In this rare window into Zulu mysticism Vusamazulu Credo Mutwa breaks the bonds of traditional silence to share his personal experiences as a sangoma--a Zulu shaman. Set against the backdrop of post-colonial South Africa ZULU SHAMAN relays the first-person accounts of an African healer and reveals the cosmology of the Zulu. Mutwa begins with the compelling story of his personal journey as an English-trained Christian schoolteacher who receives a calling to follow in his grandfather's footsteps as a shaman and keeper of folklore. He then tells the stories of his ancestors including creation myths; how evil came to the world; the adventures of the trickster god Kintu; and Zulu relations with the fiery visitors whom he likens to extraterrestrial. In an attempt to preserve the knowledge of his ancestors and encourage his vision of a world united in peace and harmony Mutwa also shares previously guarded secrets of Zulu healing and spiritual practices: including the curing power of the sangoma and the psychic powers of his people. Previously published by Station Hill. . Includes 14 Zulu myths as told by a traditional Zulu story keeper . Reveals Zulu shamanic practices, including healing techniques, dreamwork, oracles, prophecy, and interactions with star beings

"A vision that encompasses two worlds and weaves the lessons of both into a fine tapestry."

On the little-known and darker side of shamanism there exists an ancient form of sorcery called kanaimà, a practice still observed among the Amerindians of the highlands of Guyana, Venezuela, and Brazil that involves the ritual stalking, mutilation, lingering death, and consumption of human victims. At once a memoir of cultural encounter and an ethnographic and historical investigation, this book offers a sustained, intimate look at kanaimà, its practitioners, their victims, and the reasons they give for their actions. Neil L. Whitehead tells of his own involvement with kanaimà—including an attempt to kill him with poison—and relates the personal testimonies of kanaimà shamans, their potential victims, and the victims’ families. He then goes on to discuss the historical emergence of kanaimà, describing how, in the face of successive modern colonizing forces—missionaries, rubber gatherers, miners, and development agencies—the practice has become an assertion of native autonomy. His analysis explores the ways in which kanaimà mediates both national and international impacts on native peoples in the region and considers the significance of kanaimà for current accounts of shamanism and religious belief and for theories of war and violence. Kanaimà appears here as part of the wider lexicon of rebellious terror and exotic horror—alongside the cannibal, vampire, and zombie—that haunts the western imagination. Dark Shamans broadens discussions of violence and of the representation of primitive savagery by recasting both in the light of current debates on modernity and globalization.