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When the diviner has learned the precise reason, he can proceed to ask which thil is connected with the case (thimiir). The diviner again tries to learn as much as possible with yes or no questions; only afterward does he resort to more complex questions. The diviner verifies all findings of relative importance by tossing cowries, then summarizes the findings in one sentence and asks the thila to use the cowries to tell him whether he has divined correctly or is still missing some important information. He picks up two to five cowries in his right hand and, while speaking, tosses them on the floor in front of him. If just one cowry lands with its open side up while all other face down, the thila have answered yes. Any other formation of the cowries means no. A no answer can force the diviner to start the questioning process all over again. |
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After the diviner has gathered the most important information, he turns the questioning over to his client, who until then has remained silent. The client may now ask the thila yes or no questions on some aspect of the problem which particularly interests him in order to obtain more details. His questions are answered through the technique of the two joined hands. |
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The whole consultation may average a total of eight hundred to a thousand questions, which diviner and client ask within an astonishingly short timeabout forty-five minutes. When all desired information has been received and confirmed several times over, the diviner summarizes the results for his client and asks the thila some last questions for a final reassurance. After the diviner tosses the cowries two or three last times, the consultation comes to an end. If no more clients are waiting, the diviner puts his instruments away and leaves the room with his client. The latter shows in no way whether or not he is satisfied with the session. He returns home, where he will carry out the thila's prohibitions or commands, should he choose to do so. |
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The Instruction of the Thila |
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The prohibitions (soser) and commands (bonoo) which the thila communicate to their owners through the diviner are extraordinarily varied. This variety represents a principle characteristic of the Logi socioreligious system. |
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The variety of the prohibitions derives from the fact that they may touch practically every aspect of Lobi life. The prohibitions govern not only interpersonal relationships but also the relationships of people to certain animals, plants, and objects. For example, the inhabitants of the village of Korhogo (about twelve miles southeast of Gaoua in Burkina Faso) do not use millet stem mats in their territory because their dithil (literally, "village thil") forbade it. Unlike other Lobi, they sleep on short mats; they also roll their dead in short mats to be able to inquire about the causes of death. |
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Commands, in contrast to prohibitions, are positive, constructive instructions. They too vary greatly. They may, for example, concern the building of a shrine, in which case the thil determines exactly where, how, and by whom the shrine is to be built. Commands also may order an addition to a standing shrine. Some |
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