Simão da Costa’s 1642 Journal: Chronicles of the Kingdom of Nri

In 1642, Portuguese thief Simão da Costa finds himself stranded in the peaceful kingdom of Nri. Stripped of his past, he witnesses a land ruled not by force but by a sacred staff called Ofo. Through encounters with the Eze Nri, the earth-listening king, Simão learns of rituals that mark the year’s renewal. He observes how punishment comes with a word, and how exile can be heavier than any prison. Tasked with carrying a traveler’s staff, Simão journeys to Oba to heal a broken taboo. Along the way, he witnesses the power of cleansing chalk, sacrificial goats, and the earth’s silent judgment. His journal reveals a kingdom without an army, where the weapon is a name and the prison is a curse. Simão risks his life to record what he sees, afraid not of death but of lying.

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