“Beyond a Boundary”: Life, Death, and Cricket in Trinidadian Conceptions of the Afterlife

This article examines the place of life, death, and cricket in Trinidadian ideas concerning the afterlife. In his book Beyond a Boundary, C. L. R. James uses West Indian cricket as an analogy to reveal a number of central ideas concerning life, its purposes, and goals. It also gives vivid expression to the ambivalent—and often contradictory—attitudes Trinidadians hold concerning death and dying. Despite the prevalence of some common principles and practices, Trinidadians hold a wide array of beliefs concerning the afterlife. Trinidadian beliefs concerning the afterlife are shaped by the fact that many Trinidadians die in their homes and are buried by local religious leaders, rather than by commercial funeral homes, except for those living in major cities like Port of Spain and San Fernando. This article mainly focuses on members of one religion—the Spiritual Baptists, who see life as a “'pilgrim journey”—and contrasts their ideas about death with those of the followers of the Orisa and Kabalists, who see the transition between death and the afterlife as a more gradual process that takes place over many years.