'REMEMBER SIX FEET DEEP': MASKS AND THE EXCULPATION OF/FROM DEATH IN ARO MASQUERADE

BY

ELI BENTOR (Winthrop University, Rock Hill, S.C.)

Death is the scandal of reason. It saps trust in reason and the security reason pro- mises... Reason cannot exculpate itself of this scandal. It can only try a cover-up. Zygmunt Bauman 1992: 1

' The question that I would like to address in this paper is that of the cognitive working of masks. I argue that in those societies that are using or have used them, masks are prime vehicles for the articulation of ambivalence. Ambivalence, I suggest, is not a mishap along an otherwise perfectly reasoned life process, but an essential aspect of social life. Masks help humans explore the limits of reason. These limits are most pronounced when human beings are forced to contemplate their finality, i.e., when they are faced with the presence of death. Through their cognitive, performative, and physical appearances, masks provide a tool for a mediation of the limits of human reasoning. In this essay I draw my data from an ethnographic example, the masked performance during funerals of secret society members at Arochukwu, Southeastern Nigeria. During these funeral ceremonies, masks help to bring about an emotive transformation of the audience. From the mourning of the passing of a human being emerges a reassuring sense of hope. This contradictory message is conveyed through a paradox of transformation. This paradox is an inherent feature of masking (Napier 1986). It is also played out at a crucial point of the performance itself when an encounter of a mask with death brings life and healing. In the con- clusion I suggest that masks act as an interface between humans and the spirit world. They mediate the intellectual problem of fac- ing death. This mediation is a useful way of thinking about the interaction between art and world view in Africa. 324

The origin of the Aro people lies in the mingling of Igbo, Ibibio, and Cross River ethnic elements. Their center is at Arochukwu, twelve kilometers West of the Cross River. Using their ethnic diversity as a resource, the Aro developed a widespread network based on religious, economic, political, and settlement activities. They cultivated the worship of ibiniukpabi, an oracle of great repute. This oracle attracted pilgrims from far and wide. The Aro people developed a formidable trading network. They procured slaves in the hinterland, exchanging them for imported products with coastal communities. From their center at Arochukwu they created a settlement network throughout Southeastern Nigeria (Jones 1939, Ottenberg 1958, Balogun 1974, Dike and Ekejiuba 1990). As a result of their cosmopolitan experience, the Aro people blended cultural elements from the whole region into a new cultural identity. They brought together many artistic tradition and mas- querade genres, adapting them for their own use (Bentor forth- coming). In turn, the Aro people contributed to the diffusion and transformation of artistic traditions throughout their sphere of ' influence. Among the institutions that emerged in the multi-ethnic environ- ment inhabited by the Aro people is the Ekpe-an all male secret society (Ruel 1969: 216-258). Initially found East of the Cross River, the Cross River ethnic element of the Aro people was proba- bly responsible for the introduction of Ekpe society to Arochukwu. In turn, the Aro people contributed to the expansion of the society from the Cross River region into Igboland. Ekpe is now found among the Igbo from Abiriba in the North to Bende in the West. The society is central to the political, judicial, and social life at Arochukwu (Abalogu 1978). At the center of each of the nineteen villages at Arochukwu stands the mgballa Ekpe, a building reserved 1 for the exclusive use of Ekpe members. In spite of the important social and judicial roles of the society, the Aro people consider Ekpe primarily as igba, the Igbo word for dance or performance. A senior member of the Ekpe surprised me when he said: 'Ekpe is a dance.' When I asked him 'Isn't it a secret society?' his answer was: 'No, Ekpe is a dance because if you do not know what is Ekpe, all you see is the dance. Everything that only some people know is a secret society' (Imoh 1989). We only know what we see and what we see of the Ekpe is the masked dance. This underscores an essential yet paradoxical feature of masking