Making the Invisible Visible. Fetal Ultrasound Images and Oracular Consultations in Southern Benin

Abstract

Drawing on ethnographic observations and existing literature, this article explores how fetal ultrasound imaging intersects with divinatory practices in Southern Benin. Within religious and oracular contexts, ultrasound images act not only as diagnostic tools but also as mediators between the mother, the fetus, and the spiritual realm. In a setting where individuals may be linked to deities or ancestors, ultrasounds help identify the fetus’s protective ancestor even before birth. By situating this practice alongside other birth-related rituals, the article questions whether spiritual recognition of the fetus also implies its social recognition as a human being. Highlighting the entanglement of biomedical technologies with religious and divinatory practices, it offers insights into local conceptions of personhood, birth rituals, existential continuity, and reproductive trajectories in Southern Benin.