Using these mask-spirits, the societies are able to settle disputes, enforce rules, and correct behavior. All males attend bon, or bush school, during their initiation into these societies when they are adolescents. Gor society Like many Mande cultures, societal organisation centers around "societies": either age group, caste, occupational, or geographic. In the recent historic period, Dan communities were for the first (known) time allied into a political organization, created through the Leopard society (Gor). The Gor spirit of the society focuses on peacemaking between communities which have often been in conflict around the powerful spirit Gor, who is responsible for peacemaking. Individual villages, even those unified under the Leopard society, still maintain a high degree of political independence. Dan villages are divided into quarters, each housing an extended family or lineage. Each quarter is headed by a "quarter chief," who is chosen either for being the oldest male in the family or for having the most aggressive personality. Although the village or town chief administers authority over the whole village, the real power comes from the council of elders who assist the chief in all decisions. Honorary chief titles can be given to non-tribe members who have assisted the tribe in charitable means. For example, U.S. Diplomat, John F. Moss (working for VOA), was bestowed by a Dan tribe in Liberia as an honorary chief after he commissioned a bulldozer to help them build a road through the jungle. Religion The Dan have a complex traditional religion. The Dan believe in Zlan, a Supreme God who created the universe and everything in it. They believe that no one can reach him or see him physically. Instead, they worship Zu, an independent spiritual power. The majority of the people believe in reincarnation, through which Zu can enable a person to pass into another person or even an animal after death. The Dan believe that Zu is present in all aspects of the universe and is appealed to for many kinds of help. Zu is harnessed through masquerade or divination practices; the Dan harness du by creating an object for du to embody. Dreaming is the means through which people communicate with Zu. Architecture Traditional Dan huts were small, single-room dwellings made of mud and thatch. Each wife of a man had her own hut where her children lived until they were old enough to move out. Today, houses are large and