Accessorising the spirits

You can see that our little bocio statue is adorned with plant fibres and metal locks. That is because in a raw state, our figurine would barely have any meaning - just like an empty canvas. However, by reenforcing certain parts of the body or adding certain products or objects, the bocio figurine is charged with meaning. Let me explain how this works.

In some cases, the figurine is ‘pre-charged’ by its creator by uttering certain incantations while carving the statue and by highlighting certain body parts. These specific body parts are each charged with a specific, symbolic meaning. As such, the chest and heart stand for love and affection and qualities like patience. And while the stomach is closely associated with feelings, it also stands for witchcraft. This way of charging bocio figurines, however, is the exception.“Krachtbeeld - Kpodohonme-bochio,” collection of the Nationaal Museum van Wereldculturen, accessed August 19, 2021, https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11840/531715.

In the case of our figurine and as is usually the case, no meaning is prescribed in advance. A raw figure like this can be bought at markets or in distinct shops, and can only be charged with power once certain materials have been added . The meaning of these materials added to the bocio figure is chosen by priests based on their respective metaphysical qualities.Timothy R. Landry, “incarnating spirits, composing shrines, and cooking divine power in vodún,” Material Religion vol 12, issue 1 (2016): 56, 61,https://doi.org/10.1080/17432200.2015.1120086.

Our figurine is wrapped in numerous fibres. These suggest captivity, disease, and death.“Krachtbeeld - Kpodohonme-bochio,” collection of the Nationaal Museum van Wereldculturen, accessed August 19, 2021, https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11840/531715. More specifically, fibres wrapped around the neck are supposed to cause aphasia (the loss of the ability to communicate and understand language) in enemies. Lloyd D. Graham, “A comparison of the anthropomorphic Vodun power-figure (West African bocio/bo/vodu/tro) with its Kongo counterpart (Central African nkisi),” direct Release to Academia.edu (2019): 29, https://hcommons.org/deposits/item/hc:32473.

The locks that adorn the figurine, on the other hand, have each been utilized to prevent malefactions from being performed to the owner’s disadvantage. Each lock signifies an individual wish or idea that the bocio figurine has been charged with. The more locks, the better. Lloyd D. Graham, “A comparison of the anthropomorphic Vodun power-figure (West African bocio/bo/vodu/tro) with its Kongo counterpart (Central African nkisi),” direct Release to Academia.edu (2019): 23-24, https://hcommons.org/deposits/item/hc:32473.

But what exactly was all this done for? Let’s find out!