The Medicine Shell: Igbo Spirituality Explained

I slept in the same room with two big python unknowingly. During my NYSC days, I served in Ogidi, Idemili. If you know Ogidi very well, especially around Iyi-Enu Hospital, you'll understand the tradition. They don't kill pythons in that community. If you mistakenly kill one, you're expected to give it a proper burial, just like a human being. My landlady had already briefed me about their culture, so I was always careful. But I never imagined I'd experience it firsthand. One particular day, I washed my clothes, spread them on the fence and went to church. I returned at night and went straight to pack my clothes. Without checking them properly, I gathered everything and dumped them on my bed. Unknown to me, TWO BIG PYTHONS were hiding among the clothes! I slept on the other side of the bed. Each time I rolled over and moved closer to the clothes, I felt something cold against my body. I assumed it was just some damp clothes that needed more sunlight. The funny thing? I slept comfortably all through the night! It wasn't until the following morning, when I started sorting out my clothes, that I discovered what I had been sharing my bed with. TWO HUGE PYTHONS! I screamed so loudly that I eventually fainted. My landlord had to come and remove them. Imagine sleeping peacefully beside two pythons all night and waking up to discover your roommates! 😭 Till today, I still wonder what would have happened if I had rolled over to the other side of that bed. My second encounter was in my kitchen 😱