THE WAY WE WERE

Igba aba is a characteristic example of the sophistication of our tradition. It is the only tradition in our culture that has a dual function, introducing and controlling social behavior at the same time. Igba aba  is Alayi tradition used to educate our young men and women on how to interact with each other. It is a classic moonlight romance/fun for teenaged boys and girls. It is the only tradition that permits them to play together at night without the supervision of adults. Igba aba is a moonlight game full of fun, singing, playing and shoving between teenaged boys and girls. It is the only part of our tradition that allows sexually explicit language to be used openly without any repercussion. Its explicit lyrics are unimaginable, unacceptable and enough to put a youngster in instant trouble if repeated outside Igba aba games. It is a tradition that teaches its teenagers a glossary of sexual language and at the same time forbids it use in society. This tradition proves that a man who does not curse or speak profanity does so out of self respect, not because he lacks the words. Although Igba aba teaches us sexually explicit language and words, it also addresses the moral issues of conduct in our society and serves as a deterrent to certain unacceptable behavior. Igba aba season is also a time when the public addresses sex-related crimes. Igbaru madu aba is a tradition used to punish sex offenders. It is the only traditional medium through which a sex offender is collectively punished. However, whether it is Igba aba or Igbaru madu aba, the game is an exhausting exercise. It has a slight resemblance to a military parade, with people marching up and down the playing ground and singing. It is a cultural edict permitting collective punishment of a sex offense. Its songs and lyrics chastise sex offenders. It is a humiliating experience in which the public ceremoniously dumps tons of debris, dried palm branches and other garbage on the doorsteps of the culprit. Igba aba also teaches teenagers that there is a time and a place for everything in our society.

           

Igba aba is a game for teenagers and young, unmarried males and females. It is a time when young people unwind and express themselves. It is played in the months of October through November, when crop harvesting season is nearing its end and the full moon casts shadows on the earth. When the nightly cool, tropical breeze filters through the atmosphere and covers the great plains of Bende, we play at Ama [the village playing ground].

 

Umuenyere playing ground was very large. It extended northwards starting from Ama Umuanyielu, through Ama Umuanyiagbo in the south, stopping a little beyond Oji Umuanyiagbo. To the east it combined the perimeters of Ama Ufuakpara/Amaokwenta. A few hundred yards into Amaokwenta, was the location of Western influence, the old Methodist Mission, situated directly in a way that allowed a view of the playing ground from its ‘T’ shaped ends through the entire length of its official designated areas. This building once housed the Methodist Church. And on the west, it ends along a strip of a long ridge which formed the beginning of the pathways to the various farmlands and streams, including the pathway to Iyiekwo. Immediately from its northern sector, to the left was the entrance to Ufuenyere. On its lower north was the location of Ezema shrine and the entrances to Ufukwu, Ufuogbamkpu, Amaogudu and a street leading to Amaozara, Amangbele, Amagu, Amaba and others. This large playing ground was intersected by roads leading to various villages and towns, including a road leading to Item, which runs parallel from the north through the south. On the lower northern part of this huge playing ground, starting from Ezema shrine and extending completely to its eastern and western boundaries was the old location of Afoukwu Umuenyere market. Approximately ten or fifteen yards from the sandy base of Ezema shrine towards Oji-Ufuenyere was the location of an old Okoko or Ogbu tree, whose roots were washed up by several years of erosion. These tree roots were used by the marketers to tie up their livestock, when Afoukwu Umuenyere was held here. In the middle half of this playing ground was a huge tall Oji [Iroko] tree, which was called Oji-Ufuenyere. About five hundred yards from Oji-Ufuenyere towards Oji Umuanyiagbo was an area carved out for general recreation, a football field. The official designated area of Umuenyere playing ground was the vicinity of Ezema shrine up to the location of Oji-Ufuenyere. This was where all the ritual ceremonies for Ama were performed. It was also where Nzuko [Community meetings], Ite Edere [Umuenyere traditional all-male dance], Igba mgba [wrestling] and other traditional events were held. This beautiful part with its beach like sand and an almost upside-down ‘T’ shape was where we played and had our moonlight fun during Igba aba season.

           

We would gather at Ama after dinner under the moonlight. Usually ten or more teenaged boys and start singing Igba aba songs. As the voices which could be heard miles away in the cool moonlit night through the community and reach the nearby hamlets, other boys and girls would join us and within a period of 30 to 40 minutes the crowd would increase threefold. As the singing continues, other teenagers from immediate surrounding villages of Amaozara, Amangbele and Amaba would join us, increasing the crowd tenfold. Unlike most of our traditional events, there is no dress code requirement for Igba aba. Also Igba aba is one of our traditional entertainments games that utilizes no musical instruments.

           

We would decide to choose group leaders. The reason for choosing group leaders is to make it possible to organize each group according to age, size, height and also to get representatives who will choose the side of the playing ground for the males and the females. However, the initial choice of each group is not binding until a raffle has been drawn. To draw a raffle, we would appoint a person. This individual would leave the crowd to a secret corner under the moonlight where he picks up a piece of stick and breaks off a small part, concealing it in his fist. He returns to the anxiously waiting crowds with both hands clenched. Standing in front of the contesting groups, he presents both clenched fists. Any group that selects the hand with the piece of stick wins the best part of the playing ground. Both males and females would form a line, usually by standing shoulder to shoulder, extending hands over each other’s shoulder and holding the neck. Each line generally consists of about twenty or more persons, depending on the width of a playing ground. This method is repeated until all the participants are accommodated, sometimes as many as four or five lines deep. The object of the game is to break the opposing group’s defensive line, thereby overrunning and capturing them. We would start a song and each group would march ten steps backwards and ten steps forward, bracing each other at every forward march. As the song and the excitement increases, we would try forcing our way through the opposing group’s front line. The rule of Igba aba is that no hands must be used to push through an opposing group’s front line; the defense line must be broken through only with the chest. Any group who succeeds in breaking through the other group’s defense line wins and has the right to make captive the group’s members and drag them behind his or her defense lines. Breaking or pushing through a defensive line sends members of a group running while being pursued by the victors. This is the part of the game that interests me most because it offers an opportunity to pursue and capture someone who you secretly admire.

 

As we capture a girl, we would carry or drag her over to our side of the playing ground, thus isolating her from her group and saving ourselves from being overwhelmed, captured and roughed-up by the girls. Upon taking her to our side of the playing ground, we would touch and caress her breast, rub her hair and make jokes. Our tradition has no definition for the word ‘kiss’ and we do not kiss, but we do have Ikpota ara [touching and caressing the breast]. The rule of Igba aba forbids sexual intercourse or any serious fondling of a captured girl. Igba aba is not a means of luring young women out at night to be raped. However, in a culture where eye contact and a smile could earn a teenager corporal punishment and a tease from his peers, capturing or simply touching a girl is thrill enough. We would play until the moon sets in the clouds and the darkness repossesses the night.