Fetichism in West Africa; forty years' observation of native customs and superstitions (1904) (14596436319)

Identifier: fetichisminwesta00nass (find matches)
Title: Fetichism in West Africa; forty years' observation of native customs and superstitions
Year: 1904 (1900s)
Authors: Nassau, Robert Hamill, 1835-1921
Subjects: Fetishism -- Africa, West Ethnology -- Africa, West
Publisher:
Contributing Library: Princeton Theological Seminary Library
Digitizing Sponsor: MSN



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athentering the mission grounds, as if a fight was in progress.Going to investigate, he found an angry contest was beingcarried on, under the old heathen idea that the spirit ofthe dead must see and be pleased by a demonstration of aprofessed desire to keep him with the living, and not to allowhim to be put away from them. The contest of words hadalmost come to blows, and the victors had set up a disgrace-ful shout as they seized the coffin to bring it to the grave. Another custom remains in Gabun, — a pleasant one; itmay once have had fetich significance, but it has lost it now,so that Christians may properly retain it. Just before theclose of the kwedi, friends (other than relatives) of themourners will bring some gift, even a small one, make afew remarks appropriate to it and to the circumstances ofthe receiver, and give it to his or her mourning friend. It iscalled the ceremony of lifting up, i. e., out of the literalashes, and from the supposed depths of grief. For instance, if
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A Civilized Family.—Gabun. RELATION TO THE FUTURE LIFE 237 the gift be a piece of soap, the speech of donation will be, Sitno longer in the dust with begrimed face! Rise, and usethe soap for your body! Or if it be a piece of cloth, Beno longer naked! Rise, and clothe yourself with your usualdress! Or if it be food, Fast no longer in your grief!Rise, and strengthen your body with food! As to the status of the departed in the spirit-world,though all those African tribes from old heathen daysknew of the name of God, of His existence, and of some ofHis attributes, they did not know of the true way of escapefrom the evils of this present life, of any system of rewardand punishment in the future life, nor of any of the condi-tions of that life. That they had a belief in a future worldis evidenced by survivors taking to the graves of their dead,as has been described in the preceding pages, boxes of goods,native materials, foreign cloth, food, and (formerly) evenwives and servants, for use