Books

This book is about the Abagusii, Gusiiland, sacred places, sacred people, and religious activities of the community. My late father, William Tinega Mwancha (1928-1994) used to say, “Ntwe basinto b’Oiroba”, meaning, we (human beings) are sons and daughters of the ground (soil). We were formed from the soil and we will eventually return to the soil. For this reason, traditional Gusii elders regard the soil on which they live as sacred. It is therefore in this regard that any literature dealing with the Gusii must demonstrate an understanding of who the Gusii are beginning with their origin, migration and settlement in the land they dearly love and regard as holy. This is why the Gusii Misiri origin, rainmaking, shrines and divination have endeavoured to document what can be summed as the social life of the community. Apart from land (soil), the Gusii have special places, items and people that they regard as sacred. Ngoro ya Mwaga, Sakagwa shrine and Igena monto are only a few sacred places and items discussed in this book. Among the many religious specialists in Gusii, the book explores the life and works of Iriasi the 20th-century Gusii rainmaker. Iriasi was allegedly said to be intersex, a condition considered by many people of his time as uniquely religious. To his contemporaries, Iriasi was created that way to perform unusual tasks such as rainmaking, divination, and prophecy. Further to Iriasi’s nature and religious work, the book demonstrates the relevance of some traditional Gusii religious practices such as divination in modern times.