Grandfather Bakhyes funeral ritual was one of a hunter and healer.

This is a healer
and hunter ritual because one of the first things done at the funeral was place the
grandfather in a tent. In this tent Bakhye was placed in a gala costume, crowned
with a hat with the symbol of a chameleon and crocodile on it, and an ancestral
scepter in his left hand. Another reason of why this is a hunter ritual funeral is
because an upside down arrow was placed next to his body. This arrow represented
that the grandfather could shoot hit target even if the arrow was upside down or
not.
The three stages of initiation to the grandfathers funeral was split into three
separate days. On the first day the entire tribe is requested to come morn Bakhyes
death. The morning phase is actually required by law to cry. This is the only time the
men of the indigenous culture can cry. The second day of the funeral is even better.
On the second day the mourning intensifies but also there are demonstrations of
esoteric art. This is something that people in the tribe practice or aspire to practice.
To practice this art though you must be a part of the school that teaches it. This
practice is considered to be very secretive. To sum up the second day it is when
magical practices are performed to show wrongdoing within the tribe. The final day
(third day) is the day when mourning has come to an end and the grandfather is
released into the afterlife. On this day very magical things were happening. A light
appeared roughly 300 meters above the grandfather and started circling around
him. This light turned out to be an arrow because the grandfather was a hunter. It
shot into the ground then shot out making a women dance and after the dance
finally shooting into the sky. The completing into the afterlife was then finished by
the singing of the men then the women.
This first thing that comes to my attention when thinking about funerals I have
attended and the one that Malidoma has attended is the magical practices. Every
funeral that I have attended just begins by singing then by a preacher telling the life
story of the human being. In the grandfathers funeral no one tells the story of his
life. The things he is placed with and the magic that occurs during the days of his
funeral is what tells his story. Other than the magic being different from funerals I
have attended there is also the sign of grief. When there is a funeral usually
relatives grieve but not everyone. Some say they are sorry for their loss and others
give hugs but in this funeral there is singing dancing and most of all everyone must
attend and must mourn.
The traditional education that Malidoma receives within his culture is far different
than the one that he received at the seminary school. The education that he
receives in his village is taught mostly by his grandfather and the experiences that
malidoma has been through in his life. The seminary education that he receives is
taught by many different priests. In his village education he is taught the religion of
his people. In the seminary school he is being taught the Christian religion. Another
difference is the languages in which he is being taught. In the seminary school he is
taught Latin and French. In his village though he is taught the language of Dagara.
When comparing the two educations that Malidoma receives, one being seminary
and the other being traditional, there are very few similarities but still a few. The

first thing that is similar is the way they are being taught. By this I mean that they
both continuously correct him until he has understood the answer or until he
understands the topic. The only other thing that is similar between these two
educations is that they both
When looking at malidomas seminary education to the education I was given there
are many differences. The first difference is that whenever I answered something
wrong in school I wasnt beaten for it. Also in my education it was okay to accidently
speak in what language you knew. Another difference was that with the education I
received a religion was not forced down your throat until you believed that religion.
The last difference when looking at malidomas seminary education and my
education is that teachers couldnt just call the students into their office to whip
them. In the education I received there had to be a reason for a whipping. In
Malidomas seminary school the priests constantly take the students into the offices
to whip or beat them.
When comparing the traditional education that malidoma receives to the one I grew
up learning there are a couple of differences. The first is that he is taught by a tribe
of people and not a college educated teacher. The second is that he is taught in the
houses in his village where I was taught in a school. Another difference between our
educations is that Malidomas education is more tribal based education and mine
was more focused on learning math skills and science.
When analyzing the similarities between my education and malidomas traditional
education there really isnt a lot that goes with one another. One thing that is similar
is how both educations try to teach you the history of your country or people. The
only other similarity I realized would be that they teach the tribe the main language
which is Dagara. Just as the way I grew up only being taught English.
To understand why Malidoma must undergo initiation we must go back to his
grandfathers death. Before his grandfather died he told malidoma what his destiny
was. His destiny is to befriend the stranger or enemy. This started when he was
taken by the white man and forced to learn their teachings. When returning to the
village sixteen years later this showed that he had started his destiny. Another
reason why the elders feel that Malidoma should be initiated is because he is the
first born son of his father meaning that he will carry on the family name. The final
reason of why Malidoma should be initiated is because he really wants to. Malidoma
wanting to go through the initiation process is what really shows if he should be
allowed to or not.
The elders believe that it is Malidomas birth right to be initiated into the Dagara
tribe. However the elders do have concerns about him being initiated. The main
concern of the elders is that if Malidoma chooses to go through with the initiation
that he might die during the process. One elder specifically would rather Malidoma
get the chance to be initiated. This elder says this because he thinks Malidoma has
been gone for too long at that he is no longer apart of the tribe. After a while the
elders do finally decide to let Malidoma go through the initiation process.

The initiation that Malidoma is going through is to become a man in his tribe. The
initiation tells him to look at his inner self and leave the child behind but still know
where he actually came from. In leaving his childhood behind he is moved into the
adult stage of his life. The first initiation ritual in his liminal phase was seeing.
Malidoma had to sit twenty meters away from a tree, of his choosing, and stare at a
tree until he saw something. Neither he nor anyone else was told what to look for or
what they would see. In malidomas case he saw a woman. The tree that he had
been staring at on the second day had finally changed into something. Another
event that occurred during the liminal phase was Malidoma travelling to the
otherworld. He was taken to an altar and started dreaming. In his dream he was
taken to the other world and saw a force field with people in it.
Malidomas destiny was first presented by his grandfather while he was on his death
bed but later on after going through initiation is was given to him by the elders.
Malidoma stands for he who makes friends with the enemy/stranger. He starts his
destiny at a very young age when he is taken to go learn at the seminary school.
This is part of his destiny because he is taken and placed with strangers. I believe
Malidoma is still completing his destiny because he is talking about his life on a
daily basis and spreading his experience. The ancestors of Malidoma fit into
everything he does. Before he can move forward in the initiatory process he must
first look back over all the ancestors have done. Reincarnation also plays a big role
in the Dagara tribe. The grandfather actual calls Malidoma his brother before he
passes away. The grandfather does this because he believes Malidoma is the
reincarnation of his brother Birifor.