![]() ![]() ‘This jok wanted me to become a witch doctor. The small syrup bottles contain a liquid substance which she takes before starting her work, it makes her see and hear from the gods.’Ī jok is a class of spirit within the traditional Acholi belief system that is viewed as the cause of illness. Traditional healers (known as ajwaka) first identify the jok in question and then make an appropriate sacrifice and ceremony to counter them. Alternatively if such an approach is unsuccessful the person possessed by the jok can go through a series of rituals to gain some level of control over the jok and then themselves become ajwaka. Kirikitiny is a god from the Karomonjong ethnic groups – he is concerned with protection. The beer bottle represents a god call Jok Kirikitiny. ![]() The Bible represents a god called Mary, Mary is a white and she loves peace, so for anything concerning bringing peace, they summon her. ![]() Kalawinya is summoned when someone is possessed by evil spirits. The spear represents a god call Jok Kalawinya. Robin: ‘She was trying to show me what she uses in her daily work, Each one of those things has got different roles to play. In 2005 I was attacked by a ‘jok’ for the first time’. ‘It was in 2009 when I became a witch doctor, even though I never wanted to be one. Let’s hear from Akumu Christen (a female witch doctor): Yet these are just some of the roles I discovered when I interviewed some witch doctors in Northern Uganda as part of my research for CPAID. They don’t associate witch doctors with, for example, deciding whether widows, with or without children, can stay on the land of their dead husbands, return to their maiden home or have the choice to reject or accept a protector (male relative of their late husband)? People certainly associate witch doctors with bad acts. He bombarded me with questions: What is your problem? Are you looking for riches? Has someone bewitched you? And his last word was that these people (witch doctors) are bad. One thing every Acholi person wants to avoid is being associated with a witch doctor, but I took courage and informed the bodaboda (motorbike taxi) man that I was heading to the witch doctor’s place. As part of trying to understand how Public Authority operates in such impoverished, marginal and conflict-affected places, Robin Oryem has been interviewing local witch doctors. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |