Politics of Ritual Syncretism: Islam Among the Non-Muslim Giriama of Kenya

Parkin, David

doi:10.2307/1158883

Cited by 39 publications

(29 citation statements)

References 8 publications

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“…The phenomenon of forcible conversion by spirits has been documented by one other anthropologist, David Parkin (1970; 1972; 1991), whose initial fieldwork was carried out in the 1960s, with a return to the field in the 1980s. Parkin first noted cases of this kind while researching the gap between redistributional and capitalist cultures among Giriama living in Kaloleni, about 40 kilometres southwest of Malindi.…”

Section: Reluctant Muslimsmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…Conversion could also help to protect those involved from the malice of vengeful rivals; then, as now, situations of economic change can generate dangerous tensions for those experiencing its inequalities. By following dietary rules requiring them to eat separately from non‐converts, newly Islamized entrepreneurs could lessen the chances of being ‘poisoned by a jealous neighbor or relative’ (Parkin 1970: 225). Meanwhile, spirit‐forced converts were exonerated from blame for their conversions, a convenience ‘in a society in which conversion to Islam has always been regarded as a mild act of betrayal’ (1972: 44).…”

Section: Reluctant Muslimsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Reluctant Muslims: embodied hegemony and moral resistance in a Giriama spirit possession complex

McIntosh

2004

Royal Anthropological Inst

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This account of a form of spirit possession widely experienced among Giriama people of coastal Kenya challenges prevailing theories of possession as resistance. Giriama are routinely possessed by Muslim spirits which hold their bodies hostage, afflicting them with illness and vomiting until they agree to abandon their customary practices and embrace Islam. Those possessed apparently somatize a hegemonic system of oppressive meanings according to which Giriama ethnicity is essentially different from, and polluting to, Islam. Yet the same individuals who embody hegemony in this way may reflect upon their possession experience by articulating a defiant ideology of resistance against both the possessing spirit and the Muslim ethnic groups that the spirit represents. These observations thus highlight the complexity of the relationship between hegemony and the individual; they also provide a reminder that the idiom of possession does not necessarily articulate with power structures in a predictable and straightforward fashion.

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Section: Reluctant Muslimsmentioning

confidence: 98%

Section: Reluctant Muslimsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Reluctant Muslims: embodied hegemony and moral resistance in a Giriama spirit possession complex

McIntosh

2004

Royal Anthropological Inst

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“…In the study area as across the Ghanaian society, traditional beliefs and practices still run parallel with modernity (Sarbah, 2010). However, syncretic beliefs and practices, including revere for traditional chiefs and customary laws, are common in the study communities (Busia, 1951;Parkin, 1970;Blakely et al, 1994;Bonsu and Belk, 2003;Sarbah, 2010).…”

Section: The Nexus Between Policy and Spiritualitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Ensuring Equitable Distribution Of Land In Ghana: Spirituality Or Policy? A Case Study From The Forest-Savanna Agroecological Zone Of Ghana

Awuah-Nyamekye

Sarfo‐Mensah

2011

iipj

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This article explores the pent-up question of equitable distribution of land in Ghana using the Forest-Savanna Agroecological Zone as a case study. It focuses on the dichotomy of policy versus indigenous spirituality in contemporary distribution of land in Ghana. After independence several attempts have been made to restructure land title holding in Ghana by way of land registration. The effectiveness of these attempts is also examined. The paper concludes that Ghana needs pragmatic steps (policies) to confront the challenges of land distribution. And in taking these pragmatic policies, the religio-cultural underpinnings (the people`s worldview) of land issues in Ghana should be factored into the policy that will result. Anything short of this will make the implementation of any land policy in Ghana ineffective.

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“…Consequently symbiotic relationships developed among coastal peoples (Nicholls, 1971). Political, economic, and cultural relations among the coast's diverse communities have received considerable scholarly attention (Brantley, 1981;Nicholls, 1971;Parkin, 1970Parkin, , 1972Parkin, , 1989Parkin, , 1991.…”

Section: The Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Identifying the spirit is often an expensive, time-consuming, and frustrating experience. In sum, the efficiency and skill of the smith depend on the quality of his conduct and on that of others (see also Giles, 1989;Parkin, 1970Parkin, , 1972.…”

Section: Social Ambiguities and Ritual Powermentioning

confidence: 99%

The social context of iron forging on the Kenya coast

Kusimba¹

1996

Africa

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Ironsmiths occupy an important yet ambiguous position in many African societies. They are both revered and feared, because they wield social power which arises from their access to occult knowledge, not only of metallurgy but of healing, divination, circumcision and peacemaking. In some societies smiths enjoy high status and are the wealthiest people. In others they are feared, covertly maligned, and blamed for societal misfortunes. In still others the smiths' position is often marginal except when they are needed to intercede on their society's behalf to solve natural or cultural predicaments. The forge or smithy plays a central role in the community as tool-making centre, a place of refuge from violence, of purification, and for healing. This article examines the social context of iron forging among the ironsmiths of the Kenya coast, focusing on the role of iron forging in the coastal economy, the forge, the smiths' life cycle, the institution of apprenticeship, the ritual and technical power of smiths, the role of women in the smiths' community, and the future of iron forging on the coast. It is argued that, while coastal smiths are marginal and despised, they hold important ritual and spiritual powers in coastal society. The article concludes that a detailed understanding of the traditional crafts historically practised on the coast can do much to illuminate the complex history of coastal society.

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Politics of Ritual Syncretism: Islam Among the Non-Muslim Giriama of Kenya

Cited by 39 publications

References 8 publications

Reluctant Muslims: embodied hegemony and moral resistance in a Giriama spirit possession complex

Reluctant Muslims: embodied hegemony and moral resistance in a Giriama spirit possession complex

Ensuring Equitable Distribution Of Land In Ghana: Spirituality Or Policy? A Case Study From The Forest-Savanna Agroecological Zone Of Ghana

The social context of iron forging on the Kenya coast

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