Abiku

I went to four different sites and each one told me something different so bear with me. The first site I went to told me that Abiku is a Yoruba Mythology word meaning predestined death. Abi meaning that which possesses and iku meaning death. Abiku are believed to be spirits of children who die before reaching puberty. They are the spirits of a child who dies before the age of 12 and the spirit or spirits who have caused the death. The second site said that Abiku is a child that dies shortly after birth and is reborn into the same family many times. After getting to different opinions I went searching for a match to one of the. The third site agreed with the second one expanding a little more on their belief. Abiku is believed to be an evil demonic spirit that is constantly hungry and thirsty. They prey on children and are born in the form of a child that dies and is reborn many times. They are possessed by an Abiku spirit. The fourth and final site I stumbled upon was probably the most interesting and strange but the most eligible site. It was a journal article on Jstor. This is the most credible site and this is what they had to say about Abiku. The belief is that Abiku is a child that dies and is reborn into the same family. The Abiku leaves when the mother reaches menopause. It then moves on to another pregnant woman. The Abiku can choose when they die. They typically die when the parents start to cherish them. The mother’s tears are very valued to the Abiku spirits. It is believed the Abiku makes a great deal of money on the collected tears of their mother. Before entering the womb the Abiku’s take a pledge. There is also a meeting for Abiku’s at the dead of night. The infant Abiku children rarely attend. Considering this article was many pages long and the other sites found had different information from each other this was the best I could do for background information.

The Abiku are monsters because they “feed” off of their mother’s pain and suffering. They enjoy watching their mother’s grieve over them each time they die. The act itself is monstrous and the fact that they get so much pleasure out of it is even more evil. The Abiku are selfish spirits that hurt their mother’s to reap benefits. Some Abiku’s live until they are married and die the day after. Some even have children and die the day after their child is born. The more people they can hurt the better it is for them. These spirits have intentions. They do not act because they are crazy but because they enjoy the pain they bring onto others.