Prince Philip: the Vanuatu tribe mourning the death of their “god”

For the next few weeks, the villagers will gather to perform rites for the duke, who is seen as one “descendant of a very powerful spirit or god who lives in one of his mountains”explains anthropologist Kirk Huffman, who has been studying tribes since the 1970s.

They will likely perform ritual dances, perform a procession and display Prince Philip memorabilia, and the men will drink kava, a ceremonial drink made from the roots of the plant of the same name.

And the game will culminate in an ‘important meeting’.

“There will be a lot of wealth” in terms of yams and kava plants, notes journalist Dan McGarry from Vanuatu.

“And there will be pigs as well, as they are a primary protein source. I would expect many pigs to be slaughtered for the ceremonial event.”

For half a century the Prince Philip movement flourished in the villages of Yakel and Yaohnanen; At its peak, it had several thousand followers, although the number has now dropped to a few hundred.

The villagers lead a simple life in the jungles of Tanna, similar to that of their ancestors.

Traditional clothing remains common, while money and modern technology, such as cell phones, are rarely used in the community.

Although they live a few miles from the nearest airport, “just they decided reject the modern world. It is not a physical distance, it is a metaphysical distanceThey are 3,000 years apart, ”says McGarry, who regularly visits villagers.

According to the centenary closet o culture and way of life of the villagers, Tanna is the origin of the world and aims to promote peace, and this is where Prince Philip played a central role.

In time, the villagers started to believe he was one of them and all with him it was fulfilledthe speaking prophecyba from a member of the tribe who ‘left the island in its original spiritual form to find a powerful woman abroad’, dice Huffman.

While ruling the United Kingdom with the help of the Queen, he sought to bring peace and respect to tradition in England and other parts of the world. If he succeeded, he could return to Tanna, although one thing that prevented him was, according to them, the stupidity of the whites, the jealousy, the greed and the constant struggle ”.

With “his mission to literally plant the seed closet from Tanna at the heart of the Commonwealth of Nations and the Empire, “the Duke was seen as the embodiment of their culture,” says McGarry.

For them it represented “the journey of a hero, a person who goes in search and literally wins the princess and the kingdom”.

No one is quite sure how or why the movement started, although there are different theories

One idea, according to Huffman, is that villagers saw her image next to that of the queen on the walls of British colonial outposts when Vanuatu was known as the New Hebrides, a colony jointly managed by the United Kingdom and France.

Another interpretation is that it arose as a “response to the colonial presence, a way to usurp and reclaim colonial power by associating with someone sitting to the right of the Commonwealth ruler,” says McGarry, noting colonial history. sometimes violent from Vanuatu.

But experts are sure that the Prince Felipe Movement already existed in the 1970s, confirmed by the royal couple’s 1974 visit to the New Hebrides, where the duke reportedly participated in kava drinking rituals.

What did Prince Philip do with this?

In public he seemed to accept the arches, and shipment several letters and photos of himself to the tribesmen, who in turn presented him with traditional gifts over the years.

One of his first gifts was called a ceremonial club nal-nal-nal, which was held at a meeting in 1978 called by villagers to ask for more information about Prince Philip, who attended Huffman.

“So the British Commissioner came down and did a slide show with photos of Prince Philip. Hundreds of these people were waiting, sitting or standing under the bushes. It was so quiet we could hear a pin drop,” said Huffman.

“One of the chiefs gave him a club to pass to Prince Philip, and he wanted proof that he had received it.”

It was sent to the UK where photos were taken of the Duke holding it and later sent to the archipelago.

The tribe continues to keep those images, among other things.

In 2007, several members of the tribe met the Duke in person.

After flying to the UK for the realitythe Channel 4 Meet the natives (“Meet the natives”), Five tribal leaders met with the Duke off-screen at Windsor Castle, where they presented gifts and asked when he would return to Tanna.

His answer, as reported later by tribesmen, was cryptic: C.if it is hot, I send a message “But it seemed to please them.

Although Prince Philip was known for his outspokenness and has been criticized in the past for being culturally insensitive, in Tanna “he is considered very understanding and sensitive”, dice Huffman.

His affiliation with the tribes continued through Prince Charles, who visited Vanuatu in 2018 and drank the same kava as his father decades ago.

He also received a staff in the name of the duke from a member of the Yaohnanen tribe.

The Duke’s death has inevitably raised the delicate question of who will take his place in the spiritual pantheon of the tribes.

The discussions have already started and it may take a while to decide who it will be successor

But for observers familiar with Vanuatu, true tribal custom usually dictates that the title of chief be inherited by male descendants, the answer is obvious.

“You could say the Duke allowed Carlos to continue on his mission,” said Huffman.

Even if the Prince of Wales becomes the latest incarnation of his deity, Prince Philip will not be soon forgotten.

Huffman believes that the movement is likely to keep its name, and has been told by a member of a tribe that they are even considering setting up a political party

But more importantly, “there has always been the idea that Prince Philip will one day return, either personally or spiritually,” notes Huffman, adding that some think his death triggered it.

And so while the Duke of Edinburgh rests in Windsor Castle, there is a belief that your soul is making its last journey through the waves of the OPacific Ocean to its spiritual home, Tanna Island, to abide with those who loved and honored him from afar all those years.

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