CARNIVAL IS “WE THING” - PART 11

     The Africans who developed Carnival in Trinidad and Tobago were faithful to the original African systems. Satan is named after Set. So Satan is not totally evil. Of course, under the domination of Christendom, it would have been extremely dangerous to engage in this kind of theological thought. So our African ancestors who developed Carnival in Trinidad and Tobago opted to let well enough alone.

     The dominant Europeans said that Satan, the devil, was totally evil. That was alright. However, our African ancestors realized that this was simply one style of theological reasoning, and one that had evolved from the original model developed in the heart of Africa, when there was no such thing as Europe.

     So our devils are not wholly evil. The jab-jab is a scary character, but he is also a source of inspiration. One of the most powerful of the warrior chant kaisos created for the Trinidad and Tobago Carnival was presented in the classic 1956 Trinidad Carnival issue of the Caribbean Quarterly  by Mitto Sampson. The chant is cited below in the original French Creole followed by an English translation:

          Djab se yo neg

          Me Die se nom-la bla

          Bamboula, Bamboula

          Bamboula, Bamboula

          The Devil is a Negro

          But God is a white man

          Bamboula, Bamboula

          Bamboula, Bamboula (156)

TO BE CONTINUED