The Egungun Masquerade
Prior to the annual Voodoo festival, our group were very excited to be invited to a local village in order to witness the Egungun masked celebration. We travelled 5 or so miles off the main road to a small village where the excitement and expectation of the crowd were already palpable with the drumming rhythms coming from the main square. Our group was ushered to some benches placed in a front row position for the spectacle to commence, along with, who I assumed were local dignitaries and chiefs.
Our Tour Leader Janvier had advised us that this was an essential part of the voodoo heritage. The Egungun are representatives of the ancestors of the Yoruba lands which assures the people that the dead are remembered and have a place amongst the living. The word Egungun means masquerade. The masqueraders are believed to be chosen by the gods, who give them special powers of communicating with the dead and pleasing the ancestors.
The festival commences when the Chief priest of the Egungun invokes the spirit of the ancestors, and dance in brightly coloured elaborate masquerades with masks and seashells, accompanied by drumming and singing, as they morph into the ancestral spirits.
During the dance the Egungun are escorted by members of the Egungun society who manage the crowd by use of a stick to chase them away and prevent them from being touched by the Egungun – this would mean certain death! Also trying to look beyond the mask and into the eyes of the Egungun can result in severe punishment.
The Egungun would therefore swirl around the area in front of us challenging the crowd and making them scatter for fear of punishment or death. They are said to have messages from the ancestors for some and can become violent and menacing.
It was an exhilarating and fascinating display of pageantry, colour and the power of belief in this part of West Africa. We felt privileged to have enjoyed the experience at such close quarters.
