Mythological Africans
Mythological Africans Podcast
Dervishes and Curses
1
0:00
-12:01

Dervishes and Curses

Neurodivergence and Mental Illness in African Folklore
1

In this week’s episode, we turn towards folkloric beliefs about the different ways people can percieve the world around them and what western models of mental health can learn from elsewhere.

There are so many ways of knowing. The West has imposed a cerebral way of knowing onto the world and will not accept other ways of knowing, things like intuition, premonition, dreams, that kind of thing has been bundled up and thrown away as old wives’ tales. But I think, wait. Do not dare throw away this way of knowing, because it has not been interrogated. The West has thrown it away, but we don’t have to. — Jennifer Makumbi

untitled by Helen Nde

Mythological Africans is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Can’t Get Enough?

Watch this talk about Enfant Terribles, a very common and yet, underdiscussed character from African folklore.

Recommended Reading

Discussion about this podcast

Mythological Africans
Mythological Africans Podcast
The Mythological Africans Podcast features live recordings of the Mythological Africans Twitter Spaces Storytime sessions, public talks, and episodes of the Mythological Africans Deep Dive series which you can watch on YouTube. Join us to delve into the rich diversity of oral traditions and worldviews from the African continent, and discover the intricate and textured African mythic imagination.
Listen on
Substack App
Spotify
RSS Feed
Appears in episode
Mythological Africans