AMADIOHA IN IGBO-AFRICAN RELIGION AND THE QUEST FOR ECOLOGICAL BALANCE

In African traditional religion, in virtually every facet of its expression there is an emphasis on the environment or the world in which humanity has found herself or herself as a gift from the Creator and ultimately His property. This introduces the sense of stewardship and responsibility on the part of the human person in his or her relationship with the environment. This is a gift reserved for the human person as a result of his or her distinctive spiritual nature, of which when properly harnessed will lead to the achievement of the purpose which the Creator has ordained for humanity; however, if not well managed could lead to the destruction of the peace of humanity. Human beings form a dialectical totality with the the environment with each side affecting, and being affected by, the other. The elements of the universe are understood as manifestations of great spirits with which the human person must negotiate for his or her own existence. This relationship and negotiation is possible because of the spiritual point of contact between the human person and nature. One of such elemental forces is Amadioha, the God of lighting and thunder. It occupies a very important place in Igbo religion. While there are a few papers written on Amadioha deity, there is hardly literature that discusses its relationship with the eco-system or its ecological relevance. The question that burdens this work, therefire, is its contribution to the preservation of the environment in precolonial Igbo society. This piece will, therefore, study Amadioha as a spiritual force among the IgboAfrican people and its ecological relevance. For the purpose of this piece, the phenomenological and hermenuetic approaches were employed. It submits that the relationship of the traditional Igbo society with Amadioha communicated a concept of nature in which the human person and the material world and other dimensions of the universe constituted a dialectical totality.

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