Editing Reincarnation (section)

===Yoruba===
{{See also|Yoruba religion}}

The Yoruba religion teaches that [[Olódùmarè|Olodumare]], the Supreme Being and divine Creator who rules over His Creation, created ''eniyan'', or humanity, to achieve balance between heaven and earth and bring about ''Ipo Rere'', or the Good Condition.<ref name="yoruba_obafemi_re">{{cite web |last1=O |first1=Obafemi |title=Reincarnation |url=https://www.obafemio.com/reincarnation.html |website=ObafemiO.com |access-date=30 August 2023}}</ref> To cause achievement of the Good Condition, humanity reincarnates.<ref name="yoruba_obafemi">{{cite web |last1=O |first1=Obafemi |title=ObafemiO |url=https://www.obafemio.com/ |website=ObafemiO.com |access-date=30 August 2023}}</ref> Once achieved, Ipo Rere provides the ultimate state of supreme existence with Olodumare, a goal which elevates reincarnation to a key position in the Yoruba religion.<ref name="yoruba_learnreligions">{{cite web |title=Yoruba Religion: History and Beliefs |url=https://www.learnreligions.com/yoruba-religion-4777660 |website=LearnReligions |access-date=30 August 2023 }}</ref>

''Atunwaye''<ref name="yoruba_pulse">{{cite web |last1=Dunmade |first1=Oluwatumininu |title=The concept of reincarnation in Igbo and Yoruba culture |url=https://www.pulse.ng/lifestyle/food-travel/the-concept-of-reincarnation-in-igbo-and-yoruba-culture/rdxdkw0 |website=Pulse Nigeria |access-date=30 August 2023 |language=en |date=20 September 2022}}</ref> (also called ''atunwa''<ref name="yoruba_obafemi_re"/>) is the Yoruba term for reincarnation. [[Predestination (disambiguation)|Predestination]] is a foundational component of ''atunwaye''. Just prior to incarnation, a person first chooses their ''Ayanmo'' (destiny) before also choosing their ''Akunyelan'' (lot) in the presence of Olodumare and [[Ọrunmila|Orunmila]] with Olodumare's approval.<ref name="yoruba_dopamu">{{cite journal |last1=Dopamu |first1=Abiola |title=Predestination, destiny and faith in Yorubaland: Any meeting point? |journal=Global Journal of Humanities |date=2008 |volume=7 |issue=1&2 |pages=37–39 |url=https://www.ajol.info/index.php/gjh/article/view/79372 |access-date=30 August 2023 |ref=yoruba_dopamu |language=en |issn=1596-6232}}</ref> By ''atunwaye'', a person may incarnate only in a human being and may choose to reincarnate in either sex, regardless of choice in the prior incarnation.<ref name="yoruba_learnreligions"/>

====Ipadawaye====

The most common, widespread Yoruba reincarnation belief is ''ipadawaye'', meaning "the ancestor's rebirth".<ref name="yoruba_pulse"/> According to this belief, the reincarnating person will reincarnate along their familial lineage.<ref name="yoruba_obafemi"/><ref name="yoruba_learnreligions"/><ref name="yoruba_akinola">{{cite web |last1=Akinola |first1=Temilorun |title=From Life to Death: Death and Dying Beliefs of the Yoruba |url=https://www.processjmus.org/temilorun-akinola-from-life-to-death |website=Process |access-date=30 August 2023 |archive-date=30 August 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230830082941/https://www.processjmus.org/temilorun-akinola-from-life-to-death |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name="yoruba_cambridge">{{cite journal |last1=Olaleye-Oruene |first1=Taiwo O. |title=The Yoruba's Cultural Perspective of Death with Special Reference to Twins |journal=Twin Research and Human Genetics |date=June 2002 |volume=5 |issue=3 |pages=154–155 |doi=10.1375/136905202320227790|pmid=12184881 |s2cid=5982761 |doi-access=free }}</ref> When a person dies, they go to ''orun'' (heaven) and will live with the ancestors in either ''orunrere'' (good heaven) or ''orunapaadi'' (bad heaven). Reincarnation is believed to be a gift bestowed on ancestors who lived well and experienced a "good" death. Only ancestors living in ''orunrere'' may return as grandchildren, reincarnating out of their love for the family or the world. Children may be given names to indicate which ancestor is believed to have returned, such as Babatide ("father has come"), Babatunde ("father has come again"), and Yetunde ("mother has come again").<ref name="yoruba_pulse"/><ref name="yoruba_akinola"/>

A "bad" death (which includes deaths of children, cruel, or childless people and deaths by punishments from the gods, accidents, suicides, and gruesome murders) is generally believed to prevent the deceased from joining the ancestors and reincarnating again,<ref name="prothero">{{cite book |last1=Prothero |first1=Stephen R. |title=God is not one: the eight rival religions that run the world |date=2011 |publisher=HarperOne |location=New York, NY |isbn=978-0-06-157128-2 }}</ref> though some practitioners also believe a person experiencing a "bad" death will be reborn much later into conditions of poverty.<ref name="yoruba_obafemi_re"/>

====Abiku====

Another Yoruba reincarnation belief is ''[[abiku]]'', meaning "born to die"<ref name="yoruba_obafemi_re"/><ref name="yoruba_pulse"/><ref name="mobolade_abiku">{{cite journal|jstor=3334754|title=The Concept of Abiku|last=Mobolade|first=Timothy|journal=African Arts |date=September 1, 1973|volume=7 |issue=1 |pages=62–64 |publisher=UCLA James S. Coleman African Studies Center|doi=10.2307/3334754 }}</ref>
According to Yoruba custom, an abiku is a reincarnating child who repeatedly experiences death and rebirth with the same mother in a vicious cycle. Because childlessness is considered a curse in Yoruba culture,<ref name="mobolade_abiku"/> parents with an abiku child will always attempt to help the abiku child by preventing their death. However, abiku are believed to possess a power to ensure their eventual death, so rendering assistance is often a frustrating endeavor causing significant pain to the parents. This pain is believed to bring happiness to the abiku.<ref name="mobolade_abiku"/>

Abiku are believed to be a "species of spirit" thought to live apart from people in, for example, secluded parts of villages, jungles, and footpaths. Modern belief in abiku has significantly waned among urban populations, with the decline attributed to improved hygiene and medical care reducing infant mortality rates.<ref name="mobolade_abiku"/>

====Akudaaya====

''Akudaaya'', meaning "born to die and reappear"<ref name="yoruba_pulse"/> (also called ''akuda''<ref name=orisa_akudaaya>{{cite web |author=AJE |title=AKUDAAYA (Meaning and Explanation) |url=https://www.orisa.com.ng/2023/06/akudaaya-meaning-and-explanation.html |website=orisa.com.ng |date=23 June 2023 |access-date=30 November 2023}}</ref>), is a Yoruba reincarnation belief of "a person that is dead[] but has not gone to heaven".<ref name=orishada_akudaaya>{{cite web |last1=Aworeni |first1=Babalawo |title=The Araba Agbaya: The Akudaaya |url=https://orishada.com/wordpress/?p=365 |website=orishada.com |access-date=30 November 2023}}</ref> Akudaaya is based on the belief that, if a recently-deceased person's destiny in that life remained unfulfilled, the deceased cannot join the ancestors and therefore must roam the world.<ref name=orisa_akudaaya/> Following death, an akudaaya returns to their previous existence by reappearing in the same physical form. However, the new existence will be lived in a different physical location from the first, and the akudaaya will not be recognized by a still-living relative, should they happen to meet. The akudaaya lives their new existence working to fulfill their destiny from the previous life. 

The concept of akudaaya is the subject of ''Akudaaya (The Wraith)'', a 2023 Nigerian drama film in the Yoruba language.<ref name=akudaaya_movie_1>{{cite web |last1=Irabor |first1=Joan |title="Akudaaya" is Bringing Back the Chills |url=https://thenollywoodreporter.com/film/akudaaya-is-bringing-back-the-chills/ |website=thenollywoodreporter.com |access-date=30 November 2023}}</ref> The film is said to center on a deceased son who "has begun living life as a spirit in another state and has fallen in love".<ref name=akudaaya_movie_2>{{cite web |last1=Irabor |first1=Joan |title="Akudaaya" Dramatizes The Dilemma Of A Man Caught Between Worlds  |url=https://thenollywoodreporter.com/film/akudaaya-dramatizes-the-dilemma-of-a-man-caught-between-worlds/ |website=thenollywoodreporter.com |access-date=30 November 2023}}</ref>