The lwa provides one with wholeness. “The lwa is
the key to understanding one’s own character, and
the relationship with the lwa represents knowl-
edge of self.”
Douglas Edwin ThomasSeealsoHoungan; Initiation; Mambo; Vodou in Haiti
Further Readings
Metraux, A. (1972).Voodoo in Haiti. New York:
Schocken Books.
Murphy, J. M. (1994). Working the Spirit:Ceremonies
of the African Diaspora. Boston: Beacon Press.
Thomas, D. (2005).African Traditional Religion in the
Modern World. London: McFarland.
HUNTING
In Africa, the practice of searching for and subdu-
ing animals for food is an ancient one. The
process of hunting involves the tracking and pur-
suing of mammals or birds as sustenance to feed a
community. There is evidence that hominids have
hunted for up to 2 million years. The African
hunter is a pivotal figure in African culture. The
hunter is the inventor, the explorer, the adventurer,
as well as the food collector. He is the source of
language, cultural change, narratives for folktales,
and makers of proverbs, adages, and aphorisms.
This entry looks at the practice and its links to
religion.
Historical BackgroundAfrican hunters have discovered hunting to be a
meaningful way to contribute to the human food
supply even in areas where agriculture and the
domestication of animals have long held sway.
Clearly the supplemental protein brought into the
society by hunters assisted the people in creating
meaningful responses to their environment
because of their strength and stamina.
Among the earliest hunting tools in Africa were
spears, bow and arrows, and knives. Kings in
ancient Africa were known as great hunters as
well as great warriors. Depicted on the walls of
the temples in the Nile Valley, in Egypt and Sudan,
are royal hunters of lions and other animals.
Indeed, the use of the chariot by Thutmoses III
and Ramses II in hunting scenes suggests that the
kings were able to use the war chariot as a vehicle
for hunting.
The earliest scenes of hunting in Africa might
be the rock paintings that are found in Zimbabwe,
South Africa, Tanzania, Malawi, and other coun-
tries, which are dated to 40,000 years ago. They
show hunting scenes painted in black, red, white,
brown, and yellow colors; animals are depicted,
often with men chasing the animals to kill them.
The Khoi-san people believed in the great God
Tsui’goab who brought them rain, food, and
hunting success.
Hunting in Africa is associated with virility, in
the sense that the hunter must be fit, energetic,
alert, and physically capable of sustaining long
journeys. The hunter must have the ability to
gauge the weather, determine the seasons, navigate
the terrain, and pursue animals over vast stretches
of territory. Hunting is also associated with taboos
that produce hunting restrictions in sacred forests
where various spirits assemble. There are some
areas of Africa where the hunter is restricted from
access to certain holy temple or shrine sites.The God of the Forest
The Mbuti, an ethnic group of small people who
live in the Congo, are among the best hunters in
Africa. They relate their hunting skills and
resources to their religious ideas. They believe in
the Creator Deity called Tore who is the lord of
rainstorms, the master of the sky, the creator of
rainbows, and the giver of all life. Before the
hunters leave on a hunt, they must first invoke the
name of Tore to grant them food. Thus, in this
instance, the Almighty Tore is not far removed
from the Mbuti hunters. Unlike many African
expressions of the Supreme Deity, he not only
creates but involves himself in the lives of the
ordinary people.
The Mbuti and hunting are almost synonymous
because they spend most of their time looking for
food. They revere the moon, and some of them
believe that the moon shaped the first human,
covered the human with skin, and poured blood
inside. This human grew to become a hunter and320 Hunting