MONEY RITUALS

Tuesday, May 6, 2008

Money Rituals are a part of pseudoworld belief that the use of spells, charms and sacrifices can create wealth for individuals. Such rituals are practiced in various parts of Africa and probably other parts of the world. In Nigeria, films like 'Blood Money' have permanently imprinted money rituals and their resulting blood money as a part of the nation's discourse. Frequent news reports of the practice such as a Plateau state resident killing his friend to sell body parts for rituals and other recent reports ensure that money rituals are entrenched in the social fabric of the nation. There are even websites that track Nigerian news for stories on Money Rituals.

These money rituals obviously have their source in our 'traditional past when we worshipped the gods of our forefathers like Sango (the Yoruba god of thunder), Mbatuku (the Igbo spirit of wealth). Most Nigerians, regardless of their income level or education, have serious respect for Nigerian spirituality which sometimes meshes religions like Islam and Christianity with a devout belief in a pseudoworld of wicked and good spirits, of 'mami wata', of 'ogbanje', of sorcery and witchcraft. This traditional understanding of the spirit world is one that time has failed to conquer.

But none of this explains why money rituals remain an arguably common practice in this day and age. I have heard rumors of people using this practice successfully but will probably never be able to confirm this information. If that is indeed the case, then it would explain why the practice continues. However, this is a practice that I strongly believe should be abandoned. As important as money is in the world we live in, human life is more important and cannot be sacrificed in the quest for legal tender. Additionally, the other unspeakable acts that are sometimes a part of money rituals, such as incest and other depraved sexual acts, simply diminish the culture of hard work and ingenuity that is such a major part of the Nigerian ethos and of course, are just unimaginable.

Furthermore, I am tired of hearing statements such as,

"Nigerians will do anything for money!"
"Ah, Nigerians love money too much!"
"Them even fit kill their mama for money!"
The average Nigerian has heard one or more of such comments enough times to last him/her a lifetime. And, I believe that Nigerian movies and frequent news reports of decapitated bodies simply reinforce this unfortunate stereotype. Everyone loves money. And if Nigerians love money "too much" it is because they must work extremely hard to cater for not just their immediate family members but also their extended family and even people they don't know in some cases. That does not change the fact that some people simply want more money to show off but that does not, in any way, mean that all Nigerians simply want more money to engage in wasteful habits.

Money rituals are one practice that simply must stop. Have you heard of any supposed ritual practices? What did you hear? Also, do you know of anyone that has taken part in such practice? Why did they do it? Finally, would you engage in such a practice? If so, why? If you wouldn't engage in a money ritual, why wouldn't you?

Just curious...

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34 Curiosities. Add Yours.:

Unknown said...

Ah... fuuurst here too!!! Hehehe, i'm getting good at this oh

Unknown said...

Interesting write-up, SSD. I will never engage in rituals because evil begets evil. It's that simple. Money rituals are the bane of Nigerian society. If people are not engaged in it, they live in fear of it. One hears of bus-loads of people on the public transport system being 'hijacked' to remote places for rituals. It's very scary and IT MUST STOP. Someone close to me recently told me about a young woman who was kidnapped via public transport used as decoy for a planned ritual. (One minute you are in a bus you think is going to Yaba. The next minute, you find yourself in a remote village bush being prepared for a ritual!!!)

Fortunately for her, she was set free by one of the guards and lived to tell the tale. She gave her testimony in church.

THE WORST PART OF THIS EVIL PRACTICE IS THE KIDNAPPING OF INNOCENT CHILDREN FOR THIS BARBARIC OBSESSION WITH MONEY. CHILDREN ARE SAID TO BE DISAPPEARING AT AN ALARMING RATE. AND OF COURSE ALL THESE IS HERESAY. BUT WHO IS KEEPING THE STATISTICS ON MISSING CHILDREN? CAN IT ALL BE HERESAY?
WHY OH WHY WOULD PEOPLE SHED THE BLOOD OF INNOCENT CHILDREN FOR MONEY??? EVEN IF THEY DO NOT BELIEVE IN GOD, DO THEY NOT HAVE A CONSCIENCE? DO THEY NOT KNOW THAT WHAT GOES AROUND COMES AROUND AND THEIR EVIL WILL CATCH UP WITH THEM SOONER OR LATER?

Dojaa said...

I would not engage in money rituals because I do not believe they work. So do people wake one morning and their bedroom is filled with money? I think people have to work for what they get, no amount of money ritual will make someone rich unless they had a potential(like a good job, business etc) to be rich in the first place.

littleangel4christ said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
littleangel4christ said...

Getting rich at the expense of taking another's life? Didn't think so...
Right on point about this post 'Money Rituals'.
Good job!

TheAfroBeat said...

Funny, i am currently reading a book that touches on this theme as well ("Who slashed Celanire's Throat" by Maryse Conde). It's partly set in Guadalupe in the 1900s and the Creoles (and the white plantation owners) were taking part in these rituals. Greed doesn't respect geographic bounds as we all know, but i am convinced that our value system in Nigeria has been particularly corrupted to reward the greedy. As a friend pointed out the other day, we need to (re)define a "Nigerian Dream". Something that we train our children to aspire to (like the US' pursuit of happiness). It seems right now, everybody wants to be a yahoo boy or just plain WEALTHY. We're becoming a very selfish culture (Even though we still boast about having the extended family support system that our western brothers with 1.5 kids and the picket fence can't claim to have) and I'm not sure what can be done about it...

I've heard of stories (Well only one) which seemed a bit far-fetched but only the doers ever really know the truth. This particular story involved a roomfull of money to answer Doja's question ;)

Howz la famille?

webround said...

somehow, it seems that the younger generation (those 40 and below), the educated ones, and those resident in cosmopolitan cities are less likely to engage in this practice...

another school of thought believe people flock to this practice because of poverty (not just this fetish practice but religion in general)

In My Own Words said...

Money rituals! Very spot-on post. An aunt of mine had a first hand experience, fortunately she was set free by one of the 'kind-hearted' kidnappers. The fear of public transport in Lag is the beginning of wisdom...buses, even taxis. What continually beats by my imagination is the dirt-poor status of the (can i say) ritual priests. If it was so easy, why does it not work for them?

There have been news reports about pple who kidnapped/killed kids, yet no money. Enough to show all and sundry that it's all 'wayo'.

We need to change our orientation as a nation...a million naira is not a lot of money to the average Nigerian anymore. The level of corruption in our society has greatly devalued our sense of values. Pple now resort to yahoo-yahoo, rituals to become rich by all means.

We all deserve to be comfortable, but only if we are ready to work for it.

Jinta said...

people do it

i like money more than most but would never contemplate such evil. every bad thing has an equally or worse cost, and i believe in an afterlife where we will all reap our 'rewards'

anonymous gal(retired blogger) said...

I love money. too much infact. does that mean i will do anything to get it NO.i guess thats why im 4ever broke.
Money rituals sadly it exsists,hv heard of numerous instances,a family friend was taken 4 such luckily his blood was not the type the use-imagine the hv a type of blood.

anonymous gal(retired blogger) said...

Now its common in africa but that does not mean it does not exsist in developed countries? my sister shei women kill husbands to inherit, pple get pple to get an insurance then kill them is it not all 4 money???

Today's ranting said...

Hmmm really deep issue. It's ufortunate that this practise is inherent in our society. Innocent bloods have been shed just because some people want to be rich overnight.This ugly practise is shown in nollywood films to create awareness but its got its negative side too as people in other parts of the world have started viewing nigerians as money ritualists. Can you imagine I was having a discussion with a friend the other day and she raised the issue that most nigerians make money rituals and I was highly embarrassed.

Zayzee said...

dont know anyone who has done it oh! only dem say dem say. but from all ive heard, though they do it, it is at a risk of losing something very dear, and such wealth really does nothing meaningful in the person's life apart from showing off cars and houses and companies that all crumble when the time delegated by the juju expires. remember the story of Ezeigbo? after he died all the drama that happened before he could be buried. where r his houses and cars and companies today? it's just a lure of the devil and nothing good ever comes out of such evil.

people do really engage in this rubbish for other reasons, politics especially, if u followed the okija shrine story and clifford orji who used to sell human parts to big men.

i know a particular case of an extremely wealthy men whose five kids are nothing to write home about and the gist is that he sold all their souls to his cult, and looking at the livestyle of the kids, it is possible to believe.

na God dey save us oh.

i will so never do that rubbish. what for anyway? i dont want to own the world. i can work hard and get all i need to make me comfortable, and beside, I have a very rich God, who doesn't depend such 'deals'

badderchic said...

hmmm, scary but inescapably tru

Anonymous said...

@all
It is true that some people engage in money ritual. I have had the unpleasant opportunity of having a neighbour whose child was kidnapped and taken for money ritual.

The boy was missing for about 3days. For days, people were praying and crying for God's divine intervention.

When the little boy was returned to the house by a total stranger who claimed that he was just walking aimlessly along a road (kilometers away from home) he narrated his ordeal and explained that he was sent out of the shrine because the priest claimed he was having a strange sign on his forehead.

I was told he actually went to school on that faithful day but was nowhere to be found after he left school.

I believed the boys story because he was too young to have ran away from home. Beside he wasn't having any problem with his mum. The dad was away on official assignment. Also, when he returned, all his hair were gone, his head was clean shaved.

I do not belief in making haste to get rich. It is the root of the rottenness that we are experiencing in Nigeria. :-(

SOLOMONSYDELLE said...

@ Anonymous Gal: Thank you for making a crucial point that I completely ignored. Yes, this practice is not carried out by Nigerians, or Africans alone. You are correct to point out that it is carried out in the West by individuals who kill their spouses to inherit wealth or collect on insurance claims. Barbarism, though many fail to admit it, is a characteristic of the human race and not the Black race or anyother specific group of people.

Thank you so much for pointing this out to all of us.

@ everyone: I apologize or the limited response. I am torn between many things today, one being some hard family news. God bless and I will update on Thursday and Friday. Thanks so much for reading and taking time from your busy schedules to comment.

Sugabelly said...

No, no, no, no, never, never, never, never, I will never do any type of ritual.

Since I was born, and now I am old-o, I have never done any ritual.

Since I was born, and now I am old-o, I have never done any ritual.

People hear me sing o!

No, no, no, no, never, never, never, never, I shall never take part in a ritual!

Unknown said...

Unfortunately, money rituals are tied to the issue of African spirituality...I wish there was a rule book of conducts for those who practice African spirituality.


Next question: do these thing really work??jmjy

shhhh said...

first things first good post. ~@doja- it is REAL o, as real as my reflection when i look in the mirror. just because u dont believe it exists doesnt exclude the fact it exists. some many rich nigerians dabble in it, sadly even some of the people you and i respect in the community. it exists

Naapali said...

Dangerous hogwash, that is what they are.

I do take exception though to indigenous spiritual beliefs being lower case pseudo-world, while imported religious practices get the upper case Islam and Christianity. Does this reflect your personal bias or a more deep seated, shared belief in our indigenous religious/spiritual practices being inferior?

Naapali said...

In reading through many comments and also in prior discussions with other Nigerians, I can't help but notice a lot of magical thinking. There also is the error of "post hoc ergo procter hoc" ; "it happened after, therefore it was caused by".

If I see a rainbow on my way to work and notice an increase in my bank balance at work, is it the rainbow that caused the increase, or just that it is pay day?

People may talk about people becoming rich after murdering someone else but no-one talks about all those people who murdered and never became rich. That some rich Nigerian men engage in such practices does not also have any cause-effect relationship. Many rich Nigerian men have mistresses, maltreat their wives, own black mercedes benz, etc, no one is suggesting this is why they are rich.

Nine said...

Okay....

@solomonsydelle
Cases?Clifford Orji in Lagos,who was convicted of cannibalism.He supposedly sold choicer bits to unnamed businessmen for rituals and ate the rest.Certifiably insane,so some of the story is open to question.Currently incarcerated.

http://www.nigeriavillagesquare1.com/Articles/Adebanwi1.htm

http://www.mayhem.net/Crime/cannibals1.html

http://www.punchng.com/Articl.aspx?theartic=Art200711250232371

http://www.irb-cisr.gc.ca/en/research/rir/?action=record.viewrec&gotorec=434370


Otokoto(I don't remember his real name)in Owerri,Imo State.Had his hotel burnt down in the mid 90s after human corpses were discovered in his house.EDIT:Found 2 links:

http://www.thisdayonline.com/archive/2003/01/24/20030124news02.html

http://www.csicop.org/sb/2004-06/nigeria.html

In Nigeria,everyone knows of someone who was either approached by,or managed to avoid people looking to kidnap them.There are no missing person statistics,so all we can go by is hearsay.And you don't really expect a ritualist to admit it online,do you?


@naapali
You cannot prove a negative.You can argue that "I prayed to God for a child after five years,then I got pregnant"is magical thinking,but you cannot prove or disprove it either way.Both cases are not exactly duplicable experiments,you know:)

The one thing that's certain is that a LOT of people BELIEVE that one can make money that way.That is enough to maintain a strong market for human body parts.At the very least,it will make the suppliers of said body parts some pocket change...

Nine said...

PS I'm Igbo,and I've never even heard of an Igbo god/spirit of wealth.Are you sure there is one?

guerreiranigeriana said...

very interesting post...i am interested in money only because of what it allows me to do...i have no interest though in accumulating wealth through the sacrifice of human life...

...but it is easy to point and decry the obvious and most blatant form of human sacrifice for the amassing of health...but what of the sacrifice that some of us participate in on a regular basis, as employers or consumers?...in our quest for wealth, some of the methods we employ as owners/employers or consumers, definitely requires the sacrifice of life of sorts of some...maybe i'll blog more about it...

...insightful post as usual!!!...

Sherri said...

money ritual is pure nonsense!

it's a bloody shame for people to believe in such crap!

it's the same story for the ones who waste their time patronizing babalawos, dibias and the likes instead of working on real solutions to their problems.

the only ritual to money is diligence and hard work!

Anonymous said...

Well, this case is very very rampant here. Owerri I mean. The most people involved are these Yahoo Yahoo people. U can never in this world believe what they do to make one maga pay.

I am saying what I know because I was once involved. But I thank God, i have left. The Rituals really work and please, do not doubt it

Unknown said...

its hard to imagine talk less of belive. though its been remoured as being true, i am yet to see or hear the confession of actual persons involved.it may also intrest you to know that if its true, how come the chief priest/babalawo's are not rich/weathy. SCAM of the highest order.

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Anonymous said...

I would never kill for Money..its not in my "character"..and I find it Heartless that such individuals could "practice" such "vulgarity and belief"..you wont make money that way..your just going to Hell and "digging" your own grave.

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