Who We Are

Who We Are: "We are a collaboration of families of African Traditional practitioners coming together to venerate our Ancestors for the perpetual healing of our communities."

About our favicon: Fawohodie, an adinkra symbol meaning the "symbol of independence, freedom, emancipation". From the expression: Fawodhodie ene obre na enam. Literal translation:
"Independence comes with its responsibilities."

Tuesday, October 29, 2013

The Purpose of Keepers of the Way

Keepers of the Way is a collaboration of families of African traditional practitioners coming together for the perpetual healing of our communities. It was never our intention that KOW would be associated with our Ile. It is not OUR event. It is a community event that is for elevation of our community through elevation and connecting to ancestors.  At first, there was participation by many people but little by little this participation waned. We do not know why and no one has bothered to say.

Now it is time to be more specific about what our Vision means in literal terms.

What does the perpetual healing of our community mean? Not only is it important that we remember immediate family ancestors but also those who came long before our limited memory allows. It means that we believe that connecting to our ancestors, helps us to overcome the many issues that plague our communities throughout the world. 

Ancestor Reverence in Zimbabwe



In Shona and Ndebele religions, God, or the Supreme Being, is seen as the creator and sustainer of the universe.

Shona Mwari (literally "He or she who is"), or Ndebele uMlimu are both believed to be active in the everyday lives of people. In general, people communicate ith Mwari through the vadzimu (Shona), or amadhlozi (Ndebele). These are the deceased ancestors. The vadzimu are believed to constitute an invisible community within the community of the living, always around their descendants, caring for them and participating in their joys and sorrows. Spirit mediums communicate with the vadzimu on behalf of the people.

In Shona religion, in addition to the guarding characteristics of the vadzimu, there are also the avenging, ngozi, and those who communicate with them. The ngozi are the spirits of deceased individuals who were greatly wronged, neglected by a spouse, murdered, or otherwise neglected. They attack through sudden death of members of the same family or through illness that fails to respond to treatment. The ngozi are the balancing force that are in place to deal with human wrong doing.