African Traditional Spiritual Care Throughout Life

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Table of Contents

Childhood: Birth
Coming of Age: Adulthood
Ancestorship: Death
Bibliography

Childhood: Birth

Birth is the first of the main rites of passage in the vast majority of African cultures. Some of them also include rituals dedicated to the conception, the confirmation of pregnancy, and to prenatal period. The rituals related to childbirth differ for various African tribes and ethnicities. In African cultures, life is seen as the greatest gift. Therefore, pregnant women are treated with care and respect; they are secluded from the potential negative impacts to preserve the new life.¹

Also, the care and support given by pregnant women include feeding them the best of available foods and surrounding them with protection. The failure to provide a pregnant woman with the required care is believed to anger the spirits of the ancestors that may inflict a stillbirth or a miscarriage.²

Naming Ceremony

In African cultures, the time when a child is given a name is associated with his or her becoming a member of the community.³ In that way, naming is the crucial procedure that does not only allow a newborn child to enter the community but also indicates that the child is now considered a person. Also, since it is believed that a child comes to our world from the world of spirits and carries an important and unique task in life; his or her name is usually chosen in a way to reflect the discovered or perceived reincarnation, mission and personality.⁴ Most African peoples (the Edo, the Hutu, the Yoruba, the Akan, to name a few) conduct the naming ceremonies a week or 8 days after the child is born; these ceremonies involve all of the tribe or community members since a new child is seen as belonging to the tribe for the first time and thus needs to be acknowledged by it as a human being.⁵

Coming of Age: Adulthood

Often, the rite of adulthood is the primary association with the entire concept of the rites of passage that are typically associated with maturation and coming of age. The rites of adulthood were designed to provide the necessary guidance and experiences for young people to learn and become productively functioning adults. The rituals of these rites usually included the young people in their puberty years, who are to undergo the transition. In many African cultures, the rites of adulthood include the rituals based on the isolation of the young initiates from the rest of their communities and testing their skills of decision-making and problem-solving, as well as their wisdom, practicality, strength, and courage.⁶ This is done because adult life is usually more demanding, difficult, and comes along with more responsibilities than that of a child or a teenager.

Puberty Initiation Rituals

Puberty is a period of multiple changes for every person. The changes are not only physical but also emotional. They can be rather overwhelming for a young individual, and as a result, the youths are educated about their transition with the help of puberty initiation rituals. They can differ from one African community to another, but the vast majority of them are associated with the death of a child self of a maturing person and the birth of the adult self.⁷

Also, puberty initiation rituals usually involve the interaction between the elders and the youth coming of age for the transition of important knowledge. The process of initiation may include shaving off the initiates’ hair, throwing away their old clothes, and receiving new names to re-enter the community as adults and obtain their new places in it.⁸

Circumcision Rites

The rite of circumcision is majorly associated with the traditions and rituals of Islam and Judaism; however, the history of this rite is much longer than those of the main modern religions. Circumcision was performed in ancient Egypt and penetrated many different African cultures in that way.⁹ Circumcision rite is held at different stages of life in various cultures. It is performed by the senior men on the young initiates, and the youths must endure the entire procedure without demonstrating any signs of pain or discomfort to show their strength. After the procedure is complete, the initiates are left alone for a period required for their wounds to heal. Further, they can return to their communities and are readmitted in their new social status.

Clitorectomy Rites

In the contemporary world, clitorectomy is viewed as a highly controversial ritual and is often criticized as a sign of oppression of women. However, the true meaning of clitorectomy in the African cultures was much deeper than just the mutilation of the genitalia. The procedure that is recognized as female circumcision may differ; its variations involve versatile techniques and strategies targeting different parts of the female external reproductive organs. Clitorectomy is intended as a removal of the parts of female genitalia that resemble those of males; and in that way, it is believed that femininity is strengthened and fertility is maximized.¹⁰ Similarly to the rites of circumcision, clitorectomy is carried out by the senior females of the community and is performed alongside the other initiation rituals such as the provision of sexual education and instructions as to the duties and responsibilities of an adult woman.

Ancestorship: Death

In African cultures, the concepts of life and death are tightly intertwined. Just like birth is considered as a child’s arrival to the world of the living from the spirit world, death is viewed as an individual’s transition to the spirit realm. The two worlds are perceived as real to an equal degree; in that way, humans are seen as comprised of both spiritual and physical elements. As a result, death is viewed as a separation of the body and the soul of an individual where the former is returned to nature through burial, and the latter moves on to the afterlife.

Burial & Funeral Rites

In many African cultures, burial and funeral rites are held separately. The funeral rituals take place 40 days after the body is buried; during this period, the family of the deceased is expected to collect funds and plan the funeral; and the relatives who live far away – to come and attend the ceremony. The funeral is usually much bigger a ceremony than burial. The mourning family would wear white and red colors (they are associated with funerals), change their hairstyles, or cut their hair.¹¹ The personal things of the deceased are put in the grave; the remaining properties of the dead are not used for at least a year. The bereaved family is to have a ritual washing to get rid of the uncleanness inflicted by the death in the family.

Bibliography

Davis, Tasha. “Rites of Passage.” African People. Web.
“Death & Burial.” Africa. Web.
Magesa, Laurent. African Religion: The Moral Traditions of Abundant Life. Maryknoll: Orbis Books, 1997.
Laurent Magesa, African Religion: The Moral Traditions of Abundant Life (Maryknoll: Orbis Books, 1997), 88.
Ibid.
Ibid, 89.
Ibid.
Tasha Davis, “Rites of Passage,” African People, Web.
Ibid.
Ibid.
Ibid.

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