Ilo Uwa And Reincarnation: Science Meets Igbo Philosophy

When Mama Came Back

Growing up, everyone believed I was the reincarnation of my maternal grandmother. This belief was one of the first things I became conscious of as a child. One of the reincarnation principles in Igbo cosmology is that the person who reincarnates doesn’t get to see/dies before the person they reincarnate into is born. Mama died on 29th June, and I was born on 23rd December of the same year. She fell ill shortly after my mother discovered she was pregnant. So everyone was dead sure it was her. Like it was so obvious.

An ancestor may be reincarnated as multiple people in which case the reincarnations share a mortal bond. Upon the death of one person, it is believed that the others may die a sudden death if they see the corpse.

One of my (extended) family members (on my mother’s side) said she had a dream shortly after Mama’s funeral. In the dream, Mama was looking all radiant and happy. My grandmother told her she was pleased with the way the funeral went. After that, Mama told her to get her a drink. She did as she was bid. Just as she was about to serve the drink, she realized Mama was gone. In her place was a tiny, crying baby.