Cameroon - the sacred king

10:00:02:00
Cameroon: a place of religious tolerance. Here in Mankon this harmony relies on the ‘fon’, or sacred king.

10:00:10:20

Gods of football aside, the king mediates between Christians, Muslims and followers of traditional faiths.

Fon  Angwafo III.
King of Mankon
10:00:18:00
”He may have been in his youthful days been a religious Christian man. This is no hindrance to his becoming Fon. But on becoming fon, when we do once a year go to Ala'a Nkyi, it becomes his main religion"

10:00:43:20
It is a happy event when the King of Mankon goes to Ala'a Nkyi. Once a year the entire court assembles in this sacred place.

10:00:56:00
Only a select few can speak directly with the king.

Even the pouring of the palm wine is a special privilege. 

10:00:10:00

With his drinking horn, the king passes on not only wine, but also a part of himself.

10:01:20:15
The dignitaries go to the graves of the most powerful kings of Mankon.

10:01:27:40

The newly built shelters protect them from the gaze of curious onlookers.

Fongang Ndenge
Advisor to the King
10:01:37:20

“The tradition says that before any big occasion, the fon has to come and commune with his ancestors, tell them his meaning, proposal for coming here, what is going to happen, report it to them, and then he will ask them for blessing, ward off illnesses from among the people “

10:02:05:00
Literally translated, Ala'a Nkyi means "land of water". The nearby river is holy and may only be visited by the king and his priests.

Fongang Ndenge
Advisor to the King
10:02:18:24
"Before he does the inauguration, he will go down to the river, there, to be cleansed before he comes and starts the sacrifice"

10:02:32:04
The sound from the elephant tusk is considered the "voice of the king." It announces the end of the secretive ritual, when the holy river water is carried away in calabashes. The water gives the king a new lease of life, which he then symbolically passes on to his followers.

10:03:00:40
Each gift basket is filled according to the size and status of the family

10:03:07:70

A bottle of beer is considered a special honour.

10:03:15:10
Everyone From the Atshu National Court gets something. The offering of food gives a clear message: The King is considered a source of life, materially as well as spiritually.

10:03:35:10
For this to continue, he needs the water from Ala'a Nkyi.

Fo Angwafo III.
King of Mankon
10:03:45:50

“The fons’ water came from the spring, and nobody else got water from that place. Now that we’re far away, only occasionally we take along calabashes, and draw that water, back to the palace, and then, when the fon needs water for a bath, a bit of it, a bit of the water collected from the spring is put in that water.”

10:04:30:00
According to the traditional culture of iconography, any object can have a spiritual dimension. This idea is the basis for crafts produced by the community.

10:04:49:00

It has nothing to do with idolatry and fetishism, even if many Africans have to defend themselves against such accusations.

Fongang Ndenge
Advisor to the King
10:04:59:36

“The Africans have their own way of approach. It is not because you call God God that you are right. I call God Ngwi (NUI) and I think that’s my own way of expressing that same idea which you have about God”

10:05:21:00
In Ala'a Nkyi the annual celebrations begin with the tradition of the king passing the power of their ancestors on to the people. But at the great feast of Mankon the emphasis is on tolerance of all religions.

Fo Angwafo III.
King of Mankon
10:05:39:00

“This occasion involves all the religious groups. Therefore, a communal service is most appropriate on that occasion, for all the faithfuls of the land”

10:06:12:00
From Catholic bishops…

10:06:16:08

…To the most important Imam, the most senior religious dignitaries of the kingdom come to speak.

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Lectures and sermons heard together: this celebration shows that different faiths do not have to mark a fundamental separation between people.

10:06:42:00

 In times like ours when conflict is widespread, it is especially important to underline the unity between the different religious groups publicly.

10:06:56:72
The horn, the voice of the king, gives the signal to start the masked dances.

10:07:12:00

The dancers’ masks pay homage to the king, suggesting his strength is like that of an elephant and his wits like those of a leopard.

10:07:36:18
These dances hark back to a time long before the arrival of the Islamic and Christian missionaries. Yet the wish here is that they might help the king to carry on spreading the message of a religious tolerance deeply rooted in Cameroonian tradition.

Report: Manuela Zips-Mairitsch and Werner Zips
Camera: Werner Zips
Editor: Anja Natmeßnig