The Story Of Ovia And How She Became The Benin goddess Of Peace

Before Ovia became the Benin goddess of beauty, she was a very beautiful young woman who once lived in Uhen Benin city, in the South-South part of Nigeria. Many suitable suitors came to marry her, but she insisted that she was only going to marry a king.

The then king of Oyo asked for her hand in marriage, and it was accepted by her parents. However, before she left for her husband’s house, her father gave her three gifts, which include a water pot, a dog and a parrot.

The purpose of the water pot was for her to come back through it whenever her husband maltreated her, while the purpose of the dog and the parrot remains a mystery. The king then gave her a room close to his hut so that he could visit her whenever he wanted.

The love the king had for Ovia aroused jealousy among all the other wives, and in retaliation, the first wife asked all the other wives to get a bowl and follow her to the farm to collect snails.

When they finally got to the farm, all the other wives filled their own bowls with snails, while Ovia had no bowl to fill hers, she had to tie hers in her clothes.

When they finally got back to the palace, Ovia’s white cloth had been stained with slime from the snail she had tied in them, and this prompted the other wives of the king to accuse her of having an infection.

Due to the disgrace from the accusations, Ovia ran to her room and wept, and before the king could visit her in her room, she had already melted away with the tears that fell into the pot that was given to her by her father.

Her tears transformed into a river which flowed back to her father’s house, and she confided in her father and told him that no woman should ever experience what she experienced in her life.

Ovia was later revered as the goddess of providence and peace in Benin. Therefore, during the yearly festival that is held in her honor, women are not allowed to participate because it could mean their doom