Kilimanjaro Spells: July 2014

Thursday, 31 July 2014

Make Him/Her Fall in Love With Me!

This is a very potent spell designed to do one thing and one thing only: to make that special person fall in love with you!

Order this spell, if:

You are madly in love with this person.

You want to get married and raise a beautiful family together.

You know the two of you will be gloriously happy together.

You don't want to be with anyone else, just this person.

You have never been more sure in your life that you have finally found the person of your dreams.

If you answered yes to the above, the Fall in Love spell could be the answer to your prayers.

Traditional healer http://www.kilimanjarospells.com
Lover spells http://kilimanjarospells.com/love-spells.html
Money spells http://kilimanjarospells.com/money-spells.html
Lotto spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/lottery-gambling-casino-spells.html
Revenge spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/revenge-curses-spells.html
Fertility spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/fertility-spells.html
Protection spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/protection-spells.html
Court case spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/court-case-justice-legal-spells.html
Gay love spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/gay-love-spells.html
Lesbian love spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/lesbian-love-spells.html

These are powerful words for you: I want your love and your friendship.

But more than that, I want you to desire me like no other. I want you to feel the heat running through your veins, and I want you to have strong, uncontrollable thoughts about holding me, caressing me, making love to me.

When you think of me, your temperature will soar and lustful thoughts will fill your mind so that no matter what you're doing you'll be distracted and not be able to get me out of your mind. Think of me as you would a wild, carefree lover. And don't hold back the lust you have in your heart. I'm yours -- completely, totally yours.

I want you to lust for me until you can barely stand it. I want you to rush into my arms the moment you see me, to fulfill so many of your fantasies. Let's experience what others merely dream of. Let's do it.

Lust for me and you'll be happily surprised at what I can do for you.

Lust for me and we'll be the envy of every one who knows us.

Lust for me and we'll live an incredible life together.

Lust for me and make our world complete.

Now is the time to act upon your dreams. A world renowned psychic, Burton, will apply his formidable skills in opening the gates of desire in the person of your choice. You could be in their arms sooner than you think, engulfed in flaming desire and uncontrolled passion.

Traditional healer http://www.kilimanjarospells.com
Lover spells http://kilimanjarospells.com/love-spells.html
Money spells http://kilimanjarospells.com/money-spells.html
Lotto spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/lottery-gambling-casino-spells.html
Revenge spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/revenge-curses-spells.html
Fertility spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/fertility-spells.html
Protection spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/protection-spells.html
Court case spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/court-case-justice-legal-spells.html
Gay love spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/gay-love-spells.html
Lesbian love spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/lesbian-love-spells.html

Reverse curse spells

An Evil Force Could Be Responsible for Your Bad Fortune! If you feel the weight of the world is seated squarely on your shoulders, you may have an evil spirit hovering overhead.

We urge you not to put up with this one more day because it is within your means to take direct and effective action!

Let us cast this negative force out of your life! The Reverse Curse is designed to remove the obstacles standing between you and success – in every aspect of your life.

Once the Reverse Curse Takes Hold...

You will arise each morning with a smile on your face and a sharpness of mind to ease your way through the treacherous pitfalls. Remember, it is never too late to enjoy a lifetime of glorious success which may be currently unimaginable in your present situation.

Here's what this powerful curse can do for you:

Vastly improve your important relationships
Dissolve your troubles
Remove the dark clouds
Soften your enemies
Lighten the weight on your shoulders
Draw people closer to you
Remove guilt

If you feel hindered by something you can't quite put your finger on, do not discount the fact that an evil force could be lurking in the background sabotaging everything you attempt. This evil force could be responsible for most of your bad occurrences since you were a child. We urge you to allow this unique and effective “Reverse Curse” to dramatically better your life.

Traditional healer http://www.kilimanjarospells.com
Lover spells http://kilimanjarospells.com/love-spells.html
Money spells http://kilimanjarospells.com/money-spells.html
Lotto spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/lottery-gambling-casino-spells.html
Revenge spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/revenge-curses-spells.html
Fertility spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/fertility-spells.html
Protection spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/protection-spells.html
Court case spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/court-case-justice-legal-spells.html
Gay love spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/gay-love-spells.html
Lesbian love spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/lesbian-love-spells.html

Friend to lover spells

Do you have a friend whom you love dearly? Are they oblivious to your desire to be more than just platonic? Do you want them to feel the same way about you?

If you have passionate feelings about a special person and want to stimulate their passion for you, you have come to the right place. A powerful spell caster who specializes in bringing people together can work in your behalf. He could provide the spark resulting in a raging fire of a relationship that you previously had not thought possible.

So, if you want to light their fire and change the way they feel about you, our spell caster could provide the means to do it.

No longer will you have to suppress your feelings toward this person. Finally, this is your opportunity to alter their impression of you. No longer will you merely be viewed as "nice" or "sweet" or "pal."

If you desire to be loved – both emotionally and physically – then ask for the Friend to Lover spell. Then sit back and wait for a change in attitude.

Be ready to be touched, adored, desired. And it could happen in a surprisingly short time.

Bring back lost love spells

Are you in love with someone who is resisting you, turning you away? Is this person closed minded, unwilling to see the real you?

If a past mistake is haunting you, preventing the two of you from reuniting, don’t give up. There is something you can do!

Whether you truly made the mistake or not doesn't really matter. As long as you are "thought" to have done something wrong, the situation still has to be resolved. Ultimately, what is best for you is to be forgiven so your relationship can get back on track.

Dissipate the Bitterness

You will not be loved unconditionally until you are forgiven! Anger and bitterness are a blinding force that blots out laughter, joy, happiness. So no matter what you say or do, the very first step you must take is to dissipate the bitterness.

If you are currently under attack and your motives are being questioned, the Forgive Me spell could bring down the barriers between you. This spell softens the hardest of hearts. It melts the resistance, opens the mind – allowing the best of you to be seen at your brightest.

Once you are cast in a different light, your finest qualities will finally have a chance to win out. And you will feel romance in the air. Once again you could be drawn together – to touch, to hold, to caress – to make love. And when this occurs, love and commitment could not be far behind.

Traditional healer http://www.kilimanjarospells.com
Lover spells http://kilimanjarospells.com/love-spells.html
Money spells http://kilimanjarospells.com/money-spells.html
Lotto spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/lottery-gambling-casino-spells.html
Revenge spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/revenge-curses-spells.html
Fertility spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/fertility-spells.html
Protection spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/protection-spells.html
Court case spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/court-case-justice-legal-spells.html
Gay love spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/gay-love-spells.html
Lesbian love spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/lesbian-love-spells.html

Banishment spells

Is an evil person causing you great pain? There is nothing worse than knowing someone is out to harm you or destroy you.

Even if they are not outwardly threatening you with physical harm, their motives and actions could cause rapid deterioration of your emotional and mental well being, possibly resulting in a meltdown of your physical health.

If this is happening to you, and if you are not doing anything about it, this situation could cause untold havoc in your life and have dramatic long term repercussions. We recommend you take strong action at once!

The first thing you should do!

Decide once and for all if this person is truly your enemy. If so, they should be treated as such.

Remember, you are in their line of fire and you must take immediate and definitive action to counter their evil efforts. If you feel their negative vibrations and you know in your heart they wish you harm, then bad karma and bad luck will continue to plague you.

This must be stopped at once!

Don’t let this situation deteriorate any further. Their wrath toward you could be the reason that a dark cloud seems to be hovering over you in every aspect of your life, in everything you do, everywhere you go.

It is time to fight back!

It is important for you to understand you can do something about it, and you shouldn’t put it off any longer.

The process of casting a Banish Them! Vanish Them! Curse is a time consuming, laborious process, so please request this only if your situation is nearing desperation.

Traditional healer http://www.kilimanjarospells.com
Lover spells http://kilimanjarospells.com/love-spells.html
Money spells http://kilimanjarospells.com/money-spells.html
Lotto spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/lottery-gambling-casino-spells.html
Revenge spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/revenge-curses-spells.html
Fertility spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/fertility-spells.html
Protection spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/protection-spells.html
Court case spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/court-case-justice-legal-spells.html
Gay love spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/gay-love-spells.html
Lesbian love spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/lesbian-love-spells.html

Love spells

If you're reading this, then we can assume you've already found the love of your life. And most likely the only problem is this person is too shy to commit, or too afraid, or perhaps too busy to concentrate on making the relationship last.

The Marry Me spell is designed to do one thing: pierce the heart of your loved one, making them not only aware of your desires, but bringing their desires and their love for you to the same level.

And once they realize how much they care for you, well then, it's only a matter of time until you tie the knot.

This spell is for you, if:

You've met the right person and you are incredibly in love with them.
You don't want to look any further and you don't want them to look any further.
You feel it's time to settle down and enjoy all the benefits of marriage.
You are worried that if the two of you don't tie the knot soon, disaster awaits around the corner.

Love spells

For whatever reason your lover is not with you, this spell plants the seeds of their return.

Is it just a dream that your lost love will walk through the door? Is it false hope that you visualize the two of you walking hand in hand, together at last, making plans for an incredible future?

Have you ever noticed that with some people the sheer force of their will power can make things happen? And they almost always seem to get what they want. With the assistance of a gifted psychic, your will power could be increased tenfold, making it possible for you to make something happen. Specifically, the return of your love!

Request this spell if:

You know in your heart the two of you belong together.

You know the relationship will work if only it is given a chance.

You know once the two of you are together the bond could be rock-solid.

You know that bad luck and bad timing has worked against you. But now things have changed.

You know if given a second chance the same mistakes won't be repeated.

You know once your lover keeps an open mind, their return is imminent.

You know this relationship is meant to be.

Lost love spells

If you long for the return of a lost lover... if you are heartsick and lonely and despondent... there is something you can do about it!

A Master Psychic who specializes in reuniting people will cast a spell for you. Within days, you'll have a renewed sense of hope, a strong feeling that the person you so deeply and desperately love is on the road back to you.

Your heart will tell you that a life-changing experience has occurred!! Soon, this person could wake up and realize the love and friendship and happiness you have to offer... and he or she could soon be rushing back into your open arms.

The seeds will be planted to break the barriers of stubbornness, of bitterness, of blindness--and replace them with feelings of warmth and love for you.

If you truly care for this person and are willing to do anything necessary for their return, we urge you to have a "Retrieve a Lover" spell cast on your behalf.

Traditional healer http://www.kilimanjarospells.com
Lover spells http://kilimanjarospells.com/love-spells.html
Money spells http://kilimanjarospells.com/money-spells.html
Lotto spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/lottery-gambling-casino-spells.html
Revenge spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/revenge-curses-spells.html
Fertility spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/fertility-spells.html
Protection spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/protection-spells.html
Court case spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/court-case-justice-legal-spells.html
Gay love spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/gay-love-spells.html
Lesbian love spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/lesbian-love-spells.html

Voodoo spells

Regardless of your background, regardless of your beliefs, the ancient art of Voodoo embraces you. Once you open your heart and mind to this awesome power, miraculous changes in your life could bring you instant money, instant love, instant happiness!

Voodoo could reverse a current, turn the tide, alter the shape of the mountain. If it could do all this, imagine what it may do for you? But only if you believe.

Here are merely a few of the things believers ask of Voodoo:

Make your relationship stronger, closer, more secure. Enhance compatibility, making your companion softer, nicer, sexier.

Return a lost love. Awaken them to your irresistible charms that will make it impossible to stay away. Soon they'll rush into your waiting arms!

Enrich your life with money, plentiful gifts, fabulous material possessions.

Wreck vengeance on the person who has wronged you, allowing them little sleep, implanting fear of you in their mind, bringing peace and respect back into your life.

Provide instant luck in love, companionship, career. Not last week or yesterday. Now!

Change other people's opinion of you.

Knock out barriers, smoothing the path to your future.

Once you accept Voodoo, spectacular opportunities could present themselves to you, allowing you to fulfill your true destiny! Select the right spell for you:

Increase the potency of the Voodoo Spell!

Although it is not necessary for you to possess a Voodoo Doll for the Voodoo Spell to work properly, some clients feel a stronger connection when doing so.

Traditional healer http://www.kilimanjarospells.com
Lover spells http://kilimanjarospells.com/love-spells.html
Money spells http://kilimanjarospells.com/money-spells.html
Lotto spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/lottery-gambling-casino-spells.html
Revenge spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/revenge-curses-spells.html
Fertility spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/fertility-spells.html
Protection spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/protection-spells.html
Court case spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/court-case-justice-legal-spells.html
Gay love spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/gay-love-spells.html
Lesbian love spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/lesbian-love-spells.html

Lotto lucky number spells

The Big Winners In Lotteries and Contests Are Not Merely Lucky! They Know In Advance Which Numbers To Use--And When To Use Them!

Have you ever wondered why some people seem to come out on top all the time? They seem to "luck out" even when they don't try, and sometimes they don't even seem to care.

While the rest of us scrape and save, earning every dollar we make, the "lucky" ones seem to glide through life--carefree, happy, and successful. But there is a secret to their success:

Luck Is When Preparation Meets Opportunity

Your Lucky Numbers will be determined by the Oppenheimer Secret Formula

Big winners are not merely lucky, they are well prepared. People who win consistently have one thing in common: they know their lucky numbers and when to use them. What good are your lucky numbers if you don't use them on the right days? Even the time of day is important. If evening is a lucky period for you, that is the time to select your numbers.

Some psychics are able to provide lucky numbers, but only the truly gifted can tell you when to use them. Since it is evident that even these same lucky numbers will not work for you day in and day out, it is imperative you learn precisely when to use them.

If you don't see a dramatic increase in your winnings, you may return the numbers to us for a full, complete refund at any time.

Traditional healer http://www.kilimanjarospells.com
Lover spells http://kilimanjarospells.com/love-spells.html
Money spells http://kilimanjarospells.com/money-spells.html
Lotto spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/lottery-gambling-casino-spells.html
Revenge spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/revenge-curses-spells.html
Fertility spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/fertility-spells.html
Protection spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/protection-spells.html
Court case spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/court-case-justice-legal-spells.html
Gay love spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/gay-love-spells.html
Lesbian love spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/lesbian-love-spells.html

Wanga dolls

Wanga Dolls could bring you love, money, success, revenge--anything you desire! Select the doll or dolls that fit your specific need, then experience the wonders that only a Wanga may bring!

Wanga Dolls summon the forces of the night, supernatural forces that are beyond man's comprehension. Each Wanga represents a powerful spirit that could work in behalf of the person who possesses it.

Possess the Wanga and let its extraordinary powers work for you! Wanga Dolls are hand-crafted and hand-painted, so please order your Wanga only if your need is great.

Traditional healer http://www.kilimanjarospells.com
Lover spells http://kilimanjarospells.com/love-spells.html
Money spells http://kilimanjarospells.com/money-spells.html
Lotto spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/lottery-gambling-casino-spells.html
Revenge spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/revenge-curses-spells.html
Fertility spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/fertility-spells.html
Protection spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/protection-spells.html
Court case spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/court-case-justice-legal-spells.html
Gay love spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/gay-love-spells.html
Lesbian love spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/lesbian-love-spells.html

Relationship spells

There are few things more disheartening than a troubled relationship. It's hard for you to focus on any other part of your life when you feel disappointed and deserted by the person who should be by your side - helping you, holding you, loving you.

It is particularly frustrating when you know you have tried everything within your powers to straighten out the situation. Yet whatever you do or say, your loved one doesn't seem to "get it." And you know in your heart this relationship will work if only you can tear down the barriers preventing your loved one from loving you totally and unconditionally.

If the above words describe your situation, the Relationship Doctor is prepared to stand by your side and focus his considerable talents in your behalf. His unique and powerful spells are designed to bring you together with the true love of your life!

Relationship Doctor spells are like laser beams, honing in on the troubled portion of your compatibility -- patching your problem and preventing it from reocuring.

Take a look at the specific spells below and see which one(s) could help you bring your life back to not only where it was previously but to a higher level you never dreamed possible.

Traditional healer http://www.kilimanjarospells.com
Lover spells http://kilimanjarospells.com/love-spells.html
Money spells http://kilimanjarospells.com/money-spells.html
Lotto spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/lottery-gambling-casino-spells.html
Revenge spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/revenge-curses-spells.html
Fertility spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/fertility-spells.html
Protection spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/protection-spells.html
Court case spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/court-case-justice-legal-spells.html
Gay love spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/gay-love-spells.html
Lesbian love spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/lesbian-love-spells.html

Zodiac spells

If you believe that astrology can provide remarkable insights into your character and your future, you should be aware that you can take it one step further.

What a Zodiac spell can do for you

By combining two ancient arts - astrology and spell casting - one of the leading specialists in the art of casting Zodiac spells will focus on your most important request.

And he will call upon his formidable psychic powers to bring your dream to reality.

So if you are in a relationship that is floundering, or perhaps your bank account is in jeopardy, or you are finally at your wit's end regarding a troubling situation, you now have a friend with amazing psychic gifts.

His name is Burton and he's an internationally renowned astrologer/psychic. One of his areas of specialization is casting Zodiac spells. And he is waiting to hear from you.

With your birth date information in hand, Burton will learn all about you and become "one with you." He will know the real you, the secret you, the "vulnerable" you that few people see.

A Zodiac Spell Specifically Created for You!

Your sign helps define you as a unique individual with very specific character and personality traits. With this intimate knowledge of you, Burton will forge an intimate bond with you, essentially "melding" with you. Then he will concentrate his formidable psychic powers on your specific request.

Traditional healer http://www.kilimanjarospells.com
Lover spells http://kilimanjarospells.com/love-spells.html
Money spells http://kilimanjarospells.com/money-spells.html
Lotto spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/lottery-gambling-casino-spells.html
Revenge spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/revenge-curses-spells.html
Fertility spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/fertility-spells.html
Protection spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/protection-spells.html
Court case spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/court-case-justice-legal-spells.html
Gay love spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/gay-love-spells.html
Lesbian love spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/lesbian-love-spells.html

Good Luck Charms

Good Luck Charms could jump start your love life! Good Luck Charms could ignite your lucky streak! Good Luck Charms could make your bank account soar!

Looking for success and happiness? Good Luck Charms could make you wildly successful in every aspect in your life.

If you truly wish to be one of the lucky ones to win big in the lottery, at the gaming tables, in love and in life, you must possess the legendary Gambler's Amulet!

Do you want to attract money like a magnet? Would you like to end financial worries? With Li Yuan's Temple you could get whatever you want--riches, wealth, abundance.

When you keep Lady Luck by your side, the whole world smiles at you.

Traditional healer http://www.kilimanjarospells.com
Lover spells http://kilimanjarospells.com/love-spells.html
Money spells http://kilimanjarospells.com/money-spells.html
Lotto spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/lottery-gambling-casino-spells.html
Revenge spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/revenge-curses-spells.html
Fertility spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/fertility-spells.html
Protection spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/protection-spells.html
Court case spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/court-case-justice-legal-spells.html
Gay love spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/gay-love-spells.html
Lesbian love spells http://www.kilimanjarospells.com/lesbian-love-spells.html

Money spells

Money spells for those who seek money, wealth, material things. Money spells to grow your bank account. Money spells to enjoy the good life. Money spells to succeed & get ahead in life. Money spells to bring you riches.

Extremely powerful ritual! Could bring you money, riches, the easy life!

This spell is for you if you don't want to go through one more day worried about your finances. You've worked hard and paid your dues.

Now it's time to reap the rewards of your labor. You can't change the past, but you could shape the future.Voodoo is a powerful mystical practice that may bring spectacular riches to anyone who believes!

This spell is designed to liberate your creativity, enabling you to come up with the best ideas to make money. The Money Tree does exist, and it could bring you a financial windfall.

Want to grow your bank account?
Need funds to enjoy the good life?
Tired of working hard and getting nowhere?

A Master Psychic could bless an amulet for you or cast a spell in your behalf to bring you the riches you so deserve!

Gypsy spells

What would you give if you could merely wish something and have it come true? Originating in Eastern Europe during the Middle Ages, Gypsy Hypnotic spells have mystified skeptics for centuries.

These powerful spells are often described as hypnotic because they seem to enchant and mesmerize the person to whom the spell was directed.

Here are a few of the comments from people who have had Gypsy Hypnotic spells cast in their behalf:

"I could hardly believe that the person causing me trouble was finally leaving me alone."
"I felt a greater force - a friendly force - was going to make things right."
"I realized my boyfriend's heart was opening for the first time and that we were going to be OK."
"I answered the phone and it was Kathy. I couldn't believe my wish had come true."
"After all this time, all this debt, my finances were finally getting straightened out."

Throughout the years, the California Astrology Association has received numerous requests for Gypsy Hypnotic spells, but we waited until we had one of the foremost practitioners who would agree to our one hundred percent refund guarantee.

The California Astrology Association is now proud to offer these unique spells to our clients on an exclusive basis.

As you read the words on each of the following Gypsy Hypnotic spells, whisper them aloud softly and slowly. If you feel the words ring true and reflect your most deep felt feelings, that specific Gypsy Hypnotic spell is for you.

Casino spells Gambling spells Lotto spells

Casino spells to get a winning edge when playing at the casino. Casino spells to to enhance your personal power. Casino spells to bring winning luck and favor from the gods. Casino luck spells to increase winning chance in the casino.

Casino spells & rituals to win at the casino. Casino spells to attract good fortune at the casino. Increase your luck when you gamble. Earn more money and win millions with casino spells.

If you truly wish to be one of the lucky ones to win big in the lottery, at the gaming tables, in love and in life, you must possess the legendary Gambler's Amulet!

The Dragon Gambling spell is designed to increase the odds in your favor not only at the gambling tables and in games of chance, but also in life.

Those who possess this legendary good luck piece say they feel a burst of positive energy merely by touching it.

The Casino Buster spell will give you a chance to win like you've never won before.

This spell will help you in getting the winning attitude that will attract good luck toward you. You will notice that things will start happening in your favor. It is best to do this spell just before you are about to gamble.

It will really get you in the mood! Let the spell work its magic. Avoid the feelings of desperation, maintain a light-hearted attitude while gambling. Make sure that you don’t have any expectations after your spell is complete.

This spell is used to draw money towards you when gambling. If you often find yourself frustrated because you lose money when gambling, then this spell is perfect for you. It can be used for lottery wins, casino gambling, raffles, or any type of gambling.

Now bear in mind that you might not necessarily get a big win, but you will find yourself winning more – and many small gains can add up to a lot of money! This Wiccan gambling spell is also very effective for stabilising a difficult financial situation.

Powerful gambling spells cast, gambling spells that work for your trip to the casino, poker table, or the track.

Having an extra advantage when gambling is priceless. My powerful gambling spells, give you that added advantage. Working to bring luck, positive energy and confidence, my powerful gambling spells, will bring you winnings. There is good luck in us all and my gambling spells, will bring it out in you.

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African traditional religions

The sense of community and humane living are highly cherished values of traditional African life. This statement remains true in spite of the apparent disarray in the experience of modern politics and brutal internecine wars in many parts of the Continent.

For traditional Africans, the community is basically sacred, rather than secular, and surrounded by several religious forms and symbols.

A visitor to Africa is soon struck by the frequent use of the first person plural 'we', 'ours' in everyday speech. In modern African urban cities, primary community loyalties of one's extended family and village, continue to exert their hold over people who live away from the communities of their home-towns (A. Shorter 1975: 122-3).

People generally return to their villages from their residence in the cities from time to time to join members of their village community to celebrate important traditional rituals and cultural events like initiation, title-taking or festival.

From their residence in urban cities, they send substantial financial contributions to their rural home communities to support various development projects like provision of electricity and pipe-borne water, building of educational institutions and scholarship awards, funds to send young men and women on further studies in foreign countries or in one's own country.

Primary communities based on clan, or ethnic descent, or church affiliation equally abound in many modern African cities.

Analysts point out that these are often, for people who are detached from the communities of their home-towns "surrogate for the extended family or the community of village neighbours" (A. Shorter 1975; 125).

John Mbiti underscores the important belief and sense of the community among traditional Africans.

In traditional Africa, the individual does not and cannot exist alone except corporately. He owes existence to other people, including those of past generations and his contemporaries.

Whatever happens to the individual is believed to happen to the whole group, and whatever happens to the whole group happens to the individual. ...

The individual can only say: "I am because we are, and since we are, therefore I am. This is a cardinal point in the understanding of the African view of man" (J.S. Mbiti 1990; 106)
This paper discusses the religious dimension of community in the traditional African background.

Several myths relate the founding of community as well as shed light on certain symbol objects and forms that feature prominently in the ritual network of the people.

I will try to show how such relevant ritual forms and symbols, are employed by Africans to enhance the ideal of community I shall also be interested in finding out how certain punitive sacred sanctions like ostracisation, help to curb deviance, and indirectly advance the cause of harmonious communal life.

I propose to conclude the paper by examining the phenomenon and impact of radical social change on the role of traditional African religions in promoting the community ideal in contemporary Africa.

II. African Community As Unity of Two Worlds
Traditional Africans share the basic instinct of gregariousness with the rest of human-kind. Families and members of kin-groups from minimal to maximal lineages, generally live together and form community. Africans share life intensely in common. There are communal farmland, economic trees, streams, barns, and markets.

There are also communal shrines, squares, masquerades, ritual objects and festivals for recreational activity, social, economic and religious purposes. Members of the same kindred or clan could distinguish themselves by their proficiency in a particular trade, skill or profession. Some traditional African communities or even entire language group may be experts in rain-making, wood carving, practice of traditional medicine, or black-smithing.

For example, the Lovedu of South Africa, the Ibibio of south-east Nigeria and the Awka in Igboland are widely reputed for their skills in rain-making, wood-carving and black-smithing respectively. These and similar features characterise the communal life of both agrarian and normadic groups of traditional Africa.

Closeness to nature, the experience of life in terribly hazardous environment, and the crucial need for security and better performance in means of livelihood are some relevant factors that combine to deepen the natural impulse for gregariousness and sense of community among different African peoples.

For traditional Africans, community is much more than simply a social grouping of people bound together by reasons of natural origin and/or deep common interests and values. It is both a society as well as a unity of the visible and invisible worlds; the world of the physically living on the one hand, and the world of the ancestors, divinities and souls of children yet to be born to individual kin-groups.

In a wider sense, African traditional community comprehends the totality of the world of African experience including the physical environment, as well as all spirit beings acknowledged by a given group.

The network of relationships among human beings are remarkably extended and deep. In fact, the words 'family', 'brother', or 'sister', etc. define far more for Africans than what they mean today for the average European or North American.

The family for the traditional African, usually includes one's direct parents, grand and great grand parents, brothers, sisters, uncles, and aunts, cousins, nieces and nephews. And normally, a child would refer to any of his uncles or aunts as his father or mother, his nephews and nieces as his/her brothers and sisters. People generally do not ask a child his/her personal name. Rather, a child is identified as 'a child of so and so parents'. The extended family system is the model.

The molecular family pattern is alien and believed to be inimical to the traditional value of community. Actually, it is only in recent times that the latter system began to surface mainly in urban towns as a result of external influences in the Continent. The extended family structure is held up to people as model, one in which parents, grand-parents, uncles, aunts, nephews and nieces live together and are cared for by their children grand-children and other relatives in mutual love and respect.

The invisible members, especially ancestors and spiritual beings are powerful and by far superior to human beings. Their reality and presence in the community are duly acknowledged and honoured among various traditional African groups. Neglect could spell disaster for human beings and the community. The invisible beings are represented by different kinds of symbols like carved objects, shrines and sacred altars. They may also be recalled in personal names given to children, especially in cases where particular ancestors or spirit beings are held to have reincarnated in individual children.

The presence of the ancestors is particularly felt in traditional African community. They are believed to be benevolent and powerful representatives of the community in the 'mbakuv' (spirit land). Their symbols and shrines are common features among most traditional West African groups. This includes carved ancestral stool among the Akan of Ghana and 'okpensi' among the traditional Igbo.

There are also the shrines of the 'Muzimu' (ancestors) among the Baganda of Uganda. The reality and presence of spiritual members are equally acknowledged through several taboos found in many African communities. For example, women within the child-bearing age are bound to observe several prohibitions among the traditional Igbo. Such women run a serious danger of becoming childless if they flout such taboos, since it could result in scaring away souls of unborn babies that are believed to hover around homesteads and families wanting to incarnate in wombs of potential mothers.

Most traditional African groups, including the traditional Yoruba of Nigeria and the Dogon of Mali, have intriguing sacred stories or myths that tell how the world, human beings and important institutions came into being. Such sacred stories generally also underscore the involvement of ancestors and mythical beings in the life and affairs of the community of the physically living. They also try to explain the significance of different rituals for human beings and their important life-interests.

The central myth of the priestly caste group of Nri in Igbo heartland, for example, relates that it was the Supreme Being, Chukwu that gave Nri people their traditional home community. More significantly, it was Chukwu that constituted them into a special priestly class, set them apart from the rest of the traditional Igbo people with a definite duty to serve as ritual specialists. The original covenant was between Chukwu and Eri, the archetypal ancestor of Nri people. Eri and his wife, Namaku had accepted a near-impossible feat to sacrifice their only son and only daughter to Chukwu in order to obtain food. Yam, the prince of Igbo agricultural crops had sprouted from the grave of the son and cocoyam from the grave of the daughter. As a reward for their obedience, Chukwu bestowed on Eri the special privilege of being the traditional high priest with the exclusive right to cleanse all forms of abomination, especially those connected with the yam crop among the Igbo. Chukwu gave Eri the Ofo symbol so that he would be able to speak to Chukwu through the medium of the symbol. Otonsi became the ancestral symbol of authority, while the Alo signify the ritual authority of the high priest.

What this myth accomplishes is to define and legitimate for the people both the divine origin of the closely knit community of the Nri, as well as the source of the special right and privileges which the group enjoyed among the Igbo and their neighbouring language groups. In the case of the traditional Yoruba, Oduduwa, believed to be the founding ancestor of Ife was said to have been the first king of Oyo kingdom in Yorubaland who became divinised after his death. The powerful mythical ancestor was credited with the establishment of the great Yoruba empire. And virtually every traditional Yoruba community tries to trace its connection with the mythical hero. Similarly among the Baganda, every community tries to connect with the Kibuka (mythical war hero) and the Mukasa (mythical ancestral spirit associated with rivers and seas). These are believed to be powerful Balubaale (national heroes and leaders who became deified after death) whose presence and influence continue to be strongly felt and recognised in virtually every community of the Baganda.

Traditional Africans, like their counterparts in other parts of the world, are acutely aware of the distinction between the physically living (men and women of flesh and blood who constitute the actual visible community), and ancestral spirits and other supersensible beings who belong to the invisible order. It would be wrong therefore, to conclude from the fore-going explanation of the myth, that the people were incapable of rational thinking, but possessed what Levy Bruhl referred to as 'primitive mentality' which was characterised by mystical participation.

The idea and structure of human society for traditional Africans, are essentially part of a world-view that is fundamentally holistic, sacred and highly integrated. Human community, therefore, has its full meaning and significance within the transcendental centre of ultimate meaning. Hence, the belief in ancestors and the supernatural order, in addition to its inherent religious import, provides traditional African groups a useful over-arching system that helps people organise reality and impose divine authority and sanction to their life.

III. Promotion Of Community-Living Among Africans
It is an essential article of belief in African traditional religions that a fundamental delicate balance and equilibrium exist in the universe, between the visible world and the invisible one. The Creator, Olodumare among the Yoruba or Chukwu among the Igbo, created everything that exists and set everything in its place. Traditional Africans basically view the universe as comprising basically two realms; the visible and the invisible realms. They grasp the cosmos as a three-tiered structure, consisting of the heaven above, the physical world and the world beneath. Each of these is inhabited by different categories of beings. The Creator and a host of spirit beings, including archdivinities inhabit the heaven above, other divinities, ancestors, and myriads of unnamed spirits dwell in the world beneath, while human beings occupy the physical earth. Human beings may be less powerful, but their world is the centre and the focus of attention. It belongs to human beings as sensible beings to maintain the delicate balance in the universe. This is what assures the happiness and prosperity of individuals and the community.

Harmonious living is clearly a pivotal value. African traditional religions, which have been rightly referred to as the womb of the people's culture, plays a key role in the realisation of this all-important value among every traditional African group. Religion is central in inculcating in the promotion and realisation of harmonious inter-relationship among individuals and the community. In the traditional African background, religion is a most important aspect of life. It pervades and permeates all aspects of life and infuses the social, economic, political dimensions African with meaning and significance. But there are some more striking avenues through which the traditional religion helps the community to realise the community ideal of harmonious living. They include transmission of certain key religious ideas and beliefs, initiation practices, ritual activities, sacred symbol forms and vital public institutions. We shall discuss these in some detail.

i. Belief In The Ancestors: The belief in ancestors is an important element of African traditional religions. The belief occupies an important place in the understanding of the role of the traditional religion in inculcating the ideal of harmonious living among African peoples. One needs however, to know the content of the belief to be better able to appreciate how it helps the people to realise the community ideal of harmonious living.

The ancestors, or the living-dead, as John Mbiti refers to them, are believed to be disembodied spirits of people who lived upright lives here on earth, died 'good' and natural death, that is at ripe old age, and received the acknowledged funerary rites. They could be men or women. But more over often than not, male ancestors are prominent since patrilineage is the dominant system of family and social integration in most traditional African societies. For matrilineal groups like the Ashanti of Ghana and the Ndembu of Zambia, both male and female ancestors are duly acknowledged. With the completion of prescribed funeral rites, a deceased person is believed to transform into an ancestor. The funeral rites in this case, serve as some kind of 'rites du passage'. The disembodied spirit joins the esteemed ranks of fully achieved ancestors in the spirit world.

Among the Akan of Ghana, as part of the coronation ceremony of a new king, the candidate carves a traditional stool for himself which he uses as personal stool while he is alive. When he dies, he is placed on the stool and bathed before his burial. The stool is then blackened and kept at the shrine of his ancestral spirit. Each lineage has a chapel of blackened stools which is the shrine of its ancestors. The Zulu, Sotho, Tswana, Thonga, and Shona among other South African peoples have their respective ancestral symbols and shrines. The Igbo of South-east Nigeria have their Okpensi and Ofo as well as sacred altars for the ancestors.
Traditional Africans hold the ancestors as the closest link the physically living have with the spirit world. "The living-dead are bilingual; they speak the language of men, with whom they lived until 'recently', and they speak the language of the spirits and of God ...They are the 'spirits' with which African peoples are most concerned: it is through the living-dead that the spirit world becomes personal to men. They are still part of their human families, and people have personal memories of them". (J.S Mbiti, 1990; 82). Africans believe that the ancestors are essentially benevolent spirits. They return to their human families from time to time and share meals with them, however, symbolically. They know and have interest in what is going on in their families.

For African peoples, the belief and ideas about ancestors to form an essential part of the effort to inculcate, mobilise and promote the community ideal of harmonious living in society. As benevolent spiritual guardians of their respective families and communities, ancestors are believed to reincarnate in new-born babies in the community. A child is named after the ancestor that is believed to have reincarnated in the life of that child. Special attention and favours are bestowed to such a child as a mark of respect to the ancestor. Family elders make regular offerings of gifts, food and drinks to the ancestors. The Igbo male elder does not normally eat or drink without first offering some portion on the ground, or at the shrine or symbol of the ancestors. The Mende of Sierra Leone avail of the staple food item of rice, and water for their offering to ancestral spirits. Among the Akan, the lineage head offers food and drinks to the ancestors at appropriate times. The Adae rites which take place every twenty-one days and the annual Odwera festival are high points of the Akan worship of ancestral spirits. Furthermore, ancestors are generally held to be the custodians of the land on which their children live. They are guardians of family affairs, customs, traditions and ethical norms. Offence in these matters is ultimately an offence against the forefathers who in that capacity act as invisible police of the families and communities (E.Ikenga-Metuh 1987; 149). Ancestors are thought to mete quick and severe punishment on people who disregard the hallowed traditions of the community, or infringe taboos and norms of acceptable behaviour in society. Africans therefore, try to strictly observe such taboos and norms, thereby ensuring peace and harmony in their relationship with one another , with ancestors and other supernatural beings.

From early childhood through adolscence to full adulthood, the traditional African is formed to hold tenanciously to the belief in the ancestors, to reverence them as powerful and benevolent members of the community, although not in a physical but rather mystical sense. Ancestors are held up as models to be copied in the effort to strictly adhere, preserve and transmit the traditions and norms of the community. The African is psychologically, fully equipped and motivated to promote the delicate balance and equilibrium believed to exist in the universe through ensuring harmony in his relationship with the invisible world and among members of the community.

ii. Initiation Rituals: Rites marking the transition of individuals and groups from one significant stage of life to another abound in traditional African societies. Similar rites are also found in several parts of the world outside Africa. But, as Ikenga-Metuh rightly points out, rites of passage tend to reach their maximal expression in small-scale, relatively stable societies like those of Africa, that are cyclically-oriented in their pattern of time-reckoning, societies where change is bound up with biological and meteorological rhythms and reoccurrences rather than with technological innovations (E.Ikenga-Metuh 1987;197). Initiation rites have far-reaching implications for the life of individuals and the community at large. They involve different aspects of life including the psychological, social, economic and political. The religious dimension is clearly important as traditional African groups rely on the supernatural power and divine authority of ancestors and other spiritual patrons to validate their worthwhile activities and to ensure the lasting success of their initiation events.
There are several rites of initiation for boys as well as for girls into adult status. These rites like the Ima Muo among the traditional Igbo, the Egungun of the Yourba, Poro for young boys and its counterpart Sande for young girls in Liberia generally mark their transition of young adolescent boys and girls from 'social puberty' to full adult status with all the attendant roles and responsibilities. The Luguru of Tanzania refer to their initiation of young males as 'ng'hula', a word that in fact means growth and maturity. It begins with the seclusion of the candidates in camp under the supervision of a specialist male elder known as 'kisepi'. During the period which lasts between two and four weeks, the period long enough to brew the beer to be used for the rites, the candidates are fed on a rich diet of chickens. They learn to share everything in common and they are exposed to the 'treasured secrets', including the historical landmarks, myths and symbols of their community.

At the end of the training in camp, the candidates are prepared for the climax ritual. This comprises series of ritual dramatisations in a thick forest. The candidates are lead through a ritual dance in which awe-inspiring masks feature. The tree that is used by the community to brew local beer is uprooted and cut into short lengths, mixed with other materials and tied into a bundle with cloth for the boys to carry. The grandfathers of the candidates assemble in the forest and instruct the initiates on the norms of acceptable behaviour of the community. Extracts of the instruction may read like this; "Now you are big. Never be rude to anyone older than yourself, especially, not your mother, father, father's brother, and mother's sister. If you do this your mother and father will die, and you will be poor ... and no one will care for you. This is a very evil thing.. You are big now! Do not do these things, to us Luguru they are taboos. Never lie with young girls. If you do you will die". ( E.Ikenga-Metuh 1987;207).

The instructions given to the candidates are comprehensive, covering all aspects of life of the community. The initiates are taken back to the seclusion camp. On the final day of their stay there, a large crowd from the community gather in front of the camp and welcome with loud songs and dancing the candidates now ready for their graduation. The initiates are blind-folded. They are led into the open square through the bush with their heads totally covered. Male elders encircle the candidates forming a fence with pieces of cloth around the initiates. Some rituals are further performed including lowering the candidates individually into a stool. The candidates are anointed with castor oil by their respective fathers' sisters and then are sprinkled with sorghum seed. The ceremonies conclude with the graduates carried shoulder high. They sway to the sound of the drums.

Prior to the introduction of Western-type schools, initiation rituals provided a most effective avenue for socialisation and transmission of keybeliefs, ideas and values of the community to successive generations. Against the background of the oral culture of traditional African groups, people relied on such oral media as speech-forms, dramatic performances, and ritual symbolic forms to communicate their important ideas, beliefs and values to members of the community. The awe and mystery that often characterised the initiation ceremonies proof particularly favourable for the successful communication of the accumulated wisdom of the people, including the ideal of harmonious co-existence in the community. In the case of the 'ng'hula' for example, the deep and mysterious communion of the candidates and supernatural beings, symbolically represented by the thick forest that provides the theatre for the initiation, the community ideal is impressed in the minds of the young initiates.
Masquerades and several ancestral symbols feature prominently in traditional African initiations. Such is the case for example, with initiation into the Poro for young men and even Sande for young girls in Liberia, as well as the Ima Muo for young adolescent men among the Igbo. Roy Sieber was able to arrive at the conclusion following his study of the Poro that the masquerades are symbols of the spiritual forces that validate the acts and the precepts of the elders. They serve as the visible expression of a spiritual force or authority that validates the basic beliefs of a society, and reinforce acceptable social modes of conduct and symbolise the spiritual authority that eradicates social evils (N.S. Booths (ed) 1977; 146-7).

iii. Dominant Ritual Symbols: Traditional Africans also preserve and express the ideal of harmonious community-living through their dominant ritual symbols. In an effort to ensure that this and other important value relating to their survival, is well preserved and successfully transmitted to successive generations, in the absence of developed literary culture, traditional Africans avail of different kinds of oral means and media to encode and communicate their important cultural values over and over again. Repetition is, no doubt, a typical feature of oral cultures around the world. Traditional Africans rely on speech-forms such as myths, proverbs, wise sayings and songs, as well as art-forms like sculpture, dance, ritual objects, etc to preserve and impress their key beliefs, ideas and values in the minds of successive generations of society. Dominant ritual objects are particularly relevant because of their tremendous potential as effective means of communication in the oral cultural background and their prominence in the socio-cultural and religious dynamics of life of traditional Africans. They encapsulate and express for traditional African groups vital information relating to their different areas of awareness; the intuitive, physical, aesthetic, social and normative.
The Golden Stool which is the dominant symbol of the Akan, preserves vital information regarding the Asantehene (traditional king) and the kingdom itself; its culture and religion. The Ofo ritual object features prominently in traditional Igbo life and culture. It is the dominant symbol object that expresses for the traditional Igbo people important ideas, beliefs and values concerning their religious, social and political life. Ofo has several types and a wide range of functions. There are Personal Ofo which is owned by individual persons, Titular Ofo which is kept by titled male elders, Institutional Ofo kept by officials like traditional priests and Professional Ofo is used by practitioners like diviners.
The Lineage Ofo is certainly the most prominent kind of Ofo among the traditional Igbo. It is kept by the male head at every level of the Igbo social-political structure; the family, kindred, village, clan (minor, major, and maximal lineage levels). The lineage Ofo is of great importance among the traditional Igbo. It is at times, referred to as 'the soul of the lineage'. It is believed to represent the unity of the particular group as well as the ancestors who are thought to be the guarantors of the unity. It is normally inherited and kept by whoever is the eldest surviving male member of the lineage, or as the case may be, the eldest son of the family that has the primacy of honour in the community. It goes by such names as Ofo-Okpala, Ofo-mbichiriama and Ofo-Umunna depending on the area of Igboland.
The lineage Ofo has far-reaching implications for the socio-political and religious life of the traditional Igbo. The people are dominantly patrilineal in their pattern of family integration and social organisation. They live in less centralised groups. They therefore, made serious use of lineage Ofo to reinforce the basic structure of leadership and endorse important traditional values.

Ofo is primarily the medium of communication with spirits, including the ancestors and divinities. It is known as the 'ear of the spirits (Ofo bu nti ndi Muo). As a key religious symbol, it is used in ritual sacrifices, in prayer, for cleansing taboos and abominations, as well as for a wide variety of rites. Its socio-ethical functions include its use for attesting to the truth, for affirming one's innocence, in settlement of disputes, for covenant-making, oath-taking, and decision-making. Igbo male elders usually begin their day by offering prayers to the ancestors and other spirit beings for the health of members of his family, good fortune and general progress in life.

They do this with the help of the lineage Ofo which they hold in their right hand while pronouncing the prayer and benediction. Most times, when traditional Igbo male elders of a particular community gather to discuss a serious matter affecting the community, each of them brings with him his lineage Ofo to the venue of the meeting (often in the community square or market-place). At the end of their deliberation, the spokesman would normally recap the agreement reached. The assembled elders would then seal their decision by striking their respective lineage Ofo on the ground while invoking divine sanction of ancestral spirits on any person or member of the community who would defy or disobey their decision.

Ofo may be of different kinds and uses, but it is invariably connected to the ancestors and spiritual beings from whom it is believed to obtain its power and efficacy.

Most male members of the traditional Igbo community could acquire and keep one kind of Ofo or another.

The constant use of this powerful ritual symbol in prayer, sacrifice and a wide variety of rituals, its recurrence in social and political life of the people, including maintenance of law and order, make it easily the most effective instrument for mobilising and strengthening community consciousness among the traditional Igbo people.

The power of the ritual object resides not itself as such, but in the supernatural beings to which the object primarily refers.

iv. Important Traditional Institutions: Traditional African peoples also possess important sacred institutions with significant religious dimension that equally further the community ideal. They include sacred kingship institution, public shrines and sacred groves, divination and masquerades.

Each one of them generally implies important religious beliefs, supernatural power and authority, and serves as a vital channel for inculcating and promoting the ideal of harmonious living in society by the people. For traditional groups that have sacred kings, such kings are not simply political heads, they are more importantly sacred personages.

They posess spiritual and mystical powers which enable them to confer benefits on their people. In most cases, they are regarded as descendants or incarnations of divine beings, a mythical ancestor, or divinity. Such is the OOni of Ife among the Yoruba, the Asantehene of the Ashanti kingdom and the Queen of the Lovedu in South Africa.

The traditional Ashanti Empire of Ghana is a combination of localised lineages that form a political community. Each lineage head possesses his own blackened stool representing the lineage ancestors and to which the lineage head pours libations.

The Asantehene presides over the Ashanti nation with his own royal stool believed to symbolise the ancestral spirits. The person of the Asantehene is sacred and he primarily fills a sacred role as the 'one who sits upon the stool of the ancestors'.

He is hedged round with a number of taboos. In addition to his political role, he is the link between the living and the dead. He presides over important ritual sacrifices at the Adae and Odwera ceremonies.

Thus, the Ashanti king is regarded as the first-born of the kingdom. He is the leader of the living and their representative before the ancestors, as well as the vicar of the ancestors among the living.

Public shrines and masquerades are some other important sacred institutions which contribute significantly in promoting the sense of community. Shrines are often located in large public squares. They serve multi purposes for traditional Africans.

The shrines are specifically for religious worship. The adjoining open space is for meetings, economic transaction, for staging of festivals and other public performances.

Symbolically, shrines and adjoining public squares signify for traditional Africans the mystical meeting-point or communion of the invisible world of spiritual beings and the visible world of human members of the community.

People usually take turns in keeping them clean. Such places are surrounded by all kinds of prohibitions and taboos. As sacred place, they inspire awe and elicit reverence because of what they stand for.

Masquerades are highly symbolic public institution and performance among traditional African groups. There are mainly two types; a class belonging to youths and adolescent children that serve largely for purposes of entertainment, and the serious masks belonging to different senior age grades.

African masquerades are generally public performance troupes that evoke a wide variety of significant ideas and values concerning the social, occupational, political and religious aspects of life of traditional peoples. The Egu Orumamu of the Igala in Middle-belt area of Nigeria belongs to and is performed by individual village groups twice a year, at the beginning and end of the farming season.

The Chiwara masquerade of the Bambara are for purposes of ritual purification of villages of social ills in order to ensure success in agriculture. The Do masquerade of Western Ghana like the Gelede of the Yoruba is for fighting witchcraft in society. The Mgba/Abia Dike and Ikpirikpe Ogu troupes among the Igbo belong to the senior age grades, men of valour on whom it devolves to defend the community in the event of attack and war.

Masquerades are rich in their meaning-content. Onyeneke refers to them as "the Dead Among the Living", while Kalu suggests the title of "Gods As Police Men". Masquerades, no doubt relate to several important areas of life of the peoples of Africa. Masks usually identify and represent the respective social units; villages or age sets in the community.

They associated closely with the occupational pursuits of the people, as well as their socio-political structure. Primarily, masquerades are thought of by Africans as powerful sacred symbols.

They represent lineage ancestors and serve as the visible expression of the spiritual force and authority believed to validate the basic beliefs and values of society.

They also serve to reinforce social modes of conduct and symbolise the spritiual authority that eradicates social evils. As a sacred symbol with a rich religious significance, they contribute considerably to bind people together, to sustain and foster the people's sense of interdependence.

IV. Other Ways Of Enhancing The Community Ideal
The afore-mentioned media do not exhaust the many and varied oral means through which traditional African peoples try to communicate and enhance the important value of harmonious community-living.

As already stated, repetition is a characteristic feature of oral cultures, including those of traditional Africa. People encode and communicate their cherished value of peaceful interrelationship in prayer, personal and title names, wise sayings, as well as in the code of conduct.

i. Direct Speech-forms; Recorded oral materials, including prayers, personal and title names of traditional African groups contain a lot of references to the theme of social harmony. Naming ceremonies are important events among traditional African groups. In many African societies, it is the prerogative of lineage elders to give personal names to the children born to the different families in the kindred.

The elders usually try to convey significant life-experiences of parents, or community as well as their important aspirations in the names they give to babies during the naming ceremony. Simiarly at initiation into important title positions, candidates take title and praise names which refer to important values in the community, or attributes for which the candidate has become distinguished in society. I will draw most of my examples here from the traditional Igbo group with which I am very familiar. The Igbo have for example, such personal names as;

Azuka-ego - One's kins are worth much more than money; Adinigwe/Adigwe - it is better to be many, Igwemadu/Ndedigwe/Odigwe -the large grouping is better, Oraka - the community is greater (than the individual), Ohakanma - the community is ideal, Orakwue - let it be decided by all
Oranefo - the community speaks well of me,
Somaadina - let me not exist alone,
Umunnawuike - One's relations are a source of strength, and Umenwanne - the tender feeling of one's kins.

Apparently the names may seem not to have much to do with religion. But, they certainly do. The context in which the names are given is clearly religious.

Naming ceremony and initiation always take place within the context of ritual performances. The giving of a name is usually the climax and conclusion of the ritual event. Religious beliefs and ideas are implied in peoples' names among traditional Africans.

In fact, the name Somadina is at once, a prayer to ancestors and spiritual beings ?not to let me exist alone?. Most traditional African names are meaningful and symbolic. Many of them imply values that relate to and enhance community consciousness in traditional African societies.

Traditional prayers equally play an important role in the promotion of the sense of community.

Most traditional prayers are intensely communitarian in content and orientation. Whether offered by the individual elder in front of his family shrine, or by a priest or other ritual experts in public shrines, African prayers contain a lot of references to the community.

The elder in most traditional societies begins the day by offering prayer and supplications for himself, members of the kindred and the entire community.

He would pray to the ancestors, divinities and other spiritual beings for his health, that of his family, for progress of members of the lineage, both the young and the old, for peace and harmony, for protection from the attack of evil forces, sorcerers and witches, and finally for the elimination of his enemies and evil doers in the community.

The transliterated text of a prayer from Anloland of Ghana recorded by Christian Gaba makes a good illustration;

O Avumoada, A wild dog can never lie near a wolf's den;
You have now finished eating. I offer you an imported drink;
It is gin. Please receive it for all members of the lineage,
Here is the drink we have brewed ourselves; It is corn beer. Receive this one also.
May you be as a powerful medicine to protect the entire lineage. May we all be in good health always, All our children too.
All our customs which are going to the Europeans,
May they understand them well.
They should take good care of the black people....
Look! Prayers offered for one's in-laws should not become ineffective.
No ! Never!
Here is gin; Here also is water.
Help us to succeed when we use your nets;
Your coconut plantation too must be fruitful,
To provide a means of livelihood for us;
May trouble be far from us. May poverty be far from us;
May sickness be far from us; May death be far from us.
Give us plenty of wealth; Give us plenty of children;
Just as we have also given you,
May you too give us even more abundantly
(C. Gaba 1973; 53).

As typical oral (rather than formalised) texts, African traditional prayers are very contextual. They fiercely reflect the concrete needs, aspirations, values and relevant life-situation of people making the intercession.

The above prayer of the Anlo traditional elder is a good example of the African's keen interest and concern for both the needs of individual and the general well-being of the entire community.

The individual's need for protection, good health and material wealth has its full meaning within the context of the need of the entire community for overall well-being. Hence, the Anlo elder does not focus simply on the individual as such.

He asks for the health of the entire lineage (which in this case includes the kindred of his relations through marriage, his in-laws) , for the well-being of the black people, for prosperity in the means of livelihood (coconut plantation, success in fishing) and for a large community with abundance of children.

ii. Normative Standards of Behaviour: The area of morality is yet another relevant avenue through which traditional Africans try to form people and reinforce in them the important idea and value of harmonious community-living.

Every social group evolves its distinct ethical code. Every society has its norms of acceptable behaviour, taboos and prohibitions.

Many traditional African groups have in addition, motivational features and incentives through which compliance to the norms of approved behaviour and social ideals are encouraged. There are equally rituals of purification, as well as punitive measures that try to deter and curb the tendency to deviate.

Religion may be distinct and separate from morality, as many scholars have rightly argued. For traditional Africans, however, the line dividing the two is very thin indeed. African traditional religion plays a crucial role in the ethical dynamics of the different groups. In the traditional African background, 'gods serve as police men'.

African traditional world-views invariably outline a vision of reality that is, at once ethical in content and orientation. Human beings and their world are the focal centre of a highly integrated universe. Hence, traditional African world-views have been described by some people, as heavily anthropocentric. Human conduct is seen as key in upholding the delicate balance believed to exist between the visible world and the invisible one.

There are norms and taboos that try to address the need of the individual human person for security of life and property.

For example, most traditional African groups have stiff penalties for wilful murder of a person, not an enemy at war, including bringing about the death of a foetus.

Any one guilty of murder, would be required to repair the crime usually by providing another human being to the family of the person killed, a person relatively close in age to the deceased.

The offender would then be bound to take his/her own life through public hanging. There are also severe penalties for wilfully damaging people's crops, economic trees, and animals.

The vast majority of norms, taboos and prohibitions is directed towards protecting the community and promoting peace and harmony.

Communal farmland, economic interests like the market-place, stream, or shrine are generally surrounded with taboos, including who may or may not enter, and when and under what circumstances people are permitted or not to enter such places.

Stealing is abhorred. It is in fact, an abomination to steal things relating to people's vital life-interests and occupation, like yam crop (Ji) among the sedentary farm cultivating communities of traditional Igboland, or stealing fish held in a trap laid by someone in a stream or river among the fishing communities of Ogoni and Kalabari in the Niger Delta area of Nigeria.

There are also special restrictions and norms regulating the behaviour of people towards public functionaries like lineage heads, the king or queen, traditional priests, diviners and medicine-practitioners.

Such persons are generally regarded as specially sacred, and representative of the community. Their residence is equally sacred. So, are instruments of their office.

Traditional Africans believe that spiritual beings, especially ancestral spirits guarantee and legitimate the ethical code. Igbo traditional elders visibly demonstrate this by striking their powerful lineage ritual symbol, Ofo, on the ground to mark the promulgation of a law or a taboo.

And they invoke severe divine sanction on any one who would try to oppose or disobey a promulgated law or norm of morality. People, no doubt acknowledge the social basis of ethical norms. Fines may be imposed or material reparation demanded.

But they seriously reinforce the norms with the supernatural authority and sanction of invisible beings. As such, agents of divinities, including traditional priests, and more frequently special masks representing individual deities or ancestral spirits, participate actively in the execution of communal law and morality in many traditional African societies,

They impose sanctions and take active part in the recovery of fines imposed on defaulters. Serious criminals are not simply regarded as anti-social persons, they are sorcerers, witches and wizards.

People protect themselves against their nefarious activities through different kinds of ritual practices including offering ritual sacrifice, making and wearing of charms and amulets.

For most African groups, ostracising an individual or group that has fragrantly disobeyed the community is thought to be the most severe punishment that could be meted out to any body. It feels like death for any one so punished since such a person is regarded as an outcast. He/She would not be allowed to share in the life of the community. There would be no visits to the family, no exchange of greetings, no one would sell or buy from members of the affected family. So severe is the punishment of ostracisation, that every member of the community highly dreads it, and would do every thing possible to avoid it. It does, on the other hand show the kind of tremendous power of the community in traditional African background.

In cases of abomination, grave offence or defilement against the community like murder, incest, etc., the moral pollution has to be cleansed or expiated by special ritual experts in order to appease spiritual beings and ancestors who are believed to have been also offended.

Until the expiation is done, the entire community (and not only the individuals directly involved), stood a real and imminent danger of suffering a disaster.

The serious moral breach has destabilised the fundamental peace, balance and harmony that should prevail between the visible world of humans and invisible world of spiritual beings and forces.

The affected community could therefore, expect severe punishment from the supernatural custodians and guarantors of morality.

African traditional religion clearly plays a distinctive role as the ultimate source of supernatural power and authority that sanction and reinforce public morality.

It is pressed into full service to maintain social order, peace and harmony. Traditional Africans believe that success in life; including the gift of off-spring, wealth and prosperity, are all blessings from the gods and ancestors.

They accrue to people who work hard, and who strictly adhere to the customs, and traditional norms of morality of the community, people who strictly uphold the community ideal of harmonious living.

Only such people could entertain a real hope of achieving the highly esteemed status of ancestorhood in the hereafter.

V. Conclusion; The Factor Of Radical Change In Africa
Prior to the advent and spread of external forces of change engendered by colonialism, commerce and Christian and Islamic missionary campaigns most groups of sub-Saharan Africa lived in stable, largely small-scale and homogeneous communities.

The traditional religion was 'a typical religion of structure'. It was the sole world-view with which people explained, predicted and controlled space-time events.

It underpinned every facet of life of the people. It was particularly significant in inculcating and promoting the sense of community-living and certain key values associated with that.

African traditional religion suffused and gave meaning to life, pervaded and permeated all its aspects.

What one of the pioneer colonial officials, who lived and worked among the traditional Igbo of Nigeria from 1895 to 1905 witnessed, is typical of the situation that prevailed throughout sub-Saharan Africa prior to the total exposure of the Continent to external forces of radical change.

"...They are, in the strict and natural sense of the word, a truly and a deeply religious people, of whom it can be said, as it has been said of the Hindus, that "they eat religiously, drink religious, bathe religious, dress religiously, and sin religiously".In a few words, the religion of these natives, as I have endeavoured to point out, is their existence, and their existence is their religion". (A.G. Leonard 1968; 409)

The situation has changed radically today. The experience of colonialism, Christian missionary activity and Islamic religious campaign have given rise to a radically different socio-political and religious background in Africa.

Colonialism created a new social and political order in sub-Saharan Africa. It created modern nations by pulling together traditional groups with diverse language and cultural identities.

Countries like Angola, Congo Brazzaville, Ghana, Nigeria and Rwanda came into existence as a result of the colonial enterprise. Urbanisation has given rise to mega-cities in different parts of the Continent. Most communities are no longer homogeneous.

They are heterogeneous and plural in virtually every aspect of their life. A wedge has been driven between the sacred and the so-called secular aspects of life.

While it is true that the traditional religion still has considerable influence in the life and culture of many African peoples, it no longer enjoys exclusive dominance and control over the life of the vast majority of the population.

The prevailing social and political order in most parts of contemporary sub-Saharan Africa resembles more the state of affairs in European countries. Civil society now prevails.

There are civil governments, civil law, agencies of government responsible for law and order, Western-type schools for formal education and socialisation. Above all, plurality of religions is now the existing order in the Continent with Christianity and Islam being the dominant faiths.

The law of diminishing returns have since befallen African Traditional Religions. Roles in society are now much more specialised and differentiated unlike what obtained in the traditional background. Life is parcelled out into specific departments and different needs catered for by distinct units in the civil society.

The prevailing radical social change has far-reaching implications for the ideal of community-living in contemporary Africa. On the one hand, the world-view with which people explain and control reality is no longer the traditional one which is religion-dominated.

Certain traditional African beliefs, customs and practices associated with the idea and promotion of community-living among many African groups have been outlawed. They were considered either too cruel, or simply opposed to the aims of colonial administration and/or Christian missionaries.

For example, the old practice of killing twins by some traditional African groups because such twins were regarded as taboo and a potential danger to the community, was long stopped.

Polygamy, which has as its major objective to produce many children and thereby increase the size of the community as much as possible, is in serious decline in many parts of modern Africa.

This is as a result of the combination of several factors, including Christian missionary preaching against it, better health-care services, and changing economic circumstances.

The traditional belief in ancestors and other spiritual patrons, as well as the vital role they were believed to play in fostering community-living, have been serioulsy relativised in most contemporary societies.

Masquerades are not part of the apparatus of modern state administration. And schools have largely displaced traditional initiations as the main channel for formal education and socialisation of youths.

Community-living on the other hand, remains a cherished value among traditional Africans. The dramatic changes in the socio-political and religious aspects of life bring considerable pressure on the people's sense of community.

With the progressive relativisation of the traditional religion , the traditional role of the latter in inculcating and promoting harmony and peaceful co-existence become more and more diminished.

The profound sense of the sacred and feeling of awe which the traditional religion brought to life in general and different institutions in traditional societies have become greatly circumscribed.

The ability of African Traditional Religions to promote the community ideal of peaceful and harmonious co-existence in contemporary African society is in a state of progressive decline. The trend is much more noticeable in urban cities like Abidjan (Cote d'Ivoire), Accra (Ghana), Nairobi (Kenya) and Yaounde (Cameroon) than in rural towns and villages.

The rate of displacement of the traditional religion by the forces of radical social change in Africa is generally slower in rural areas than in urban cities.

African societies are visibly in a state of transition, a stage of betwixt and between, with the attendant anxiety, tension and confusion being felt at virtually every facet of life of the people.

The destabilisation of the traditional religions have clearly left wide gaps in the social structure, particularly in the bonds of interpersonal and inter-group relationships.

Fortunately, the forces that precipitate and sustain radical change in the continent, including Western culture and socio-political systems, Christianity and Islam, now largely provide new framework and elements for community-living and harmony in most societies of Africa.

REFERENCE WORKS.

1. F.A. Arinze, Sacrifice In Ibo Religion (Ibadan; Oxford University Press, 1970).
2. N.S. Booth (ed.) African Religions, A Symposium (New York; NOK Publishers, 1977)
3. C.I. Ejizu, OFO, Igbo Ritual Symbol (Enugu; Fourth Dimension Publishers Ltd. 1986)
4. A. Ekwunife, Consecration In Igbo Traditional Religion (Enugu; SNAAP Press, 1990)
5. E.Ikenga-Metuh, God And Man In African Religion (London; Geoffrey Chapman, 1981)
6. ---- Comparative Studies Of African Traditional Religions (Onitsha; Imico Publishers, 1987)
7. J.S. Mbiti, African Religions And Philosophy (London; Heinemann, 1990 ed.)
8 ----------- The Prayers of African Religion (New York; Orbis Books, 1975)
9. C. Gaba, Scriptures Of An African People; The Sacred Utterances Of The Anlo (New York; NOK Publishers, 1973)
10. M.A. Onwuejeogwu, An Igbo Civilisation, Nri Kingdom And Hegemony (London; Ethnographica, 1981)
11. A.G. Leonard, The Lower Niger And Its Tribes (London; 1905, Frank Cass, 1968 edition)
12. B. Ray, African Religions, Symbol, Ritual And Community (New Jersey; Prentice-Hall, 1976)
13. A. Shorter, African Christian Theology (London; Geoffrey Chapman, 1975).

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