263 AFRICAN POLITICAL SYSTEMS
fellow ttndaanas of lineages linked to theirs by ties of clanship or of ritual collaboration. This is one of many ritual ties that unite neighbouring ttndaanas.
Composite clans have several tzndaanas^ one of whom is senior in status to the rest, but in ritual matters which concern the whole clan all participate, the key roles being distributed equally amongst them. Tendaanas of neighbouring clans, whether interlinked by clanship ties or not, usually have ritual ties, and any one of them can represent all in ritual relationships with a chief or another such group of clans. In the Great Festivals, the key functions are distributed amongst tzndaanas representing such groups of clans and an equilibrium of mutual dependence is attained which is an extremely powerful sanction of solidarity, counteracting the conflicts due to divergent loyalties.
Every tzndaana has his own tzy, the area within which he sacrifices to the Earth shrines (toygbana) and exercises his other ritual prerogatives. He allots any unowned land in this area for fanning or building, in return for gifts which have a ritual and not economic significance. People of other clans than his may dwell there, acknowledging his ritual rights, but not paying him rent or tribute.
A tendaanas's tzg is roughly demarcated by certain natural landmarks, but it has no precise boundaries, since it is only a subdivision of the single, unitary Earth. Since neighbouring tzndaanas usually have clanship or ritual ties, they regard their respective rights and responsibilities as specific devolutions of what are really common rights and responsibilities shared, in the last resort, by all tmdaanas. Frequently neighbouring tzndaanas have one or more Earth shrines in common.
The Earth cult, therefore, is at the same time a factor in the differentiation of structural units, accentuating their relative autonomy in relation to one another and their divergent interests, and a factor in the integration of the community. In the wider community, it balances chiefship; but in the narrower unit of a local clan or interconnected group of clans like the Talis, which has no chiefship, it is balanced by the cult of the 'external (yzyha) byyar\ Among the Hill Talis, this is an esoteric cult into which their youths are initiated, as well as a fertility cult which attracts pilgrims from places far beyond the borders of Taleland. Its devotees could visit these places safely, and this was a channel