• Latest
  • All
  • News
  • Business
  • Politics
  • Science
  • World
  • Lifestyle
  • Tech
Nigeria: Nigerians Share Views On Lavish, Elaborate Burials for the Dead

Nigeria: Nigerians Share Views On Lavish, Elaborate Burials for the Dead

March 26, 2021
Macron hammerblow: £7bn lawsuit raised after energy giant EDF forced to sell at HUGE loss

Macron hammerblow: £7bn lawsuit raised after energy giant EDF forced to sell at HUGE loss

August 10, 2022
Ukraine LIVE: Putin ‘incredibly nervous’ as mystery swirls over Russian base explosion

Ukraine LIVE: Putin ‘incredibly nervous’ as mystery swirls over Russian base explosion

August 10, 2022
Farage highlights Rishi Sunak’s fatal error that has left Britain shackled to socialism

Farage highlights Rishi Sunak’s fatal error that has left Britain shackled to socialism

August 10, 2022
Putin dealt crushing blow: 100th colonel dead hours after devastating explosion at base

Putin dealt crushing blow: 100th colonel dead hours after devastating explosion at base

August 10, 2022
Zelensky vows to take Crimea BACK for Ukraine after massive explosions rock peninsula

Zelensky vows to take Crimea BACK for Ukraine after massive explosions rock peninsula

August 10, 2022
Best vacuum sealers of 2022

Best vacuum sealers of 2022

August 10, 2022
Best monitors for Xbox Series X in 2022

Best monitors for Xbox Series X in 2022

August 10, 2022
Best Nintendo Switch controllers of 2022

Best Nintendo Switch controllers of 2022

August 10, 2022
Best pool vacuums of 2022

Best pool vacuums of 2022

August 10, 2022
Best backpacks for school of 2022

Best backpacks for school of 2022

August 10, 2022

12,000-Year-Old Human Footprints Discovered in Utah

August 10, 2022

ALMA Spots Circumplanetary Disk around Young Star AS 209

August 10, 2022
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Privacy & Policy
  • Contact
Thursday, August 11, 2022
  • Login
  • Register
Live News Ghana
  • Home
  • NewsHot
    • All
    • Politics
    • World
    South Africa: What’s Happening In South African News

    South Africa: What’s Happening In South African News

    South Africa: What’s Happening In South African News

    South Africa: What’s Happening In South African News

    South Africa: What’s Happening In South African News

    South Africa: What’s Happening In South African News

    South Africa: What’s Happening In South African News

    South Africa: What’s Happening In South African News

    South Africa: What’s Happening In South African News

    South Africa: What’s Happening In South African News

    South Africa: What’s Happening In South African News

    South Africa: What’s Happening In South African News

    Africa: The Rise of Fake News in Côte d’Ivoire

    Africa: The Rise of Fake News in Côte d’Ivoire

    Morocco: Map Launches Map-Data, News Website Specialized in Data Journalism

    Morocco: Map Launches Map-Data, News Website Specialized in Data Journalism

    Zimbabwe: Gays and Lesbians Association Refutes Fake News On U.S.$300 000 Embassy Funding

    Zimbabwe: Gays and Lesbians Association Refutes Fake News On U.S.$300 000 Embassy Funding

    South Africa: Zuma’s Arrest Is Good News for the Rule of Law in South Africa

    South Africa: Zuma’s Arrest Is Good News for the Rule of Law in South Africa

    Trending Tags

    • Donald Trump
    • Future of News
    • Climate Change
    • Market Stories
    • Election Results
    • Flat Earth
  • Tech
    Africa: Nigerian Tech Startup Pricepally Tackles Rising Food Costs With Bulk-Buying Platform

    Africa: Nigerian Tech Startup Pricepally Tackles Rising Food Costs With Bulk-Buying Platform

    Trending Tags

    • Flat Earth
    • Sillicon Valley
    • Mr. Robot
    • MotoGP 2017
    • Golden Globes
    • Future of News
  • Entertainment
    • All
    • Sports

    12,000-Year-Old Human Footprints Discovered in Utah

    ALMA Spots Circumplanetary Disk around Young Star AS 209

    Study: Developing Bird Hip Bone Passes through Ancestral Dinosaurian Conditions

    New Pompeii Finds Shed Light on Life of Middle-Class Romans

    Santa Marta Sabrewing: Elusive and Spectacular Hummingbird Species Rediscovered in Colombia

    Star Formation is Self-Regulatory Process, New Research Suggests

    Giant Marabou Storks Lived alongside Mysterious Homo floresiensis

    Humans Lived in New Mexico 37,000 Years Ago, New Study Claims

    ESO’s Very Large Telescope Focuses on Messier 61

    Webb Spots Candidate for Most Distant Known Galaxy

  • Lifestyle

    Trending Tags

    • Golden Globes
    • Mr. Robot
    • MotoGP 2017
    • Climate Change
    • Flat Earth
  • Job Opening
No Result
View All Result
Live News Ghana
No Result
View All Result

Nigeria: Nigerians Share Views On Lavish, Elaborate Burials for the Dead

1 year ago
in News Updates
7 min read
0
Nigeria: Nigerians Share Views On Lavish, Elaborate Burials for the Dead
491
SHARES
1.4k
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

RelatedPosts

Macron hammerblow: £7bn lawsuit raised after energy giant EDF forced to sell at HUGE loss

Ukraine LIVE: Putin ‘incredibly nervous’ as mystery swirls over Russian base explosion

Farage highlights Rishi Sunak’s fatal error that has left Britain shackled to socialism

Nigerians from different economic, social, ethnic and religious backgrounds have differed on the propriety or otherwise of organising lavish and elaborate burial ceremonies, following the loss of loved ones.

The outbreak of COVID-19 in Nigeria in February 2020, resulting in restriction of movements, religious and public gatherings as well as use of face masks and observance of other protocols, has shown that conduct of elaborate burials are unnecessary.

In a survey conducted by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in the South-West zone, while some respondents condemned the practice, saying it would lead to committing humongous expenses, others, however, said there was nothing wrong with it.

The latter group further argued that elaborate and lavish burials were unnecessary, especially given the fact that more than 80 per cent of Nigerians were living below poverty line.

In an interview with NAN, Ogun Commissioner for Culture and Tourism, Dr Toyin Taiwo, frowned at the practice of organising elaborate burial ceremonies in some Nigerian cultures.

Taiwo described such practice as “frivolous”, contending that although it was inherited, it was no longer in tune with the current economic realities in Nigeria.

“If a particular norm is not serving any useful purpose, it should be discontinued, no matter how long it might have been in existence.

“Another reason it has continued is because of the foolish and erroneous belief in some cultures that the dead would be angry and not sleep in peace if not celebrated flamboyantly.

“We should, however, realise that culture is not a destination but a journey of discovery, and when you discover that a particular way of life no longer serves any useful purpose, you stop it, rather than pass it on.

Also contributing, Dr Debo Jegede, a senior lecturer in the Department of Sociology, Covenant University, Ota, identified the Yoruba and Igbo as two cultures that were fond of celebrating the dead flamboyantly in Nigeria.

According to him, most people of Northern extraction do not believe in much ceremony after death.

The don described the practice as “wasteful”, adding that “it does not have any positive economic impact on the society”.

An Abeokuta-based business woman, Alhaja Oyeronke Adebiyi, wondered why people spend lavishly on burial ceremonies since “such practice does not mean that the deceased will automatically rest in peace.

“Oftentimes in Yoruba land, you see people going the extra mile to bury someone they claim to love; they incur debts just to satisfy guests and be respected for being sociable.

“But you discover that when the deceased was alive, hardly was he cared for by the same people as a way of demonstrating their so-called love for him.

“It is wrong and absurd to spend lavishly on burials of someone you will never see again,” she said.

However, Mr Sunday Bamidele, a sociologist, said “celebrating the dead is culturally acceptable”.

He explained that the acceptability would depend on the culture which the dead person belonged to while alive.

“It is oftentimes peculiar to each culture and tradition. For example, the Hausa bury their dead almost immediately or on the day of death.

“The Yoruba, on the other hand, usually postpone the burial ceremony in order to prepare for full celebration.

“Concerning the religious aspect, most Muslims bury their dead the same day, while Christians sometimes shift the burial date forward, regardless of their ethnic affiliations.

A clergyman, Rev. Akintunde Idowu, said Christians had strong belief in the afterlife, stressing that much of their lives should be lived with the aim of achieving eternal peace in heaven.

Idowu, however, said that Christians usually held funeral services to pray for repose of the soul of the departed and offer comfort and support to the bereaved.

“As Christians, we follow the Bible which recognises life after death. So when a Christian dies, it is seen as the end of his earthly sojourn. Everyone must, therefore, strive to attain a place in heaven, as believer in Jesus Christ.

“Funerals are held for family members, friends and associates of the deceased to celebrate and give thanks for the life and times of the departed.

“It is also a period used to help the family come to terms with the reality of the loss of their loved ones and bring some form of support,” he said.

To Dr Omotunde Olaniyi, a mental health physician, while some people always give attention to funerals rather than medical costs in the event that the deceased was ill, funerals help to provide relief and social support to the bereaved.

According to her, a funeral ceremony is an avenue for social support so that the person doesn’t slide into depression after losing a loved one.

“Grief can weaken a bereaved person’s physical and mental health, thus holding funeral rites is a symbolic way of bringing relief and comfort to the bereaved.

“Funerals may help to ameliorate grief, assuage guilt and also provide social support for the bereaved.

“Funeral ceremony brings home the reality of death, encourages the expression of grief and offers hope to the living. I don’t believe it should be abolished but it should be done in moderation,” she said.

Mrs Adesola Olaiya, a 72-year-old woman, said that burying the dead used to be a family affair in the olden days.

“While we were young, anytime a person died, which usually happened at home, it was their family that would wash and prepare him for burial.

“The body would be laid out in a room and people would come and pay their last respects.

“You didn’t have to spend money to keep the body in the morgue and pay for expensive coffins.

“All these have, however, changed now, as civilisation now dictates burial practices.

“Burial is no longer a family affair; it’s like a competition nowadays and this should be discouraged.

“Young people should be encouraged to take care of their parents while they are still alive, spend that money on arranging for vacations for them and have modest burial when they die,” she said.

Also, Prof. Yahya Oyewole-Imam, Research Manager, University of Ilorin, said that incurring huge expenses in the name of giving the dead a befitting burial was alien to Islam.

Oyewole-Imam, a professor of Arabic and Islamic Studies at the university, described death as permanent termination of life-sustaining processes in an organism.

“This is when all biological systems of a human being cease to operate. Death occurs at any stage in one’s life and for whatever cause,” he said.

According to him, death is a necessary end of everybody, whether young, old, male, female, rich or poor.

“There are recommended practices that must be done. These include washing the dead, shrouding and burying him/her if the condition of the death allows that.

“While charity and charitable deeds can be made on behalf of the deceased so that he/she can receive the mercy of Allah, all other expenses involving wining and dining are forbidden in Islam,” he said.

On his path, Pastor Thomas Babajide of Christ Disciples Church, Offa Garage, Ilorin, said spending fortunes on burial was not a bad idea.

“I don’t see anything bad in celebrating our old ones or parents when they are dead.

“It is not a waste to invite friends to bid the departed parents, family members or friends goodbye.

“It is a sign of showing love and there is nothing bad in that. If we have played our role well while they were alive, I don’t see where it is stated in the Bible that it is a sin to celebrate them when they are gone.

“If you, as children, have the capacity, you can organise a party to honour your parents and plan their burial big.

“Let’s stop criticising those who spend on burials. It is normal,” he said.

Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters

Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox

The cleric, however, called on people to always try and take care of their parents and family members, and should not wait till they die before throwing party for them.

Mathew Odudu, an Ado Ekiti-based casket dealer, attributed the huge amount being incurred in burying the dead to the fierce competition among service providers in the undertaking business.

According to him, some even go the extra mile of embarking on massive renovation of their family houses, all in the name of giving the dead a befitting burial and satisfy the tradition.

Odudu said it might be difficult to regulate such practice since no section of the nation’s constitution stipulated specific amount to be expended on funerals.

A Public Affairs Analyst, Mr Moses Abayomi, who also spoke on the issue, lamented that most families usually spent huge sums of money on burials, possibly to show off or follow the dictates of tradition.

“A situation where the extended family of the deceased, including those from their maternal homes, slams all manner of bills on the immediate family of the dead cannot be said to be normal.

“Apart from engaging the services of undertakers, caterers and live bands, expensive gift items are equally served attendees. All these help in sky-rocketing the cost of funerals,” he said.

Contributing, Pastor Busari Ajiboye of Hopeland Christian Ministry, said the culture of caring for the dead more than the living is a practice capable of impoverishing the bereaved families.

“It is a bad culture that brings colossal loss to the bereaved family and this should be condemned by all and sundry. Sad enough, this is done at the expense of caring for the sick, especially the aged.

Mrs Bose Adebayo, a Consultant Physicist, said spending fortunes to embalm corpses might be unnecessary.

“The truth is embalming isn’t required at all. No law requires anybody to be embalmed and, most times, refrigeration is enough to keep a body in good condition, pending burial,” she said.

NAN

Share196Tweet123Share49
Paul Wekem

Paul Wekem

Paul Wekem Ghanaian security specialist is well versed in managing and directing the implementation of security standards and policies including total integrated security solutions to optimize controls. He is proficient in the establishment and development of external relationships with stakeholders, negotiating and influencing at all levels

Related Posts

Macron hammerblow: £7bn lawsuit raised after energy giant EDF forced to sell at HUGE loss
News Updates

Macron hammerblow: £7bn lawsuit raised after energy giant EDF forced to sell at HUGE loss

by Paul Wekem
15 hours ago
Ukraine LIVE: Putin ‘incredibly nervous’ as mystery swirls over Russian base explosion
News Updates

Ukraine LIVE: Putin ‘incredibly nervous’ as mystery swirls over Russian base explosion

by Paul Wekem
15 hours ago
Farage highlights Rishi Sunak’s fatal error that has left Britain shackled to socialism
News Updates

Farage highlights Rishi Sunak’s fatal error that has left Britain shackled to socialism

by Paul Wekem
15 hours ago
Load More
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Privacy & Policy
  • Contact

Copyright © 2021 Live News Ghana.

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
    • Politics
    • Business
    • World
    • Science
  • Entertainment
    • Gaming
    • Music
    • Movie
    • Sports
  • Tech
    • Apps
    • Gear
    • Mobile
    • Startup
  • Lifestyle
    • Food
    • Fashion
    • Health
    • Travel

Copyright © 2021 Live News Ghana.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password? Sign Up

Create New Account!

Fill the forms bellow to register

*By registering into our website, you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.
All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used. Visit our Privacy and Cookie Policy.
Go to mobile version