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Article by AMACHI AMAGA APETOR WUNANA and

ALADOKUN

AMACHI AMAGA APETOR WUNANA

Greetings Brothers & Sisters:

This group is dedicated to Baba Ankh, my first traditional teacher. Before traveling to the North of Ghana, years before I created MAMA and IKS, I made a promise to my BaBa that I would bring indigenous knowledge back to him and some of his Palo family (house). We would often sit and fantasize about the knowledge that would be gained once I travelled to the continent and sat with indigenous elders that have preserved knowledge that has been lost in Palo and vodun, as practiced in the states. Even though he was a paleros with many students, I was never officially scratched into Palo. He taught me and some of the others paleros in our group the traditional things he had learned from a Ghanaian elder that he had studied under in Chicago. Unfortunately before I was able to fulfill my obligation, BABA Ankh was taken by the government. Most of our group went back to the houses they had came from and I was unable to fulfill his dream of bringing our lost indigenous knowledge to his Palo brother and sisters. I have never forgotten and I dedicate this group to you!

THINGS TO LOOK FORWARD TO IN THIS GROUP

(A message from the Elder who is over this group)

The name of the group is TIDUGU, TI-MANI, AND TI-LAA and it means (???)

PALO, as you called it, is POLO in Dagbani (the Dagomba language) meaning land. Remember, we get our Wuni's (gods) from the land! We start by removing the land which we use to make Wuni's (gods), and it is called (Tin gbani) which means the gods of the land. Now, if you say the meaning of Palo is sticks,  that is fine! We  people in Ghana and west Africa as a whole, believe that nature-based spirits start from the land - that is POLO. From there comes the trees, where we get the sticks - what you call PALO, the roots, the skin and the leaves which are put together as herbs. You will agree with me that there are special trees that are used to call and perform purification for the nature spirits of all kinds. We, the Elders of the I.K.S. in Ghana, are going to teach you traditional nature spirits, how to call them, purify them, talk to them, and how to bring them near you. It will be of your interest to know that we, the Elders, are not going to teach you just one type of spirit; we have many of the land that you don't know! More spirits which are very powerful and  will be useful to you brothers and sisters. I also wish to inform you brothers and sisters that you can belong to any spiritual group like Palo and also be a member of the I.K.S, since the ideas are the same and have a common objective!

*The Elder of this group will be revealed once you join the group*

BUILDING NGANGAS FROM AN INDIGENOUS PERSPECTIVE

by ALADOKUN

If you have an affinity to Palo Mayombe/Monte then you may be interested in this group. People are attracted to Palo because of its power and quick effectiveness, therefore many of you will have a calling to this practice, but understand it is not for everyone!

THIS GROUP WILL NOT PRACTICE “PALO” AS DERIVED FROM CUBA OR OTHER CARIBBEAN CULTURES. This group will practice nature-based spiritual tradition as taught by our indigenous Elders from the northern region of Ghana. So no disrespect intended. We refer to “Palo” because it is nature-based and this is the spiritual system that is known by many. Remember, Palo simple means “stick”! Where do “sticks” come from? Trees, of course! And trees grow all around the world, right? Therefore, palos (sticks) can be accessed no matter what part of the world you live. Because nature is practically the same all around the world, except in places where climates are extreme, nature-based spiritual traditions are very similar in concept, although the practice itself is called by a different name. These spiritual traditions were developed and perfected by the indigenous people over thousands of years and now for the first time we are blessed to have access to this “unknown” ancestral knowledge.

PURPOSE

The purpose of this group is to spiritually empower and expand ourselves; to stand on our own, to be responsible for our spirituality and to use our own hands to produce better outcomes in our lives. The members of this group are primarily individuals who are initiates or devotees of Palo within the Afrikan diaspora. Palo means “stick” and deals with the forces of nature; a system derived from the Bantu, Kongo people in Afrika. The Afrikan diaspora is defined as the movement of Afrikans and their descendants to places throughout the world—predominantly to the Amerikas, then later to Europe, the Middle East, and other corners of the globe. Much of the Afrikan Diaspora is descended from people who were enslaved and shipped to the Amerikas during the Atlantic slave trade. It is important to recognize that the enslaved Afrikans sold to North Amerika came from a wide variety of ethnic backgrounds with large percentages to Caribbean areas like Brazil, Cuba, Haiti, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, and Trinidad. And because there were millions of Afrikans from various cultural and ethnic backgrounds all mixed together away from there homeland, the slaves found ways to communicate and forge their beliefs together just to survive. For generations after the Afrikan slave trade, knowledge about culture, tradition, & language is totally misunderstood by the masses because of misinterpreted, hidden, lost, and forgotten historical information about the true purpose and foundation of working with nature-based spirits.

In this group, we will learn to connect, rather re-connect, to these “ancient” ancestral forces. We will be taught to work with  the spirit forces of nature that are very similar to those spirits within the Afrikcan diaspora (Amerika). Understand that in most cases, Afrikan-based spiritual systems here in Amerika are practiced very different from how our elders practice the tradition on the Afrikan continent. However, there are Elders from the continent who are willing to teach us, here in Amerika and abroad, how to work with the spirits from a traditional perspective. Although we will learn to work with spiritual concepts from a different region of Afrika, the premise is the same as that of the Kongo people.

OUR GOAL

We are grateful to have the opportunity to work with Elders from the continent. To me, this like going back to the source of our practices. There is no need to scrap what we know; however, we can ENHANCE what we know. This group will allow you to gain additional knowledge about working with nature-based spirits from an indigenous perspective. The Elders from the continent have agreed to help the brothers and sisters here in Amerika to fill in our gaps of missing information. They will help us to gain clarity on our misunderstandings. They will teach us the secrets of what was forgotten, lost and/or hidden for generations. The knowledge given will help us to enhance and add to our arsenal of Palo spiritual knowledge.

As with many spiritual/religious systems, there are many deities or spiritual forces that are popular or common within certain communities. Palo is no different. Many of the popular nfumbes/bakulus like Siete Rayo, Sara Banda, Lucero, Chola, Madre de Agua, Centella, just to name a few, are very popular spirits within Palo traditions. However, in this group you will get the opportunity to work with and make sacred objects and/or vessels similar to the “nganga/prenda in palo” for spiritual forces/spirits that are uncommon and unknown to the masses.

The nganga is a Bantu term for herbalist or spiritual healer in many societies of the Afrikan diaspora such as those in Haiti, Brazil and Cuba. It also refers to a tripod iron cauldron filled with various ingredients, specific to the religion of Palo; representing the ritual nucleus and focus of power. The ngangas are consecrated with particular prayers, songs, sticks, bones, dirt, and herbs that are sacred to a particular spirit (nfumbe/bakulu) of Palo and are only given to individuals who have gone through all the proper ceremonies. The difference in this group is that your “nganga” or your “focus of power” may not necessarily be in the form of a cauldron or clay pot, but could be in the form of a kabri (show picture), and/or a bundle of sticks, and/or a pouch of medicines (herbs) that attract the spirits that you will be working with.

The great thing is if you already have an nganga/prenda spiritual (self made) or consecrated (by a Tata/palero), then you can enhance and empower it from the knowledge you will learn!