Adroa

Adroa Lugbara (Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sudan, Uganda)

The Supreme God and Creator, who—like many other African gods—had two aspects. He was, therefore, in effect two gods: Adroa and Adro. Adroa (or Adronga) was the sky god. Adroa was transcendent—lying beyond the limits of experience and knowledge—and remote from humanity. Adroa was thought of as onyiru, “good.” Adro was the earth god, immanent—existing within the realm of reality—and close to humanity. He was thought of as onzi, “bad”; his children were the adroanzi. Adro onzi (literally, “bad god”) was associated with death. To gain Adro’s favour, people sacrificed children to him. Later, rams were substituted for children as sacrificial victims. Adroa created the first man and woman—a pair of twins, Gborogboro and Meme. Meme gave birth to all the animals and then to another pair of male-female twins. These first sets of twins were not really human; they had supernatural powers and could perform magical deeds. After several generations of male-female miraculous twins, the hero-ancestors Jaki and Dribidu were born. Their sons were said to be the founders of the present-day Lugbara clans.

Taken from African Mythology A to Z – Library Binding – May 1, 2010- Second Edition – Written by Patricia Ann Lynch (Author), Jeremy Roberts Dr (Editor) – Copyright © 2004, 2010 by Patricia Ann Lynch