Ogwugwu Ezenebo: The enduring Oracle of Nimo

As the contemporary African society struggles with the dilemma of choosing åbetween Western/Eastern religions and sticking to their native religion and practice, most people still shuttle between orthodox Christianity, in conformity with the trend, and consulting native deities when they seek relief from the vicissitudes of life yet, one cannot but shudder at how much influence rituals, customs and traditions as preserved by these various religions continue to rule over the affairs of men, most times independent of reason. One of such Oracles, Ogwugwu Ezenebo of Nimo in Njikoka Local Government Area of Anambra State, continues to rule over the affairs of men even in this 21st century.

Ogwugwu Ezenebo Festival is an annual event in memory of the ancestors and the oracle Ogwugwu Ezenebo in Nimo, Njikoka Local Government Area Anambra State. The event which is held in the Oracle’s Temple, runs for four Igbo market days. it starts on Nkwo, which is when the Oracle accepts offerings, and ends on Afor, when all the attendants are fed. During the festival, adherents from far and near visit the shrine to show appreciation to the oracle for various granted favours by dropping money, fowls and goats. Masquerades also parade within and around the vicinity and there is a lot to drink and eat amidst traditional music and frenzied dances in honour of the oracle within the Temple ground.

Canopies and luxury cars and currencies of different denominations and from different countries are seen littered everywhere in the temple, even as some attendants are seen roasting the piles of meat, while coolers of rice and other African dishes are served adherents who had come to pay their respect to the deity.

The High Priest of Ogwugwu Ezenebo is Vitus Oyieke, ana agba onye isi egbe nke mbu na Nimo, na Njikoka Local Government Area, na-ana Igbo, n’uwa niine (Eze mmuo, (Chief Priest) Eze Ogwugwu Ezenebo). He admits that he does not know the origin of Ogwugwu Ezenebo but took the footsteps of his father who was also an adherent of the oracle, though a Christian, he said he discovered a culture of “dishonesty and hypocrisy” pervading the faith which made him question the religion.

Narrating how he became the chief priest of Ogwugwu Ezenebo, the young man, who looks in his 40s said that he had left Nimo, his hometown, to explore means of livelihood in various occupations in the city. But when he discovered that he was not making headway in any enterprise he engaged in, he was forced to return home, after years of fruitless struggle in farming, mechanic and other jobs. Inquiries were made by his kindred and it was discovered that he, had been chosen by the oracle to serve it.

On how he gained personal conviction that he was indeed the chosen one, Vitus said, “I knew that this oracle is real and powerful and has chosen me as its mouthpiece because anytime I break kolanut and make declarations before it, it always answers me. And since I started serving it, my family has never experienced difficulties or sickness and my footsteps have remained secured in all my doings and everywhere I go.”

The high priest further explained that only goats and chicken are offered as sacrifice to the oracle, not dogs or humans. He intimated that practitioners of traditional religion are not evil as they are perceived, saying that no true traditionalist that summons the ancestors and the earth goddess with kola nut ever contemplates evil because such a person would be killed within four days.

According to him, only quack traditional doctors who are not called but learnt the art for profit making are the ones that aid people in perpetrating evil. He stated that one of the signs of a true native doctor is that he does not live in affluence but simply. “Odinana na ebu eke”, he said.

Also acknowledging the place of traditional doctors in the society, fair complexioned Obiageli Aniele, a native doctor and psychic said that her spiritual name in the great Ocean is Abubo Ugo, “according to my covenant in the spirit world”, while the world calls her Ada ndi mmuo (daughter of the spirits) and Ada Orimiri (daughter of the Great Ocean). She explained that it is because all the spirits in the four corners of the world know her that she is called daughter of the spirit.  “Any sacrifice I make to any oracle anywhere always gives me response within a fortnight”, she claimed. A great oracle, she said, helps anyone who believes and acknowledges it. She said the reason she came with her entourage to the shrine of the Ogwugwu was because she has a covenant with the oracle in the spirit world.  When she started her ministry in African Traditional Religion in 2010, things were not going well for her. She kept pondering what to do. Then one night, an apparition clad in white and tall that she could not behold the face stood before her. When she enquired about the identity of the spirit, the spirit told her that its identity will be revealed to her some place away from her home. The oracle informed her that it was Ogwugwu and that it had a covenant with her in the spirit world.

When she enquired the nature of the covenant, it told her that she would get the details in its own temple. She performed her customary breaking of kola nut that evening and then the next day, during her morning prayers, she drew the customary chalk in honour of the Ogwugwu and prayed it to come and show her where it was, if it was true that it had a covenant with her. It then led her to the shrine. ‘‘I came in with a plate and the oracle telepathically told its attendants to give Nwadiana her share (referring to her). They just were through preparing Yam porridge. I was served and after I ate, the deity told me that they were many and that I should feel free to come to them and ask for aid in whatever seems to be my trouble. I came out and started asking people about the oracle that calls itself Ogwugwu Ezenebo. It turned out that my mother came from that same clan but I never knew. When I heard that it was going to have its ceremony the next two days, I rallied round for resources and organised a native music group and came for the ceremony on that day.”

On her way, she said to the oracle to prove itself by possessing her once she stands in front of its shrine. And that was happened. Immediately she got to the entrance of the shrine, she felt a strong vibration and the spirit possessed her. As she staggered under the anointing, she hailed it by its titles four times and told it that she was going to prove the efficacy of the spirit world that day. She then started visiting the throng of oracles in the shrine. As she got to each of the shrines, she sprayed several naira notes. “I spent more than N70,000 in this shrine. I then told it to prove itself by making my ministry blossom and to gain acclaim all over the world. Immediately I got home, one man called me on phone and told me he was boarding flight to my place immediately. That he had a pressing need he wants me to attend to. I told him I knew what his problem was. That he did money ritual with his private part but that presently he had one Yoruba girl he wanted to marry and he now needs his members to be functional so he can perform his marital duty. i went on to solve his problem. Since then, my ministry has been growing in leaps and bounds. I bought land and cars and built a mansion within one year and six months. This is why I have resolved that even if every other person denies Ogwugwu, I will continue to serve it for the rest of my days.”