Board of Trustees, Boston University

Les Religions de l'Afrique by E. Dammann; La Mort Dans la vie Africaine by Y. K. Bamunoba;B. Adoukonour; Egyptian Gods: A Handbook by Alan W. ShorterReview by: Daniel F. McCallThe International Journal of African Historical Studies, Vol. 14, No. 4 (1981), pp. 743-746Published by: Boston University African Studies CenterStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/218247 .

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BOOK REVIEWS 743 BOOK REVIEWS 743

It is unclear from these books whether enough data exist for a study of white ethnic groups other than the British and the Afri- kaners, or whether such a study, grounded in sociological theory, would yield any new insights into South Africa's racial dilemma.

The copy-editors at A. A. Balkema, if they exist, have done these authors a disservice. This is especially true of Dickason, whose prose is often tortuous, and whose narrative occasionally bogs down in trivia. Winquist's book is considerably more readable, though it has something of the appearance of a doctoral dissertation too little altered from its original form. G. B. Dickason is described as an "investment manager with a financial institution in Johannesburg." Alan Winquist teaches history at Taylor University in Indiana.

R L. LWATSON

North Carolina Wesleyan College

LES RELIGIONS DE L'AFRIQUE. By E. Dammann. Paris: Payot, 1978. Pp. 272.

LA MORT DANS LA VIE AFRICAINE. By Y. K Bamunoba and B. Adoukonour. Paris: Presence Africaine and UNESCO, 1979, Pp. 335.

EGYPTIAN GODS: A HANDBOOK. By Alan W. Shorter. Boston: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1978. Pp. viii, 144. $10.00.

These three titles are listed in order of decreasing significance to both Africanists and comparative religionists; the emphasis of this review is on the first volume-the other two, arbitrarily, are viewed only tangentially to the first.

The reprinting of the French translation of Die Religionen Afrikas (which first appeared in 1964) is an indication of the recognition this work has received. One reason that Dammann's assessment of the religions of Africa is impressive is that it is not merely an overview of the pertinent anthropological and missionary literature, but treats the subject in terms of the concepts of theology and philosophy em- ployed in discussions of Western and Oriental religions. None- theless, Dammann does make a dichotomy between a "natural religion" and a "religion of the book" (p. 13). Religion in a literate society can obviously develop a body of doctrines that are sys- tematized and perpetuated in sacred scriptures whereas, he asserts, nonliterate societies cannot achieve this. No "great" religion was ever born in Africa because without a literary vehicle, none could be supported (p. 15).

Translated into French or English, "natural religion" lacks the context it has in German. Early German anthropology made a

It is unclear from these books whether enough data exist for a study of white ethnic groups other than the British and the Afri- kaners, or whether such a study, grounded in sociological theory, would yield any new insights into South Africa's racial dilemma.

The copy-editors at A. A. Balkema, if they exist, have done these authors a disservice. This is especially true of Dickason, whose prose is often tortuous, and whose narrative occasionally bogs down in trivia. Winquist's book is considerably more readable, though it has something of the appearance of a doctoral dissertation too little altered from its original form. G. B. Dickason is described as an "investment manager with a financial institution in Johannesburg." Alan Winquist teaches history at Taylor University in Indiana.

R L. LWATSON

North Carolina Wesleyan College

LES RELIGIONS DE L'AFRIQUE. By E. Dammann. Paris: Payot, 1978. Pp. 272.

LA MORT DANS LA VIE AFRICAINE. By Y. K Bamunoba and B. Adoukonour. Paris: Presence Africaine and UNESCO, 1979, Pp. 335.

EGYPTIAN GODS: A HANDBOOK. By Alan W. Shorter. Boston: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1978. Pp. viii, 144. $10.00.

These three titles are listed in order of decreasing significance to both Africanists and comparative religionists; the emphasis of this review is on the first volume-the other two, arbitrarily, are viewed only tangentially to the first.

The reprinting of the French translation of Die Religionen Afrikas (which first appeared in 1964) is an indication of the recognition this work has received. One reason that Dammann's assessment of the religions of Africa is impressive is that it is not merely an overview of the pertinent anthropological and missionary literature, but treats the subject in terms of the concepts of theology and philosophy em- ployed in discussions of Western and Oriental religions. None- theless, Dammann does make a dichotomy between a "natural religion" and a "religion of the book" (p. 13). Religion in a literate society can obviously develop a body of doctrines that are sys- tematized and perpetuated in sacred scriptures whereas, he asserts, nonliterate societies cannot achieve this. No "great" religion was ever born in Africa because without a literary vehicle, none could be supported (p. 15).

Translated into French or English, "natural religion" lacks the context it has in German. Early German anthropology made a

This content downloaded from 169.229.32.137 on Thu, 8 May 2014 22:22:07 PMAll use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions

744 BOOK REVIEWS

distinction between Naturvblker (natural peoples) and Kulturvolker (culture peoples). The trouble with these concepts, as criticism eventually made clear, is that there are no peoples who live entirely in a state of nature nor are there any who live purely in a state of culture: all peoples live in both a natural and cultural environment simultaneously. How to conceptualize the interplay of the two factors is still disputed as the controversy between C. Levi-Strauss and his critics attests.

The contrasting categories, Natur/Kultur, were comparable to the distinction drawn, in the same period, by English-speaking anthropologists between "primitive" and "civilized," which also ran into controversy. There are indubitably differences in cultures, and those with literacy, complex technology, and political state systems can be conveniently designated by a special term (and "civilization" can serve in that capacity), but attempts to arrive at a satisfactory definition of "primitive" that was not pejorative, were less suc- cessful, and there has been a definite tendency in recent decades to avoid the term. Dammann recognized the reaction against "primi- tive" and sadly notes the "unfavorable" connotation it has acquired because he felt it was a useful word (p. 15). Unfortunately, "natu- ral"-being in his usage essentially a synonym for "primitive"- does not escape the conceptual difficulties. "Natural" and "primi- tive" are equivalent to "tribal" and "traditional" in his usage and these adjectives appear as occasional alternates.

To this reviewer, at least, it seems that the difference between literacy and nonliteracy, while not unimportant, is given exaggerated magnitude for the religious context. Numerous instances could be cited where scripture in various "religions of the book" has been reinterpreted-in effect, altering doctrine while the sacred writings remained intact. On the other hand, oral societies could preserve through generations long and complex liturgies and other texts. For example, pre-Christian Ireland had four distinct orders of remem- brancers: dri for religious texts; senachi for historical; brehon for legal; andfili for poetic. Some pre-contact African societies, Yoruba for example, seem to have had specialists of all these types.

In chapter one, Dammann presents "the elements of natural religion" as he distilled them from his own and published studies which in sum cover all parts of the continent. Then he goes on to discuss "incarnations of transcendence," "thought and religious life," "religious practice," and under the rubric of "religion and life" he discourses on, among other things, symbolic aspects of language and the arts. Having surveyed indigenous religions, he considers alien religions intrusive into the continent, and in his last two chapters, he tackles the problem of historical dimensions of "natu- ral" (that is, nonliterary) religions. He ventures to confront the problem of "the evolution of religious ideas." It is appropriate, in this

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BOOK REVIEWS 745

journal, to concentrate our focus on these historically oriented sections though they constitute but a small proportion of the work.

Dammann sets out, laudably, by attacking the then common belief that Africa is fundamentally unchanging and states that in the "religious domain" there have been "surprising changes" (p. 235). Earlier (p. 12ff), he had noted the difficulties of viewing African religions historically: writing is absent for most regions and Arabic texts give little on African religions; oral traditions preserve "re- markable details" but not sufficient to give an idea of the religions which must have formerly existed; archaeology had as yet added but little more; rock paintings are probably in part religious, but remain unexplained except in theories; writers on African religions are mainly European and while there are some African writers who may have insights from their cultural background, they have been edu- cated and influenced by Europeans. Here (p. 235), he looks for evidence of "internal evolution" in certain kinds of myth, and posits a formerly widespread lunar cult and from other evidence sees deceased kings assimilated to deities (p. 236). Migrations may bring about adoption of other peoples' deities (p. 237). There is implicit in some of these cases of religious evolution (or devolution, since the alleged lunar cult has declined) more general concepts of social evolution-of which the reader should be aware. This section includes a salutory observation: cults may arise and disappear; this is based on a study of an actual (modern) case, a phenomenon he assumes could also occur in prerecorded times. Dammann poses the proposition: prophetism is a phenomenon of change.

In addition to internal evolution, there is the influence of other religions-a prime case being the Nupe (as reported by S. F. Nadel) who borrowed from their neighbors, the Hausa, the Yoruba, and the Gwari. He phrases this borrowing as the Nupe being "invaded" by the alien cults despite the statement on the same page that "tribal religions are practically never proselytizing" (p. 239). The accept- ing society is selective and may reject some aspects of the borrowed cult.

Dammann is willing to contemplate the problem of more ancient diffusion. He sees Egyptian and Near Eastern influences on early Berber North Africa and wonders about similar influences further south, referring to Eva Meyerowitz's controversial work, and decides "it is too soon to draw definite conclusions" (p. 239).

In the final chapter, under the heading of "archaic religions," we are directed to consider traditional beliefs and practices continuing as a "substratum" in the "new" religions-Islam and Christianity. Why what has been from the outset called "natural" should have become "archaic" when in the context of "substratum" is not clear, but the fact that "archaic" is not-as one might assume-the outcome of the efforts at reconstructing earlier stages of "internal

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746 BOOK REVIEWS

evolution" as discussed in the preceding section can perhaps be taken as a measure of how little reconstruction was accomplished.

If Dammann, in his concern for ancient diffusion, had been looking for a study of Egyptian religion to use as a comprehensive reference, Shorter's book (first edition, 1937) would not be the ideal. Of course, it was not intended to be such; it was conceived as a guide for museum visitors, and travelers to Egypt, and it is a "handbook" confined to the gods and only incidentally treats other religious phenomena (p. viii). Furthermore, the New Kingdom is emphasized more than other periods, this being the time of the "greatest splendour" (p. 2). The sun-god(s), Osiris, and Akhenaten's mono- theism are given extended attention, but the pantheon is surveyed and temples, the Book of the Dead, magic, and some other topics are briefly covered.

La mort dans la vie africaine is really two books within the covers of one. Bamunoba did his research in Uganda while Adou- konou did his research in southern Dahomey (as his text, p. 119, gives the locality of the Adja-Fon). Both deal with the conception of death, socially and religiously, and funeral cults, but there is no drawing of comparisons or generalizations from the two cases. Each has its own introduction and conclusion and not a single page, except the title page, is common to the two. Not only is the scope narrowed to ethnographic particularism, but the range does not include the full panoply of religion.

Students of African religions will compare these recent publi- cations (or republications) to other surveys: Dominique Zahan's The Religion, Spirituality and Thought of Traditional Africa (Chicago, 1979) is as comprehensive as Dammann but with dif- ferent emphases; Benjamin C. Ray's African Religions: Symbol, Ritual and Community (Englewood Cliffs, 1976) provides another approach to the same range of materials; John Mbiti's African Religions and Philosophy (N.Y., 1970) is an African Christian's survey; Malcolm J. McVeigh's God in Africa (Hartford, Vt., 1974) is a missionary's survey.

Dammann's book was dedicated to Dietrich Westermann, mis- sionary, ethnographer, linguist, and ultimately professor, whose career Dammann's resembled. Westermann's writing on African religions was no doubt to some degree a model for Dammann's book. Had Dammann been English-speaking, he might have dedi- cated his book to Edwin W. Smith who also combined ethnographic study with missionary work and wrote extensively on African religions. Die Religionen Afrikas was thus a mid-point in a thriving scholarly tradition.

DANIEL McCALL

Boston University

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