The Merina believe in life after death. They believe that the razarca-ancestors continue to live and live closer to Zanahary. As a result they are able to intercede for the living.
Their ties with the living are not cut off. In the Merina world they are omnipresent and from time to time they appear to them in dreams or in visions. Their descendants respected them. The ancestors were the source of blessings. They have power to affect the fortunes of the living for good or evil. The Merina consider them as the most important and most authoritative members of the family, just as if they are intimately involved in the daily lives of the living members. They are believed to be the sources from whom the life force flows, and are the creators of their customs and way of life.
They watch over the living everyday and provide them with their needs.
Gow says that:
It was believed that the ancestors watched over the living at all times and that these same ancestors could alter their day-to-day lives. Malagasy beliefs held that, although dead relatives had left this world, they were leading a new existence and remained in touch with their descendants. The ancestors controlled the obedience of the living to traditional customs, gave them advice, and showed their displeasure by appearing to them in dreams. The dead were
seen as source of good things such as life, happiness, tranquillity and fertility (1979:37).
The Merina have such a great respect for the razana that they do not spare their fortunes to build burial tombs for them. This burial tomb is the primary link between the living and the dead, and it is built with great care and expense, reflecting the privileged position given to the dead. The family tomb is built on the family land because it makes that area their tanindrazana-land of the ancestors. The tanindrazana holds the living and the dead together. For this reason the Merina, working or living far away from that place, come from time to time to pay a visit not only to the living but also to the dead. In case one member of the family died far away from the tanindrazana, the whole family makes sure that the body is brought home and buried in the family tomb. The hardest curse for any Merina is tsy milevina ampasan-drazana- not to be buried in the ancestral tomb. Only those who offend the ancestors gravely are guilty of sacrilege; they are ostracised from the family tomb. Great care is taken to ensure that the ancestors are not angered in any way.
Figure 2: One of the tombs that the Malagasy built for their dead.
While burial is the final respect paid to a dead person in some parts of the country, it was not the case for the Merina. Periodically they perform the famadihana-turrimg of the dead. It reaffirms the links between the living and the dead. The intervals between one famadihana to the next vary from family to family: for some every five years, for others seven, nine or even eleven. It is a joyous moment for the whole family. Brown reports:
The well-known Merina custom "the turning of the dead", famadihana, under which the bodies of the dead wrapped in burial shrouds are removed from the family tomb at intervals of years and displayed at a joyous family gathering before being wrapped in a new shroud and returned to the tomb, is not found outside the plateau area (1978:11).
Figure 3: Exhumation in Imerina, the central region of Madagascar. People lifted high the bodies of the razana and dancing following the rhythm of music
and song.
The ceremonies of the famadiahana are very costly, because of the expense of providing food for a large number of relatives and guests, and it is a big feast, everyone has to eat well. It represents a time of communion with the ancestors. It is also a means
of avoiding or reducing guilt or blame. It is considered a serious transgression not to hold a famadihana. They believe that it is not only a feast for the living but also for the dead. The spirits of the ancestors are invited to the feast given by the living members of the family; that is why a few elders of the family go to the family tomb the day before the ceremonies to call the ancestors to be present lest they go away on a long journey and be absent for the big day. The famadihana marks the family reunion in spirit among the living and the dead.
The Merina recognise a number of different souls. These include the fanahy, the ambiroa, the lolo, and the angatra. The fanahy is the soul of the living person. They say 'Ny fanahy no olona-the fanahy makes a person'. It is a kind of essence which determines individual character and behaviour. By fate, a person can have a good or a bad fanahy. The ambiroa is the soul of the person after death. The ambiroa are the souls that the elders called to the tomb the day before the celebration of the famadihana. They believe that the ambiroa permeate the tomb building, the family
household, and the hills and valleys of the tanindrazana. In a sense they are omnipresent. The lolo is the soul of a recently deceased person. It cannot do anything to the living, it is harmless. It only feels homesick, for that reason it comes back to its old surroundings. It often appears in the form of a moth or a butterfly. Then the angatra is the ghost of the unknown dead. It is often malevolent and frightens people at night (Pischke 2004:4). There is a specific prayer to chase it away.
Though they are not physically seen, the Merina believe in the omnipresence of the razana in their daily lives. The ancestors and the living maintain a close relationship.
Their presence is felt through some daily practices. For example, when throwing water through the windows, they always warn rano o/i-water. They do it in order to avoid splashing water on them in case they happen to take a walk around. Or else, they do not dare to drink any alcoholic drink without pouring first the ancestors' share at their corner. The razana are omnipresent in the Merina daily lives.