Otan Ayegbaju' or Otan for short, is a small town in Osun State, Southwestern Nigeria. It is the headquarters of the Boluwaduro local government area.
It is believed that Otan Ayegbaju was founded by
some of the direct descendants of Oduduwa some
five hundred years ago. Oduduwa is the mythical
founding father of all Yorubaland. The founders left
Ile-ife, the birthplace of the Yoruba people, to settle
initially at Otan-ile in Ijesaland before migrating to present day Otan Ayegabaju. The Owa Of Otan Ayegbaju is the title given to the
traditional paramount ruler or King. Today, that
position is held by Oba Lukman Adesola Ojo Fadipe,
Arenibiowo Owa Olatanka III. Otan is a culturally
rich town whose population consists mainly of the
Ijesas and Oyo tribal group.
Otan is located in the northern area of Osun State,
thirty-seven kilometers from Oshogbo the state capital. It covers a land mass of 100 sqkm2. Its terrain consists of hills, mountains, dense forest,
vegetation and gullies caused by erosion. The
climate is tropical with warm temperatures and
low humidity.
OKE MARIA
Oke Maria, Otan Ayegbaju is held annually on the
second Saturday and Sunday of February.
During this period, Catholics go on an annual
pilgrimage to Mary’s Mountain (Oke-Maria), Otan
Ayegbaju.
The mountain site purportedly started through God’s vision and the first pilgrimage there was in December
of 1980 Otan Ayegbaju community in Boluwaduro Local
Government Area of Osun State again becomes a
beehive of activities every February. The many pilgrims, who throng the Oke Maria Prayer
Ground starts arriving from different parts of the
country from Saturday afternoon. Oke Maria pilgrimage is an annual event, which
affords Christians of the Catholic faith and other
denominations, the opportunity to meet, pray
together, seek God’s intervention in their problems,
with a view to finding solutions to it.
The pilgrimage is described as a journey to a shrine, holy place or sanctuary, for a religious purpose. Such
journeys are a common attribute of religious devotion
and are not confined to any particular religious
tradition. It is a place, where people go to meet God,
experience His love and seek His face. It is a programme that has afforded Christians,
especially of the Catholic faith, of knowing their faith
and to pursue their salvation. In the previous years, Oke Maria pilgrimage has been
witnessed by thousands of pilgrims.
Strangely, some of these pilgrims bring food, mats,
mattresses and pray together. It’s a two-day affair. On the Saturday, people throng
the ancient town of Otan Ayegbaju, thereby kicking-
off the programme till Sunday morning. To strengthen the bond of Christian brotherhood, most
of the pilgrims come in groups.
The programme kicks off at Saint John Catholic Church,
Otan Ayegbaju, where the opening prayer is held and
the procession starts from the church to the Marian
ground at Otan Ayegbaju. On getting to the venue of the vigil, a pilgrim would
not be surprised to see a lot of commercial activities
going on around the area. Many faithful would display their goods, which include
some religious sacramentum, others display bags,
shoes, chains, restaurants and everything edible that
would make the pilgrim’s stay at the prayer venue
comfortable. There is no doubt that February in the State of Osun
has come to represent something of unique
importance. It is true that February is the aring and while the
whole world is celebrating love, there is no better
way to share this love than to be with God and to
share it with fellow worshippers. This is what the pilgrims at Oke Maria do every year. During this period, commercial activities in Otan
Ayegbaju town swell. Traders from different parts of
the state troop to this hilly and quiet town to make
brisk business. The sleepy nature of Otan Ayegbaju is temporarily
disturbed for those two days. God descends on this town during these two days and
miracles accompany with signs and wonders. If this
has not been so, people would not look forward to
going for another pilgrimage in the coming year. According to sources, during the Oke Maria
pilgrimage, pilgrims who throng Otan Ayegbaju are
more of Christians of other denominations than those
of the Catholic faith. Motorists and commercial drivers also use this period
to increase their transport fares. Though, this is part of
extortion, but many of the pilgrims visiting Otan
Ayegbaju don’t complain, as they gladly pay. Oke Maria is just one of the many prayer and spiritual
retreat centres in the state. Others that are found in other towns in the state
include; Ori Oke Ikoyi, Ikoyi in Isokan Local
Government Council Area, Ori Oke Baba Abiye in Ede
and Babalola International Miracle Camp at Ikeji
Arakeji. Unlike the latter which belonged to the Christ Apostolic
Church fold, the former is fully under the Catholic
denomination. Since Oke Maria started about 32 years ago, the town
of Otan Ayegbaju has fast assumed both national and
international status.
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