If you think that the era of minstrels is hopelessly past, then you are mistaken: in the western part of "yellow, hot Africa" from Morocco to Nigeria, amazing people still roam the roads, as if they have fallen into our time from the past - mysterious griot storytellers.
I told the kings the story of their ancestors
In different countries of the African continent they were called differently, and they themselves still call themselves "jali". But among the Europeans, this mysterious community has stuck with the name "griots". Historians suggest that the first storytellers set off on the roads of Africa in the pre-Islamic era, about a millennium ago, and it is no longer possible to establish which people they belonged to.
It is known, however, that in the XIII century, the first ruler of Mali, Sundiata Keita, officially called the Griots a caste (although they were rather a semblance of a modern trade union) and secured them the right to engage in creativity. A century later, the "Griots union" was already in its prime, and its representatives were divided into two groups.
Wandering storytellers walked between villages, from tribe to tribe, and everywhere they delighted the people with fairy tales, songs, parables and real stories from the past. The griots not only entertained the public, but also successfully replaced radio and television: they retell the decrees of the rulers in remote villages, transferred fresh news from one community to another - in other words, they communicated the people with the outside world. I must say, the attitude towards them in African villages was difficult. On the one hand, they were despised for their lack of tribal affiliation and vagrancy. On the other hand, they were respected for their extensive knowledge and were even slightly afraid for their sharp tongue. In addition, there were legends among the people about the witchcraft abilities of the griots. It was said that they had mastered the art of words so much that they could, just by uttering the prescribed spell,deprive a person of speech and movement, force him to speak only the truth against his will, or do what the wandering storyteller tells him to do. The same griots who happened to take root at the royal court or in the house of a tribal leader single-handedly performed the functions of a press service, educators of the heir to the throne, political advisers and judicial officials. At the same time, if necessary, they came into contact with otherworldly forces to protect the ruler and his family. Well, or cause irreparable damage to his enemies. The two groups of griots had a common property in common: in the head of each of them was stored a staggering volume of a database, and it was constantly updated. There is evidence that these amazing people were able to retain in their memory forty generations of ancestors of the most ancient clans with detailed explanations of their names and characteristics of biographies. As for history,then every self-respecting storyteller had to memorize all 111 "songs" (a type of epic), although some of them took several days to perform.
Bury me in a baobab
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The life of the griots hasn't changed much these days. Either parents or special closed schools are still involved in teaching young people. Comprehension of the secrets of the profession lasts so long that a barely educated griot must immediately choose his successor and start teaching him. It begins, as a rule, by memorizing the names of the rulers of the people to which the student belongs, in chronological order. After that, the biography of each of them is added to the list of kings. In order to make all this mass of information easier to remember, it is clothed in the form of a verse with a strict rhythm. Having mastered the history of the ruling dynasty, the student goes on a journey through his country, where he must visit all the "historical places" and learn the practice from all the griots he meets along the way.
Wandering storytellers are considered honored participants in all important village events, be it an initiation, a wedding or the naming of a baby. The last ceremony takes place as follows. As soon as the child is one week old, relatives and neighbors gather at the house of his family. The baby's first hair is shaved off, which symbolizes the official beginning of his life. Then the local priest says a prayer, after which he quietly pronounces the name chosen for the child, alternately in his right and left ears. Aloud, the griot should announce the name of the child, but he pretends that he has forgotten the name in an attack of sudden sclerosis, and agrees to "remember" it only after a hefty monetary donation. Having received the money, he calls the name out loud, and only after that the holiday begins: songs, ritual dances and a lavish feast.
Although griots and welcome guests throughout West Africa, they still continue to be feared, suspected of having connections with evil spirits. So that the griots cannot harm people after their death, there is an ancient tradition of burial for them: bodies are not buried in the ground, but with special prayers they are placed inside the trunk of a baobab. Africans believe that in this way wandering storytellers have the opportunity to reunite with their ancestors who have gone to another world.
Roof keepers
In several African villages, there are still schools where they teach the art of the Griot. The most famous of them is located in Keila, a village located near the city of Bamako, the capital of Mali. It is home to the Griot clan Diabate, the keepers of the history of the Mandingo people, who once founded the "Empire of Mali". The fame of Diabate is so great, and the knowledge of the craft is so extensive that to be trained in their clan for any griot means guaranteed to receive the highest qualifications in their field. True, the term of study is only from six months to a year, but during this time "students" take a full course in the history of Mali and its rulers, improve their art of singers and storytellers, and also practice in public performances on ceremonies or holidays under the supervision of teachers.
In addition to working with young people, the Diabate family is responsible for the preservation of the sacred place located not far from Keila. This is a hut, according to legend, built in the XIV century by order of one of the kings of Mali, where in the XVIII century the last sovereign of this country hid from enemies. It is believed that all the secrets of the Mandingo tribe are kept inside the hut to this day, but which ones remain unknown, since Europeans are strictly prohibited from entering there. An interesting ceremony is associated with the mysterious hut: every seven years the oldest griots of Mali come to it to "fix the roof." They are indeed changing the dilapidated thatched roof of the hut, and besides, they exchange new information and compete in the skill of storytellers.
Some representatives of the Diabate clan never leave Keila, but there are those who are known not only in their country, but all over the world. One of them is Tumani Dyabate, well known to all lovers of African music. Although he grew up in a family of more than seventy generations of musicians, no one specifically trained him. His father, Sidiqi, recognized as the "king of the bark" (a griot instrument similar to a lute or harp), gave the boy his own bark in his hands when he was five years old, and left it to himself. Then Tumani just watched his father play the core, and this gave amazing results. At the age of thirteen, the young musician first appeared on the stage and since then has been doing everything so that the music of Africa takes its rightful place in the rhythm of the planet.
Magazine: Secrets of the 20th century No. 17, Ekaterina Kravtsova