2.15

2.15

Dogon (basic Dogon site)- represented by 3 main societies, create both square houses (people), round houses

• Not a taxonomy of power (stratiphied)
• each mask is chosen to be danced by the head of the masks
• made by one person who is the blacksmith and lives on the edge of the society
• liason between the living and the dead
• stole a piece of fire from the sun and slide down the rainbow
• controls earth, air, water and fire
• not allowed to dance or marry (can only marry the daughter of another blacksmith)
• daughter of blacksmith is a potter
  

Bandiagara Escarpment

Awa Society (Death) - pernial society, all post-pubescent men will be a part of this society. It is a way of escorting the soul/spiritual essence into the world of the deceased.

• is most familiar to our society
• the ritual starts at dusk and ends at dawn
• ancestors come down and celebrate with the living and leave at dawn taking the recently deceased with them
• starts with the least sacred and progresses to the most
  

Kanaga Mask - the least sacred mask, may represent human form, seen most often in museums and publications,

Binu Shrine (Ancestors)- Second society, deals with ancestors/relationship to sacred being, deals with protection, real or mythical ancestors, the very first people (Nomo)

Lebe (Earth God) - Third Society, individual who is responsible for placing them in the Bandiagara Escarpment, represents the Hogon

• stool symbols with sky at top and earth at bottom, 4 pairs of twins (merged male/female) connecting the two, validates the origin of the Dogon people,
  
• there is also one figure that is a hermaphrodite - women of the lip pierced
  

Nigeria is a very large river.