Emmanuel Monychol
12-31-2010, 01:33 PM
Bol Akol won the nude fat show called ‘lip’ but he died. His stomach had burst due to too much fat. And his younger brother, who happened to be the rightful heir to his dead brother’s widow – the chosen one of the five admirers who rushed to his grave to tie the mother’s bosom, speared to death three prize bulls, bulls Akol bought at ten heifers each. Among the villages, it was not something light.
It was ten years ago when one such young man died from fat. Ater Deng, member of Nongo village died ten years ago. His grave – a heap of dung lay at Purke cattle camp lay there for all to see and cite. Now that Akol had died, they were overjoyed that in the least, there men who could risk their lives to uplift the people’s spirits. And so, throughout the five villages women sang:
“Bol Akol aci lor dhong wei ke. (Bol Akol broke the drum with his life)
Indeed, Bol was the pride of Kar-tim. His mother, an old woman with a large bangle on her heels did not mourn him. Bol was a hero. He died well who died from the fat of the milk of his own cows. Another thing why the old woman could not mourn the death of her son was that her son was the beloved of women. A lovely girl from a respectable family ran to his mother’s house and offered herself as widow, the night Akol’s stomach burst with fat.
‘Lip’ game had been the custom among the Da tribe since time immemorial. In order to get fat adequately to participate in the competition, it had to start when the season was cold and must proceed for about four months. One was not allowed to walk in the sun or do any other work. The participants in the nude fat show were to say in one place and drink fresh milk and a large gourd – litres after litres.
With the death if Akol Bol, it was nearly over.
When the ‘lip’ process began four months ago, the families of the participating young men did all they could to make sure their children got enough milk to make them fat. The worried parents went about complaining: I don’t want my child to nourish his fat on five cows like so and so, the saying went. Family members contributed as many as fifteen cows to milk and feed one man.
The people of Makuei as well as other four villages went about their village chores that morning. For example, the women went fetching water; others went to pound durra; while others sat weaving mats. The birds continued to cry. Children continued to disturb. They cry for this or that. They grab this or that and put them in their mouths.
But for the youth, it was a different thing. The season of the nude fat show has just begun. It will go on for nine days.
Dut eleven toes turned his neck to view his butts. Three months ago they were flattened wiry butts. But now, they looked swell and tight like ladies’. But such sudden fatness did not come without a cost. It had come at a cost for his younger siblings who went without milk in three months. They starved themselves to see to it their big brother brought honour to their home. He was expected to win ‘lip’ competition. Dut like his other colleagues from Piolnyang village had hopes. They had hope because last month, he had accidentally met with Chuor at the bathing stream. And the favour went to him:
“Why did you dare cross path with me?” Asked Chuor.
“I fear not. I am fatter than you. The stream will not be enough for two of us. I guess you wait as I take a bath.” Dut eleven toes had replied at length.
Chuor, who had become so fat so that those who knew him three months back would not recognise him, squinted his eyes. His eyes looked small on his large head. He saw a group of girls digging in the nearby garden.
“Well,” he said licking his lips. Those girls down there will decide who among us is the fattest,” he said.
Without further words, the two fat village lads swayed their heavy naked bodies towards the girls. The girls saw the fat lads come towards them and shrunk in fear because the lads’ manhood stood straight like the cow’s teat. But one of the girls braved her heart and said:
“They have clashed over the stream. They are coming to us to decide as to who was the fattest.”
“How do we know who is the fattest?” Asked Aman. She was the youngest of the girls. Her father worked in Tonjia as the dish washer.
“Do not judge fatness from large belly or thickness of the flabby flesh, she said quickly. Even if someone is thin, there are other ways one can know who truly is fat. Now, if they arrive, we will look at them first. And promise me not to fear that straight thing.”
“But how can we not fear.” Asked the other.
It is not the only part of the body. Look at other parts of the body and simply judge. Don’t look at it. They have come. Wait till I whisper to you.
The two men arrived and stood before the girls. Due to fear, the girls looked on tersely.
“Turn your backs, said the brave girl.
It was much to the relief of the feat young girls, when the heavy men turned their backs. Their butts stood out like small anthills. The men’s backs were rigid as skin was thick and tight due to fatness.
The brave girls turned to the other two girls and whispered.
“It is the brown one on the left. And so she commissioned one of the young girls to go and slap his back, a sign that he had won.
“I am your man, said Dut eleven toes proudly after he got a tap on the back.
And with that, Chuor went away muttering. Pilnyang’s hopes had been raised by Dut’s little win. It generally believed that Dut eleven toes would win. Such hopes of the season were shattered when another young man by name Bol Akol from Kar-tim village died of fatness. He was declared winner of the year. As was the custom, he was not buried on the ground.
His body was dumped on a shallow grave. Heaps over heaps of dung were thrown on him to the height of man. Although he was dead, he was a hero of lip and so the five villages are founded in such a way that each village had a cattle camp at its outermost.
Every beginning of wet season, ‘lip’ a self fattening routine which took about four months was celebrated at Makuei-aram. The source of fat was pure milk which youth took. Chief Arop had complained about the competition he had remarked at one season that certain things needed to be redressed in his community. When the councillors advised him against it saying it was our custom he snapped.
“I know it, he had snapped. But it is a wrong time for many reasons. The youth drink all the milk when it a season where food is scarce. And these young men fattened themselves and did not work in the farms. It should not take place at planting season. It should be other times.” he said.
Well, it went on as planned. Other times was set for next season, which was if all go well. The five sub-chiefs were attending as was the custom. Sub-chief Duk-nok of Kar-tim was to attend the ceremony as a special honour. His youth had won at the cost of his life. He was to come with his family – his daughter who had been formally engaged to the youth who died in the infamous competition ran and threw herself on the grave of the man who died of fats. And as was the custom, she had been given as a widow to be inherited by the dead young man’s younger brother.
The celebration which drew together the villages of Kar-tim, Nongo, Pionyang, Akuc-ceng and Makuei was to take place at youth dance ground.
It was ten years ago when one such young man died from fat. Ater Deng, member of Nongo village died ten years ago. His grave – a heap of dung lay at Purke cattle camp lay there for all to see and cite. Now that Akol had died, they were overjoyed that in the least, there men who could risk their lives to uplift the people’s spirits. And so, throughout the five villages women sang:
“Bol Akol aci lor dhong wei ke. (Bol Akol broke the drum with his life)
Indeed, Bol was the pride of Kar-tim. His mother, an old woman with a large bangle on her heels did not mourn him. Bol was a hero. He died well who died from the fat of the milk of his own cows. Another thing why the old woman could not mourn the death of her son was that her son was the beloved of women. A lovely girl from a respectable family ran to his mother’s house and offered herself as widow, the night Akol’s stomach burst with fat.
‘Lip’ game had been the custom among the Da tribe since time immemorial. In order to get fat adequately to participate in the competition, it had to start when the season was cold and must proceed for about four months. One was not allowed to walk in the sun or do any other work. The participants in the nude fat show were to say in one place and drink fresh milk and a large gourd – litres after litres.
With the death if Akol Bol, it was nearly over.
When the ‘lip’ process began four months ago, the families of the participating young men did all they could to make sure their children got enough milk to make them fat. The worried parents went about complaining: I don’t want my child to nourish his fat on five cows like so and so, the saying went. Family members contributed as many as fifteen cows to milk and feed one man.
The people of Makuei as well as other four villages went about their village chores that morning. For example, the women went fetching water; others went to pound durra; while others sat weaving mats. The birds continued to cry. Children continued to disturb. They cry for this or that. They grab this or that and put them in their mouths.
But for the youth, it was a different thing. The season of the nude fat show has just begun. It will go on for nine days.
Dut eleven toes turned his neck to view his butts. Three months ago they were flattened wiry butts. But now, they looked swell and tight like ladies’. But such sudden fatness did not come without a cost. It had come at a cost for his younger siblings who went without milk in three months. They starved themselves to see to it their big brother brought honour to their home. He was expected to win ‘lip’ competition. Dut like his other colleagues from Piolnyang village had hopes. They had hope because last month, he had accidentally met with Chuor at the bathing stream. And the favour went to him:
“Why did you dare cross path with me?” Asked Chuor.
“I fear not. I am fatter than you. The stream will not be enough for two of us. I guess you wait as I take a bath.” Dut eleven toes had replied at length.
Chuor, who had become so fat so that those who knew him three months back would not recognise him, squinted his eyes. His eyes looked small on his large head. He saw a group of girls digging in the nearby garden.
“Well,” he said licking his lips. Those girls down there will decide who among us is the fattest,” he said.
Without further words, the two fat village lads swayed their heavy naked bodies towards the girls. The girls saw the fat lads come towards them and shrunk in fear because the lads’ manhood stood straight like the cow’s teat. But one of the girls braved her heart and said:
“They have clashed over the stream. They are coming to us to decide as to who was the fattest.”
“How do we know who is the fattest?” Asked Aman. She was the youngest of the girls. Her father worked in Tonjia as the dish washer.
“Do not judge fatness from large belly or thickness of the flabby flesh, she said quickly. Even if someone is thin, there are other ways one can know who truly is fat. Now, if they arrive, we will look at them first. And promise me not to fear that straight thing.”
“But how can we not fear.” Asked the other.
It is not the only part of the body. Look at other parts of the body and simply judge. Don’t look at it. They have come. Wait till I whisper to you.
The two men arrived and stood before the girls. Due to fear, the girls looked on tersely.
“Turn your backs, said the brave girl.
It was much to the relief of the feat young girls, when the heavy men turned their backs. Their butts stood out like small anthills. The men’s backs were rigid as skin was thick and tight due to fatness.
The brave girls turned to the other two girls and whispered.
“It is the brown one on the left. And so she commissioned one of the young girls to go and slap his back, a sign that he had won.
“I am your man, said Dut eleven toes proudly after he got a tap on the back.
And with that, Chuor went away muttering. Pilnyang’s hopes had been raised by Dut’s little win. It generally believed that Dut eleven toes would win. Such hopes of the season were shattered when another young man by name Bol Akol from Kar-tim village died of fatness. He was declared winner of the year. As was the custom, he was not buried on the ground.
His body was dumped on a shallow grave. Heaps over heaps of dung were thrown on him to the height of man. Although he was dead, he was a hero of lip and so the five villages are founded in such a way that each village had a cattle camp at its outermost.
Every beginning of wet season, ‘lip’ a self fattening routine which took about four months was celebrated at Makuei-aram. The source of fat was pure milk which youth took. Chief Arop had complained about the competition he had remarked at one season that certain things needed to be redressed in his community. When the councillors advised him against it saying it was our custom he snapped.
“I know it, he had snapped. But it is a wrong time for many reasons. The youth drink all the milk when it a season where food is scarce. And these young men fattened themselves and did not work in the farms. It should not take place at planting season. It should be other times.” he said.
Well, it went on as planned. Other times was set for next season, which was if all go well. The five sub-chiefs were attending as was the custom. Sub-chief Duk-nok of Kar-tim was to attend the ceremony as a special honour. His youth had won at the cost of his life. He was to come with his family – his daughter who had been formally engaged to the youth who died in the infamous competition ran and threw herself on the grave of the man who died of fats. And as was the custom, she had been given as a widow to be inherited by the dead young man’s younger brother.
The celebration which drew together the villages of Kar-tim, Nongo, Pionyang, Akuc-ceng and Makuei was to take place at youth dance ground.