Turkana Courtship Dance and Rain Rituals
Turkana Courtship Dance and Rain Rituals
PRAYERS TO AKUJ
Turkana Courtship Dance and Rain Rituals
The Turkana, a Nilotic people of northwestern Kenya, live in one of the harshest regions of Africa, amid punishing heat and rocky terrain. At the end of the rainy season, young Turkana dance in anticipation of the upcoming marriage season. Sandaled feet stomp up a low cloud of dust as men leap up, raising their arms into the air, and women swirl their hide skirts. The men’s arm movements imitate the curved horns of their beloved cattle.
The Turkana are renowned for their vigorous courtship dancing, and men sing songs as they dance to further allure the women - songs telling about the large herds of cattle they own, the verdant pastures they come from, and their conquests in cattle raids. Men are drawn to the beauty of young women’s jewellery. In fact a Turkana man says “it’s the things a woman wears that make her beautiful”, and he doesn't consider her fully adorned until her necklaces reach from her chest to her chin. The abundance of beaded jewellery worn by a young girl indicates her family’s wealth, and the bride-price in cattle required for her hand in marriage.
Living as they are on the edge of survival, in times of drought the Turkana turn to their god Akuj, with a ritual plea for rain. A ceremony is performed to gain the favour of Akuj and the blessings of their ancestors. Local diviners commune with Akuj to discover the particulars of the ritual to be performed. If an animal is to be sacrificed, Akuj will decide what color and sex is appropriate, and the elders will carry out the act. The animal, usually a goat, is then roasted and eaten as a petition to Akuj for rain.
As the men pray, the women perform an impassioned rain dance. The women believe that Akuj, whom they worship as a feminine deity, has a soft spot for women’s petitions. The Turkana say that a woman’s petition is strongest as women don’t beg for selfish purposes, and Akuj, whom they refer to as “mother”, will hear their pleas and send rain.
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