Medicine Men and Love Potions

I was sitting with a man one day talking when his daughter handed him some powder. He added some sugar, and started reciting words over the packages as he was tying them off. He told me it was a money potion. He said if I put the powder in water and then bathe with it, money would come my way. At first I did not understand what he was talking about but all of a sudden it all made sense.

At least once every two weeks I saw a car or taxi pull up to his compound, which is highly unusual. Only people with a lot of money can hire cars, and my village did not have money. I always thought it was strange. At that moment, I figured it out. He was a marabou, a medicine man, as we would call it.

I have heard of witch doctors and voodoo, but the Gambia has something a little different. They are called marabous. They tell fortunes, cure sick people, and make charms. They are extremely common in the Gambia, and Gambians believe in them, but they are very inconspicuous. The man in my village had the same house as everyone else, very plain with a bed, a mat, and some clothes hanging over a line. He dressed the same and worked just like every other man in village. I guess I let the Hollywood stereotype get the best of me because when I think of medicine men I think of dead animals, face paint, cauldrons, and bones.

Charms, or jujus as Gambians call it, are extremely popular. All Gambians have at least one. They wear them around their waist, bicep, or neck. They can bring good luck, or ward off evil spirits. They can prevent knifes from penetrating the skin or allow for safe travel. People can get them for almost any reason. One boy in village approached me one day to borrow my bike. He wanted to travel 12km to find a marabou that would make girls attracted to him. He wanted to go when it was dark so no one could see him leave. He wanted it to be a secret. He told me not to tell anyone in village. A few weeks later he said it was working.