Olojo Festival: Still a melting of culture, fanfare

Though the annual Olojo Festival in the ancient city of Ile-Ife has remained a melting point for tribes, races and celebration of the rich Yoruba cultural heritage, this year’s festivities held within the Oduduwa House, where the palace of the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi is located was unique with glamour and finesse which further added global appeal to the historical event.

The weeklong celebration which climaxed with the adorning of the age long “Aare Crown” believed to have descended from heaven centuries back succinctly brings to the fore the mystery surrounding the beaded crown, which is worn once in a year by the Ooni.

A retrospective look into the advent of Olojo Festival indicates that it is a sacred event that commemorates the descent of Oduduwa to Ile-Ife. It is historically tied to Ogun, the quintessential deity of iron and truth who is the father of modern science. Ogun, the Yoruba deity of iron, is regarded as the pathfinder.

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There is no disputing the fact that Yoruba’s cosmology showed that Ogun charted the way for Oduduwa, the progenitor of the Yorubas and other deities. From this perspective, Olojo Festival is therefore meant to commemorate the period Oduduwa and other spiritual deities descended on earth.

From the foregoing, it would not be out of place to conclude that Olojo  is a landmark event that predates the existence of mankind, signalling the establishment of mankind on earth, through the source–Ile-Ife, the land of expansion.

The celebration of Olojo usually spans two weeks, including seven sacred days of programmes of events referred to as Idijo, meaning the determination of sacred dates, which is done during the first week of August (Osu Ogun)—the month of the pathfinder deity. This is followed by Gbajure (signalling the commencement of Olojo Festival) a week before the actual date of Olojo, when a reigning Ooni would wear the Aare Crown.

Two days after these events, the Oonirisa would go into a state of physical and spiritual seclusion with his ancestors, the esoteric beings and Almighty God for five days during which he would abstain completely from engagement with any mortal. The traditional ruler would come out of seclusion on a Friday, referred to as Ojo Ilagun, a day of earth cleansing with the Ooni’s terrestrial message to the world.  The earthly symbolic conviviality is usually on Saturday, the Okemogun day, which is the day that the traditional ruler adorns the Aare, the sacred beaded crown.

But one mystery about the Aare Crown, which has eluded the comprehension of ordinary humans is the weight of the beaded crown, which one of the palace sources told the Nigerian Tribune that is more than 50 kilogrammes, thus making it a herculean task for the Ooni, who must adorn the elegant crown from his inner chamber in the palace to the Okemogun shrine to complete the traditional rites and other spiritual requirements for the aesthetics of the festival. The festival usually attracts local and foreign tourists, including traditional worshippers of Yoruba descents from Brazil, the United States of America, Cuba, Trinidad and Tobago, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and other parts of the world.

According to the source, who pleaded for anonymity, the task of wearing the Aare Crown by the Ooni every year can be very daunting, taking into consideration the overbearing weight of the crown and need for the traditional ruler to trek long distance from the palace to Oke Mogun shrine.

He, however, added that the Ooni must be spiritually fortified to bear the intimidating weight by those saddled with such responsibilities within the palace court, saying the moment the traditional ruler emerges with the crown, there would be sporadic firing of dane guns, which would somehow lighten the weight of the crown to enable the traditional ruler forge ahead in fulfilling the annual and compulsory obligation.

Nonetheless, findings by Nigerian Tribune indicated that the weight of the beaded crown would still be heavy for the Ooni to carry such that a close look at the mien of the Ooni may seemingly radiate the pain and sacrifice for the sustenance of undying traditional heritage, that had placed the Yoruba race in the South West in vantage position holding the ace in the preservation of African customs.

Meanwhile, last Saturday’s grand finale of the festival aptly showcased the class, finesse and dynamic features introduced by the organisers of the event to further boost its local and international appeal to individuals of diverse cultures and traditions that converged on the ancient city of Ile-Ife to catch a glimpse of the colourful displays by adherents of Sango, Ogun, Orunmila, Obatala Osun and other deities, who paid homage to Oba Ogunwusi who majestically sat on a higher platform on a modern stage, constructed for the festival.

Speaking during the festival, the Osun State governor, Rauf Aregbesola said governmental institutions, relevant stakeholders and Nigerians must strive to preserve the nation’s cultural heritage now and for future generations, adding that African culture, most especially in the South western part of Nigeria was germane to “our distinct identities which must not be lost to dynamism of western civilisation and other global trends.”

Represented by his special adviser on tourism, Mrs Taiwo Oluga, Aregbesola maintained that “this remains an important condition to ensure that the identities of the races in the country were preserved for coming generations.”

Oba Ogunwusi, who was accompanied on a symbolic movement to Ogun shrine near his palace by the wife of the Ogun State governor, Mrs Funso Amosun, local and foreign tourists, prayed for the sustenance of prevailing peace in the South West, Nigeria, the African continent and the global community.