The Search for Peace in Times of Chaos—Volume It never takes place before at least three lunar months after birth The purpose of Àgabasa-yiyi is to introduce the child to the family community in the living room of the representative of the ancestor It is the rite of the integration of a child or of several children of the same generation within the family community, including the deceased members, the living, and the spirits that protect the family.20 The consultation by the diviner healer reveals the child’s joto (personal spirit) or the ancestor, sometimes deified who, in him, is sent to the family by the Supreme Being The joto is a reference to a protective force It is a dynamic element that intervenes in the constitution of the individual’s personality The joto is “Father of the coming into existence,” the direct collaborator of Mawu (Supreme Being) in the life of the child (like a guardian angel) In principle, the child does not take on the name of his joto He can, however, be addressed by this name from time to time in order to remind him of it Ǧ rite, the individual is Through the recognized as a true member of his family The Agbasa rite has two dimensions: while the possession of a joto confers a social status on a person, the determination of his ỵ (oracle) recognizes his individual character Thus, there is reciprocal interaction between social status and the status of the individual Those who have not been through the rite of Àgabasayiyi have neither personal nor community status If the joto and the dù are not known by their families, they remain strangers, men without roots.21 Until a child reaches the age of reason, it is the mother who respects the ordinances of his oracle In general, mothers take upon themselves the responsibility and the concern to follow these ordinances for the rest of their lives, for and with their offspring, even after the children are adults By this gesture, they demonstrate that the life preserved in a family member is a gain in vitality for all and that everyone must cooperate in maintaining it ~ 36 ~