African Traditional Religion, Interrelatedness of Beings and Purification Rites: The golden rule for human Existence (original) (raw)
Most cultures or traditions globally do not recognize the dual nature of the universe. Religions of different sects especially those that see the Ultimate Reality as outside the human habitation; higher and above the physical world; residing in the Supersensible or the Supra-mundane world make a contraction of the human world from the invisible abode-the 'residence' of the spiritual forces. A major religion which has much to do with the metaphysical world is the African Traditional Religion (ATR). The Religion and African world-view recognize a dual world. The physical and the metaphysical; the human and the spiritual. While the spiritual or metaphysical world consists of the Deities, spirits, spirit forces, divinities, ancestors and the likes, the physical world is made up of human beings and other creatures both animate and inanimate. Interestingly, in the African world-view, man in the physical world must constantly behave to attract the favours of the spiritual world or forces for his survival. Man must worship God, woo, lobby or placate the divinities and his ancestors including other mystical powers regularly if he must fullfil and enjoy his destiny on earth and even beyond. To consult with the divine forces, he must appear before them prepared, clean and of no blemish. Appearing before the divinities may be in the form of a traditional medicine practitioner or simply as a worshipper asking for one form of favour or the other. A worshipper or litigant as it were, is required to perform some rites or rituals of cleansing/purification of himself or his environment if his supplications must be heard by the divine for the betterment of all. This work has therefore considered the various approaches and reasons for approaching the divinities and the preparations preceding the approach, which make up the Golden Rule-coming clean or purifying oneself before encountering the divinity. This works is a phenomenological study makes use of documented, observation and interview methods of data gathering and analysis. To approach the divinities, humans going by the African world-view must purify themselves. This is the Golden Rule.
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