Puberty Rites in Ghana

Puberty Rites After the child naming ceremony, pubescence rites argon the next set of rituals of social status transformation which children permit in gold coastian stopping point. The most well preserved puberty rites are the Dipo (pictured) of the Krobo ethnic group and the Bragoro of the Ashantis. These ceremonies mark the entry of young wo workforce into maturity. In Ghana only a small section of ethnic groups usually embed in the northern parts of the country have initiation rites for custody and where they occur they are done in secret and not assumption as much prominence as that for young women.In the Akan culture women represent the beauty, purity and dignity of the society and are guarded against turpitude by our traditional laws and regulations. The most lasting impressions about life and the reputation of children are built during their early and formative years, which they spend mostly with their mothers. So the Akans believe that they need properly trained mot hers with good morals to admit up good children.It is therefore little wonder that the initiation of women into adulthood is given more prominence in the Akan society than that of men. Under the direction of the queen mother of the town or village in collaboration with some female opinion leaders, young women who have had their first current are secluded from the community for a period between both and three weeks during which they are taught the secrets of charrhood. During this period of seclusion the girls are given lessons in sex education and birth correspond.They are also taught how to relate to men properly so that they can maintain a good labor union and their dignity in society. After the period of seclusion, a durbar is held which is attended by the chief and almost everybody in the community. The newly initiated women are dressed scantily with very beautiful African beads and cosmetics showing off their brisk statistics. Young men of marriageable age troupe there to counterpane their eyes on the young women and to select their prospective wives.Amidst drumming and bounce the rituals are carried out with the spirit of Oynankopong Kwame, Asase Yaa and the departed ancestors invoked to bless the participants and ensure their protection, put forward and fertility during their period of motherhood. According to traditional law no woman is allowed to get married without haven gone through the puberty rites and every young woman must remain a virgin earlier to this.These laws ensure that young women grow up disciplined enough to control their sexuality and to prevent them from premature motherhood and unwanted babies. So classic are these laws that any woman who gets pregnant or breaks her virginity before the rites are performed is sometimes ostracized together with the man responsible for it. On top of that, a heavy fine is imposed on the guilty party aft(prenominal) which purification rites are performed to rid the society of the negative repercussions of their actions.