Corpses are supposed to be buried after death. That is the norm. But not so at Olomu Kingdom in Ughelli South Local Government Area of Delta State. Here, not all corpses are buried, according to their cultures and tradition. Pregnant women who die with pregnancy or during childbirth are not buried, instead their corpses are thrown into the evil forest near Akperhe-Olomu Community within the kingdom.

His Royal Majesty, Ovie Richard L. Ogbon Ogoni-Oghoro I, JP, the Ohworode of Olomu
It is a taboo for a woman to die with pregnancy as it is their belief that if given proper burial, the dead woman will reincarnate, hence the people do everything to prevent her reincarnation.
“Deaths from such circumstances are classified as bad deaths and such corpses are not given proper burial by not being buried in the town”, says His Royal Majesty, Ovie Richard L. Ogbon, Ogoni-Oghoro I, JP, the Ohworode of Olomu, who is also the oldest person (Okpako-Orere) of Ogoni-Olomu.
The traditional ruler explains further that such deaths are taken that way because of their belief in the reincarnation of women who died from such circumstances. “It is our belief that women who died in such manners, if buried in town or specifically at home, will reincarnate.
In the times of old, there were cases where new-born babies had marks of women who had died from such deaths. This is why we don’t bury them at home to avoid reincarnation.”
In addition to dead pregnant women, the traditional ruler adds that “when someone in a family have mental illness, epilepsy or other disease that are genetical in the family, if such a person is not treated properly or cured and he or she dies with such infirmities, it is also our belief that such people reincarnate by being born as children, and it is usually shameful to the family.” Such practices, he adds, are also applicable to people who died by suicide, in accidents, or from drowning.
Interestingly, those who die in such circumstances are buried in the bush as there are no designated places for such people in Olomu Kingdom, except the women who died with pregnancies, whose corpses are taken to the evil forest, according to the traditional ruler.
Decline in belief, practice
The advent of Christianity has led to trampling upon many native cultures and tradition. Therefore, certain Olomu practices of old which were revered and complied with have been compromised with increasing Western culture through education. According to Ogoni-Oghoro I, though certain cultural practices are still being observed despite increasing acceptance of Christian religion, especially the non-burial of corpses of such deaths inside town, these practices are declining as many people no longer hold such traditional beliefs.
The two factors he believes affected such beliefs are Western education and Christianity. People now insist that such practices are not obtainable again, so they have rebelled against the practices. He says: “Some families, when they lose a pregnant woman, they immediately carry out surgery to remove the foetus so they can bring her home for proper burial. This is the very wrong practice that is going on now.
The late woman and her foetus are supposed to go to the evil forest. The Church has affected many practices. For instance, many who used to carry out such traditional functions like taking the corpses to the evil forest, have now become Christians and you can’t get people to perform such traditional rites anymore.”
He speaks further: “Many practices have been jettisoned today. People no longer forbid things. When such abominable deaths occur in families today, out of shame for people not to hear that a taboo has occurred in their family, people no longer adhere to the tradition of burying such in the evil forest or bush. They now blatantly bring such dead into town and bury. This wasn’t so in those days.”
Cleansing the land
He believes some of these disregards for cultures and tradition could pollute a community. “The dumpi

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