Talking About Chira

Negotiating Share responsibility of Childcare Among Luo Mothers

Abstract

Chira is a local illness often described in the literature as a wasting illness. However, a sudden and acute illness with high fever, diarrhea, and vomiting could also be interpreted as Chira. Its diagnosis is based on an examination of social incidents such as adultery, people's neglect of rituals, or improper mixing of incompatible categories. Qualitative data for this paper was collected over five months in Bondo District. The study reveals that chira in children is perceived as the result of the mother's violation of kwer which causes conditions of ritual impurity. The presence of chira in a child gives Luo mothers a chance to enroll kin members in the daily childcare.