This is one critical area that is not mostly looked into because of civilization that has invaded the African systems and as corrupted our system and beliefs.
Before the Europeans came into our lands and introduced their own god Africans however, had a system of beliefs and they had their own gods that they worship which we are going to be talking on in this very article.
First let us talk about their beliefs as it concerns sacrifice unlike the white man’s god who receives offerings and tithes as its major form of sacrifice, the Benin people had various sacrifice associated with different gods and for different reasons.
When offering prayers for the safety of the land and the endowment of wisdom to lead the land in peace and tranquility the people usually offer sacrifices of leopard to the gods this is so because the leopard is a symbol of kings and royalty so it is believed that offering it to the gods will further cement their prayer point and make the gods act swiftly.
There are other animals that which these people saw as the symbol of these spiritual entities such as crocodile which is the symbol of Olokun the god of water and wealth, snake was seen as the symbol of Osun the god of nature etc.
Now haven understood this there is need to look into the origin and existence of these forces now the Benin people think that the universe was created by a supreme being which they refer to as Osanobua and based on their religious belief, the system is divided into two parts the physical realm and the spiritual real they believe that the spiritual realm is under the earth or a place where the sky and earth meet however Osanobua is a king who rules this spiritual space from his palace and have delegated responsibilities to his children which are the other gods now this contradicts the white mans belief which is based on one sovereign god whom they say has a son and a medium from which it carries out tasks one way or the other I will leave to be the judge while I Transend into the realm of the ancestors and bring you information’s beyond human comprehension.
One of the children of Osanobua who is as old as time is Olokun the god of water and wealth now, this god send the blessings of child birth and wealth to her devotees as commanded him by his father Osanobua.
Ogun is another son who’s entrusted to handle the area of works or craft and metal.
These two brothers are vital forces mainly used by these Benin people so when discussing their religion these two are constantly and repeatedly mentioned.
There are other gods such as sango, Orunmila, Esu, which they borrowed from the Yoruba empire.
The craft head of Olokun Picture representation of Olokun.
The shrine of Ogun
Here Ogun is standing tall in the shrine. Another show of Ogun in a shrine.
This is Esu the god of chaos
A chief priest of Sango Showing what Sango looks like
This is the shrine and the statue of Orunmila and his chief priest showing its full power.
Written and compiled by Noel Ogbaloi with all reference from chief priests and shrine visitations across Nigeria for the purpose of this research.
