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There were many different reasons to hold a potlatch in Athabaskan culture, including the birth of a child, a surplus of food, or a death in the clan. The most elaborate of Athabaskan potlatches was the mortuary or funeral potlatch. [2] This marked "the separation of the deceased from society and is the last public expression of grief." [4]
In Trinidad and Tobago many Christians participate in a "wake" in the days leading up to the funeral service which resembles the 'nine night' traditions of other islands. In this country, Christians celebrate the "nine-night" service nine days after the death of the deceased which may coincide with a few days after the funeral service and burial.
Ceremonies were designated to protect, heal or cleanse. The energy generated by the people and more importantly the shaman dictated the connection with the spirits and effectiveness of results. A popular after-death ceremony being a potlatch, allowed for the shaman to offer a smooth transition to the yega of the deceased.
During the ceremony, around 500 prisoners would be sacrificed. As many as 4,000 were reported killed in one of these ceremonies in 1727. [5] [6] [7] Most of the victims were sacrificed through decapitation, a tradition widely used by Dahomean kings, and the literal translation for the Fon name for the ceremony Xwetanu is "yearly head business". [8]
The death wail is a keening, mourning lament, generally performed in ritual fashion soon after the death of a member of a family or tribe.Examples of death wails have been found in numerous societies, including among the Celts of Europe; and various indigenous peoples of Asia, the Americas, Africa, New Zealand and Australia.
The event died out early in the twentieth century, when Presbyterian missionaries in the area tried to eliminate traditional ceremonies. Shamanistic rituals are no longer practiced, although some elders have information about these rites. Song and dance have continued to be celebrated by Alaska Natives. [8]
African countries where masks are used traditionally Sande society sowei mask, 20th century Baoule Kple Kple Mask. Traditional African masks are worn in ceremonies and rituals across West, Central, and Southern Africa. They are used in events such as harvest celebrations, funerals, rites of passage, weddings, and coronations.
Traditional African religions generally hold the beliefs of life after death (a spirit world or realms, in which spirits, but also gods reside), with some also having a concept of reincarnation, in which deceased humans may reincarnate into their family lineage (blood lineage), if they want to, or have something to do.