Nicobarese - Religion and Expressive Culture

Religious Beliefs. Although Christianity has achieved some success among the Nicobarese, traditional beliefs and practices are still strong. The Nicobarese are animists, and they have a rich tradition dealing with natural spirits and spirits of the dead.

Religious Practitioners. The menluana (witch doctor) is a ritual specialist and healer who begins as a disciple/apprentice to an established menluana. Although anyone can become a menluana if they express the desire and aptitude, ritual knowledge most often passes from parent to child. The most respected ritual specialists come from Chowra.

Ceremonies. There is an annual feast held to drive evil spirits away from the village and several seasonal festivals intended to promote the growth of crops. The biggest Ceremonial event, involving several villages, is the ossuary feast, which honors the spirits of the dead. A great many pigs are killed for this feast, and it is the only time that pig fights are held. It occurs approximately every two or three years, Whenever village heads agree that they have the necessary resources (in pigs) to host one.

Arts. Nicobarese songs are sung unaccompanied by instruments. Dancing is done in groups—on some islands males and females dance in separate groups. There is no Nicobarese traditional drama. Popular sports include canoe races, pig fighting, stick fighting, wrestling, and volleyball.

Medicine. The menluana cure sickness by controlling the spirits who cause it. Herbal remedies are used, as is curing by "sucking" out bits of stone or bone, etc., from the body of the ailing person.

Death and Afterlife. The Nicobarese believe in an afterlife in which the dead conduct themselves similarly to how they did in life. For this reason, the personal belongings of the dead are buried with the body and food is left at the burial site. Certain coconut palms of the deceased's former plantation are marked with a sign, designating their fruit as solely for the use of the dead person's spirit for about six months. The body of the deceased is interred, then exhumed and reburied after about a week, at the time of which final burial a feast is held.