In lgbo culture, dibia is one big person with power and respect.
Dibia is a doctor, priest, healer, and seer joined in one
They use spiritual and herbal knowledge to help people connect with the spirit world and also to solve medical problems .
Not everybody can be dibia; it is unique, and it’s something that someone can inherit from family or get a call from the gods( agwu) to do.
In Igbo land, the dibia is like a bridge between people and the unseen forces controlling life: gods, ancestors, and spirits.
Who is Dibia, and what do they do?
Dibia is someone who knows plenty of things that pass the ordinary eye.
They are:
Heal people: If you are sick, whether it’s a body or mind problem, dibia can use herbs, roots, and spiritual power to cure you. They know the leaf or bark that can work for malaria, stomach pain, or even madness that is believed to have been caused by spirits
They see the future: They are like the prophet Dibia, can discuss what will happen tomorrow or warn you about future dangers. They use tools like cowrie shells, kola nuts, or mirrors to see what eyes cannot see.
Talk to Spirit: Dibia calls ancestors or gods to settle problems. If the spirit is angry or somebody needs protection, dibia makes a sacrifice or ritual to cool things down.
Fix the juju problem: If somebody does something terrible to you with juju or curses, the dibia can break it or send it back. They know how to fight spiritual battles very well.
Guide Community: In the old times, dibias helped the village know the good day to plant a yam, fight a war, or perform a huge ceremony like marriage or burial.
They have different types, Some dibia focus on healing(dibia afa), and some do strong rituals and cleaning too. But all of them work with the spirit world and nature.
How someone can turn Dibia
To be a dibia is not a small thing. Some people were born into it; if your father or grandfather is a dibia, they can train you from being a minor to taking over. Some get calls from Agwu, the Igbo god of divination and madness. When Agwu calls you, you can start seeing a vision or acting strange until you are trained under one dibia.
The training can take many years. They will teach you medical herbs, how to talk to Spirits, how to use rituals that backfire and many more
The dibia training will test you well to ensure you can handle the power and expertise
If you fail, you can experience problems like or evil spirits that will follow you. That’s why dibias are respected; they carry a heavy load in the community.
Dibia and Igbo Life
In Igbo culture, the dibia is a big part of how things roll. Before the white man brought church and hospital, the tibia was where the doctor, pastor, and judge joined together. Numerous people still run to the dibia when the hospital or church can’t solve a problem.
Market Days: The four-day Igbo weeks, Eke, Orie, Afor, and Nkwo, are important in dibia work. Some days, like Afor, are suitable for ritual because of the god that controls them. Dibia can tell you, “Don’t plant yam on Eke day; it won’t grow well.”
Festival and Tradition: During the new yam festival( Iri Ji) or masquerade time, the dibia leads prayer or makes sacrifices to bless the land and chase away evil spirits that can spoil things.
Family Problem: If two brothers are fighting on land or somebody dies and they don’t know why, they will call Dibia to check what’s happening in the spirit side.
Dibia don’t work alone; they have apprentices or helpers who learn under them, and sometimes, they join with other dibia in tremendous work, like cleansing the village from the curse.
How People See Dibia
Some people fear the dibia because it knows how to do good and evil. If the dibia gets angry, it can use its power to do juju that can shake someone’s life, but if it likes you, it will protect you more than anything.
In the olden days, they respected dibia very well. Nobody could talk to them because they were close to the gods.
Even Obi(king) or Eze(chief) will ask Dibia for advice before they do big things.
But when the white man church came, they started to call dibia work “paganism” and introduced devil to Ndi Igbo as the Igbo spiritualism never had room for a “Devil”. Some people stop trusting them because of that, but most Igbo people still believe that the power of the dibia is accurate and doesn’t lie.
Dibia Today
Even with the advent of Western Religions and Western doctors, which was joined as one in Dibias, the practice is still much prevailant as Dibias still render most people with herbal medicine or spiritual problems today
Some are mixing church with dibia work too. They will pray in Jesus’ name and still use the leaf they learned in the old-fashioned way.
Modern life has reduced dibia shine, but they don’t die out.
Young people living abroad even call dibia for a consultation, showing that culture is still alive and well.
In Nollywood films, there is a lot of dibia showing, even if sometimes it’s overdramatic.
Dibia in Igbo culture is like the backbone that holds spirit and body together. They are healers, seers, and warriors who fight for the community with more than ordinary knowledge.
From ancient times, dibia has shown that Igbo people can mix nature and spirit to live well. Whether it is to cure sickness, see tomorrow, or settle spirit problems, dibia is a power that cant fade in Igbo land.
Reference
•Chinua Achebe – Things Fall Apart
•John A. Umeh – After God is Dibia: Igbo Cosmology, Divination and Sacred Science in Nigeria
•Victor C. Uchendu – The Igbo of Southeast Nigeria
•Elizabeth Isichei – A History of the Igbo People
•P.J. Ezeh – The Igbo People: Culture and Character
Dibia Photo-
