The
religion of Mali has stayed pretty much the same, but has just become more
defined over the years. Mali’s religion is often referred to as a type of
animistic religion because they believe in more than one god. Traditionally,
many ethnic groups on the western part of Africa believed in the “spirits of
the land”. These spirits were believed to help make their crops grow faster and
more plentiful. These spirits had been arranged by ancestors, and therefore
connected with deceased loved ones is essential in the Malian culture. The Mansa, or village head/chief, had the
closest connection with the spirits. Today, only those who live in rural area
still hold to these beliefs and honor the spirits and deceased loved ones.
During
the trans-Sahara trade in the thirteenth century, Islam made its way into Mali
and it has now become the dominate religion of the country. Sundjata, the
founder of the Mali Empire, was not Muslim, but most of the rulers that
followed after him were Muslim and that is how is became the religion of the
entire country.
In
1324, Mansa Musa, who was a grandson of one of Sundjata’s sisters, was Muslim.
He rode over 3,000 miles across the desert to Mecca as part of his Muslim faith.
He had with him over 60,000 people including his wife.
Islam
has since become a huge part of Malian culture. Two huge Muslim universities
were founded in Mali: one in Timbuktu and the other in Djenne. Islam has become
the religion of every king, chief, trader, and most townspeople. Although the traditional
beliefs of the Malian people were not rejected at first; Islam came and was a
religion that worked alongside their spiritual beliefs. Through going on the
hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca) that is major part of the Islamic religion, the
people in Mail gained assess and exposure to geography, literature, history,
mathematics, astronomy, science, and medicine. These all enriched the life and
culture of the Malian people.
Mosque of Djenne
References
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