Cosa Nostra in the United States, back on the island of Sicily, or anywhere in the world it evolved for that matter, has had many secrets through its shadowy history over hundreds of years. But none has ever been so important as the hallowed vow that is taken by every new ‘proposed’ member before they enter into the organization itself.
In fact, more than just a simple “organization,” which seems much too benign a word to truly describe the Mafia in all its varied forms, Cosa Nostra is, in essence, a living, self-perpetuating organism. One that has evolved with modernity yet maintains its antiquity to this very day.
Perhaps author Claire Sterling put it best in her book, “Octopus,” when she likened Cosa Nostra to the sea creature of the same name. Reciting the Encyclopedia Britannica, she wrote;
“The octopus is a sea animal with a soft body and eight arms called tentacles…rows of round cups on the underside of each tentacle act much like a suction cup. These suckers can fasten tightly to any object and may hold on even if the tentacle is cut off.
If an octopus loses a tentacle, a new one grows in its place…An octopus has two eyes and sees well. It has the most highly developed brain of all invertebrates….Some kinds of octopuses inject a poison that paralyzes their prey….The octopus can also squirt a black fluid forming a dark cloud that hides the animal so it can escape from sharks, whales, human beings, and other enemies.”
The sacred vow of Omertà was first developed hundreds of years ago, at the time of the Brotherhood’s first fledgling days and very formation. The words of this vow have changed very little through its history.
