Honour

I can only speak as far as my overstanding lets me. There are others who know a lot more but unfortunately, I have not been able to find any site on the web that carries the specific information you ask for. However, if you can find books by authors like JF Ade Ajayi or Wande Abimbola, you would find them to carry deeper knowledge.

Firstly then, I would say that since the deceased were customarily buried in the compound where they had lived, they are only ever considered as being seperated from the living by the light of day. At night time, it is said that the deceased can easily make thier presence known. For this reason, children in a family where a member has recently passed away will often have potions applied into thier skin that will protect them from contact with the deceased. This is not done out of revulsion at such contact but because the recently deceased may not have great control over (or a willingless to control) contacts that are initiated with the living and, the mind of the child is yet too young to handle such contacts.

What you said about Southern African ancestral rites is also very interesting. Especially what you said about the status of one who dies childless. I think we have something similar. I know for certain that one who dies young, especially one who dies before his/her parents is never invoked. In fact, nobody in the family will mention the person's name ever again.

As far as ancestral totems go, while the Yoruba have certain practices in common, there are others that are specific to certain regions (I think you are the same). We generally honour the father's side and the mother's side (though a woman, after marriage, may also participate in certain rites to honour the ancestors of her husband).

I am not certain though if it was always like this and, reading Cheikh Anta Diop kind of supports this uncertainity. According to him, at one time, the matrilineal line was the one followed all over Black Africa. He said that it was after mixing with patrilineal cultures that some of us changed over. The Asante, I know, go by matrilineal descent. There are also common figures of speech in Yoruba that would support the proposition that once upon a time, we too considered the matrilineal line to be the superior.

One of the most important rituals I know of is one where all the descendants of of a woman, all generations, gather together while a priest sacrifices a specially reared animal while calling her name. All descendants will then eat a piece of the cooked meat. Even a baby without teeth will have it's mouth touched with a piece of this meat.

And then, there are some ancestors that all Yoruba have in common. First among them is Oodua, we Yoruba all refer to ourselves as children of Oodua. Then, there are the ancestors who became Oxa : Ogun, Xango, Oya, Oxun, etc. There are invocations and rituals particular to every Oxa and I can personally attest to the fact that they will answer if you call on them.

I will keep trying to see if I can find any sites that may carry information of interest. In the mean-time, I hope what I have said has been of help.