The Socio-Cultural Importance Of The Bride Chamber Practice In Sustaining Marriages Among The Manlaala Dagaaba?

Marriage is essentially a universal human practice since its concept is more or less the same all over the world. Anderson (2013) explains that marriage is based on the universal truth that a man and a woman are complementary, the biological fact that procreation depends on a man and a woman and the reality that children need to be provided with comfort through the shared responsibility of their parents. Although the Bible and the Quran have not given a precise definition of marriage, they have commented on matters concerning marriage in reference to certain religious characters and situations. In Genesis 2:18-12 for instance, in referring to the solitary life of Adam; God said, “It is not good that a man should be alone,
It is also to serve as a wake up call to the people to cherish and be encouraged to uphold or revive similar cultural practices that can help in sustaining marriages and projecting their identity, as Marcus Garvey rightly put it,” A people without the knowledge of their past history, origin and culture is like a tree without roots”. In addition to these, it will serve as a source of reference for both researchers and students in similar fields who whish to explore broader avenues in the quest for
The next morning after she has been introduced to the elders of the household, the groom’s mother or aunt leads her to the venue which has been designated for the bride–chamber activities in the community. The venue is usually the home of a dignified and affable elderly woman often referred to as the pog- yidiera. The bride is to be in chambers for seven market days going through the pog-paali deo (bride-chamber) Process. Subsequently, a white cloth is tied to a very long stick (gbagli or Sankoro) in the form of a flag and hoisted on top the house. This is to announce to everybody in the community, including strangers or passers-by that a bride is lodged in that home. According to Dong, one of the informants, it also signifies the pride of the community that one of its members has recently obtained a wife. This assertion was complemented by Suglo, one of the two female informants that in the past when the practice of eloping with married women was also allowed, a red flag was hoisted alongside the white one to signify an act of courage or valour on the part of the new husband’s community. It was further revealed that this sometimes triggered retaliatory measures from the aggrieved husband’s community, culminating in rivalry that set them apart. When this