mayordomo, a
(Del bajo lat. majordomus, el mayor de la casa.)
Nsala Malongo everyone I have been away from my writers chair for a while. I am wishing all of you peace and well-being throughout this time. I wanted to post something that hardly gets spoken about. I want to shed a bit of light on this situation. Many years ago I remember that I would go to some rayamientos in Nyc and would notice that the mayordomo would do the cutting for the padrino for alot of the oficios and Tata and Yaya ceremonies. See when you go to other Muna Nso as an invited guest I realize that alot of things are house practiced. Meaning that if you are not from that nso you really should not be there because that is for the members of the house. Not for outside eyes to see. But being a bit ignorant to this I did not see anything wrong with it at the time. Anyway the rayamiento for Tata is a bit complicated and also the markings of the body differ from that of the ngueyo, mayordomo, talanquero, manzanero, nkiso puerta and so forth. Different rankings allow privileges. Now when it comes to the mayordomo he has the authority to be in the room and help assist in handing the implements and doing ritual work with his Tata present. But to cut though he may have seen the ceremony many of times before he is not allowed to perform those cuts.
Why?
Logically speaking if you are a ranked officer in any type of military regiment you receive rank by initiating into the rank….. Not being an observant authority because though we know repetitive teaching is used with animals, humans etc. mimicking a process without the spiritual fortitude is just that. Most Tata Nkisi and Yaya Nkisi when confronted with the muerto will go through possession. Ceremonially Baconfulas, Mayordomos do not have the spiritual capacity to possess and the ceremony given to them with the adequate markings would never allow it. That means possession for any of the two would not be able to hold that energy and transfer it to the other Tata’s or Yaya’s that are receiving initiation. Now in Mayombe baco bilongo fula ngando(with respect to my brother Alex LaSalle). Fula gando is more than a mayordomo and so this means at some point he would pass to Tata which he did through hands of our godfather Miguel Garzon (Luanganga pacto nsasi). He holds rank for our nso as a combined nso. East and West coast. The word Baco Bilongo Fula Ngando is a rank in our nso that is more than a simple mayordomo. Since I can not go into Nso Secrets I will just allow you to know that in a sidenote. In mayombe the baconfula and the mayordomo has the authority of the Tata to ritually cut people under strict supervision. Every house or Muna nso does not work the same and though I reiterate For the most part Tata is father of secrets, Mayordomo is a secondary initiation after ngueyo in which a person who does not mount can work in the nso but is not a father of secrets. He follows the Tata and works alongside certain corresponding jobs in the Nso but is not an initiator but under the Tata’s supervision in some houses it is allowed. The tata does have the final say in his nso. I think we need to open our eyes more to this religion and stop being sheep led astray. Start practicing our culture and stop living with dogmatic beliefs.
Paleros are not christians we are practitioners of a bantu philosophical understanding of the universe. Not mere religious clergymen. If you believe that is who you are you are sorely wrong and really do not understand our way of life…
Nsambia ………………Tata Musitu