Anthropological And Theological Bases For Traditional Madagascan Eschatological Concepts

Father Josef Niesyto, dr hab.

I. Traditional Eschatological Concepts

For the Malagasy, death is as important an event as it is for Christians. For both, death is a passage of the soul into an eternal afterlife. That afterlife can be either one of felicity or damnation, depending on the free and independent moral choices of an individual. For the Malagasy, life after death is “populated” by the Ancestors, God-Zanahary and an entity known as Reverend Ra, a trinity of sorts. The afterlife for Christians is “lived” either in the Divine Presence of God-Trinity and the saints, or eternally separated from the Godhead and the heavenly host. Christian reward or punishment is a matter of lifestyle, either moral or immoral, during one’s life on earth. Atonement for any residual sinfulness occurs in Purgatory. After this, one is allowed to enter “heaven”. For the Malagasy, reward or punishment depends on the strict observance of, or contempt for, customary funerary rituals. These occur over a two-year period and involve two cleaning processes and one exhumation. The survivors and the community are intimately involved. Without this earthly purgatorial cleansing, it is impossible for the deceased to enter the spirit world of the Ancestors and thereby gain access to God-Zanahary and Reverend Ra. The accent throughout is on the attendant material and physical aspects of an individual’s demise. The differences between the Christian and Malagasy treatments of both death and the dead reside in the contingencies. Otherwise, the similarities are obvious. The Malagasy remain deeply committed to their customs albethey somewhat colored by imported Christian (e.g. missionary) values.

II. Death among the Betsimisaraka

The Betsimisaraka do not fear death. They accept it as a fact of life by reason of its naturalness and inevitability.The incidence of death in Madagascar is much higher than elsewhere in the industrialized world. Death is transitional. It can be either “good” or “bad”. A good death is expected. It is preceded by proper religious and traditional preparation. It is painless and not accompanied by crippling disease and suffering. It occurs preferably in old age, at home, surrounded by family and friends. The dying person is never alone. A person’s “good” death is followed by ritual interment. According to customs that must be strictly adhered to if the deceased is to join the Ancestors, and through them, God-Zanahary. Premature death, death that catches an individual unaware as in the accidental death of a young person, or death by suicide, is considered a “bad” death. Belief in ghostly apparitions is widespread. They are evidence that a bad death has occurred. There is disquiet and anger in the spirit world. Among the young, the religious dimension of death has been replaced by socio-medical considerations. The ideal death is quick and painless.

III. Spiritual and physical considerations among the Betsimisaraka on the subject of death

The Malagasy agree with the Catholic interpretation of man as a being with a mortal body and an immortal soul. The soul leaves the body at death. Both the physical and spiritual aspects of the human are addressed in the Malagasy funerary rites, with accent on the soul. The body is weak, subject to sin and corruption. The “Malagasy soul” remains close to the body for the duration of the funeral before returning to God-Zanahary, but only after interment. In Christian theory, the soul atones for its transgressions in Purgatory. The Malagasy do not believe in personal responsibility for misdeeds. There is no equivalent for Purgatory in their culture. This is an impediment to evangelization. The native soul has the ability to contact the living. The Malagasy believe in ghostly appearances, especially in séances. Tromba is a special spiritual contact. It borders on the occult. It is conducted in seclusion. A master of ceremony is in charge. The willing participants are under certain constraints called fady. These prepare (weaken) the participants. Participatory reactions to “Tromba” vary. Some of these are:convulsions, extreme fear, shrieking, strange language, (at times blasphemous), animal behaviour, great physical strength, loss of consciousness, loss of sight, hearing and speech, levitation, paralysis, facial edema, thirst, hunger, “Tromba” as practised by the Betsimisaraka, is frowned upon by the Church.

Key words: animists, Purgatory, continuum, occultism, Tromba, parapsychology, psychology and psychiatry, demonic phenomena, exorcists.