Family ties and responsibilities form the basis of Luba society. If trouble comes to a family member, his relatives are honor bound to help. Thus, in “Two Lads,” the family of Boar Hunter could not refuse to help find the lost arrow.

Any emotion or action that will disrupt family harmony is seen as evil and punished accordingly. 

The feelings about the family are extended to the community or village; harmony is to be maintained above all else.  Thus, the chief reminds Headstrong that he and Boar Hunter come from the same village and tries to get him to accept a reasonable solution to their problem.  When none can be found, Boar Hunter has no choice but to search for the lost arrow.  Likewise, because of Headstrong’s actions, there can be no other ending to the story.

The Luba believe that the dead live in the world below and may occasionally visit the land of the living in the guise of an animal.  They also believe that ancestral spirits may aid (or sometimes cause mischief to) the children they leave behind.  One of Arrow Searcher’s ancestors, if not actually his father, may have come to him in his dream.

To the Luba, a person’s body is a container for the spirit, the life force, the real strength of a person.  They believe that if one encases a small bit of a person, such as nail clippings or hair, one has trapped some of the person’s spirit or strength.  The calabashes given to Headstrong in “Two Lads” probably contained such magic.

Because of their strong commitment to their communities and adherence to their moral codes, the Luba were not affected by the slave and ivory trade or other influences of international contact until well into the nineteenth century.  Thus, much of the oral literature is as it was when first learned by the men of memory, with the historical narratives remaining closest to the originals.

The stories presented in this article are examples of Luba teaching tales.  Both are retellings of tales collected by Jacques Theuws.

Two lads

There were two lads who were friends.  One of them saw that wild boars were eating manioc roots in his fields every day.  He wanted to hunt them, but he only had two arrows.