The Accidental Spirit

西非布基纳法索（Brkina Faso）经历驱魔

Article and photos by James Michael Dorsey
12/2014

An Egun dancing in Cove, Burkino Faso.

The drums begin early, setting the jungle telegraph in motion to summon the people.

Egun drummers.

脉动节奏旨在帮助人群达到另一个现实水平 - 一种可以与精神世界互动的状态。

科夫的村民（（科维) in Burkina Faso gather around the tiny central square, swaying in time to the beat, stomping their feet, and clapping their hands to welcome the spirits that will soon be summoned.

I am witness to an Egun Gun dance, (EEGOON GOON), one of countless voodoo ceremonies of this religion that have dominated life in West Africa for more than 6,000 years. The dancers, all men of the Bobo tribe, members of a secret society devoted to restoring the balance between nature and man, begin to appear from the surrounding forest. They are covered head to toe in esoteric costumes that summon the will of their god, Dwo, to reveal his wishes.

Egun舞者休息before starting to dance in full regalia.

On this day, their purpose is to summon the spirits of deceased ancestors. The dancers will accept the spirits into their own bodies, giving them a temporary corporeal existence in order to reconnect to their tribe once again.

Today the participants will act out everything the village has experienced, including all the families whose loved ones have passed on. The ritual allows the visiting spirit to better know how to watch over them, or if need be, to punish those who deserve it—thus maintaining the desired balance between nature and human beings.

舞者首先开始缓慢地旋转和旋转，然后速度和强度增加。当精神进入自己的身体时，他们开始混蛋。舞者在这段时间不会说话，但是如果有任何声音来自他们，那就是圣灵的声音。每个舞者都被分配一个小男孩，他的工作是确保没有观察者直接与舞者接触。在这个批判性的精神和物质世界的关键时刻，这样做是邀请自发的死亡，甚至更糟，被困在两者之间的空隙中。有时，舞者会向观众带来，这是由空灵访客引起的非自愿肌肉反应。这种不可预测的运动通常会以惊慌失措的恐惧尖叫使人群分散。

egun在仪式上旋转着长袍。

An Egun dancer chasing the people.

Main Mambos (Witch Doctors) at the ceremonial dance.

I am watching all this with an intense fascination through the lens of my camera. Suddenly the Egun charges directly at me. I am intent on getting the shot and have limited depth perception at that very moment. The dancer stops just short of me, but his billowing robes keep coming. They wash over me like an ocean wave, only for a split second but long enough to elicit an audible gasp from the villagers. The others dancers halt, but stand in place, unmoving, and the drums cease their beat.

I have been touched by the living dead.

负责仪式的负责人曼博（Mambo）的负责人（Witch Doctor）起步，开始发出命令。理解正在发生的事情需要几秒钟。直到很久以后，我才能将其像在西部医院的急诊室中分类。

埃贡舞者有一位Mambo（女巫医生）。

第二个Mambo接近我，并开始用柔和的声音说话。他拿着一条短的白色棍子，上面镶有镶嵌式奶油壳。贝壳是整个非洲大部分地区常见的恋物癖，因为它们的形状与阴道有关，因此与生育能力有关。他告诉我，棍子实际上是狮子的股骨，它充满了特殊的力量。我不明白他所说的一切，但是他开始上下上下棍子，然后在我周围，距我的身体几英寸，就像一个保安人员在航空公司乘客徘徊。

The Mambo is chanting now in a language I do not understand, and appears to be in a sort of trance himself. Another man approaches me to explain in impeccable English that his peer is drawing the spirit out of my body and into the lions’ femur. Then it hits me. I am undergoing an exorcism.

在这一点上，我注意到人群，大多数睁大眼睛，有些显然是在祈祷，所有这些人都全神贯注。显然，西方游客很少被这种情况吸引。我已经成为一种偶然的精神。

After several minutes of incantations, the exorcist Mambo lowers the lion femur and his shoulders visibly slump. The second Mambo takes him by the arm and leads him back to his seat under a tree where he appears totally spent. The second Mambo returns to tell me the next few moments will determine my fate, which I assume means life or death. I am too fascinated to have any fear. I ask about the exhausted mambo. I am told that he will recover. But he has now used all of his power to extract the spirit from me. I am also told that the spirit now resides in the lion femur. Another ceremony will be performed later to free it and allow the femur to be ready for future use.

狮子股骨的驱魔人.

所有的舞者都像在暂停动画中一样站立，所有舞者都在另一个意识领域。曼博的头升起，慢慢地朝我走去。他专心地凝视着我的眼睛，只有几英寸的距离。慢慢地笑着在他的脸上蔓延。他向人群宣布一些我不理解的东西，每个人都欢呼。鼓再次开始，舞者重新旋转他们的旋转。Mambo用一个手势反复拍打我的背部，这意味着我会活着。

The other Mambo tells me it was a narrow escape. Outsiders are not meant to survive such an invasion. He says I must have greatJuju.

I have distracted everyone enough. I never meant to intrude on this sacred ceremony. It is time for me to leave.

I walk towards the Land Rover where my driver is waiting. People line up to touch me as I pass.

我从来没有打算将自己强加于一个偏远的社会。我总是作为观察者去，但偶尔会被吸引到参与者中。但是我总是受到我正在访问的人的邀请。这个事件是独一无二的。这是我自己的错，因为我渴望记录事件。重要的是要注意，作为旅行者，我们始终会对我们访问的地方产生影响。不管有多小，即使我们离开后，影响都会产生连锁反应，这称为“意想不到的后果”。

The very nature of the dance I was privileged to witness was to restore the delicate balance of equality in the village. In hindsight, I am grateful for the experience and believe no real damage was done, but rather left the local people with an unusual story that will grow with each telling.

I have been to the spirit world, at least to the edge of it, and returned to tell the tale.

詹姆斯·迈克尔·多尔西（James Michael Dorsey）is an explorer, award winning author, photographer, and lecturer. He has traveled extensively in 45 countries, mostly far off the beaten path. His main pursuit is visiting remote tribal cultures in Asia and Africa.

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