"Muntu wa kondwa lusānsu fwananene yo buluu kia kondwa matono."
(A person without culture is like a zebra without stripes)
After the sky was separated from the earth, humans settled as best they could on the still deserted surface of the earth: some in the valleys, others in the plains, and some on the slopes of mountains or by the riversides. Their disobedience had brought upon them various afflictions and sufferings: diseases, famine, homicides, quarrels among relatives, thefts...
Seeing this, Ngoy, the great spirit, went to meet Nkulu, the Primordial Spirit, with the intention of pleading the case of humans. Nkulu listened to him, for Ngoy, as his name indicates, was a spirit of "Completion," "The one who ends imperfections." Nkulu dived into Lake Kisale, his dwelling, and emerged with a wooden statuette which he handed to Ngoy: "Take this object. It is the Bwanga, the remedy that humans await to alleviate their afflictions. Tell them to carve several similar ones that you will bring back here. This one is a model."
Ngoy took the statuette and entrusted them to the diviner, so that he could fashion others. The diviner worked tirelessly, day and night. After a certain time, he handed Ngoy a number of statuettes of different shapes and sizes. Ngoy took them to the Primordial Spirit, as he had been instructed. Nkulu revealed to Ngoy the magical words capable of animating these statuettes and endowing them with healing power. He taught him the virtues of plants and the nature of the ingredients with which the statuettes had to be imbued in order to maintain a permanent connection with himself and the other spirits of the cosmos.