Hello everyone, how are you doing on this beautiful day? Today is yet another great day to be alive. We will rejoice and be glad in it.
And so, today I will be talking about the third topic for the week which is Traditional Belief.
As an Igbo guy, I have come across a number of beliefs and traditions among my people, many of which are still being practiced to this very day even though it is not as rampant as they used to be. There are the good and enjoyable ones like the masquerade festivals, New Yam festivals, and the likes. On the flip side, there are the horrible ones like female circumcision, the Osu Caste system, etc.
Today, my post will be on the Osu Caste system.
The Osu Caste System is a traditional practice, dating back to the days of our forefathers. It is one that discourages social interactions and relationships with a particular group of people that are called the Osu.
In the olden days, when men were ruled by gods and rules were given by deities to be followed. Disobedience came at a very huge price. Offenders were cast away from the community and made to live apart from the rest of the people because of the fear that they were cursed and will bring the curse upon everyone else.
There is another view, one in which those who disobey the orders of the King or the decision of the community are banished from the community.
There are different versions of how the system started, but the major fact is that it was never just the culprits that suffered from it. Once someone became an Osu, the rest of the family became an Osu as well. The entire family would be banished from the community and their children and grandchildren will inherit the status from them.
It was so bad that the people were usually made to live in shrines and markets and beg for food. People refused to come into contact with them, they had no means of making a living so life was just horrible. For survival, many of them had to run to faraway lands where no one knew them so they could start over.
And today, decades later, even when the practice had been illegal as of March 20th, 1956, it is truly sad to see that these practice is still being practiced. Albeit quietly.
In my previous post, I made on a traditional marriage ceremony, I mentioned that the families would make investigations. This is another of the reasons they make their investigations. They will not say it out, but no one wants to marry an Osu.
This system has destroyed beautiful relationships that would have grown to become beautiful homes, it does not matter if the couple loves each other and does not care that the partner is an outcast, the parents will vehemently refuse. Things like this have led to people getting disinherited, disowned, and even killed.
Although more and more laws are being made to abolish it totally, we need to educate and enlighten everyone on the evils of the caste system. It does not promote unity in the least, instead, it breeds discord and hate.
For now, it is no longer practiced in schools and churches, and places of work. It is illegal to practice it in public places and it is kind of nonexistent there. But the place it is still predominant is when it comes to marriages. I hope that there is something that can be done, so that anyone can get married to whomever he pleases as long as the love is there.
After all, we are all children of God and there should be no ostracization because there are seriously other things that we can focus our energy on.
So, dear friends, let us stop this ungodly practice immediately and embrace everyone with love. It is what God would want.
P.S: This post is made based on what I learned about the Osu Caste system while in school, so if I made an error of any kind it is totally mine and I stand corrected.
Thank you for reading, till we meet in my next post.