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This chapter deals with an important component of the traditional Nubian ritual system, but one which has lapsed into relative insignificance in modem times. It begins by describing the circumcision rites for Egyptian Nubian boys as they were practiced in some parts of Nubia (e.g., Diwan and Abu Hor) as late as 1933, and excision rituals for girls as they are still frequently performed. Nubian circumcision and excision ceremonies cannot simply be categorized as “rites of passage” or as “initiation rites.” They embody a complex constellation of interrelated beliefs, values, and principles of social structure—all of which must be examined in order to comprehend their form and existence. Furthermore, though the rituals had important effects on the social awareness and identity formation of children, they had no obvious relationship to gaps or failures in the socialization process.

This book examines how different people in metropolitan Cairo experience zar as spirits, as rituals, and as a spiritual and initiatory path. Zar is a healing ritual complex practiced in societies around the Red Sea and the Arabian Gulf. It also refers to jinn spirits who possess humans and afflict them with troubles and ailments. In Egypt, the way of zar is one of the healing options that address jinn. People seek out zar initiation when in crisis for a variety of motivations and reasons. Drawing on years of extensive ethnographic fieldwork in different parts of Egypt and on personal experience, this book explores some aspects of Egyptian zar spirit possession that have rarely been addressed in the literature: the zar community (tayfat al-zar), zar rites and rituals, and songs and music within zar communities. This introduction discusses zar and spirit possession from an anthropological perspective and provides an overview of the chapters that follow.

This chapter explores the association between zar possession crises and those that relate to the anxieties around periods of transitions in the life cycle of a person. Symptoms of zar affliction tend to occur during special moments of anxiety surrounding life-cycle transitions. The first episode of possession, or zar ritual crisis, typically occurs prior to marriage, when a woman is still a teenager. The chapter first considers crises related to adolescence, fertility, marriage, pregnancy, birthing, and menopause by using a variety of narratives to present people's varied perceptions and practice for zar. It then links Arjun Appadurai's concept of “locality” to the ways zar orients the devotee's body in time in time and space. It also examines how times of transition—ritual cycle crises—become socialized through zar initiations.