In 1993 while searching for books on ritual I found Malidoma Some’s book, ‘Ritual: Power, Healing and Community’. Malidoma is an African Shaman from the Dagara people in Burkina Faso who lives in the US. His work focuses on healing the connection with our ancestors through the means of group rituals. For years I wanted to meet this man. It was not until 1996 till I finally got the opportunity to experience ritual with him. His work inspired me greatly, as he found a way to empower each individual by making the rituals fully participatory and co-created. In 1998 I did a nine-day training with him and assisted the year after. The power of the work was so amazing that several of us continued to meet afterwards for doing ritual. In these rituals we found we went even deeper, as we had to rely on our ancestors rather than Malidoma. We kept the connection with Malidoma going and he started yearlong trainings on the East Coast. Part of the training includes a trip to Malidoma’s village in Burkina Faso where we receive teachings that deepen our work with spirit. Now we have grown into a strong group that has bought land on which we gather. We hold a vision to make this work available to a larger audience and are now in the process of building our first meeting space. You can find more information on the East Coast Village website www.wiseincouncil.com.

Burkina Faso, the land of the proud ancestors, formerly known as Upper Volta, taken from a Western perspective is seen as an underdeveloped country that is economically struggling. Malnutrition is certainly one of the issues that impairs the country’s development. The country consists of many different indigenous groups that are rich in tradition. However, the old ways are getting abandoned as media opens up the world in rapid seductive ways that create needs and desires based on a Western model that clash with a traditional way of living. One of our reasons for going there is to show interest in their old ways, to learn from their spirituality and let them know they have something of value. Ultimately, through our interest and involvement, we present the idea that the old ways do not need to be abandoned in order to embrace the new. We had some spontaneous sharing of healing practices between our group members and the local villagers that allowed people to see even more that there was value in their traditional ways of healing. Our group, as way to give back to the people, has taken on several projects. Some of us are working with the women to help them achieve more economic independence by having them sell sheabutter. Sheabutter , a skin product made from the nut of the sheatree, has incredible healing properties when it is not overly processed. In order to prepare sheabutter for export they need clean water. Several members of the East Coast Village have gotten involved with ‘Echoes of the Ancestors’ a non profit organization that is primarily set up to provide wells in Dano. They made a big effort in January 2004 to dig wells and a partnership has been forged now with WaterAid, an international NGO that has developed domestic water and sanitation programs in Burkina. Another project we started is setting up a beer brewery using a combination of the traditional millet beer and barley beer.

Personally, I loved Burkina and the Dogon country. I felt home there. I had my happiest time with the Dagara. I danced with the old ladies and it felt I had done it before. Many evenings I would sit in the dark with friends and we would make music together till deep in the night after which I would walk home for two kilometers in the pitch dark avoiding tripping in the holes in the road. I totally jumped into the adventure and allowed myself to fully absorb the experience. I tried to look with the eyes of the indigenous and was not coming with the critical western eye looking at the garbage that lined the roads in Ouagadougou. I see myself as a bridge builder. I am interested in the cross-fertilization that happens when two cultures meet. I brought my whole self and received a lot in return. I inspired and was inspired. My work with spirit has strengthened. I have been able to tolerate more in my own life. I have found more joy since my return., and more gratefulness for what I have. My intention is to return many times to Burkina.