Works from Don Bosco Technical Institute, Onitsha ... - Altervista

They are also believed to be the fortune teller who claims to have
magic powers, to tell people what will happen to them in the future. They
made sacrifices to their gods like tubers of yam, goat, cow, eggs and even
human blood to their oracle, in order to appeal to the gods of the land. Once
sacrifices are made and are accepted by the gods, the problem is solved and
there will be happiness in the land.
Dear Friends,
By:
EZEOKE GRACE IFEYINWA
DON BOSCO TRAINING INSTITUTE ONITSHA
OF NIGERIA.
I am happy for this great privilege to write to you, someone I have not met
and to share my view of life with you. I believe that you will be happy to
welcome this idea.
I want to share two aspects of my culture; widow’s maltreatment and burial of
an illegal marriage with you, concerning the womanhood in particular. This
has to do with the way woman especially the widows are being maltreated by
their husband’s people during their husband’s burial and burial in illegal
marriage.
There is this bad side of my culture that treats women badly. When a woman
is married to a family where she is greatly disliked by her husband’s people,
she is likely to face so many problems should she loose her husband
prematurely.
Where this is the case, or when the kinsmen suspect the woman of being
responsible for her husband’s death, the new widow has to undergo the
following conditions:
First, the daughters of the kindred (umuada) will shave the widow’s hair clean.
Then she will be brought before the kinsmen, where the dead body of her
husband lies, to swear ever having anything to with his death.
Second, the chief priest (ezemmuo) from the shrine comes with their
concussion to the scene, and with the help of some of the elderly men, they
washes the corpse and the water from the corpse will be given to the woman
to drink. Then, she will be asked by the chief priest to cross his medicine pot
after saying some incantation and this, she must gladly do.
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