Lega

The Lega people live nearby the northern end of Lake Tanganyika on the banks of the Lualaba River in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and are also known as the Warega. 

The Lega are not organized under one centralized authority. Instead, individual communities are stratified in accordance with lineage hierarchies. The leader of the lineage inherits his position along patrilineal lines. This system is balanced by the Bwami society, which is theoretically open to all Lega, and involves movement through numerous hierarchical stages. 

For the Lega the ultimate goal is to reach the uppermost level of Bwami where one would be recognized as a Kindi, one who exercises moral suasion and is a leader in society. The complex system of instruction, initiation and advancement in Bwami uses masks and figures to document the various levels of Bwami and to serve as badges validating the initiate s knowledge of the secrets of Bwami and of their rank.

The Bwami society is the context for the production of most Lega art work, which includes ivory and wooden statuettes and masks. Ivory objects are reserved for the highest level, Kindi, while wooden objects are used by Kindi and Yonanio, the second level.

Lega masks are usually carved in a distinctive style, with a heart-shaped concave face with a slightly protruding forehead, a narrow nose, slit eyes and a slightly open mouth. The faces of the masks are rubbed with white clay (pembe) each time that they are used and thereby acquire the white pagination that color the face and enhance the various decorative designs as in this mask of dots around the face with lines under the eyes. 

Lega masks, known as Lukwakongo, are relatively standardized in form however masks of particular importance with ritual and symbolic distinction will have unique forms. 

The social and political life of the Lega (also known as the Warega) is regulated by the Bwami society, to which both men and women belong. There are seven levels for men, four levels for women. Most  masks where used for initiation to one of the first two levels of the Bwami society. The white sections were repainted with Pembe each time they were danced. The masks where worn by the initiates and also displayed on a fence. 

The main gods are Kalaga, the promiser; Kenkunga, the reassembler; and Ombe, the hidden. Kaginga is recognized as the incarnation of evil and assists sorcerers. By joining Bwami one can develop an immunity to the evil doings of most witches. The highest rank of Bwami is Kindi and is directly associated with the skulls of the ancestors, which are placed in a hut at the center of the village. Objects which contain powerful supernatural medicines are not exposed to public eye but are instead placed with the Kindi. (via, via)