Abstract
The belief that there is life after death and that the spirits of the deceased are directly involved in the daily affairs of the living are strong among the Òyó-Yorùbá people of south-western Nigeria. These beliefs are evident in their egúngún culture, a decidedly Yorùbá masking culture in which the spirits of long-dead ancestors are believed to manifest in bodily form as egúngún, in re-visitations to the people they once knew and community they once lived in. The present study explores the connexion processes through which egúngún Mowuru and Jeńjù have engaged in establishing and maintaining contact between the living and the dead in the Òyó community. In this ethnographic study, two egúngún personages (eléégún) who have been directly involved in actual masking of egúngún were interrogated about their first-hand experiences. Fifteen other worshipers and stakeholders of egúngún were also interviewed. It was observed that the art and performances that institute contact by human with the spirits of the egúngún share basic worship principles as found in other religions. Such principles include regular worship, invocations, sacrificing of materials and spilling of blood to the spirit of Jeńjù and Mowuru to ensure communication and provoke ontological balance between the two worlds.
Highlights
Ení bá fi ojú àná woòkú Ebora a bó lásoMeaning: Whoever envisions the dead as if they were the livingSuch a person will be stripped naked by a super human forceThe above aphorism is a laconic saying among the Yorùbá that reflects their core belief and worldview about the transformational powers of death
The Alapini is theishead of all egúngún and the is in charge of all egúngún highest ranking egúngún chief selected in Òyó
The èkú of egúngún is usually sewn by men who are called the Aláàrán
Summary
The above aphorism is a laconic saying among the Yorùbá that reflects their core belief and worldview about the transformational powers of death (ikú). Baba Awo Ojebode points out that the frequent mention of the dead loitering around his homestead in Òyó community is borne out of the conviction that the spirit of a deceased ancestor loiters around its people, watching over them. An expansion of this belief is that the spirit of the dead can directly influence the affairs of the living (Morton-Williams 1960). Yemi Adebomi, a all the respondents, including the Alapini and Alaafin, consented to the publication of the information private freelance editor and language expert in Ibadan transcribed the voice interviews Important to mention that all the respondents, including the Alapini and Alaafin, consented to the publication of the information elicited in this research
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