AKWARI OMUMU: The ancient AWA tradition that must not be ignored

AKWARI OMUMU:

The ancient AWA tradition that must not be ignored

The saying will always be true: If a man does not know when the rain started beating him, he cannot know when it stops. Suffix it to say that whoever fails to dig out his past will certainly pay for it.

My good friend and brother, Chuks (Chukwuma Okeke of Ajango village), had one of the most beautiful child dedication and Nkuputa Nnwa ceremonies last weekend (July 29^th). It is always lovely to be in a feast hosted by a jolly good friend. Yes, Chuk’s event yesterday showed me that this amiable Awa guy is a jolly good friend. The class and quantum of friends, well wishers and business associates that attended the event said it all. Above, Ndi-Awa in their numbers were present to cheer with their beloved that decided to expresses a heart of gratitude to the Almighty who blessed his young family with a bouncing baby boy.

Indeed, our Awa tradition has from the time immemorial recognised that children are gifts from God. So while waiting for the event to kick-start, as eating, drinking and jokes were going on, I had to call out our big brother, Chief Jonas Onyekwene (aka. Eze-anumba-ogu) for a brief interview to abreast myself on how Nkupute Nnwa was done in the time past in Awa. Hear him:

Chief Jonas Onyekwene (Anu-anumba-ogu)

“Talking of Nkupute Nnwa is like talking of Nfuta Omugwo (that is, a ceremony to mark the formal ending of Omugwo programme – which starts immediately a child is born).

In those days, when a woman gives birth to a child, both child and mother were kept indoors for a period of Seven native weeks (called Izu na asaa - that’s one English month). Within these days, they must not appear in public. As a matter of fact, a bar (egbo) is created in front of her apartment, indicating that a new child and mother were in the house. Visitors coming to congratulate her have to cross the bar before entering to see them.

On the very first day that the child is born, the family will buy a clay bowel (oku) which shall be place at the family’s deity called akwari-omumu. This deity has a small hut built over it, usually at the entrance of the family compound. It is believed to be responsible for child bearing and sustenance of the child in the family. Inside the hut is built a mold of clay brick where the clay bowel of any new born child in the family is attached to. An egg is placed inside this child’s pot in the akwari-omumu. Any day the new borne child is sick the egg is used to rub round the child with verbal pronouncement, in form of prayers, asking the akwari to heal the child and keep him/her alive.

On the day of Ifuta Asaa – on the 28^th day of the child’s birth -  early in the morning, the elders in the family, including their Umuada, will go with kola to thank the akwari for keeping the child for the period. Once this is done, the women in the family will start shouting with joy, “asaa eme  o!, asaa eme  o! asaa eme  o! When the other women in the neighbourhood hear this, they will join in the shout while coming to congratulate the mother and child for surviving the seven weeks (izu-na-asaa) period. This is the beginning of the ceremony of Ifuta Asaa. Kola and drinks are offered by the man of the house while neighbours rejoice with them. On this moment, the child is formally brought out before the public. Indeed, it is this official appearance of the new born that is called Ifuta asaa.

If the family is ready (sometimes they may not, due to a lot of expenses made during the ime-omugwo), the child’s naming ceremony will hold that day with a lot of funfair and merriments. On such occasion, friends, extended relations, in-laws and well-wishers are invited.

According to Chief Jonas, Akwari is a very powerful deity and highly revered in the family. He explained that careless handling of the deity had wrecked a number of families in the community. He gave instance of a family in the town where so many deaths led the family to start making inquiries. According to him, a prominent member of the family forcefully removed the deity from the family without the agreement of other members of the family. When it became obvious that the deaths in the family were no longer ordinary, some traditionalists in the family had to go on inquiries and akwari was fingered as being responsible for the bad omen. The elders of the family had to come together with the umuokpu to appease the deity and begged it to seize performing its role in the family. Its relationship with the family was therefore formally severed.

When asked why the deity is hardly spotted these days in any family in Awa, Chief Onyekwena explained that the deity, being usually located in front of the family compound, often present an awful sight to the compound and depicts the family as that of idol worshipers. As such, most families come together and agree to remove it, especially now that modern buildings adorn most compounds and almost every member of the family are Christians. But where the deity is forcefully removed without agreement by majority of the family members, according to him, it could spell doom for the family.

The knowledge of the operations of family deities like akwari is useful to Christian brethren who want to carry out self or family deliverance. To believe that such powers can be ignored or handled with levity amounts to zeal without knowledge. 

Okey Okoli Emmanuel
(Editor)