Baule (Côte d'Ivoire) Blolo Bla (Spirit Wife) Wood

Intended for a private shrine, a spirit wife (blolo bla) or a spirit husband (blolo bian) usually belongs or serves only one individual. The other world (blolo) is a world that parallels the one in which men and women live but it is the world of the dead. It is the world where spirits originate. In the blolo, all humans were married before birth and custom maintains that these spirit spouses follow their human partners forever. A spirit spouse brings good fortune to its owner and sometimes to the owner's human spouse or children too. A great deal of privacy and respect occurs when dealing with spirit spouses. They figures are often hidden within bedrooms. While possession of a spirit spouse is widely known, the uninvited viewing of these figures causes great turmoil and disconcert. The privacy surrounding these figures results from two primary factors: the sexual connotations associated with the figure and the need to prevent vulnerability.