He is the creator of life, and sculpted the first man. But the one who gives life, according to the belief of the Yoruba, their supreme deity Olorun. Overall, the African myths regarding the origin of life, significant importance is given to ancestors and lineage from which all people supposedly originate. “The Yoruba gods are human in form, thought, and way of life. They relate to one another as members of a large, human family, and they experience love, jealousy, anger, and sympathy.
As well as many other religions/likewise, traditional religions belong to those, whom practicing and celebrating life-cycle rituals play an essential role throughout the one’s life. In Africa; for example, the most popular yet well-known rituals such as, birth, coming of age, marriage, and death in general concepts are reasonably extensive between each other. First, the native African civilizations and their pattern of performing life-cycle practices are frequently initiated as some type of contributions to the familial/ancestral spirits. These offered gifts are a combination of food such as pumpkins, honey, and yams, with different beverages; for example, water or something stronger left at the worship places “… taken out and poured over the ancestral, burial ground” (Sinaiko, xli). Therefore, birth as a first ritual plays an important part, and shortly after birth, it is crucial to name a newborn baby.
Rastafari is a young, Africa-centred religion which developed in Jamaica in the 1930s, following the coronation of Haile Selassie I as King of Ethiopia in 1930. Rastafarians believe Haile Selassie I is God and that he will return to the African members of the black community who are living in exile as the result of colonisation and the slave trade. (www.bbc.co.uk) Marcus Garvey a political activist developed the idea of Rastafari ideology because he wanted to improve the status of his fellow black people. There are approximately one million people worldwide adherents of Rastafari as a faith. The 2001 census found 5,000 Rastafarians living in England and Wales (bbc.co.uk) Rastafarians are known by different names such as Rasta, sufferers, locks men, and dreadlocks or dreads.
This force field is within the pyramidal foundation that most primitive African tribes are built on. At the top of this religious pyramid sits the Supreme Being at the tip, not referred to as God but as the Supreme Being that rules above all. Descending below this Supreme Being were deities, or holy or divine beings, in which their responsibilities were to make sure that the world of man and nature was smooth, and therefore they “manifested themselves as the
The Kogi people of Columbia are the last surviving and intact pre-Columbian civilization. They have a very unique religious world view. Their religion is present in everything that they say do and more than likely even think. Their environment in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta is one of the most diverse places on the planet, in which lowlands, frozen mountain peaks, lush forests, and even deserts all exist within very short distances of one another. It is no wonder that they call the place in which they live ‘The Heart of the World.’ It would be easy to reach this conclusion with such a large amount of diversity.
Week 2 Comparative Religions W01 Dr. Tim Davis Question 1: While the Native Americans and the Africans inhabited two different continents, their belief system has a plethora of similarities pertaining to their core values. The basis of their religion also, in some ways, epitomizes modern day religion such as rites of passage. Their differences are shallow in context when it comes to what they view as sacred and holy and including religious rituals that are performed for a specific reason or transformation. Both Native American and African mythologies center around the ideology of harmony, balance, and cyclical nature of all beings through animistic symbolization. To a certain degree, all outsiders or nonnatives who study the belief
Dogon Mask Dance Dogons are from Mali in West Africa. Dogon masks rank among the most respected within the world of tribal art collections and have influenced such Western 20th-century artists as Picasso and Braque, even the Cubist movement. The mask binds the Dogon people to the celestial world of heaven (where the afterworld exists) and Earth, which provides food, shelter and life. An important Dogon tradition is the Dama or masked funeral dance. By masquerading behind masks, the dancers allow the souls of the deceased to escape to their final resting place and to join the ranks of their ancestors, thereby restoring order to the universe.
Between 1500-1800 C.E. Sub-Saharan Africa experienced changes and continuity as they began to go further with their foreign relations. Culturally, Africa began to form syncretic cults that had Christian teachings and African traditions. Slavery continued to be one of Africa's main way of showing economic wealth. Africa experienced growth and change in their political organization and the rise and fall of kingdoms and states Before the syncretic cults, Africa's old traditions and beliefs surrounded deities, idols, and multiple gods.
These criterion of ideals include hospitality and egalitarianism, contribution to society, family-centeredness, respect to religion and ancestors, and reverence and understanding of cattle. It is within these ideals that the Nuer find their own unique values. Hospitality can be found within every aspect of Nuer life. While there is no complex system by which debts and scores are kept, the Nuer are a highly reliant upon one another. Often, members of the community will borrow and share anything and everything.
Culture is defined by the famous anthropologists Bates and Plog as a “system of shared beliefs, values, customs, behaviors, and artifacts that the members of society use to deal cope with their world and with one another, and that are transmitted from generation to generation through learning”(1976, p6 ). Culture affects everything a person does, including food choices, preparation, and beliefs. Considered a distinct cultural group in the United States, African Americans have kept a strong sense of their culture. This culture is reflected in the cuisine of African Americans. PGPH 1 The roots of African-American cuisine may be traced back to 1619, when the first African slaves were sold in the New World.