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Global Africa: Journal of African and African Diaspora Studies

Abstract

The Ikenga, a noteworthy relic of the Igbo people of southern Nigeria, is examined in this paper as a major art object for a better understanding of African traditional religions and belief systems. Ikenga is a wooden sculpture traditionally made to represent an individual's power, achievements, and spiritual essence among the Igbo. Ikenga is ascribed the embodiment of the relationship between personal action, ancestral respect, and divinity within Igbo mythology. Within the framework of Igbo traditional religion, this paper examines the ontological significance, spiritual purposes, and social consequences of the Ikenga. The symbolic relevance of Ikenga as both a personal and community religious object will be examined and employed as an interdisciplinary approach that includes anthropology, history, and religious studies. For the owner, the Ikenga fulfills various purposes, including spiritual empowerment, personal Chi (personal divinity), Ike (strength), and ancestral legacy. The study will use oral histories, ethnographic evidence, and iconographic investigations to understand the role of Ikenga as an African cosmological concept, spiritual technology, embedded in initiation ceremonies, oath-taking, and rites of passage. The research also addresses the marginalization of such Indigenous spiritual objects that have served as vehicles of knowledge, resilience, and cultural identity in post-colonial narratives.

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