Saturday, April 19, 2008
Hanging around Le Baol this morning, I met an Iranian engineer. He is one of seven working on electrical projects in Theis, Koacola and Touba. Nice fellow. He wanted to get a picture, just as I did. So we exchanged shots and handshakes. It would be interesting to try to put together a U.S.-Iranian project in Senegal…
When Mamemor finally sent a taxi for lunch, I started meeting more of his relatives at Soda’s. “Roots,” in French, was on the television while we talked. Mamemor harangued his young nephews Mustapha and Abdul about how they were dictators and how they just wanted to use other people, while unwilling to work themselves. They had long discussions about self-reliance and the original Mourides values of work, equality and solidarity. Mamemor is very anti-clerical, anti-marabout. He feels many Mourides have strayed far from Bamba’s original teachings. When we went to the market, he complained about all the men sitting around “in their pajamas” all day.
…With all the free time I’ve been having it feels like I’m going native myself. I’m forced to spend time just sitting and looking around. It makes me realize the degree of inertia we Americans push against every day. We cut through it so naturally, most of us don’t even realize we are doing it… Here in Senegal you feel the weight of a motionless force. There is no plan that can be laid, no foundation placed, nothing that can be done about anything outside you—except to pay a constant fealty to the Ultimate Inertia. That seems to be much of the worship here; they praise with a concession to hopelessness… Americans pray with a belief in the Great Plan; faith that we can strive to the image of perfection. One God certainly; but two fashions of devotion…
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