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The Healing Wisdom of Africa: Finding Life Purpose Through Nature, Ritual, and Community
Through The Healing Wisdom of Africa , readers can come to understand that the life of indigenous and traditional people is a paradigm for an intimate relationship with the natural world that both surrounds us and is within us. The book is the most complete study of the role ritual plays in the lives of African people--and the role it can play for seekers in the West.
352 pages, Paperback
First published October 26, 1998
98 people are currently reading
2115 people want to read
About the author
Malidoma Patrice Somé
17 books222 followersMalidoma Patrice Somé was from the Dagara tribe of Burkina Faso, formerly Upper Volta, West Africa. "Malidoma," in his native language, means "be friend with the stranger." He was an initiated, gifted diviner and medicine man of his tribe. He held three master's degrees and two degrees from the Sorbonne and Brandeis University. His well-known book Of Water and the Spirit: Magic and Initiation in The Life of an African Shaman is treasured throughout the world. In the years preceding his death, Malidoma devoted part of his time to conducting intensive workshops with his wife Sobonfu.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 47 reviews
October 16, 2014
The book is calming, centering - you know you are in the presence of a different sort of Being. I have been blessed with having a reading with Malidoma and it was uncanny. Within the first few moments I was with him, he had started to laugh. "You are the Great Shape Shifter," he said. "You are not what you appear to be. Your Spirit will be restless forever until it finds its way home to Africa." I had not told him a THING about myself! But somehow, he knew and recognized me
July 3, 2007
This is one of my favorite books from Naropa. Its all about cultivating the sacred through the use of the elements as they're known in the Dagara tradition in ceremony and ritual - it also gets into the difference between the two. This book will open up your experience of the sacred.
September 30, 2021
There are very likely many different paths to enlightenment, and Malidoma Patrice Somé provides us with some of those. For many trying to make sense of the world around us, this work shows how ritual and healing can help reclaim life's purpose. Much in this book was new to me and much I still really have to understand, but I feel it does offer lessons that we can adopt even in our fast paced, material and very individualistic western lifestyles.
July 24, 2020
Brilliant. His books are life changing.
June 23, 2014
The author provides an astute analysis of the imbalances in modern society in relation to the masculine, feminine, and elemental forces of nature. Beautifully descriptive, Malidoma's indigenous perspective on Western modernity tells the tale of how we came to experience the societal woes that we struggle with today both collectively and individually. The author attempts to provide descriptions of how healing and balancing rituals could be constructed in a Western construct. I gave 4 stars instead of 5 because the rituals are highly complicated and I think this would be a barrier to any kind of widespread implementation in modern society. I would have liked to have seen a bit more of a streamlined, realistically implementable set of recommendations to restore healing in our society. But it may be that the author knows better than me -- and that we are so far removed from our natural state of being that we simply cannot get back to a good place without some radical changes.
July 21, 2012
Excellent book that really details the beliefs and spirituality of the Dagara people. I was mesmerized by how the community makes many life events ceremonial. For example, there is a ceremony as a child is born into the world.
Also, the Dagara believe that if you are facing a personal crisis, it is not to be worked out alone. The community needs to be involved in helping you, as it is the spirit coming through you to teach you some wisdom. For example, if you are facing crisis in your career, a shaman will help you ceremonially determine what you need to do - where you need to be.
I loved this book!
Also, the Dagara believe that if you are facing a personal crisis, it is not to be worked out alone. The community needs to be involved in helping you, as it is the spirit coming through you to teach you some wisdom. For example, if you are facing crisis in your career, a shaman will help you ceremonially determine what you need to do - where you need to be.
I loved this book!
February 28, 2019
While the writing wasn't really engaging, I liked the parts about the importance of grieving and community. I think this might be a good resource for anyone writing an Afro-futuristic work.
There was a parable at the end that didn't work out at all though. A guy named Robert does all of the things that people are "supposed to do", but then his life goes downhill. Then he's convicted of rape and goes to prison, gets out of prison and rebuilds his life. Yeah, I know this is a thing that can happen, but rape and the rehabilitation of a rapist is too big of a subject to fit into a page long parable. It just felt thrown in.
There was a parable at the end that didn't work out at all though. A guy named Robert does all of the things that people are "supposed to do", but then his life goes downhill. Then he's convicted of rape and goes to prison, gets out of prison and rebuilds his life. Yeah, I know this is a thing that can happen, but rape and the rehabilitation of a rapist is too big of a subject to fit into a page long parable. It just felt thrown in.
November 12, 2010
This book reminded me yet again that there is no one path to enlightenment. The path itself is a life-long quest which contains many detours.The Tipping Point How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference
March 22, 2016
Just finished this book and it reminds me once again, that we know we are connected to one another, and our current and historic social structures do not work in encouraging individuality in terms of what each person brings to the whole, but squelches that individuality in the name of conformity; predictability and everyone ‘being’ the same.
Somé does not condemn western culture and religion outright; he does learn and come to see that the western structure does not conducively, let alone genuinely serve people, whatever their stripe. Yet, it takes those severe and painful experiences to make us come to understand what we are really dealing with and question – if we are willing to see and be honest with ourselves- where we are in that situation and why we are there.
Somé recommends ritual in where conflicts are resolved in a community circle as it is the community that witnesses what the conflict (really) is and gives the participants in the conflict the opportunity to focus on the conflict and resolve it, rather than conflate the conflict to be(come) of a personal nature, where one person is right and the other is wrong. Somé’s point about pain needing to be in the background in order to thrive (page 286) is a very potent point. It’s when the pain is exposed and examined by people, where pain can no longer exist, because so many people know about it(the situation causing the pain) and looking at it, that extinguishes its existence!
Yet a crucial point and challenge in Somé’s book is that community is the key! Community has to want to know, appreciate and utilize each member’s innate gifts, in order for the community to survive, and thrive! Therefore, people must want to recognize and encourage their own and other people’s gifts and engage them honestly, in order for the individual and community to survive, and thrive! Hierarchy squelches that because it is based on people not being honest with themselves, let alone with other people. So hierarchies are set up to uphold and maintain ‘order’ while people have to sacrifice, ignore, squelch who they are to barely but dishonestly (to themselves, and subsequently) others, survive… and we wonder why we have human time-bombs.
It’s a very informative and insightful book!
Somé does not condemn western culture and religion outright; he does learn and come to see that the western structure does not conducively, let alone genuinely serve people, whatever their stripe. Yet, it takes those severe and painful experiences to make us come to understand what we are really dealing with and question – if we are willing to see and be honest with ourselves- where we are in that situation and why we are there.
Somé recommends ritual in where conflicts are resolved in a community circle as it is the community that witnesses what the conflict (really) is and gives the participants in the conflict the opportunity to focus on the conflict and resolve it, rather than conflate the conflict to be(come) of a personal nature, where one person is right and the other is wrong. Somé’s point about pain needing to be in the background in order to thrive (page 286) is a very potent point. It’s when the pain is exposed and examined by people, where pain can no longer exist, because so many people know about it(the situation causing the pain) and looking at it, that extinguishes its existence!
Yet a crucial point and challenge in Somé’s book is that community is the key! Community has to want to know, appreciate and utilize each member’s innate gifts, in order for the community to survive, and thrive! Therefore, people must want to recognize and encourage their own and other people’s gifts and engage them honestly, in order for the individual and community to survive, and thrive! Hierarchy squelches that because it is based on people not being honest with themselves, let alone with other people. So hierarchies are set up to uphold and maintain ‘order’ while people have to sacrifice, ignore, squelch who they are to barely but dishonestly (to themselves, and subsequently) others, survive… and we wonder why we have human time-bombs.
It’s a very informative and insightful book!
September 3, 2008
Autobiographical in some places it lets you know what Western culture is missing in terms of community and acceptance for our children. It helped me see how our communities, because they don't know any better, have left us to grow up alone.
August 11, 2019
Great book. I Definitely will continue to reread passages and put into action what I’ve taken away from this as life goes on.
I really Love the way the author breaks down our need for community and each individual’s need to realize their purpose to better serve that community. He put into perspective the isolated ways in which we live on the western hemisphere and how detrimental it is to the self and society as a whole. But, he pours into this book a myriad of rituals and practices of healing for our communities that I believe would shift our everyday lives for the exponentially for the better. Not just in a way that we would be able to presently benefit from, but also for those that come after us, which we tend to forget about at times. There are more generations to come and more lives to be lived outside of our own, lives that we’ll be leaving an extreme impact on.
I really Love the way the author breaks down our need for community and each individual’s need to realize their purpose to better serve that community. He put into perspective the isolated ways in which we live on the western hemisphere and how detrimental it is to the self and society as a whole. But, he pours into this book a myriad of rituals and practices of healing for our communities that I believe would shift our everyday lives for the exponentially for the better. Not just in a way that we would be able to presently benefit from, but also for those that come after us, which we tend to forget about at times. There are more generations to come and more lives to be lived outside of our own, lives that we’ll be leaving an extreme impact on.
February 11, 2011
LOVED this book! Some writes so clearly about the longing for community in the Western world and illustrates how indigenous cultures create communities that nurture humans and all of life through ritual.
February 3, 2012
The most in-depth book from Malidoma yet. This is powerful stuff.
April 19, 2022
I'd pair this with Sand Talk and Healing the Soul Wound as gateways to being immersed in (for me) unfamiliar cosmologies and stances towards the world, technology, spirit, etc. Big gift.
June 14, 2021
Beautiful
August 28, 2012
A wonderful overview of West African Spiritual life.
January 19, 2015
Very insightful book, calming, and speaks to one who's searching for their deeper selves.
April 3, 2015
I couldn't get into this book. I was also disappointed that there wasn't at least a chapter on different African Traditional Religions.
September 8, 2023
For a glimpse of the wonders in this powerful book, here's a quote to consider.
“In the cosmology of the Dagara peoples, matter and Spirit are fused. These two phenomena are complementary, each a reflection of the other. In the Dagara story of creation, the physical world that we can touch and feel and see came into being in parallel with a brighter, more dynamic and expansive energetic world that we call the Other World, or the Spirit World, or the unseen world. These two aspects of the universe do not exist as a polarity, for each is a manifestation of the other, and each is dependent on the other, with a stream of interaction going both ways to maintain balance and stability. The indigenous belief of the Dagara is that we are primarily Spirit. In order to exist as material beings, we have to take a form, and there is the sense among my people that to be in matter is not the most familiar or suitable form for us. To fit ourselves into the narrow part of the universe that allows energy to exist as matter takes some getting used to, and we only bother with it at all because it serves the useful and unavoidable purpose of expanding the spirit in us.”
“In the cosmology of the Dagara peoples, matter and Spirit are fused. These two phenomena are complementary, each a reflection of the other. In the Dagara story of creation, the physical world that we can touch and feel and see came into being in parallel with a brighter, more dynamic and expansive energetic world that we call the Other World, or the Spirit World, or the unseen world. These two aspects of the universe do not exist as a polarity, for each is a manifestation of the other, and each is dependent on the other, with a stream of interaction going both ways to maintain balance and stability. The indigenous belief of the Dagara is that we are primarily Spirit. In order to exist as material beings, we have to take a form, and there is the sense among my people that to be in matter is not the most familiar or suitable form for us. To fit ourselves into the narrow part of the universe that allows energy to exist as matter takes some getting used to, and we only bother with it at all because it serves the useful and unavoidable purpose of expanding the spirit in us.”
April 16, 2023
This is a remarkable book that is not an easy read. But as I studied to prepare for writing my "Savannah's Hoodoo Doctor" and continued in "Savannah's Bethesda", it provided an accessible way to understand the circular cosmology of West Africa. So much more than the Disney "Circle of Life," this world view provided the matrix for me to understand the fire and water rituals that were fundamental to the social fabric of the enslaved living around Savannah under the Gullah/Geechee label. As I ventured into the Vodou traditions brought by the enslaved from what would become Haiti in my "Resilience Knows No Gender," this was required reading. After reading this book, just a few minutes of reflection at the Haitian monument in my hometown can provide a more complete understanding of these brave souls who fought with the French and Americans against the British in one of the shortest and most bloody battles of the Revolution. The real presence I felt of their spirits at the Sorrel Weed House could not have been created by tour guides without this understanding.
May 31, 2017
Me lo llegan a decir y no me lo creo, pero este libro sobre la espiritualidad de una etnia africana es una pasada; si bien no creo que ponga jamás en práctica ninguno de los rituales propuestos, su explicación sobre las diferencias sociales y religiosas entre su propuesta y la mayoría de las propuestas occidentales (particularmente la cristiana) es bastante iluminadora. Aún recuerdo cuando, hace tiempo, en una comida con unos movimientos sociales, unas personas africanas intentaban explicarnos cómo su espiritualidad no tenía mucho que ver con la forma en la que en los países civilizados organizábamos la nuestra. En aquel momento lo entendí pero no lo interioricé; ahora me queda bastante más claro.
Muy interesante, por cierto, aunque no se reseñe de manera explícita en el texto, la relación entre las raíces del autor y el candomblé latinoamericano. ¡El sincretismo es un fenómeno fascinante!
Muy interesante, por cierto, aunque no se reseñe de manera explícita en el texto, la relación entre las raíces del autor y el candomblé latinoamericano. ¡El sincretismo es un fenómeno fascinante!
January 2, 2026
This book was recommended by my naturopath to read and I know why she recommended it me. This book took me into a deep dive about the importance of ritual and community in a Humans life and how we are so disconnected from it in the western world. It was a beautiful experience reading about the Dagara traditions, diving into rituals and community. It left me reflecting on my own life, how I show up for myself in this western world, how I utilize my everyday activities as rituals (shower/bathing, lighting a candle, grounding, crystal work) . I am very happy with this new found knowledge and if you are on the path of spiritual growth and personal development , I highly recommend this book.
July 10, 2025
In his native language, Malidoma means “he who makes friends with the stranger”. Through detailing important rituals in his community, Malidoma invites the stranger into the intimate healing world of ritual and community, a place where spirit is alive and emboldened, the ancestors are felt and the dancing animacy of the earth is honored and moved through in ritual healing. I have long been searching for both community and ritual, as Malidoma notes these are two things keenly mourned in the western world, and will be returning to this book a guide and inspiration for holding space for ritual.
April 5, 2022
If you are interested in indigenous knowledges, if you are of african decent, or if you are interested in understanding what makes a human culture in general, this book is a "must read". As an African interested in culture and spirituality, this is by far my favorite book.
October 11, 2024
I found this book a beautiful source of wisdom coming from traditional African culture that is so close to me in terms of necessity and human longing for a deeper meaning and individual purpose as a way to live harmoniously and in service to greater wellbeing.
May 26, 2018
awesome...mindblowing...life changing.
February 1, 2021
BEST book EVER.
August 12, 2021
Thought provoking and stirs the soul deeply. I feel that we could all benefit from some of the rituals outlined. I my self feel like starting my rituals right away... Even if just tiny ones
December 6, 2021
Great principles and wisdom.
November 15, 2022
This book is important. Highly recommend picking it up. Especially those of us existing in the Western world
Displaying 1 - 30 of 47 reviews