Origins: The Alusi and Ekwensu

Chukwu, who is the Supreme God, according to the ancient Igbos who are famous for their rich religion and cultural tradition known as Odinani, is believe to have so many children who are also gods (lesser gods) and dwell with him in the Sky. These lesser gods are known as Alusi and one of them is Ekwensu who is the focus of this episode. Have you ever wondered why Ekwensu is called the Devil? In this episode, you will get to know who Ekwensu really is and the amazing facts about him.

Even after the arrival of Christianity and Islam, traditional religion remain strong and still retain a powerful hold over the consciousness of West Africans, and one of the major tribes in Nigeria, the Igbos are not left out. At the top of the pantheon of the Igbo gods is the Supreme Deity known as Chukwu which when translated directly to English means, "great in size", but when broken down in Igbo as Ch-ukwu means, "the god that is big". It got to a time when the Supreme God, Chukwu is no longer in communication with the people, they had to find a way of reaching him through the lesser gods, Alusi who has their specific functions. So, you can say, Alusi are the middlemen between the people and Chukwu.

The top five Alusi happens to Ekwensu (the god of war), Ala (the god of fertility), Igwe (the god of the sky), Anyanwu (the god of the sun), and Amadioha (the god of thunder). We would be focusing on Ekwensu in this episode. When the Europeans came with their religion and saw that the Igbos had no place for the devil in their beliefs, they convinced them that the devil is synonymous to Ekwensu who is the god of war.

You can listen to this episode of Story of the gods @ Jamit.fm