@hiltonotenyo
Scientists say lightning is a natural electrical discharge of extremely high voltage between a cloud and the ground or within the clouds.
It is accompanied by a bright, searing flash and thunder and it occurs mostly during thunderstorms.
But the metaphysical is much more intriguing and explains phenomenon to certain traditional communities.
In Western Kenya, communities interpret lightning in line with their cultural beliefs and superstitions.
While some people see it as a natural occurrence, others associate lightning with witchcraft.
Folklore has it that a red rooster appears after lightning strikes. Children are cautioned against walking in running rainwater or sheltering under trees when it is raining, lest they be struck.
There is widespread belief that lightning is controlled by witches and can be sent to kill a person or cause destruction of a targeted homestead.
The Banyala subtribe of the Luhya community in Navakholo believe lightning can be sent by individuals.
Mzee Chris Ekosi says adepts in the community can send lightning to strike a specific location and destroy targets.
“Herbs are prepared by the experts and placed in the targeted locations. This is done when it’s about to rain and lightning will do as the herbs are instructed while placing them,” he said.
Ekosi said that the same experts or savants can stop lightning from hitting individuals or homes.
This is done by preparing herbs and placing them in the middle of a home.
In this way, any lightning that has been sent to either kill or cause damage bounces back to the sender, he claimed.
“Alternatively, there is a certain tree that repulses lightning back to the sender when it is planted at the centre of the homestead. This is what we mean by protecting the home,” he said.
He said people who are killed by lightning in the community are buried in a specific manner by elders who understand the culture. Such victims are buried between 4pm and 5pm. A sheep has to be killed and certain rituals performed before and after the burial.
According to the Batsotso elders of Lurambi constituency, it is easy to tell between lightning caused through natural means and that caused by dark forces.
“Whenever lightning strikes while there is no rain that is an indication that it is black magic but if it occurs during a downpour it is considered a natural phenomenon,” Maurice Omwisho, 89, said.
However, Staenley Nakholi, a Bunyala elder in Buchangu village in Navakholo dismisses the notion that lightning is controlled by anything else other than naturally occurring electricity
“Where I live is like the convergence area for the electrical currents and lightning keeps striking trees time and again. Lightning recently struck a tree in my farm and neighbours were asking me to give it to them for firewood. I told them off and decided use the firewood myself and nothing has happened to date,” he said.
Amongst the Banyala Luhya subtribe, a tree struck by lightning should be given to others to use, lest it burns his house if he uses it himself.
Maragoli elder James Litu says lightning is a sign of bad things to come and it is believed that witchcraft is at work when it occurs.
“Among the Maragolis, a person struck by lightning is buried immediately. The body is not even allowed to be taken into the house since this could bring more bad luck to the family,” he said.
“The burial is followed by the cleansing of family members and elaborate rituals by the graveside. The grave is then flattened and banana leaves or stalks laid over the site and left to rot there to ensure lightning does not strike the homestead again,” Litu said.
After the burial, the family plants a tree locally known as ‘Livono’ (castor oil tree), which is believed to be a natural lightning arrestor.
The Teso community in Busia believes lightning is a natural occurrence.
“Among the Teso, lightning is not necessarily a product of witchcraft,” elder John Osutu said.
The community, however, ensures disposal of the victim’s bodies almost immediately.
“The body cannot be taken in to the house. Even if a victim’s remains had been taken to the mortuary first, it must be interred by elders immediately it arrives at home,” Teso elder John Onyango said.
These traditional beliefs run deep but counter the scientific explanation of thunder.
According to Wikipedia, lightning is a natural phenomenon formed by electrostatic discharges through the atmosphere between two electrically charged regions, either both in the atmosphere or one in the atmosphere and one on the ground.
These phenomena temporarily neutralise in a near-instantaneous release of an average of between 200 megajoules [one joule is the amount of energy needed to lift a medium apple or tomato one metre in the air] and seven gigajoules [a billion joules] of energy, depending on the type.
The three main kinds of lightning are distinguished by where they occur: either inside a single thundercloud (intra-cloud), between two clouds (cloud-to-cloud), or between a cloud and the ground (cloud-to-ground), in which case it is referred to as a lightning strike. Lightning causes thunder, a sound from the shock wave that develops as gases in the vicinity of the discharge experience a sudden increase in pressure.