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This video is part of Jean Rouch's film titled "Yenendi, les hommes qui font la pluie" (Yenendi, the men who make rain) made in 1951. Yenendi or yeenandi is a ritual ceremony, the celebration of rain. The film was shot in the Songhay village Simiri in Niger. The length of the original film is 29 minutes, the video shows one and a half minute.
By the summons of the drummers of the calabashes and the player of the violin the dance of the possession begins. One by one the spirits "mount their horses": Moussa the spirit of the wind, Niabri goddess of the earth, Sadyara the rainbow, Tyirey master of lightning, Hausakoy master of divine inspiration, and Dongo master of the thunder and rain. Next the priest and the faithful consult the "hampi", a ritual clay pot filled with water and millet grains that represents the firmament of the coming rainy season put on earth. During a new possession, Dongo knocks over the pot of the firmament, the rains of the coming rainy season fall on the earth of Simiri . Based on the pattern of lines of water and the distribution of the grains, the men know whether the season will be good and the harvest abundant [source: Africiné].
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