The Mythology of Death and Disease in African Tradition

In this week’s lecture, we studied the mythology of death/disease in African tradition and the symbolism that further explains these traditions. In a lot of African cultures, life and death exist in the continuum in which death is seen as a passage to another plane of existence. Within my group, we looked at the mythology of death in Kikuyu and Kapsiki societies and the Ancient Egyptian traditions. We also discussed the statement “Body practices as an extension of mythic narratives.”

Kikuyu

Kikuyu are the largest Bantu ethnic groups inhabited in central Kenya. They believe in monotheistic god known as Ngai, the supreme god, and giver of all things. In Kikuyu tradition, if an elderly individual is sick, they are taken away from their homes to areas such as the forest or hillsides. In order to determine if they were dead, “his other right hand on a leash to be rugged from time to time.” The person would pursue to be dead if they fail to respond. The ritual once a person dies includes careful wrapping of the body with the legs and hands in the sleeping position. The body is then taken to a burial ground known as kĩbĩrĩra and buried facing the homestead. Besides, the Kikuyu people do not believe in crying out of respect for the dead. They usually wait loudly to express their grief.

I had the privilege of living in Kenya for eleven months. My neighbor told me that darkness is the symbolism of death in Kikuyu tradition, which further symbolizes loneliness and emptiness once a person dies. This symbol is very striking because people usually turn all their lights off and stay inside their homes (sometimes for months) in order to show this symbolism and others show sympathy by going inside their house and feeding them food.

The statement “Body practices as an extension of mythic narratives” also agrees with what I said above because the purpose of the ritual before the body is buried is to provide ease to the soul. In Kikuyu tradition, there is also a controversy that the deceased are thrown to hyenas, which were seen as an expensive affair in view of all the rites that had to be paid off for goals and rams.  

Kapsiki

The people of  Kapsiki tour the body around the person’s home or village once they die. This is because they believe the spirit of a person is still alive after the body has witnessed biological death. Apart from that, Blacksmith, often criticized for being dirty, is the most striking symbol found in the Kapsiki tradition. Its main purpose is to dispose of the dead and govern the proceedings. 

The ritual described after a person is biologically dead ties into “Body practices as an extension of the mythic narrative” to some extent because the purpose of carrying the body around the village is to bring ease to the soul. Furthermore, in chapter 8, “The Forge and the Funeral The Smith of Kapsiki/Higi Culture” it elaborates on how the bone spirits, rocks, and animals are often extracted by smiths in order to find ease to the body. 

Ancient Egypt Traditions

In this discussion, we specifically focused on the “Hall of Truth”. In order to determine if a deceased person was worth entering “Field of Reeds” (The Egyptian conceptualization of an eternal paradise in the afterlife), their soul is judged by Osiris (Lord of the Egyptian Underworld) and Forty-Two Judges. 

One of the symbols found in this tradition is the feather of Ma’at, which is used to judge whether or not the heart of the deceased was pure or innocent. This symbol is striking because since a feather is incredibly light, finding something that overweights it is incredibly easy. Furthermore, Ammit is believed to be the goddess in charge of damning the soul if his/her heart overweights the feather.

A lot of traditions in Ancient Egypt support the statement “Body practices as an extension of mythic narrative.” For example, in the process of mummification, the action taken by Anubis (the Egyptian God of mummification) is seen as the foundation for the embalming process of mummification itself, which illustrates how narrative contributes to “Body Practices”. In addition, the priests of Anubis would ceremoniously open the mouth and the eyes of a deceased body. They strongly believed that the afterworld is the reflection of the living world. Thus the deceased would be able to eat, drink, see, and talk in the afterworld if they had their mouth and eyes open. Furthermore, Ancient Egyptians would also leave the hearts of the mummified after the body had been purified because they believed the heart was the source of intelligence (they did not believe the brain was the source of thoughts). 

Pandemics 

In a lot of ancient traditions and religions wrath of God is believed to be the reason for pandemics. In a recent example, the world has been affected by COVID-19. The cases are gradually increasing in many countries including Canada. Although there are ways to prevent it or to be cured of the disease, there is no specific medication for it and things have only been getting worse. As a result, a lot of people and traditions have come to believe that there is no cure on this planet unless it comes from God. For instance, in my country (Ethiopia) there are songs from certain religions that state how the wrath of God is the cause of COVID-19 and how prayer is the only cure. 

References

1. Bondi, V. (2015, June 15). Death and Burial in the African Context: A Case Study On Kenyan Customs And Kenyan Customary Law by Vyonna Bondi. Retrieved from  https://hitchhikersguidetolaw.wordpress.com/2015/06/15/death-and-burial-in-the-african-context-a-case-study-on-kenyan-customs-and-kenyan-customary-law/#:~:text=Amongst%20the%20Kikuyu%2C%20the%20dead,be%20placed%20facing%20the%20homestead.
2. Ngui, M. (2018, July 2). Modern Christian Life and Kikuyu Rituals. Retrieved from https://medium.com/@muirucngugi/modern-christian-life-and-kikuyu-rituals-433656d95f5d
3. Ekore, R. & Lanre-Abass, B. (2016, December 24). African Cultural Concept of Death and the Idea of Advance Care Directives. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5072226/

Images retrieved from the following articles

1. Kikuyu Tribe of Kenya Facts-Language, Woman, People & Houses. Retrieved from https://answersafrica.com/kikuyu-tribe-people-and-culture.html
2. Walter E. A. van Beek. (2012, June 18). The Dancing Dead: Ritual and Religion among the Kapsiki/Higi of North Cameroon and Northeastern Nigeria Paperback. Retrieved from https://www.amazon.ca/Dancing-Dead-Religion-Cameroon-Northeastern/dp/0199858160
3. Public Domain. (2016, September 20). Judgment in the Hall of Truth and Preparations for the Afterlife. Retrieved from https://www.ancient-origins.net/history-ancient-traditions/judgment-hall-truth-and-preparations-afterlife-006756
4. Treble, P. (2020, March 14). This coronavirus chart shows what Canada is up against in trying to ‘flatten the curve’. Retrieved from https://www.macleans.ca/society/health/this-coronavirus-chart-shows-canada-is-not-flattening-the-curve-at-least-not-yet/