An illustration from Henry Stanley’s search for Dr. David Livingstone in Africa will further shed light and help us grasp the significance of blood covenant.
You see, in the late 19th century, Europeans and Americans were deeply fascinated by the “Dark Continent” of Africa and its many mysteries.
Thus, in August of 1865, one of England’s most intrepid explorers, Dr. David Livingstone, set out on a planned two-year expedition to find the source of the Nile River and also see how he could help bring about the abolition of the slave trade, which was devastating Africa’s population.
However, six years later, he had remained incommunicado. Thus, on March 21, 1871, journalist Henry Morton Stanley was commissioned by New York Herald to search through Africa for the missing British explorer, Dr. David Livingstone.
In the course of his search, he came in contact with a powerful equatorial tribe in the village of Ujiji, on the shore of Lake Tanganyika, Congo, skilled in the art of war. But Stanley and the 2000 men who were with him were not in condition to fight.
Then his interpreter, who was of African heritage, urged him to cut a covenant with the people and explained to him the process, but Stanley did not want to hear it and he revolted from such rites.
But the condition kept growing worse, and his interpreter asked him again: why don’t you cut a covenant with the chieftain of the tribe. Stanley inquired what the outcome of such covenant would be and the interpreter responded: “Everything that belongs to the chieftain will be yours if you need it.
This sounded good to Stanley and he investigated the process further. After a few days of negotiation, they arrived at the covenant.
First, there was a meeting in which the chieftain questioned Henry Stanley on his motives and standing, and his ability to keep the covenant.
The next phase was the exchange of gifts. The chieftain wanted Henry Stanley’s new white goat, but Stanley, who had poor health and depended on milk from the goat for daily nourishment, was reluctant to part with his goat. The chieftain, though, wanted nothing else.
Eventually, Henry Morton gave up the goat and the old chieftain handed him his seven-foot copper wound spear.
For a minute, Stanley thought he had been duped, but he later discovered that wherever he went in Africa with the spear, everybody bowed to him and submitted to him, and he could get as many goats as he needed.
Then, the old chieftain brought in one of his princes, and Henry Stanley led forth one of his men from England. An incision was made in the wrist of each man, and their blood was allowed to drip into the cup of wine. Then, the wine was stirred and the blood was mixed with it.
The priest handed the cup to the English man and he drank part of it, and then handed it to the black man, who drank the rest. Then the priest pronounced the blessing of the covenant and also curses for breaking the covenant. Next they rubbed their wrists together so that their blood mingled. Now they had become blood brothers.
Though both men were only substitutes, they had bound Stanley and the chieftain and Stanley’s men and the chieftain’s soldiers into a blood brotherhood that was indissoluble.
The gun powder was rubbed into the wound, so that when it healed, there would be a black mark to indicate that they were covenant men. The next step of this ceremony was the planting of trees, trees that were known for their long lives to serve as a memorial to the covenant.
After the planting of tree, the chieftain stepped forward and shouted: “Come, buy and sell with Henry Stanley, for he is our blood brother.”
Prior to the cutting of the covenant, Stanley’s men had to stand and guard their bales of cotton cloth and trinkets, but once the covenant was cut, Stanley could open the bales and trinkets, and leave them on the street and nothing was disturbed.
For anyone to steal from their blood brother, Henry Stanley, was a death penalty.
The old chieftain could not do enough for his new blood brother, and Stanley could not understand the sacredness of it.
You see, once a covenant is solemnized, everything that a blood covenant man owns in the world is at the disposal of his blood brother, if he needs it, and yet this brother would never ask for anything unless he is driven by the want of it. To be Continued!!!
Emmanuel Emeke Asiwe(Ps)
