Bibohn religion comprises the traditional religious, spiritual concepts, and practices of the ancient Pruci and Drepa peoples. The Bibohn religion is the basis for a number of human religions in Asiri Asa. Bibohn involves robust cosmology. In brief, it holds that every person is expected to become eventually one in spirit with kuwa, the originator of all things. One's spiritual consciousness in the physical realm must grow in order to consummate union with one's spiritual self, which will in time allow this union. Furthermore, the thoughts and actions of each person in the physical world interact with all other things given soul from kuwa. Unlike many popular religions, Bibohn has a focus directed toward the here and now rather than reward in an afterlife.
Beliefs
Central to Bibohn belief is the concept of Isithunzi. An Isithunzi is an entity that possesses the capability of reflecting some of the manifestations of deities and therefore, kuwa itself. Bibohn Isithunzi are often described by laymen as intermediaries between humankind and the supernatural.
Bibohn teaches that every individual has a particular Isithunzi whom they are connected to. Prayer to one's Isithunzi produces an immediate sensation of joy. Failing to identify one's Isithunzi is sometimes interpreted as the cause of various types of illness by practitioners. Each deity represents a certain force in nature and is associated with certain foods, colors, animals, and days. A person's character or personality is strongly linked to their deity. During important ceremonies, priests and priestesses masquerade as Isithunzi and specially choreographed dances will be performed in their honor.
Another important Bibohnic force is called xhuma. Xhuma is described as the spiritual force of the universe (kuwa) with actual, substantial effects. Practitioners believe xhuma can be transmitted and that a human can have a growing or diminishing supply of it. Practitioners believe that they can attract and share xhuma during ritual acts.
The teachings of Bibohn influence the daily life of its practitioners. Problems that arise in a person's life are often interpreted as resulting from a disharmony in an individual's relationship with their Isithunzi or a lack of xhuma. There are not, however, specific guidelines that determine spiritual rewards. Each person is required only to fulfil his or her destiny to the fullest in order to live a noble life, regardless of what that destiny is. This is not a free ticket to do whatever the practitioner wants, though. Bibohn teaches that any evil a person causes to others will return to the first person eventually. This had led many laymen to associate the concept of xhuma with that of karma.
Ancestors are important in regulating the moral code of Bibohn practitioners. It is their responsibility to make sure that moral standards of the past are continued in the present. In addition, the Bibohn believe in reincarnation within the family. When (and if) the time arrives for a spirit to return to Io through the conception of a new life in the direct bloodline of the family, one of the component entities of a person's being returns, while the other remains with a deity or with kuwa. At the end of that life they return to their identical spirit self and merge into one.
Practices
Bibohn is structured around a hierarchical system of initiations. The length of the initiatory process varies between Bibohn houses but usually lasts from a few weeks to a few months. During much of this process, the initiate is usually secluded in a special room; the rite is private. During this period, they are taught the various details of their associated Isithunzi, such as its likes and dislikes and the appropriate drum rhythms and dances that invoke that deity. They will be bathed in specially prepared water and herbs. In a surprisingly Uembic tradition, their head and body hair will often be shaved.
One of the first acts during the initiatory process is to give the initiate a string of beads associated with their Isithunzi. These beads will often be washed and sprinkled with the blood of a sacrificed animal. These beads will later be worn daily with a small sanctuary within the home.
Bibohn includes a number of additional, graded initiations years after the original initiatory ceremony. The further one ascends in Bibohn, the more texts can be studied. There are sixteen major books in the Bibohnic literary corpus. When combined, there are a total of 787 texts that are believed to reference all situations, circumstances, actions, and consequences in life. These form the basis of traditional Bibohn spiritual knowledge and are the foundation of all Bibohn divination systems. Bibohnic proverbs, stories, and poetry are not written down. Rather, they are passed down orally from one generation to the next.
Several forms of divination are practiced in Bibohn. Practitioners use either a divining chain or the sacred palm on the wooden divination tray called ingeyenkosi. Divination gives priests unreserved access to the teachings of the greater forces. The personal isithunzi is the one said to lend xhuma to the oracle during provision of direction and/or clarification of counsel. These divination rites provide an avenue of communication to the spiritual realm and the intent of one's destiny. However, they are not a necessary practice of the faith.
Bibohn masquerades are connected with ancestor reverence, or to the ancestors themselves as a collective force. In the Bibohn religion, the annual ceremonies in honor of the dead serve as a means of assuring their ancestors a place among the living. They believe the ancestors have the responsibility to compel the living to uphold the ethical standards of the past generations of their clan, town, or family. In family situations, a family elder presides over ancestral rites. In matters that deal with whole communities, priests and initiates who are trained in ancestral communication are assigned to invoke and bring out the ancestors.
Cloth plays an important role in the world of the Bibohn. Their beliefs equate nakedness with infancy, insanity, or the lack of social responsibility. More elaborate dress reflects social power and prestige. In performances honoring ancestors, exquisite cloth is the major medium for the masker's transformation. These costumes are composed of multiple layers of cloth lappets made from expensive and prestigious textiles, expressing the wealth and status of a family as well as the power of the ancestor.
Houses of Worship
A building in which Bibohn is practiced is known as a tsev. Each tsev is distinct and operates in its own way. They can be competitive towards one another, seeking to attract a greater number of followers. These range in size from small houses to large compounds, and consist of a series of rooms, some of which are considered off-limits to non-initiates. They contain an altar to the deities, a space to perform ceremonies, and accommodation for the priests or priestesses. One room, the soba, is where public rituals, including acts of divination, take place. Most tsevs venerate between twelve and twenty isithunzi.
A priest or priestess is in charge of the tsev and is not constrained by external religious authorities. The prominent place of priestesses within Bibohn has led some observers to describe it as a matriarchal religion.
Public ceremonies take place at the tsevs where both initiates and non-initiates can attend to celebrate the isithunzi. At these, food is offered to specific isithunzi while the rest is shared among participants, with the latter thereby gaining some of the xhuma of the isithunzi. These public rites are both preceded and succeeded by a range of private ritual acts. Most of the rituals that take place at the tsevs are private and open only to initiates.
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