From The Visual To The Spiritual

     In Yorubaland there are many pieces of art although they are all different most of them share a common tie to Yoruba beliefs. One example of this would be King Ariwajoye 1's (ruler of Ila-Orangun, Yoruba, Nigeria, 1977) crown (A History of Art in Africa, pg. 239). This crown has fringe that protected him from the gaze of the profane. It also has three tiers of abstract faces that decorate the body of the crown. Depicting ancestors and ultimately, the god Oduduwa, they refer to the mystic union of the living king with his deified predecessors. When the king wears the crown his being is changed. His head is covered by the veil and the crown, and his inner head becomes one with the power, ashe, of the ancestors. He cannot touch the earth so he stands on a mat or puts his feet up on a cushion. The kings face is hidden behind the veil and the ancestor eyes stare out instead. This way it is the vision of dynasty that is emphasized instead of the person who wears the crown. Thus tying the visual culture with the spiritual.

Ariwajoye 1, Ruler of Ila-Orangun, Yoruba, Nigeria, 1977

     Another great example of visual culture tying with the spiritual is an Opon Ifa or Divination Board and an Iroke or Divination Tapper. Two gods Orunmila and Eshu, serve as communicators or messengers between gods and humans. Orunmila is the creator god and can help people gain knowledge of their destinies as they live them out. Eshu is defined as uncertainty, chance violence, and trouble. A diviner meditates between Orunmila and the human community through an ifa. The essential sculptural object for ifa is a divination board. Like most it is circular in design and has a plate-like surface with a raised edge filled with different carved images. The face of Eshu is carved in the top center, five more appear to the left and right of it. When used the tray is sprinkled with dust from a special wood. The diviner throws sixteen palm nuts to determine a configuration of eight sets of signs. There are 256 combinations that can occur and each one is known by name. To attract the attention of Orunmila and Eshu the diviner will tap the iroke on the center of the divination board while at the same time reciting verses to acknowledge and honor Eshu, the messenger.

Opon Ifa (Divination Board) Yoruba, Nigeria, 19-20th century. Wood. & Iroke (Divination Tapper), Yoruba Nigeria.

       Perhaps the most thoroughly dynamic art forms of the Yoruba are masquerades. One called egungun is associated with the veneration of ancestors believed of helping the community if they are properly honored. some of these masquerades impersonate the spirit of the recently departed, while others appear to entertain when ancestors are venerated. Egungun are identified with specific families and serve as a link between the living and the dead. Before it is danced prayers are said, ifa is cast and charms are attached to the bodies of the dancers and placed inside their costumes. Putting on there costume the masker is depersonalized, transformed into a human repository for the spirit of the returning ancestor. Then the dancer will enter a state of possession and speak with the voice of the deceased.

Four Textile Egungun Masquerades, Near Remo, Yoruba, Nigeria

     So even though the visual culture can take on many different forms we can always tie it back to the spiritual beliefs of the people of Yorbualand.