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November 16, 2007

Bani

Bani is a small town on the way from Ouagadougou to Gorom-Gorom. It looks interesting, and has an interesting story. A series of seven fascinating mud-brick mosques are scattered around the town, several on hill tops, standing out against the sky as you approach. I was told the mosques are laid out in the same pattern as in Mecca, though I have not been able to confirm this.

Bani is home to a community of an unusual Islamic sect - considered heretical by mainline Muslims. The story, as it has been told to me by "H", one of its former disciples, goes like this:

The Story of Bani
The man who started the community at Bani went to Mecca, but became disillusioned with the commercialisation of the pilgrimage, and with compromise in Islam in general. He preached at Mecca, calling people to repent. When he came back, Al Hadji Bani, as he became known, started fasting, only eating fruit, and only at night. He began preaching, calling people to "stop sinning, look after you family, read the Quran, and pray". Among his followers, he got rid of the tribal and animistic customs and practices that were against faith, such as the use of amulets. He went to other villages where they had idols, and destroyed them.

Hi followers claim he had dreams and revelations about the mosques - about where they should be built. He claimed he was a prophet sent by God, and people started following him, and fasting in the same way as him. They would chant all night, reciting the Islamic creed that there is no God but Alla. "H" reports that evil spirits appeared to some, causing them to go mad.

Things Fall Apart
After 2 years, there was a change. Al hadji Bani stopped coming to the Muslim prayers, and started his own prayers. He said God had shown him that the 5 daily prayers were now to become just three. He then started taking many wives.

"H" says that Al hadji Bani then started claiming that he was Jesus returned, and that Bani was the new Mecca, and that Muslims should now pray facing Bani rather than Mecca. This was in 1989, and it was at this time that "H", along with many others, became disillusioned and left the community.

When peope began to leave, and prayers were not answered, Al Hadji Bani called people to confess their sins. Those who confessed to committing adultery were made to lie in the sun from 08.00 till 13.00. When the time came that they were allowed to go home, one young man was left - and was found dead in the morning. The police were called in, and Al Hadji Bani was arrested.

Bani Today
He is out of prison now, but the community is much diminished. Many of the mosques are falling down. But the villagers welcome tourists, and you are invited to go into the main mosque, which is still standing, and is an impressive structure. Inside are 100 columns, which are said to stand for the 100 names of God.

Tags: africa sahel burkina burkina faso bani mosque architecture islam

Posted by Keith at November 16, 2007 11:36 PM