Encyclopedia of African Religion

150 Candomblé The Ajogun are permanent parts of creation. When their activities flare up, sacrifice is the rem- edy. Usually, gr ...

Candomblé 151 A local spiritual leader pauses before her offering of candles, champagne, and flowers for Lemanja, the goddess of ...

In the late 18th century, the influx of enslaved people from West Africa to Brazil intensified, and by the mid-19th century more ...

Exu embodies the principles of contradiction, dialectics, and dynamics. He is the mediator of the exchange and reposition of axé ...

CAVES Throughout Africa, one finds many types of caves, along with rich evidence of human occupation of the entrance area of cav ...

person innocent. However, the guilty party never returned alive. Another famous cave in the Igbo area is the Arochukwu Cave, whi ...

the community as a way of reaffirming the myths of the society. Family members come together with the members of the society to ...

go follow the herd of cattle. Others learn to grind corn or clean out the cattle stalls. Although children have these duties, th ...

south of Mapungubwe is named Thovela after the Shona ancestor Tovera. Another is named Thoho ya Ndou after Murenga Sororenzou. T ...

Huffman, T. N. (2005).Mapungubwe:Ancient African Civilization on the Limpopo. Johannesburg: Wits University Press. Mukanya, S. ( ...

but they are also a combination of fun and mys- tery. The Chewa Gulu wear some of the most diverse masks of any African communit ...

have argued that Chi is in the extremities of the physical body and has no materiality. You cannot see it; you can only see its ...

departed parents. Second, they allow departed ones to come back into the world of the living. This entry looks at the underlying ...

deceased may come back and enjoy life once more or complete unfinished business. For most African people, there is a close relat ...

experts at imitating the antelope; they leap and turn, moving their heads and feet like the antelope. In fact, according to the ...

As for the third kind of sculpture of the Chiwara, it is found in the region around Bougouni. Here the artist presents the most ...

The most common name used to refer to the high God among the Chokwe is Kalunga or Nzambi. This supernatural being is said to hav ...

major purpose of the religious rituals that cele- brate mothers is to satisfy mothers as primary sources of knowledge and spirit ...

Hieroglyph for “penis” reveals either a circum- cised or an erect organ. Likewise, the examination of ancient Egyptian mummies o ...

incision to the vaginal wall; the scraping or cutting of the vagina and surrounding tissues; and the introduction of corrosive ...