THE NECROPOLIS AND SACRED FOREST OF MPOTSA

A few kilometres from Mwaro, in commune Rusaka, is the site of Mpotsa, a forest venerated by Burundians because of its historical dimensions. It was here that the remains of at least four of the last «queens-mothers» of the kingdom (mwami, pl. bami) were preserved, according to a process and a path as ritualisés as the induction or funeral of a king.

The mothers of the bami had until their majority an unquestionable power in the former Burundian society (the most famous is Ririkumutima, wife of Gisabo). Thus, their death was celebrated with dignity and their memory honoured. In Mpotsa, at the end of a particular route on the hills, a palace and houses for the Ritualistic Ritualistic responsible for ensuring the necropolis were built, and a sacred grove was planted for each queen-mother buried. The traces of these groves are large trees still visible today, bamboo and ficus in particular. The site has been well preserved, probably because of the fear of a little lieux, inhabited by defunct. The surrounding rain forest (40 ha) has various species, including medicinal plants. Nearby, on Bunyange hill, there is also a source of water whose therapeutic virtues we boast in the region.

You can reach Mpotsa (Rusaka) from Ijenda or Nyakararo, ten miles away, taking tracks from the RN 7 (on the left from Bujumbura), or walking from Mwaro to Bunyange and Gatongati (about 8 km).