A tumultuous adulating crowd witnessed the Omo N’Oba N’Edo Uku Akpolokpolo, Ewuare II, Oba of Benin, on Tuesday to commemorate the Isoton rite of his Queen mother, Iyoba Omo N’ikuoyemwen, Iyoba Ewuare II, 49 years after her transition.
Isoton is a traditional rite of the procession in memory of the departed person’s spirit in Benin Kingdom. It is usually heralded by a public display of the departed person’s affluence during their sojourn on earth.
The display of Akọ, a human effigy symbolising the departed royal matriarch, was preceded by Oba Ewuare II, who led the procession from his Palace to the sacred Emotan deity at King Square in Benin City, where he offered prayers for the repose of the soul of Queen mother, Iyoba Omo N’ikuoyemwen, Iyoba Ewuare II.
Thereafter, a priest assigned to the Emotan deity offered Oba Ewuare II items for Isoton on behalf of his family to Emotan through the Emotan priest, who in turn gave him two chunks of white native chalk (Osorhue), amid cheers from royal fans after ancestral spirits were invoked to bear witness and announce his arrival.
Retreating to his Palace, the first-class traditional ruler met the Isoton group from Eguae Iyoba at Uselu, led by his representative, Oziya.
Oziya twirled the ceremonial sword shortly after the Oba departed Emotan and proceeded to Uselu with other royal family members on foot in continuation of Isoton, in accordance with Benin customs and tradition.
Thereafter, Oba Ewuare II paid tributes at various pilgrimage sites, including Queen Iden’s tomb beside Oba market, where a cheerful crowd of traders abandoned their wares to catch a glimpse of the royal personage and join the celebration.
Personalities across different spectrums, including the Speaker of the Edo State House of Assembly, Blessing Agbebaku, a former Emir of Kano, Ado Bayero, and a former governor of Bauchi State, Alhaji Isa Yuguda, attended the colourful ceremony.
Various palace groups, including royal drummers in their philharmonic orchestra, provided the needed impetus in the ongoing special historical events.
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