Ogbogbo Funeral Rite: The Metaphor for Continuity in Discontinuity among the Ogu People of Badagry

In African cosmology, the attainment of old age before death is considered a sign of the favour of the gods and as such worthy of celebration. Death, although a dreaded occurrence, is to the people not necessarily an end of life, but a passage or transition to another realm of existence in the spiritual world. Therefore, funeral ceremony of the deceased elderly ones is observed with much respect because of its perceived significance to the living and the society at large especially, because, having passed on, they are considered ancestors, whose favours and spiritual guidance are needed and passionately sought by the living. The same belief is held by the Ogu people of Badagry, southwest of Nigeria. Through conceptual and expository analysis, this paper investigates the Ogogbo traditional funeral rites of the people. It explores this belief system, its essence and social implications both to the deceased, the family members left behind and the community at large. The findings reveal that the rite, though significant in several ways, is gradually fading away because of the influence of Western religions and modernization, but not without its implications. The paper concludes by calling for revitalization of this abandoned sacred tradition.