Beyond Facial Beauty. The Aesthetics of Yoruba Culture in Tiro Eye-Liner
Beyond Facial Beauty. The Aesthetics of Yoruba Culture in Tiro Eye-Liner

Summary/Abstract: There are many peculiar features of the Yoruba culture and tradition which distinguish the Yoruba people of South-Western Nigeria from other tribes. Cultural practices and their aesthetic values formulate the nomenclature of African society as an animistic continent. The beliefs that deify ancestors and some presumed supernatural beings engender the organisation of festivals and rituals that are subsumed in other physical adornments of the African people. This paper examines the application of Tiro Eye-Liner as an act that embeds other cultural meanings. However, despite the traditional values attached to tiro, the cosmetic is endangered by modern materials for facial beauty. Today, tiro has undergone modernization which devalues its connection to cultural and traditional practices concerning ancestral worship. There is a limited academic study of tiro as a traditional cosmetic adept with cultural values. This paper identifies and examines the connection of tiro to the worship of deities and other mystical beings in Yoruba performances. The study is done with close exploration of historical documents on the subject under study. As part of a phenomenal means of diving into the belief system and cultural values of a people, interviews in videos and personal presentations are examined to foreground the syncretism of tiro and cultural practices. Within the context of culture, many activities and practices have symbolic meanings which make them more metaphysical than physical. Tiro is a cosmetic that beautifies people, especially women. However, it plays a significant role in the culture of the Yoruba people, especially in relation to festivals and rituals. Tiro connects the living with their ancestors as some worshippers apply it during their ritual performances and sacrifices to the deities. Beyond facial beautification, tiro reveals the aesthetics of Yoruba tradition.

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