Madagascar
15m
Jun 15, 2026
Dancing with the Dead: Madagascar's Famadihana and the Tradition That Refuses to Separate the Living from Their Ancestors
In the highlands of Madagascar, families exhume their dead relatives, wrap them in fresh silk, dance with them, share news and food with them, and return them to the tomb with laughter and music. To outside eyes, this looks like a confrontation with death. To the Malagasy, it is the opposite: a celebration of the continuing relationship between the living and those who have not yet left.