Healers and witches in Oku: an occult system of knowledge in northwest Cameroon

UnrestrictedMany sub-Saharan African cultures share a worldview in which access to multiple levels of consciousness are positively sanctioned and enculturated. In these cultures, experiences had in dreams, visions, and under various ritual conditions contribute to the society's general system of knowledge. Using a phenomenological approach, this dissertation examines traditional healing and ways of knowing in the community of Oku, Cameroon, where the intervention of occult forces permeates all aspects of society. From sorcery and divination to dream diagnostics, the healers' senses are directed towards discovering the reasons for disharmony and how to restore the balance. Analyzing the role of sensory orders in the manifestation of occult phenomena reveals a complex relationship between consciousness, perception, and spirituality that is at the heart of traditional medicine in Cameroon. The very embodiment of occult religious practice in Oku, traditional healers operate in various spheres of the occult collectively known as ju-ju. This secrecy and the potential to use ju-ju to afflict rather than heal represent in particular the 'dark side' of traditional healing, wherein various fetishes are understood to have agency over human affairs.; The strength of Oku society lies in its medicines, established by the ancestors and vigorously maintained by a strict adherence to traditional laws. By retaining their holistic outlook without the scientific and technological expertise, Oku's traditional healers echo postmodern thinking that there exist other dimensions of knowing and experiencing beyond the 'rationalist' approach of modern science. Moving from the mystical-religious domain and into an explainable one, witchcraft and other occult- related phenomena in Oku can be understood without necessarily opposing reality and fantasy, by studying the links among witchcraft, spirituality, and healing, and their combined effects on consciousness