The Bamoun people and the symbolism of the two-headed snake

Par malumiereetmonsalut Le 30/04/2025 à 08:35 0

Analyze/In her article entitled humour in contemporary art published in Le Journal des Spychologues, psychoanalyst and psychologist Erica Francese lets us know that, humour function as a defence against shame, depression, discontent, disgust and despair. This means, as she points out below, “humour and art are intimately linked in psychoanalytic theory (…) It is only when art takes on a critical task of values, religion, established power, institutions including that of art itself, that the conditions conducive to the use of humour appear. Humour can say something about the reality in which we live and thus regain a moral position while remaining playful.”

Following the release in 2001 of the first album of the successful Cameroonian griot and artist Saint Bruno, almost everyone was captivated by all the titles, and in particular the extract entitled "défaut" which describes with humour the realities of a set of Terroirs, each having particularities that human relationships allow us to know, and also allow many people to have knowledge of a set of realities that not everyone knows, but that the artist took care to condense through a set of particular cases which clearly explain why according to him, Every village has something that concretely translates that, in the strict sense of the term, no village is perfect. And when he mentions one deplorable behaviour, he never fails to tell the listeners to be careful or not to take what he says lightly! Some might think that he is saying to be careful of these particular peoples while it is not the case; by taking particular cases, he talk to the entire Cameroonian people who are characterized on the scale of each region, by a set of habits or behaviours to be deplored.

No one, except by bad faith or lack of sincerity, will say that the themes covered by the griot do not reflect the realities of Cameroonian societies. It is in fact a work well done, which even those who do not know Cameroon or Cameroonians in a more specific way can refer because through a humorous style, the artist sincerely addresses several themes rich in lessons which truly define what a committed artist is. He knows that what he says will make people laugh, but does not say it only with the aim of making people laugh, but to pass on messages or lessons which are in fact messages brought to the attention of each Cameroonian called to prioritize what contributes to true social cohesion because, Men, whatever his origin or culture, is not only a story, but the sum of a set of choices which do not disconnect him from his roots, but allow him to rise above certain negative stereotypes so that his actions are not conditioned by stereotypes and prejudices. In other words, if as several Cameroonians say on the basis of palpable facts, and as the griot so well underlined in “défaut” where he admits that he himself belongs to an ignorant people, and in which he subsequently says that “the bamoun Men is a two-headed snake”, this does not mean that this component of a set of symbolic symbols of the Bamoun people has a link with the hypocritical attitudes adopted by certain bamouns.

Even if historical facts indicate an act of betrayal imbued with a hypocritical attitude which allowed the victory of the Bamoun warriors over their adversaries, the symbolism of the two-headed snake is not that of a people whose natives are by nature hypocrites.

History tells us that at the time of the 11^th king of the dynasty, namely King MBUEMBUE (1757-1814) or even bouombouo for those who have difficulty in pronunciation, there was a war of conquest between the Bamoun warriors and the POUS, who inhabited a territory located between the commercial centre of Malentuen and the right bank of the Mbam river as far as Ripa in the region which would face to the town of Ngambe Tikar (one of the four district capitals of the Mbam and Kim department (Central region). Indeed, the defence strategy of the POUS valiant warriors was based on a large monster called Sânumpût, which in fact was only a homemade monster which frightened the valiant Bamoun warriors. But these repetitive clashes which always ended without victory on either side reached a final stage when one day, a servant of King MAPOU of POUS, a man called Mancho, touched in his pride after having been severely reprimanded by his king, chose to reveal to King MBUEMBUE the defence strategy of his adversaries. Thanks to this strategic information, the final offensive ended in victory. But since the Bamouns had several enemies, King MBUEMBUE was informed of another attack on the western border on the banks of the Noun River. He went there with his warriors and the confrontation ended with another victory. It was at the end of these bloody clashes that the traitor and hypocrite was named great notable at the Bamoun palace, and that King Mbuembue had the idea of celebrating his triumph with a symbol which would represent his double victory.

If some Bamouns manifest a certain hypocrisy in their actions, the intentions which motivated the choice of the two-headed snake as one of the components of the Bamoun blazon were not imbued with hypocrisy. The intention was to highlight the bravery of a people of warriors who managed to string together two simultaneous victories. If some bamouns have for their part chosen duplicity in behaviour that must be wary of, their choices commit them. And if we consider that the Bamoun Men does not have the monopoly on hypocrisy and betrayal, it is up to each person to meditate on his conduct because, what is particular to certain inhabitants of a Terroir, can also be a reality elsewhere, if it is not already the case.

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