Seboua (The Seventh Day celebration of the new baby’s birth)
It is one of the most important customs in ancient Egypt and a manifestation of the Egyptian identity, which is continuing now under the ‘aqeeqah!
The Egyptians used to celebrate on this day. It is due to the belief that the child’s sense of hearing begins on the seventh day of his birth, so they make a loud sound next to his ears, like a copper mortar ring, so that this sense works well. They hang a “gold ring” in his ear “Your rings with your men, the circle of gold which is the circle of the goddesses “Isis”, the mother of the god “Horus”, hoping him to obey the father and mother so that this will be the first thing that his ears hear, then they pray to God to preserve the newborn and prolong his life.
A jug sprinkled salt and seven beads to ward off evil, magic and bring goodness. This celebration is thousands of years old and is still held in every Egyptian home. The seven beads is a Pharaonic tradition that still exists today in Seboua. It is made up of wheat, rice, lentils, fenugreek, corn, beans and lentils.
Baby jug often is pottery and is placed in a tray containing water, beans and cloves, and it remains next to the newborn until after the week.