The Concept of Divine Kingship in Igala Traditional Society
The Attah Igala was referred to as a divine king the same way the
Jukun and the Benin regarded their rulers, the Aku Uka, and the Oba of Benin
respectively. This idea of divine kingship came because his office was that of
a priest king as he performed very vital sacrifice for the well being of the state
and citizenry. Aside from that, the Igala people believed that the Attah had the power to control agriculture, the fertility of the soil and women, the elemental
spirits, wind and water bodies.39
In Igala traditional society, the divine kingship of the Attah Igala was
equated with the Sun or the Moon. It even goes beyond that as the Attah was
sometimes called Attah–Inah, meaning the Holy Father. Metaphorically, Oma
– Ata – inah is the name for leopard in Igala language. Attah Igala was,
therefore, seen as the son of the Holy Father. He was greeted with the
acronym Agaba meaning “Lion” or Idu. The person of the Attah was believed
to be charged with a sacred dynamism and must not place his bare foot on bare
ground.40 The reason given for this is that, if he touched the earth with his bare
foot, his magic elements would escape from him into the ground where it will
be lost.41
It was also a taboo to touch the personality of the Attah or to sit upon
his chair, mat or bed. He can only shake somebody‟s hand when he is prepared
to do so. The exception to this was certain privileged persons who were
virtually protected to handle any part of his insignia.42 These were his Eunuchs
and assigned priests. To prove his divine characteristics further, the pieces of
his hair and nail cut were preserved.
The claim to divine kingship also manifested in the aspect of the spirit
of the late Attah. It was believed that the spirit of a dead Attah inhabited a
newly crowned Attah. The assumption was that they guided and protected him.
They also gave him supernatural powers far beyond and above the ordinary
person. The Attah was in charge of the sacrifice to the spirit of the Royal dead
persons who were believed to have metamorphosed into spiritual leopards, the
symbol of spiritism in traditional Igala society. It should be noted, however,
that the theory of divine kingship is subject to fallibility. In a society that was
purely illiterate and inquisition almost non-existent, the people believed
whatever they were told. The Attah was a mortal being and not immortal. To
debunk the concept of divine kingship, the last Attah, Aliyu Obaje gave
himself to the worship of Almighty God as a Muslim.43 The word “divine”
thus, has no relation with kingship except for complex spiritual qualities and
principles that uphold systems of monarchy in most parts of Africa.
Further claim of this divine kingship was seen in his solitary life style.
For instance, he lived in almost complete seclusion, accessible only to
important officers of state and to those of his household sworn into secrecy,
who must not under pain of death penalties divulge anything heard or seen
within the king‟s domain. Exceptions to this seclusion were audiences to the
envoys of important personages. This was usually obtained after great
difficulty. The annual festivalsin which the appearance of the king was obligatory provided the only opportunity. During this period, they sat in the
ogbwede, that is, council chamber for the discussion of urgent affairs of state,
and for the exercise of his supreme judicial functions.44 Even at that, it was
customary for the Attah to emerge from the royal enclosure in the cover of
the night so that his subjects would not familiarise themselves with his person
and looks. This was to protect the superstitious awe with which he was
regarded. Two ancient rhymes suffice here:
(i) Be te ma lule odu, Onuwa dododa;
Meaning: Go not forth into the night for the king is outside.
(ii) Chenwu ke li idu odada Erule; which translates: Should you meet the
lion, the Attah, on the path, flee his presence.
These songs are still prominent in present day Igala folktales. They
demonstrate Attah‟s divinity in Igala concept. The belief was that the Attah
watches over his subject at night in the spirit of a lion. However, his divinity
cannot be seen in his human nature such as a rage, laughter or grief. His act of
sitting down could not also be used against him. What usually counted in
terms of his divinity were his footprints. Still in the realm of divine kingship,
he does not look upon a dead body or on a person suffering from foul, or
deadly disease such as leprosy. He was, however, believed to possess magical
powers for the cure of lesser maladies. He was also credited with the ability to
exercise control over some elemental spirit and thus, over the harvest.45
In Igala traditional society, the Attah was profoundly conscious of his
divine nature. In reaction to an allegation of a dubious conduct by the British
officer in 1936, Attah Amocheje declared:
Over you are the Resident who may correct you if you have
gone amiss, over the Resident is the Lieutenant Governor,
over him the Governor in Lagos, and over him the White
Man‟s King. Over me, the Attah, there is none except OJO
meaning the Supreme God.46
A few years later when the land suffered from a plague of locusts, the Attah
declared at a council meeting with the District Officer that “Igala‟s immunity
was responsible solely to his own supernatural powers”.47
In 1841, at a
reception for the representatives of the Niger expedition, Attah Amocheje
stated thus:
The River belongs to me a long way up and down on both
sides, and I am King. The Queen of white men has sent a
friend to see me. I have also seen just now, a present which is
not worthy to be offered to me – it is only fit for my servant.
God made me after his image. I am all the same as God and
he appointed me a King.48
That was the level of the belief of the Attah in the concept of his divine nature
in Igala traditional society. He saw himself as god and behaved accordingly.
But if he were really god he would have no need for food nor sleep because
God does not eat nor sleep. Clifford has observed that:
His food was prepared by young virgins bound by a special
oath who performed this duty in the nude. The food was
served to him at appointed hours in the morning, noon, and
evening – by two other naked virgins who brought the sacred
dishes to his private quarters and awaited the signal that he
was ready to receive it.49
One of such signals was a cough, which implied permission to come in. On
getting into the chamber, the servant would fall on her knees and place the dish
beside him. She avoided gazing at the king by bending her head downward.
She would then wait for the king to finish eating. While she waited, she sat
back on her heels motionless with her arms on her laps. When he is satisfied,
the Attah would give a further signal when the same girl would re-enter and
remove the dishes, carefully sweeping up any scraps which might have fallen.
The dishes were then cleansed by a special acolyte charged with the custody of
the Attah‟s regalia and possessions.50
The use of virgins for this purpose was probably based on two
assumptions. One, in most traditional African societies‟, menstruation was
seen as an agent of contamination. It is deducible, therefore, that it was to
avoid the possibility of contaminating the Attah‟s food and the cooking
utensils by menstrual blood that young virgins below the age of menstruation
were used.51
unclothedness was also insisted upon to hinder the temptation of
poisoning, as there would be no where to hide anything on a naked body. In
modern day Igala society, the Attah‟s food preparation is carried out by certain
selected wives who must undergo a special oath.
Customarily, in Igala traditional society, a small portion of everything
the Attah ate or drank was placed in a covered brass receptacle known as Ane.
It was an extremely sacred object. History has it that it was never washed and
yet was kept filled with water. Traditional folktales affirm that he spits the
food and drink into the bowl and in so doing was ritually feeding the spirits of
the ancestors. The water from the vessel was an oath-binder of great potency.
Either as a symbol of respect, or for fear of attracting the wrath of the Attah,
complete silence was observed within the compound when he was eating. It
has been said that the Attah abandoned his food if he heard the barking of a
dog. As a confirmation of this taboo, no dog was seen in the vicinity of the
Attah‟s palace. This is in spite of the fact that Igala people were dog keepers.
Mongrels were thus, generally repugnant to him.
In furtherance of the concept of divine kingship in Igala traditional
society, the Attah was not addressed directly, except by his intimates, nor does
he speak directly to a person seeking audience with him or appearing before
him judicially. The individual concerned addresses a so-called “interpreter”
who simply repeats to the Attah exactly what has been said, and repeats to the
individual the replies or comments of the Attah.
©igala nation unite freedom fighter —
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Igala are found mostly in Kogi State, Edo, Anambra, Delta, Benue and Rivers state and are estimated 5 millions people. They are rule by The Attah

Nice1

victor4ekele:
Igala are found mostly in Kogi State, Edo, Anambra, Delta, Benue and Rivers state and are estimated 5 millions people. They are rule by The Attah

Igala in Rivers state?