He lit a cigar, blew smoke over the symbol, and began to sing a ponto cantado —a song that matched the drawing. "E le e le, Ogum, na estrada..."
Tonight’s student wasn’t a novice, but a skeptic: Dr. Helena, a sociologist who had come to "document folklore." She watched with folded arms as the old man drew.
In the deep recesses of a Rio de Janeiro suburb, the night was thick with the scent of guava and sea salt. Inside the modest terreiro of Pai João, the drumming had ceased. A single candle flickered on the slate floor, casting trembling shadows on the white walls.