How African mythology taught me to think differently

from the wisdom of a sangoma

"Maybe I should buy one of those taxis and be a driver, just for fun", I joked.

"They'll kill you", was my friend's quick response.

Five years ago, this was a conversation I had with a friend in Maboneng, Johannesburg while observing a group of taxis. I joked knowing that South Africa's taxis have a very comedic, but violently competitive, reputation.

We had just met while I was exploring her bookstore. The overall theme of the store was South Africa's Black Consciousness Movement, including many authors I knew nothing about. I then walked with her to her taxi stop on the fringe of the neighbourhood, just to see what it was like. I quickly felt out-of-place.

In my previous post, I promised to share which books I'm reading to learn about the cultural and symbolic background of Africa. I'm going to discuss one, in particular.

I discovered it that day in the bookstore five years ago, wanting to read it ever since. I picked it up recently, and has proven to be a timely read.

Indaba, My Children

https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/545399

Indaba, My Children was authored by the late Credo Mutwa, one of South Africa's most renowned Zulu sangomas, and was first published in 1962. "Sangoma" is the colloquial term for a medicine man/woman, or witch doctor, of which there are long lineages in Zulu culture.

The introduction outlines a succinct argument for why Africa struggles today, and declares the book’s mission as an aid to resolution. His premise is that the root of Africa's suffering is "the utter failure of one race of human beings to understand what goes on in the minds of the other race".

Credo Mutwa states that "the misunderstanding is mostly on the one side - the White man's side. If any Black man with a little knowledge of English, French, or Portuguese wants to study the White man - as I have done - all he has to do is to go into the nearest town and become a regular customer of one of the second-hand bookshops there [reading essential authors for no less than ten years]".

He goes on to say that few White men have bothered to study the African people carefully. Of those that have tried, Mutwa says, "many of the books written by Europeans about Africans should be relegated to the dustbin".

"There are doctors, missionaries and scientists who have spent years and years among Africans - many of them can even speak the local language better than the indigenous people - but what they know about them as human beings amounts to nothing"

-Credo Mutwa

African folk tales

What follows the introduction is an extensive series of African folk tales. These tales, the body of the book, contrast starkly with the linear logic presented in the introduction.

I wasn't prepared for a history of Africa as fantastical as these stories. At first, I struggled to maintain attention on the endless array of unimaginable creatures and battles in one epic after another.

However, I'm increasingly enamored by these stories. Like the clashes between Gods of the Greek and Roman classics, I can't help but sense a quality of symbolism and lore that could run deep in any culture.

The Tokoloshe

I was surprised to find that the first tale of the book revealed the backstory of the Tokoloshe. For any reader unfamiliar, you can likely ask any South African; Black, White, or otherwise, and they'll know something about this strange mythological creature.

According to the book, the Tokoloshe is some kind of metallic, multi-legged spawn of evil that antagonized protagonists in early history. I was surprised that it was mentioned in this book. I had heard of the Tokoloshe throughout my life, but this was the first time I ever came across it in any form of somewhat-formal literature.

Credo's credibility

Mutwa claims he recalls the exact account of Africa's true history from his sangoma initiation training. This is a bold claim to make, especially based on oral history.

Indeed, Africa suffers from a lack of written history to accurately describe its past.

Giving Mutwa the benefit of the doubt, I've enjoyed the shear depth of mythological stories this book provides. Yes, there are likely many inaccuracies, but I like to interpret this type of work in broad stokes.

This is the fun part of symbolism. There's no need to get caught in the factual details, because it's about reading between the lines. Where did this knowledge come from? Where do this book's stories resonate across Africa? No matter what the Tokoloshe is, it’s no secret that it still causes fear in the minds of many Africans. What else might this book reveal to me as I carry on through Africa?

Thinking differently about Africa

This book provided me with plenty of questions. It mentions the presence of Phoenicians along with tribes and ancient kingdoms I've never heard of. I've since been lead down many internet rabbit holes researching aspects of Africa I knew nothing about.

Indaba, My Children has been an exercise in thinking differently about Africa. I've had to set aside how I might typically read a historical text. Maybe this is what Credo Mutwa was describing in this short video of his message to the world.

An update: Wandering with Purpose

I updated the name of this newsletter. Therefore, next time you receive a post in your inbox, it'll read "Wandering with Purpose", instead of my name.

I hope that jives. I also hope you don't mistake future posts as spam.

I intend on sharing some Bitcoin books and resources soon. Might share some more experimental writing, too.

G