Sampy
Encyclopedia
A sampy is an amulet or idol of spiritual and political importance among numerous ethnic groups in Madagascar
. Amulets and idols fashioned from assorted natural materials have occupied an important place among many Malagasy communities for centuries. Ody, personal amulets believed to protect or allocate powers to the wearer, were commonplace objects possessed by anyone from slave children to kings. The name sampy was given to those amulets that, while physically indistinguishable from ody, were distinct in that their powers extended over an entire community. The sampy were often personified - complete with a distinct personality - and offered their own house with keepers dedicated to their service.
In the sixteenth-century, King Ralambo
of the Merina people amassed twelve of the most reputed and powerful sampy from neighboring communities. He furthermore transformed the nature of the relationship between sampy and ruler: whereas previously the sampy had been seen as tools at the disposal of community leaders, under Ralambo they became divine protectors of the leader's sovereignty and the integrity of the state which would be preserved through their power on the condition that the line of sovereigns ensured the sampy were shown the respect due to them. By collecting the twelve greatest sampy (twelve being a sacred number in Merina cosmology) and transforming their nature, Ralambo strengthened the supernatural power and legitimacy of the royal line of Imerina.
The Tantara ny Andriana offers an account of the idols' introduction into Imerina. According to legend, one day during Ralambo's reign a woman named Kalobe arrived in Imerina carrying a small object wrapped in banana leaves and grass. She had traveled from her village located at Isondra in Betsileo
country to the south which had been destroyed by fire, walking the great distance and traveling only at night in order to deliver to the king what she called kelimalaza ("the little famous one"), giving the impression that it was no less than the greatest treasure in the land. Ralambo took the sampy and built a house for it in a nearby village. He then selected a group of adepts who were to study under Kalobe to learn the mysteries of the kelimalaza. Oral history maintains that Kalobe was "made to disappear" after the adepts' training was completed in order to prevent her from absconding with the precious idol.
Not long after, the legend continues, a group of Sakalava
(or, by some accounts, Vazimba
) warriors were preparing to attack a village north of Alasora called Ambohipeno. Ralambo announced that it would be sufficient to throw a rotten egg at the warriors, and kelimalaza would take care of the rest. According to oral history, the egg was thrown and hit a warrior in the head, killing him on contact; his corpse fell onto another warrior and killed him, and this corpse fell onto another and so forth, until the warriors had all been destroyed, forevermore confirming the power of kelimalaza as the protector of the kingdom in the minds of the Merina populace. Similarly, at the besieged Imerina village of Ambohimanambola, invoking kelimalaza was said to have produced a massive hailstorm that wiped out the enemy warriors.
The honored place that Ralambo awarded to kelimalaza encouraged others like Kalobe to bring their own sampy to Ralambo from neighboring lands where they had long before been introduced by the Antaimoro. First after kelimalaza was ramahavaly, said to control snakes and repel attacks. The next arrival, manjakatsiroa, protected the sovereignty of the king from rivals and became the favorite of Ralambo, who kept it always near him. Afterward came rafantaka, believed to protect against injury and death; others followed, all of Antaimoro origin with the possible exception of mosasa, which had come from the Tanala
forest people to the east. The propagation of similar sampy at the service of less powerful citizens consequently increased throughout Imerina under Ralambo's rule: nearly every village chief, as well as many common families, had one in their possession and claimed the powers and protection their communal sampy offered them.
These lesser sampy were destroyed or reduced to the status of ody (personal talismans) by the end of the reign of Ralambo's son, Andrianjaka
, officially leaving only twelve truly powerful sampy (known as the sampin'andriana: the "Royal Sampy") which were all in the possession of the king. These royal sampy, including kelimalaza, were protected by "keepers of the sampy", who were often consulted by rulers and had become considerable power brokers by the 19th century. The sampy continued to be worshiped until their destruction in a bonfire by Queen Ranavalona II upon her public conversion to Christianity in 1869.
Ethnic groups of Madagascar
The number of ethnic groups of Madagascar has long been a point of contention and debate. The island of Madagascar is predominantly populated by people broadly classified as belonging to the broader Malagasy ethnic identity...
. Amulets and idols fashioned from assorted natural materials have occupied an important place among many Malagasy communities for centuries. Ody, personal amulets believed to protect or allocate powers to the wearer, were commonplace objects possessed by anyone from slave children to kings. The name sampy was given to those amulets that, while physically indistinguishable from ody, were distinct in that their powers extended over an entire community. The sampy were often personified - complete with a distinct personality - and offered their own house with keepers dedicated to their service.
In the sixteenth-century, King Ralambo
Ralambo
Ralambo was the ruler of the Kingdom of Imerina in the central Highlands region of Madagascar from 1575 to 1612. Ruling from Ambohidrabiby, Ralambo expanded the realm of his father, Andriamanelo, and was the first to assign the name of Imerina to the region...
of the Merina people amassed twelve of the most reputed and powerful sampy from neighboring communities. He furthermore transformed the nature of the relationship between sampy and ruler: whereas previously the sampy had been seen as tools at the disposal of community leaders, under Ralambo they became divine protectors of the leader's sovereignty and the integrity of the state which would be preserved through their power on the condition that the line of sovereigns ensured the sampy were shown the respect due to them. By collecting the twelve greatest sampy (twelve being a sacred number in Merina cosmology) and transforming their nature, Ralambo strengthened the supernatural power and legitimacy of the royal line of Imerina.
The Tantara ny Andriana offers an account of the idols' introduction into Imerina. According to legend, one day during Ralambo's reign a woman named Kalobe arrived in Imerina carrying a small object wrapped in banana leaves and grass. She had traveled from her village located at Isondra in Betsileo
Betsileo
The Betsileo are a highland ethnic group of Madagascar, the third largest in terms of population, numbering around 1.5 million and making up about 12.1 percent of the population. Their name means "The Many Invincible Ones" which they chose for themselves after the failed invasion of Ramitraho...
country to the south which had been destroyed by fire, walking the great distance and traveling only at night in order to deliver to the king what she called kelimalaza ("the little famous one"), giving the impression that it was no less than the greatest treasure in the land. Ralambo took the sampy and built a house for it in a nearby village. He then selected a group of adepts who were to study under Kalobe to learn the mysteries of the kelimalaza. Oral history maintains that Kalobe was "made to disappear" after the adepts' training was completed in order to prevent her from absconding with the precious idol.
Not long after, the legend continues, a group of Sakalava
Sakalava
The Sakalava are an ethnic group of Madagascar numbering approximately 700,000 in population. Their name means "people of the long valleys." They occupy the Western edge of the island from Toliara in the south to Sambirano in the north. The Sakalava denominate a number of smaller ethnic groups...
(or, by some accounts, Vazimba
Vazimba
The Vazimba , according to popular belief, were the first inhabitants of Madagascar. While beliefs about the physical appearance of the Vazimba reflect regional variation, they are generally described as smaller in stature than the average person, leading some scientists to speculate that they may...
) warriors were preparing to attack a village north of Alasora called Ambohipeno. Ralambo announced that it would be sufficient to throw a rotten egg at the warriors, and kelimalaza would take care of the rest. According to oral history, the egg was thrown and hit a warrior in the head, killing him on contact; his corpse fell onto another warrior and killed him, and this corpse fell onto another and so forth, until the warriors had all been destroyed, forevermore confirming the power of kelimalaza as the protector of the kingdom in the minds of the Merina populace. Similarly, at the besieged Imerina village of Ambohimanambola, invoking kelimalaza was said to have produced a massive hailstorm that wiped out the enemy warriors.
The honored place that Ralambo awarded to kelimalaza encouraged others like Kalobe to bring their own sampy to Ralambo from neighboring lands where they had long before been introduced by the Antaimoro. First after kelimalaza was ramahavaly, said to control snakes and repel attacks. The next arrival, manjakatsiroa, protected the sovereignty of the king from rivals and became the favorite of Ralambo, who kept it always near him. Afterward came rafantaka, believed to protect against injury and death; others followed, all of Antaimoro origin with the possible exception of mosasa, which had come from the Tanala
Tanala
The Tanala are a Malagasy ethnic group that inhabit a forested region of south-east Madagascar. Their name means "people of the forest." The Tanala speak a dialect of the Malagasy language, which is a branch of the Malayo-Polynesian language group derived from the Barito languages, spoken in...
forest people to the east. The propagation of similar sampy at the service of less powerful citizens consequently increased throughout Imerina under Ralambo's rule: nearly every village chief, as well as many common families, had one in their possession and claimed the powers and protection their communal sampy offered them.
These lesser sampy were destroyed or reduced to the status of ody (personal talismans) by the end of the reign of Ralambo's son, Andrianjaka
Andrianjaka
Andrianjaka reigned over the Kingdom of Imerina in the central highlands region of Madagascar from around 1612 to 1630. Despite being the younger of King Ralambo's two sons, Andrianjaka succeeded to the throne on the basis of his strength of character and skill as a military tactician...
, officially leaving only twelve truly powerful sampy (known as the sampin'andriana: the "Royal Sampy") which were all in the possession of the king. These royal sampy, including kelimalaza, were protected by "keepers of the sampy", who were often consulted by rulers and had become considerable power brokers by the 19th century. The sampy continued to be worshiped until their destruction in a bonfire by Queen Ranavalona II upon her public conversion to Christianity in 1869.