Why is Egungun Considered a Male Society?

Why is egungun considered a male society? When my American clients hear this, it tends to stir a little bit of panic at the thought of being left out. Oftentimes, they get the idea that women cannot have access to their ancestors, which is understandably concerning. Likewise, the idea that a person cannot venerate the women of their lineage is equally troubling for many people. However, this is NOT what we mean when we say that egungun is a male society.

Firstly, we have to understand EXOGAMY before we can approach the subject of egungun. Exogamy is the social norm of marrying outside one's social group. The group defines the scope and extent of exogamy, and the rules and enforcement mechanisms that ensure its continuity. In the case of the Yoruba, men own land and property, which means they stay on their ancestral lands. Women, on the other hand, move into their husbands' compounds upon marriage.

So, if you imagine a kingdom with 100 family compounds, all the men stay put and the women move away from their fathers' compounds into their husbands' compounds. The system ensures that people are not marrying within their bloodlines. Politically, Yoruba exogamy mirrors the lifestyle of the king, who traditionally must remain within the palace walls. Meanwhile the queen governs the marketplace and is free to move about the kingdom. If you play chess, the dynamics will be immediately familiar to you.

Egungun is the ancestral society of a lineage, a society or a kingdom. To further clarify what that means, you also have to understand that Yoruba people are traditionally buried in the family compound, not in a grave yard or cemetery. So, since the men own the property and people are traditionally buried in the family compound, it is understandable why men are the custodians of ancestral rites.

This does not, however, mean that only men venerate the ancestors. Everybody in Yoruba land has access to their dearly departed relatives. It's just that men are the primary priests who facilitate the ancestral ceremonies.

In a verse of OyekuOsa, Ifa says that somebody's ancestral home has been abandoned. Consequently, this individual needs to return to the ancestral home of his paternal lineage and feed the souls of the dearly departed, as well as the divinities they served:

Eekan okuna abita parapara jana
Ifa’s message for Orunmila
When going to repair his deserted ancestral home
He was advised to offer sacrifice
He complied
Ifa will turn a deserted site into a living home
Orisa will turn a sitting room to a market
Ifa will turn a deserted site into a living home
- Holy Odu OyekuOsa

Here, Ifa is not merely advising this person to make offerings and prayers. Instead, the individual is being told to literally return to his ancestral home and tend to the graves of his ancestors with the intent to revive the family home and lineage.

Obafemi Origunwa, MA | OrisaLifestyle.com

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