»

black being.

=

s p i r i t s ,

souls; the

monkey

being regarded

as

indwelt

by

s p i r i t s

and

sometimes saluted,

as "Oluwa mi", My Lord.

=

ram or rams

i n Ancient

Egyptian

See

Budge, o p . c i t .

p. 60 No. 15.

= slaughter, adiye s adu-eiye,

b i r d f o r slaughter, i . e. a

domestic

f o w l

kept f o r edi ble

purposes.

Malu = omo-alu, native of al u

i . e . the

d s i r i f i e d

b u l l of

a l u .

See

Chapter

I I

s s p i r i t s , souls. The cat, a

sacred

abimal

i n Ancient

Egypt, i s regarded

by

the

Yorubas as

being i ndwe lt

by

Yoruba.

13. Ere

- 1+20

-

Ancient Egyptia n.

Ere or Ara

»

serpent, See Budge, o p . c i t .

Nos. 11 & 16.



(boa)

14. E-kun

( t i g e r )

15. Amo^n)-teku(n)

Amon

+ Khu

( l e o p a r d ) . _

Khu

16. A-ka-tai

( j a c k a l )

17. A-ka-la

(.vulture)

18.

A-iJapa

( t o r t o i s e )

19.

A-wun or

A-un

( t o r t o i s e )

20. E-le-de

( P i g )

21.. E - r i ( n )

( e l e p h a n t )

22. I - k a ( n ) - d u

(a*

1

*)

Ka + Ftah

Ka

+ La

Pa

Un

de(b)

r i - r i - t

ka + du

See chapter

IX.

do.

A-ka-ta = the s o u l of Ptah.

A-ka-la

=

th e

s o u l

o f La.

=• house. Ajapa a the l i v i n g one

o f

the

house.

» being.

s p i e r c e .

Elede

=

one who p i e r c e s

See Chapter I I f o r . f u l l e x p l a n a t i -

on.

R l r i t =

hippopotamus

tt e r i ( n ) n n i

Yoruba <*

e r i ( n ) - o m i ,

i . e . water

elephant.

The

elephant

i n Benin

d i s t r i c t i B e - r i - r l

or

e - n l - n l .

f

n ) being s u b s t i t u t e d f o r

f

r '

I - k a - ( n ) d u = the s p i r i t o f the

h i l l or mountain. This name i s

- 1+21

-

Yoruba.

28.

Ma-gu-du

Ancient Egyptian.

Amon, Khu + du

Ma-gu-du

= bmo-or

Oma(n)-gu-du

= th e

c h i l d of

the s p i r i t

(Khu)



(a - species

of ants)

29•

Gu(n)-n-te

Khu + Te-mu

( c o c k a t r i c e )

30,

E-le-gu(n)

-gu(n)

( a l l i g a t o r )

Khu

o f

the

mountain.

sa

the

Khu o f

t

.

Te-mu

Elegu(n)gu(n) =

the owner

or

possessor of s p i r i t s ( k h u s ) .

NOTES'. .

1. The above l i s t contains onl y a

s h o r t s e l e c t i o n

of Yoruba words o f

Egyptian

. o r i g i n . The s e l e c t i o n

i s confined mainly

to r o o t s , the

compounds from

the r o o t s

being

l e f t

out

as

f a r as.

p o s s i b l e . The

range

o f

Egyptian

s u r v i v a l s i n Yoruba

covers

a t

l e a s t

one-half

of

the

e n t i r e

Yoruba

vocabulary.

2. Most of the

animals mentioned

i n the above

l i s t

were

sacred animals

i n

Ancient Egypt.

-

U22

-

G.

SELECT

LISTS

OP WEST

AFRICAN LANGUAGES CONTAINING

SURVIVALS

OP.ANCIENT

EGYPTIAN

WORDS.



The Yoruba Language i s not

unique

i n

respect

of

s u r v i v a l s

of

Ancient Egyptian

words.

Several other

West

A f r i c a n

Languages contain

s i m i l a r s u r v i v a l s .

For the

purpose of


a few of the leading West

A f r i c a n

languages

have been

selected

and

short

l i s t s

of

words

of

Egyptian o r i g i n i n each language have been compiled.

Much

longer

l i s t s

could

have been

given i f

the scope

of

t h i s

work had covered West

A f r i c a n

r e l i g i o n s i n general.

T he

l i s t s

given

below, however,

are s u f f i c i e n t to

i l l u s t r a t e

the existence and prevalence of

such s u r v i v a l s .

The languages

selected

are

as

f o l l o w s :• •

1. Ibo

2.

I jaw

3.

Igabo

Isoko

4. Egun (Alada)

-

U23

-

IBO.

Ibo.

Anci ent Egypt an.



1.

Chuku

(God)

2. Chi-neke(n)

(God)

Mo (maw)

(.spirit)

M i r i o r

M i l l (water)

5 . Madu

(person)

6. Mau

(masquerade)

7. I f a or Efa

( d i v i n a t i o n -

instrument)

8.

O r i - m i l i

or

O r i - m i r i

or

Khu

Khu &

Nekhen

Ma or Mo

M i r i - t

Mau-t

Nefer

hor

&

miri.

CHUKU =

Chi-uku

= th e g r e a t s p i r i t .

CHI.

IS

A

SOFTENING

DOWN

OP KHU.

See

Chapter

I I

Chi-neke

» The

s o u l

o f Nekhen.

The

i n t e r p r e t a t i o n

o f

t h i s

word as

CHI-NA-EKE, Creator,

i s

f a n o i f u l

and i s probably due t o C h r i s t i a n

i n f l u e n c e . See

Chapter

I I

=-

s p i r i t .

See

T i e l e , H i s t o r y

o f the

Egyptians

p.85

Ma

i s

the

Egyptian

s p i r i t

o f

Order

i n the

universe.

Goddess o f the

River

N i l e i . e .

M i r i - t Hapi or Miri^-t

Quaimit.

Madu-t an

Egyptian

god.

an Egyptian goddess;. Compare

t h i s

w i t h Mau ( o r Mawu), t h e Supreme

D e i t y o f the Ewe

people.

i f

a i s the same

d i v i n a t i o n ,

i n s t r u -

ment as i n Yo

rub

aland. See Chap.

IV.

O r i - n i i r i

= th e

water-

o f

Horus.

O s i m i r i , the

water,

o f O s i r i s .

O s i m i r i i s a l s o the

name

o f a

r i v e r

i n Yorubaland.

O s i m i r i

i n

- hzh

I bo.

12.

A-gu

( s p i r i t , c a r v e d

Ancient

Egyptian.

Khu

ss

luminous s p i r i t . Agu Mawu i n

Ibo

s the s p i r i t

of

Mawu i . e . the



images,„

leopard)

13. N-so

( h o l y , .

d i v i n e )

1h. Mbo-ni

( d i v i n e r )

15. O-gu

or

Oggu

(magic, ;ju;ju)

16.

I-bo

( a t r i b e i n

Southern

N i g e r i a )

17.

I-ka

( a s u b - t r i b e

i n Iboland)

18.

Oru

( a s u b - t r i b e

i n Iboland)

Sa

ba and un

Khu

ba or bau

( s o u l or

souls)

ka

Horu

b u l l - r o a r e r . Ekun (Yoruba) =

l e o p a r d .

= d i v i n e essence of

the

gods N-so

(N-saw) —

t h a t which i s d i v i n e ,

h o l y . Sa i n - E g y p t i a n language

a l s o means

sacred

person.

ba or bau =

s o u l

or

s o u l s ;

un =

being.

Mboni =- persons who

possess

the

s o u l

of

the

community

i n .

an

especiallmanner.

See

Chap.

IV, cp. Yoruba Magba i n

Cahp.V.

Oggu

= d i v i n e or

magical

power f o r

working wonders;

a l s o

the i d o l

or

juju. used f o r such a purpose.

The

names of

s e v e r a l

West

A f r i c a n Tribes are compounds-

o f the Ancient Egyptian word "ba"

e.g. Ya-gba, the l i v i n g ba

Ba-riba, the

s o u l

of

Rpa,

et c.

(See appendix E above) Bo i s a


of bau.

For s i m i l a r examples see Appendix

E

above.

d i t t o

-

1425

-

I b o .

Ancient Egyptian.

22:.

I-gu-e

Khu O-gu or O-gu(n) i s the Y ruba god



0

o r

Igwe

o f i r o n . Gu'is a modification , o f

( i r o n )

Khu.

23 . Elu-igu-e Oru Elu or er u i s a m o d i f i c a t i o n of the

o r & Khu

Egyptian word

hor or

horu

=

t h a t

Elu-igwe

which i s hi gh , t o p .

Eru

i n

Ibo =

o r

high.

Igu-e o r Igwe;«See

No.

22?

Eru-igwe

above,

(heaven)

24.

a-bu

25. O-ba

( k i n g )

Yoruba,oba

=

k i n g .

26.

e-kwu

27. Ogu

or

Oru

( t w e n t y )

bu.

ba

khu

Khu

= place.

o-ba = k i n g ; the king i s regarded

as the incarnate soul o f the

n a t i o n . Oba i n

Yoruba

also means

a "King".

=

s o u l .

Ekwu i s

a

small,

c o n i c a l

lump

o f

clay

used

f o r

the

i n s t a l -

l a t i o n p r o t e c t i v e

i d o l s . E-kwu

as

belonging

t o t he Khu or s p i r i t .

Twenty i s

an

important u n i t

i n t he

Ibo

numeration. Several

of the

scores

f o l l o w i n g i t are named as

m u l t i p l e s o f i t .

Bpr

example

FORTY

i s

Ogu

abua =

twenty times

two; S i x t y i s Ogu ato = twenty

times three. Hence twenty i s

named

Khui

or the

s p i r i t

or the

c h i e f numbers. Oru,

d e r i v e d ,

from

Hor, Horu

( h i g h , t o p )

i s

used. i n .

-

U26

-

I b o .

Ancient

Egypt ian.

30. o-kpa-ra

ba & r a

ba-ra =* s o u l

o f Ra. The

phrase



(son)

31 .

u-rrii

o r

o-mi

(water)

I-oma

or

I-orai

"ba-ra

w

i s used i n some West A f r i c a n

languages to denote

a

soul;, compare

ka-ra

' s o u l '

i n

Tebi.

Here th e son

i s regarded

as a

con-

t i n u a t i o n o r r e p r o d u c t i o n o f the

s o u l

o f his

f a t h e r .

= water. Umi or omi denotes water

i n an Ib o

d i a l e c t .

M i r i or

m i l i

i s used i n other d i a l e c t s . Umi o r

Omi i s th e

same

as

Yoruba word

omi

= water.

32 .

I-gwe

o r

I-gu-e

( a form o f

s a l u t a t i o n )

33. sua

(wash)

Khu

sua-u

(wash)

3U.

ozo

so

( a t i t u l a r or sa.

c h i e f ,

whose person

i s sacrosanct)

Igwe o r Igu-e i s a form o f

saluta>-

t i o n denoting good wishes

f o r

long

l i f e

et c. I t i s always used i n

s a l u t i n g c h i e f s

o r

persons

o f

h i g h

rank.

I-gu-e

contains

the

same

idea

as

th e Yoruba

s a l u t a t i o n

Oku o r ku

explained

i n chapter I above.

sua-u i n . Ancient Egyptian means

s e t a p a r t by washing" "consecrate,"

" p u r i f y " .

=••

a

sacred person.

"By

v i r t u e

o f

t h e i n i t i a t o r y

r i t e s . a n d

ceremonies,

t h e man

admitted

t o t h i s t i t u l a r

rank ( i . e . ozo) i s 'ex opere

operato'

sacrosanct;

h i s person i s

no

longer

common; i t i s h o l y "Niger

-

U27

-

I b o , A n c i e n t E g y p t i a n .

39. u-mu(n) ' a-raon

=:

t h a t

which

i s

hidden, hence, seed,



o r omu(n)

( c h i l d r e n ,

c h i l d )

2+0. Egwu-gwu Khu

(Masquerades,

i n c a r n a t e forms

o f

s p i r i t s )

U1. D i - b i a b a

( j u j u priest})

U2.

Oru

Horu

( s l a v e )

i - r u

( s l a v e s )

U-3-

0-su

su-aui

( a person

consecrated

t o th e

d e i t y ,

a p r i e s t , a

slave of the

d e i t y ) .

c h i l d ( b e f o r e o r

a f t e r

i t s b i r t h )

Bia i s a mo di fi ed form o f ba = so ul ,

s p i r i t . D i - b i a =•• a person (possess>-

ing) a ba.

Compare

Ma-gba

(Yoruba)

=

j u j u

p r i e s t ;

l i t .

ma-gba = th e son

or a person o f the ba or the

i n c a r n a t e s o u l o f t h e t r i b e o r

n a t i o n .

=

s p i r i t .

E-gwu-gwu ( i b o ) =

E-GU-

(N)-GU-(N) (Yoruba) = i n c a r n a t e

forms o f

s p i r i t s ,

masquerades.

The Ibo word f o r s e r v i c e i s n - ru

d e r i v e d f ro m h o r u ,

meaning o r i g i n a l -

l y

ser vic e t o the god

horu

and

later,

compulsory

s e r v i c e . One who renders,

such a s e r v i c e i s c a l l e d o ru . .

Compare e-ru (Yoruba) = s l a v e .

= consecrated t o t h e

d e i t y ;

a p r i e s t .

See Tiele., H i s t o r y o f Egyp tian

R e l i g i o n - p . 107. E g y p t i a n i d e a s .

A good pers:on becomes an O s i - r i

a f t e r

d e at h . I t i s q u i t e p o s s i b l e

t o regard one who

submits

t o p e r p e t u -

a l s e r v i c e t o a d e i t y as h a v i n g

a l r e a d y

become

an

O s i - r i

c.p. th e

t i t l e o f a p r i e s t i n Thebes "consec-

r a t e d

o f

O s i r i s " .

See T i e l e

-

U28

-

I b o .

A n c i e n t E g y p t i a n .

1*7 • Ogbu-

n i k e

Khu &. Nekhen

Ogbu ( f r o m Khu) = one who

causes



(a minor

d e v i l ,

the

s e r v a n t o f

Ekwensu)

another

t o

become

a luminous

s p i r i t ;

hence,

a

k i l l e r ,

a

d e s t r o y e r . Nike i s a m o d i f i c a t i o n

o f Nekhen or

Nikhen. Ogbu-nike

=

d e s t r o y e r

o f Nekhen; compare

Ghi-Neke = the s o u l o f Nekhen.

U8. E-ze

( k i n g ,

paramount

c h i e f )

U9. O-bi

(paramount

c h i e f )

Se-ten

or

Su-ten

b i

=

k i n g

o f the

South.

= s o u l , ob i = c h i e f o r

r u l e r ,

t h e l e a d i n g

man i n

town

or

v i l l a g e

being regarded as the

i n c a r n a t e s o u l o f the n a t i o n or

t r i b e .

I

i

aw.

1. A-yi-ba

k29

I J A

W

Ancient Egyptian

Ba

Ayiba = maker of souls i . e . the



(Supreme

D e i t y )

2. O-wu

(Water

s p i r i t )

3. O-ru

( l a n d s p i r i t )

k*

E-le-chu

(Earth, goddess)

5.

O-gu-gu

(female

d e i t y

worshipped

by

women)

6. Adumu

(pythomic

d e i t y )

7. O-ra-u

(sun)

8.

O-wu-la

9. A-ka-lu

or

A-ka-ru

(moon)

Khu

Horu

Khu or

Ohu

Khu

Supreme D e i t y .

The whiteness o f watery vapour

suggests the idea of the water-

s p i r i t s

being designate

Khu =


an Egyptian god.

E-le-chu = possessor of

s p i r i t s .

O-gu-gu i s

a d u p l i c a t i o n -

of

the

word Khu. Cf. Yoruba o-gu(n)

d e r i v e d from

Khu.

Atumu

or

Adumu

Ra

Khu & l a

ka

&

Horu

=

an

Egy pti an god.

=

sun-god.

O-wu-la = s p i r i t of La, the god

of Today,

i . e .

The sun.

A-ka-lu or A-ka-ru = A-ka-horu.

Ka = s o u l , horu = sky,

heaven.

A-ka-horu

= the

s o u l

o f the sky,

hence moon.

k30

I

j a

w, Ancient Egyptian.

15. Oiogbo

or

Ologbosi

bau

=

s o u l . Compare,

Yoruba,Oiogbo,

c a t ;

I b o ,

Nwon-gbo, ca t .



( c a t )

16.

Oru-kan

( d u j u p r i e s t )

17. O-la

( c h i e f )

18.

Kala-oru

( f a i r y

or

e l f )

19.

I - b i

( h o l y ) .

20.

6

-go-no

(heaven)

21. A-ka-lu

A-KA-RU

(moon)

22.

A-G8-N0-WE

(moon)

23.

B i - n i

or

Horn

&

K a r i

La

Ka, l a ,

Horn

b i , ba

go,ga,qp,<ia

& Ra.

Ka and Ho-ru

go

or go and

Khu

N i or Nu;.

=

the Egyptian god.

- p a r t o f the

name

of an

Egyptian

god,

t h a t

i s ,

soi-ka-ri.

= th e

Egyptian

god.

Ka-la-oru = the

soul

o f La,

(god

o f )

th e sky.

=

s o u l .

go

= go or ga =

t h a t which i s

h i g h

t h a t i s , the high

place;

no

i s a

modified form

o f Re or

Ra;

0

-go-no

=

the

high place OF

p o s i t i o n o f Ra or M the suo-

god i . e . heaven.

A-ka*lu

or

A-ka-ru

= th e ka of

Horu

or

the soul

or

son

of

th e

sun-god

or the sky.

AG-ONO

or

ogone,

see No.

20

above,

'we or 'u-e =

khu-e

=-

s p i r i t or

s o u l . Agono-we

s o u l or s p i r i t of

heaven.

B i =

s o u l .

Ni or Nu =

water-

or

-

14-31

-

IGABO ISOKO.

Igabo

Isoko

1•

Oghene

Ancient

Egyptian.

hene

- k i n g , majesty, cp.ohene(Tchi)



(God, Supreme

D e i t y )

2. 0 1 - o r i

( L o r d , c h i e f )

3. oru-e-aro

(prophet)

k* A-hu-o

o r

a

a-hv/-o

(people)

5. wu

( d i e )

6.

Uwu

(death)

7.

e-hru

(sky,heaven)

8. e-hru

(sun)

hor

horu

&

I - a r o

Khu

Khu

Khu

horu

Horu

= k i n g , paramount c h i e f .

=

h i g h .

Horu,

an

ancient Egyptian d e i t y .

I - a r o

= name of

the r i v e r K i l e . '

The word oru-e-aro is probably

a reference

to a

horus

god

which

used to be consulted on the

bank

o f

the River-

N i l e .

= s o u l . A-hu-o = souls or

people.

The word Khu i s used i n

the

same sense

i n . o t h e r

West

A f r i c a n languages. Cp.Tehi-

Aku-aku = people, crowd.

cp. Ku (Yoruba) = d i e , and

wu(lbo)

- di e.

U-wu

=

the process o f becoming

a Khu or a dis-embodied

s p i r i t ,

t h a t

i s ,

death.

heaven.

~ sun-god.

-

U32

-

Igabo

Isoko.

12. o-si-\vi

( s a v i o u r )

Ancient Egyptian.

O s i r i s o s i w i i s probably a modifica-

t i o n

o f

O s i r i s ,

the

well-known

Egyptian god- also regarded as a



13.

o-lo-gbo

( g r e a t )

11+.

a-kpo

( e a r t h )

«

omo-eru-e

( c a l f , b u l l )

16. e-ra-o

(beast)

7« i-we

or

i-ue

( s a c r i f i c e )

Saviour o f hi s people.

ba

o r bau gbo

=

ba

o r bau

=

souls.

Ologbo

=•

t h a t

which has many ba's or

bau, hence great. Compare

OlQg£b«j>

(Yoruba) = cat; Ologbo

or Nwonogbo

(Ibo) = cat .

=

d i s t r i c t o r i g i n a l l y regarded

by the

u n s o p h i s t i c at e d

as

the

e a r t h .

Omo i s d e r i v e d from amon; op.

omo

(Yoruba)

=

c h i l d , native

o f

a

place.

Eru

i s derived from

aru o r eru or alu, the Egyptian

E l y s i a n f i e l d s .

Omo-eru-e

=

a

native

of Al u

=

c a l f or

b u l l .

Compare omo-alu, contracted

t o

malu

(Yoruba;

=

b u l l .

e-ra-o =

t h a t

which belongs t o

Ra,

t h a t i s , a beast.

Compare

era(n)

(Yoruba) which means

"a

beast?'.

per o r por

Amon

&

a l u or

aru.

Ra

ue-b

sr pure,

washed;

hence t h a t

which

has

been

p u r i f i e d s a c r i -

f i c i a l l y or o f f e r e d as s a c r i -

f i c e i s named

i-we; compare

ebo (Yoruba)

and

afor-ebo( fohii)

=

s a c r i f i c e ,

th e two

words

being derived from the same

- U33 -

Igabo

Isotno.

22. u-vie

(kingdom)

Ancient Egyptian.

Ne-fer See No. 21

above.



23. oru-aro

( g l o r y )

2k. o-ba

(governor^

25.

E-we

or

B-h

.UT

?e

( s o u l )

Horu &

I-aro

ba

Khu

Horu, an Egyptian god|. I - a r o the

r i v e r

N i l e .

Oru-aro

=

Horus

of

the r i v e r N i l e

who was regarded

as a symbol of

g l o r y

and

majesty.

= s o u l .

Oba = governor; the

governor or the

k i n g

i s regarded

as the incarnat e s oul of the

t r i b e

or

n a t i o n .

Compare

o-ba

(Yoruba) =

k i n g ,

governor,

paramount c h i e f .

= s p i r i t , s o u l .

26. Ovata-Ore Ptah and re

(east)

27.

Aru-oriwo ar u, and

hor

( g r a c e , and Khu

favour)

28.

I - b i

b i and ba

( s e r p e n t ,

ptah = to

open.

Re

Sun-god

Ovata-ore, l i t e r a l l y = the place

o f the opening or r i s i n g sun.

a r u =

Egyptian

E l y s i a n f i e l d ;

hor =

h i g h , c h i e f ;

khu =

s o u l .

Aru-ori-wo probably means the

blessedness of the

c h i e f s o u l ;

hence

'grace

1

, ' f a v o u r '

'splendour'•

=

s o u l .

Sacred animals i n West

A f r i c a

o f t e n

possess names

k3U

U N. ALADA),

E g u n.

1 •

Egun

Ancient Egyptian*

Khu.

=


Many West



(name of

t h e t r i b e )

2.

A-LA-DA.

( a l t e r n a -

t i v e of the

. name of the

t r i b e )

3.

JimVE

-YEHWE

(Supreme

Deity)

LA & DA.

Khu

i+.

Jihwe

(sky)

5.

Legba

( e v i l s p i r i t ,

d e v i l ) .

6. OHU

(sea)

Khu

Khepera

Khu

A f r i c a n

t r i b e s

have names deri ved

from

Khu

( s p i r i t

and

ba(so ul))

La

and Ba are two d e i t i e s ^ i n

Ancient

Egypt.

J i = J i - h u - e j j comes from the

West

A f r i c a n ro o t

'ye;

whe or hu-e

i s

a

m o d i f i c a t i o n

of

the word

Khu (kh sound

being

pronounced,

as h, and 'e' being a

l o c a l

a d d i t i o n ) Jihwe

= sky.

Ye = l i v i n g , whe = Khu. ffihwe.-yeh-

we =

the l i v i n g

soul of the sky.

Ji-hwe

=

t he

l i v i n g

kus

i . e .

the

clouds

which resemble

luminous;

s p i r i t s

i n .

respect o f

t h e i r

white

colour.

Legba i s

the same d e i t y as the

Yoruba

EJlegbara.

For the d e r i v a -

t i o n , o f

the

word from Khepera

see Chapter

I I

p.

above,

Ohu

i s the

same as

the Yoruba word

Oku(n)-sea - which i s

deriv ed

from

Khu.

See

s e l e c t

l i s t of

Yoruba words aftove.

U35

E g u n.

Ancient Egyptian.

12.

o-su(n)

(moon;

Kh-onsu

o-su(n) i s the same as Yoruba

word osu,

d e r i v e d ,

from

Kh-onsu.



13.

o-ro(n)

(heaven)

1I+. a-yi-gba

( e a r t h )

15.

Othan

(snake)

16. ama-than

or

amo-than

( s e r p e n t )

17.

o-ga(n)

( i r o n )

18. wi-*whe_

( h o l y )

19. ogbo-agbo

(ram)

h-oru

ba

ka

amon & ka

Khu

ue-h

ba

•See- chapter I I

sky, heaven.

=s-

s o u l . a-yi-gba

=

the maker

o f

souls

(human

beings)

the

e a r t h

being regarded,

as the

mother

of

mankind.

I n

Egun k. i s o f t e n replaced

by

th>

otha(n)

=

o-ka.

Othan is

a minor d e i t y

i n i

Egunland.

ama

= amo(n)

= c h i l d .

Ama-than

the

c h i l d of ka i . e . a

serpent.

O-ga(n)

i

o-gu(n) -

Yoruba.

i s the

same

word

as

god

of

i r o n

- i n

whe = hu-e = the Yoruba word v/e

(wash,make

clean) wi-whe = t h a t

which i s washed

or made

clean.

agbo i n

Yoruba ram, and i s

d e r i v e d

from bau,

the ram

being

regarded

as an i n c a r n a t i o n of

the d e i t y which t represented

i n

Ancient

Egypt,

o-gbo-a-gbo

k36

E g

u

n.

Ancient Egyptian.

21+.

O-du-dua

(Supreme

D e i t y iden-

du

& dua-t

Odudua i s the same d e i t y as the

Yoruba

Odudua, bu t among the

Eguns i t i s a male d e i t y .



t i f i e d w i t h

jiwhe-yewhe)

25.

Mau

or

Mawu

(Supreme

D e i t y iden-

t i f i e d

w i t h

Jiwhe-yewhe)

26.

O-fa

(sea or

r i v e r god)

27.

vo-thu(n)

( i d o l )

28. Hevi-osu

(god of

l i g h t n i n g )

29. Ita-gbe

( i m p o r t a n t

minor

d e i t y )

Mau-t

Ne-fer

Ba & shu

Su or'

S i t

Neter and

ba

an Egyptian d e i t y . Odudua i s

borrowed from t h e neighbouring

Yorubas on the West o f Egunland;

Mawu

i s

borrowed

from the neigh-

bouring Ewe

speaking

peoples on

the

East of th e same

country.

Of a =

Yoruba I f a,

derived from

n - e f e r ; See Chapter IV. Un-nefer

i s ; the t i t l e o f O s i r i s , god of

the

River N i l e .

vo = bo = bau. Thu(n) i s a

m o d i f i e d form o f shu; vo-thu(n)

=•-

the

soul

of

shu.

Su or S i t = Egyptian

w a r r i o r

god.

Heviosu = the Yoruba Sa.ngo or

Jakuta, the stone thrower.

I t a = neter; see

Chapter V I I

gbe

= ba or bau. Itagbe = the

d i v i n e s o u l .

E v/ e.

k31

E W E.

Ancient

Egyptian.

1

•

Mawu

Mau-t

(Supreme

D e i t y )

= an

Egyptian

d e i t y .



2 .

Ku

(death)

3 .

Ku

(die)

k. V i

( c h i l d )

5 . Vo

(bad)

6. Wu

k i l l )

Dsu-nu

(moon)

8. Tsi

(water)

Khu

Khu

b i , ba

ba or bau

Khu

Kh-on-su

N i l - i t

d i s t r i c t ,

name)

Su or

Amsu

9. Dsu su-au

s


Ku i s the

process

o f becoming a

luminous

s p i r i t i . e .

death.

same

as above.

= so ul cp. ba (T ch i) =

s o n j v i

= b i

Ewe o ft e n su bs ti tu te s v f o r b.

b

becomes

v and au

becomes

o.

The

idea

u n d e r l y i n g t he

word

i s

t h a t i t was regarded as a bad

t h i n g f o r one to become a ba

and not a

Khu a f t e r

death.

wu i s the

process

o f causing

someone

to beli eve a

disembodied,

s p i r i t .

=

moon

d e i t y . Dsu i s a m o d i f i c a -

t i o n o f Kh-onsu N u - i t = d i s t r i c t

or

name.

The Yoruba

word

f o r moon

i s 0-su = Dsu i n Ewe.

Amon

= god o f a

r i v e r .

Su =

r i v e r

or water. T s i i s a m o d i f i c a t i o n

o f su.

=

t o

purify,cleanse,consecrate

U3

E W E

( c o n t i n u e d ) *

w e. Ancient Egyptian.

15. S - r i

O - s i - r i =

Egyptian Deity of great



( c h i e f , or hi gh

rank,

high)

Tshi or Tchi.

1.

T-SHI

or

T-CHI

(name o f a West

-

439

-

TSHI OR TCHI.

Ancient Egyptian.

Khu.

Compare T-chi

w i t h

Ibo word

Chi

= s p i r i t ;

chuku

= Chi-uku, the



A f r i c a n language)

2 . P a n t i

( a t r i b e speak-

ing the Tchi

language) .

3 . A - s a n t i

or A-shanti

(same as

No.

2

4 .

Yankupon

(Supreme D e i t y )

5.

o-hen-e

( k i n g )

6 . bo-fo

(angel)

7 .

ba

(son;

8. o-ba

(woman)

9 .

o-ba-bea

(daughter)'

Panti or

P e n t i

S a n t i

Ku & Sua-

n i t

hen

ba o r bau

ba

ba

ba

g r e a t

s p i r i t ; Chi-neke(n) »

the

s p i r i t

or soul of

Nekhen.

F a n t i

o r

F e n t i

i s an

Ancient

Egyptian god . See th e Book of

the

Dead, Prof.S.Wallis

Budge,

P.367.

San ti i s an

Ancient

Egyptian god.

See the

Book

o f the

Dead,

ed.

P r o f . E.Wallis Budge, p .342.

Yan-ku-pon, the

l i v i n g

sou l o f

Punt.

See

Chapter

I I above.

=

k i n g , p r i n c e . See Budge

Egypt-

i a n

Language, Noa.59-65 74-75.

= soul or s p i r i t .

=

so ul . A son i s

regarded

as th e

r e p r o d u c t i o n ,

o r

c o n t i n u a t i o n ,

i n

some

sense,

of the s ou l of the

f a t h e r .

= s o u l ,

s

s o u l .

kho

TCHI (continued)

TCHI.

1 5 .'Nifa

( r i g h t )

ANCIENT

EGYPTIAN,

nefer

was a

= good,

r i g h t ;

nefer^/used i n / n o r a l

sense, but

t

i s used

by th eTch i

speaking

peoples

im a p h y s i c a l



16.

mma or

rnmo

( c h i l d )

A-mon

17.

O-vm

(death)

18. a-wu-fo

( a dead person)

19.

nkurofo

eku-aku

( m u l t i t u d e s )

20. bo-ne

(wicked)

Khu.

Khu

khu

ba; un

21 • ota-mf

o

P-tah

sense.

The Yoruba word f o r

a c h i l d i s

qmo(n) t h a t i s j t h a t

v/hich

i s

hidden

(an embryo).

The

word

i s

a p p l i e d

t o

a c h i l d before or a f t e r

i t s b i r t h ;

i t i s

a l s o

a p p l i e d to

a seed. I t i s i n the

same

sense

as

t h a t

of

Yoruba t h a t

the word

mma or

mmo

i s used.

Cp. Yoruba

I - k u

(death)

A-wu; cp. Yoruba

o-ku a

dead per-

son.

nkuro

=

c i t y .

Aku-aku =-

p l u r a l i t y

o f s o u l s .

Nkuroso aku-aku

=

many souls.from

the

c i t i e s

i . e .

m u l t i t u d e s .

a a

being

of

the ba.

The use of

t h i s

term to denote

a

wicked

person

i s

reminiscent o f

the

p e r i o d

i n -

Ancient

Egypt

when

t

was

b e l i e v e d t h a t a good person would

become a khu a f t e r death and a

wicked person, a ba .

The Yoruba word f o r

enemy

i s

a l s o

Tchi

(continued)

T c h i .

25.

Ku-nu

(husband)

Ancient Egyptian.

Kh-nu-mu

The l a s t s y l l a b l e i s e l i d e d . The

f i r s t consonant

receives

a vowel t o



26.

O-su-ko(n)

( t h i r s t y )

27.

O-dua

( t h a n k s ,

p r a i s a )

28. se

( g u i l t y )

29. Ko-ma

( h e a r t )

su & ka

dua-t

or

t u a - t

se-t;

Khu &

a-mon

form

a new

s y l l a b l e ;

hence Ku-nu.

The

yoruba

word

deri ved from

Kh-nu-

mu i s O-ko-ni(n) or O-ku-ri(n) or

0 k u ( n ) - r i ( n ) , a male

person.

Khnumu. was, a male d e i t y .

O-su-ka

= t h a t which desires

the

ka of the

r i v e r

( w a t e r ) ,

t h a t

i s

a

t h i r s t y person.

Osuke

i n

Yoruba

=

hiccough.

=

thanks,

praise.

See

Budge,

Ancient Egyptian

Language,

p.

43

Nos.

5

& 6.

=

what

i s

bad. cp. Yoruba e-se =

s i n ,

offence,

g u i l t .

Ko-ma or

Ko-mo(n)

- the hidden Khu,

i . e . the

innermost

p a r t of a man

= hear t.

30.

nkurofo-ku

(people)

3 1 .

Osoro

(heaven,

sky)

32. Nsoro-ma

o r

Khu

O s i - r i

&

Horu

O s i - r i

nkurofo-ku = the souls of c i t i e s

= people.

Osoro =

Osi-oro

=

O s i - r i

Horu, a

combination reminiscent

o f the

sky

w i t h Horu the sun-god.

Ma or mo(n) i s

derived from

a-monj

t

means

a c h i l d . See Nos.

16

2i+

442

T'chi

( c o n t i n u e d )

T c h i .

Ancient

Egyptian.

35.

Kro(n)

k r o ( n )

( h o l y )

krou

( v o i c e . )

I t w i l l

be remembered t h a t Khro

( k h r o u

=

voiced i s a n emblem o f

sacredness o r

d i v i n i t y .

By

means



36 .

o-sa

( h e a l )

37•

okara

o r

Kara

( s o u l )

38 .

awu

t o

k i l l )

4.0.

Ku-au

f u l l o f

darkness)

u - z a - i

o r

o-za-i

ka & Ra

khu

39 . su-m

su o r shu

(darkness)

ku & su

o f i t

gods wer.e

cr ea te d (See

Maspero

Dawn

o f

C i v i l i z a t i o n *

p.

146. See al so Etudes de

M y t h o l i g i c e t de Archeologie

egyptiennes

V o l

. 1 pp.93-114.

Ma Khrou or Kherou = t r u e v o i c e ,

genuine v o i c e .

K r o ( n ) - k r o ( n )

i s

a m o d i f i c a t i o n o f k r o u .

h e a l t h

Ka-ra .(okara) = the so ul of

Ra.

awu = t o k i l l , i . e . t o cause t o

become a kh u, a luminous or

disembodied

s p i r i t .

=-'to darken (See T i e l e , H i s t o r y o f

the Egyptian R e l i g i o n , t r a n s l a t i o n

by B a l l i n g a l

p.85

shu = t o s t r e t c h

o u t , t o

cover,

to

darken)

Ku i s used i n the sense of a la rg e

number o f Kus. Ku-su t h e r e f o r e

means

a l a r g e q u a n t i t y o f darkness

i . e .

f u l l

o f darkness. Compare the

G a,

1.

Nyon-mo(n)

(God,Supreme

hk3

G A.

Ancient

Egypt ian

A-mon

Nyon-mon

= the

l i v i n g Amon.

See

Chapter

I I .



D e i t y )

2 .

Nu-mo

( s p i r i t )

3. N BO

sea)

Zj..

Gbo

d i e )

5.

Gbo-le

(death)

6.

Nu

(water)

7.

B i

( c h i l d )

8. Huru(n)

sun)

9.

Gbo-yo

(corpse)

10.

Kro(n)

( h o l y )

Mo or Ma =•

s p i r i t .

so or sa = pond, l a k e , a c o l l e c t i o n of water.

ba gbo

=

to

become

a ha or a disembo-

d i e d

s p i r i t .

ba gbo-le = the process of becoming a

disembodied

s p i r i t .

Nu or

mu

= water.

•

See Budge, Ancient

Egyp-

t i a n Language pp.75

76

No,

55.

B i ,

ba = s o u l .

cp.

o-ba ( T c h i ) = c h i l d .

Horu = sun-god.

ba

~ s o u l .

See Nos.

4 • 5

above.

Krou

=s

v o i c e . I t

w i l l

be remembered t h a t

k r o u ( v o i c e )

an

emblem

o f

sacrednes;s

o r

v i c i n i t y . By means o f

i t

gods,

were c r e a t e d .

See

Masp. Dawn

of

C i v i l i z a t i o n ,

p.

12 6.

Ma krou or

hkh

GA. (cont inu ed) .

Ga. Ancient Egyptian,

11+.

Olowo

hor • Khu

or Olu-wo

( l e o p a r d )

Olo

=

owner; o l u or oru -

horu =

c h i e f ; wo = huo = khu. Olowo or

Oluwo

= the possessor of Khu or



s p i r i t ,

or the

c h i e f

s p i r i t ,

a

l e o p a r d :

compare a-mo-te-ku(n)

(Yoruba; = leopard.

15.

Obla

(young

person)

16. Ba-lu

( l o c u s t )

17.

Di or

Tu'

(To be black,

black)

ba

Ba & La

Dl-du

= s o u l . I n the Ga language, a

l i q u i d u s u a l l y s l i p s i n between

the consonant and the vowel o f

an Ancient Egyptian word. The

s i m p l e s t

form of o-bla is o-taa,

as i n otherV/est A f r i c a n languages.

Ba

=

s o u l ; La =• an Ancient

Egyptian.

=

the black image of O s i r i s .

Compare didu (Yoruba) = black.

18. ITU

( d r i n k water)

19.

Dsu

(wash)

20.

sra

(v/atch)

nu or

mu

su-au

sa

=

v/ater.

=

wash.

=: watch. For the ex pl an at io n of

the

presence of r i n the Ga

word

see Wo.15 above.

21.

Go(n)

(mountain)

qa or ga

= t h a t which i s high



APPENDIX 11. - YORUBA HIEROGLYPHICS.

445.

APPENDIX 11 .



YORUBA HIEROGLYPHICS KNOWN AS AROKQ 1

Having

l o s t th e knowledge

of

Egyptian h i e r o g l y p h i c s

t h e Youbas invented t h e i r own h i e r o g l y p h i c s . These are known

as ARQKO . The s i g n i f i c a n c e

of

the symbols i s g e n e r a l l y

understood, but v a r i a t i o n s

and

l o c a l p e c u l i a r i t i e s o b v i a t e

t h e e v o l u t i o n

of

a n a t i o n a l standard form.

Specimens of the.

h i e r o g l y p h i c s as

used

by

the

I j e b u s

are

given

on the f o l l o w i n g pages.

1.

See Lagos and West A f r i c a n Almanack and D i a ry f o r 1894 toy

J;A. Otonba Payne, pages f o l l o w i n g page 40

446



No. 1. - Prom a

Native

PRINCE of

Jebu

Ode to

h i s BROTHER r e s i d i n g abroad.

By t h i s

s i x * cowries I do

draw

you to

myself,and you should also

draw

c l o s e l y to me.

As by t h i s feather+ I can only reach to your

ears,so

I am expecting you to come to me, or

hoping to see you immediately.

*

E-fa

(the

name

expressive

of

t he number

s i x ) i s from the verb to

draw.

+ Feather i s t h e only o b j e c t which one can

see

or reach the inward hearing organs,

so

you and I

should

see or come to

each

• oth er at a l l events.

4 4 7 .

No. 2 - Prom a

Native General

of- the

Jetrii

Force,

t o a

Native Prince abroad

1

;'



Although

the

road*

between us

both

may

be very long,

yet I draw you to

myself,and

set

my

face towards

you. So I

desire

you to

set your face towards

me, and draw to me.

* The

long s t r i n g s i n d i c a t e considerable

distance

o r

a long: road.

No. 3. - Prom a

Native PRINCE

of Jebu Ode,to

one o f h i s Cousins

abroad.

I n

the

midst

o f numerous

people, before

448



No. 4 - Prom

h i s

Majesty

AWU2EALE,

the King o f

Jehu,

to h i s

Nephew abroad.

449.



450

No. 6. - An unfavourable answer to a Request



or

Message.

The

matter i s unpleasant to our hearing - not

easy to be done.

No. 7. - A Message of Reproof for non-payment

of bebt.

You have given me the back

altogether,after

we have come to an arrangement about the debt you

have owed me, I also wil l

turn

my back against you.

451.



No. 8. - A Message from a Creditor to a

bad Debtor.

After

you have owed me a debt, you

kicked

against me; I also

wil l

throw you

off, because I did not know that you could

have treated, me thus.

No. 9. - A Message of good

wil l

from a

Brother

to another Brother abroad,

asking for a persoanl interview.



A P P E N D I X

I I I .

BIBLIOGRAPHY.

-

452 -



APPENDIX

I I I .

BIBLIOGRAPHY.

The fore-going thes i s is an independent o r i g i na l

work produced by the w r i t e r and

based

upon h i s pe rso na l

observ ati ons and experiences ext end ing over a long

per iod of pa t i en t research. In the pr ep ar ati on of the

thesis, however, several works

have been

consulted and

ext rac t s made

f r o m some

of them, es pe ci al ly f o r the

purpose of comparison w i t h Yoruba b e l i e f s and customs.

A se lec t l i s t of th e works consu lted i s given on

the

f o l l o w i n g

pages.

-

453

-

A.

GENERAL WORKS ON THE ANTHROPOLOGY

OF RELIGION.



Cambridge

Ancient His tor y.

Four

Vols:

Carpenter , J .

E s t l i n , Comparative

Rel ig ion.

Frazer ,

J .G. ,

Galloway, F.,

Jevons, F .B. ,

Lang, Andrew,

MacDougall, W.,

Marett , R.R.,

Menzies,.

A l l a n ,

Moore, G.F.,

M ul l e r ,

Max,

Ti sd a l l , W.St. C la i r ,

Thouless, R.,

T i e l e ,

C P . ,

The Golden Bough, T h i r d Edit ion.

The Golden Bough,

Popular

E H i t i o n .

Philosophy

of Religion.

Introduction to the History of Religion.

The Making of Religion.

Social

Psychology.

Anthropology.

The Threshold of R e li g io n .

The History of Religion.

History of Religion, Two Vols:

Introduction to the

Science

of Religion.

Comparative

Religion.

Psychology

of Religion.

Outlines of the History of Religion

to the

Spread

of th e Universa l Re lig io ns.

B.

-

454

-

WORKS

ON ANCIENT

EGYPT.

Bonn,

E H i t i o n of

Athaeneus.

Edi t ion

of Herodotus.

E H i t i o n of

Strabo.



Breasted,

Ancient

Records.

Development of Re l ig ion .

His to ry

of Egypt.

Clement of Al ex an dr ia ,

Stromata.

Cogan, Ed it io n of Diodorus.

Davies N. de G. Davies,

E l

Armana.

Erman,

G r i f f i t h ,

F . L . ,

Holland,

Kluzinger,

Lanzone,

L i t t l e b u r y ,

Maspero,

Massey,

G.

Egyptian Religion.

L i r e i n Ancient Egypt.

Demotic Magical

Papyrus.

World's

Best

L i t e r a t u r e .

Trans lat io n of Pl in y ' s Natural His tory .

Upper Egypt.

Dizionar io d i Mitologia .

Translation of Herodotus.

Dawn of C i v i l i z a t i o n .

Etudes de Mythologie et d'Areheologie

Egypt ienn es.

New L i g h t on Ancient Egypt.

-

455

-

Proceedings of the Society of Biblical Archaeology.

Renouf,

Book of the Dead.



Sayce,

A . H . ,

T i e l e , C P . ,

Wiedemann,

Wilkinson,

Re li gi on of Ancient Egypt.

History of Egyptian Religion.

Doctrine of Immortality.

Rel ig ion .

Manners and Customs of Ancient Egyp tians.

GRAMMAR

AND DICTIONARY.

Budge, E.A. Wal l i s ,

Cardiner ,

A . H . ,

Egyptian

Language.

Egyptian

Grammar,

being an In tr od uc ti on

to the Study of Egyptian Hieroglyphics

(Oxford, 1927).

Budge,

aA .

Wa ll i s, An Egyptian Hierog lyphic Di ct io na ry ,

Two

Vols : (1920).

C. WORKS ON YORUBA RELIGION.

Dennett , R.

EL

,

A t the Back of the Black Man's

Mind .

Nigerian Studies.

-

456 -

D.

WORKS ON WEST

AFRICA*

(

inc lud ing YORUBALAND).

Adams,

Sketches

taken during Ten Voyages i n

A f r i c a .

Basden,

G.T. Among the

Ibos

of Nigeria .



Niger Ibos.

Burton,

R .F . , Abeokuta and th e

Cameroons.

Clapperton

and Denham, Travels .

Danquah, J . B . , Akan Laws

E l l i s ,

A . B . ,

Tshi-speaking

Peoples.

Ewe-speaking

Peoples.

Ki ng sl ey , Miss Mary, Trave ls i n West

A f r i c a ,

West African Studies.

Johnston , H . H . , The Opening Up of

A f r i c a .

Mockler-Ferryman,

A .F . , B r i t i sh N ig e r i a .

M o l l i s o n ,

A.W. , The Yoruba Coun try, West

A f r i c a .

Nassau, R . H . ,

Fetichism i n West

A f r i c a .

Ra tt ra y, The Re li gi on of the

Ashantis.

Schw eitz er, A . , On the Edge of the Primeval Forest.

Sm ith, Edwin W. , The Golden Stoo l .

Ta lbo t , P. Amaury, The

Peoples

of Southern N ig er ia . Four Vo ls:

In the Shadow of t he Bush.

-

457 -

F. PERIODICALS.

A f r i c a , Journal of the In t ern at i ona l I n s t i t u t e of

A f r i c a n

Languages

and Culture s (London).

Several

Numbers.



Jou rna l of the

A f r i c a n

So ciety, London, J u l y , 1904.

A r t i c l e

by Sir W i l l i a m MacGregor on Lagos,

Abeokuta and the Alak e .

Journal of the Anthropol ogical In s t i t u t e XIX, London. 1890.

A r t i c l e s by Governor Molony and Mrs.

Battey

:

Notes on the Yoruba Country.

Nigerian Chronicle, Lagos, 1908-1910, Ar t i c l e s o n

Burial

Customs

i n th e Yoruba Country by Mr. Feyisara

Sopein under the pseudonym Adesola .

Church Missionary In te ll ig en ce r London, 1857

etc.

Church Missionary Gleaner, London, 1889 etc.

D a i l y

Ser vice , Lagos, A r t i c l e s by Miss: H. M i l l i c e n t Douglas,

M.B.EL

on the Relation of Yorubaland to

EJgypt,

January and February, 1942.

Iwe

I r o h i n ,

Yoruba Newspaper publis hed by the Church Missionary

Society at Abeokuta Oct.

and

Nov.

1861.

G.

OTHER WORKS.

Gibson, B.D. and Oldham, J . H . , The Re-making of Man i n

A f r i c a .

religion of the yorubas in relation to ancient egypt

Documents