220 THE CULT OF NYAKANG AND THE DIVINE KINGS OF THE SHILLUK 



people from the animal life he fouml in the forests and rivers. From crocodiles and 

 hippopotami, and from wild beasts and cattle, he created men and women. When these 

 had brought forth many children the parent stock was removed by death, so that the 

 children might not know of their origin."' 



It is obvious that in this passage stress is laid on the non-human element in the 

 ancestry of Nyakang, who himself inherited "crocodilian attributes." I feel confident 

 that in the minds of the majority of the Shilluk people Nyakang is not associated with 

 saurian or any non-human bodily characteristics, and, although I enquired into the matter 

 many times (in the neighbourhood of Kodok), I never obtained anything like the consistent 

 account quoted above, while the majority of my informants knew nothing of the white 

 cow, Deung Adok. Nevertheless, certain of the names given by Mr. Giffen (from whose 

 notes the account quoted was compiled) were recognised, though little was known about 

 those occurring in the generation before Ukwa, father of Nyakang. - 



The Shilluk round Kodok undoubtedly think of Nyakang as having been human in 

 form and in physical qualities, though, unlike his recent successors, he did not die but 

 disappeared. Before his disappearance he gave certain instructions to those of his 

 companions who lived at Akurwa, where one of his most celebrated shrines now exists. 

 His holiness is espeeia,lly shown by his relation to Juok^ the high-god of the Shilluk, who 

 made man and is responsible for the order of things. Juok is formless and invisible, and, 

 like the air, is everywhere at once ; he is far above Nyakang and men alike ; nevertheless, 

 it is only through Nyakang that men can approach him, performing the sacrifices to 

 Nyakang which cause him to move Juok to send rain. Juok is not worshipped directly, and 

 although some Shilluk may vaguely associate the dead with him, this feeling does not 

 appear to imply any knowledge of a place of the dead or of their condition. In spite 

 of the absence of any direct worship of Juok, his name occurs in many common greetings, 

 e.g. yimiti Juok, "may Juok guard you," and, like Job, a sick man may cry er ra Juok, 

 "why oh Juok?" 



There is a vague but quite general belief that the spirits of the dead are about 

 everywhere, and that sometimes they come to their descendants in dreams and help 

 them if they are ill, or give them good counsel. 



This belief does not appear to have given rise to any considerable cult of dead 

 ancestors as it has among the Dinka, although the whole working religion of the Shilluk 

 is a cult of Nyakang, the semi-divine ancestor of their kings, in each of whom his spirit 

 is immanent. 

 Royal graves In describing this cult I shall begin by considering certain shrines which exist in 



become shrines ^.j^g villages round Fashoda and elsewhere in the Shilluk country, but which are not 

 shrines of Nyakang. 



Fig. 50 is a reproduction of a photograph of part of a small village between Kodok and 

 Fashoda. It will be seen that two of the tiikl of whicli the village is composed are more 

 neatly thatched than the others, and that the fence surrounding them is in specially good 



' Op. cit. p. 197. 



- Omaro was called Omaro Wakolo and said to have lived long before Nyakang, nothing else was known 

 of him. Wad Maul was recognised as a name occurring in an old song. Ukwa and Nik-kieya (Nyakai) were 

 regarded as the father and mother of Nyakang, but Ari Umker became the wife of Nyakang and Ad Dui 

 their daughter. Bun Yung was unknown. Ud Diljil was said to have lived very long ago and to " Ijelong 

 to" the Anyuak on the Sobat River. This last observation seems to offer an explanation of the very 

 circumstantial account I have quoted of the origin of Nyakang. Taken from notes Ijy Mr. Giffen, whose 

 station stands on the Sobat, it may well show Anyuak influence, and there is nothing more likely than that 

 the local Shilluk share the beliefs of the kindred Anyuak or have been influenced by them. 



■' Juok of the Shilluk must not lie confused with the jok of the Dinka, i.e. the spirits (aliep) 

 of certain old and important ancestors who take a life-long interest in their descendants, whom they assist 

 in every way, but to whom they also send sickness and death. 



