Zulu Indigenous Practices and Beliefs
Woman burning an incense herd.Zulu men in South Africa |
Zulu believes in their ancestor’s potency and in different Gods. Most of their practices are communicating with ancestors. Zulu believed in the natural world. Their sacrifices are mostly domestic animals and are held by house-hold heads. They have rituals for these sacrifices. Their rituals mostly consist of burning an incense herd. They call it impepho.
The religion of the Zulu is one of ancestor worship. They believe that when a person or animal dies that he or she will still continue to watch over everyone else from their spiritual world. The Zulu have a saying that states,"According to the power and authority a forefather had in his lifetime, so it is from the place to which he has gone." The ancestral spirits "like to be remembered and commemorated". Offerings will be made to them to show that they have in fact not been forgotten. If ancestors are forgotten, they may show their displeasure by visiting some misfortune on the family. The wealth of a Zulu man is determined by how many cattle, goats, and sheep he owns. A chief of a Zulu village is allowed to have as many wives as he can afford, this can range from up to 11 wives. |
sources:
http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Zulu.aspx
http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Zulu.aspx