Have you ever paused to think why members of the Akorino sect never wear jewellery and other ornaments?

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Well, according to a 1927 unpublished document titled 'Rũgano Rwa Gĩthomo Kĩa Aroti, 'The Story of the Prophets Church,' four prophets from Murang’a; Jason Kanini, Philip Mukubwa, Henry Maina and Lilian Njeri narrate how all this started.

They say that they had heard the voice of God asking them to go for a prayer retreat on Mount Kenya and on their way up the mountain, as they approached river Nyamindi, God spoke to Lilian Njeri about the traditional adornments which they had on their bodies.

Njeri says that God told her as a servant of God, the acceptable adornment was that of the inner person, and excessive jewellery was an indication of worldliness.

So, Lilian told the other three what God had told her and instructed them to discard all their jewellery into Nyamindi River, which they promptly did.

This they did as a sign that they had left all the worldliness stuff behind them before their ascent to the Holy mountain to hear the voice of God.

Removal of their cultural ornaments represented a turning away from their earlier traditional life in order to cross over into a new life in the spirit. 

It is following that instruction that personal ornaments, such as necklaces, rings, bracelets, jewellery and other adornments of precious metal were forbidden among the Akorino.

However, while at the mountain, the four say that they received instructions regarding how what they should wear during worship and other religious services, and the order to be observed during prayers and so on.

The colonial administrators, nevertheless, referred to Akorino as 'false prophets' and were trying much to curb the spread of the religious sect in other parts of Mount Kenya.

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