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



There is a shallow, generally dry, khor near Kwom, the village in which the king-elect 

 and bseny await the coming of the Akurwa men. This is the scene of a sham fight with 

 dura stalks between the Akurwa men bringing " Nyakang" and the folk waiting with the 

 newly-elected rel, in which the former are victorious. No reason could be given for this 

 " old custom," as it was called, but immediately after it the Akurwa people escort the king- 

 elect to Fashoda. Certain of the Akurwa men now enter the shrine with the stool, and, 

 after a short time, come out and place it on the ground outside the entrance to the 

 shrine enclosure; they now place "Nyakang" on the stool, the king-elect holding one leg 

 of the stool while an important hieng holds another. Near him stand two of his paternal 

 aunts and two of his sisters, while he is surrounded by a crowd of niaret, ni'aret, hwanidret 

 and Ororo. The latter kill a bullock between the stool and the fence round the shrine, 

 and they alone may eat its flesh. The Akurwa men now carry "Nyakang" into the 

 shrine and the Ororo lift up the king-elect and place him on the stool, on which he 

 remains seated for some time, I believe till sunset, when the Ororo escort the new king 

 to three new huts specially built for him, and the Akurwa men take the sacred stool 

 into the shrine. The king stays inside his hut, or perhaps inside his enclosure, for three 

 days ; on the fourth night the Ororo take the king quietly, almost stealthily, to his royal 

 residence. Another .bullock is killed and eaten by the Ororo, after which the new 

 king appears publicly to his subjects. The three newly-built huts which were occupied 

 by the king are broken up (perhaps by the Ororo) and their fragments thrown into 

 the river. 



I believe that the installation of a new ret generally takes place about the middle 

 of the dry season. It was said that the Akurwa party and "Nyakang" stay at Fashoda 

 for some time, till about the beginning of the rains. Before leaving Fashoda a bullock 

 is sacrificed, and a sheep is killed before crossing any hhor on the way back. On 

 arriving at Akurwa four or five of the cattle given them by the ret are sacrificed, the 

 bones being thrown into the river. 



I have little doubt that the above account of the installation of a new king is 

 substantially correct as far as it goes ; it would be unreasonable to regard it as complete 

 though I believe it contains at least an outline of those features of the ceremonial 

 which connect the king-elect with Nyakang. It was from this point of view that 

 I approached my informants, and the connection between the two would thus appear to 

 them to be the object upon which I wished them to speak. I naturally followed up 

 any side issues which appeared, but these were few and singularly barren. I make 

 these remarks because I do not doubt that there was a great deal more ceremonial 

 killing of cattle on the occasion of the installation of a king than my account indicates. 

 This is borne out by a note from the official records, given me by Captain H. O'Sullivan, 

 Governor of the Upjaer Nile Province, of a sacrifice held at Fashoda after the present- 

 ret had been brought there. The ret and a "large gathering of the tribe" proceeded to 

 the enclosure in which stands the shrine of Nyakang ; no one entered the enclosure, 

 but a sheep was brought and its right ear cut off with one of the sacred spears that 

 are kept within the shrine. The severed ear was placed in a bowl of water held by 

 one of the servants of Nyakang (harlt haeng Nyakang) and the water used to wash the 

 blade of the sacred spear, after which the water was carried within the shrine. The 

 onlookers then advanced and knelt on the ground, forming a series of lines round the 

 shrine and its enclosure. A "sheikh" took one of the spears of Nyakang and drove 

 it into the flank of a bullock, which " trotted leisurely away from the place where 

 it was appointed to die. If it returned alone to this spot all would be well I was 



