Spear masters are those who learned the lessons of good and evil as represented in the use of the spear. The Dinka of the Sudan say that long ago there were dances held by lions, and a man was dancing when a lion looked at him and demanded his bracelet. The man refused to give his bracelet to the lion, whereupon the lion bit his thumb completely off. Then the man bled to death. The man had left a wife and daughter behind, but they had no son, and so the widow went weeping to the river. The river spirit heard her and asked her what was wrong. When she told the story of her misfortune, the river spirit said to her, “Lift your skirt ...