The traditional Zangbeto ceremony wards off evil spirits and is led by a secret society of mask wearers who cannot reveal their identity. This was one of the most intriguing aspects for me – the secrecy, sacred traditions passed down through birth right, that as a tourist you are exposed to just a fraction of the depth of this belief system. These destinations are not for the faint-hearted, they demand resilience and patience, but from a cultural, musical, and religious standpoint, I’m hard-pressed to think of anywhere more fascinating.
Zangbeto are the traditional voodoo guardians of the night among the Ogu or Egun people of Benin, Togo and Nigeria. A traditional police and security institution, the Zangbeto cult is charged with the maintenance of law and order, and ensures safety and security within Ogu communities. They are highly revered and act as an unofficial police force patrolling the streets, especially in the night, watching over people and their properties, and tracking down criminals and presenting them to the community to punish. Originally created to scare the enemy away, Zangbeto will wander the streets to detect thieves and witches, and to protect law and order.
Relating its fundamental cultural role in local vigilantism and community policing in Ogu societies, Zangbeto is a term in Gun language which means “Men of the night” or “Night-watchmen”.
The Zangbeto takes on a covering made from an intricate mass of tiny strands of hay, raffia or other threadlike materials, which are sometimes dyed in very colourful hues. They are able to fall into a trance which, according to tradition, enables their bodies to be inhabited by spirits who possess special knowledge of the actions of people. However, Ogu legend tells that there are no humans under the costume, only spirits of the night.
In Ogu culture, the Zangbetos are the traditional security guards or policemen of their communities. They are said to form a secret society which can only be strictly attended by Zangbeto or voodoo worshipers and devotees. Zangbeto is deemed to have spiritistic and magical abilities, such as swallowing splinters of glass without coming to any harm and scaring away even witches. In a trance, the Zangbeto are said to evoke a power that inhabited the earth long before the appearance of man and provide a source of wisdom and continuity for the Ogu people.
Elaborate festivals built around the Zangbeto are held regularly in different Ogu communities across West Africa. The popular ones are those that hold in Porto-Novo, Benin Republic and in Ajido, Lagos, Nigeria. These festivals comprise colourful displays, electrifying performances and magic.
In West Africa, more specifically in Togo, Benin and Senegal, an ancestral cult is practiced whose venerated entity is called Zangbeto, a term meaning guardians of the night. They act as if they were unofficial police authorities, guarding the streets, taking care of the protection of the place and the people.
Zangbetos are represented by figures wrapped in structures made of straw, wood and other materials. During ceremonies, these entities display themselves by dancing and/or spinning in the center of ritual spaces. They are always surrounded by tourists, community residents and practicing witch doctors of the voodoo religion. However, according to local Yoruba legend there are no humans under the costume, only spirits of the night. There is no evidence that the manifestation of spirits through so-called Zangbeto is a fraud, or just built and maintained to keep distant enemies and other unwanted.
In fact, the Zangbetos are able to inflame the fear in ethnic groups not practicing this sophisticated modality of Vodun. The aim of this manuscript is to discuss the social role of Zangbetos and sorcerers, as well as the symbolic efficacy of these powers in the West African region, notably Togo, Benin and Senegal. It is a work of bibliographical and documentary analysis. The field of discourse includes the classical ethnographies on the theme of religion, theoretical contributions from sociology, anthropology, history and psychoanalysis. The manuscript reveals that a detailed study of the theme of the Zangbetos in Africa and of the politico-social performance of so-called sorcerers is necessary.
We do not know whether supernatural entities actually exist and manifest in those spaces, or it is a staging, whose secrets of their techniques are stored at all costs. However, it is undeniable that they have social, political and cultural relevance in the social structures in which they operate.
