Oluwatoyin Vincent Adepoju
Abstract
A first-hand account of relationships between beliefs in the spirituality of trees and in witchcraft in the traditional thought of the people of Benin-City, Nigeria, in conjunction with questions about these ideas and the creative possibilities they may suggest, presented through accounts of my encounters with various trees and culture bearers in Benin-City, correlated with other examples of ecosystemic spirituality.
The visual force of trees, specifically the ọkha, ikhinmwin and iroko, among the most significant arboreal forms in traditional Benin spirituality, is projected through pictures taken and edited by myself at times suggesting their aesthetic power, their atmosphere shaping character and evocative potencies, images aligned with commentary describing their cultural significance and my responses to their inspirational force. The pictures were taken using an iPhone 6s and edited on an HP laptop.
I could not use all the images I would have liked to employ for this essay on account of the limitations of Google Mail, my primary template for essay composition. The essay is also complemented by videos I made and by many other pictures I took, which, ideally, should be referenced in the essay, linking to the online locations of these video and image libraries, a comprehensive mapping of my discoveries which I intend to present with time.
A Nexus of Dimensions on a Busy Modern Street?
Iroko, outlined majestically against the sky, in front of the compound of the Ezomo of Benin, on Ekenwan Road, at its junction with Plymouth Road.
The tree defines the skyline, as human and vehicular traffic move past it, a tableau above which run wires conducting electricity.
Ancientness and modernity, spirituality and technology, in the context of the conception of iroko trees, in Benin thought, as privileged points of convergence of material and spiritual realms, intersect in the picture of this iroko facing the street in which it is located.
Earth, air, water and fire, the primordial elements, are unified through the tree's nurturing by soil and water, sun and air, and are further evoked through the vehicles representing technological creativity empowered by fire.
Close Up of Iroko Tree in Front of the Compound of the Ezomo of Benin
The tree is tied with the white cloth of purity, white and red being two principal colours of Benin spirituality, the white cloth stained here with the liquids of sacrifices, evidenced by ritual pots in which sacrifices are placed at the base of the tree.
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