"Here in the belly of the forest, where the elders have brought us to make us into men, we no longer have names, we have no purpose. We are disappearing, but at the same time we can take on any form. We are like water. We are clay just scooped out of a hole with hands and machete. We are molten metal waiting to be poured into a mould..."

Central Africa. Jenghi, the powerful, mysterious spirit of the Forest, is about to kill the young boys of a pygmy camp during an ancient initiation ritual. But for the first time ever, among the boys lying on the ground in a jungle clearing, their bodies painted and smeared with blood, there is a European, an anthropology student who arrived here a few months earlier. This is the opening scene of a personal story told by Luis Devin, containing accounts of the secret rituals he underwent with the Baka pygmies in order to be accepted as a member of their group and to allow him to share with them the secrets of the forest. But this rite of passage with its tests to overcome and its teachings, is also the underlying theme of a wider story which unfolds in a natural environment (the vast rain forest of Africa) and a cultural setting (the Pygmy camps), both of which until quite recently had remained relatively intact. Now, unfortunately, this world is rapidly disappearing. Forming a backdrop to the main narrative we find vivid descriptions of food gathering expeditions, hunting with crossbow and arrow, propitiatory songs, creation of musical instruments from leaves and water; but other themes dealt with include deforestation, conflict with the Bantu, witchcraft, alcoholism, prostitution, and the illegal trade in wildlife. Luis Devin’s account of his unique first person experiences is written in a direct, absorbing style that succeeds in blending strong narrative, anthropology and the poetry of the unknown language of the pygmies.