Why Christians flock Menengai Crater caves for prayer
The entrance to one of the caves at the Menengai Crater. PHOTO | SULEIMAN MBATIAH | NATION MEDIA GROUP
What you need to know:
- There is a board notifying visitors that the place is a holy ground and they should observe silence.
- Water is scarce and visitors have to walk four kilometres to the nearest homes.
Hidden from view on the southern side of the Menengai Crater in Nakuru County are caves sacred to Christians.
For years now, dozens of Christians have visited the caves to pray and fast.
At the entrance of one of the biggest cave, we met Mr Peter Ngugi enjoying the warm sunshine after his morning prayers in the caves.
“It’s very cold inside the cave especially during this rainy season, but I left some of my colleagues still praying”, Mr Ngugi said.
He says the caves are about four kilometers from settlement areas, hence they are quiet and are considered sacred ground.
He agrees to be our guide and tells us that he has been praying at the caves for almost a year now.
There are various inscriptions on the walls and at the entrance, there is a notice board notifying visitors that the place is a holy ground and they should observe silence.
One of the signboards that greet visitors as they approach caves at the Menengai Crater. PHOTO | SULEIMAN MBATIAH | NATION MEDIA GROUP
“I have been praying here for almost a year now. Compared to the rest, I have stayed the longest time and this has become my home,” he said.
Mr Ngugi led us into one of the biggest caves, which he says can accommodate up to 1,000 people.
Inside the caves, it is evident that visitors spend nights here as there are beddings and travel bags at several corners.
Beddings inside one of the caves at the Menengai Crater. Some visitors spend the night and even days praying inside the caves. PHOTO | SULEIMAN MBATIAH | NATION MEDIA GROUP
Next to the entrance of the cave is the kitchen, where the visitors cook only tea and warm water, as Mr Ngugi told us.
“This is the main cave, where a larger group can hold prayers and fasting and among the rules, we are not supposed to cook any tasty meal which can tempt the others who are fasting,” he said.
Cooking meals, he said, is done outside the main cave in the several makeshift houses aligned on the walls of the crater.
Mr Peter Ngugi sitting on one of the benches inside a cave at the Menengai Crater. To his left is the "kitchen" area. PHOTO | SULEIMAN MBATIAH | NATION MEDIA GROUP
Water is scarce and visitors who stay at the caves for days have to walk four kilometres to the nearest homes.
But during the rainy season, water drips from the roof of the caves and is collected in basins.
Mr Ngugi said they do not have to worry about insecurity, wild animals or reptiles such as snakes.
Mostly, it is hyraxes that roam the area during the day.
A few metres away from the main cave is a smaller, open cave. It has a small entrance and those wishing to pray inside squeeze through.
Some of the writings on the wall of a cave at the Menengai Crater. PHOTO | SULEIMAN MBATIAH | NATION MEDIA GROUP
This cave is on elevated ground and one gets a panoramic view of the northern side of the crater as well as Nakuru Town and its environs.
