By Omafume Amurun
Born with a debilitating heart disease and difficulty in breathing, Mother said the doctors were skeptical if I would live long. Distraught, and having experienced several miscarriages, she had prayed ceaselessly, for the Lord’s protection over me.
I grew up knowing the look of fear constantly etched in her eyes, and forever wondered what it was that troubled her so. I couldn’t fathom it then, but as the years went by I grew older, and gained some level of perceptiveness that enabled me to discern that I was actually one of the cause of her constant trepidations, for my health issues caused me quite frequent crises that sometimes put me near death.
Born into a polygamous home, Mother believed that being her first son I was in a precarious position. I never put any stock in that and didn’t let it faze me. However, over time the situation deteriorated, adversely affecting Mother’s mental health due to perpetual anxieties, or so it seemed to me as a young man at the time.
Mother’s life was a complex web of challenges. She married very young, suffered multiple miscarriages, and navigated marital issues that once led her to seek refuge with her father in Ugboroke. Additionally, at some point she had to take one of my brothers with a serious health problem to a distant village for weeks, while also having to shoulder the burden of her daughter’s troubled marriage and childcare responsibilities for her grandchildren.
Then the sudden appearance of my grandmother during my growing up changed everything for a few years. Before her sudden reappearance, my grandmother’s whereabouts were a mystery, and some even believed she had passed away. Her enigmatic presence had spawned numerous stories about her perceived ability to see beyond the physical. I had often witnessed this mystique firsthand whenever I was with her, which drew me to her even more, sparking my curiosity about the unknown. She was bold, tough, fearless and versed in African traditional religion and medicinal practices. This may perhaps have to do with her lineage with the legendary Oqweh dynasty of Udumueware, Ekpan-Uvwie and their ancient and historical attachment with the sea and worship of the so-called River goddess, before the arrival of Christian religion.
Growing up, I often found myself puzzled by the contrast between my fearless grandmother, who practiced African traditional religion, and my mother, a Christian and Deaconess who often struggled with fear. This dichotomy might have drawn me closer to my grandmother.
As a young man, I was deeply curious about the nature of life beyond the physical and intuitively felt that life didn’t end with death. Meanwhile, my mother would often express her concerns about my spiritual well-being, going so far as to giving my name to her pastor for prayers of protection, which was her own way of coping with her fears.
I recall a time when I was seriously ill. I couldn’t help but notice the stark contrast between my mother’s frantic emotional distress and my grandmother’s stoic demeanor. While my mother cried hysterically, my grandmother murmured prayers and incantations, culminating in a powerful declaration in Uvwie that translates that over her dead body would any harm come to me. From that moment on, my health issues subsided. On my part, I sensed that she had made some kind of plea and a deep-seated commitment to my well-being. The experiences with my grandmother consequently fired an already existing glow within my searching soul, which then strengthened my listening ability and further piqued my interest in reading spiritual books, especially those about life beyond the physical. Than my father’s final days on earth and his reported last words profoundly impacted me, and again further prompted an intense search for answers about life’s purpose through extensive reading.
My father’s and grandmother’s impactful influence led me to introspect more about life’s meaning, purpose and what ultimately happens after we drop the physical body at death. In his last days, my father, despite being a traditional Chief, demonstrated remarkable foresight in arranging for his grave to be prepared and specifying a swift burial without a mortuary stay – a practice that was growing fashionable at the time and now commonly practiced with the birth of several mortuaries as business ventures for that purpose. Father seemed to have perceived that mortuary stays had spiritual implications for the departed. This is also what I wish for myself. I have instructed my children that when I am finally called Home, the discarded body must be buried within 7 days. My body must not become some sort of exhibition material. I considered this very repulsive and disrespectful for the departed. A burial day should be a quiet day for sober reflection and prayers for the ascent of the death not for noise and jubilation that is of no single benefit to the departed. Such ceremonies should come several weeks after the body has been committed to Mother Earth if the family and friends so wish.
My father was more of an Atheist and nonconformist, with contempt for filthy lucre, zero tolerance for corruption and firmly believed in the natural order of the universe, embracing the principle that ‘whatever you sow, you shall reap.’ – a philosophy that aligned with the Christ Principle and the Natural Laws. It was generally believed in his times that one of reasons he refused to become Unuevworo(Traditional Prime Minister) when he would have had it on a Platter of Gold was that he felt he would end up doing things against his conscience. He belongs to two ruling families. His elder brother was once an Unuevworo of Alegbor and acted briefly as the traditional ruler during the period of interregnums in Uvwie.
In his final days, father had urgently requested my presence, but I had delayed, being caught up in the Lagos hustle and regrettable distracted by purely materialistic pursuits lacking in real purpose. On my arrival several days later, I was confronted by a somber atmosphere and sad faces in the family compound.
When I arrived, my paternal aunt was taken aback and asked, “How did you hear?” Confused, l asked, “Hear what?” She then informed me that my father had passed that morning and ushered me to his room. As I entered the room, l was met with the lifeless body of my father. Overwhelmed with a mixed feeling of lose and regret, I wondered painfully what he had wanted to share with me. To this day, I still feel the weight of regret for my delay.
The journey to discover life’s purpose took me through various spiritual teachings, but strangely I found no connection with those. Then, out of nowhere, what made the most significant turning point in my life presented itself in the form of a Grail Movement organized lecture, given by the late Chief Adeyemi Lawson. My whole being resonated with what I heard and this resonance propelled me to examine the work, In the Light of Truth: The Grail Message by Abd-ru-shin, where I finally gained the clarity, understanding and closure to my long-standing quest for the purpose of life.
The work, In the Light of Truth:The Grail Message by Abd-ru-shin stands out as THE ultimate guide that offers profound insights into life’s most fundamental questions, transcending time and providing clarity on the past, the present, and the future. Answering all life’s questions which erstwhile have been pushed into the realm of mystery, It is THE comprehensive manual for understanding the laws and workings of Creation.
A deeper and unreservedly objective examination of this great work of truth, opened up my being and connected my body, soul and spirit to an unshakable realization that, “The Wisdom of God Rules the World!”
Now I live each day with the clarity and purpose I’ve gained, navigating life’s challenges with resilience and fearlessness, drawing inspiration from my grandmother’s stoicism, my mother’s humility and prayerful nature, my father’s spirituality, which all conformed with the wisdom of The Grail Message and this strengthened me to live each day with the readiness and awareness of the biblical warning that “Death comes like a thief in the night.”
My greatest joy will be when all those who want to wish me a happy birthday, avail themselves of the opportunity to examine the ultimate work, “In the Light of Truth, The Grail Message”
Reflection by Chief Omafume Amurun on the occasion of his Birthday from the Mountain of Salvation, Vomperberg, Austria.
Born with a debilitating heart disease and difficulty in breathing, Mother said the doctors were skeptical if I would live long. Distraught, and having experienced several miscarriages, she had prayed ceaselessly, for the Lord’s protection over me.
I grew up knowing the look of fear constantly etched in her eyes, and forever wondered what it was that troubled her so. I couldn’t fathom it then, but as the years went by I grew older, and gained some level of perceptiveness that enabled me to discern that I was actually one of the cause of her constant trepidations, for my health issues caused me quite frequent crises that sometimes put me near death.
Born into a polygamous home, Mother believed that being her first son I was in a precarious position. I never put any stock in that and didn’t let it faze me. However, over time the situation deteriorated, adversely affecting Mother’s mental health due to perpetual anxieties, or so it seemed to me as a young man at the time.
Mother’s life was a complex web of challenges. She married very young, suffered multiple miscarriages, and navigated marital issues that once led her to seek refuge with her father in Ugboroke. Additionally, at some point she had to take one of my brothers with a serious health problem to a distant village for weeks, while also having to shoulder the burden of her daughter’s troubled marriage and childcare responsibilities for her grandchildren.
Then the sudden appearance of my grandmother during my growing up changed everything for a few years. Before her sudden reappearance, my grandmother’s whereabouts were a mystery, and some even believed she had passed away. Her enigmatic presence had spawned numerous stories about her perceived ability to see beyond the physical. I had often witnessed this mystique firsthand whenever I was with her, which drew me to her even more, sparking my curiosity about the unknown. She was bold, tough, fearless and versed in African traditional religion and medicinal practices. This may perhaps have to do with her lineage with the legendary Oqweh dynasty of Udumueware, Ekpan-Uvwie and their ancient and historical attachment with the sea and worship of the so-called River goddess, before the arrival of Christian religion.
Growing up, I often found myself puzzled by the contrast between my fearless grandmother, who practiced African traditional religion, and my mother, a Christian and Deaconess who often struggled with fear. This dichotomy might have drawn me closer to my grandmother.
As a young man, I was deeply curious about the nature of life beyond the physical and intuitively felt that life didn’t end with death. Meanwhile, my mother would often express her concerns about my spiritual well-being, going so far as to giving my name to her pastor for prayers of protection, which was her own way of coping with her fears.
I recall a time when I was seriously ill. I couldn’t help but notice the stark contrast between my mother’s frantic emotional distress and my grandmother’s stoic demeanor. While my mother cried hysterically, my grandmother murmured prayers and incantations, culminating in a powerful declaration in Uvwie that translates that over her dead body would any harm come to me. From that moment on, my health issues subsided. On my part, I sensed that she had made some kind of plea and a deep-seated commitment to my well-being. The experiences with my grandmother consequently fired an already existing glow within my searching soul, which then strengthened my listening ability and further piqued my interest in reading spiritual books, especially those about life beyond the physical. Than my father’s final days on earth and his reported last words profoundly impacted me, and again further prompted an intense search for answers about life’s purpose through extensive reading.
My father’s and grandmother’s impactful influence led me to introspect more about life’s meaning, purpose and what ultimately happens after we drop the physical body at death. In his last days, my father, despite being a traditional Chief, demonstrated remarkable foresight in arranging for his grave to be prepared and specifying a swift burial without a mortuary stay – a practice that was growing fashionable at the time and now commonly practiced with the birth of several mortuaries as business ventures for that purpose. Father seemed to have perceived that mortuary stays had spiritual implications for the departed. This is also what I wish for myself. I have instructed my children that when I am finally called Home, the discarded body must be buried within 7 days. My body must not become some sort of exhibition material. I considered this very repulsive and disrespectful for the departed. A burial day should be a quiet day for sober reflection and prayers for the ascent of the death not for noise and jubilation that is of no single benefit to the departed. Such ceremonies should come several weeks after the body has been committed to Mother Earth if the family and friends so wish.
My father was more of an Atheist and nonconformist, with contempt for filthy lucre, zero tolerance for corruption and firmly believed in the natural order of the universe, embracing the principle that ‘whatever you sow, you shall reap.’ – a philosophy that aligned with the Christ Principle and the Natural Laws. It was generally believed in his times that one of reasons he refused to become Unuevworo(Traditional Prime Minister) when he would have had it on a Platter of Gold was that he felt he would end up doing things against his conscience. He belongs to two ruling families. His elder brother was once an Unuevworo of Alegbor and acted briefly as the traditional ruler during the period of interregnums in Uvwie.
In his final days, father had urgently requested my presence, but I had delayed, being caught up in the Lagos hustle and regrettable distracted by purely materialistic pursuits lacking in real purpose. On my arrival several days later, I was confronted by a somber atmosphere and sad faces in the family compound.
When I arrived, my paternal aunt was taken aback and asked, “How did you hear?” Confused, l asked, “Hear what?” She then informed me that my father had passed that morning and ushered me to his room. As I entered the room, l was met with the lifeless body of my father. Overwhelmed with a mixed feeling of lose and regret, I wondered painfully what he had wanted to share with me. To this day, I still feel the weight of regret for my delay.
The journey to discover life’s purpose took me through various spiritual teachings, but strangely I found no connection with those. Then, out of nowhere, what made the most significant turning point in my life presented itself in the form of a Grail Movement organized lecture, given by the late Chief Adeyemi Lawson. My whole being resonated with what I heard and this resonance propelled me to examine the work, In the Light of Truth: The Grail Message by Abd-ru-shin, where I finally gained the clarity, understanding and closure to my long-standing quest for the purpose of life.
The work, In the Light of Truth:The Grail Message by Abd-ru-shin stands out as THE ultimate guide that offers profound insights into life’s most fundamental questions, transcending time and providing clarity on the past, the present, and the future. Answering all life’s questions which erstwhile have been pushed into the realm of mystery, It is THE comprehensive manual for understanding the laws and workings of Creation.
A deeper and unreservedly objective examination of this great work of truth, opened up my being and connected my body, soul and spirit to an unshakable realization that, “The Wisdom of God Rules the World!”
Now I live each day with the clarity and purpose I’ve gained, navigating life’s challenges with resilience and fearlessness, drawing inspiration from my grandmother’s stoicism, my mother’s humility and prayerful nature, my father’s spirituality, which all conformed with the wisdom of The Grail Message and this strengthened me to live each day with the readiness and awareness of the biblical warning that “Death comes like a thief in the night.”
My greatest joy will be when all those who want to wish me a happy birthday, avail themselves of the opportunity to examine the ultimate work, “In the Light of Truth, The Grail Message”
Reflection by Chief Omafume Amurun on the occasion of his Birthday from the Mountain of Salvation, Vomperberg, Austria.
