Africans are renowned for having deeply ingrained cultural practices, some of which can be bizarre like the Chewa’s festival for the dead.
The Chewa’s festival for the dead stands out as one of those customs that many find shocking.
A Bantu tribe called the Chewa is primarily found in Malawi and it is normal to wash the body of the deceased at the burial ceremony of a tribal member.
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The deceased’s throat is cut, water is poured through their bodies through the anterior part of the dead body, and the corpse is then brought to a sacred location for washing.
Chewa’s festival for the dead spreads diseases
As they think the deceased has been cleansed of his or her sins, the water is then collected and used to create a meal for the entire community.
Additionally, it was claimed that the Chewa community’s practise of washing the dead served to facilitate the spread of various illnesses and dangerous diseases.
The entire village turns out when someone passes away, because the Chewa believe that death is frequently brought on by witchcraft and is therefore rarely a natural occurrence.
The Chewa are afraid of attending funerals because they think that witchcraft primarily affects family members, thus those who may have killed someone would stay away.
All family members are required to attend the Chewa’s festival for the dead, therefore the entire village has to attend since they are all related.
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Get to know the lip plating Mursi tribe of Ethiopia
Meanwhile, the Mursi tribe is a tribe in Ethiopia, found in the Southwest part of the country.
The tribe is roughly less than 10,000 in population, and is well known for the large plates the women portray proudly on their lower lip.
The custom of wearing a lip plate is linked to the female’s fertility and eligibility for marriage.
