erected for a spirit of an ancestor (an Orijo or
spirit house). These are usually pieces of granite
formed into a house. Because a spirit is believed to
be capable of creating serious trouble for the liv-
ing, several shrines are often made for them, at
which sacrificial food and beer can be offered by
his descendents. Other types of shrines include
shrines for the spirits of mother’s brothers, shrines
for those who did not leave sons behind, and
shrines built for the ancestors as ancestors.
For the Lugbara, then, the living and the
Dead of the same lineage are in a permanent
relationship with each other. The Dead are
aware of the actions and even the thoughts of
the living (their children effectively), while the
living act as temporary caretakers of the pros-
perity, prestige, and general well-being of the
lineage (on behalf of their ancestors who did the
same during their lives). The ancestors are ulti-
mately seen as good people who set an example
that men should follow and who did their part
in maintaining the ideal of social order and
social behavior simply by having lived as they
are said to have lived by the community.In this
way, we see that inherent in the Lugbara religion
lies an African cosmology that is present in most
African religion generally: an embracing of the
notion that the ancestors and the living are in a
mutually edifying and beneficial relationship
with one another.
Of important note is the distinction that is
made between the two major types of ancestors.
There are theA’bi, a term used for all the fore-
bears of a person, through whatever lines of
descent. Then there are the Ori, who are the
more important ancestors. These ancestors are
individual ancestors who are in personal and
responsible contact with living descendents; in
certain situations, they are significant in relation
to responsible kinship behavior and authority.
They possess a distinct soul, which may be con-
sidered to be a representation of the socially
responsible persona of a living person. The A’bi
as ancestors and the Ori as ancestor spirits are
keys to understanding the Lugbara religion. For
example, the spirits are those ancestors who are
remembered in genealogies or at least the more
important of these, whereas the ancestors
include all the ancestors regardless of whether
their names are remembered.
Invoking the Ancestors
The Lugbara come into contact with the Dead pri-
marily at the rite of sacrifice. The Dead can affect
men by sending sickness to them. They do this
largely to express their displeasure at actions of
the Lugbara men, which can be considered as
damaging to the harmony and unity of the
lineage. These actions are considered to be sins.
As a response, the living make offerings to the
Dead at shrines erected for them.
Because the Oris are the more important ances-
tors in Lugbara ritual, sacrifices to them are more
frequent than to the A’bi or ordinary ancestors.
Also, live animals are sacrificed to the Ori ances-
tors, whereas dried meat or grain is sacrificed to
the ordinary ancestors. Additionally, the Lugbara
talk more often of the Ori than they do of the ordi-
nary ancestors when discussing ritual, and they
build the spirit shrines at the center of their home-
steads as opposed to the peripheral areas where the
A’bi (ordinary ancestors) shrines are located.OleroInvocations
There are two distinct processes in which an
Ori ancestor may affect the living. The first
process isolero, which refers to Ori invocation by
an elder. The other isorika, which refers to orily
vengeance, an action initiated by the Ori ancestor
independently of any living Lugbara. Literally,
olero is the bringing of sickness through the invo-
cation of Oris by an elder to one of his kin or
dependents because of feelings of indignation.
Orika, by contrast, is where the Ori brings sick-
ness on its own account without prior invocation.
In the case of Ori invocation, the affected party
usually consults the oracles to discover the iden-
tity of the agent/elder concerned and the cause of
his anger. The oracles also state whether sacrifice
is to be made and of what it should consist. The
sacrificial object for spirits is usually a living ani-
mal; as such, an animal is usually consecrated and
dedicated to the Ori ancestor with a promise of
sacrifice if the patient recovers. If they do not
recover, however, then it is assumed that the ora-
cle is mistaken, and there is no point in making
the sacrifice. If the sacrifice occurs, it is made at
the appropriate shrine. Once the animal has been
killed, the meat is shared among the members ofLugbara 387