African Gods: Contemporary Rituals and Beliefs [Hardcover]

Daniel Laine (Author), Tobie Nathan (Introduction), Anne Stamm (Contributor), Pierre Saulnier (Contributor)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 9, 2007

In African cultures, the spiritual and the physical exist in close communion. This relationship explains many aspects of African societies. The connection between the natural and the supernatural, the visible and the invisible, and the human and the divine, is maintained in a state of equilibrium through prayer and ritual. These representations of the divine forces on Earth occupy a central place in African society. Juju priests, shamans, and healers are not only the guardians of tradition, but also the pillars of African civilizations. They serve as doctors, priests, performers, and teachers. As mediums between the spiritual and the earthly worlds, they embody the soul of Africa itself. Daniel Laine presents a vivid photographic portrayal of these men and women as they perform exorcisms, dances, and other rituals of African mysticism. Detailed captions elucidate the vivid photographs and an introduction places these traditions into context. A spiritual journey through twelve African countries (Nigeria, South Africa, Ivory Coast, Benin, Togo, Guinea, Cameroon, Ghana, Mali, Congo, Gabon and Uganda), African Gods is as visually stunning as it is enlightening.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Daniel Laine received the Prix de la villa Médicis hors les murs in 1988 and won first place in the World Press Photo 91 category “People in News” for his book African Kings. He contributes to numerous magazines in France and abroad. Tobie Nathan, ethno-psychiatrist, is professor of Clinical Psychology and Pathology at the University of Paris.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Flammarion (October 9, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 2080300199
• ISBN-13: 978-2080300195
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 0.9 x 10.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,123,397 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Content overcomes Author's Eurocentric Bias, December 9, 2009

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CommonSense (usa) - See all my reviews

This review is from: African Gods: Contemporary Rituals and Beliefs (Hardcover)

This is a very informative book that highlights many of the misunderstood and misrepresented religions of the African continent, but the author is very condescending and rather Eurocentric in some of the judgments made on minor things such as alters and attire. The author's description of people being dedicated to serve in temples in certain African traditions as slavery is quite hypocritical considering the same thing can be cited in other more publicized religions such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Islam, Judaism, Christianity, and their variations. He even seems to complain about having to pay to take a picture of a priest. Such crying is not worthy of true professionalism. The western mentality unfortunately has the view that anyone that they feel is less technically advanced then themselves is not worthy of respect, and they should be glad to allow them to exploit them for free. The author speculates too much about possible criminal or deviant conduct by individuals' without providing actual proof (dates/ times/reports/names/eye witnesses) this feels rather slanderous. The book will drop hints of sexual exploitation of adherents without any evidence historical or otherwise. Sorry but rumors, gossip, and here say are not proof. What little cases of negative incidents that are described are not properly contrasted to their counter parts in other cultures in the world; so you get a dishonest picture, and end up believing the African is ruled by superstition, which is not the case.

The book points out some of the attitudes and conflicts of those who try and follow newer religions such as Christianity and Islam and end up persecuting others. This is a seldom explored issue, and is almost never shown in the west. The illustrations in the book are beautiful and thought provoking. I recommend this book for anyone wanting to get a quick visual overview of some of the world's oldest and most beautiful religions and traditions, but unfortunately the author's thoughtless snide comments adds an unnecessary streak of bitterness to an otherwise sweet work.