Why Edo, the Nnewi Goddess, Left Omaliko of Abatete || Igbo Histories

Written by: Nze Tobe Osigwe (Ezeikolomuo)

Edo, the daughter of the great water God Idemmili, was a powerful goddess of Nnewi. She married Omaliko of Abatete, but he failed to treat her with the respect she deserved. She left him, disappearing for centuries before reappearing mysteriously in Agbaja.

Asala Stories #1

Edo, Goddess of Nnewi

Edo was born towards the end of an era. The era women ruled the universe. The period Gods lived freely with humans. She was the only daughter of idemmili. Idemmili was the great God that owns and rules the water.

Edo came at the historic period women willingly gave up their leadership position to the menfolk in order to avert the great war being summoned by men against women who they accused of using their immensely supernatural powers to subdue and control them.

This type of gender war between men and women has been fought before, about twenty thousand years ago. It was the very war that destroyed the great matrilineal city, Atlantis(Ataisi). The womenfolk did not want to witness such gargantuan destruction that set the world back again.

So, this time, they willingly signed a treaty with men to be stripped of their supernatural powers and also agreed to be led by men.

It was this development that pushed Idemmili to sought for a marriage between Omaliko The Great and her daughter, Edo. Prior to this, it was men that beg fruitlessly for a marriage between them and daughters of God.

Omaliko was new to leadership. He led his family with iron hands.

Edo was the most beautiful female on earth at this time. Such alluring beauty needs to be tended and not subjected to cruelty. Besides, She was trained to give orders and not to take one.

Omaliko promised Idemmili that her daughter will be lavished with the tender loving care she deserves as a princess. But Omaliko who was drunk with his new found privileges and power reneged on his promises. He refused to build a befitting palace for Edo. He also refused to give her her own river where only her will bath.

Denying Edo who was the only daughter of the great water God from having her own private river to bath, but rather, subjecting her to make use of common stream was the kernel that broke the horse’s back.

Edo Goddess Shrine, Nnewi

Edo could not take it anymore so she decided to leave. She told Omaliko she is leaving him. She told him that he has not treated her like a Goddess that she was.

Omaliko laughed at her. He asked her “where could she possibly go to? The era women shuffled freely between the world of human and the world of spirits has ended”.

He reminded her that the era of Gods living amongst men ended that very day women signed the treaty to hand over their leadership position to men in order to avert the great war.

She assured her husband that her full powers as a woman God were still intact. She asked Omaliko, does he really think Idemmili would have stripped her of all her powers like the men requested?

She told Omaliko that all women of the world were stripped of their powers except her, Edo.

To prove to his wife that she was ordinary like other women, Omaliko drew his Obejiri to slay Edo. Edo disappeared.

Everyone in Omaliko’s palace were shocked. A search party was set out to the ends and breadth of the world. They searched for Edo for one hundred years. She was never found.

Edo reappeared what seems like five hundred years after her disappearance at the palace of Omaliko. She appeared naked in an Isu community located in the country called Agbaja.

A little seven years old boy known as Uruezikokwe was the fortunate lad that sighted the fair naked woman who was glowing like gold.

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