In addition, these stories cause them to muse about their connection with the universe. Like humans everywhere, the Chokwe not only live surrounded by the actual "wilderness," but also explore ideas about their place within that world.

Women gather to perform a healing dance for an infertile woman.

The Chokwe and their tales

In earlier days, the Chokwe (also Tshokwe and Cokwe) were renowned warriors, traders, and sorcerers who wandered throughout the Central African savanna—southern Zaire, northeastern Angola, and parts of Zambia. Today, as predominately small-scale farmers, they live in more established communities. Their villages, twelve to sixteen thatch-roofed huts housing relatives from the same clan, are nestled in the endless grassy plains. Settled near rivers and their slash-and-burn fields, the villagers live off the land and travel to the distant town only for commodities such as soap, salt, and cloth.

Day by day, people work in the bush: they farm, hunt, and fish; gather grubs and greens; and walk to the river to bathe, wash clothes, and get water. Living in a Chokwe village, one coexists with the nearby bush—its creatures, plants, and animals—for the bush provides almost all needs. The weather regulates the villagers’ daily movements to and fro: In the rainy season, from mid-August to May, they plant and harvest and fish, while in the dry season they hunt in groups roving throughout the plain or scavenge for the few surviving manioc greens and riverside plants.

Primarily known in the West for their exquisite wooden sculptures and ritual masks, the Chokwe also dance, sing, and tell remarkable stories. Their traditional tales describe Chokwe life and play upon concepts about that world, passed on from generation to generation. Told around the home fires when people gather in the evening to visit, these stories entertain and teach.

The Chokwe also use yishima to instruct when arguing in court or in conversation. Alluding to a known chishima, a speaker adroitly fits story characters and actions to the debated situation so that the accused will hear the indirect message. Through such allusions, a speaker can mock and criticize a troublemaker or merely comment subtly on a problem.