Mediate

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Then the old woman, still with the chicken and leaf in her right hand and a leaf in her left, touches the ground with them saying ‘ibo sen, ibo sen’, (evil flow away, evil flow away), and touching the ground towards the woman she says ‘isho kondo, isho kondo’, (virtue flow up, virtue flow up). Then the woman stands up and the old woman touches her with the contents of her hands; touching her feet she says ‘Ikor [the shell (snail)]; touching her knees she says ‘atsengel’ (saucer), and touching her on the shoulders she says ‘akul a ukase’ (tied up bundle of leaves used in akombo representing the female genital organs). Then she puts her finger on wet earth and touches with it the leaves, the stone, and the woman on the navel, after which the chicken is let loose and the rite is at an end.

• Source: Downes, Roger Meaden. The Tiv tribe. Kaduna: The Government Printer, 1933.
• Culture: Tiv
• Location: Africa