Africa Body, Mind and Spirit
Africa has always been a place of mystery and magic, from the ages gone by where she was known as Dark Africa to her miracles and enchantment of today's Rainbow Nation. She has her many secrets that remain inexplicable but she offers a whole host of treasures ready and waiting for those special individuals who are prepared to receive her gifts and to accept them with open hearts and open minds.Africa offers healing of body, mind and soul.
There are many traditional methods of healing and healers, although the nyanga and sangoma are possibly the most well known.
Muti (pronounced: moo-tea) is a word in Southern Africa that describes traditional medicine. It is also used as slang to mean medicine in general although it has its roots in the Zulu word for tree as many medicines were taken from trees.
A nyanga, or herbalist, has studied nature and her plants and is able to offer various remedies for specific conditions of unease in the body. A sangoma can offer a visitor herbal medicine for their ailments as well, however the distinction comes in between a sangoma and a nyanga, in that a sangoma offers counselling and divination for those seeking healing of an emotional, mental or spiritual kind as well.
Advice from the ancestors can be obtained by the throwing of the bones and this can be interpreted in relation to your life. Dreams can also be interpreted if you have one you care to share and learn from.
Should you wish to explore the cultural healing and immerse yourself in the spiritual aspect of South Africans' daily lives, contact the closest tourist bureau for specific details of how to discover more about the magic of African health and healing.
Perhaps you would like to have the bones thrown for you to learn more from your ancestors?
Perhaps you have a niggling ailment that needs alternative treatment?
Perhaps there is a recurring dream, or nightmare, that has been plaguing you for sometime and insight can be gained from a visit to a sangoma?
Or maybe you would just like to have some good luck guided your way and a trip to rural Africa is just right up our alley!!
There are interesting and exciting visits where one can have the bones thrown for you or to simply open a window into the lives of Africans living in a modern world with traditional roots guiding their lives.
It is an exciting and thrilling experience to attend a sangoma ceremony, even a ceremony for the initiates - the drums beating out a steady rhythm, the jangling from accessories around their ankles, the beautiful chanting songs, the dancing and pounding feet. It is a moving encounter and exquisitely African.
There is also the effortless inner healing of simply relaxing on the beach out front, perhaps the glorious white beaches of Camps Bay in the Western Cape, and appreciating yourself and your surroundings. Harmonising yourself with the earth, grounding yourself in the here and now by digging your bare feet into the sand and connecting to the earth, breathing in the salty sea air and feeling the sea breezes ripple across your face and through your hair.
Africa is a wild and glorious mother. Let her show you her ways, with no fear and no judgement, and allow her vitality to refuel and refresh your senses and joy of life and living.
Local Lekker Tips
* Sangomas and healers vary in skill and experience. Should you wish to participate in the every day life of an African and visit a local healer, ask your guide or tourist bureau for a recommendation.
