Source: Associated Press
By SAM OLUKOYA
AJIDO, Nigeria (AP) — Excitement grew in the crowd as the Zangbeto Voodoo festival reached a climax, with scores of colorful palm-frond figures representing the traditional guardian of the night.
As men and women in white ceremonial clothing sang and danced to the sound of heavy drums, adherents doused a cone-shaped Zangbeto with kerosene. A ball of fire rose as it went up in flames.
Some Nigerians frustrated by crime and corruption have suggested that reviving such traditions could be a deterrent. The performance over the weekend helped to create “fear and reverence,” the chairman of the festival’s organizing committee, Sehude Adeyinka Amosu, told The Associated Press.
Categories: Africa, Culture and Traditions, Nigeria, The Muslim Times
During my time in Africa I saw several examples of the traditional religions being alive and well, even among ‘supposed-to-be Christians’