A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.

Overview

Tremearne calls Mai-Bulala the One with the Whip. He disciplines young bori at their school in Jan Gari, punishing those who are not diligent. Another account explains household quarrels through his concealed blows: husband and wife each believe the other has struck them. Scratching that leaves long marks is likewise attributed to this spirit. These are reported spirit actions and explanations within the historical account.

His representation uses a hippopotamus-hide whip in each hand. The performer strikes the back across alternating shoulders, then passes both whips over the right shoulder and the left in repeated sequences. The song connects his arrival with flight into the forest and tells of an unsuccessful wish to marry one of Magajiya’s enslaved women. Its hippopotamus language accompanies the whip association; Tremearne’s suggested connection with commemorations of Hassan and Husein is an interpretation rather than an established origin.

Two hippopotamus-hide whipsSecret blows causing quarrelsSpirit-school discipline
01

Origins & earliest records

A. J. N. Tremearne combines interviews and descriptions of bori performances with comparative interpretation. These selected notices do not consistently name individual speakers; printed attributes are distinguished from his conjectures.

02

Records & interpretation

Complete selected spirit notice in chapter XXII, printed pp. 321–322; surrounding chapter context read.

Selected bibliography

Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.

  1. 01

    The Ban of the Bori: Demons and Demon-Dancing in West and North Africa

    A. J. N. Tremearne, collector and colonial-era interpreter · 1914

    XXII. Bori—the Mohammedan Spirits, printed pp. 321–322; attributed narrative and ritual representation.

Family & connections

A source-supported family tree or inspiration record has not yet been compiled for this profile. Related reading below indicates a connection in subject matter, not a proven lineage or creative influence.

References

Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.

  1. Digitized historical ethnographic accountTremearne — Mai-BulalaResearch access: 2026-10-05

Image credits

A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.

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