何百もの民族に1000種類以上もの言語が存在するアフリカ大陸。その広大な大陸と世界中に散らばるディアスポラ(アフリカ系移民)に根づく宗教的な伝統を詳しく解説します。民族や言語のほか、文化、行動様式、倫理、世界観に焦点を当て、教義だけにとどまらず、生と死、結婚、食事や服装なども含めた、アフリカ人の日常生活に溶け込んだ宗教的な伝統を幅広く、偏りなく見ていきます。
Africa is home to hundreds of ethnic groups, who together speak more than a thousand languages. It is not surprising, then, that Africa's enormous range of peoples, cultures, and ways of life has engendered a wide diversity of religious practices.
This Very Short Introduction offers a wide-ranging look at the myriad indigenous religious traditions on the African continent. Drawing on archeological research, historical evidence, ethnographic studies, and archival materials such as missionary records, Jacob Olupona-one of the world's leading authorities on African religions-captures a wealth of information in a short compass. The book not only gives the reader a full and vivid sense of African religious belief-exploring myths, gods and local deities, ancestor worship, rites of passage, festivals, divination, and much more-but it also underscores the role these religions play in everyday African life. Indeed, traditional religions inform everything from birthing and death, marriage and family dynamics, to diet, dress and grooming, health care, and even governance. Monarchs, chiefs, and elders play both political and religious roles, imparting secular and spiritual guidance to their subjects, while also being guardians of religious centres such as shrines, temples, and sacred forests. The author also examines the spread of Christianity and Islam throughout Africa, both the moderate sects (which often blend aspects of indigenous faith into their own practice) and the more extreme fundamentalist sects, which the author states have had a dire effect on African life. In fact, radical forms of Christianity and Islam-both of which decry tradition religion as paganism—have driven a near total collapse of indigenous practice. But if traditional religions are engaged in a battle for their lives in Africa, Olupona shows that they are thriving elsewhere in the world-particularly in the Americas and in Europe.
List of ilustrations
Preface
Chapter 1 Worldview, cosmology, and myths of origin
Chapter 2 Gods, ancestors, and spirit beings
Chapter 3 Sacred authority: Divine kingship, priests, and diviners
Chapter 4 Ceremonies, festivals, and rituals
Chapter 5 Sacred Arts, verbal and ritual performances
Chapter 6 Encounter with the incoming world: Christianity and Islam in Africa
References
Further reading
Index
ISBN : 9780199790586
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