Live and let die

The ancient Igbo society was built on the principle of live and let live. Many of the proverbs of that era captured this all-important concept that formed the foundation upon which every other fabric of progress lay. “Egbe bere, ugo bere. Nke si ibe ya ebela nku kwaa ya” (Let the kite perch and let the hawk perch. May the one that refuses to let the other perch lose its wings). “Ndu mmiri, ndu azu. Mmiri atala ma azu anwula” (May the river and the fish live. Let the river not run dry that the fish may not die). “Nwa mmuo emegbula nwa mmadu, nwa mmadu emegbula nwa mmuo” (Let the spirit being not oppress the human being and vice versa). These are just a few of the proverbs that capture this evergreen philosophy.

The implication of these tenets of Igbo belief system was that in one community, you could have a priest of Amadioha ministering to his God and to the people. His ministry would not clash with that of the “dibia mmiri” (rainmaker) in the next compound, whose job was to render services concerning rainfall to the same people. There could be palm readers, visioners, prophets, “dibia afa” (diviner), “dibia aja”, “dibia mgborogwu” (herbalist), “dibia ogbanje”, etc. All of them would be operating smoothly within the community without rancour because of the principle of “onye na nke ya, onye na nke ya” (Each man to his calling or destiny). A herbal medicine man could consult a rainmaker if he needed his services, and vice versa.

You cannot point to any war that Igbo people fought based on religious differences. They went to war when someone or some people forgot the principle of the ancient landmark or when neighbours chose to violate the “egbe bere, ugo bere” concept, never on religious grounds.

When the colonizers came calling, the people did not understand their motive, hence the initial resistance. Once they understood that it was all about a system of worship, they began to cave in and allow them to operate. Their religious orientation taught them that as long as it was the worship of the same Chukwu Okike, the God of Creation, the kite must perch and the hawk must perch. Little did they know that these lamb-like preachers came with a message of live and let die that aimed at wiping out everything they met on ground. The mission of the missionaries was actually a conquest of the natives aimed at taking not only the land captive, but the very souls of men.

Every truly progressive society should be built on the principle of live and let live. It is only in such an atmosphere that people can realize their full potentials and be all they were created to be. Whenever individuals attain self-realization, they are happy and the happiness of individual members of the society translates into the happiness of the entire society. Conversely, the principle of live and let die implies that if the Catholic Church is the first to come into a community, they would do everything to stop any other church group from coming in. If they succeed in getting established, a cold war (or even hot) ensues immediately. My grandmother taught us the songs they were taught in their own church to ridicule members of the rival church in those early days. The Pentecostal churches warn, coerce and threaten their members to make sure they do not marry, sit in deliberation with, or mingle freely with members of ‘dead churches’, as they brand all other groups outside their own fold. The Christian is taught that he alone has discovered the abode of God and how to get there in peace. He now sees the Muslim, traditional worshiper or adherents of other faiths as lost. The Muslim has been taught that God knows only him as His child while all others are doomed.

Even within the same denomination, rancour oozes out unchecked because it is all about self-interest. When the foundation is wrong, the building cannot stand for long.

My point is that the foundations upon which the religious practices of our day are built are faulty. They are creating trouble where there should be none. They should be humble enough to realize that they have erred and deceived the people out of ignorance. All the wars threatening the world today are traceable to religious folly. I advocate that these religious gladiators should borrow a leaf from the ancient Igbo and others who practiced true love, cooperation and tolerance in all matters of religion. Their understanding of the concept of God has proved to be superior to the ones that came from outside our shores. We have the benefit of hindsight and standing on this pedestal, everyone who appreciates the truth can see that what we had is better that what now prevails.

If all the blood that has been shed in the name of religion should be placed together, it would form a river or ocean of blood. This is an irony that baffles even the wisest men. Religion is all about finding God and finding peace. How did it degenerate to a do-or-die affair? At what point did it become so bad that religious office-seekers resort to the same antics politicians use to acquire positions? When did it become big business to own or run a place of worship? What is it that prevents worshippers from realizing that they should not allow themselves to be used to cause disharmony in the society? Why is it that most worshippers throw away their God-given common sense once they approach the place of worship? Why is it that all kinds of evil are now traceable to the sacred place of worship where holiness should be the watchword?

Well, I believe the foundation is wrong and must be revisited. At source, every river is clean but as it moves downstream, it gathers all kinds of impurities with the result that the water is very dirty. Pertinent questions must be asked and answered by every adherent of any religious system. In the Igbo system of worship, for instance, they have reviewed the practice of human sacrifice and expunged it because there could be no rationalization for it. Other such obnoxious practices like killing of twins, killing of a child who cut the upper teeth first, etc have been jettisoned.

If Jesus is truly the head of the church and he was humble, simple and content with very little, how come he produced followers that are proud, arrogant and materialistic to the point of craze? If Islam started as a religion of peace, how come a lot of violence thrives in many of its areas of dominance?

If we can get committed leaders of various religious groups who will decide to recover the integrity of their faith, I believe that the chaos in our world will be reduced to the barest minimum.

Nnenna Ihebom