User:Patches2008/practice

Defining Zar The Zar ceremony is a ritual used to treat mental illness in women of Northern and West Africa. It includes the use of a priestess and a group of other women who sing and chant to the sound of drums and present gifts to the spirits to convince them to leave the body of the affected individual. The women of this area often talk socially among themselves about their feelings, pleasures, or torments forming a close relationship with each other. When a woman begins to show signs of possession (depression, ignoring activities of daily living, lacking in hygiene, etc.) the group or, in some cases the individual, will decide it is time for an intervention. She will attend a Zar ceremony lead by a priestess, to have the evil spirit cast from her.

Origins The zar ceremony is a very old cult practice that originated to explain away or cure a woman’s problems. Upon possession the woman becomes a slave to the spirit and the spirit takes control of the individual’s activities and emotions. Possession is categorized by the six human spirits of the Zar cult, which allow for some flexibility of the possessed. The six human spirits are named as follows: Beshir El Habashi an Ethiopian Christian, Bernawi an Ethiopian Muslim, Bendawi an African spirit, Sheikh Abdel Gadir el Gailani an Arab Muslim, Bilal a spirit from the Bernou tribe of Nigeria, and Tournberani, a spirit of a white Christian. Each of the spirits is identified as male; however, as the zar ritual is modernized through time adaptations are made for convenience. The spirits generally attack those who are of poor social standing and poverty, but are indiscriminant of moral values or behaviors exhibited by the individual. The possession allows those affected to unburden their troubles without feeling as though they are complaining or over burdened and receive the attention that they have been wanting.

The Ritual During the ceremony, there are few secrets between the priestess, client, and those participating. The client has already discussed her problems with other women of the community and the women have likely already discussed the client’s problems with the priestess. As stated earlier, the women of these communities talk mainly among themselves during their daily activities. As the priestess begin the ritual she chants and sings to beating drums while burning incense around the client. Gifts, paid for by the husband, are given to appease the spirits and to help convince them to leave the affected person’s body.

Results Some women will experience a relief of symptoms and return to daily activities and a previous state of functioning. Often the client will not get relief, but will continue to attend Zar ceremonies to learn to cope with her problems and how to live with and function normally in society and daily life while being possessed. Most women who use Zar ceremonies are older women and widows of poverty or low social standing who want to be heard.

References 1. http://books.google.com/books?id=fs8r3ZcoymUC&pg=PA17&lpg=PA17&dq=articles+on+mental+health+zar+ceremonies&source=web&ots=gZ0GcfpsdG&sig=qZo3fddMDvuW1O_Fok2khuw0mnE&hl=en&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=5&ct=result#PPA17,M1 2. http://huie.hsu.edu:2266/ehost/pdf?vid=7&hid=9&sid=c6f52dab-b3e4-4416-b631-5377600dfda8%40SRCSM1 3. http://huie.hsu.edu:2266/ehost/detail?vid=6&hid=9&sid=c6f52dab-b3e4-4416-b631-5377600dfda8%40SRCSM1 4. http://huie.hsu.edu:2265/pqdweb?index=0&did=915339771&SrchMode=1&sid=1&Fmt=3&VInst=PROD&VType=PQD&RQT=309&VName=PQD&TS=1215139563&clientId=8651 5. http://huie.hsu.edu:2266/ehost/detail?vid=4&hid=107&sid=979a52c7-7b66-475e-b64d-50b62c8ab910%40sessionmgr106 6. http://touregypt.net/featurestories/zar.htm