Interpreting Sorcery in Togo as a Peace Corps Volunteer

 Hello everyone, it's been a minute. I know I haven't been as active as I, or most of you, would like since returning to Togo. My job has been quite demanding both physically and mentally, making it a bit hard to find the time and energy to update my blog. However, I have learned a lot over the past 6 months, and with 6 months remaining, I want to share more about my experience in Togo and the many things I have learned. 

So, in this blog post, I want to discuss a very interesting topic that arguably affects everyday life in Togo, and in many parts of Africa, but is a very foreign and mysterious concept in the U.S.: sorcery. Here, sorcery is frequently mentioned in everyday life, and it is often used to explain things, that upon first glance, may not have an obvious explanation. It is a concept that I cannot pretend to fully grasp, and people often have a difficult time fully explaining it to me in a way that I can understand given my cultural upbringing and personal experiences. 

Adossa Gadao: using sorcery to show strength

First and foremost, sorcery does not carry the same definition or meaning here as it does in the states. When we talk about sorcery back home, witches and magic often come to mind. Things fantastical that often have a more logical explanation behind the curtain of awe and mystery. At home, sorcery is most often referenced in the realm of entertainment, Halloween, or as a hobby for the more unique. However, in Togo, and much of Africa, sorcery affects the average person; it is seen as a part of everyday life and carries a negative connotation. Here, sorcery is often used to explain the struggles and the bad things that happen in someone's life. 

In reality, life is tough in Togo. Accidents occur frequently, people die from easily preventable diseases, many young lives are lost, and people suffer from injuries that can impact the rest of their lives. All of these things are the direct and indirect cause of poverty, lack of development and infrastructure, and limited access to modern medicine and proper healthcare. While most people are not ignorant to the true causes of their struggles, they often search for a deeper, more culturally rooted explanation. As a result, they turn to blaming sorcery.

When speaking to people about their struggles, I often see them wrestle with a logical explanation for their problems and a more mystical and abstract reason for the challenges they face. And perhaps both can be true at the same time for them.

For example, all of your goats die overnight? It was probably a highly transmissible disease or pest that killed them. Or it could be a result of sorcery conjured by someone you offended. A young person in the village died in a motorcycle accident or by a snake bite in the field? Everyone knows the national route is killer here and poisonous snakes commonly hide in the brush that people cultivate in. Or perhaps the child's father did something that resulted in sorcery being practiced against his family and is therefore to be blamed for his child's death. 

I, and other volunteers have heard a wide array of events, both logically explicable and inexplicable, blamed on sorcery: the lack of rain due to a curse someone put on the village, a soccer team can't score in a match because the other team practiced sorcery on the field the night before, a young couple struggle to get pregnant because of sorcery, etc. 

I have even seen how people's successes can be turned against them. People who experience financial, professional, or personal success in their life are often viewed with envy. People either claim they practiced sorcery to reach these achievements, or the successful person fears that sorcery will be practiced against them by other community members out of envy and resentment. As a result, people are extremely private with their personal lives and are wary about sharing personal information with others, especially regarding their struggles, goals, and achievements. 

I have had many interesting conversations with people in Togo regarding sorcery. With Togolese people about their views on sorcery and how it has impacted their lives, as well as with fellow volunteers and how we interpret it based on our own cultural upbringings and beliefs. What I do understand about sorcery here is that it is not the same as magic, and it is not practiced by just anyone on just anyone. Sorcery almost always carries negative connotation here, and it is believed that only someone who is close to you or tied to you in some way can practice sorcery on you. 

Kondona: coming of age ceremony also paying homage to the ancestors

In the U.S., we often say "sometimes bad things happen to good people." However, here in Togo, that is not a belief. Nothing in this world happens without a reason. Someone or something must always be to blame. Whether it's the victim that angered someone to cause sorcery to be practiced against them, or someone with evil intentions putting sorcery on others. Sometimes I see sorcery as a coping mechanism. People struggle to accept the bad things that happen in their lives and need an explanation for their misfortunes. In rare occasions, it can be used to deflect responsibility for one's actions, but I more often see if putting responsibility on someone for an event that, to me, seems to be completely out of their control.

I recently had a conversation with a close friend about sorcery. He struggled to put it in terms that I could understand. We tried to compare what "sorcery" in the U.S. might look like and how it differs from the sorcery practiced in Togo. He gave me an example of a friend who immigrated to the states and had been cheated and stolen from by other close friends when he would send money back home to build a home and business in Togo. My friend explained it in the terms of sorcery, but I interpreted it more as putting your trust in the wrong person and your friends betraying you. Perhaps it's easier and less hurtful to blame sorcery in this case. 

I have had other people ask me if sorcery is practiced in the States. When I was first asked this question, my initial response was no, sorcery does not exist back home. However, one of my neighbors once challenged this answer. They argued that yes, sorcery is practiced in the U.S. (or where white people live in general). However, sorcery in the developed world is practiced in order to put the practitioner ahead in their career or life. When reflecting upon this, I thought of the conspiracies and accusations of the rich and famous making deals with the devil and practicing satanic rituals in return for immense fame, power, and money. My Togolese neighbor continued on to argue that in the U.S. and abroad, sorcery is practiced by the few to obtain power, success, and fame, whereas in Togo and other parts of Africa, sorcery is widely practiced to cause pain and suffering on others. And because of this, Africans cannot advance like the "white man". While I might not fully agree with this statement, I did find some truth in it regarding how jealousy and certain destructive behaviors here to ensure that one's peer does not advance more than them often inhibits overall development and advancement in communities.

Kondona dance at the Aouda market

Whether its Islam or Christianity, many people here are religious and practice religions that were introduced to the region by outsiders. It is interesting to see how people often mix traditional beliefs and practices with indoctrinated religions. Sometimes these beliefs seem to be at odds with one another, so it is fascinating to see which beliefs hold in different situations. You can even see how traditional beliefs are infused into Christian and Islamic rituals and celebrations here. It is an example of how religion can be transformed to fit local context and how loosely religious texts and doctrines can be interpreted based on one's environment.

Traditional priests: live in the bush and are highly regarded

As for me, I don't know what I do and don't believe in here. I see myself as a logical person and often listen to people's stories about sorcery with silent skeptism. However, there is one thing I know to be true. Whether I believe in sorcery or not, it is something very important to be aware of here because most people do believe in it. And whether it's true or not, if enough people believe in it, it holds power. And reputations and lives can be ruined here simply by the accusations or whispers of sorcery. As a foreigner, I am often seen as a separate entity and untouchable when it comes to sorcery. However, fear of sorcery accusations has affected some of my friendships here, and there are certain aspects of village life in which you must tread carefully to avoid misunderstanding or misinterpretations. 

I have certainly seen things here that I cannot explain, suggesting that possibly greater forces are at play. Many things in life will forever remain a mystery to us humans; we can only find ways to try to accept and live with these mysteries. And the explanations we humans find for the unknown curiously varies depending on our cultural, religious, historical, and geographical backgrounds.