“The Àjé

 

“The Àjé (Iyami) represents the mystical powers of the woman in her most dangerous form.

The dance of the GELEDE is the expression of the guilty conscience of men, stemming from a time when the matriarchic society became patriarchy. The great mystic power of the woman, originally used in a productive way for the working of the soil, etc., can be transformed into a weapon.

Everything must therefore be done to calm the woman, to appease her, and to give her compensation for the loss of her political position. If Àjé  was taken to be a wholly evil being and the enemy of society, the obvious recourse would be to hunt her down and kill them whenever possible. The Àjé are therefore not truly witches. They are the grand mothers, the angry mothers, and without their  good will, Life itself would not  be able to continue; without them society would collapse.”

Ulli Beier