Ritual Dirt and Purification Rites Among the Igbo

This article explores the Igbo purification ritual and the meaning of dirt used in that tradition. The Igbo, the author argues, see dirt as essentially religious phenomena. Their ideas about pollution and purification, as well as prohibition, have a wide array of social and psychologial functions in...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of religion in Africa 1985, Vol.15 (1), p.3-24
Main Author: Ikenga-Metuh, Emefie
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Africa
African culture
Deities
Divinity
Environmental pollution
Ethnology
Incest
Priests
Purification rituals
Religion
Religion, magic, witchcraft
Religions, beliefs, worships
Religious beliefs
Religious rituals
Rites, ceremonies
Rituals
Sociology and Anthropology
Traditions
Water pollution
Yams
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Summary:This article explores the Igbo purification ritual and the meaning of dirt used in that tradition. The Igbo, the author argues, see dirt as essentially religious phenomena. Their ideas about pollution and purification, as well as prohibition, have a wide array of social and psychologial functions in Igbo culture.
ISSN:0022-4200
1570-0666
DOI:10.1163/157006685X00020