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Doma also attack people by touching them. The place touched is said to swell and becomes very sore; eventually, the victim becomes seriously ill and is forced to go to bed. This kind of attack is thought especially difficult to guard against because, as noted above, most doma have not been identified and almost anyone, even a person’s best friend, might be one. A typical statement was, ‘They are always your friend; some day one will make you laugh and slap you on the back. The spot where he slapped you swells and you die.’ But doma may also come through the crack of the door or down through the roof and touch a person while he is asleep.
- Source: Ames, David W. “Belief in ‘witches’ among the rural Wolof of the Gambia.” Africa -- Vol. 24, no. 3, pp. 263-273, 1959.
- Culture: Wolof
- Location: Africa