Kawaa-Bari (The Feminine God) and Gender Construction among the Ogoni of Eastern Niger Delta, Nigeria

Abstract

This study examines the feminine conception of the divine in Ogoni indigenous religion, with emphasis on its philosophical, theological, and socio-cultural implications. It argues that the Supreme Being, Kawaa-Bari, is conceived in Ogoni metaphysics as fundamentally feminine, understood as the ultimate source of existence, sustenance, moral order, and relational harmony. Revered as the “Mother of Creation” and “Moulder of the Universe,” Kawaa-Bari is associated with fertility, nature, and life-generative power, reflecting broader Ogoni social structures in which women occupy central relational and ethical roles. Using qualitative ethnography and oral-textual analysis, the study contends that femininity in Ogoni theology is not merely symbolic but constitutes a foundational metaphysical grammar shaping ethics, social relations, and cosmology. It denotes generativity, interconnectedness, and sustaining presence rather than biological sex or gender hierarchy. This framework aligns with African relational metaphysics and resonates with Ziibalogzii’s ontology of being-with. The paper challenges colonial and missionary androcentric misreadings of African religiosity. It contributes to African philosophy of religion and decolonial theology by rethinking divine gender as a category of participatory cosmology rather than anthropomorphic projection.

Received: 15 May  2026 / Accepted: 30 June  2026 / Published: July 2026