MEBEGE
allyCreator, order
Mebege, also called Nzame or Mbere depending on the variant, is the supreme god and creator of the Fang, a Bantu people of Gabon, Equatorial Guinea and southern Cameroon. In one oral tradition, he was at first alone in the universe, in the company of a spider named Dibobia suspended above the primordial waters. At Dibobia's suggestion, he created the world from himself: a few hairs from his armpit, a part of his brain and a smooth stone, which he turned into an egg laid in the waters. From this egg was born a triad of deities, whose eldest, Zame ye Mebege, became the head of the pantheon. This figure is especially present in the imagination of Bwiti, a religious movement born among the Fang at the beginning of the twentieth century, where the creator is often named Zame ye Mebege without being the object of direct worship.
Powers & Attributes
Role in the ROHO universe
A fragment of Onionkupón's Breath, bound to one of the five elements of the cosmic balance.
Sacred Mask
A mask carved of ancient energy — a symbol of the cosmic force proper to its pantheon.
Era
3,000–1,000 BCE — Cycle of Elemental Powers
Spiritual Lesson
To understand the nature of one's own balance and the wisdom hidden behind every trial.
Words of the Spirit
“Before the first word, there was already the breath.”
Frequently asked questions
How does Mebege create the world?
According to one oral tradition, he gathers hairs from his armpit, a part of his brain and a smooth stone to form an egg, laid in the primordial waters by the spider Dibobia.
Who are Mebege's children?
From the primordial egg is born a triad of deities. The eldest, Zame ye Mebege, takes the head of the pantheon and governs the world shaped from the creator.
What is Mebege's link with Bwiti?
In Bwiti, a religious movement born among the Fang at the beginning of the twentieth century, the creator is often named Zame ye Mebege. He is acknowledged but is not the object of direct worship.
Related spirits
Sources and references
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mebege
- James W. Fernandez, Bwiti: An Ethnography of the Religious Imagination in Africa (1982)
- Günter Tessmann, Die Pangwe: Völkerkundliche Monographie eines westafrikanischen Negerstammes (1913)