Ọ̀ṣun as a Primordial Divinity: Gender Roles in African Yoruba Eco-Spirituality in Ọ̀ṣun-Òṣogbo Grove in Nigeria

Abstract

Ọ̀ṣun is a primordial divinity in African Yoruba eco-spirituality, who negotiated her identity among other patriarchal divinities while playing a significant role as a guardian of ecological balance and gender equity. Ọ̀ṣun is associated with water, which substantially influences her nature as a divinity. Water is life. The importance of water lies not in its beautiful panorama but in its preservation of life. Through an ecofeminist and indigenous epistemological framework, the author argues that gender roles in African Yoruba eco-spirituality are crucial to ecological sustainability, as opposed to the Western epistemic ideology of environmental ethics and preservation.

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