There was a time when men were judged by their ability to reason, and by their capacity to sit with and counsel the elders who had gone before them. Morals and values were handed down from one generation to another. Every generation understood its responsibility to preserve its moral code, values, principles and spirituality, and to hand them over to the next.
Then the invaders came with a religion that preached a different set of beliefs, teaching the people that their wealth and reward were somewhere in the sky.
They also introduced a new method of writing while condemning our own native means of communication as primitive.
The men of old perceived this threat and fought for over 37 years to preserve their culture, inventions and, to some extent, their spirituality.
During this period of war, they manufactured their own guns and spears and even used natural bulletproof protection known as Odeshi.
The invaders could not understand their tenacity, so they devised another tactic: they condemned everything they believed could give the children of these men the power, knowledge and confidence to reclaim their land and identity in the future.
And gradually, the children of these great men are still wallowing in ignorance today, fighting over the latest hairstyles, clothes, gender issues and other distractions, while the very things that make them who they are are being stripped away.
Do you have any guess where this could be happening?
I bet you do.
Isn’t it a shame that our forefathers would risk their lives, energy and skills to preserve a generation that would one day look back and condemn them?
Let’s reflect on a few things.
First, let’s talk about our spirituality.
In the olden days, men and women were deeply connected to nature and to the spiritual world. They interacted with their ancestors, understood the signs around them, and had a strong sense of who they were. There were even people who could tell you that their time on earth was near, and rather than being consumed by fear, they could face it with acceptance, believing that their elders would be there to receive them.
What is happening today?
We have so much departed from ourselves that we now rely entirely on weather forecasts—and even make excuses for them when they predict wrongly.
Our ancestors could look up at the sky and warn of rain while the sun was still shining brightly.
Again, I came across a video of a man on TikTok who narrated how people from other countries and continents preserved what their fathers handed down to them, while continuously improving it as the world changed. He mentioned things such as red wine and spirits.
But what stood out to me was the fact that the palm wine our forefathers used for weddings, relaxation and meetings is, in many ways, still at the level at which they left it. In fact, one of the few “improvements” this generation has managed to make is to adulterate it.
This makes me wonder: what happened to our spirit of innovation?
If previous generations could create, invent and adapt, why are we not doing the same with what they handed down to us?
Look at the Igbo people of Nigeria, for instance. They endured immense suffering and conflict throughout the twentieth century. During the Nigerian Civil War, they fought to survive and demonstrated remarkable ingenuity despite extreme limitations. They produced scientists and engineers who developed cars that reportedly ran on fuel derived from palm oil, created the Ogbunigwe, built an airport in a thick forest, and sustained a war effort for three years under extraordinary circumstances.
Don’t you think that if it were this generation facing such circumstances, we would ask ourselves whether we would fight with the same determination—or simply resort to fasting and prayers?
The point I am trying to make is that Africa needs to sit down and reflect on itself. We need to embrace our uniqueness and relate with other continents of the world on equal terms.
This is because no nation will truly take seriously a people whose arguments and contributions are constantly reduced to men-and-women issues, marital conflicts and an incessant quest for material things that they cannot even produce for themselves.
Therefore, it is high time we all put on our reasoning hats and reflect on who we are. We must rediscover ourselves, embrace our heritage and understand that no one will do for us what we ought to do for ourselves.
Our ancestors handed something to us.
The question is: what are we going to hand over to the generation that comes after us?
Until we wake up,
I remain your friend and brother,
Maazi Onuora Obodoechi.
