Abstract:
When an individual in the Zulu culture has an ancestral calling, he/she sometimes
presents with symptoms and signs that are similar to those of a person with a mental
illness/psychosis. The individual needs to go through the process of ukuthwasa in
order to be healed from the signs and symptoms of ancestral possession and to
become a traditional healer. The psychological perspective plays its part in
conceptualising having the ancestral calling by providing theories and psychological
understanding. In the western psychiatric view, illness is perceived purely in physical
and psychological terms. Jung s collective unconscious concept postulates that we
are interconnected and according to this the process of ukuthwasa can be viewed as
generational.
Semi-structured interviews were conducted with two Zulu traditional faith healers
who had undergone the process of ukuthwasa. Their lived experiences were analysed
using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. The findings of the study revealed
that the processes of ukuthwasa for both participants have their differences and
similarities. Their views on the process were about finding healing, connection and
having a sense of belonging. During the process there was a loss of self to regain the
gifted parts of their lives and their ancestors. The psychological perspective takes
the emotional aspects during the process into consideration, while the Zulu cultural
perspective focuses on the outcomes of the process. Both perspectives believe that an
individual should be looked at in totality when he/she is seeking healing and going
through the process.
