By Obed Yaw Agyei
Synopsis of Edufa
Edufa, a wealthy Ghanaian man, consults a diviner who warns him of imminent death. Unwilling to accept his fate, Edufa learns he can transfer the death to someone who loves him enough to die in his place. He cunningly manipulates his household into declaring their love, hiding the true cost of their devotion.
His wife, Ampomaa, unknowingly seals her fate with a heartfelt vow. As her health deteriorates, the household unravels, revealing Edufa’s deception and the spiritual consequences of his selfishness. Ampomaa’s death leaves Edufa broken, haunted by guilt and the hollowness of the wealth he tried to protect.
Witchcraft and Money Rituals in Ghana
The disturbing rise of money rituals in Ghanaian society today calls for deeper cultural reflection, especially through the lens of literature. Efua Sutherland’s classic play Edufa offers a compelling framework to understand the transformation of spiritual practices into tools of manipulation and greed. In the play, witchcraft appears not through overt sorcery but through subtle spiritual exploitation. Edufa, the central character, manipulates oracular knowledge and sacred oaths to save himself from death by sacrificing his unsuspecting wife, Ampomah. This betrayal, masked under love and secrecy, serves as a literary mirror to the alarming trend of money rituals in modern Ghana.
Spiritual Manipulation: Then and Now
In traditional Ghanaian society, witchcraft was often associated with secret knowledge, spiritual power, and social control. It carried both negative and positive connotations, sometimes feared, sometimes revered. In Edufa, Sutherland portrays witchcraft not through flying or shape shifting but through spiritual manipulation. Edufa visits a diviner who tells him he can avoid death if someone else takes his place. Instead of facing his fate or being honest, he sets a spiritual trap for his wife, encouraging her to declare her love and willingness to die without revealing the consequences of that pledge.
This calculated deception reflects a growing modern phenomenon. Young people, often desperate for success or pressured by societal expectations, are turning to spiritualists to perform money rituals. These rituals promise instant riches but often require sacrifices, oaths, or moral compromises. In some extreme and disturbing cases, human lives are allegedly involved. Like Edufa, individuals caught in this web of spiritual greed frequently hide their true intentions, presenting a respectable or even religious front to friends and family while engaging in dark practices behind closed doors.
The Commercialization of the Spiritual
What Edufa reveals and what Ghana today is experiencing is the commercialization of the spiritual world. Practices that were once rooted in cultural guidance, healing, and moral teaching are now being distorted into avenues for material gain. In the past, oracles, priests, and diviners played roles in promoting communal harmony and justice. Today, that sacred trust is being eroded as spiritual services are increasingly commodified.
The modern-day sakawa phenomenon, which blends cybercrime with ritual practices, is perhaps the clearest example of this shift. Television reports, social media stories, and police investigations have highlighted how some young men seek spiritual “boosts” to their fraud schemes through rituals involving blood, body parts, or sexual exploitation. These acts are not just criminal; they are deeply rooted in a misguided belief that spiritual shortcuts can replace hard work and integrity.
Just as Edufa exploited his spiritual insight to secure personal safety at the cost of another life, many ritual practitioners today attempt to trade the lives or suffering of others for personal wealth. Ampomah’s death in the play is a chilling parallel to real-world victims of money rituals, innocent individuals sacrificed under the illusion of prosperity.
Cultural Crisis and Moral Reckoning
What both Edufa and current ritual practices reveal is a cultural and moral crisis. In both cases, life becomes secondary to personal survival or gain. The individual is exalted at the expense of community, trust, and dignity. The exploitation of spiritual power for selfish ends points to a deeper loss of values, of empathy, and of cultural direction.
This calls for a national conversation not just on the legal or criminal aspects of money rituals, but also on the spiritual and ethical education of society, particularly among the youth. What messages are being reinforced in homes, media, religious spaces, and schools? How do we restore respect for life, for honesty, and for hard-earned success?
Efua Sutherland’s Edufa, though set in a traditional context, feels hauntingly relevant today. It warns of what happens when sacred oaths are broken, when love is used as bait, and when the spiritual is weaponized. It asks us to reflect: What are we willing to sacrifice for personal gain? And who are we willing to betray in the process?
Conclusion
The legacy of Edufa offers not just a powerful story but a cautionary tale for a society at a spiritual crossroads. As money rituals continue to claim headlines and hearts, Sutherland’s work reminds us that the true danger lies not only in the supernatural, but in the moral choices we make under its influence.
