Funerals as an example of the role of music in community events; the elder
of the funeral house; how a dead body is bathed and buried; the stages of a
funeral: three days, seven days, shaving the funeral children,
“showing the thing,” sharing property; why Dagbamba like
funerals; the importance of funerals; music and funerals
1. importance of funerals; many dances; Dagbamba and Muslim funerals are different 2. funerals and death: fearful talk 3. parts of funeral: preparing the body; the burial; the small funeral: three days and seven days; the final funeral: shaving the funeral children and showing the riches 4. other aspects: leader of the funeral takes people through the steps; this talk with regard to an older person who had children 5. funerals reflect families: the mother’s side and the father’s side 6. the strength of the mother’s house; connection to a child 7. the strength of the father’s house; father’s house performs the funeral before mother’s house
Kuyili kpɛma: the leader of the funeral
8. “elder of the funeral house”; head of the family; receives all strangers and makes decisions 9. must be there before burial; gets the white cloth (kparbu) to wrap the body 10. will look at the dead body; inquire about the death 11. buy sheep for soli saɣim to feed strangers who gather, sit and sleep outside the house for one week
The Small Funeral
Drumming for the dead person
12. drummers beat outside the room where the dead body is; for some people only 13. Bɛ kumdi la kuli: “crying the funeral”; taboos: only at funeral house, cannot make a mistake
Bathing the dead body
14. two sheep for Limam: one for prayers, one for bathing the dead body 15. bathing money; everything in fours for women, threes for men 16. burial: four days or three days; guns shoot three or four times 17. with inflation, still use numbers that show three and four 18. bathing the dead body: tie grass, heat water, everything in threes and fours 19. wash with special sponge from tanyibga tree roots; use local soap 20. this type of bathing generally not done in modern days 21. Muslims says one should use light touch on dead body 22. the talk of sponges and soap is from the olden days 23. modern people don’t even know about it 24. Muslim way: Yari-Naa, elder who bathes dead bodies; only uses water and hands 25. use part of the cloth to make trousers and jumper, hat; wrap the dead body so face is exposed; put in box and bring outside
Settling of debts
26. settling debts; funeral elder asks to settle any debts 27. someone may have information about debt; will stand and testify 28. some debts settled in private
Burial of the dead person
29. take body to cemetery; drummers beat Kulunsi 30. the kasiɣirba: grave diggers put dead body into grave 31. how the kasiɣirba place the body in the grave; uncover face; children must look at parent in the grave 32. maalams say looking at sick people makes a person look at himself differently 33. therefore others also look at dead people in the grave 34. formerly children were forced to look; helps people live better lives 35. only those at the burial look; no delay for the burial 36. burial generally the same day a person dies, or the next day 37. people rush to funeral house; nobody waits or delays 38. even the funeral elder does not delay; if delayed, an elder from the area will fill in 39. townspeople use cemeteries; in villages the grave is inside the compound, marked with cowries 40. chiefs are buried in their room, which is then closed off 41. some people buried in compound, some in room; sometimes funeral elder will stay and live in the house 42. if person buried in bush, will mark the grave; then return to funeral house 43. return to house for prayers; pass woven pan (pɔŋ) for burial money 44. burial money is any amount people give to help with expenses
Prayers and sacrifice: the “three days” and the “seven days”
45. alms of small foods like maha given to children 46. people stay at funeral house for one week to console family 47. bɔɣli lɔɣbu: covering the hole; the three days and the seven days 48. slaughter a sheep: shared to kasiɣirba, drummers, Limam 49. prayers and alms on the pɔŋ; repeated on the seventh day
Kubihi pinibu: shaving the funeral children
50. shaving the funeral children 51. shaving the funeral children; usually only for chief’s children at the small funeral 52. shaving is for all the family 53. shaving is optional, but most do it to show relationship 54. “buying your hair”: pay the barber but don’t shave 55. how the relatives sit to be shaved; drummers beat same beating as Yori; not grandchildren
The grandchildren's role
56. beating ground with sticks; collecting money; the
bereaved playmates 57. grandchildren sometimes dance Dikala; drummers also praise people
Conclusion of the small funeral
58. on the seventh day, the elder of the funeral sets date for the final funeral; some months later 59. after small funeral, then the mother’s house funeral 60. elder of the funeral leaves, but will help provide for widows and children
The final funeral: kubihi pinibu, buni wuhibu, and sara tarbu
61. final funeral: shaving the funeral children; kill cow; bathe the eldest son and eldest daughter 62. one week later: showing the riches and giving the sacrifice; Thursday and Friday are strong; people gather at funeral house 63. showing the riches: in-laws; husbands of the dead person’s daughter; gifts and sacrifices 64. public presentations by the in-laws; the role of Zoɣyuri-Naa 65. in-laws bring drummers and dance groups 66. dancing in the night; happiness 67. recapitulation: the work of drummers at the small funeral 68. the drumming and dancing at the final funeral 69. adua and sara tarbu: prayers and sacrifice the next day to finish the funeral; then share the property
Funerals before Islam
70. funerals before Naa Zanjina: buli chɛbu; burial and then sacrifice a goat; “knocking out” 71. Naa Zanjina brought maalams to show how to bath and bury a dead person
Benefits of funerals: knowing the family and the friends
72. help to make the family well; get to know one another 73. get to know your mother’s side 74. when take friends and family to wife’s parent’s funeral, gives great respect 75. learn about relationships you might not know about 76. if the family is small, some will attend funeral with many friends 77. how your friends will support you, including even their friends who don’t know you 78. how funerals become large; example of someone with many children and grandchildren 79. benefits of funerals: know the family and know the friends 80. problem of funerals: when food is not enough, some only so the small funeral 81. somebody may profit from funeral from gifts of food 82. Dagbamba reciprocate with regard to funerals
Drummers’ work at funerals
83. show the family to one another; spending on drummers adds respect 84. the in-laws bring different dances to the funeral house; dance group members support one another and their friends 85. drummers also have several dance circles 86. friendship the basis for all the help with dances; go and return home; Simpa and Baamaaya all night 87. the dance groups are not paid; only come to help their friends 88. like paying a debt of friendship; reciprocate and help one another; Dagbamba way of living 89. resembles talk of respect: how Dagbamba help one another; how drumming talks enter Dagbamba way of living
Why attending funerals is important for the family
90. a father tells daughters’ husbands that they should perform his funeral well; adds respect to wife 91. if many friends attend a funeral, the family may give one of them a wife; friendship brings family 92. a well-attended funeral adds to a family’s respect 93. sometimes people attend funerals because of the dead person who has attended funerals; Alhaji Ibrahim like that 94. people do not attend funeral of someone who did not attend funerals; taboos 95. not attending funeral or sending a messenger is like removing oneself from the family 96. important funeral for someone without children; fear and respect; taboo 97. funerals have not changed; deeply linked to family life and family strength 98. great respect if Yaa-Naa sends a messenger to a funeral
Conclusion
99. transition to talk of chiefs’ funerals and maalams’ funerals
The talk of funerals looks like the talk of families.
How a human being is, a human being is in four parts.
An old person is not somebody who has lived long or who has a white beard.
An old person is one who has heard the talk of the past and is holding it in
his pocket.
If somebody dies, children should see the way their father is.
If people gather like that, to be sitting outside a dead person’s house
and sleeping there, it always helps to remove the people of the house from
their sorrow.
Whatever we are doing and the people are many, it is something that helps
us.
Benefit is in a group.
We perform a funeral and know the family, and we perform a funeral and know
the friends.
It is we drummers who show someone his family and they will know each
other.
If you are somebody who doesn’t lend anything to anybody, then nobody
will be coming to pay you back.
When your friend gets a problem and you go to help him, then it looks as if
you are holding his debt.
In Dagbani we give it the name: we help one another. If you
don’t help somebody, somebody too will not help you.
If there were to be no funerals, then there would be no family.
It is because of the performing of the funeral, that is why the family is
standing.
The performing of the funeral is the thing that strengthens our friendship
with people.
Friendship brings family.
A dead person doesn’t die at once.
God says that any gathering that will gather and will bring family together,
that gathering is very good.
If you are a good-luck person, and you go to be with a bad-luck person, then
you will also carry some of his problem.
