Cultural Reflections from a Funeral

I attended a funeral ceremony yesterday. It was entirely a new, different way of celebrating funerals for me because it was for the Yoruba tribe and a Muslim too; those are different tribes, and religions for me, but what an opportunity to experience something new.

Yeah, that was also my first time witnessing how Muslims celebrate their funerals. Maybe not the way every Muslim celebrates theirs across the globe , but for this particular tribe anyways.

We went as a group; an association of water producers where I belong gathered together to witness the funeral of a mother to one of us. I must attest that we graced the occasion in our large numbers. Hired two coaster buses that conveyed us to the venue. Even though it's the same Lagos State but on the mainland, Ikorodu to be precise, it was really a far journey, but we didn't feel it much since we were many.

Upon our arrival, the event center was already set with some invited guests too. We were welcomed warmly, and we sat to observe the event.

The first thing I noticed was some elders who climbed the stage, sat around the table, and started praying in a language I couldn't understand. At first, some of us didn't even know it was prayers since we didn't hear their language. I was lost in the process, lol. I kept asking what we were doing until this mama started to explain to me that they were saying their Muslim prayers.

The prayers lasted for almost an hour or more. We weren't carried along or anything, but it's fine. They later explained that the woman whose funeral we are celebrating was already aged, so it's more of a celebration of life.

After their prayer session, we were highly recognized; drinks, dessert, and food were served to us. We enjoyed ourselves to the full, dancing and dancing until evening came and we took our leave.

Surprisingly, we were all given souvenirs as a way of saying thank you for coming. I loved the gift and the nice treat I received.It was a nice outing, and I enjoyed my time away from home with fellow colleagues.

The images are mine.