Ngor Cave:The serene sanctuary
The Ngor cave, highly symbolic among the Layènes, will be an important step in the time of the Call. A major place of pilgrimage, this restful area is the source of light.
The Ngor cave is a high place, a sacred temple for the disciples of Seydina Limamou Laye Al madhi. The place is located on an impressively vast plot of land, in the heart of the chic Almadies district which owes its name to a distortion of Al Mahdi.
The relaxing atmosphere is certain on the premises. We could attach virtue to the sea air and the gentle breeze which caress the body as much as the mind. But, the spiritual character insists on all ends.
The cave is located below, in an underground cavity which overlooks the Atlantic Ocean. You descend there by a ladder crossing a small rocky opening. Before, within three meters, you must have passed by a monument which frames the famous rock bearing the walking footprint of Imam Al Mahdi.
For the Layènes, this exceptional cave is august: it was the chamber of the spirit of Mame Limamou Laye before its human materiality.
“The holy man himself affirmed that his light lived in this cave for a millennium before his birth. Ngor Cave is the slope of Mount Hira, which is high up while here it is deep. Mecca symbolizes the East, and here we find ourselves in the extreme West,” deciphers Abdoulaye Thiaw Laye, grandson of the Mahdi and son of his 4th caliph, Alassane Thiaw Laye Mame Rane.
The sheikh, currently master of the place, explains that this cave is the materialization of a truth. Abdoulaye Thiaw Laye indicates that we must have a more intelligent understanding than a solar cycle, when we affirm that the sun rises in the east and sets in the west.
“The sun of suns, the ultimate light, is the Prophet Mohammad (pbuh). He appeared in Mecca and continued his cycle, until now. The same sun travels its path, just as the same seal of lights, appeared here and there. It is the same Arab prophet who appeared black, in the person of the Mahdi, according to the very prediction of the Envoy (pbuh),” deciphers the spiritual guide Layène, installed near the mosque erected near the cave.
He recognizes that for a mind not invaded by this dogma, it can be preposterous to believe in this mystical logic.
“Yes, it may be scandalous for some to hear our conviction. We can understand this, and perhaps this is why many Muslims do not dare to reflect more curiously on our spiritual line. But I consider, moreover, that anyone who is convinced that the prophet Moussa split the sea should not have much difficulty believing in the miracle of Baye Laye,” subscribes the marabout dressed all in white.
By Mamadou Oumar KAMARA
