The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano, Or Gustavus Vassa, The African | Page 8

them, and guard them from the bad spirits or their foes. For this
reason they always before eating, as I have observed, put some small
portion of the meat, and pour some of their drink, on the ground for
them; and they often make oblations of the blood of beasts or fowls at
their graves. I was very fond of my mother, and almost constantly with
her. When she went to make these oblations at her mother's tomb,
which was a kind of small solitary thatched house, I sometimes
attended her. There she made her libations, and spent most of the night
in cries and lamentations. I have been often extremely terrified on these
occasions. The loneliness of the place, the darkness of the night, and
the ceremony of libation, naturally awful and gloomy, were heightened
by my mother's lamentations; and these, concuring with the cries of
doleful birds, by which these places were frequented, gave an
inexpressible terror to the scene.
We compute the year from the day on which the sun crosses the line,
and on its setting that evening there is a general shout throughout the
land; at least I can speak from my own knowledge throughout our
vicinity. The people at the same time make a great noise with rattles,
not unlike the basket rattles used by children here, though much larger,
and hold up their hands to heaven for a blessing. It is then the greatest
offerings are made; and those children whom our wise men foretel will
be fortunate are then presented to different people. I remember many
used to come to see me, and I was carried about to others for that
purpose. They have many offerings, particularly at full moons;
generally two at harvest before the fruits are taken out of the ground:
and when any young animals are killed, sometimes they offer up part of
them as a sacrifice. These offerings, when made by one of the heads of
a family, serve for the whole. I remember we often had them at my
father's and my uncle's, and their families have been present. Some of
our offerings are eaten with bitter herbs. We had a saying among us to
any one of a cross temper, 'That if they were to be eaten, they should be

eaten with bitter herbs.'
We practised circumcision like the Jews, and made offerings and feasts
on that occasion in the same manner as they did. Like them also, our
children were named from some event, some circumstance, or fancied
foreboding at the time of their birth. I was named Olaudah, which, in
our language, signifies vicissitude or fortune also, one favoured, and
having a loud voice and well spoken. I remember we never polluted the
name of the object of our adoration; on the contrary, it was always
mentioned with the greatest reverence; and we were totally
unacquainted with swearing, and all those terms of abuse and reproach
which find their way so readily and copiously into the languages of
more civilized people. The only expressions of that kind I remember
were 'May you rot, or may you swell, or may a beast take you.'
I have before remarked that the natives of this part of Africa are
extremely cleanly. This necessary habit of decency was with us a part
of religion, and therefore we had many purifications and washings;
indeed almost as many, and used on the same occasions, if my
recollection does not fail me, as the Jews. Those that touched the dead
at any time were obliged to wash and purify themselves before they
could enter a dwelling-house. Every woman too, at certain times, was
forbidden to come into a dwelling-house, or touch any person, or any
thing we ate. I was so fond of my mother I could not keep from her, or
avoid touching her at some of those periods, in consequence of which I
was obliged to be kept out with her, in a little house made for that
purpose, till offering was made, and then we were purified.
Though we had no places of public worship, we had priests and
magicians, or wise men. I do not remember whether they had different
offices, or whether they were united in the same persons, but they were
held in great reverence by the people. They calculated our time, and
foretold events, as their name imported, for we called them
Ah-affoe-way-cah, which signifies calculators or yearly men, our year
being called Ah-affoe. They wore their beards, and when they died they
were succeeded by their sons. Most of their implements and things of
value were interred along with them. Pipes and tobacco were also put

into the grave with the corpse, which was always perfumed and
ornamented, and animals were offered in sacrifice to