Nyau

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Nyau , also Nyao ( bantu , in the basic meaning " initiation ") is a secret society of the Chewa , a Bantu people from Southeast Africa. The secret society composed exclusively of men who previously imported into a rite into the secrets of Nyau Federal, that initiates have to be. The word Nyau is used by outsiders not only for the secret society itself, but also for the dancers, their ritual dance, their masks and animal figures. Nyau is disappearing with increasing westernization and is now seen in many places as a folk dance . This is certainly not true, but rather it is a religious dance that should be viewed as a way of communication between humans and the ancestral world .

The main activity of Nyau members is to dance in masked form at funerals, memorial services and puberty initiation (for girls: Chinamwali ). Each dancer represents a specific character or animal with his mask.

Even if some other tribes have developed similar secret societies and dances (some Nguni , Yao and Mang'anja ), the Nyau cult of the Chewa can be regarded as the origin, which is why the article only refers to this.

Origin of the Nyau cult

history

When the Nyau cult originated cannot be conclusively clarified, which is partly due to the fact that it is forbidden to talk about it among the Chewa. Violations of this rule were partly paid for with life. This is especially true at the time when the first missionaries and anthropologists came into the country and began to question them. Because of this, the first descriptions of the Nyau League and its dance, the "Gule Wamkulu" (the great dance), are very imprecise. Over the years and due to the increasing proselytizing of the Chewa, the ban on talking about Nyau became less rigorous; however, the origins cannot be precisely determined. However, it is believed that the Chewa brought this cult with them from Katanga , from where they emigrated to their current settlement areas.

Creation myths

Several origins of the Nyau cult have been found. Three of them are presented below:

  • The most common idea of ​​the origins of Nyau is that the god of Chewa ( Chauta ), when he created the earth and man, also gave Nyau to women. After some time, the Chewa men "took" the Nyau cult and turned the previously peaceful and innocent dance into a dance performance with wild animal masks and obscene gestures and words to scare the women away. When a woman said that there were only men under the masks, she was killed because she betrayed the Nyau's secret. Since then, the dancers have only been spoken of as zirombo (wild animals), the reincarnations of the deceased.
  • Akundaliro and Akumatewa (a man and a woman) thought one day that it would be good to use the Nyau dance to scare the girls during their initiation. Nyau existed before that, so this would only explain how the Nyau dance was embedded in the initiation of girls ( Chinamwali ).
  • When Makewana , a Chewa rain priestess , discovered that the people did not show the chiefs due respect, she invented Nyau. She allowed some chiefs to set up the dance floor for Nyau ( bwalo ). When the first dances took place, Makewana actually found that the chiefs were getting significantly more respect.

The dances

The normal Nyau dances are held all year round, but always at night or in the late afternoon. In addition, these dances do not last longer than one night, unlike the gule wamkulu . Usually these dances take place at funerals of chiefs or members of the Nyau cult in the village of the deceased. Against payment of a few kwacha , the masked dancers also perform at the funerals of "normal" villagers. Depending on the status of the deceased, more or less many masks and animal figures are used.

Important places in Nyau

Three places are required for the dances:

One is the so-called dambwe , a hidden place, mostly in the village's own cemetery . This is where the initiation for new Nyau members takes place, but also the making of the masks and the preparation for the dances. The dambwe is only allowed to be entered by Nyau members; women in particular are strictly forbidden to stay near the dambwe .

The second place is the liunde . This is where the large and heavy animal figures, some of which are moved by up to twelve men, are laid out. The liunde is usually located near the village under a tree with a grass screen.

The place where the actual dances take place is the so-called bwalo . The bwalo is an open village square where the village community can come together to watch the dances.

Course of a Nyau dance

A Nyau dance is opened by the dance of the chiefs present, who pay their respects to the ancestors , or to the ancestors who are to be honored by this Nyau dance. The dancers come one after the other from the liunde to the village square, the bwalo . If the deceased asked for a specific mask or animal structure before his death, this will appear first. On the bwalo they dance according to their character or according to their animal figure to the six drums that set the rhythm. During a Nyau performance, the women of the village of Nyau sang songs that mostly deal with rules of conduct in the village. The women dance themselves and may be chased around by the dancing Nyau, which is intended to underline its respective character.

Gule wamkulu

Gule wamkulu (great dance) is the largest, best known and longest dance of the Nyau and is also called pemphero lathu lalikulu la mizimu (our great prayer to the deceased) or gulu la anamwaliri (dance of the deceased). This dance serves to pay homage to the dead ( kuchitira ulemu kwa amwaliri ). It takes place to commemorate chiefs and similarly important deceased, but sometimes also to funerals of Nyau members or other important personalities (e.g. chiefs). Since it is very expensive to take care of so many dancers and to have masks and animal figures made, it often happens that several villages join forces and celebrate the gule wamkulu together. Mostly "the big dance" takes place after the harvest and shortly before the rainy season (around August - November). The gule wamkulu is special in that this dance is given a religious significance, which in part also applies to the "normal" dances, but is particularly effective here.

The dances take place on three consecutive nights, but some Nyau also run through the village during the day. They scare the residents there, especially women, or play with the children and sing with the women, depending on which character or animal they represent.

Since 2005, gule wamkulu has been one of the 90 masterpieces of the oral and intangible heritage of mankind , a UNESCO program for the preservation of intangible cultural assets .

Religious background to the dances

The special meaning of the gule wamkulu lies in the fact that the Nyau, while they are dancing, come into close contact with the dead ( mizimu ), who are thereby honored. The ancestors, according to the Chewa belief, gather together with the living on the bwalo during the gule wamkulu in order to receive this homage. If the ancestors are satisfied with what is offered to them, the Chewa believe, then they put in a good word for Chiuta , the god of the Chewa.

Furthermore, it is important for every Chewa to show that he / she respects and follows the traditions of the ancestors. Only those who follow the traditions will later be accepted by the deceased ( mizimu ). Therefore, it is also important during a funeral through traditional songs and dances, such as B. Nyau, to show that the deceased was a follower of tradition. Because every dead person who was not accepted into the world of the mizimu will , according to the Chewa belief, afflict the living in mostly negative ways, at least for some time, which mostly happens in dreams.

Masks and animal figures

Both the animal figures and the masks that represent human characters are called zirombo , or "wild animals". The costumes and masks that the dancers wear are usually very colorful and made from a wide variety of materials. Some dancers also appear naked, but here too the face is always hidden by a mask, since nobody is allowed to know who is under the respective mask.

Some masks and what they mean

Nyau mask, u. U. Simoni or Ndatola
Nyau mask, unknown character

The variety of masks is huge, as new characters are always added, in contrast to the animal structures. On the one hand, the masks serve to remind the living of the traditional beliefs of their ancestors and that they are connected to the living, but on the other hand, they also serve to pass on moral ideas. In the following some masks are presented in alphabetical order:

  • Bwana wokwera pa ndege / pa galimoto ("a gentleman in a plane / car") represents a "white man" and is intended to illustrate that those who already had power and money before their death will keep this after their death.
  • Chabwera kumanda ("the one who came back from the grave") is a character who annoys people because he stands for a deceased who appears to his relatives in dreams and demands attention or offerings (beer, meat etc.). During his dance he chases people around, which underlines his characteristics.
  • Gutende is a merciless spirit of an ancestor, with a red wooden mask and two long horns. He stands for a deceased murderer.
  • Kachipapa or mdzalira (“the one who cries”) sings and dances with the women and mourns the deceased together with them.
  • Kamatuwa only wears a mask and otherwise moves naked, rubbing his body with ashes. It stands for a deceased who urgently needs help (similar to ndatola ) and wants to remind his relatives that he has not yet been accepted by the other mizimu .
  • Kasinja or Kamchacha is the messenger for important deceased. This character serves partly as a moderator and announces which character will appear next.
  • Kamkhwindi or kambubunde is a malicious ancestor, which is illustrated by his black mask and his crazy behavior (attacking people etc.). This character does not sing, but at most screams and is insulted by the women.
  • Maliya (possibly from Maria ) represents a female deceased ( mizimu ), who is characterized above all by her kindness and who dances and sings with the villagers.
  • Mfiti ("witch") has a very ugly mask and an overall very torn and shaggy appearance. The external appearance of the mfiti underlines their evil character and is intended to illustrate that a witch continues to remain evil and vile even after her death.
  • Ndatola represents the spirit of a deceased who asks relatives for help. He also steals chickens or the like, which those affected only get back for a small fee. Ndatola wears a red mask and (banana) leaves around her waist.
  • Pedegu is a good-natured ancestor and should make it clear that appearance does not indicate the character. This is made clear by the fact that pedegu looks very wild and dangerous in his rags, but behaves courteously.
  • Simoni (possibly from Simon Petrus ) has a red mask that is supposed to remind of an Englishman with sunburn. Because of this, he wears a suit made of rags, and it is assumed that this character is to be understood as a caricature of the English colonialists.

Some animal figures and their meanings

The animal figures represent wild animals ( nyama za ku tchire ), which are also responsible for the death of people and are therefore feared. There is a certain hierarchy among the animal figures of the Nyau . There are some important characters (e.g. njobvu the elephant ) and some less important characters. The Chewa believe that these animals stand for important ancestors and should clarify their position of power and possibly their dangerousness. The figures usually have a barrel-like shape, with an entry hole on the floor. Inside there are bars so that the figure can be carried around during the dance. All figures are constructed in such a way that the dancer disappears completely and only his feet can be seen. The following explains the seven most important animal characters and their meanings.

  • Njobvu ("the elephant ") is the most important figure of all. Four Nyau dancers are required to move this figure. Njobvu stands for an important chief as the elephant is considered the king of animals due to its size. Because of this, Njobvu only appears at the funerals of chiefs.
  • Ndondo ("the snake ") is the second most important figure after njobvu and is moved by up to twelve men. She stands for a very powerful deceased and often appears at the funerals of important Nyau members.
  • Kalulu ("the hare") is only worn by one man. While kalulu is dancing, other Nyau members stir up dust to block the view of kalulu . The figure represents a wise old man.
  • Kasiya maliro ("the antelope ") stands for a dead person who transfers other deceased to the ancestral kingdom. The figure is carried by three people and mourns with the relatives of the deceased during a funeral and also precedes the funeral procession.
  • Mkango ("the lion") stands for the evil spirit of a deceased who attacks and can even kill people. Because of this, the women run away as soon as they see mkango . This animal figure is intended to make it clear that one should not anger the ancestors, like a lion, because otherwise they will attack the living because of their disrespect for them.

Interpretation of the Nyau cult

Even if Nyau has changed a lot in this region since the beginning of the colonial era , it has not yet completely lost its importance as a soothing to the spirits of the deceased. Two theories have been put forward by van Breugel as to how Nyau can be understood.

On the one hand, he thinks that Nyau can be interpreted as a prayer to the spirits of the ancestors ( mizimu ). This prayer is embedded in a kind of mystical play, which also serves to illustrate the life of the mizimu to people and explain why they must be worshiped. This happens above all out of fear that the spirits will visit the living and make them suffer (through misfortune, sterility, etc.) until they get what they want.

Another explanation van Breugel gives, Nyau interprets as an illustration of social norms of behavior in normal village life. Nyau should therefore serve as an illustration of how one should not behave, since the behavior of the mizimu is not normal and one as a person should not have the same behavior as the spirit of a deceased.

See also

literature

  • JWM van Breugel: Chewa Traditional Religion . Kachere Series 2001
  • Gerhard Kubik : Makisi nyau mapiko. Mask tradition in Bantu-speaking Africa. Trickster Verlag, Munich 1993
  • AGO Hodgson: Notes on the Achewa and Angoni of the Dowa District of the Nyasaland Protectorate , in: Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute 1933
  • WHJ Rangeley: Nyau in Kotakota District . The Nyasaland Journal No. 2, 1949

Web links

credentials

  1. ↑ JM Schofeleers: Symbolic and Social Aspects of Spirits Worship among the Mang'anja , Ph.D. Dissertation (1968) Oxford, pp. 307-415
  2. ↑ a b A.GO Hodgson: Notes on the Achewa and Angoni of the Dowa District of the Nyasaland Protectorate , in: Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute (1933), p 146
  3. ↑ JWM van Breugel: Chewa Traditional Religion Kachere Series (2001), pp. 125-168
  4. ^ RS Rattray: Some Folk-Lore Stories and Songs in Chinyanja , London: Society for the Promotion of Christian Knowledge (1907), pp. 178–179
  5. ↑ JWM van Breugel: Chewa Traditional Religion , Kachere Series (2001), p. 139
  6. ^ JWM van Breugel: Chewa Traditional Religion , Kachere Series (2001), p. 151.
  7. ^ WHJ: Nyau in the Kotakota District , The Nyasaland Journal No. 2 (1949), pp. 19-33
  8. ^ JWM van Breugel: Chewa Traditional Religion , Kachere Series (2001), p. 167