Moustapha Cisse Manuscript Collection
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Item Teeroo I Tuloo Loo: My Friend, Listen!Cisse, Karang AlphousseyniThe manuscript includes two poems. The first is written in Mandinka Ajami and deals with religious ethics. The second one, which is written in Arabic, is incomplete. It praises God and urges the faithful to prepare for their life in the hereafter by living righteous lives.Item Ramuloo III: Divination IIICisse, Karang AlphousseyniContains two manuscripts that deal with divination. The first is in Mandinka and the second in Arabic. Both manuscripts deal with divination techniques, which include interpretations of sixteen signs to identify people’s problems and to provide appropriate solutions. This form of divination, Khatt al-Raml in Arabic, is an old and popular tradition in Mandinka communities, as reflected in the multiple copies and types manscripts dealing with the subject found in different local archives.Item Koleyaalu Jaaraŋo III: Solutions to Problems IIICisse, Karang AlphousseyniContains several ephemeral documents dealing with different subjects. These subjects include protection from Satan, increasing one’s chances of becoming wealthy, ending a dispute, happily resolving legal cases, and silencing one’s opponents. The documents include a poem in Mandinka Ajami and bilingual texts with names of supernatural beings, figures, and numerological formulas to address people’s preoccupations.Item Seneyandiraŋ Kitaaboo: Book of Purificational-Sanūsī, Muḥammad; Cisse, Karang AlphousseyniThe document is inspired by an original Arabic text by Muḥammad al-Sanūsī dealing with Islamic rituals, including ways to cleanse oneself after intercourse and ablutions. The original Arabic document was translated in Mandinka to allow Ajami users to access the content easily. It discusses the differents types of purification that Islam teaches and how each part of the body should be washed. The document is bound and made for wider dissemination.Item Koleyaalu Jaaraŋo II: Solutions to Problems IICisse, Karang AlphousseyniThe manuscript is a copy of a synthesis of divination and diagnosis techniques used to identify the roots of people's concerns and ways to address them. According to the owner, the original which was written in the 19th century is lost. Section headings are written in bold. The document is written in Mandinka Ajami.Item Ramuloo II: Divination IICisse, Karang AlphousseyniThe manuscript is a copy. It deals with divination techniques, which include interpretations of sixteen signs to identify people’s problems and provide appropriate solutions. Each of the sixteen signs corresponds to a name of an Abrahaamic prophet. The manuscript is mostly written in Mandinka Ajami. This form of divination, which is part of Khatt al-Raml in Arabic, is very old and popular in Mandinka communities as reflected in the multiple copies and types found in different local archives.Item Koleyaalu Jaaraŋo I: Solutions to Problems ICisse, Karang AlphousseyniThe manuscript is a photocopy of a part of a bilingual manual dealing with techniques to solve people's problems using what Mandinka scholars call: Ismoo (Arabic: name). The word refers to the use of names of God, Prophets, Jinns, and other supernatural beings in prayers, numerology, and Khātim (magical squares) in order to address people’s preoccupations. Local marabouts (healers and religious leaders) have a variety of recipes, techniques, and specialized prayers tailored to specific concerns of their clients. Some parts of the manuscript are written in Arabic (usually words believed to have supernatural power) and other parts are in Mandinka (usually the instructions of how to use the techniques or recipes effectively). Most of the Mandinka Ajami writings in the manuscript are vocalized, while most of the Arabic writings are not.Item Ramuloo I Divination ICisse, SeckouThe manuscript is a copy. It deals with divination techniques used to identify people's problems and to find approprite solutions. The techniques in the document are also used to predict people's future, by anticipating the challenges they might face, and ways to thwart or overcome them. This art of divination is part of Khatt al-Raml in Arabic, which is very old and popular in Mandinka communities. The document is written in Mandinka Ajami.Item Images of Imam Moustapha Cisse and the community of Kandialang (Ziguinchor)(2018-06-01) Ngom, IbrahimaImages of manuscript owner Imam Moustapha Cisse and the community of Kandialang, Ziguinchor, Senegal, for the manuscript digitization work done in July 2018.