why make a spirit spouse?
the role of divination
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to understand why a baule man or woman might have a spirit spouse figure commissioned, just imagine yourself in the following situation: imagine that you are a baule woman living in central cote d'ivoire. you are an extremely hard worker, and commonly work from dawn until dusk within the village. You are an especially talented potter, and spend hours upon hours by the hot fire, shaping and firing your pots and bowls. Every four days, you spend hours packing up your finished pieces and carrying them down to the market to sell. You have a husband and have been trying to become pregnant over the past year with no luck. you have not been paying much attention to your spirit husband lately, and are worried that your spirit spouse is upset and has decided to send bad fortune your way. you decide to go to a diviner, who advises you to have a spirit spouse commissioned, and to have a shrine set up for your spirit husband. the figure's physical features are carved based on dreams you have about your spirit husband and the spirit world. The diviner tells you to wrap the spirit in cloth to protect it, and to feed, oil and care for it daily so that it will not cause more misfortune. the diviner also tells you that praising the spirit spouse figure and adorning it with jewelry will please it even more. you do as the diviner advises, and your previous good fortune slowly starts to return. Your pottery is selling extremely well at the market, and you have become pregnant within 3 months of visiting the diviner. however, you understand that your good fortune may cease if you stop caring for your spirit spouse figure, so feeding, oiling, and protecting the figure is essential for your good fortune to continue. |
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