M^O^NINYAGA, THE GREAT WHITE SPIRIT 



some people who regarded belief in prayer as the monop- 

 oly of Christians. 



It has been my privilege to witness many religious 

 rites while in equatorial Africa, and as a member of the 

 Kiama, whose functions I will later describe, I was gen- 

 erally accepted wherever I went. It was obvious to 

 me that they took it for granted that even while they 

 were praying, their prayer was already answered. The 

 A-Kikuyu have no cringing fear of God, but ask frankly 

 for what they desire. To them, God is a God of Love, 

 though he punishes those who disobey him by disease or 

 even death. In time of national distress, such as famine 

 or drought, sacrifice is reverently offered up for divine 

 acceptance. 



Nothing but good comes from God, say they. But 

 how, it may be asked, is it that some people are suffering 

 and in distress? This has been a problem for less prim- 

 itive peoples than the A-Kikuyu. How is it that there 

 is so much that is unpleasant in the world? One tribe 

 explained it to me in this way. They said that although 

 God is good and wishes good for everybody, unfortu- 

 nately he has a half-witted brother who is always in- 

 terfering with what he does. This half-witted brother 

 keeps on obtruding himself and does not give God a 

 chance. 



The A-Kikuyu ascribe the ordinary ills of life to the 

 bad spirits of the departed, but after all, these ills are 

 not without their remedy. 



121 



