PUNCH
You have a PhD in Traditional Medicine. Can you give further insight into your academic background?
My name is Obafemi Jegede. I am a researcher in traditional African medicine and I teach Traditional Medicine at the postgraduate level, that is master’s and PhD levels, at the Institute of African Studies, University of Ibadan. I’m also a trained clergyman and I have taught some clergymen who are already bishops in both Methodist and Anglican churches. I studied at the Methodist Theological Institute in Sagamu and I was there as the registrar of the college for eight years. I went to the College of Theology and the seminary where I taught before I became a university lecturer. I was a seminary teacher for close to 12 years after which I moved to the University of Ibadan as a lecturer. I was trained as a seminarian after which I was brought back to the seminary to teach. I had been in the seminary since I was 19 years old, so I studied Theology extensively
I attended Ifeoluwa Primary School, Oke-Eso, Ilesa, and Ilesa Grammar School, which is the foremost grammar school in the state and one of the foremost in Nigeria. After that, I started my seminary training. So, I attended Methodist Theology Institute as a seminarian, to be trained as what we call ‘sub-pastor’. It means one would be an assistant to pastors or priests in local churches
.In African religious studies, there is a phenomenon called incantation, where one speaks words that are believed to be potent. Do you also believe and practise this?
Absolutely! I believe in incantations and incantations work. Incantations like, “Let there light” were used to create the world anyway. So, incantation is primordial. It is very ancient, even before creation, it has been used. It’s just people’s method and methodology of how they see and practise, so, it should not take them away from faith as far as I am concerned.
In fact, my PhD was on incantation, so, there is no way I can escape it. Incantation is what controls everything. It’s a way of verbalising decrees in nature, those decrees that cannot be changed, those natural truths, activities and actions and one is now expressing it as a basis by which you are now validating an intention and looking for results. ..
How do you make incantations? Do you use scriptural verses or do you make incantations with herbs?
I don’t use scriptural verses at all. I use decrees in nature. We use it to bring events in the past in which cases were handled, so if it was handled in those days, it can be handled again. Just the way it is in law. So, if it is law, it is potent and if it is potent, it can be used to solve some particular problems. I don’t use the Bible, I make a decree in nature, of events that have happened in the good old times and I think it applies to everything. I know that the Western world also uses incantation. In fact, they are used in engineering for some of the machines. They (scientists) speak to the machines.
