Mbuti People Essay

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Mbuti People Beliefs and values Gender relations Kinship The Mbuti people live in north/northeast portion of the Democratic Republic of the Congo region of Africa. They stay in bands or villages raging from 15 to 60 people. They are know as the people of the trees. They are also called Pygmies. They are foraging communities always searching for food and water. The Ituri Forest , where most are located is very rainy area, causing a lot of droughts. The Mbuti refer to the forest as mother or father because it gives them food, shelter and clothing as a parent would. After all the work is completed by noon, leaves a lot of time to dance and sing. Mbuti believe leisure activities are just as important as hunt game and gathering of wild vegetables. Mbuti People They celebrate all life events with song and dance. One major ritual they express is ambivalence. This is the in-between space, the space that is not here and now, life after death. The in between space is vital force, which is with a person every moment of his or her life. This belief relates to the Mbuti's second ambivalence with regard to the perimeter and its penetrability. If penetration takes place at death, then old age, sickness and injury are condi tions under which penetration can also take place. Antisocialist is another condition; individual who move with undue haste and noise may penetrate the perimeter and allow their other self to take their place. But then we could choose to deliberately take advantage of these moments of weakness to penetrate our sphere. Married couples make love in the Forest or in there huts. Sex in the Forest is something special and very joyful to the married couple. Once the woman is pregnant the couple have sex in the forest regularly to with the baby to grow. The mother most stay away from noise in the village. The

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