spirit and healing in africa - University of the Free State

This scramble for more vital force is often regulated in particular healing practices and rituals. In
the region of Southern Africa, these ritual events are generated by the ideational framework that
is known as ngoma. As mentioned previously, ngoma is the bantu word for ‘drum’, but it
simultaneously refers to the performance of singing and dancing, to the participants and even to
the underlying ideas of the ngoma practices. It is justified to speak of the ngoma paradigm as
well as of ngoma as a healing institution in Southern Africa. Ngoma is an institutionalized way
of addressing power issues, whereby the transformation of the afflicted person is the ultimately
desired outcome. Ngoma therapy is defined by song, dance and performance. These elements are
crucial for they represent the involvement of the spirits in the patient’s transformation process.
At specific stages of the therapy, the involvement of the community is also required. This everpresent
supportive relational framework represents one of the remarkable features of ngoma: the
transformation of the afflicted individual goes hand in hand with the transformation of the
supporting community. Ngoma is about the social reproduction of health.
One of the main constituents of the ngoma type of reproduction of health is the notion of
borders. Whether literal or figurative borders or divisions between realms, domains, regions,
states of being, persons, objects, or forms of knowledge — healers deal with borders. They have
to, because their ability to negotiate borders and boundaries is a premise of their healing
activities. The inauguration of healing as a transformation process and as the generator of new
life power is when the healer crosses particular borders in order to reach new and unknown
powers, objects and techniques. From the perspective of the clientele, a healer must have bordercrossing
abilities, otherwise he or she will lose credibility. When healing techniques become too
familiar, people might turn to other expert-healers, who demonstrate the potential to retain a
dimension of mystery in their healing practices. The reconstruction of borders is the other side of
the coin: healers also need to protect the borders they have crossed. These frontiers are the gates
to their powerful resources, so they should not be challenged and crossed by (too many) other
healers.
The notion of borders as premises owned by healers’ practices is associated with the connection
between the known and the unknown. The link between the visible and the spiritual realm is
especially important in holistic healing for it requires the fullness of reality. When particular
elements of the spiritual realm are neglected, then wholeness of life is affected and the
precarious balance of power lost. The perpetual cycle of balance, neglect, search for balance and
restoration of balance, shows that healing is about creating connections and mending relational
deficiencies. The dynamics of a network of relationships form such a crucial part of health and
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