NTE-OSWINA ORACULAR DEITY IN IKWO TRADITIONAL SOCIETY: A HISTORICAL SYNTHESIS FOR CONFLICT RESOLUTION, 1800-1970

Abstract

Nte-Oswina was one powerful deity unknown to the Europeans during the processes of colonialism. A deity whose powers were used to resist British invasion of Ikwo, became prominent following the outbreak of the Nigerian-Biafran war of 1967-1970 about a century ago when the people used the oracle as an instrument of protection. Within this period however, and when the Nigerian soldiers conquered the old Ogaja province and detonated bomb at “Eke Igboji Marketâ€, there were several Ikwo people who ran into the Nte-Oswina’s forest for protection hence, there were heavy smokes that appeared and covered the forest and began to hypnotize the soldiers until they were driven away by bees. Against this background, this paper seeks to unveil the mystic powers of this deity with the aim of finding out whether the failure to document the activities of Nte-Oswina especially in the area of conflict resolution by Igbo historiographers like other powerful deities such as “Ibinukpabi†and “Igwekala†whose records dominated African history was a deliberate attempt or lack of interest from Igbo historians. Data for this study were collected from both primary and secondary methods while data collected were analyzed through the application of historical narration. Preliminary investigation revealed that the unpopularity of this powerful long “juju†wasn’t deliberate but rather, lack of interest particularly from the Ikwo people who refused to provide information to early historian that sought to reconstruct the history of the preliterate people like the Ikwo society.