ABSTRACT
In traditional African societies, the primary goal of life is to evolve spiritually so that one achieves immortality or eternity in death. More specifically, among the ancient Kemetians of ancient Egypt, the Akan of Ghana, Evhe of Togo, Fon of Dahomey, and Yoruba of Nigeria, the goal is to unify with God so that one achieves immortality or eternal life. If one does not learn the lessons from the physical life during one's time on Earth, the soul must return to learn the lessons it did not learn in the previous life. Critical to a successful journey is healing from wounds. However, the wounds one sustains while living can be so crippling that one is unable to successfully make it through the journey. It is believed among the Bantu of Kongo, according to Fu Kiau in Self-Healing Power and Therapy, that one of the most significant powers that the human being has is the power to self-heal.
