Tradition: Ex-Olori Needs Cleansing Before She Can Be With A Man Again

More details have emerged on the alleged crash of the oni of Ife’s marriage – sources said both were divorcees,married twice earlier before getting married.
Though, both parties have refused to give reasons for the breakup, the ex-queen stated that the failed marriage was not as a result of infidelity or infertility on her part.

When the news of the historic divorce first came to light, very few knew that was not the end of the ex-Olori and the yoruba tradition.In the face of the serial divorce now associated with both the Ooni and his ex-queen, a serious twist has been added to the tale as an expert on Yoruba culture and renowned Ifa priest, Chief Yemi Elebuibon has revealed that ex-Olori Wuraola, must necessarily undergo appropriate traditional cleansing process to enable her to regain normal life.

While noting that Ooni would not be the first Yoruba Oba to be seperated from his wife, Elebuibon stressed, however, that marriage breakup is not very common among Yoruba Obas.
However, if the breakup happens as in the case of the Ooni and his wife, he said that, “the wife of the Oba will be asked to consult Ifa and Ifa will give directions on how she will make the necessary atonement for her cleansing.”
He explained further: “In Yoruba tradition, a woman who has been married to a king cannot lay with any other man even if the marriage breaks up. But when the right atonements have been made, there won’t be problem.”

On the kind of problems which an Oba’s ex-wife might encounter if she refused to undergo the traditional cleansing rites, Elebuibon said: “For the woman, she might not really have a problem but for any man who sleeps with a queen or marries an ex-queen without the appropriate cleansing, the man may die prematurely, he may be struck with sickness or there might be retrogression in his life.”

He explained that if an ex-queen wants to remarry, she will have to do the cleansing with her new husband. Both of them have to take part in the atonement procedures so that they won’t have any future problem.

“Any marriage she would be going into must not be elaborate. They should go far away and avoid any flamboyant wedding,” Elebuibon warned.

The news of the breakup between the Ooni and the ex-Olori, confirmed stories that had been circulating for months on blogs, social media and some magazines, to the effect that the marriage was troubled.

But, last Wednesday, Olori Wuraola Zynab Ogunwusi, released an official statement on her Instagram page to confirm that her 17-month marriage to the one of the most revered monarchs in Yoruba land had broken down irretrievably and was officially over.