Placenta

Physically, the placenta is a membranic sac in which a human fetus develops. It is a vehicle by which oxygen, nutrients, and blood necessary for the baby's development are transmitted from mother to child. It is thought that, spiritually, the placenta carries vital energy that may be used to positively or negatively affect the child or its mother. Because of its spiritual potential, the treatment of the placenta following the birth of a child is an area of important religious attention.

In ancient KMT, or Egypt, the placenta was considered to be a spirit double of the child. The Igbo of Nigeria associate the placenta with the infant, but not with the baby's spirit double, or chi. The Baganda people view the placenta as a second child that is stillborn and becomes a ghost. Because the placenta is thus tied to the well-being of the infant, the proper handling of it must be performed to ensure the protection of the living sibling.

The placenta may be burned, preserved, or buried according to the family's particular belief system. In some places, including, but not limited to, the United States, Jamaica, and Haiti, the placenta is buried. It is not uncommon for a fruit tree to be planted over the placenta so that the child never becomes hungry. Among the Ngoni, the baby's first bath is given over the spot where the placenta is buried, along with the cloth used to deliver the infant. The Edo ethnic group requires that water from the infant's first bath be poured over the site, and mashed yam is offered to the location by an elder woman. Some other African diasporic populations bury the placenta not in the yard or courtyard, but inside the home or beneath the threshold of a doorway.

In African cosmological understandings, the physical environment is a critical component in man's own existence. As such, nature is revered and respected. Additionally, the immediate geographic location of a community is honored because it provides the sustenance necessary for the survival of the people. Inasmuch as this is the case, Africans seek to unite both spiritually and physically with the land on which they reside. The burial of human placentas is an essential ritual that serves this purpose throughout the African diaspora.

It has been said that the immediate location of a family links that family to the portion of the spiritual realm that helps to maintain their familial dynamic. Accordingly, the ancestral land's physical location provides a spiritually sacred place where family members may return to reunite with the energy found there. Africans of Zimbabwe and the Caribbean both bury the navel string, another name for the placenta, so that the baby will always choose to come home. The mother's future fertility is also closely related to the proper disposal of the placenta, further ensuring the preservation of the family's lineage.

Babies born with portions of the membrane covering their head are said to be born “with a veil” or “with a caul.” These children are considered, throughout the diaspora, as being born with the ability to see and hear ghosts and other spirits. The only method for allowing the child to escape the responsibility that accompanies such a gift is to keep the caul. Because the caul's well-being is directly related to that of the child, if it is torn, the child will die. If the child becomes sick, the caul is damp; and if the child is well, the caul will be firm. Similar beliefs exist in West Africa, Guyana, Jamaica, Haiti, and the U.S. Southern and Sea Coast areas.

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