Marriage ritual in Takanir culture is extremely precious because of
their extraordinary emphasis on relationship.
Marriage means taking on the animal dignitary of your husband as a wife,
or as a husband extending your personal dignitary to your wife. Believing that the Zebra god has graced his
people with the possibility of unity, the entire village (and often surrounding
Takanir villages) joins in the marriage ritual. Marriage is not arranged and
individuals are free to choose or decline, man or woman. Anyone, so long as
they are sixteen years of age can initiate the desire for a marriage by asking
the individual with their entire family present. The age sixteen is considered the
age of a truly adult man or woman in Takanir culture. An individual does not
need familial approval to partake in a marriage, but it is considered
respectful to asked in the presence of your loved ones. The ritual for a marriage
celebration lasts seven days. Its purpose is to create a social understanding
of marriage in combination of a religious understanding of marriage. The first day, the entire village partakes in acquiring food for
the celebrations that will ensue in the following days. Beer is prepared as
well, for later use within the week. The second day is when the decorating
occurs as well as the continuation of the gathering of food and the beer
production. The entire village is filled with flowers, and the common space
(often used for meetings and social activities and the like) is decorated. All
of the wooden benches in the common space are adorned with flowers and
greenery, and every door of every hut is expected to follow suit. Meat is taboo
in Takanir society, but it is eaten at births, deaths, and marriages. A group
of a few men (including the groom) are sent out to kill a zebra to bring back
for the marriage meal. It is eaten to show that the Zebra, physically by being
eaten, becomes a part of the marriage. The rest of the village eats the meat as
an act of consensus; proof of the sacred marriage. The evening of the second
day, a cart is prepared and decorated with flowers and greenery, as well as
silk blankets for the couple to ride around in. The couples stay in their
respective family’s homes until the next morning (the third day), when the
entire village meets at sunset. Carrying food and water, the couple is
chauffeured around the village in a cart, with all of the townspeople singing
and chanting Takanir songs of joy in Yarewiq. Upon the ending of the travel (re-arriving
back at the village), a ceremony takes place in which the meat is eaten. The
bride and groom exchange the bracelets they made for one another (as seen as
the cultural symbol of a marriage in blog one) and they paint themselves in
their respective dignitaries colors to symbolize their new kinship. The entire
village is also freshly painted as their dignitaries, so as to add to the
switching of kinship. Fires are lit
representing each dignitary, the zebra, and the to-be-married couple with flags
beside the fire painted to represent each group. Those of each affiliation
stand by each designated fire. Thus, the zebra fire would have no individual by
it; it is made specifically to honor the Zebra god. People would stand by their
flag and fire. The marriage flag is painted dually as each individual’s
previous dignitary, so as to represent the crossing over of the woman’s after
the ceremony is complete. The entire village prays over the couple to the Zebra
god. There is no religious “shaman” of any sort, so much of the ceremony is not
lead by a specific person. However, many of the older Takanir direct the
ceremony as it goes, as the as it goes, as they are often in control of the
process of the food and beer production. The bride sings a song to the Zebra
god, a Takanir bridal chant, in which she thanks the Zebra for allowing her to
be protected by her husband’s dignitary and how she will raise in her children
in the way of the Zebra. The groom sings a chant to the Zebra god, a strictly
male Takanir song, promising to look over his family and avoid violence at all
cost. Then, the village sings in celebration and beer and zebra meat is
respectively drunk and eaten all evening. On the fourth day, the newlyweds go
to a hut for the following three days, which is especially designed for those
just married. It is far off from the village, at a mile’s distance, and they
are sent off with a myriad of food and gifts from the villagers. The remaining
four days, the villagers drink and eat and build a hut for the newlyweds. Upon
their return, on the seventh day, one last celebration is had. This celebration
is performed without meat, and is mostly based upon the consumption of beer and
nuts. The end of the seven days accomplishes the acceptance of the couple back
into the village in a respectable, community-built Takanir home.
At the first
of every month all Takanir participate in a sacred ritual in reverence to the
Zebra god. Assuming a twelve month, 365 day calendar, it is imperative that the
ritual occurs on the first day of every month. Weddings never occur on this
day, and births and deaths are simply incorporated into this ritual. It is thought
to be a very special, beautiful occurrence if one dies or is born on the first
of the month --- one is assumed to be in communion with the Zebra god. The ritual
is mandatory, and everyone meets in the middle of the village at sunset. Everyone
paints themselves the color of their animal dignitary, as well as with white
and black stripes to assume union with their god. Everyone goes out into the
forest during the day to gather wood and rocks, and a huge bonfire is built in
the middle of the village. Chanting occurs for the first few hours after the
fire has been attended to. Then,
chanting ceases and songs and prayers written for the Zebra god ensue until the
following day’s sunrise. It is not uncommon for someone to begin a song or a
prayer, and for many of the people to join in unison. There is no leader of
this ritual, nor is there any specific course of events. This seemingly simple
ritual of painting oneself, lighting a bonfire, chanting, singing, and praying
is very precious to the Takanir because they so firmly believe in an individual
relationship with their Zebra god. To have a shaman or leader would ruin and possibly
taint this direct interaction. The purpose of this ritual is to glorify the
Zebra god and it accomplishes such worship as well as deep unity and sense of
communitas amongst the Takanir.
The Takanir, as has been previously mentioned, are a people
of peace. War is atrocious and disgusting to the Zebra god, and Takanir are
taught to believe all people are created equally. However, this does not take
away from their intrinsic, deep-rooted feelings of patriotism. Celebrating their institution of government on
the first of the new year, the Takanir engage in a patriotic ritual lasting
three days. Much preparation for food
and beer occurs in the days leading up to the first of the new year, and by sunset
everyone is painted (as always) in their dignitaries colors. Women bead and
make beautiful jewelry for this patriotic occasion, and everyone in the village
is seen sporting some sort of beaded or weaved jewelry. A large Takanir flag is
hoisted up through a structure made of bamboo trees, and the flag has the
symbols shown in the first post of this blog. The religious symbol of the Zebra
is painted on a flag hoisted up next to the Takanir flag. Everyone is given a torch
that has been previously collected and the young men play drums. The women,
men, and children engage in a dance called Kiwqud (pronounced KEE-QWA). Performed in two lines, one of men and one of
women, the two parties face each other for this dance, never touching but
always twirling and tapping to the drums. The older men and women smile and
laugh and often prepared the food as this dance occurs, sometimes joining for a
few moments. This dance is special to
the Takanir, because it is a dance their ancestors danced upon first coming to
land the Takanir have been on for thousands of years. Singing occurs to the
Zebra god after the Kiwqud, and people dance in jubilee and praise around both
hoisted flags with their torches. Often masks are put on meant to look like
each dignitary, and sometimes children act out little plays with adult
encouragement. Then food and beer is eaten, and the dancing ensues until
sunrise. This occurs three nights in a row.
The simple act of dancing and singing is important to the Takanir
because it is a purposeful celebration of being Takanir. Hardly ethnocentric, this may appear impromptu;
that is quite the purpose of this annual patriot ritual. The Takanir look to
accomplish pride in their communities without cultivating ideas of individuality
or superiority. To be Takanir is to be joyful, to be peaceful, and to celebrate
the precious animal dignitaries as well as the Zebra god. This ritual
accomplishes patriot pride without arrogance.
All of the rituals thus far have been exciting, filled with
dancing and beer, and they are seemingly unspecific and broadly
celebrated. The kinship ritual done for
birth, however, is extraordinarily structured. When a couple is expecting, they
are treated with the utmost dignity and respect. Many of the women will visit the pregnant
wife and help her with her chores and her other children if they are present.
Men often bring the expecting husband food or simply visit to amiably discuss
his soon-to-arrive child. Upon going into labor, many of the older women and
men who are most deeply respected help the expecting mother and father by
coming immediately to their hut. This is precisely when the ritual begins. The village does not immediately or loudly
celebrate; in fact, they fall silent. The entire village waits outside the home
of the to-be-parents quietly, and from a distance. It is considered
extraordinarily rude and insulting to be loud or to talk while a woman is
trying to birth a child. They all continuously kneel and pray to the Zebra god
for a safe and healthy birth. This occurs until the baby is born; quietly one
of the older Takanir will come out and say the gender of the baby and verify
the safe birth that has occurred. There is not any clapping or smiling amongst
the faithfully praying Takanir, nor is there between the messenger and the
recipients. Life is too beautiful and too sacred. Everyone immediately and
careful gets up to make a gift for the child. Flowers, greenery, and hand-crafted
toys are placed in front of the new child’s home for days to come. It is
imperative that the child, according to Takanir folklore, not see anyone other
than its parents and siblings for a week. Once that week has expired, the child
is brought out for a ceremony. The night before this seventh day (the day the child will be brought out), a few men go out to hunt a zebra. As aforementioned, meat is eaten during marriage, births, and deaths only. The entire village gathers outside the home of
the parents, waiting for the emergence of the couple and their child. Before arriving,
everyone washes themselves and unusually, they are not painted with their
kinship colors. The baby is carefully and delicately passed around. Each
villager says a prayer for the child while holding it. These ceremonies can
last hours, but it is absolutely necessary for the Takanir. Then, pieces of meat are passed around to assume communion with the Zebra god and his favor and protection for the child. The purpose of this
ritual of praying, gift-giving, aholding the child, and meat-eating is important because birth
is considered sacred and numinous. The entire village must welcome the baby
because if the baby does not receive this all-encompassing, drastically large
prayer circle ceremony, the baby could come down with an illness because it has
not been touched by all of the community, or worse, the child could not accept
the Takanir faith. It accomplishes the solidifying of the child in their
community as well as in their faith in the Zebra god.
Considering a life-cycle ritual, or perhaps a rite of
passage, the Takanir consider children as “coming of age” once they have
experienced their dream, given to them by the Zebra god. Before the dream,
children are protected by the Zebra god himself, but they are not protected by
their family’s dignitary as are the rest of their family. This dream always
occurs before the age of ten. Van Gennep’s ideas of separation, liminality, and
re-incorporation are quite present in this ritual. Separation occurs when the
dream occurs; the child is no longer protected by the Zebra god specifically,
nor is he fully protected by his revealed animal dignitary. There is a process
that must occur before this protection is fully incorporated. The completion of
this process occurs in the liminality stage. The child, once having this dream
and understanding his new protector, must go out into the forest for one
evening alone. He is not allowed any food, water, or weapon; he must have full
faith that his new dignitary will protect him and show him the way until the
following morning. Quite terrifying, the child cannot rely directly on the
Zebra god, and must trust the Zebra god and his decision to give the child his
revealed dignitary. However, this process takes faith – the child will never be
protected by the new dignitary without this overnight stay in the woods. Thus,
to be reincorporated, this child must go through this overnight liminality with
the absolute presence of faith – he is betwixt and between. If
and when the child returns, he is considered reincorporated, and fully
protected by his dignitary.