Candomble, A Afro-Brazilian Christian Religion

As part of my cultural-Anthropology class I read this book titled The City of Women by Ruth Landes. This book explores the intricacies of life in Bahia, Brazil where Afro-Brazilians follow a different kind of catholic Christianity. I wondered about the many different ways Christianity is being followed across the world. In this particular form, possession of a spirit, werid dances, drumming etc are very much part of the christian tradition. Since the book was written originally in 1947, there are several racial connotations in the book. For example in the introduction, people belonging to every colored race is referred to in a term which makes them foreign; native American tribes are referred to as ‘Indians’; former slaves/ freedmen are referred to as “Afro Brazilians” etc but surprisingly the white people living in Brazil are not referred to as “Euro Brazilians”. In my opinion this is a subtle but firm assertion that the American continent “belonged” to the White people and not to these others.

I find this identification interesting because historically native Americans were called “Indians” because Christopher Columbus who set sail looking for India lost his way and landed in the Americas and mistook the tribal populations to be “Indians”. Black people from Africa were brought in chains to work on the plantations by the White people and they are referred to “Afro Brazilians”. But in the same context white people who left Europe seeking fortune and freedom in new lands should have been referred to as “Euro Brazilians”. Referring to them as White Brazilians instead of Euro Brazilians, Sally Cole somehow seems to convey the message that Brazil always belonged to White men. Considering that social identity, societal structures and inter-cultural living is the basic interest of ethnographers I wonder why Sally Cole and Ruth Landes don’t identify themselves as Euro Americans.

This work of Landes is a chronicle of her life during the period of her stay at Bahia and is written almost a decade after the experience, in short it is a work of Memory, which was probably supported by her diary recordings. Though work of memory the descriptions are graphic and succeed in presenting a rather vivid picture of life in Bahia to the reader.

In the book the author faces up to the conflict between the old and new ideas, ancient and modern traditions in her interactions with Martiniano, the magician/ sorcerer who had been educated in the cult arts in Africa. This, I feel is pretty much akin to the respect I have seen being accorded to Islamic teachers in India who have traveled to Mecca and Hindu priests who have been to Varanasi (Benaras or Kashi) to study scriptures of respective religions. Martiniano’s raves and rants about younger men not being interested in learning his craft and younger women who still had “hot blood” becoming priestesses and dancing to attract men display a conflict which is often faced in changing societies/ cultures. In this case Martiniano is a Catholic practicing Christianity in African style, but with advent of modernity things are changing.

As I read through the book, one of Landes’ observations on page 67 left me rather disconcerted. Landes mulls over why these Afro-Brazilians spend so much energy and time on such seemingly trivial pursuits of decorating dolls, performing ceremonies etc. And towards the end of the paragraph Landes writes: “Well, I answered myself, one reason naturally was that they were not instructed in these other saner pursuits.” By saying this Landes implies that the ceremonies, doll making, dancing etc are “insane pursuits”. This comment brings to fore her bias and discriminative mindset which is so typical of the “organized white race”. I don’t know much about the history or scientific basis of African practices so I couldn’t comment on this particular instance. And coming from an ethnographer, this displays a lack of empathy and understanding and a superiority complex.

After all Racism and Racial Bias seems to be very much a part of the Academia during the 1940s and 1950s. Whether it continues into modern era or not, I don’t know and will find out soon.