The Luo tribe is primarily found in Kenya, while some have settled in adjacent countries such as Uganda, Tanzania, Sudan, Congo, and Ethiopia. einsteinerupload of (Philip et al. 242). They moved 500 years ago and are mostly found around Lake Victoria. The Luo community, like other indigenous communities, has distinct cultural practices. For example, they regarded death as not only the end of life but also the beginning of a new regime. They have no control over death, but they come up with ways to fill the void left by the deceased, particularly if he is a guy. Wife inheritance is among their unique practices. The Luo wife inheritance culture required that the brother or close relatives of the deceasedinherit a widow. According to the Luo people, the death of a husband is "not the end of marriage for the widow" (Philip et al. 243). The women might have lost a confidant, loved one, breadwinner in most cases,and a protector, but that does not mean she feels abandoned by the society.
Overview of Inheritance in Luo Culture
The Luo community has a way of finding a legitimate partner to replace the deceased. The process of re-adjustment is not an easy one to the widow. The stigmatization and rituals that occur can also attribute this situation. The ritual done to widowed women was known as teroburu. The ritual involved the widow engaging in sexual intercourse with an individual referred to as "the cleanser."According to Mugoyaet al., this event of cleansing started "3 to 4 days after the husband's death" (2853). The man chosen as the cleanser, whose role was to remove the impunity the woman might have acquired from the deceased was to be a non-relative to the late man. In most cases, the cleansing man had to be unsound mind since regarding the Luo culture,"he took the woman's impunity" (Philip et al. 246). He was the sacrificial lamb who took liquors of some kind to ease the burden of engaging in sexual activities to a stranger. The cleansing was a go ahead step for the woman. The inheritor was to perform the husband roles especiallythe sexual rituals and companion.However, the wife remained married to the deceased and incase the inheritor quits, there is bond attaching them. The inheritor also helped the woman complete some rituals done by men during events such asbefore tilling the land, planting, harvesting, and other ceremonies like marriage.
In instances when the inheritors were outsiders, they had an easy time differentiating a widow and a morning family since they had their hair shaved after the burial. Homanet al. assert that some sub-tribes in the Luo culture believed a woman had to dream that she was "making love to the dead husband before the inheritance" (720). This was a sign that the husband was okay with her wife inheritance. In fact, the night the widow dreamt turned out to be a special event. This is because the following morning, she was to throw her ang'uola(underpants) across the roof as a way of stating she was ready for the inheritance procedure.
Responsibilities and Duties
Men who inherited women had a major duty of satisfying the sexual desires of the widow. Some other financial activities like educating children and health care were the duty of the man.The woman only gave a helping hand out of will but not mandatory. The woman acted responsibly to assure the children get basic needs. Both partners had to be supportive of each other. The woman had to maintain a perfect relationship with the man by providing good food as well as providing him his needs as a husband. According to Mojola,she had to completely, satisfy the inheritor's wants in "all aspects in order to keep him close" (346). This is because the woman needed the man to perform various rituals, which she had no power to do. The woman performed various duties depending on her age. For example, the very old ones who could not engage in sexual activities needed an inheritor to move in and hang his coat on the door of her bedroom. This was a sign to the village that a particular house had an owner taking care and protecting the woman. The hanging of the coat prevented any other man interested in the wooing the woman since she had a protector
During house building, the inheritor placed the roof of the house known as osuri. This could only occur after lovemaking. Izugbaraet al. assert that the man had "the right to get children with the widow" even though the children belonged to the deceased according to the Luo culture (485). In fact, the children took the name of the deceased. They children were a sign of comeback of the dead. This proved why younger relatives of the deceased did not inherit since the children they sired under the situation were not theirs. The culture preferred the younger men to raise their families before inheriting. The family of the deceased husband has a role to play by helping the widow adjust to her new husband. The Luo society accepted the behavior such that the widow had no self-esteem issues living with different men. The inheritor has the role to ensure that the deceased home continuesto run and function as before. The fact that the widow is part of the family, the inheritor protects the lineage and property of the deceased without a problem.
Effects of Wife Inheritance
HIV has been the major challenge facing the cultural practice of wife inheritance among the Luo living in Western Kenya and other areas. The spread of HIV has become drastic because there is no testing done to either the widow or the inheritor before they stay together. Camlin et al. argue that in the1990s, HIV was just a "rumor and had not spread to most part of the province" (148). The attitude allowed people to carry out wife inheritance without considering the option of quitting the relationship. The continuation of wife inheritance has placed both parties at risk with the inclusion of the children they deliver. The process of cleansing, for example, had to occur without protection as dictated by the ritual. The cleanser can receive HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases. Currently, HIV is the cause of many deaths in Luo Nyanza; hence, it can be passed to the inheritor. However,it does not stop the relatives from inheriting the widow as the culture dictates. Izugbaraet al. assert that the parents endup dying from the disease living children behind as "opposed to the aim of inheritance", which was to protect and secure the homestead (490).
The Luo culture states that the inheritor takes over the deceased properties. This occurs because the inheritor controls his new family as the head of the homestead. In instances where the deceased was wealthy, the inheritor can take over the widow with an ill motive of managing the property. Mugoya et al. argue that the in-laws tend to be so "possessive and sometimes misappropriate" the deceased home and possessions (2860). If the widow is sick or not fit for inheritance, they chase her from the village and take over her wealth. In fact, the women inherited in Luo culture have no rights to inherit ancestral land if there is no male figure to control and give it to them. Depending on the morals of the man who inherited them, they can decide to either take care of the widows children or not. Unfortunately, the Luo culture did not give a widow the right to choose the right man for her after her husband's death. Since most women in the villages are illiterate, they do not know of their rights to have property. Instead, they cling to the cultural beliefs, stating that they need a man to rule over their inheritance.
Wife inheritance in Luo culture has drastically reduced. This is due to the increasing spread of western culture to the villages. Most women get the education and learn their rights from the process. They can defend their property and refuse inheritance for other medical reasons. Homanet al. assert that widow inheritance reduction has helped "mitigate the spread of HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases" (722). This is because wife inheritance practices in Luo culture advocated for unprotected sex. The widow engaged in sexual activities with a variety of men she knew nothing about their HIV status. Today, most women prefer to re-marry the men of their preference and not an in-law as stated by the custom of Luo people. Recently, the political figures have launched a campaign advocating against the culture while informing widows of their constitutional rights.
Conclusion
Like all the indigenous tribes, the Luo tribe has its unique cultural belief, which in this case is wife inheritance. The inheritance involved taking over a close living relative after the death of her husband. The woman passed through certain rituals like the shaving of hair and engaging in sexual activity with an insane man from a different village. After the burial of the deceased, the woman started a new life with her new companion. The inheritor in most cases did the functions of a husband to the widow. The widow also had to gain the love of her inheritor by providing him with quality food and other necessary requirements. The man secured the home of the deceased and kept his lineage intact. This cultural behavior has drastically reduced by time and literacy as most widowed women in this era are resisting the act. They prefer to stay single or re-marry to a man of their choice.
Works Cited
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Philip, Miruka, Nathan Joshua, and Jack Obongo."The Cultural View of the Luo People of Western (Kenya) on Widow Care and the Biblical Approach."Sociology and Anthropologyvol.3, no.4, 2015, pp. 240-250. Print.
