Dogon country 2

The villagers knew we were coming at some point that week. When we arrived, the Hogon gave the order to beat the drums to bring all the men in from the field. We saw no men coming in at all and figured this would amount to a small affair. However, we were given notice after a potato sauce and pasta lunch that we were to go up the falaise to an opening in the brush. After a few minutes, on walked about fifteen elders in their navy blue boubous and their coned hats, with their drums. The lead was less elderly and he would direct who was to dance next. The dancers would dance up to the musicians and perform for them, not for the arbitrary audience. About 20 dancers came running down the side of the falaise from who knows where, in their costumes and wooden masks as soon as the drums started beating furiously. There is deep significance to each mask; many are of animal heads and have stories pertinent to the Dogon view of creation. Two dancers wore the twenty or so foot tall Dogon festival mask. But four were on six or seven-foot high stilts and these were stunners! All wore deep pink skirts made from strips of baobab bark. The colour represents the blood following the incest between the Jackal and the Earth. This story leads to more stories of shame and disgrace and so purpose of the Dogon’s mask and Sigi ceremonies is to purify and offer atonement. At first the dancers were all called to dance in a circle together, then, in pairs or groups each category of mask dancer would be asked to come up and perform. The dances were individual to each mask and were in time with the drumbeat. Dancers and musicians were oblivious to us watching. Dancers were utterly intent on pleasing the leaders and the leaders were clearly assessing each dancer very seriously. The beat was fast and furious and the dancers yelped and whooped. Groups of village children sat respectfully at a distance or practiced the dances themselves to the beat. We were allowed to take pictures. This was an entrancing performance and insight that left us joyous and grateful.

 

The Dogon seem to have deep cosmological knowledge. They seemed to have known about the existence of planet Sirius B long before astronomers in the west saw it for the first time in the 70’s. They celebrate the closeness of the planet to earth in a huge ceremony, the Sigi, every 6o years. Next Sigi will be 2027.  I’m going, inch’ Allah.   

 

However, for now we were off to Songho for more. This is a village set between the falaise and two other huge rocky outcrops; it is particularly pretty for its many granaries. However, the reason to visit is to see the cave decorated in paintings where boys around 10 are ritually circumcised every three years. No anaesthetic, and after they have to run a race. This is not illegal. Excision is, although it still goes on underground.

 

We also drove to the southwestern point of the plateau to hike in the beautiful scenery from the plateau down to the wide open plain to see Tellem cave dwellings and a weekly Dogon market.  The cave dwellings are about 10,000 years old and have been restored by the Dogon over the years that are now getting financial aid to do this from other donors. They are not inhabited now. We climbed up the falaise to walk along them, walking on old adobe roofs that we hoped would not cave in on us, and seeing bats and storks above us in the rock wall, as well as many quite scary drawings on walls around a Hogon house. Just when you think you’ll never see anything like this again in your life, another sight or experience is presented to you that is nothing short of spectacular. That is Mali. Yet again, we were gasping, speechless. We are the only Toubabs in the area and it seems we have the whole of Mali to ourselves. When we do bump into another group of Toubabs being shown around by a guide, it is unpleasant to get that reflection of yourself as just another tourist. It is a shock to our egoism that we are the first explorers to discover all this, to penetrate the mysteries of animism and the lifestyle of the wonderful people of Mali. The high season is December to February when the wind roars and it is dry and dusty.  It is very hot up to and including June. I would recommend that now, during the rainy season in July-September is the best time to come to Mali; there are few tourists and roads and villages are empty and after the rains it is cool. In between the rains, it is still cooler than the crazy temperatures New York is having at the moment.

Back to Bandiagara to stay at the  Hotel la Falaise for capitaine in the courtyard under the hibiscus trees and with two annoying parrots who spoke French, English and Dogon! This was the end of our Dogon days and we were heavy hearted.