Festival of The Dead

There are many Malawian culture, customs, and etiquette that will surprise you, and the Chewa’s festival for the dead definitely marks one of those practices that shock many. The Chewa community is a Bantu tribe mostly found in Malawi. During the burial ceremony of a tribe member, it is customary for the body of the deceased to be washed. The corpse is taken to a sacred place where the cleansing is done by slitting the throat of the dead and pouring water through the insides of the dead and extracting through the anterior region of the dead body. The water is then collected and used to prepare a meal for the whole community as they believe that the dead has been cleaned up of his or her iniquities.

It was also reported that such practice of cleansing the dead, serves or helps in the spreading of some infections and deadly diseases in the Chewa community. Funerals are not just to mourn, they are also huge social parties, a reason to eat, drink beer, and meet people.