Sombim-piainako

Indro indray ary fa aroso eto ny tohin'ilay fanadihadiana. Misaotra ireo zay efa nanao tsikera t@ tapany voalohany. Mbola ampirisihina ny rehetra handray anjara satria de ny hevitry ny maro hono mahataka-davitra. Mety hanampy ahy handalina kokoa ny tsikera ataonareo toy izao. Misaotra e!

 

The tomb

The Merina are really worried about their tomb. They take care of it and spend a lot of money for that. The tomb in Imerina (where the Merina live) is made by big stones and a big hole commonly, with a house of stones upon it. A description is made by John Mack in his book “Madagascar: island of the ancestors” and he says:

Merina tombs are substantial rectangular structures made of uncut dry stone which rise to perhaps 3m or so above the surface of the ground and may cover an area of 50 sq m. large slabs of stone form the door and the roof, which was, in the highest ranked demes, sometimes topped by a small model house known as “tranomanara” (cold house). The external surrounds of the door are frequently decorated with a mixture of floral or geometrical designs in relief… these tombs are also subterranean so that, descending into the sepulcher, an underground chamber is entered which has stone shelving, arranged in tiers to receive the shrouded corpses.[1]

 

Most of the time, the Merina tombs are situated near of or not far from the ancestral house or the big family house. Sometimes they are seen in the same compound. An investigation made by Maurice Bloch shows that the Merina spend more money to build a tomb than a house.[2] In my case, I have four family tombs: two from my mother and two from my father. But which is supposed to be my family tomb is the one from the father of my father. And all the members of my family should be buried there. Three of these tombs are near our ancestral house, and the one is a bit far, near the former village (which nowadays is already abandoned).

 

The relationship of the tomb and the after-life

-The Merina build a strong tomb to show the permanence of the life after the earthly life. They believe that we “live” longer than our earthly life after we die. Therefore, we have to build a permanent house for this long life. The Merina, as far as I know, do not define clearly what kind of life they have after the earthly life. They simply say that there is another life, a long one. One of the beliefs also says that people go to “Ambondrombe” when they die. “Ambondrombe” is the pick of a high mountain in the southern of Imerina.

-They spend a lot of money to build a tomb because they think that it is worth to spend more to a long lasting life that to the passing one. We do all things we can do to earn money not only to sustain our life but also to prepare our future life, the life after this earthly life.

-They build their tombs just near their ancestral house, or the big family house to show that life begins in the house and is continuing in the tomb. The Merina should be always together therefore, as the proverb says “Velona iray trano, maty iray fasana” which means “alive in the same house, died in the same tomb”. Life does not finish in the house but continues in the tomb. The Merina, like all Malagasy people, has this strong way of living together, bound by the spirit of “fihavanana” (translated broadly by togetherness and relationship). This strong link between each members of the family still continues even if the Merina has died. We have to be buried in the family tomb, and during the “famadihana” or exhumation, those who can be put together are wrapped in a same cloth.

Inty indray ary misy fanadihadiana kely nataoko mikasika ny fahatsapan'ny Malagasy ny fiainana aorian'ny fahafatesana. Ny antony tena nanoratako ity de satria tsy azon'ny olona aty Afrika mihitsy izany hoe mamadika (manao famadihana) izany. Hany ka narosoko ity hevitra ity mba hodinihin'ny rehetra. Ny toerana nanaovako fanadihadiana dia ny Merina tribe. Miala tsiny aho raha voatrery mampiasa io voambolana io. Tsy sanatria fanavakavahana akory, fa ho an'ny Afrikana de mizara ho foko maromaro izy, ka mba hahazoan-dry zareo ny fanadihadiana nataoko de nifidy foko iray aho.  Ary izay haiko tsara no nohadihadiako, dia ny foko Merina mba hanehoako @ olona aty Afrika sombiny @ fahalalan'ny malagasy ny fiainana aorian'ny fahafatesana.

Tsy ny Merina rehetra koa anefa no mamadika, satria raha ao @ fianakaviako fotsiny ohatra de ny avy @ papanay no mamadika fa ny avy @ mamanay tsy manao izany. Nefa nifidy ity lohahevitra ity aho mba ahafahako manohana ny hevitra tiako ambara. Raha mety aminao moa ny mamaky azy de vakio tsara, raha toa ka mifanohitra @ fomba fijerinao, ka mety hanafintohina de avereno amiko ny ahy fa tsy maninona.

Hozarazaraiko maromaro koa ity fanadihadiana ity satria somary lavalava ihany, ary ampifandraisiko kely @ hevitra voalazan'ny Baiboly, indrindra ny Testamenta taloha izy, satria izaho koa kristiana ihany.

Indro ary arosoko eto ny Fampidirana sy ny sombiny @ tapany voalohany.

INTRODUCTION

 

Generally, the Malagasy believe that there is another life after this earthly life. Some tribe, like the Mahafaly, a tribe that lives in the South part of Madagascar, shows that belief in their tombs. These tombs are famous by their splendid sculptures that they put upon them. These sculptures tell the story of the life of those who are buried in them. Also their tombs are well painted and well built. But if you look at their house, even a boy can destroy it. It is made by bush and few woods. This is to show that the house is not the real place of residence. Another tribe, the Antandroy shows their belief in the after-life during the burial. When a man dies, all his cattle are killed by their relatives and they feed the people by the meet. But all the head of the cattle are put upon the tomb where the man is buried. This is to show that his wealth follows him in his life after death. The living people, his relatives did not steal it. They have given it to him. In their culture, the Merina tribe – where I am coming from – has many ways to show this belief of the existence of the after life. Here, in this presentation and short analysis, I am going to show how the Merina tribe conceives this after life through two main concepts. The first is the tomb, which the Merina takes as one among the sacred places, and the second is the “famadihana” or exhumation, a custom which is practiced in this tribe related with the dead. After that I am going to try to show how the Old Testament conceives the after life. And finally, I am going to relate this latter with the Malagasy’s conception (or the Merina’s in particularly) of the life after death.

 

 

 

GENERAL CONCEPTION OF THE AFTER-LIFE AMONG THE MERINA

 

The Merina tribe

The Merina tribe lives in the center of Madagascar especially in the province of Antananarivo where we find the capital of Madagascar. According to the investigations done by historians and archeologists, the Malagasy came from many parts in the world. The first people who came to Madagascar was from Malaysia, Indonesia and India. The second comers were from Arabia and Persia. And the third one came from Africa.

Because Madagascar is an island, those who came first left little by little the cost and reach the centre, the highland. While they stayed there, the second part came and mixed with them. And the third part did the same. It is worth to stress here that the first comers were with their families and clans. They came in big numbers. And they were able to keep their language. The second were traders. They had to adapt themselves in the customs and language of the first occupants so that they could do their business. The third part came mainly from slaves’ trade. And for this latter, it was an obligation to know the language of those who had already occupied the place. Therefore, the major part of the ancestors of the Merina came from the east but they are a mixed population, like all Malagasy. Rakoto Ratsimamanga, historian and famous Malagasy medicine doctor during the 20^th century, is quoted by Maurice Bloch: “60 per cent of the Merina are of an Indonesian-mongoloid type… the rest of the population is described as European type (30 per cent), Oceanian Negroid type (8 per cent) and African Negroid (2 per cent).”[1] This description is surely not sufficient, but it is one among many descriptions which have been made to show the mixture of the Merina population and the littleness of the African root in it. That is the reason why this type of customs that I am going to explain latter on is not found in almost Africa. But it shows that the Merina believe in the existence of the after life.

Indro ary ny asa aroso voalohany. Nisy ity boky iray ity novakiako mikasika ny fanabeazana izy io. Indro ary arosoko eto ny fomba namintinako azy.

Sometimes, when people teach, the think they give an education for students to be followed, they think that they feed the students knowledges. This way of conceiving teaching and students is criticized and corrected by Rob Anderson, in his book students as real people. And he proposes that the students should be considered and taken as "real people."

Education should be a way for the students to know that they are ‘a person’. And through education, they should realize their personality or ‘person-ness’ according to the word of Rob Anderson. To be a person is not a fact that we were already obtained but an on going process. The person is to be built through education. Education should be a communication and more precisely an interpersonal communication. This interpersonal communication has to be practiced between the teacher and the students first, and among the students after.

First between the students and the teacher: there should be a dialogue. Dialogue is the foundation of the communication in education. To dialogue is to listen to each other and to find a common meaning in what the two discuss about. Even if there is no common meaning which is found, the important is that each one speaks and listens. If it is only the teacher who speaks and he does not want to listen, there is no communication, there is no dialogue. And that means that there is no process of education. In education, the teacher is supposed to help the students to build their ‘person-ness’ in founding between them a true relationship. Teacher has to recognize that students have the capacity or the ability to grow up, to change and to realize themselves as a real person.

Secondly, when the students are well understood and helped to be a person, they have to recognize that this process of education that they received from the teacher should be applied among them. Each one of them has to affirm that the other student is a person like him. So there should be a communication among them, that is, they have to dialogue, to speak to each other and especially to listen. They should recognize that their self realization as a person through education is not only from their interaction with the educators but also through the contact which exists among them.

And finally, the one that help the self realization of a person is life itself. Life, here, is to be understood as the result of our daily interaction with people. And here, the self realization is not only for the students but also for the teachers, the educators. Rob Anderson says that through emotions (anger, irritations…) or situations (crises, confusion…) we can learn significant things for ourselves and for the others. That shows that education is not limited for the students but it also reaches the sphere of the educators.

For everyone who is involved in education, teachers, educators and students, the key point for it to be successful is listening. "To listen" takes a great part and an important one in the dialogue. To listen includes ‘to hear’, ‘to understand’ and ‘to be open’ that is ready to be accessible by the idea of the others. If someone has already an idea in his / her mind and thinks that it is the only one which is true; if he/she just wants to apply it without taking into consideration of what the others think and say, this one cannot listen.

I see that book worthy to be read because it gives a guideline for all educators to improve their way of conceiving the students. And can join the Jesuit way of educating which targets the best in all the dimensions of human being (intellectual, physical and spiritual).

 

Voaraiko ny hafatra avy t@ jentilisa. Ny tsy fananako fotoana manko no tena tsy ahafahako mandika azy @ teny Malagasy, koa asaina isika izay hahavita izany mba hanao azy, de iarahantsika mahita eo hoe ahoana ny fivoakany. Misaotra mialoha.

Hitako hoe misy mamaky ihany itony blaogy itony, ka izay indrindra no antony nanokafako azy, mba ahafahako mamoaka ireo asa fikarohana sasantsasany vitako. Tsorina mialoha aloha fa tena resaka asa soratra avokoa izany fa tsy misy formule chimique avy any @ laboratoara akory. Tsorina ihany koa fa @ teny frantsay na anglisy no betsaka @ reo satria de izany no teny ampiasaiko @ ireo fikarohana rehetra ataoko.

Tsapako hoe moramora kokoa ny hiditra @ ity blaogy vao nosokafako ity satria ato ihany aho no manoratra. Efa manana blaogy anankiray aho manko saingy toa tsy haiko ny mampiditra soratra mivantana ao fa tsy maintsy mankany @ mail-ko nefa io mail-ko io sarotra sokafana. De aleo indray hoe andramana ity!

Ity no lahatsoratra voalohany ao amin'ny blaoginao. Azonao fafaina na ovaina ao amin'ny Toeran'ny mpandrindra ity lahatsoratra andrana ity.
Misaotra anao mampiasa ny Blaogy.

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