Here are 5 points by Gogo Dineo on accountability in ubungoma

Spiritual healer, teacher and trained sangoma Gogo Dineo Ndlanzi has been very vocal teaching about African spirituality and bringing integrity to the ever-changing and growing discussions around the theme and practice of it.

Speaking to TshisaLIVE at the second instalment and celebrations of “Ancestors Day”, which was launched in May 2021, she said patience is the most important tool on one's spiritual journey.  

She opened up again on a public platform with poet and activist Ntsiki Mazwai. 

Gogo Dineo was the first guest in newly launched podcast Unpopular Opinion, where she said healers have become irresponsible.

Healers need to be held accountable 

“We have become irresponsible healers, and I think for me, emandulo, once you become irresponsible and reckless you are not recognised as uGogo. 

Values and principles of traditional healing needed to be upheld

More and more people are opening up about their journey.

When speaking to TshisaLIVE at the time of Ancestors Day's launch she said healers needed to exercise caution. 

“In wanting it to be out there, what are we putting out there that might jeopardise it? When we are teaching and talking, can we still respect the values and the principles?”

Eldership comes with responsibility

“I’m Gogo Dineo because I carry eldership. Eldership comes with responsibility, so the minute we become irresponsible and reveal sacred things, people will be like, ‘No, it was secretive.’ There’s a difference between intellect and wisdom. People can be intelligent, but unwise.”

There's a difference between sacredness and secrecy 

“Secrecy is about protecting individuals, sacredness is about protecting the practice itself. The sacredness of the practice exposing a particular ritual jeopardises the practice because it’s been exposed to those who are not supposed to see it, who are not supposed to engage with it yet, it jeopardises those who are supposed to go through it because they start to question that process.”

Real sangomas work in truth and light

Speaking to TimesLIVE premium she opened up about healers being light workers after a traditional healer aided police in the arrest of a suspect in Hillary Gardee's murder. 

“A fully trained sangoma who went through a full initiation abides by the code of ethics and takes an oath to uphold integrity, truth and light. They will never support anything that causes destruction,” she said. 

Speaking to TshisaLIVE at a panel discussion hosted by Castle Milk Stout to launch Ancestors Day, part of the panel discussion was how people embrace spirituality, the narrative that there is a sudden influx of people/traditional healers and the sacred vs secrecy.

“We have been going through an awakening — we call it the birthing of a new earth — and it has been happening since Thabo Mbeki's era. Now it seems prevalent because there is social media. So it's not starting now, we are seeing it now because of social media.

“This shift has been happening for a very long time, but what is going on is that the generation of this time are the ones who are at the forefront. They are seekers of knowledge, seekers of understanding, because they have come on this earth to shift us to the new earth.”