Primal Religion of Wolaitta in African Context
Abesha Shirko Lambebo1, Ratnakar Mohapatra2
1Abesha Shirko Lambebo, Assistant Professor, Department of History, Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology, Deemed University, Bhubaneswar, India.
2Ratnakar Mohapatra, Assistant Professor, Department of History, Kalinga Institute of Industrial Technology, Deemed University, Bhubaneswar, India.
Manuscript received on 15 May 2019 | Revised Manuscript received on 22 May 2019 | Manuscript Published on 08 June 2019 | PP: 71-76 | Volume-8 Issue-7C May 2019 | Retrieval Number: G10120587C19/19©BEIESP
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© The Authors. Blue Eyes Intelligence Engineering and Sciences Publication (BEIESP). This is an open-access article under the CC-BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)
Abstract: This article is intended to analyze primal religion of Wolaitta in African context. It has unique ritual characteristics which is overlooked by most of the the current community members. In order to investigate the primal religion of Wolaitta in African context, oral and written sources were used. The sources are intensively used to validate the concept of primal religion of Wolaitta in African context. The concept of theism in primal religion of Wolaitta is masked by the domination of Christianity since in the 20th century. The religious practices and belief is known as eqqa. Primal religion of Wolaitta believes that Ţossa (God) is the Supreme Being, and humans live in their own life-circle known as qadda (fate) and the rest creations going in their own phases as of the knowledge of Ţossa (God). The primal religion of Wolaitta believe that morality and ethics as core issues which emanates from Ţossa (God). Spirit in the primal religion of Wolaitta emanates from Ţossa (God), mereta (nature), and the ancestral spirit of respective clans. The sacrifice (yarishuwa) is a basic ritual practice in primal religion of Wolaitta in African context. Therefore, this article describes the indigenous wisdom of primal religion of Wolaitta to understand the material and spiritual world.
Keywords: Primal Religion, God, Spirit, Divination, Wolaitta, African Context.
Scope of the Article: Community Information Systems