In many houses, the medium spends hours before the gira without meat, without alcohol, and without sex. This care has a name: preceito. The preceitos na umbanda are rules of protection that the house requests before the gira, the amaci, or an obrigação, and the most recorded period is 24 hours.
The doubt appears in mediumship development, when the medium compares their house with a friend's. One cuts all meat, another only red meat, another allows fish. This guide shows what five houses request, side by side, and explains why the rules change.
What is preceito in Umbanda
For the Terreiro de Umbanda Pai Maneco, in Curitiba, "preceito is a prescription made to the faithful of the religion." The mãe pequena of the house explains that the preceito helps the mediums to maintain "the close relationship with the spirits."
Pedro Carlessi studied a terreiro in the south zone of São Paulo with about 400 mediums. In the article published in the Boletim do Museu Goeldi, he records that there the preceito (ritual restriction) is the avoidance of red meat, alcohol, and sex in the 24 hours before the ceremonies. The rule seeks to keep away from the medium's life whatever hinders the ritual work with the spirit guides.
In the vocabulary of the terreiro, the same idea appears as resguardo, and it is said to "ficar de preceito" or "entrar de preceito".
Each terreiro and casa de axé has its preceitos and resguardos.
Mãe Cristina Alves, Templo de Umbanda Ogum (Ogun) 7 Ondas
The preceito is for the medium's body, for those who work in the gira de umbanda. Those attending for the first time can find the recommendations for visitors in primeira vez na umbanda.
The difference between preceito and quizila
The quizila of Candomblé is linked to the person's orixá (orisha). Reginaldo Prandi, in the magazine Horizontes Antropológicos, lists the "taboos of the children" of the Ketu rite Candomblé by orixá. These taboos accompany whoever is a child of that orixá.
The precept of the Umbanda houses in this guide is marked in time: hours before the gira, days before the amaci or an obrigação. Some call this precaution a temporary quizila, as our guide on quizilas in Candomblé does.
Candomblé also has a precept with a deadline. In a Ketu terreiro in Teresina, whoever goes through the ebó complies for three days without coffee, soda, alcohol, red meat, and sexual relations.
What each house asks for before the gira
The rules change from terreiro to terreiro. This table brings together five houses with published guidance:
| House | Deadline | What the medium avoids |
|---|---|---|
| Terreiro studied by Carlessi (São Paulo) | 24 hours before | Red meat, alcohol, and sex |
| Terreiro Pai Maneco (Curitiba) | One day before | All meat, alcohol, tobacco leaf, and sex; also bars |
| Instituto das Almas (Curitiba) | 24 hours before | Sex, alcohol and warm-blooded meat; fish is allowed |
| Centro Pena Verde (Florianópolis) | Sex 8 hours before; meat 24 hours before | Sex and meat, with separate timeframes |
| Templo Ogum 7 Ondas | Day of the gira | Sex and alcohol; meat, if eaten, a small amount; cemetery, church, bar and hospital |
Meat is the point of greatest divergence. Pai Maneco writes that, "unlike many other terreiros," he cuts out all types of meat. The scholar the house consulted "did not find consensus" on the subject, and records that many pais and mães de santo do not forbid meat in small quantities.
Therefore, the answer to "can I eat chicken during the preceito?" is in your home. The rule of the terreiro studied by Carlessi speaks only of red meat, and that of Pai Maneco cuts meat of any type.
Those who have diabetes, are pregnant, take medication at specific times, or have a history of eating disorders should speak with the doctor and with the leader before changing their diet for the preceito. Pai Maneco's own text reminds that eating or not eating meat requires medical guidance.
Preceito before the amaci and the obrigação
In larger moments, the timeframe grows. At Pai Maneco, the preceito before the amaci lasts three days, to prepare the beginning medium. At 7 Ondas, sexual abstinence is worth three days before the house's main obligations. Pena Verde says that, in cruzamento, coroação and initiation, the house may also request the removal of milk, eggs and cheese.
After the amaci, the terreiro studied by Carlessi keeps the mediums in silence and protected "for a few hours or days," with a cloth covering the wet head. The rite is explained in what is amaci.
Feitura and initiation have a longer rest period (resguardo), recorded as the "period of rebirth and resguardo." The timeframe and rule of this period are determined by the house, and this guide does not cover them.
Ritual bath, clothing, and thoughts on the day of the gira
The precept is not limited to what one refrains from doing. At Pai Maneco, the cleansing bath (banho de descarrego) before the gira is part of it. At the Instituto das Almas, after the hygiene bath, the medium bathes "from the neck down" with herbs. Those who do not yet know their head orixá use rue, rosemary, and guinea hen weed. The terreiro studied by Carlessi requests at least one herbal bath before and another after the ceremonies.
Which herb to use, however, is the decision of the house. Mãe Cristina Alves writes that the herbal bath must be prescribed by the leader and the chief spirit guides. The bath test suggests baths by objective, and does not replace the bath that your house requires.
Clothing is also included. The Instituto das Almas requests simple white clothes, and 7 Ondas wants the medium's clothing to be well washed, perfumed, and spiritually cleansed.
The most difficult part comes last. For Pai Maneco, "the most difficult part of the precept is taking care of thoughts." Mãe Cristina adds: it is not enough to keep the resguardo (ritual restrictions) only on the day of the gira.
Frequently asked questions
How many days does the precept last in Umbanda?
The most recorded timeframe is 24 hours before the gira. Some houses separate timeframes by item, such as 8 hours for sex and 24 hours for meat, and request three days before the amaci or obrigação. The timeframe of your house is informed by the leader.
Does the precept also apply after the gira?
It depends on the house. When asked if the ideal would be 24 hours before and 24 after, the mãe pequena of Pai Maneco responded that the focus should move away from the count of hours. The terreiro studied by Carlessi asks for a herbal bath after the ceremonies.
Can a menstruating woman go to the gira?
The houses diverge. Some authors and leaders keep the menstruating medium away from the gira. The Terreiro Pai Maneco rejects this rule and makes no objection to the house mediums. Ask the leader how your house understands it.
And what if I break the preceito before the gira?
None of the houses in this guide publish a rule for reparation. Notify the leader before the ritual work begins, because he is the one who guides what to do on that day.
Where to buy what the preceito asks for
At Joia Mística Laroyê you find what your house asks for the day of the gira:
- Herbs for ritual bath, such as arruda, alecrim, and guiné, fresh or dry
- White ritual clothing for the gira
- White candles in stick and seven day types
- Incense burners for the house and for the terreiro
- Bead necklaces in the colors your house uses
Stop by the shop, at Rua Benedito Zingari, 460, Bela Vista, in Extrema-MG, or message on WhatsApp with delivery to all of Brazil.
References
- Pedro Crepaldi Carlessi: plants and umbandista mediums, Boletim do Museu Paraense Emílio Goeldi, 2017
- Reginaldo Prandi: African gods in contemporary Brazil, Horizontes Antropológicos, 1995
- Soares and others: Therapeutic itineraries and religion, Brazilian Journal of Development, 2021
- Yvanna Karolyne Marques Silva: phraseological dictionary of Afro-Brazilian religion, UFRA, 2023
- Terreiro de Umbanda Pai Maneco: Precepts, diet during the precept and guidelines for the mediums
- Instituto das Almas: guidelines for the giras
- Mãe Cristina Alves: Precepts and protections, Templo de Umbanda Ogum 7 Ondas, 2016
- Centro de Umbanda Pena Verde: precepts in Umbanda, 2020
