Witchcraft in Azande Culture

The Azande of southern Sudan (along with other cultures in Central and West Africa) believe that mangu, or witchcraft, is a physical substance found in the bodies of witches. It is inherited by children from their parents, but only those of the same gender. In other words, all the sons of a male witch will be witches, while the daughters will not. Similarly, all the daughters of a female witch will be witches, while the sons will not. While this would logically indicate that all members of a family are witches, the Azande don't see it that way. Witchcraft is not seen as a permanent part of identity, but more situation-specific. It is also often unintentional. Many times, a witch will be completely unaware that he or she is doing harm; it is simply unconscious. Any misfortune may be due to witchcraft, unless it is clearly the person's fault through immoral behavior (i.e. they stole, lied, committed adultery, etc.). If someone falls unexpectedly ill, it may be witchcraft. If someone experiences an unfortunate "accident," it may be witchcraft. If someone dies, it may be witchcraft. Essentially, witchcraft explains unfortunate events and disrupted social relations.

Traditional African Religion frames religion within a dialectic involving witchcraft, divination, and sacrifice. When witchcraft is suspected, a diviner is generally sought out by the afflicted individual or family members. The diviner will then determine which witch is causing the misfortune. The afflicted is expected to bring forth a list of names of people that he suspects may be the witches. (Obviously, these are people with whom he already has disharmonious relationships.) Then, a number of oracles are performed to determine who the witch might be.