₦airaland Forum

Many "NIGERIANS" especially non Hausa-fulani are making a very very big mistake when they don't understand the real history of NIG, I mean history way back before colonialism am not talking of Biafra war history or colonialism.

To really understand why Nigeria functions the way it does,why there are persistent killings of innocents, why there is rampart corruption and lack of leadership and general failure and poverty you need to go back to the medieval history of Nigerian area.

Two major events have shaped what is Nigeria today more than the British colonialism.They are:
1. The Atlantic slave trade
2. The Fulani jihad of 1804

The slave trade shook the core foundation of statehood and was the catalyst of the destruction ,underdevelopment and poverty of the majority of the so called majority tribes of Nigeria today.They were the major victims
Their society was shattered and shaken beyond repair by the slave trade.It was a damage so great it will take centuries to correct remember slave trade was formally stopped in 1840 thereabout,just over 2 centuries ago, it might require atleast another century for the damage to heal.

The damage of the slave trade is so core and foundational the devastation was catastrophic but yet it so overlooked by today's Nigerians.

The Fulani jihad was what created today's Nigeria not colonialism.
The jihad was so far reaching it touched even the southern coast indirectly shaping Nigeria to what it is today.

Nigeria is the way it is because of these two major events not even colonialism or military or politicians.

Nigeria is need time to heal from these two events or break up

Plateau people are playing with their lives,instead of them to do what the need to do,they busy messing around allowing people to twist and turn them

It's not totally true that the Fulani do their killings with sophisticated weapons.
Majority of the killings is done by machete
The plateau men are just not capable of defending themselves in anyway,they are helpless and scattered,living in isolated villages,likewise the Benue and southern Kaduna people's.

The Fulani are taking advantage of them cos they are harmless simple people

Ofodirinwa:
yes, those ones fought because they were not christian. Once they become christian they become weak and foolish. Even in my town/igboland 100% of those that were fighting fulani when they were trying to do Ruga were the 'traditionalists'. When they fulani would come the christian health adult men will start running. If it wasn't for the few traditionalists we have remaining we would not have repelled them. That's when I realized why it was so important for christians and arabs to spread their slave religions.

For the Christians,the main problem is the doctrine,which Africans/ Nigerians have taken to the extreme, the Christian doctrine encourages weakness and victimhood( forgiveness, long-suffering etc) which can be good to discourage unnecessary wars, unlike traditional culture that encourages revenge or vengeance which therefore encourages WAR,though the Christian doctrine as good ideals which fosters and encourage development and peace but the downsides which you rightly pointed out that encourages weakness and victimhood is clearly evident.

Therefore today's Africans have to learn to sift these ideals and choose the positives and drop the negative, that is wisdom,they shouldn't just swallow everything anyhow,that is were I point the current GENERATION as mumu,they aren't applying wisdom to it,just swallowing everything like fools.

Ofodirinwa:
current generation? Muslims act the same way to arabs. Now imagine one of these people becomes a leader of his land and has to negotiate oil contracts and mining rights with whites and arabs. You will then understand Africa in 2023. Do you need me to send you videos of the colbolt slave camps they use to mine in the same Congo? How can you speak to somebody you worship like a man? How many times has northern Nigeria gone into flames for issues that happen in the middle east that doesn't concern us? White pastors who are nobody in America will come to Nigeria and collect money from 100,000 people specifically because of his skin.

Yes,this GENERATION are MUMUs, ancestors of the older generation of many tribes in Africa fought against the whites during colonialism and later for independence.

If this generation chooses to see the whiteman or Arabs as gods is their problems.

People must wise up themselves, nobody will teach them

The kogi government just recently banished 4 traditional rulers in the state.

Traditional rulers are only recognised if The state government endorses them,this therefore means that indigenous people have no rights to their own leadership, except through the British created Nigeria, which therefore means that indigenous tribes are still under the yoke of the colonialist.

Ofodirinwa:
Have you seen this video? Lol
https://www.instagram.com/reel/C2PjKLRgR1z/?igsh=MWR3dGYxb3hneXNmNg==

It doesn't mean a thing, if people wan mumu may dey MUMU, that's what am saying about this current GENERATION, it's this generation that is MUMU, making the fore parents, not fathers or grandfather's, but for most I mean great-grandfathers GENERATION that were wise and made their children be Christians. But this generation like in the video has bastardized the whole thing

Ofodirinwa:
Because in Islam, you can sell non-muslims, and this was the standard in the Ummayid era. You also did business preferrentially with muslims. So many of the leaders in the sahel became muslim and would sell their non-muslim subjects. If you wanted access to the Ummayids you became muslim. This would allow you to become a rich gold, slaves and salt to the arabs. Same in the Christian south where the only way to get an education was to convert. The muslims would therefore feel superior to blacks (which they no longer saw themselves as).

I saw a very disgusting documentary about it not too long ago. They would kidnap africans by hundreds and send them to torture camps in the sahel. Then a muslim arab will come and pick the tortured people that begged them the most and shown the a more broken spirit than their counterparts. They would then cut off the joysticks of the men and walk them through the desert. Most died.

Superior is subjective, but I can see you classifying this structure as superior being that you're obviously muslim. Truth is, it's corruption. People gain power and start selling their own people. It's like you classify Tinubu as superior because he robbed Lagos and others followed in his footsteps in robbing Lagos. After all, stealing has more advantages than not stealing, but I don't call it superior, though you probably classify it differently.

In both cases (Christianity Islam), converting allowed you to sell other africans. For the white and arab, it made you weak and submissive to them because Islam is ultimately the worship of Arabs and christianity they worship of Whites.

No,firstly am non religious but tilt towards Christianity having come from a Christian family,
Also by the time Christianity started becoming entrenched in our society slave trade had officially stopped,so people did not actually convert to feel superior and sell non Christians,slave trade was already common prior to Christianity.

Even with Islam, the jukun who were non Muslims captured alot of Hausa Muslims as slaves,slave trade had little to do with Islam ,people were captured and sold regardless of religion.It was simply about who was powerful militarily.

The kogi zone eg the ebira and igala and some northern edo who are largely Muslims today,became Muslims due to their leaders encouraging islam among them and tramping their traditional practice, this occurred during the colonial era after slave trade had been largely ended. So your argument is flawed.

The traditional rulers in those areas simply bought into the message of islam and were enticed by the prospects of trade links with the hausa-fulani north.Remember the ebira largely quelled the islamic Nupe assault on their lands before they became Muslims, they accepted Islam on peaceful terms.

Yes,Christianity came with education and the prospects of getting western educated encouraged people to be Christians.our fore parents rightly saw the benefit in being western educated and many were willing to drop their traditions for the benefits of western education.

Eg,in my village traditional history says that when Christianity came with education, the older gen were worried that it was making the younger men lazy,instead of them tending to the farms,they were sitting and reading a paper.

The older gen were livid and tried to quench education and Christianity but they later saw reason of the benefits and thereafter encouraged people into education and therefore Christianity.

My point is Christianity came with benefits that triumphed the traditional, if not it would not have succeeded the way it did.

Therefore Christianity and Islam somewhat came with greater benefits and prospects than traditional culture,therefore our fore-parents were justified to switch to them.

You are wrong when you say people took into Christianity or islam simply because it made them feel superior to traditional culture. That is the stereotypes that are used to label Africans of old as foolish simple people.

They weren't foolish

They took into Christianity and Islam cos it offered more,they were indeed wise.

Unfortunately this generation as bastardized the prospects of these religions, therefore making it look like our fore parents made a foolish mistake.

Ofodirinwa:
I think your religious biases are clouding your response. Islam came by the elite and you don't think it's spread is linked to elitism? Christians (and Muslims) didn't tear down traditional structures, but it's happening right now everyday all over Nigeria.

Yeah, I mean why were the elites too so quick to shed their traditional practice for Christianity or islam if it wasn't somewhat superior, it certainly had better privileges than the traditional culture, therefore Islam n Christianity were seen as superior religions from the get go

Ofodirinwa:
If you guys truly want to learn why African Traditional Religions faded from a historian, the fact is they are not religions. They are cultures. There is no difference between Yoruba culture and Yoruba traditional religion. There is no difference between Igbo culture and Igbo traditional religion. In fact, they are not religions.

Christianity and Islam are religions. Judaism is not a religion, only Christianity and Islam. This is why a person can be a Jewish atheist. It is a culture. Not all of our ancestors acknowledged all of the traditional rites and 'beliefs', but they doesn't stop them from being Igbo or Igala or Yoruba. Till today I don't have to believe in Ogene, but that doesn't stop me from being Urhobo. If I stop believing in Allah I'm no longer Muslim. If I stop beliving in Yaweh I can still be Jewish.

Christians first taught slaves and poor people about their doctrine. Because they were in control, they made the first generation of these slaves and poor people the heads of major colonial posts. When our ancestors realized their children could not be successful in the new order by not going to school, they sent the children to school. When the children went to school, they had to be baptized and christianized.

Over time there became a ruling class of christians, and an underclass of Igbo/Yoruba etc people. Christians were taught that they are superior to their parents and kinsmen. This is why, till this day, if a Nigeria or Indian wants to insult you they will say you're an illiterate. This is why Nigerians associate all crime and social ills with 'illiteracy', this is why Christianity in Nigeria is a status symbol and being cultural is a sign of poverty (though this is changing). Even today, pick up a research paper by a Nigerian about his or her own culture. It will start with 'The Yoruba are a tribe in what is today south western nigeria'. Even though this person has never met a white person in their life and never will, they are writing a research paper from the perspective of a white, non-yoruba person who is communicating to other white non-yoruba people. You will never see paper of American movie culture start with 'The Americans are a tribe of people in North America' because they are writing to themselves and don't need to say these things.

Because the Christians were left in charge and indoctrinated with elitism and hate, they are the ones that started tearing down their respective cultures to assert their superiority over their 'uneducated' kinsmen. They created new versions of their own cultures so that they didn't participate in anything that looked 'religious'.


The actual thing that took away our traditional beliefs is our personal desire to feel and look superior to the people around us and our hatred for people we deem poor. Today culture is being seen as a status symbol for the rich, and now everyone is 'proudly' Igbo, Yoruba etc etc. When it was seen as a poor thing, we almost rid ourselves of our identity completely because of hatred.

You have really valid points, but I strongly disagree for the following reasons:

I don't think your assertions are true that Christians looked down,tore down and hated the traditionalist or culture.The fact is people took it upon themselves to sustain this Christianity n Islam.

For example, Islam particularly was introduced mainly to the rich or ruling class in those days not to the poor.The rich or ruling class then tried to force it on the poor,so your claim of it being seen as a status symbol doesn't hold water especially for Islam, if not it would not have been forced on the poor examples include the Fulani jihad,the islamization of areas like northern Edo and kogi,it was their traditional rulers that forced Islam on the population.

As for Christianity ,it was a battle,the early converts were strongly persecuted in colonial nigeria just like in early Rome,if not for the cover of the British forces it was have died down, but the good works and education that Christianity brought made it gain more and more converts.It would interest you to know that christainity was always mainly preached to the chiefs and some of them were the ones that started sending their children to school not even the poor,the slaves that were initial converts were used as intepreters etc mainly,example include the itserikiri kings who were early christains,even in benin which the oba sent up a church
( the holy arousa church)

Though later in colonial times the missionaries always pressured the kings n chiefs with the backing of the colonial forces to stop many cultural practices ,many people bought into Christianity gradually,many elites and ruling classes bought into it after seeing it's benefits for example there is a particular festival that is done in my place,according to history the celebration puts people into serious debts every year but the Christian missionaries lured people into Christianity by paying off peoples debts,this brought many people from my area into Christianity, people just saw it as a better option, the message in Christianity then made people to shed away their cultural practices which to Christianity is idol worship.

I agree with you in the point that truly the so called traditional religion was more of culture than religion,so people had to give away their culture if they would remain Christians or Muslims,but it wasn't so hard of a choice for many fore parents who saw the Christianity especially and islam as a better or easier way of life(culture),there was really nothing special in the traditional culture ( religion) which is my point,that the reasons many of the African forefathers gain up their culture (religion) generally is cos there really wasn't anything special or better in it like the way people keep advocating for it

Infact only a minority stuck to the traditional culture.

BitterTruth0001:
You’re missing my point
That hospital and all the other good things could’ve been done through the colonial government , not the church.
Read my first post on this thread. Why were the good benefits like hospitals , schools etc packaged through the church instead of the government if not that it was intended to separate us from our traditional religion and culture

They knew very well that it was not religion that transformed their own societies so why did they sell that idea to us ?

They didn't intend to build hospitals ,schools etc,remember the colonialist initially came as business men( traders) buying slaves and later goods,they were interested only in exploitation, the missionaries came along with them cos it has always been their practice since the days of the early popes to travel to "spread" the gospel,the colonialist did their jobs while the church did theirs

ivolt:
They were abandoned because the priests were unlettered and lack
any sustainable means to combat foreign missionary propaganda.

It didn't also help that education was tied to religion then.
The educated, that is, the converted were more prosperous than the uneducated.

So, the religion and god of the educated was considered to be superior.

But it was initially difficult for the missionaries to communicate with the locals,how then were they able to spread propaganda to the locals if not by their superior works .The African Trad priest were powerless

BitterTruth0001:
But what did the foreign religions do for them ?

British also conquered China and ruled Hongkong for 156 years .

They ruled the whole of India for almost 100 years

Yet these two nations stayed with their Buddhism , Hinduism, Taoism, Sikhism etc

Remember, the British also changed their religion, they were not originally Christians

BitterTruth0001:
Perhaps you’re confusing the European renaissance when Europe modernized itself with the rise and spread of Christianity/Islam. Perhaps not.

But in any case , Christianity already existed for thousands of years before the renaissance . But the remarkable transformation of Europe did not happen right away and infact is not tied directly to any religion.

If anything , the renaissance was linked to the desire by European intellectuals to bring back the glory of classical antiquity .
Classical antiquity was a phase in European history several thousands of years ago before Christianity came . The was the period of the Greek philosophers and early roman period . A lot of progress of was achieved in this era and guess what , they were all PAGANS at the time believing in many gods: Zeus , Cupid, Poseidon etc


My point is that if the British had not come with their way of doing things , we here in Africa would have had our own renaissance at some point . They came and disrupted our way of life . Yes I agree , the Bible is an extremely deep philosophical book of thought. One of the deepest , if not the deepest ever written. But the British and indeed the rest of Europe never at any point attributed their technological advancements to the adoption of religion . If anything , the renaissance opened their eyes and they questioned the dogma of religion ; causing them to focused more on advancing this life here on earth instead focusing on the afterlife .

Therefore it was wrong of them to come and slam their religion down our throats and sell it to us as the solution and key to a better life here on earth when they knew very well that it was not what transformed their societies. In other words, their one religion did not save them

We could’ve accepted the technology and the advancements while remaining true to our culture and our traditional way of life devoid of the disruptively catastrophic interference of foreign religions

I never attributed European success to Christianity,I simply implied that the African forefathers during the colonial era can't really be blamed for abandoning the African traditional religion, they had justified reasons to, people tend to deride them as foolish for abandoning their religion, when it was actually practical and wise to do at the time.

Going by seun kuti's pronouncement

What was it about African traditional religion that made it so easy to be abandoned.

I don't think religion or spirituality generally is as powerful as people especially Africans make it to be.

The Asians especially East Asians also generally abandoned religion for pure reason.

While southern Asians generally abandoned their religion for the Arab mysticism (islam)

Only India mainly retains is original religion and it hasn't made them any better than anyone else.

Have you ever wondered why African traditional religion was easily abandoned by many fore-parents of Africans during their encounter with the whites?

From my little research the main reason was that it was found to be powerless against the whites.

First it cudnt save them from whites weapon technology such as heavy guns.

Second, it cudnt save from some diseases which ravaged Africans like small pox and monkey pox but the whites especially the missionaries had remedy to this disease and saved many from dying.

Third,many sacred groves that where thought to be powerful such as sacred trees,waters,bushes etc were easily cleared,cut down or burnt by these white missionaries and their followers without repercussions.

Fourth,the western education which came along with Christianity produced better competent workers in several fields than traditional African workers such as better farming techniques and building technology.


In all of these I think there are pros and cons of both ATR and Foreign religions.

I think it would have been better if ATR was not generally whole scale abandoned.

I think generally religion is not as powerful as Africans make it to be.

I also think the religions from the middleeast for some unknown reason are ahead of others

One thing I think Africans should note is that the middle Eastern mysticism ( Christianity and Islam) may be more powerful than they think as the middleeast had some of the early ancient civilisations and powers,it's not a coincidence.

Only the most high knows the mystery.

airsaylongcome:
Why have you excluded Programming? Honest question

It's too exhausting and time consuming to learn quickly

Hi there,

What are viable options to become a professional in information technology without programming skills,which is currently viable.

Most Nigerians, especially of the major tribes have this culture where they do not get bothered by anything that happens or represents their country either good or bad.

They just carry on with hustle no matter the circumstances or conditions.

This attitude and approach to life is a big culture letback.

When you unbothered ,you will lack the drive to make changes.

This is acting,this isn't real

Ariketolu:
But FFK, Proph El-Buba, Wike have been speaking against them, even FFK called out Boko Haram at their most fiery and Lambasted the Emirs for years. He is healthy and sound. Even Tinubu dared them openly and he won.
I think we need to stop mythifying the fulanis simply because we don't know them

FFK is their friend joor,WIKE has always supported Them remember he gave tambuwal 500 million support,tinubu is their friend too,only prophet el buba I dnt knw much about.There's a mystery in Nigeria politics, not necessarily that the Fulani are mythified,but there's a pattern to any anti Fulani entity.The mystery needs to be solved to demystify the Fulani power,I believe they seem powerful cos they operate silently,and Nigerians are generally naive and ignorant

Goodmarlian:
name them akeredolu,malaifa,kanu,igboho ,i believe there is something going on in the NIgerian politics we the populace know little about.

Yes,there are mysteries in Nigeria politics,the naive south especially do not see