The supreme deity of the Hottentots, is supposed by them to possess a human
form, and his residence is believed to be in the moon. When he renders
himself visible to mortals, he appears in the shape and form of a
Hottentot, and is, according to their ideas, possessed of exquisite beauty;
they never worship him, and their reason for this absence of homage is
stated by them to be, that the god has uttered a curse upon those who shall
attempt to serve him; one thing is certain, that this people hold sorcery
in great esteem.
Ovisara is the supreme being of another part of Africa. Invisible,
everywhere present, omniscient, and infinitely good, he is never invoked.
"The better he is" say the Negroes, "the more useless it is to pray to
him," and as a natural consequence, their minds have recourse to, and
believe implicitly in demons, in shadows and in divination. A pot pierced
through the bottom in three places, is the organ used by the priests to
give their oracles to the people; and from the sound which issues from the
vessel, is drawn the good or evil augury: this sound is explained by
jugglers, who, perfect masters of their trade, never find their address at
fault. {290}
The priests take but a small part in the public affairs; and it is
forbidden to them, under very severe penalties, to enter the capital. On
great occasions, when a sacrifice of prisoners is to be made, recourse
however is had to them, to give an additional solemnity to the proceedings.
These ceremonies take place before the greater idols, who, according to the
negroes, represent the evil spirits; and the number of victims should be
five and twenty: unlike most other lands, who in the same circumstances are
too eager for blood, they are allowed to ransom their lives, should it be
in their power.
The negroes of Senegal adore a river, trees, and serpents, with a crowd of
shapeless idols, the legends of whom neither amuse by their incident, or
excite the imagination by the beauty of their poetry.
In parts of Africa, they worship the soul of the dead, and a being named
Molongo, upon whom they are most prodigal in bestowing titles; such as
sovereign of nature, and of the Sun and Moon, and king of the earth and
sea; while on others, they pay deep reverence to monkeys, who are brought
up with care, and covered with honours.
Among the nations of Congo, and in the Caffre-land, the people are
abandoned to the grossest superstitions. In the middle and to south of
Africa, the worship of idols is universal; while in Abyssinia and at the
Cape, are some faint gleams of Christianity mingled with impure legends,
which have doubtless been derived from the mythologies of Greece and India.
[Illustration]
* * * * *
{291}