morning and evening would further help tune his
body to the spiritual world. He would also have to
confess any negative thoughts to his instructor,
abstain from eating certain foods and from all sex-
ual activity, and spend his days sitting with his
instructor as he received clients. Upon completing a
stage of initiation, a feast is held where a calf or
goat is slaughtered. Thetwasathen searches the
ashes for an unbroken bone. Eventually, this collec-
tion will become part of the sangoma’sdingakaor
oracle bones to be used in divination, which is a
common, although not exclusive, activity of the
sangoma.
SkillsThedingakais composed of animal bones with
sacred markings, bits of seashell, and ivory. The
sangoma reads the bones to detect the presence of
spirits around a sick person, resentful ancestral
spirits, offended nature spirits, or malevolent spir-
its. In serious cases, divination is repeated in
three areas in nature to establish the validity of
the reading. Diagnosis, an important element
of the sangoma’s skills, is usually performed
through divination. Sangomas are also “soul doc-
tors” because they are able to determine the spe-
cific part of a person’s soul that is out of balance
or afflicted by offending spirits. Among the Zulu,
physical or mental illness is understood to origi-
nate in the spiritual realm. The spiritual causes of
such afflictions are numerous; therefore sangomas
must be proficient in a variety of areas. Highly
skilled sangomas can make herbal medicines, inter-
pret dreams, incorporate spirits, control weather,
and predict the future, as well as be excellent lis-
teners and communicators. Communication is an
important characteristic of sangomas because
sangomas must effectively listen to the patient to
gain both information and trust. Sangomas must
then be able to talk to the patient so the patient
understands the information the sangoma has, but
is still treated with respect. Last, the sangoma has
to communicate with entities from the spirit world,
some of which are or potentially can be violent or
hostile. Again, the emphasis is on effective commu-
nication and respect, although the goal is to coax
the spirit away from the afflicted person.
The sangoma is also a psychologist who under-
stands the power and workings of the human mind.
Being able to distinguish and treat the various
forms of madness prevalent in South Africa is an
important skill of a sangoma, as is the ability to
neutralize curses, read minds, and communicate
via mental telepathy. Other skills of the sangoma
include the ability to distinguish between different
types of ghosts and the ability to distinguish a real
ghost versus a manifestation of the patient’s mind
and various extraterrestrial life forms. Treatments
for various afflictions include dietary modifi-
cations, herbal preparations, identification of per-
sonal taboos such as the avoidance of a particular
substance or place, and spirit expulsion.
Sangomas are respected in the community
because of their mystical power and leadership.
Sangoma women are indentified by the long
woolen wig with beads that symbolizes humility
before God. A headband indicates purity of
thoughts. A leopard skin skirt denotes honesty and
courage, and the occasional red blouse says the
sangoma is ready to sacrifice herself for her
people. Today, a clothheiahas replaced the ani-
mal skins but still retains the symbolic meaning.
Sangomas work in groups when necessary, such as
when a situation requires a lot of focused power.
The source of sangomas’ power isumbilini, whose
presence is said to feel like a hot coiled snake
ascending the spine. The sangoma learns to sum-
mon this power at will through the beating of the
drum or deep meditation. The source of sango-
mas’ power according to Credo Mutwa’s grandfa-
ther is a hidden lake, a huge unseen lake in the
spirit world with all knowledge of the universe:
past, present, and future.Denise MartinSee alsoDivination Systems; Healing; InitiationFurther Readings
Bryant, A. T. (1966).Zulu Medicine and Medicine Men.
Cape Town, South Africa: C. Struik.
Hammond-Tooke, D. W. (1989).Rituals and Medicine:
Indigenous Healing in South Africa. Johannesburg,
South Africa: Ad Donker.
Jansen, J. M. (1992).Ngom: Discourses of Healing in
Central and Southern Africa.Berkeley: University of
California Press.
Mutwa, V. C. (2003).Zulu Shaman:Dreams,
Prophecies,and Mysteries. Rochester, VT: Destiny.586 Sangoma