Click to download PDF version: 3.87MB - Global Grey

91 At the Back of the Black Man's Mind By R. E. Dennett
people first appeal for the reason of a famine caused by want of rains to the Nganga
Nyambi, the great diviner attached to this grove. It is evident that these powers are
connected with ideas of life.
The Nkungu and Nyambi groups are looked upon as the descendants of the four48 previous great families which as we have seen, include the winds.
Of these 24 sacred groves of which the order was given me by the Bavili, no less than ig
can, as it seems to me, without undue forcing, be brought into connection with the
categories which we have already applied with success to the Seasons. This parallelism
seems to me to be too striking for it to be possible to explain it as the result of
coincidence. When I add that this formula may be applied with more or less success to
the groups of sacred lands and rivers, to the sacred trees, to the omens and animals, I
think you will agree that a good primâ facie case is made out for attributing to the Bavili
something better than the fetishism (NDONGOISM) which is commonly regarded as the
expression of their highest thought.
There are many other groves, but although the writer has discovered the names of
many he has not yet found a native capable of placing them in groups as the above have
been. It is possible that there are 144 (i.e. 6 groups Of 24) or more 2 of these groves in
the kingdom, or rather connected with the kingdom of Luango, but to undertake the
discovery of them all would mean the appointing of a properly constituted mission and
some years of labour.
The names of the other groves discovered by the writer and the meaning of their names
are as follows:-
Name of Grove.
Literal meaning.
MUBA = a grove connected in some way with the MPUNGU group, the
name of a district in Kakongo. Mu is a prefix, and BA is to be.
MPUKULU = side of a house.
XIFUSA = connected with XIVUMA FUSA is to bore.
KAWMA = to add to.
LUNGULULUBU = the very deep of motherhood.
XIVUMA = of the stomach.
MBANDA LUNGA = to guard the ascent.
48
Note the complete divining board and how OPELE (representing the eight discs) is the offspring of IFA as
represented by his 16+ 1 palm kernels, Pl. XXI
www.globalgrey.co.uk