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Full Description
An examination of the history and waning culture of zar in Egypt, and the world in which Muslim women negotiate relations with spirits
Zar is both a possessing spirit and a set of reconciliation rites between the spirits and their human hosts: living in a parallel yet invisible world, the capricious spirits manifest their anger by causing ailments for their hosts, which require ritual reconciliation, a private sacrificial rite practiced routinely by the afflicted devotees. Originally spread from Ethiopia to the Red Sea and the Arabian Gulf through the nineteenth-century slave trade, in Egypt zar has incorporated elements from popular Islamic Sufi practices, including devotion to Christian and Muslim saints. The ceremonies initiate devotees—the majority of whom are Muslim women—into a community centered on a cult leader, a membership that provides them with moral orientation, social support, and a sense of belonging. Practicing zar rituals, dancing to zar songs, and experiencing trance restore their well-being, which had been compromised by gender asymmetry and globalization.
This new ethnographic study of zar in Egypt is based on the author's two years of multi-sited fieldwork and firsthand knowledge as a participant, and her collection and analysis of more than three hundred zar songs, allowing her to access levels of meaning that had previously been overlooked. The result is a comprehensive and accessible exposition of the history, culture, and waning practice of zar in a modernizing world.
Contents
Acknowledgments
Note on Transliteration and Translation
1. Introduction
Anthropological Understanding of Zar and Spirit Possession
Anthropological Theories of Spirit Possession
From Collector to Ethnographer
Doing the Ethnography of Zar in Cairo
Methodological Strategies: Storytelling and Collage
Description of Chapters
2. From Abyssinia to Cairo: The Zar Ritual Complex
Introduction: Origin and Etymology
Egyptian Zar as a Transnational Phenomenon
Egyptian Conceptions of Zar
Zar and Islam
Spirit Afflictions and Their Symptoms
Gender, Class, and Zar Participation
Zar Professionals: Leaders and Musicians
The Zar Ritual Placation Process
Zar Music and Dance
Zar Paraphernalia
Conclusion
3. The Zar Trade: Belonging to Tayfat al-Zar
Introduction
Historiographical Studies of Women in Cairo
Zar as a Guild Corporation
Historical Roots of Zar and Guild Incorporation Rituals
The Stories of Professional Zar Diviners
The Moral of the Stories
Conclusion
4. Localization of Bodies in Time: Life Cycle and Other Crises
Introduction
The Crises of the Teenage Years
Pregnancy and Birthing
Menopause: The Grand Lady
The Disintegrated Plastic Flowers
Conclusion
5. Localization of Bodies in Space: A Ritual Sampler
The Offering of Incense
The Offering of Blood: The Sacrificial Rite
The Grand Lady's Procession
The Mayanga: The Cemetery of the Spirits
Conclusion
6. Saints and Spirits: Transformation of Traditions
Introduction
About Zar Songs
Zar Songs as 'Acts of Transfer'
The Historical Context of the Abul Gheit Song
Cultural Memories
The Golden Pair
The Military Spirit Pantheon
Zar Music Bands and Their Styles of Singing
The Hybridization and Transformation of Musical Styles
The History of the Song "Banat al-Handasa"
Conclusion
Song Samples
Notes
Bibliography
Index
