Wang-Nyamulia rock: The hidden wonder of Nebbi

The Hybrid solar eclipse will be credited for reviving tourism in West Nile region like in the case of the Nyamulia rock.

Located in Ogul Valley, Alwi Sub-county in Nebbi District, Wang-Nyamulia Cultural Site has for many years been little-known to both Ugandans and tourism enthusiasts across the globe.

No substantial attention was being paid to it. However, when the excitement of organising the watching of the Hybrid Eclipse at Owiny Primary School, Panyango Sub-county in Nebbi District, started in October, leaders in Nebbi mobilised communities to start promoting all other tourism sites in the district.

Nyamulia, according to Mr John Olum a care taker of the site, belongs to the Madi clan who for long, have been conducting cultural rituals at the site.

It is composed of rocks and caves that have water endlessly flowing through them in different directions.

The site was first discovered many years before the white man’s invasion of the African continent.

History
A popular legend told about the rocks is that a man from the Madi clan named Okul got married to a very beautiful woman whom people admitted they had never seen before.

They greatly admired her and named her Nyamulia, a Luo word to mean bride.
One morning, she went to fetch water in Ogul Valley but did not return home.

“This prompted her husband, together with some members of the community to mount a search for her. On reaching the valley, they found a rock which had some resemblance to a beautiful woman. The rock had Nyamulia’s beads but she was nowhere to be seen. They then concluded that she could have disappeared inside that rock,” Olum narrates.

The legend, according to Olum, states that Okul, Nyamulia’s husband then followed the foot marks on the rocks and also disappeared after some time.

No shoes at site
“A few years after that, lightning struck the rock and Nyamulia’s beads disappeared. It was from that that people considered the site holy and started using it as a place of worship,” Olum reveals.

A visit to the site is a rather challenging one especially reaching the rocks where Nyamulia is said to have disappeared from.

One is ushered in through a gateway made from sticks and is met with some Madi leaders donning wild animal hides.

These leaders have an unknown concoction in a calabash which they use to perform rituals on visitors before they are granted access to the site.
Visitors are strictly ordered to remove shoes before accessing the site because it’s believed to be a holy place.

The steep rocks are usually hot from the scorching sun and this poses a great challenge to visitors who have to walk barefooted on them.
Representatives from Madi community then lead you through the waters, to the steep rocks, until you reach the Nyamulia Rock.

The place, according to residents, has some snakes and bees although they claim they are not dangerous to man.

They also say they have never reported any case of a snake bite or bees stinging anybody.

Olum says: “Women, especially those who have failed to bear children gather here to ask for blessings from Nyamulia and they get children. Even those who come with problems easily get them solved.”

Olum, however says men who fall on the rocks while climbing, risk being impotent and women becoming barren although the claims cannot be verified.
Women are also barred from bathing at this site while naked.
The Nyamulia rock, although elders claim it looks like the beautiful bride who disappeared, it’s hard for a visitor to notice that resemblance.
Olum wants government to aid them with designers and tourism experts to see how best they can promote this little known treasure in Nebbi District.

Divine powers

Child bearing. Women, especially those who have failed to bear children gather at the rock to ask for blessings from Nyamulia and they get children. Those who come with problems easily get them solved.
Impotence. However, men who fall on the rocks while climbing risk being impotent and women barren. Women are also barred from bathing at this site while naked.
Snakes and bees. Although there are some snakes and bees at the rock, residents claim that they are not dangerous to man. They also say they have never reported any case of a snake bite or bees stinging anybody.

Little-known tourism sites

The West Nile region has several cultural, historical and tourism sites totalling about 41.

There are areas like Fort Dufile of Emin Pasha in Moyo district which is strategically located on the River Nile, and Gordon Hills in the South of South Sudan. In Maracha District, there are the Alikua Pyramids which were constructed by the Belgians.

There is also Lake Adola Milan in Koboko District but this has no access road or signpost to help people access it. In Nebbi District, there is Puvungu area where it is said the Luo immigrants split and Nyamulia rock.

Other sites are Indriani in Adjumani District, where the first missionaries constructed a church in 1911.

There are war memorial sites in Vurra and Ombaci in Arua, rolling Jukia hills in Nebbi whose escarpments straddle to Panyimur on the shores of Lake Albert.

It is believed that if developed, these sites would be tourist attractions and would create employment and generate income.
Compiled by Martin Ssebuyira

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