Guardian

FRANKLY, if there had been more than one Eve in the famed Garden of Eden, can any of us be very sure that Adam would have picked just one and left the other Eves in the cold? Don’t rush to give an answer. Take your time…

No. None of us can be sure…

In fact, chances are that such a maiden edition of the human male would be so virile he would have catered to all the Eves available. And there would have been no religionists around to raise objections.

Even the Creator, who was eager to have his creatures multiply and fill his new Earth would have hailed Adam’s masculinity—- and gallantry.

Why then do some fellows flaunt Adam as an example of a thoroughbred “monogamist”.

But even if by any chance, Adam had actually picked one and ignored the other nubile ladies, he would have been guilty of uncommon callousness and a wastage of “woman resources”.

In fact, the other ladies would have created one hell of a racket that neither the Creator nor his co-workers would have enjoyed that “rest” he  allegedly took on the Seventh Day.

Thankfully, Adam was spared that dilemma. He had only one Eve to pick.

Not so today.

Today’s “Adam” is faced with so many choices; beautiful choices…

Now, there are many Adams and many more Eves…

For as long as can be remembered, polygyny, the form of polygamy in which a man marries more one woman at a time, has flourished worldwide. That is, until Christianity began its spread. (Polyandry, the other form of polygamy in which a woman marries more than one man at a time is rare though not non-existent).

It is interesting however that Christianity and Islam which both took their roots from the same Judaistic source (of Genesis), parted ways over polygamy. While many Christians condemn it as sinful/ungodly, it enjoys wide and enthusiastic acceptance among Muslims. Yet both claim to worship the same God.

Before the advent of Christianity (and the criminalization of polygamy by British law as bigamy) Nigerians, like other Africans, were unapologetically polygamous. Even after Christianity with its discordant tunes on polygamy, many Christian churches do not frown on members practicing polygamy.

In fact, bigamy—- the “crime” of polygamy—- has been wisely and blissfully ignored both within and outside the Nigerian legal system.

The interesting thing is that both the Catholic Church and many other protestant churches that prohibit polygamy are replete with incidents of secret romantic alliances among even high-ranking members—-putting the lie to their purported marital rectitude.

While it is argued, and rightly too, that the average male is naturally polygamous and that it is not given unto man(and woman) to love but one, sociological reasons like the acrimony and rivalry that often characterize polygamous homes are strong arguments against the practice.

Another factor is the increasingly vibrant voices of women in matters of matrimony, a fallout of  gender equality advocacy reverberating globally.

The foregoing notwithstanding, the rising figure of painfully single ladies in Nigeria seems to be clear warnings that we are headed for the romantic frustrations common among the women of “monogamous” Europe. Serial monogamy is the “disease” of Europe —- where both men and women marry several spouses consecutively only to discard them for fresh ones. It seems not to have helped matters. It has, in fact, encouraged a mentality of regarding marriage as a temporary arrangement on which not to build any lasting hope.

What is the way out of this religio-cultural dilemma?