This is a segment from the Power of Shamanism Summit led by Dr. Malidoma Some.
This talk introduces us to the benefits and importance of connecting with our ancestors in daily life.
We hope you enjoy this exploration of the shamanic tradition coming out of Africa.
Learn more about the Power of Shamanism Summit: https://bit.ly/3tftRIL
How we can reclaim the ancient wisdom of our Ancestors?
One of the major differences between Western culture and indigenous cultures is our relationship to our ancestors.
A deep commonality in many indigenous cultures is an awareness and honouring of those that came before, and come presently in different forms.
We can see how elaborate and intrinsic this acknowledgement is if we look at traditions like the Day of the Dead in Mexico, and the Malagasy festival of Famadihana, โturning of the bonesโ.
Every seven years this Malagasy community has a celebration to unwrap and rewrap the bones of their ancestors in new cloth. They dance in joyous celebration with the remains of their predecessors as the elders tell the children of the importance of their ancestors.
Daily Rituals
Other cultures have daily practices, like the sangomas (traditional healers) of South Africa, who will greet and pray to their ancestors every morning, burning a sacred plant to call and nourish the spirits of their old ones.
Many other cultures relate to the plant and animal beings in the world around them as their kin, and express this through deeply respectful ways of engaging and listening to them.
In Western culture it seems many of us are just reawakening to the relevance of those from whom we hail, and how timeless this lineage is.
