Rethinking Methods and Concepts of Anthropological Studies on African Pygmies' World View: The Creator-God and the Dead

Abstract

The fact that there is no evidence of a creator-god, whose existence was claimed by Schebesta, in the beliefs of the Mbuti Pygmies, a large group of African pygmies, is confirmed by the observations of the present author and other researchers. The reason why Schebesta made up the creator-god is explored and described; he was under the strong influence of W. Schmidt's theory of primitive monotheism, and he was a Christian priest. Instead, the importance of the ancestors, or the dead, for the pygmies' world view is shown with examples from the Efe, Mbuti, Baka, and Aka Pygmies. Lastly two theoretical issues of religious anthropology are pointed out; because may researchers fail to understand the relationship between names and concepts of "supernatural beings, " they are inclined to make up a supreme being or a creator-god to resolve the contradiction; researchers often use terms such as "god" and "spirit" without considering that they are imposing Western dichotomy upon the world view of the people they study.