{"id":8067,"date":"2013-08-10T04:39:43","date_gmt":"2013-08-10T04:39:43","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/disnaija.com\/nigerian-newspapers\/olua-festival-of-osi-ekiti-when-spirits-visit-the-living\/"},"modified":"2013-08-10T04:39:43","modified_gmt":"2013-08-10T04:39:43","slug":"olua-festival-of-osi-ekiti-when-spirits-visit-the-living","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/disnaija.com\/olua-festival-of-osi-ekiti-when-spirits-visit-the-living\/","title":{"rendered":"Olua festival of Osi-Ekiti: When spirits visit the living"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The early morning August sun smiles gaily on the brown earth which spreads wide and long before a white painted enclave.<\/p>\n

The thick wall which begins from a yellow painted bungalow bearing the inscription \u201cIle Olua\u201d runs straight and long and disappears into a thick forest which boundaries the groove on the left; for the thick wall shields the grove of Olua: the Imole which visit Osi- Ekiti twice a year \u2013 March and August. It was Sunday 4 August, 2013 in Osi- Ekiti, Ekiti State. And it was some minutes before 10 a.m.<\/p>\n

The long wall has two openings. And like a few other sections along the long wall, the two openings were covered with palm fronds. The yellowish green of the fronds was dark at the tips.<\/p>\n

Out of the two openings only one was a thoroughfare though not for just anybody but the initiated members of the Imole cult. Acolytes, only male, clutching pieces of papers bent double as they passed through the barely waist level high hole-in-the-wall to place the supplications of their \u201cclients\u201d before Olua who in turn make some prescriptions for the supplicants who adherents believe would return at the next festival to show gratitude, if they complied and followed the directives of the age-long visitors from another world \u2013 the Imole.<\/p>\n

The other opening in the thick fortress is a shrine of sort. It also had the draping of palm fronds but unlike the former one, there was no thoroughfare.<\/p>\n

On the ground was an assemblage of different articles of worship: kolanuts, salt, two big horns of some wild animals and some white plastic bowls gazed on by a bottle of schnapps.<\/p>\n

Slightly to the right of this shrine sat the aworo (priests) of Olua. Most of them are aged and they support their bent frames with bamboo staffs which are also symbols of their office.<\/p>\n

As these gaunt men sat in reverence bare headed, suppliants and grateful adherents trickled in to pay obeisance to Olua for favours sought and favours granted. As the day dragged on, the large patch rectangular shaped earth in front of the enclave started swelling with humans who kept on trooping in.<\/p>\n

The scanty leaves on the ancient Odan tree standing protectively over the square could not offer enough succour as the crowd which had grown in leaps and bounds now sought shelter under copies of old newspapers, umbrellas and even wrappers for protection from the sun which was now coming out more strongly.<\/p>\n

Some 30 meters to the great enclave, an impromptu market had sprung up. Goats, sheep, ducks, chickens, kolanuts, smoked fish and rats, honey, adi (palm kernel oil); just name any object of sacrifice; they were there. It was a ready market for adherents who needed to offer sacrifices quickly and promptly as prescribed by the unseen Imole Olua.<\/p>\n

It was where supplicants quickly rushed to, to get their orders which they took back to Olua. Olua, according to Olori Mese, of its chief priests, is as old as age to the people of Osi and its environ which includes Ido, Ido-Osi, Usi and two other towns.<\/p>\n

The Imole, he explained, are spirit beings which emerge two times in a year \u201cand answer the supplications and prayers of those who seek them from both far and near.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo one knows their origin. We met our fathers worshipping them and we followed suit. Nobody knows who they are or where they come from or their sex and age. They are mysteries. People come from near and far to consult them on a varied and wide number of issues.<\/p>\n

These include barrenness, riches, ill health, good will, longevity, cure for diseases, ill-luck and just virtually anything\u201d Lending credence to Olori Mese is the wife of the town\u2019s monarch Olori Taiwo Agunbiade.<\/p>\n

According to her, her parents always believe that she is a special being and hence had to consult the Imole when she was about to get married.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey told my parents that I should get married from within the town as I was destined to be a leader. I heeded their advice. I married an indigene of this town and now today, I am the queen of the town. At the early part of my marriage, I did not get pregnant on time. Again, my parents consulted the Imole.<\/p>\n

And again, today, I am the better for it. The marriage has also produced beautiful children who are successful today.\u201d Olori Agunbiade also corroborated the claims of the adherents that the Imole call on people from the crowd and give them message. According to her: \u201cThis is occasionally. It does not happen all the time. But it is true.<\/p>\n

The Imole calls on people and tell them what to do. They call on total strangers. That is their way. It is a strange one.\u201d Around 2pm, the atmosphere of the place changed.<\/p>\n

There was mounted excitement. And suddenly, bells started ringing. And the total clampdown on any form of electronic device be it camera, camcorder or even gsm handset was totally and brutally enforced.<\/p>\n

Recalcitrant members of the public were beaten up and even some people were harassed mere on suspicion of trying to take photographs while they were merely answering calls. Young men tipsy and even drunk were the enforcers. It is better imagined than witnessed their mode of law enforcement.<\/p>\n

With their loads of whips which they carry fiercely, woe betides any suspected breaker of the no-photographing law. The crowd which had grown into a multitude was pushed back and kept some hundred of meters from the enclave. With the sun glaring harshly down on the crowd, everybody men and women, old and young must be bare headed.<\/p>\n

No head gear was allowed from anybody. Still, the multitude persevered. The noisy and boisterous moves of the young men suddenly erupted into joyous chants, after some minutes of total silence.<\/p>\n

The visitors from another world had finally arrived. They were greeted with thunderous welcome. A figure, barely two feet high and covered from head to toe in palm fronds emerged limping in a style similar to the dance steps of the rampaging young men, moved to the monarch.<\/p>\n

Necks strained and eyes roved, people scrambled for higher and better positions to get better views and comments were rife. Practically all indigenes and old timers became commentators; telling eager listeners what to expect next from the sprit beings. Most of their tales came to past while some did not. After some a time, another shout rent the air.<\/p>\n

Another one had arrived. And so, two beings (Imole), totally shrouded in palm fronds, ambled around the square and stopped at some places which had earlier been marked out by palm fronds.<\/p>\n

As the figures ambled round, moods changed and the atmosphere became electrified. Chants were uttered and believers were seen making different sorts of supplications to the Imole. After about an hour of the dance, the two figures ambled slowly to the entrance of the grove where they emerged from followed first by the young men bearing whips and then dancing indigenes of the town and lastly visitors.<\/p>\n

As they ambled to their groove later to come out again early the following morning, one song sung in the dialect of Osi-Ekiti which caught the ears of the reporter is: \u201cDele ki o to ro, oun o ba ri ni ibi Imole, de ile ki o to ro\u201d Don\u2019t reveal until you get home, whatever you eyes behold in the Imole\u2019s grove.<\/p>\n

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Posted in Nigerian Newspapers. <\/a>A DisNaija.Com<\/a> network.<\/p>\n

Source: National Mirror Newspaper<\/p>\n

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