Monday, March 31, 2008

Osun Osogbo



Osun-OsogboThis site is located in Osun State, South West Nigeria. It is the cradle of Yoruba cultural traditions.It is believed that Oso-igbo, the goddess of Osun River, was the Queen and original founder of Osogbo. She was credited with many important achievements, which helped to establish the State. She lived in a beautiful surrounding and possessed magical powers, which inspired her people and frightened their enemies. Traditions acclaim her the goddess of fertility, protection and blessings. She possessed the ability to give children (through birth) to barren women and power to heal the sick and the afflicted by means of her medicinal water from the river.

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Reviews
Paul Tanner (UK):Following Dr Darling's "attack" on my review I feel I am entitled to a "right of reply"! Perhaps Dr Darling is not able to understand the significance of the emphatic "quotes" around the words "looking" and holiday" in my review - but nowhere did I say as he states "There is nothing to see in Nigeria"! Indeed I would call upon him, as an academic, who presumably is used to quoting his sources accurately, to justify or retract his use of those words. Is this the sort of academic standard which is common in Bournemouth "University" (again note the quotes!!)? Why is it that people can't just make their own points (e.g. that there are many interesting things to see in Nigeria and there are ways of doing this through his organisation which can make a visit easier/more productive) without making unjustified criticisms of the comments of others! In fact Dr Darling supports my own point exactly by suggesting that people should take a fieldwork holiday working with an African colleague. In my review I suggest "To get the most out of Nigeria you need to have or to engineer an entrée to its society" AND "So, if you do “brave” Nigeria, by all means visit the Osun Shrine – but do some prior study and try to get involved with the locals".I repeat to anyone that, just setting out as an individual on a normal "holiday" (with the emphasis on "holiday” as opposed to other sorts of "journeys") to Nigeria to "look at" sites in much the same way as you might "look at" many other of the “touristically” presented UNESCO cultural sites worldwide, is not likely to prove as fruitful experience as people might hope. I may not be as aware of Nigeria as Dr Darling (Though I did travel independently and solo in Nigeria for 5 weeks as far north as Kano and as far east as Benin City. I have also visited 2/3rds of the countries of Africa and 157 worldwide and may indeed have more “comparative” experience than he has in the relative merits/difficulties of various countries for travelling in) - but perhaps he is too close and, since he already has the local contacts and entrées to which I refer, is unable to appreciate the problems of independent travel in that country. But I cannot believe that anyone who is used to going through Lagos airport could be that naïve! I also have friends who travelled independently across the country this year from Benin – experienced travellers, they still found it daunting and difficult and were pleased to reach Cameroon (which is no picnic either!).

Dr Patrick Darling (UK and Nigeria):The Osun Shrine Grove was one of the sites recommended in the Tentative List of Cultural Properties I helped to draw up in 1994. This activity stimulated Suzanne Wegner into action; and I am very pleased to see the eventual success of this nomination - the second UNESCO World Heritage Site in Nigeria, following the success of Sukur in 1999.This is just one of an amazing number of spectacular sites in Nigeria; and the reviewer who says there is nothing to see in Nigeria and that it is not the place for a holiday clearly does not know Nigeria properly. African Legacy has drawn up a list of over 5,000 sites of interest in Nigeria. Apart from the Osun Shrine, these include Africa's largest monument (Sungbo's Eredo around Ijebu), the Ibokun skull wall near Ilesha, the world's longest ancient earthworks (Benin and Ishan), an inhabited rock shelter (Agbon cave via Iba near Ikirun), the western part of the Kano City walls, Old Ningi (watch out for the hyaenas!), Old Birnin Gwari walls and goldmines, Old Agwarra with its baobabs and querns, the vast stone walls of Surame, Lagos' old Brazilian style buildings and much more.African Legacy organizes fieldwork adventure holidays in Nigeria at cost price (no profit), in which everyone works with a Nigerian colleague (so no exploitation) to discover, map and publicise new features of Nigeria's incredible archaeology, cultural landscapes and wildlife. So far, we have helped to create Nigeria's first UNESCO World Heritage Site, inspire action for this second one (Osun shrine), put in Nigeria's first entry into the Guinness Book of Records, make the masterplan for a new National Park, and obtain international publicity for another site. Why not contact us and see if you could make you own discovery and prove that last reviewer wrong?

Paul Tanner (UK):The addition of the Osun Shrine to the WHS list in 2005 brought back memories of my visit to it during travels around Nigeria in 1975. Nigeria wasn’t and, from what I read, still isn’t really a country to travel around “looking” at places. One could hardly recommend anyone to take a “holiday” there! Dealings with individuals can range from the rapacious, through hostile and unhelpful to extremely kind and friendly. The mere logistics of travel can be very wearing. To get the most out of Nigeria you need to have or to engineer an entrée to its society. By lucky happenstance through a chance travelling companion (I hope the last 30 years have treated you well Judith Barratt of Vancouver!) I had somehow got involved with the artistic and music scene around Oshogbo (a centre for such activities). This included meeting and staying with Twins Seven Seven – now apparently a grand old man of the African artistic scene, highly feted in USA and “owner” of some 6000 Web "hits" on Google (I note that he has even recently been designated himself by UNESCO - as an “Artist for Peace”! How many “lists” does UNESCO have?). Also with another, albeit less renowned, artist Sam Babarinsa (though I note he still has some Web hits). It was Sam who took me the short journey from his house in Oshogbo down to a forest grove by a river. This was the Osun Shrine – a place I noted as being “full of mystery”. We walked through a series of clearings with structures, sometimes thatched and sometimes with corrugated iron roofs. There are many statues and the largest are enormous creations of shaped mud cement often in the form of “gates” through which one enters a shrine. These were created by Susanne Wenger, an Austrian woman who had arrived in the 1950s and set about reconstructing and refurbishing the shrine collaboratively with locals. In an effort to preserve the shrine she re-erected the wall which marked the sacred precinct. So complete was her commitment that she married a local, became a priestess (or “Olorisha”) and a senior member of the “Ogboni” society. The photo is of a shrine which is one of her works and represents the meeting of Obatala and Shango, 2 Yoruba deities (Oshun herself is the river goddess of fertility). One of the shrines is designated to the Ogboni secret society, an “eminance grise” in modern Nigerian politics with a reputation whose nearest Western equivalent might be the Masons but whose political and judicial writ may well go rather further! Looking back, despite Sam’s efforts to introduce and explain, I see the visit as a wasted opportunity – there is so much now I would like to know whereas in those days I didn’t even know I didn’t know! It is still something of a surprise to me that this shrine “rescued” by a European and decorated in a style which is only partially “African” has become such an important place in Nigeria’s contemporary culture – such that Nigeria has chosen to have it inscribed as a WHS! In fact, after even a little study about this place (there is quite a lot on the Web) one begins to realise how much it can tell one about Africa past, present and possibly future and also how much of Africa is unknown and possibly even unknowable to a European (Though Ms Wenger seems to have made a good try! Coincidentally she celebrated her 90th birthday on Jul 4 2005 just 11 days before the Osun Shrine was inscribed. ). So, if you do “brave” Nigeria, by all means visit the Osun Shrine – but do some prior study and try to get involved with the locals.

Have you been to Osun-Osogbo Sacred Grove? Share your experiences!

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