SPECIAL REPORT: Amboni Caves: Where fertility ‘god’ and ‘goddess’ reside

Tanga. ‘Eight kilometers north of the Tanga City resides a spelunking fertility god who will grant you virility and or a fecund womb in return for offerings – or so local people believe. If you’re not in the market for alternative family planning, the Amboni Caves, the home of said deity may still be of interest to you,’ so writes some of the web-based blogs publicising the caves.

The history of human existence is associated with beliefs of some supernatural beings commonly known as deities which have powers over humans. The word deity derives from the Latin ‘deus (God) which is related through a common Indo-European origin to Sanskrit deva (God), devi (Goddess), divya (transcendental, spiritual. According to Wikipedia the root is related to words for sky.

Amboni, believed to be the most extensive limestone cave system in East Africa located eight kilometers north of Tanga, have been associated with fascinating stories of a deity residing in the caves where traditional rites are still continuing to be held up to the present time.

One of the most common stories is based on the supposed fertility powers associated with the caves resulting in web writings aiming at using the traditional theory to attract tourists.

Deep inside the most extensive caves system in East Africa, one finds offerings of various sorts are being preserved with some of them looking just as recent as last night’s work. This is the famous area where local rites are being made, even today by various people who believe they would be healed of some diseases or bad luck

Speaking in an interview during a recent visit to the caves, the Conservator, Mr Tabu Mtelekezo, said that these are not mere stories being made up by some of the guides or visitors, but the caves have since old times being used for local traditional rites.

A fertility deity is a god or goddess in mythology associated with fertility, pregnancy, and birth. In some cases, these deities are directly associated with sex, and in others they simply embody related attributes. Fertility rites may accompany their worship.

The caves have caverns which are associated with dazzling stories. One cavern was allegedly used as a hideout by a famous Pre-Uhuru pair of Robin Hoods during the 1950s Mau Mau insurrection in Kenya (OsaleOtango and Paulo Hamis) who, according to local legend used to rob from the Europeans to give them to the Africans.

The caves attract tourist as well as students in their geography lessons. The attractions include bat flight (flying foxes), which live in the caves. Every evening at sunset they fly out of the cave entrance. Other attractions include Rocks in the shape of the sofa, a ship, a crocodile, an elephant, a map of Africa, Statue of Liberty and head of a male lion at the entrance.

A visit to the caves has now become a tradition for many people in Tanga for training seminars, conferences and other gatherings apart from foreigners. Over 70 visitors have been recorded to visit the caves every day and they are charged Sh1,000 for internal visitors and USD 11.9 for foreigners.

Mtelekezo points out that the cave management, which is under the National Archives, allows people who believe in traditional rites to perform their rites at the special area which has been used since time immemorial, provided they do not break the rules.

Asked how they treat such visitors, Mtelekezo says that the traditionalists pay the normal fees just like other visitors. “We have so many of them coming here for the traditional rites and surprisingly, they are so many  of them doing that as proved by the offerings spread in the area,”  Mtelekezo pointed out, however, saying that  the caves could attract more people if there was a special campaign to publicize them.

Tourism associated with traditional and cultural beliefs is not confined to Tanzania. Countries such as Nepal, Malta, Japan and several countries of the Far East have developed and are benefiting from tourism related with  deities, gods, goddesses and religions in general.

According to a paper written by Louis Laganà of the University of Malta, many tourists from all over the world are fascinated by the Prehistoric Temples and their artefacts. Lagana says that the description and some interpretation of the temples and Goddess statues and statuettes shed light on the hypothesis that the Goddess representation was a strong symbol of a fertility cult which existed on the islands thousands of years ago.

According to Lagana the Pre-historic Goddess remains an important figure of cultural tourism in Malta. He says that during the last two decades, there has been an increase of pilgrims coming from all over the world to visit the Maltese Neolithic temples. “This includes not just regular tourists, but also a good number of artists and scholars, including groups of American women involved  in what is called the ‘Goddess Movement’ who make  these pilgrimages to Malta here,” Lagana says. 

In Japan, Mt Fuji is worshipped and in particular, the early morning scene of the sun rising from the sea of clouds is of an inexpressible beauty.  This sunrise is regarded as a deity and worshipped by the Japanese who call it ‘Goraiko’.

The sun rising up on New Year’s Day known as ‘Hatsu-hinode’ or ‘the first sunrise of the year’ has a symbolic importance, attracting many tourists to Mt. Fuji.  Many Japanese dream of standing on the summit at least once in their lifetime, and Mt Fuji is visited by some 300,000 climbers every year.

A former Chairman of the Kiomoni Village, the gateway to the caves, Mr Salim Hamza Mashi, says that the scenarios in Malta, Nepal and Malta could be replicated here if there is a will to publicize these caves, improve their management and infrastructure.

He says that these caves have been used by local people who believe that there is some supernatural being who can cure their problems including bad luck, misfortunes and diseases.

‘This is why we have been demanding that we be involved in the management of the Caves because we as a community are associated with them through the traditional beliefs and rites,” says Mr Mashi.

Not much is known about the deity, but the worship in the deity could form an important part of cultural tourism that could thrive in Tanga and make the city a very important part of the Northern Tourist Circuit.

The Managing Director of a Tanga-based Tourist Company, Tangawonders Adventure, Mr Mwinyi Boko, says the caves have the potential to act as a major cultural tourism focal point. “Many tourists who come here like to be involved in cultural tourism but no such opportunities have been deal with,” says Mr Boko.

He suggests that a thorough research should be done on the traditions and mythology surrounding the caves, their history and how they have been used by local people, adding that this should be put in a book, brochures and  he internet. “Remember this is where Osale Otanga, the person who gave colonialists a hard time lived,” Boko says.

‘This would enable tour guides and operators to speak one kind of information on the wonders of the caves instead of every person having his own story of the caves,” says Boko

he says there has never been an organized campaign to market Amboni Caves. He suggests that Tanga tourism stakeholders should organize a major tourist campaign which would include publicizing the Amboni traditional cultural aspect as a tourist package.

He said it was sad that every guide has his own story of the caves and its wonders so much that if one decides to ask the tourists to speak about the cave, they would come with very different stories.

Boko further suggests the holding of Cultural Festivals where Amboni would form part of the main focal points to boost its image and attract more Tourists.

A simple solution would perhaps be organizing Stakeholders Meeting on Amboni and coming up with resolutions that could improve its management, something which many stakeholders, including the Executive Secretary of the Tanga-based Cultural Tourism Initiative, Laurent Herman believes should be done now to improve the situation.

Most stakeholders believe the caves have the ability to collect more than the Sh. 48 million it collected last year which if translated in the number tourists is about 4,000 tourists who visited..