The history of African Traditional Medicine goes back as far as the emergence of mankind’s intellect on the African Continent. The science of traditional healing in Africa has been passed on through the generations. This method of healing has always been entrusted to the Sangoma and is regarded as secret “intellectual property.” Elders of this science and art painstakingly teach those members of the community that have a “calling” in the use of the art.

The Ethnomedicine practitioner has a referral network that includes Ethnopsychology practitioners. The Ethnopsychology practitioner will establish whether the symptom, should it persist, is a result of emotionally unresolved blockages in the recesses of the subconscious mind. Healing is achieved through a process of “Trance Therapy”, more commonly known as Hypnotherapy. Dream analysis plays a large role in healing and is often used as an adjunct to hypnotherapy.

Ethnopsychology is the bridging of Western Psychology and traditional methods of healing. In African tradition, illness is not merely the display of a symptom; it can have some deep-seated cause like a disharmonious relationship with the person’s ancestors. It can also be a disrespectful relationship with the community or relatives. Here healing might include the re-integration, both psychological and social.

The Western view of pathology is based on the individual and does not take the patient’s environment and belief patterns into account. The traditional African view is holistic and does not distinguish between physical and mental illness. It is the African view that whatever happens to the group happens to the individual and vice versa and therefore social factors play a huge role in the wellbeing of the individual.  

The core treatment method of Ethnopsychology is “Trance State Therapy” commonly known as Hypnotherapy in the western context. Hypnosis is the vehicle on which therapy is applied. The client is placed in a deep state of relaxation. In this state the client is able to access memory and emotional attachments to those memories. The reliving of the events may be happy or not so happy. The memories could be recent and remembered by the conscious mind or those memories which are not necessarily recallable by the conscious mind. Memory of past lives are also recallable.

The philosophy is Ethnopsychology is based on the science of the soul, of the emotional nature of the mental processes and of those ceremonials - inherent, innate, or imposed by the self, by circumstances and by environment - which affect the mechanism through which the soul functions.

A human being is a triple aspect of energy; we define him as spirit-soul-body. In studying the human family as a unit or as a whole, the Ethnopsychologist knows that all are essentially soul, with seven egoic groups, within which all souls (in carnation and out of incarnation) find their place, and with forty-nine corresponding racial forms through which the seven groups of souls cyclically express themselves.

All souls work out their destiny in all races, but certain types predominate in certain racial forms; therefore there is no reason for racial antipathies. In the realisation of the truth that we all, at some time, experience incarnation in all facial forms, will come the knowledge that there is only unity.

Ethnopsychology is the basic and fundamental science of the new world psychology, as it considers and analyzes the influences which makes a man what he is, and which determine the quality of his appearance.

This appearance must be studied in terms of the entire integrated personality, and not just from the outer and objective physical condition.

The influences which determine him are his own personal and soul rays which play upon him and effect his consciousness, finding entrance into his form equipment (physical, emotional and mental bodies) through the energy units of which that form is made.

Other determining influences are also the solar, cosmic and environing factors which likewise play upon him.

The energies which astrologically affect a human being are those which play upon him as a result of the apparent progress of the sun through the heavens, either once every twenty-five thousand years or once every twelve months.

As the Ethnopsychologist studies a person and the rays, he must understand that there are a large number of ray influences which play upon him, form him and "enliven" him, making him the complex being that he is.

As time progresses and the rays are more widely studied, man's relation to them will be subjected to careful analysis, making it possible to correlate information and facts, and there will subsequently be a greater understanding of the rays and of who we are in essence.

This will lead to a science of psychology of a more sure and accurate nature, instead of a speculative science, as it includes each and every unit of human life, irrespective of race, colour, geographical location and environment. Each one of us is unique, and can therefore not be treated psychologically only in terms of the incarnated part of us; we have to be treated holistically, taking in our very long history of various lives, karmic liabilities, level of soul development and lessons to be learnt.

In applied Ethnopsychology, the basic philosophy is carefully adjusted to the specific country, area and race, which requires an in-depth study of the culture and beliefs of the patient. The well-trained and experienced Ethnopsychologist will have a achieved a certain level of spiritual development which enables him to work through his developed intuition, opposed to applying the use of lower psychism.

Life cannot be expressed in words nor can its realised perfection. The process of "becoming", which leads to "being", is a cosmic event, involving all forms, and no son of God lies separated from that mutable process as yet.

As long as he is in form he cannot know what Life is, through, when he has attained certain steps and can function on the higher planes of the system in full awareness, he can begin to glimplse that awesome Reality.

The Seven rays are the first differentiation of the divine triplicity of Spirit-Consciousness-Form, and they provide the entire field of expresson for the manifested Creator. We thus use the terms Life-Quality-Appearance as interchangeable with the more usual triplicity of Spirit-Soul-Body, or Life-Consciousness-Form.

The seven rays are therefore embodiments of seven types of force which demonstrate to us the seven qualities of God. These seven qualities have consequently a sevenfold effect upon the matter and forms to be found in all parts of the universe, and also have a sevenfold interrelation between themselves.

Life-quality-appearance are brought together into a synthesis in the manifested universe and in a human being, and the result of this synthesis is sevenfold, producing seven types of qualified forms which emerge on all planes and in all kingdoms. Our seven planes of existence are but the seven subplanes of the cosmic physical plane.

In Ethnopsychology we deal with the seven ray types entirely from the human angle, for this gives us a psychological approach to man through an understanding of the seven energies, with their forty-nine differentiations, which animate him and make him what he is. We can do a close analysis and study a person in ralation to these various influences.

These seven rays are the seven streams of force issuing from a central energy after, in point of time, that vortex of energy has been set up. Spirit and matter became mutually interactive and the form or appearance of the solar systam began its process in becoming; a process leading to an eventual being. This is an ancient and true idea; we find reference to the "seven aeons and seven emanations" to the life and nature of the "Spirits which are before the Throne of God" in the writings of Plato and all initiates who guided human mentality down the ages.

These great Lives, functioning within the boundaries of the solar system, gathered to Themselves that substance which They required for manifestation and built it into those forms and appearances through which They could best express Their innate qualities. Within the radius of Their influence, They gathered all that now appears. This aggregated, qualified material constitutes Their body of manifestation, just as the solar system is the body of manifestation of the Trinity of aspects.

Man is thus a psychic entity, a Life Who, through radiatory influence, has built a form, coloured it with His own psychic quality and thus presented an appearance to the environing world which will persist for as long as He lives in form.

God, Ray, Life and Man are all psychological entities and builders of forms. Therefore a great psychological life is appearing through the medium of a solar system. Seven psychological lives, qualified by seven types of force, are appearing through the medium of the seven planets. Each planetary life repeats the same technique of manifestation-life-quality-appearance, and in its second aspect a quality demonstrates as a psychological entity.

Every human being is a miniature replica of the entire plan. He is also spirit-soul-body, life-quality-appearance; he colours his appearance with his quality and animates it with his life.

Because all appearances are expressions of quality and the lesser is included in the greater, every form in nature and every human being is found upon one or other of the seven qualifying rays; his appearance is coloured by the quality of his basic ray. It is qualified predominantly by the ray of the particular life upon whose emanation he issued forth, but it will also include in a secondary measure, the six other ray types.

We all have spiritual contracts, vows, karma and other spiritual lessons which have to be worked out in a specific lifetime, and our lives are greatly affected by these goals and promises that we made to ourselves. People are on different levels of spiritual development, and cannot be judged by the colour of his skin, his immediate status in life or by a "psychic's" evaluation.

The patients needs to be in a trance state or a meditative state with certain conditions to enable him to 'travel' with his consciousness through various levels of existence and time to find the cause of his illness. Through the use of 'Journey' techniques, the person can travel inside his own physical body, and look around inside the body to find the emotional or other cause of the disease. Because each part of the physical body has its own intelligence, that part of the body can tell us why it is diseased, what nutritional deficiences are affecting it, and what needs to be done to resolve the issue.

Hypnosis is merely a vehicle used for the therapeutic process. In a typical Hypnotherapy session the therapist uses “free association” to build rapport with the client and formulate an opinion of the presenting problem. Once this has been established the therapist can determine a procedure and begin the healing process. Regression therapy is undertaken and the client will be guided  back through time and so uncover the initial sensitizing event that is responsible for initiating the particular symptom. This is, as in the Traditional system, also known as the double diagnosis.

In African Traditional Healing the client is interviewed by the Traditional Healer and diagnosed with a particular condition. A herbal prescription will be given. The client will proceed from the consulting room to the Sangoma’s “Indumba” for further diagnosis. Here divining bones are thrown to establish whether the symptoms are a result of some unresolved issues. Further herbal remedies are prescribed for the total body, mind and spirit rejuvenation and wellbeing. 

The Ethnopsychologist understands the philosophy of African Traditional Healing and the challenges of the people of Africa, and is thus fully equipped to handle the sensitive issues and causes of physical and mental illness of his patient.

Because of his own level of spiritual attainment, the qualified Ethnopsychologist usually has the ability to "see" what his patient is experiencing during a regression session. He understands the use of divining bones and African rituals, but does not use them in his practice, unless he has dual registration with a Traditional Healers Association in addition to his own registration in Ethnomedicine/Ethnopsychology.

The Ethnopsychologist is in essence also an Ethnomedicine Practitioner or Ethnomedicine Health Advisor, and will use other methods of diagnosing and evaluation, which could include Iridology, Sclerology, Facial and Body analysis, Soul Ray Analysis, Trance State Therapy and other diagnostic tools. He is also able to assist his patient regarding Nutrition, Life Style and Dietary requirements and deficiencies, and will treat him by using Ethnomedicine Herbal Preparations which are pre-manufactured and packed, as well as other Vitamins, Minerals etc to bring his body in total homeostasis: Body, Mind and Soul.