Wednesday 8 June 2016

"THE VILLAGE HUNTER - The Power in Self-Recognition" By Obi Gospel O.

Once on a time in a hinter land in the olden days lived a hunter whose meat and catches serve not only his village but seven others neighboring villages. The name of this hunter is Digba. As a routine, Digba goes in search of meat in his hunting quest for six days and make his sales on the seventh day up after he must had returned from the forest on the sixth day with the best the bush can offer. Though there were any other hunters in the neighborhood, Digba's hunting expedition became popular because of its uniqueness in its consciousness to timing and routine. He always go for a catch in six days and make sales of his catches on the seventh day almost repeatedly from his remote hut, that is, every seventh day villagers from the hinterland and the seven other villages will gather to buy meat of various kinds from this great hunter. Digba never despised the seventh day.Sooner in the whole neighborhood, the seventh day became synonymous with Digba and his meats. A market started revolving around him - A market where you can get bush meats for your weekly delicacies, without doubt men and women from the hinterland and the other villages troop in every seventh day to Digba's hut to get meat. Unconsciously or subconsciously, the villagers named the seventh day after Digba and his bush meats. Digba's hunting adventure and experience became well known across borders and rivers because of his consistency - he always has meats for sale but they are only available for sale on the seventh day and no other day.

Photo credit- Alamy photos (alamy.com)

Gradually, the market revolving around him and his sales day became stronger. Meanwhile, the hinterland operates a four market day system - A traditional trading system popular in Africa whereby there are four established market in the village named after their gods and their forefathers which are traded once in four days with each following suite from the other. Each market has its own day, Once traded in today will only be traded in again after the other three in different locations in the village have followed suite consecutively in an outlined pattern. The locations of these market are chosen by the forefathers and usually involve making use of village squares, king's palaces, shrines and notable places in the village. Their location cannot be easily changed for generations they look ordained and for generations they operated unchallenged. These were the conventional market system at Digba's time. However, being that Digba provides his local metropolis with his catches only on the seventh and that using bush meats for cooking meals was gradually becoming popular at the time, a market edibles, cooking ingredients, vegetables and spices started evolving close to Digba's house every seventh day. Within periods, the hunter's manner of operation established a full fledged market operating on the the seventh Day close to his house to attend to those from far and near who came to his huts in the quest to buy meats. It indeed became a great and more renown market especially outside the hinterland. Traders come from 7 other villages and beyond to buy and sell edibles perching at a distance close to Digba's hut.The villagers were proud of him but their four market-day system came to a brisk of collapse. Whenever Digba's seventh day market coincide with any of the four market days, people will dump the local market for 'Digba's Market' because it entails more sales from trooping foreigners.
Digba did not go to the market to sell his meats, the market went to him to sell with him. This perhaps is a taboo, it has never been seen before. Once in 28 days 'Digba's market' coincide with each of the four markets and this called for concern among the villagers.

Photo credit- Alamy photos (alamy.com)

Deliberations began to foam as to why the hunter is running a concurrent market which despise the established ordinance of his people and also coincide at least once with all the four markets in a month. Meetings and sub-meetings were held in various quarters - the chief priests were summoned, the king was informed, the market men and women were called and the villagers were in array. Conditions were given to the hunter to adhere to one of the market days within the village but Digba insisted that his market has grown beyond the village with patronizers from other neighboring villages who have to travel from far so that they can meet up on the seventh day. He also inferred that the market around his vicinity was never instituted by him but by some of them who always come to entice his patronizers with other trade-able goods. In his plea, he established that there was nothing wrong with one making sales from his house even in their customs and norms as handed over by their forefathers. He continued by arguing that the market outside his hut was never established by him but by the popularity of his sales and his consistency to his home sale. He plead that the market be dismantled even as he continue his sale in his hut. This plea was not upheld. To the chief priests and some villagers who do not trade the custom for anything else, It had became perceived that though the hunter is bringing glory to the Hinterland and this glory was in contrary to their established norms. It was agreed that the hunter must stop selling his meats from his huts so that the 'Digba's market' will be forced to close down or risk being extradited. The hunter begged but there were no room for mercy. He then chose to be extradited than to stay and die idle at home. The King was compelled to extradite the hunter from the Hinterland. He was to leave the village without any of his belongings even clothes. Anybody from the Hinterland seen talking with him will face the same extradition. He had no option than to leave the town to a far away village - the farthest of the seven neighboring villages where he was welcome by all and sundry who knew him and had heard his story.
The king of the far away village which had no trading market or any market day in it welcomed him and ordered him to be clothed and provided with shelter. He gave him freedom to hunt and make sales in his palace and sooner the king's palace became a metropolitan market where for all the the 7 villages, the hinterland and beyond. The king became known and powerful that all kings in the neighboring villages and the king of the Hinterland has to pay tributes to him with their livestock and foods in order to have access to his kingdom. Years later, the king drafted the hunter into his cabinet and made him him one of his traditional chiefs. Due to the popularity and splendor brought to the king's palace by 'Digba's Market' in his palace. The king became like a king to all the kings of the seven villages and the Hinterland. He was more popular and wealthy than them all. When the people of Hinterland became aware of what had become of the hunter and the king of the far away village and how their own king had subjected himself under the king of the far away village, they were all amazed to their chagrin.

But before then the four market day system in the Hinterland had collapsed and most trading activities by the villagers were carried outside the village periphery. Those who use to come to the village to patronize Digba has now moved on with him to his new village. Digba had earlier refused to adhere to this market system because it does not fit in to his routine(that is, he has to spend six days in the forest to make enough catch and then he will sell on the seventh day). They wanted him to join the four-market day system in order to boost their village markets but they ended up sending him away to a place where his worth was appreciated and welcomed as it is. The extradition of hunter which was made to stop him what he was born to do only got him to a place where he was appreciated for who he is.






QUICK NOTE

The hunter's refusal to stop his hunting expedition and stay idle in the Hinterland but choosing rather to be extradited from his place of birth was because he knows who he is and what he can do. The power in this knowledge can be extra-overwhelming.
Knowing who you are and what you represent is simply self recognition. In life we were are born in a particular second in a minute of an hour of a day in a mouth in one certain year. The environment in which we grow to a certain great extent affects how and to what extent we can actually know ourselves. The environment here not necessary refer to a particular geographical setting but more ideally on other thing associate with the geography. Say in most Africa state where male children are cultural preferable to their female counterpart and family transcendence is traceable only through male linage ; a lady understand who she is and what she represent and the extend of her potential is supposedly limited by an long-installed ordinance. Some regions globally also do not promote equal recognition of self among genders. Availability of educational facility at a tender age can also affect one ‘s ability to recognize and appreciate himself. Family setting, cultural background, gender treatment, childhood education, birth geographical and many others are factor that can affect one’s ability to recognize himself. Knowing and understanding who you are is a requisite for following your ordained destiny. Digba understood who he was, therefore he was not perturbed when he was extradited from the village rather he moved to a far away village where he can find succor to become that which he actually is and had always wanted to be. He knows he has all it takes to get train on the move hence he did not allow jealousy, hatred and tradition of his people to limit him. He continued doing that he knew he was called to do.


KEYNOTE

WHO I AM?
You are what you think you are
• You are what you say you are
• You are what you train yourself to be
• You are what you believe you are
You are what you give to your world!

WHAT YOU ARE NOT
You are not what others believe you to be.
• You are not what others think you are.
You are not what you take from the world!













(c) Obi Gospel O. (2016)