Why the Oba (Abba) does not number his children

The Yoruba people call their kings OBA, which is equivalent to Abba as mentioned in Mark 14:36. In Nigeria where there is one of the largest concentrations of Yoruba people, kings are generally referred to in the English language as royal fathers. This is an apt translation of Oba as the royal father is regarded as a father on a grander scale than the father of a family. Since a nation can be regarded as a family or a unit and the family head or husband who is a male accordingly regarded as the father, the Oba or royal father is the father of all the people (his subjects). It is not then surprising that the Yoruba people observe a taboo that regards an attempt to number the children of the family head and Oba especially as an abomination as his children are a blessing from OLODUMARE that are supposed to be too numerous to count. Hence the Yoruba saying,

A kii ka ọmọ fun ọlọmọ.
We do not count the children for the owner of the children.

Likewise, since Yeshua/Yahushua, the Son of GOD, calls OLODUMARE “Our Father”, “Father” and “Abba”, and since Abba is the same as Oba, Abba must mean “Our Father”, “Father of Man” and “Father of All”. The earthly Oba is seen as YAHWEH’s representative.

The background of this taboo seems to have been forgotten among the Yoruba people just as those for many taboos have been noted in Africa with no tangible background. Nevertheless, to get more evidence of this particular Yoruba census taboo’s roots we would have to look at the Israel and the Bible as some Yoruba peoples are thought to be descendants of Israel. Thankfully, I received the revelation on the Aiku (Yoruba for the evening of Saturday and day of Sunday; translated as day of longevity) or October 29 and 30 of Owara (Yoruba for October).

The taboo was as a result of the punishment Israel received for the national census that Dawodu (David in Yoruba language) carried out as recorded in 2 Samuel 24 and 1 Chronicles 21 from which 70,000 men died. From this account it almost seems that Joab was more righteous and fearful of OLODUMARE than Dawodu in this matter. However, Joab’s stance seemed to have been borne out of gut instinct or listening to his Ori Inu (Inner Head or Guardian Angel or Ego or the principal architect of our fortune both in heaven and on earth) as he was not able to provide reasons to convince David that the planned national census was abominable as he rightly expressed – my speculation. The punishment meted out to Dawodu was the beginning of the observance of the taboo.

But what is wrong in carrying out a census? Other censuses of Israel had been carried out before the one just mentioned. For example, censuses were mentioned in Numbers 1: 1-3 and 1 Samuel 15:4. Perhaps the taboo-resulting one opposed by Joab was at a time when the nation of Israel was mature, well-defined and settled. In Genesis 46: 26-27 we see the number of persons of Israel that migrated to Egypt where and when Yosef (also known as Joseph) was Vice-Gerent. This migration can be thought of as the infant stage of the nation of Israel, much like a sower knowing the number of seeds sown in a particular location but not knowing the number of seeds and/or fruits that are reaped upon maturity and harvest.

Sowing that is countable or in singles followed by reaping in multitudes is derived from OLODUMARE’s promise to Abraham (Genesis 12:3; 13:16; 15:5; 17:5-6; and 24:60), Isaac (Genesis 26:4) and Jacob (Genesis 28:3,14 and 34:9-11) of descendants that are too numerous for man to count.

Understanding the heart of OLODUMARE on this census taboo would necessitate the question,

Why does OLODUMARE want HIS people to be as numerous as the stars in the sky?

The answer is quite simple and is seen in the command HE gave to man when HE created them (Genesis 1:28) and to Noah and his sons (Genesis 9:1, 7), that is, to be fruitful, multiply, and bring forth abundantly on earth. HE is using HIS people to accomplish HIS will on earth.

No to three-child policy for Nigeria

I wonder if UN special adviser Jeffrey Sachs (perhaps Kissinger’s mentee, supporter of eugenics and the Tuskegee experimenters) is playing the devil’s advocate going by his recent suggestion that Nigeria get on the same path as China. He recently suggested that Nigeria adopt a three-child policy in order to “manage” her rising population which is said to currently stand at 160 million.

My opinion is that the “advice” is sick and deranged. Why not focus on improving the quality of life and get Nigerians to be more productive instead of her past and present history consumption. Nigeria has enough resources for more billions of Nigerians. Efficient management of these resources, both human and otherwise, is very crucial in order to actualize her human potential as the light of the black man and indeed the entire world. It is very much possible and requires belief and diligent commitment.

Nigeria population: Sachs’ three-baby plan ‘tricky’

Nigeria is one of the most dangerous countries in the world to have a baby

A Nigerian family planning expert has told the BBC it would be difficult to implement the suggestion that Nigerians should only have three children.

Isaac Ogo pointed to the tradition of polygamy and the belief that the children were seen as a “gift from God” in a male-dominated society.

Recent UN figures suggest Nigeria’s population could jump to 730 million by 2100 – behind only India and China.

UN special adviser Jeffrey Sachs said this prospect alarmed him.

“It is not healthy. Nigeria should work towards attaining a maximum of three children per family,” he told the AFP news agency.

Mr Ogo, from the Planned Parenthood Federation of Nigeria, agrees with the goal but says it will be hard to change the views of many Nigerians.

He says Nigeria is a “high birth, high death” society where many people think: “I need to have as much children as I want, as I don’t know which will survive.”

Nigeria is one of the world’s worst places to have a baby, according to the UN.

About 145 women die each day in pregnancy or childbirth, as do 2,300 children below five years of age.

‘Not their business’

Mr Ogo also told the BBC’s Focus on Africa programme that many women are unable to visit an organisation such as his without their husband’s agreement.

On the streets of the northern city of Kaduna, some people told the BBC that God decided how many children they had and so it would be wrong to try to limit the number of births.

“[The UN] should try to advise the government how to make the lives of Nigerians better, not telling Nigerians not to have children – that is not their business,” one angry woman said.

But one woman agreed with Mr Sachs, saying that in a poor country such as Nigeria, it was better to have fewer children and look after them properly.

Nigeria’s population is currently 160m – by far the most populous in Africa but a long way behind those of China and India.

As those countries grow richer, the UN predicts their populations will stop expanding, while those in Africa such as Nigeria, will continue to grow rapidly.