‘Sempre la’o ho ita’

Abstract

With the power to impact people’s lives in any number of ways, the ancestors play a prominent role in ensuring (or in some cases, jeopardising) the safety and well-being of their living descendants. This chapter explores a range of different forms and practices of protection, risk mitigation, and methods of managing anxiety and dread. This includes an examination of items imbued with protective powers; rituals and prayers conducted to receive ancestral blessings and protection; and rituals aimed at identifying which transgressions or inadequate ancestor veneration have caused problems. These ongoing acts of exchange and engagement will be examined in the context of the ‘everyday’, as well as at more specific instances of heightened occasions of insecurity, violence and conflict.