ALLEN TIMILEHIN OLATUNDE
MARCH 2011
INTRODUCTION
Funeral rite differs in practice, context and content. Every culture practice the art of burial the dead to avoid decay and incessant odour in the community. More than that, funeral rite is done to escort the dead to the reserved world of the spirit for the ancestor of that community. Obviously, a funeral is a ceremony for celebrating, sanctifying, or remembering the life of a person who has died. Funerary customs comprise the complex of beliefs and practices used by a culture to remember the dead, from interment itself, to various monuments, prayers, and rituals undertaken in their honor. These customs vary widely between cultures, and between religious affiliations within cultures. Funerary art is art produced in connection with burials, including many kinds of tombs, and objects specially made for burial with a corpse. It is done with awe, dread and sacredness. Every element of the rituals is culturally substantial in context and value to the ancestors, present elders and the successors (the children of the community).
PATTERNS OF FUNERAL IN DIFFERENT CULTURAL BACKGROUNDS
DUKAWA TRIBE
Dukawa tribe as a cultural background is located in Zuru Local Government Area in Niger-Kebbi State. In Dukawa land, if a man dies, for three months, the wife of the deceased will be under tradition burden for some periods. The woman will be barbed, wearing a garment and a rope on her loins with a calabash on her head as a cap, walking around with stick like old person. She must not give chance for any passerby but must be excused as she passes. She must not be touched by anyone because of the bad consequence that might come after. She will be entering her house face turned backward for three month. The day the husband died, the wife will be naked, only to cover her womanhood with leaves. After the three month of seclusion, the community will observe a feast for her as completion of the period. The agony is too much. During burial, the elders (aged persons) above 50 years of age dig the grave. Both male and female elders will come with sticks to conduct the rituals and after will walk backward from the scene. All women in the community will start to cry. No shoe or cap must be put on. The information was narrated by Pastor Peter D. Pam, Missionary in Dukawa Mission Field, Zuru, Kebbi State.
IGBO TRIBE
In the Eastern Region of Nigeria, primitive Igbo tribe practice an art of burial that uniquely involved the category of people such as Nza, Ozu, Eze and ordinary native of the land. All procedures are the same except few aspect of the title of the deceased. Burial rite lasts 18days before the main funeral. But now 8 days due to civilization and modernization. The wife and the children of the deceased cry twice daily (around 12.30am and 5.30am) before the burial. The relatives of the deceased will be accusing and abusing the wife or wives for murder against their brother. On the day of burial, the daughters of the dead, especially those that have married will tie local wrapper called, ‘Judge’ which is relatively cost, and they also carry four-corner basket called ‘Abor’ on their head to dance on the sets of ‘judge’ spread on the floor, from the coffin to the entrance of the house or compound. Dancing and walking on the ‘judge’ 2 sets of ‘judge’ will be spread also according to the number of the dead. However, the wife or wives will be somewhere crying and the other children (male ones and female that yet to marry). The married daughter will dance and the in-laws will give gifts and spray them with money. During the burial, the wife will be allowed to see the husband for the last time, because he was embalm locally. Traditional initiation will be done by killing dogs and shooting of local powder guns called ‘Nkponala’ for number of times like 24 or 30 rounds, this shows the caliber of the dead person. The process of burial invokes spirits and makes it fearful. The sister of the dead will after the burial scrape the hair of the wife and the children that allow (due to Christianity influence, some might refuse, but later will face the consequence, if any). The widow will later be dressing in white or black attire for about one year but now reduced to six months for her widowhood. This burial rite is always costly that is why it will involve all family members. This information was narrated by Pastor (Mrs.) Chukwukweze, Esther Dichukwunma, a student of Nigeria Baptist Theological Seminary, Ogbomoso.
BUM TRIBE
The funeral rite in Bum tribe, North West Province, Boyo Division, Cameroon as tradition dictates it to be observed. When a man dies especially, if he has a communal title, the coprse will be taken into his room in which the wife will be forbidden to enter until the body is buried. The elders and the family members (only male) will bath the corpse; shave the hair of its head and manhood, and later rub on the body a red powder from ‘Cam wood’ for burial preparation. Some rituals will be conducted indoor, and then the corpse will be placed in its coffin. In case, there are reasons to delay the burial, the corpse can be embalmed for days locally with either life plant flowers or plantation leaves for preservation. After the burial, the wife of the deceased will be indoor for one week, her hair be shaved as a sign of mourning. In addition, the whole family members will also shave their hairs, including the children and grand children.
A piece of clothe as loin will be tied on the head, wrist or waist of the family as sign of recognition for about one month continuously everyday. A week after the burial, there will be preparation of traditional dish for the whole family. The daughters of the deceased and the daughters-in-law will all prepare the dish; ‘Fufu corn with ‘Nkwi’ soup. It is believed that the tradition dish has power to disallow the spirit of the dead from hunting the family members after the burial. Though some family members that are professing their faith in Jesus Christ may not partake in the meal, but they still believe that there will be consequence – sickness, death, calamity - for that action. If a member of the family is not around, he or she must come over after to make up the meal.
The sons and the sons-in-law will, however, buy one fowl each and go to the burial ground to pray over the fowls and to bid farewell to the dead. Later, the men of the community will join those sons in the deceased compound to roast those fowls with fufu corn. Women of the compound will not eat out of it. The form of preparing the fowls is called ‘Katikati.’ The widow clothes for the wife is not compulsory but she must tie the loin compulsorily. After two or three years, as the family plans, there will be general celebration, dancing of different masquerade in the community and the cult in which the dead belonged. This is the final celebration for funeral rite in Bum tribe. This information was got from interview conducted with Pastor Vincent Kibie, an international student of Nigeria Baptist Theological Seminary, Ogbomoso, from Cameroon.
YORUBA TRIBE
In the comparison with Yoruba tribe, the typical cultural man loves to observe the funeral rituals that involve the elders of the village. Though it has been modernized and most of the art of funeral has gone into extinction. Yet, the culture preservers will still gather to bury the dead, but the cause of the death will be sought for and sometimes calls the dead to talk and avenge his death. Yoruba uses a fowl called, ‘Adie Irano’ as spiritual escort for the dead to the spirit world. The priest will be removing its feather to fall on the path way until they get to the burial point. The fowl will be strangled and pour the blood as sacrifice for the dead and to appeal against death stings in the family, compound and the community. They will bury the dead and go back home. The wife will be indoor for a year as her time of widowhood and later she will be given to the sibling of her late husband as wife to continue the lineage of the dead and as the property sharing process, the wife worth sharing also.
THE BARRIERS TO MISSION WORK IN THESE CULTURAL CONTEXTS
There are limitations and constraint atmosphere for mission to travail in most tensed cultural community where burial system in cultural context is much elevated. The belief in the ancestors and spiritual linkages have spiritual connotation. The burial system involves eschatological background to the spiritual realm of rest with their ancestors. There is danger of worshiping the dead and ascribing worship to them with awesome fear that might hinder gospel. The aftermath of the disobedient family members might hinder others from breaching the rituals laws. The burial process is cultic and demonic. Failure to comply with their rules might lead to excommunication of anybody, even a missionary. It involves highest level of spiritual fight to really challenge the system. The system has become heritage and inherited pattern of their society. To divorce the system is to scrape off their lives in the culture. The idea is the right and the honourable way of showing respect for the dead. The mission work in such context will suffer syncretism if care is not taken. There will be difficulty to separate the culture of last respect to the loved ones with Gospel. Yet, the Gospel must be preached to the people that our effort to the dead has not effect in the world after. Everyone will stand the judgment of his or her Creator individually. The burial system that hinders the right and comfort of the living should be stopped. There is need to expose the crafty way of evil ones in initiating them into cultic even without their full consent.
THE WAY OUT
Understanding of ‘what’ and ‘how’ of culture of a land helps to relate without strife. An act of ethnocentric behaviour should be removed. The culture of the land be studied and contextualize the gospel in relative to what will not lead to syncretism. Funeral service in Bum, Igbo, Dukawa and Yoruba land has a form of evil practice and the acknowledgement of the dead as deity, however, the way out is to educate on the relationship of God to man and what lies after death. Eschatological teaching in the light of unseen world should focus on God in Jesus Christ. The abolishing of the rites should be gradual through love and caring attitude to them as Mary Slessor did in Calabar, act of cannibalism and killing of twins and king’s wife and slaves. Through teachings that will give create trust and confidence in God even when the act is rejected should be taught; that the people will be saved from the aftermath of the renunciation of the rituals. Biblical and contemporary examples of people that were saved from gods and idolatry should be shared to encourage their decision. Missionary should not participate no matter the pressure; compromising will never win their heart.
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