Beschreibung
This volume consists of nine studies, each describing the
world outlook of an African people as expressed in their
myths of creation, traditions of origin, and religious
beliefs. The studies are concerned with such widely
divergent systems of thought as the complex metaphysical
system of the Dogon of French West Africa, the magical cults
of the Abuluyia of Kenya, the religious practices of the
Lele of Kasai, in which the forest plays a dominant part,
the secret societies of the Mende, and the ancestor cult of
the Ashanti. The authors show how closely concepts of the
divine ordering of the universe are related to the
organization of society and the everyday activities of men,
so that the enthronement of a king or chief, the brewing of
beer, the building of a granary, the organization of a hunt,
all have symbolic significance and are accompanied by
appropriate rituals. The wealth of imagery and symbolism
displayed in many of these myths, and the subtlety of the
metaphysical concepts, will be a revelation to those who
have not studied the thought of so-called primitive
societies.
Rarely out of print since it was first published in 1954,
this new edition has an introduction by Professor Wendy
James of the Institute of Cultural and Social Anthropology,
Oxford.
Contents:
Introduction, Daryll Forde; The Lele of
Kasai, Mary Douglas; The Abaluyia of Kavirondo
(Kenya), Gunter Wagner; The Lovedu of the
Transvaal, J. D. Krige/E. J. Krige; The Dogon of
the French Sudan, Marcel Griaule/Germaine Dieterlen;
The Mende in Sierra Leone, Kenneth Little; The
Shilluk of the Upper Nile, Godfrey Lienhardt; The
Kingdom of Ruanda, J. J. Maquet; The Ashanti of the
Golden Coast, K. A. Busia; The Fon of Dahomey,
P. Mercier.
Daryll Forde was Professor of Anthropology,
University London and Director of the International African
Institute.
