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Essay / Research Paper Abstract
A 10 page research paper which explores the animistic aspect of religious belief in this primitive African culture. The writer discusses the role that animals play in Dogon rituals which predict the future, and also gives a possible explanation for the mystery surrounding the impressive knowledge of this primitive tribe regarding the star cluster which makes up the 'dog star,' Sirius A and B. Bibliography lists 9 sources.
Page Count:
10 pages (~225 words per page)
File: D0_Dogon.doc
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Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
Dogon believe that the bush which surrounds their villages is the source of all life (Bruchac, 1996). Divining the future In their religious practices, dancers dress in various
masks which represent the spirits of the bush. These can be representative of insects, trees or animals. The dancers wearing the masks enter the village and perform rites intended to
restore life and prevent death from overcoming living things (Bruchac). Divining the future through the aid of certain animals is also a part of Dogon religious practice. A blind
Dogon prophet who lived around the turn of the century predicted the destruction of his people if they should lose their way and wantonly destroy animals and the bush. This
shows the reverence which the Dogon accord to all things natural. Their beliefs could be said to be similar to those of Native Americans in that the Dogon recognize
that all things in nature are interconnected. While Western cultures tend to use the machine as the basic model on how they view the universe, the Dogon view nature
and time, itself, as an organic whole. Dogon prophecies are an oral tradition, remembered in song, and passed down through generations. The prophecy which foretold the destruction of the
Dogon people specifically mentions that the Dogon will be destroyed by a strange and powerful people who flew down from the sky. The Dogon believe that the prophecy was
referring to the coming of airplanes to that part of the world. The Dogon Elders have several ways of determining the future. One way involves the help of the
fennec, the little desert fox (Bruchac, 1996). Having drawn a pattern which consists of boxes in soft sand, a fox diviner will then spread millet seeds. The seeds are
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