ABANTUBOMLAMBO
neutralSpirit
The abantu bomlambo, literally the people of the river, designate in the Xhosa and related traditions of the South African Eastern Cape water spirits who live at the bottom of the rivers and estuaries. They are described sometimes as beings half human, half fish, sometimes as changing spirits who appear in dreams. Their central role touches on the initiation of diviner-healers — the igqirha among the Xhosa, the sangoma more broadly. According to the belief, a person called to become a diviner may be drawn underwater and disappear for days, weeks or months. On their return they say nothing of their stay, but are held to have received among the river people the teaching of plants, of dreams and of the arts of divination and healing. These spirits are thus ambivalent — dangerous, for they can drown, and beneficent, for they confer knowledge. They are close to the figure of the Mamlambo, the river serpent spirit of the same region, and reflect the sacredness of watercourses in South African cosmology.
Powers & Attributes
Role in the ROHO universe
Weaver of the currents. ABANTUBOMLAMBO watches over the flow of the waters and the fluid memory that binds the worlds within the Mabioni. Bound to the Transkei pantheon. Its alignment depends on the invoker's protocol.
Sacred Mask
An ancient ritual mask of polished ebony, mother-of-pearl and shells, engraved with symbols of rivers and witchcraft, embodiment of the power of Abantubomlambo
Era
Ancient cycle
Frequently asked questions
What does the name abantu bomlambo mean?
In the Nguni languages it means the people of the river. It designates the water spirits who dwell in the rivers and estuaries of the South African Eastern Cape.
What is their role with the diviners?
They are held to train the future diviner-healers, the igqirha or the sangoma. The initiate disappears underwater, then returns bearing knowledge of plants, dreams and divination.
Are the abantu bomlambo dangerous?
They are ambivalent. They can drown those they seize, but they also confer knowledge and the healer's vocation, which makes them at once feared and respected.
Related spirits
Sources and references
- Penny S. Bernard, recherches ethnographiques sur les esprits de l'eau et l'initiation des guerisseurs (igqirha, sangoma) en Afrique du Sud
- Manton Hirst, A River of Metaphors: Interpreting the Xhosa Diviner's Myth, African Studies, vol. 56, n° 2, p. 217-250 (1997)
- Manton Hirst, Dreams and Medicines: The Perspective of Xhosa Diviners and Novices in the Eastern Cape, South Africa, Indo-Pacific Journal of Phenomenology, vol. 5, n° 2, p. 1-22 (2005)