The Lugbara live in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, and South Sudan. Their number totaled approximately 240,000, with around 180,000 residing in north-western Uganda, with the remaining population spread across bordering areas of the modern-day Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan. The Lugbara people speak in a Sudanese language. The basic social and economic unit found in Lugbara culture is a lineage group under the authority of a male genealogical elder called ba wara, meaning "big man". These lineage groups, often referred to as sub-tribes, typically lived in a village built atop a hillside or ridge. In addition to the male elder, other religious leaders include diviners, oracles, and rain men.
Creation Myth
Lugbara believe that they are all of one blood, ari alo, and that blood was created by God, Adronga 'ba o'bapiri. Whilst there are many different versions of the Lugbara creation myth, most agree that God created the first beings Gborgboro and Meme at Loloi to the North in South Sudan. The transcendent aspect is often referred to as Adroa or Adronga whilst the immanent aspect is referred to as Adro.
Adroa appeared in both good and evil aspects; he was the creator god and appeared on Earth as a man who was near death. He was depicted as a very tall white man with only one half of a body, missing one eye, one leg, etc. His children were called the Adroanzi.
The Adroanzi were nature gods of specific rivers, trees and other sacred wild areas. At night, they followed people and protected them from animals and bandits as long as they did not look over their shoulder to ensure that an Adroanzi was following; if the person did so, the Adroanzi killed them. They ate the people they killed. They were also sometimes known as water snakes. Some Lugbara consider them gardeners.
Key figures in Lugbara Mythology
Adronga 'ba o'bapiri, or God creator of men, created the first beings on Earth, Gborgboro and Meme, as well as creating domestic livestock. God is also referred to as Adro or Adroa. There are several scenarios in which the rua edezu rite may be enacted. A common case is to cleanse sickness from the body of a man who has had a disagreement with a member of his family who has died before the disagreement could be resolved. It is believed that sickness is likely to strike the child of the sick man if he is to take the widow of the dead man. It can be determined that the sickness was sent by Divine Spirit after consultations with oracles and then diviners. The ritual is performed by the patrilineal elder, in which a sheep is assigned to the sick man. The sheep is then walked the perimeter of the sick man's home, given a "ritual address", then killed and eaten by members of the lineage group.