Ritual to Getting Better

Ritual to Getting Better

"I offer this meal to you, my brother for helping my family find wellness." This is one of the practices of Shamanism, thanking the spirits for their help. My friend's family was getting extremely ill from the flu that's been spreading everywhere. In their family, when someone is sick they ask the spirit of a close relative to help guide their spirits to get better faster. The fieldwork that I am about to introduce is the process of "fiv - (fee)." In English "fiv" means the calling or thanking of spirits.

The ritual begins with the father, Bee Vang, asking his deceased brother to help his family get over the sickness. Bee goes over to the alter which has already been prepared beforehand. The Alter was just a little table in the corner that had many objects on it. First, in the middle of the table lay three glasses of water. Behind it were three containers of rice. The first container included an egg. The second included a folded piece of paper. Finally, the last one had nothing but grains of rice. Next to the containers was a big bowl of water, one goat horn that's carved in half, two bell rings, one wooden goat horn, and many other objects. Above the Alter was a special piece of paper that was designed with gold and red like squares. That was called the " Xwm Kab (su -cah)" which was the projector of the alter for luck. Bee then took three of the incense and got down on his knees. He talked to his deceased brother saying that if his family were to get better, he will make a meal and send him money to the other world.

Days later when everyone in Bee's family got healthy, Bee and his wife prepared the meal for his brother's spirit as he has promised earlier. Bee first killed a rooster because it is said to be able to call spirits. While the rooster is being cooked, Bee and his family made money out of their special paper they bought from the store. It consisted of twenty-five rip paper, twenty five gold paper, 25 folded gold bullion, and 25 sticks of incense. As soon as the meal is done, the family cleaned the table and prepared the meal. Bee then goes to the Alter and calls out his brother's name and to come eat the meal that was prepared for him. After the calling, Bee burned the paper that they had made earlier. The burning of the paper money is for Bee's brother to live comfortably in the afterlife. After the burning is finished, Bee goes to the dinner table and holds up a spoon full of rice with some meat. He began talking to his brother's spirit and thanked him for helping. Bee then took a second spoon full of rice and asked all of his relatives to keep an eye on his family. Finally, the third spoon of rice Bee goes outside and talks to the spirits around the area, which included the lakes, the school, and the places where the family visit. This is to help guide the family and reject