TRADITIONS OF ZURU
UHOLA FESTIVAL
Uhola festival in the Lelna land like any
other cultures of the Nigerian tribes is done to mark the end of the
year or the farming season. It is also primarily celebrated for
thanksgiving for the year harvest and it is equally to mark the end of
the childhood and that K’lela boy or girl that undergoes the festival at the age of 14-17 years is due for manlyhood they both can marry and have wards.
However, this festival must have developed by the Lelna from the cultures of other people with whom they had contact during seasonal migrations.
The findings here is derived from elders of different clans particularly amongst Lelna people in Zuru Emirate with emphasis on Dabai which is the heart of the Lelna, Waj, Manga Pani, Senchi, Dago, Rumu, Ribah and Rikito etc respectively, however, there are other tribes like the Fakkawa in Fakai Local Government, Dukkawa in Sakaba and Dankawa in Danko area each celebrate Uhola in the way and manner it suits them though with variations in the periods of the celebrations.
The festival is mostly celebrated within the months of November and
December except on special cases though some areas do exceed the months
mentioned above because some areas celebrate theirs before harvesting
their crops while some do that after the harvest, the elders do it by
the order of the second announcement of the date.
As already mentioned earlier, Dabai has the responsibilities of managing traditional political and religious aspect of the Lelna people right from their earliest history. This is so because most of the shrines of the major gods are situated at Dabai. The Uhola festival involves the appeasement of the gods by pouring libation at their respective shrines, which is considered extremely essential. For instance the god
of rain is thanked for the rainfalls and then requested to cease
further rains to enable the crops yield well. It is believed that too
much rain do not make for good yield. It is therefore celebrated as a
sort of send-off of the rain by appealing to the god of rain
through 1t3 shrine at announced date towards the end of the year. It is
normally in the month of October or early in November.
The ceremony takes place at the shrine of god of rain which is, known in Cilela as “Kabun Menke“. This means ‘the Hall of Rain, and the chief priest is called “Govn Menke” or “Gn’nmnk“.
Meaning the chief rain-maker. All ceremonies relating to the rain are
done by the priest in a communal worship. This is known as ‘Gut man ‘Menke” meaning, send-off of the rain. After this, the appeasement of other gods at their shrine follows.
These gods include ‘GQvuk ‘dada’ and “GQvuna Isa” etc.
Who then permits the appeasement of other smaller gods. These
celebrations are said to be for the purifications of the community in
preparation for Uhola celebrations. They are carried out to thank the various gods for their guidance through the year. Uhola on the other hand is to jubilate for the peace the gods have offered the entire community since the beginning of the year.
After the ritual ceremonies then comes another ceremony to announce the Uhola festival. It is the celebration of the burning of the bush known as ‘Dwa M’dhutu in C’leIa! This is done at the shrine called‘D’hutu. It is the shrine of god of snakes. On the day of
the burning of the bush, the priest weeds around the shrine, which is a
small thatched, round, hut. It is on this day that Uhola day is announced. There is always a gap of about a month between “the burning of the bush” and the Uhola festival day.
DabaI is also a seat of the ritual and the festival activities in Zuru Local Government of which Uhola is one of the most outstanding. Zuru Uhola mecedes all Uholas in the emirate. The history has it that any Uhola within
emirate that precedes that of Zuru, its elders clans men will die that
year en masses. So far that principal reason Uhola will hold first
October then that of Zuru people then followed by that of Dabai. Dabai
Uhola is normally celebrated along with that of Rikoto. These normally
come up around the months of November and December. Then other Uhola is
followed such as, Peni, Manga, Senchi, Ushe, Dongo, Rambo, etc.
DoNgo and Rambo as earlier mentioned. Those around Waje, Ribah, Gwazawa, Rambo, Kanya come up in either February or April.
Having talked about the festival in general, so concentration should
now be on the actual performance of the festival in some cases Dabai
Ubola may come at the same time with that of Zuru, Manga, Senchi Ushe, Pani and their
immediate neighbours. But in other cases the Zuru, Manga Uhola may come
before that of Dabai, Rumu, Rikoto and Daban same.
These traditional ‘cities’. In close association with Dabai serve to
alert the other neighbouring traditional ‘Cities’. Dabai Uhola serves as
proper story ceremony to the main Uhola. After the appeasement of the
various gods the Uhola is then announced by the town crier. The
announcement comes when the traditional leaders are satisfied that the
gods have accepted their offerings and in consequence have approved of
the festival.It is believed that without the god’s guidance, and
supervision over the ceremony the leaders are bound to err and this
will result to misfortune and disaster in the society.
As a result for
the Lelna to perform any successful ceremony without provoking a wrath of the gods they are
usually grateful to the gods who guided them. The final thanks offering
to the gods is the ‘Govu na Isa’ and Dwa m ‘dhutu’
respectively. It is followed by other offerings to individual gods at
their respective shrines, by clan or family heads. The elders also pour
libation to their ancestors for their family house blessing.
The Uhola festival is a festival to mark the peaceful year the gods
have guided the society through. It is usually a merry-making and
convenient period expressing thanks to the gods for yet another year of
peace and harmony in the community. A year of peace is one devoid of any
nature disaster such as unnatural mass death of the inhabitants of the
community.
But when there is any such calamity especially break out of
smallpox in the community the Uhola is not celebrated that year at all.
In place of this sacrifices and offering are made for the gods at road
junctions and at their respective shrines asking them to restore
normalcy and for guidance. If such disaster happens to befall only,to
one clan or family, it is that clan or family that may not participate
from that year’s celebration. In this case they perform ritual of
reconciliation with their gods. In some cases, when disaster befalls a
clan in which the Chief priest belongs, the clan will be responsible for
the cleansing of the society.
It is important to point out that the Uhola festival is more of merriments than it is ritualistic.
Uhola, as already mentioned, takes place all over the local
governments but at different times depending on how fortunate the
community was in a year. When discussing the variation in the time of
celebrations in Zone C Uhola always stands out, as their celebration
take place in February. By this time all the harvests is over. The
celebration has no definite number of days set aside for it. For Zone A
and B who celebrates theirs in December and January respectively, the
celebration lasts for two days as the people are yet to harvest their
crops.
A various other preparations takes place before the actual days of
this exciting festival. From the day the Uhola is announced everybody
especially the youths get very excited as they look forward to that day.
It is a hard time for parents and husbands because it is their
responsibility to provide ceremonial requirements such as, foodstuff,
victuals dresses for their children and wives. Boys between five and
fifteen years are placed on special types of diet of mixed guinea-corn
called “C’Ruku” ‘Dame‘ and meat. This practice is still found in areas like Kyabo today. This is known in C’lela as ‘Ya’ or ‘Nomansiri.
Parents put in extra efforts to meet up the financial needs of this
festival, as it is generally a thing of pride to parents for their sons
to be most plump on the festival days. It is not unusual to see boys who
have grown so fat that they hardly walk with ease. Yet they have to
walk majestically to the rhythm of the music played in their praise by
their relations.
The highlight of the occasion is the “Dance of the year”, because it
is the last dance of transition between teenage life and adult hood as
they are soon after that regarded as adults in the community.
The youths put on the most valuable outfit the parents can afford on
that day. Where a girl already has fiancé, it is his responsibility to
provide his betrothed with what
she needs for this last dance. This means that soon after the ceremony
they become husband and wife.
Each head of the family makes sure that all requirements are provided
for the family most especially the younger ones. Animals to be
slaughtered for meat are provided for some days before the day of each
festival. The provisions for the festival depend on the affluence of
each family in question.
But it is voluntarily compulsory, that every family should slaughter an animal (Dog) on the eve of Uhola
festival. Food and meat are generously offered to visitors and
passer-bys. Food is wastefully abundant in rich families about four days
to the day of the festival, till the festival is over.
Another striking aspect of the festival is that several days to the
day of the ceremony arrangements are made in the houses of the teenagers
who will do the last dance. The dance usually begins at about ten 0-
clock in the evening and continue till dawn. Merriments start on the eve
of Uhola festival.
During this time drumming, praise-songs and
mock-songs are rendered for the youths. Such songs are usually chosen by
the relatives of the youth, and in most cases they relate to the parent
boys past life and the wishes of the parents for his days a shead. The
mock-songs are to ridicule his age-mates, who have violated the norms of
the society especially on the side of the girls. Such violations
includes girls becoming pregnant before marriage or proved to have
carnal deals with men. Some songs are therefore sung to mock them. Boys,
who run away from the farms to the cities or urban areas, are also
ridiculed. Such boys are regarded as being lazy, irresponsible and
unable to maintain a farm or a family.
On the day of the festival, both
boys and girls accompanied by a long procession of singers and drummers
make for the village square. During this procession, all sort of
grievances are let out. It is a period of neither fear for shame. Such
grievances are expressed in a form of light-hearted songs. This serves
to warn people against the bad things they do. Moral lessons are taught
by play-way method as the songs are not limited to the offenders and
their families but are extended to the whole clan. The dance and song
procession take almost the whole afternoon with the dances richly
adorned and expensively costumed. The male dancers decorate their hats
with green and yellow.