Mande Creation Myth ( http://server1.fandm.edu/departments/Anthropology/Bastian/ANT269/cosmo.html)

The creation myth of Mande-speaking people of southern Mali is an example of what is called a "cosmic egg myth." As reflected in their culture, the creation myth has elements of an imperfect creation as a result of incest. Here, we present one of many versions of the creation myth as told to us by Professor Bastain in our AFS/ANT267 class.

In the beginning, there was only Mangala. Mangala is a singular, powerful being who is perceived to be a round, energetic presence. Within Mangala existed four divisions, which were symbolic of, among many things, the four days of the week (time), the four elements (matter), and the four directions (space). Mangala also contained two sets of dual gendered twins. Mangala was tired of keeping all of this matter inside, so the god removed it and compiled it into a seed. The seed was his creation of the world. The seed however did not hold together well and blew up. Mangala was disappointed with this and destroyed the world he created.

Mangala did not loose hope; the creator began again, this time with two sets of twin seeds. Mangala planted the seeds in an egg shaped womb where they gestated. Mangala continued to put more sets of twin seeds in the womb until he had 8 sets of seeds. In the womb, the gestating seeds transformed themselves into fish. The fish is considered a symbol of fertility in the Mande world. This time, Mangala's creation was successful. This is important, because it illustrates the idea of dual gendered twinship, an idea that permeates Mande culture.

Mangala tried to maintain this perfect creation, but chaos crept in; one of the male twins became ambitious and tried to escape from the egg. This chaotic character is called Pemba. He is a t trickster figure who symbolizes the mischievousness of humans. Pemba's first trick was to steal the a piece of the womb's placenta and throw it down. This action made the the earth. Pemba then tried to refertilize what was left of the womb, committing incest against his mother, the womb.

Mangala decided to sacrifice Pemba's brother Farro to save what was left of his creation. He castrated him and then killed in order to raise him from the dead. Mangala took what was left of the placenta and transformed it into the sun, thus associating Pemba with darkness and the night. Farro was transformed into a human being and was taught the language of creation by Mangala. Farro's knowledge of words is very powerful and the tool he used to defeat Pemba's mischief. Farro and his newly created twins came to Earth and got married (not to each other) and became the horonw. This is the basis for the foundation of exogamy in Mande.

Next, an unknown being named Sourakata arrived from the sky with the first sacred drum, hammer, and the sacrificed skull of Farro. Sourakata began to play on the drum and sung for the first rain to come. Sourakata is a magical being who can

control nature, and he taught Farro and his followers. He is the origin of the nyamakalaw.

As one can see from the origin myth, the horonw are the people of the earth. They were destined to become farmers and well-bred aristocracy. The nyamakalaw, on the other hand, were destined to be primal and mysterious. They understand nature and are able to use it to their benefit. These roles are exactly what we see in the horonw and nyamakalaw relations in Mande society today.

More on Mande (http://server1.fandm.edu/departments/Anthropology/Bastian/ANT269/man.html#skip)

The term Mande refers to a large family of languages spoken by a great number of West African ethnic groups and to the geographic areas that these groups occupy. Thus, the Mande diaspora is hardly a rigidly defined or static region. Its center lies between Bamako and Kouroussa, but it has spread out far into the neighboring areas, covering land in Burkina Faso, Senegal, The Gambia, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ivory Coast, and Ghana. The rich array of ethnic groups includes the savanna groups: the Bambara, Malink*, Wasuluka, Dyula, Somono, Bozo, Kagoro, Khasonke, Marka, and Soninke, and the forest groups: the Kuranko, Kono, Vai, Susu, and Yalunka.
The Mande people are renowned for the wide variation in their religious, linguistic, and social practices. Such differences occur not only between groups and regions, but also among them. However, these variations seem somewhat superficial when compared to the epistemological approaches the Mande people share. (taken from McNaughton, pp. xix-xxi.)

The Mande Social system is a complex framework in which the boundaries between birthright and heirarchy are not clearly defined. Mande society consists of two main groups: the Horonw and the Nyamakalaw. The Horonw, people of earth and agriculture, are the aristocracy, the warriors and the commoners. The Nyamakalw, on the other hand, are an endogamous group that can be considered to posess and control the spiritual energy of nature called nyama. These two groups often look upon each other with considerable disfavor and abhorence. Despite the discomfort and disrespect between the Horonw and Nyamakalaw the two groups play off each other in a sembiotic manner. For instance, the Horonw need the Nyamakalaw to carve ritual masks and headdress while the Nyamakalaw depend on the Horonw for sustenance and economic consumption. Historicaly, the Horonw are the kings and rulers of Mande and comprise the majority of the population who live at the center of the villiage. The Nyamakalaw live in the bush on the outskirts of the town beyond the fields. This duality of the mundane and the magical, the calm and the wild, the cold and the hot, is directly a result of the Mande cosmogony or creation myth. From these myths one can understand why the Nyamakalaw and the Horonw are so separate in their attitudes and why these groups evolved into the state we see them in today.

Noting the vast differences between the Nyamakalaw and the Horonw, one might wonder how the form of the social structure became as divided as we see it today. Mande cosmogony can explain the historical and mythical origins of the two groups but to further investigate these groups it is essential to discuss whether the Mande social society operates on a class or a caste system.

Magic and Art in West Africa

West African culture is a fusion of traditional customs and the modern influences of the Western world. The creation myths of these societies give rise to several beliefs and traditions that are governed by what one might call magic.

Magic in West Africa is associated with many different things. In some cultures it is the ability to use witchcraft or to cast spells. Other peoples view magic as a force that transforms. The point is that magic, like the rituals and practices of African cultures, is quite diverse. This diversity can be illustrated if one looks at each of the cultures interpretations of magic and makes some interesting parallels.

The Mande people are very magical in nature. This can be mostly attributed to the nyamakalaw subgroup; an endogamous people who are born with the inherent ability to control nature. The power they are able to wield so well is called nyama. In fact, their name nyama-kala could be translated as handlers (kala) of nyama. The Mande see nyama as a hot, wild energy that is the animating force of nature. Nyama is present in all the rocks, trees, people and animals that inhabit the Earth. It is similar to the Western notion of the soul but is more complete than that. It controls nature, the stars and the motions of the sea. Nyama is truly the sculptor of the universe.

While nyama molds nature into it's many forms, the nyamakalaw can shape nyama into art. The nyamakalaw spend their entire lives perfecting special secret skills that are passed down from generation to generation. The nyamakalaw are the only people in Mande that can use magic and are often skilled as sorcerers, blacksmiths, leather workers or bards.

No matter what occupation the nyamakalaw chose the products they create can undoubtedly be considered art. If a bard plays an instrument and sings, that music is art. If a blacksmith forges an iron staff for the king it is art. The nyamakalaw make a great deal of art for the Mande people but some are more central to their practices than others. A ritual mask like those used in the Ci Wara agricultural celebration is a necessity to the non-nyamakalaw peoples of Mande. As much as the horonw despise the nyamakalaw, they are forced to respect them and their art because it is vital for their own needs.

The Role of Males in Mande-speaking Societies
The role of men in Mande speaking societies is one of control, power and influence. This notion is first exemplified in the Mande cosmology. The cosmology of the Mande speaking Dogon people begins without any gender differentiation. It begins with Mangala. Mangala is a giant egg that contains the capacity to create life and cause death, yet maintain a state where everything is neutral. It is only when Mangala decides to create life that it is divided into four parts, one of which contains the sexes. It is from here on that gender plays a role in the way life runs. There are sixteen seeds that contain gender, therefore, eight pairs of male and female seeds. This exemplifies the perfect state of humanity, where the male and the female are connected, but not in a sexual sense. However perfection does not last, because one male seed breaks out of Mangala and ruins the balance. It must be noticed that it is a male figure that causes trouble; he is a trickster and is known as Pemba. Pemba has sex with the placenta, mother earth, which ruins all the symmetry of the earth and brings chaos.

Now the healing force, the individual that must fix this mess is Faro, another male. He sacrifices his life and goes into the earth to nurture it. Here we notice that the two opposing forces of good and evil in life are both characterized by male figures, which proves the importance and dominance of males among the Dogon people. Faro’s pair, the female seed, is sent up into the sky to be the sun. The Sun is essential for all living things to survive; it is a nurturing force for the earth that is by orientation, male. Mangala then decides to bring Faro back to life. Faro then comes down to earth with all of Mangala’s secrets to take charge of the earth. He comes down with eight human companions, four male and four female, that are said to be the representative of the eight original Mande speaking clans. Even though there were four females, all the clans developed into patrilineages. This once again expresses the dominance of males in the Mande speaking region.

Examples of gender inequality seem to be most evident in the horonw class of the Mande speaking region. The men maintain power over the women in both social and political aspects. These noble men have more freedom to interact socially as they exercise strict control over their women. They expect horonw women to act in a dignified and proper manner. Often they refer to the behavior of female nyamakala bards as the guideline for improper behavior. This control that men exert over women is often a reflection of marriage patterns among the horonw, which are formulated around a strong fear of adultery. Aside from social power the men also hold all the political power in this elite class. The men are the rulers and dictate their will accordingly. Thus, it seems that gender inequality exists in the case of the horonw. However, the example of the nyamakala will demonstrate that all of Mande society is patrilineal.

The role of the male of the nyamakalaw caste, like in the horonw caste, is a dominant one. However, unlike the horonw, the nyamakalaw do not exert as much control over the women in the caste. Women are free to be bards and potters, working independently of men. To the horonw, the women of the nyamakalaw caste appear to be, not only independent in their work, but also free sexually. This, however, is not the case. Male control over women still remains an important aspect of the nyamakalaw. Despite the caste separation within the Mande culture, the patrilineal gender roles remain. The idea of male superiority still reigns in the nyamakalaw caste. Thus the male jeliw, who works as a client to a male horon patron, will receive wider fame and recollection.

The patrilineal custom in the Mande region is clearly similar to the United States, where one recognizes his lineage through his father. In the Mande speaking region, men do the dancing for the entertainment, whereas in the United States dancing for entertainment is equally distributed between men and women. However, dancing in the Mande region is much more significant than simple amusement. It is a showing of power, skill, knowledge and artistry, and it is respected and receives high prestige. Thus, the significance of dancing reinforces the ultimate power that males possess. Many men in the United States prepare food, some do it for their career, but in the Mande speaking region men do not prepare food because it is solely the women’s responsibility. Men and women cultivate food in the Mande speaking region, but in the United States men do most of the cultivating. The people of the Mande speaking region and the people of the United States share one thing in common: men fill most of the religious roles. Hence, The Made region and the United States are similar in that they are patrilineal societies, where men achieve most of the status and prestige and exert most of the control over the functions of society. In addition, there is a similar division of labor along gender lines.

K. Boyer, S. Costin, D. Eberstein, M. Fahs, E. Laber, L. Langmore, R. Ramani, J. Shek
Feb, 2002 (http://server1.fandm.edu/departments/Anthropology/Bastian/ANT269/mandemale.html)

Contrasting Portrayals of Mande Women in Praise Songs

In the two Mande praise songs, Song after Defeat and Love Strikes Queen Saran, women are portrayed in very different ways. The poems contain contrasting portrayals of women, due to the gender of each poem’s author. The sexes of the authors, and thus their interpretations of women, significantly differ. However, both praise songs are effective in illustrating the traditional gender roles of Mande society.

Song after Defeat, authored by a woman, is a powerful story of loss, mourning, and the ability of women to prevail in the face of adversity. An old woman has recently lost her son in what she has perceived to be a worthless battle. In the praise song, the dead soldier's mother defames the Mande chiefs, Samba and Diosse. The chiefs unsuccessfully revolted against the French. Many middle aged Mande men perished in battle. The old woman holds the chiefs responsible for the untimely death of her only son, in addition to the deaths of many other Mande men. When this song is preformed, the Mande men are reminded of the dangers of warfare; if they are unsuccessful or unwise in battle, their memories will forever be maligned by the jeliw and death will befall the village.

The deaths of the middle aged Mande men have a large impact on society. Responsibility has been transferred; girls must now take care of elder Mande women. The girls intend to accomplish this feat through marriage. With marriage, the young women will ensure the survival of the village by providing for the needs of the older women and by producing male children. This shows the girls’ ingenuity and selflessness, as well as the solidarity which exists between Mande women.

Love Strikes Queen Saran , related by a male poet, is an excerpt of a Mande epic poem. A theme found throughout the Mande epic, and across many other cultures, is that of women who are weak and who are controlled by their emotions. In the praise song, Queen Saran is married to the Mande king, Douga, but falls in love with the foreign invader, Da Monzon. Despite the materialistic generosity of Douga, Saran will do anything to possess the love of the handsome and powerful Da Monzon. Love has overtaken her, which serves as a warning to men that feminine sexuality is dangerous. Women's loyalty to their husbands and societies are in question. Saran has put herself as a woman above her position as queen. Saran’s uncontrollable desires are seem as the ultimate downfall of the kingdom. The epic also shows the caste system of the Mande. The servants of Saran are of Nyamakala clans, where as the nobility are of the horon.

Other aspects of Mande culture are indicated in both poems. Clan exogamy and patrilocality are exhibited in each. The women in the poems have had to move to their husbands’ villages, which has left them without the support of their family in times of tragedy and confusion.