Just as the gods promised the people, she was born with grace and valor, into the palace of the great king of the Benin kingdom.
Her destiny intertwined with the goddess of the river, her replica on earth, waist beads, armlets, head beads and leg beads all dangles as she dances to the beat of the ancestral drum in which she becomes entranced like one communicating with spiritual beings.
Tribal marks adorns her body as a sign of the promise from the gods, beauty beyond the eyes of men, every loins craved her warmth but her path is directed to chastity, she must not be laid with.
Her powers must be preserved, through an oath of virginity, that was what the gods demanded, she is no mere mortal, she is one of them on earth, she can’t be seen maligned with a mortal.
She is brave and strong, “OSAREME”, she hears them call her name, reminding her of her destiny, a warrior, a liberator, a protector of her people on this sacred land.
CHIAMAKA NTA
