thus completing their socialization and ensuring
social order and stability, as Temne traditions are
respected and reinforced.
Death also occasions important rituals. Upon
dying, one’s body is carefully washed, rubbed with
oil, and dressed up as the newly deceased person
must be prepared to embark on his or her sacred
journey to the ancestral world. The deceased are
to be buried in the close vicinity of their homes
because they are expected, as ancestors, to remain
quite involved in the lives of their relatives.
Sacrifices are performed at prescribed times, and
a period of mourning is observed. It is crucial to
observe all funerary rites and taboos because fail-
ure to do so would provoke the anger of the spirit
of the deceased, prompting it to punish the living
by sending them misfortunes.
Twins are treated with particular care, especially
dead twins. Indeed, twins are believed to have
extraordinary spiritual powers, which, when
unleashed in a negative way on the community,
have dire consequences. Twins, for instance, may
cause their parents to go mad or the crops not to
flourish. Thus, annual ceremonies are held to honor
them. Also, special rituals are followed at the time
of their death. Giving twins a proper burial may, in
fact, have positive consequences for the living, such
as bringing them children, luck, and wealth.
When an infant twin dies, a wooden twin sculp-
ture is often carved, representing the deceased twin
playing with the live one. Death, indeed, cannot
separate twins because the latter are, in reality, one
single entity. It is the mother’s duty to care for the
carving. Thus, she will feed it and wash it when
feeding and washing her live baby. She might also
place the sculpture close to her while nursing the
other baby. She also often adorns the carving with
white beads around the waist and neck, as a pro-
tective gesture. Finally, when the live twin marries,
he or she will take the carving into his or her new
home. A dead twin frequently communicates with
his or her twin sibling through dreams, dispensing
advice and warnings. The mother may use the
carving during rituals associated with healing or
initiation. Thus, wooden twin sculptures play a
critical part in the ritual veneration of twins.
Ama MazamaSeealsoBamana; Yoruba
Further Readings
Dorjahn, V. R. (1962). Some Aspects of Temne
Divination.Sierra Leone Bulletin of Religion, 4 , 1–9.
Ijagbemi, A. E. (1973).Gbanka of Yoni. Freetown:
Sierra Leone University Press.
Sigge-Taupe, D. (1975).Die Glaubensvorstellungen der
Timne und Bullom 1562–1800: Ein Beitrag zur
Ethnohistorie Sierra Leones. Vienna, Austria: Institut
für Völkerkunde der Universität Wien.
Sisay, O. (1939). Funeral Ceremonies Among the Temne.
Sierra Leone Studies, 21 , 94–100.TEMPLES, CONCEPT IN
ANCIENT TIMESAncient Africans were the first to dedicate a par-
ticular structure and a special place for sacred and
spiritual activities. These places have come to be
calledtemplesin the Western world. The word
templeis derived from the Latin wordtemplum,
which is technically a plan or template for a
precinct to be reserved for worship. However,
prior to the presence of such places in the Roman
world, the Africans in Nubia and Kemet estab-
lished massive structures on even more ancient
grounds that were sacred sites,ipet sut, the holiest
of the holy. These sacred spaces were calledhet
neter(ht ntr) or per neter(pr ntr), meaning “man-
sion of the god” or “house of the god.”The Nature of the Sacred Place
The temple in African religion is devoted to some
special activity in a special place based on the his-
torical experiences that occurred at that place. For
example, the temple of Edfu was built in its place
because it commemorated the battle between
Heru and Set. Edfu had been recognized for gen-
erations as the spot where good defeated evil.
Consequently, a shrine was first erected, probably
made of wood or stone, but protected by the
priests as a sacred spot, hallowed by the fact that
Heru, after many years of combat over the forces
represented by Set, killed him at the place where
the shrine was erected.654 Temples, Concept in Ancient Times