The Serpent Who Guards the First Man

According to Dogon myth, after the first ancestor, Lebe, died, he was resurrected in the form of a great serpent. This Serpent Ancestor became the guardian of the soil's fertility and the spiritual leader of the Dogon people. It is said that the serpent's body contains the spirits of all the ancestors. Every sixty years, the Dogon hold a great festival called the Sigi, which re-enacts the creation of the world and the death of the first ancestor. During this time, a magnificent Great Mask (Iminana) is carved, which represents the serpent Lebe. The story teaches that the serpent is not a creature to be feared but is the embodiment of life, death, and regeneration. Lebe the Serpent links the living to the world of the ancestors and ensures the continuation of the Dogon people through the fertility of the earth he protects.