CULTURAMA- La face caché de la kola
The hidden face of kola nuts
Memory lane, kola nuts had been used from the 14th
century in commercial transactions. Traders the trans-Saharan trade routes
exchanged them against gold powder. It permitted to fight against dryness and
thirst in desert crossings.
Kola is undoubtedly an element we cannot do without in
mostly all Bantu traditional ceremonies.
In the Bakossi society of Cameroon, it is the umbilical cord that the
living manipulate to communicate with the .
A warm welcome in a home is characterised by the share
of a kola nut. It’s sharing is a sign of friendship, reconciliation in times of
trouble and most of all, it represents what’s
today known as signature. Deals
and marriages are sealed with the sharing of a kola nut. Biologically, the
consumption kola permits to revitalise, stimulate, and increase the memory
capacity the brain. It is sometimes used as a stimulus for people with a weak
sexual capacity.
The negative effects are that its enormous consumption
makes our teeth to get brown and it should be noted that it contains caffeine.
Nevertheless, the kola has been, is and will remain at
the centre of the African traditions. Lets wipe away the prejudice s laid over
it such as “it is old fashion” and that
“it’s only for the old.”
The hidden face of kola is thus the symbolic value
given to this nut. We should not forget it for its part of our culture and life
style.
NKEDE LAWRENCE.
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