Friday, 13 June 2014

Advantages of herbs

There are many advantages and disadvantages of herbal medicine. Before treating yourself with herbs or seeking advice from a qualified herbalist or naturopath, consider the pros and cons of herbal treatments and remedies.

There are numerous advantages and disadvantages of herbal medicine. Anyone considering using herbal medicine to treat health conditions should speak with a qualified health professional.

Advantages

There are a number advantages associated with using herbal medicines as opposed to pharmaceutical products. Examples include the following:
  • Reduced risk of side effects: Most herbal medicines are well tolerated by the patient, with fewer unintended consequences than pharmaceutical drugs. Herbs typically have fewer side effects than traditional medicine, and may be safer to use over time.
  • Effectives with chronic conditions: Herbal medicines tend to be more effective for long-standing health complaints that don't respond well to traditional medicine. One example is the herbs and alternative remedies used to treat arthritis. Vioxx, a well-known prescription drug used to treat arthritis, was recalled due to increased risk of cardiovascular complications. Alternative treatments for arthritis, on the other hand, have few side effects. Such treatments include dietary changes like adding simple herbs, eliminating vegetables from the nightshade family and reducing white sugar consumption.
  • Lower cost: Another advantage to herbal medicine is cost. Herbs cost much less than prescription medications. Research, testing, and marketing add considerably to the cost of prescription medicines. Herbs tend to be inexpensive compared to drugs.
  • Widespread availability: Yet another advantage of herbal medicines are their availability. Herbs are available without a prescription. You can grow some simple herbs, such as peppermint and chamomile, at home. In some remote parts of the world, herbs may be the only treatment available to the majority of people.

Mama Hadija is a traditional healer & spell caster  http://www.mamahadija.com

Love spells     http://www.mamahadija.com/love-spells.html

Money spells   http://www.mamahadija.com/money-spells.html

Lotto spells      http://www.mamahadija.com/lotto-spells.html

Lost love spells     http://www.mamahadija.com/lost-love-spells.html

Revenge spells    http://www.mamahadija.com/revenge-spells.html

Psychic healing  http://www.mamahadija.com/psychic.html

Traditional healing    http://www.mamahadija.com/traditional-healing.html

Witchcraft spells      http://www.mamahadija.com/witchcraft-spells.html

Tuesday, 15 April 2014

Traditional healing

In traditional South African healing, the physical, psychological, spiritual and ancestral worlds are interconnected. Sangomas and nyangas are the Southern African version of the shaman, traditional doctors who communicate with the spirit world and who treat ailments with traditional medicines.

Did you know? 
Muti is a catch-all term referring to various types of traditional medicines.
In South Africa over 80% of the population regularly consult a traditional healing practitioner, either a sangoma (traditional healer) or nyanga (traditional diviner).

Traditional healing is not a religion, but rather a cosmology. In traditional African healing, the physical, psychological, spiritual and ancestral worlds are interconnected and traditional healers are the mediums through which these worlds are communicated with.

Visitors are always welcome to attend traditional healing ceremonies, which happen throughout the year in both cities and rural areas.

During these ceremonies the sangomas and nyangas enter a trance state in which they commune with the spirit world and their ancestors.

These men and women believe that their ancestors have singled them out to follow a calling to practice traditional South African healing.

 If a call to heal is not answered, they believe there is a negative impact on the person ignoring the call, such as illness, instability or even insanity.

It is not easy to become a sangoma. The twasa is a rigorous journey full of hardships, personal confrontations and overpowering visions, aimed at psychically preparing the person for his or her vocation.

It is the traditional healer’s work to act as a medium between the spirit and physical worlds to discover the hidden causes behind misfortune or illness and prescribe appropriate action.

If you are keen on visiting a traditional healer, it is best to secure the help of a trustworthy local guide: as with all professions, be aware that not all healers are ethical or suitably skilled.
Mama Hadija is a traditional healer & spell caster  http://www.mamahadija.com

Love spells     http://www.mamahadija.com/love-spells.html

Money spells   http://www.mamahadija.com/money-spells.html

Lotto spells      http://www.mamahadija.com/lotto-spells.html

Lost love spells     http://www.mamahadija.com/lost-love-spells.html

Revenge spells    http://www.mamahadija.com/revenge-spells.html

Psychic healing  http://www.mamahadija.com/psychic.html

Traditional healing    http://www.mamahadija.com/traditional-healing.html

Witchcraft spells      http://www.mamahadija.com/witchcraft-spells.html

What is Traditional Healing?

Traditional Healing is the oldest form of structured medicine, that is a medicine that has an underlying set of principles by which it is practised.

It is the medicine from which all later forms of medicine developed, including Chinese medicine, Graeco-Arabic medicine, and of course also modern Western medicine.

Traditional Healing was originally an integral part of semi-nomadic and agricultural tribal societies, and although archeological evidence for its existence only dates back to around 14,000 B.C., its origins are believed to lie much further back and probably predate the last Ice-Age.

Unlike other traditional medicines, Traditional Healing has no philosophical base, as its practise is totally founded on healing knowledge that has been accumulated over thousands of years, and upon the healer’s personal experience, which includes his/her awareness of, and sense of unity with the natural world, as well as his/her understanding of the different levels of consciousness within the human psyche.

Traditional Healers see the universe as an living intelligence that operates according to natural laws that manifest according to specific rules and correspondences, and exercise their inner conviction that the purpose of life and the nature of disease cannot be understood without a knowledge of these laws and the individual’s relationship to the natural world.

Thus Traditional Healers share a profound knowledge and a deep understanding of how natural laws influence living things. It is for this reason that Traditional Healing is often referred to as “wisdom medicine” or “Wizard Medicine” (the word wizard means ‘wise man’, not ‘sorcerer’) and Traditional Healers are often referred to as wise or “clever” men or women or as persons of knowledge.

It is this knowledge and experience base that provides the similarity between the core principles of Traditional Healing through the ages and in different parts of the world.

There were and of course still are regional differences between the way Traditional Healers apply their knowledge, but this is simply a pragmatic adaptation by the Traditional Healer, because he/she cannot perform their role in a way that is isolated from the cultural perceptions and belief patterns of those whom they treat.

Traditional Healers practise in a different way than practitioners from other types of medicine.
  • Traditional Healers are truly holistic and understand the mind-body relationship. Just like a human being is an integrated entity and cannot survive in pieces and health is an integrated state of well-being of the whole body, ill-health cannot be treated efficiently by experts that treat specific organs or areas of the body. The natural harmony of the body can only be restored by an integrated and holistic approach that incorporates both the physical and the mental aspects of the individual.
  • Traditional Healers use natural methods of treatment, because these were the resources that have nurtured the human race - and in fact all life - since the beginning of time. Traditional Healing treatments are always integrated and involve a combination of approaches such as counseling, herbal medicine, nutritional therapy and physical therapeutics.
  • Traditional Healers used to be taught by other Traditional Healers with many years experience, by means of an “apprenticeship” that would take a minimum of 7 years, and usually much more. These days however most Traditional Healers have a combination of formal higher education as well as having been mentored for an extended period by an older and more experienced Traditional Healer.
  • Traditional Healers have strong ethical principles that they extend to all life. They believe it is their duty to foster life in all its forms and to alleviate suffering. They also believe that Nature’s laws must be obeyed in order to avoid decline and ultimate disaster.
Mama Hadija is a traditional healer & spell caster  http://www.mamahadija.com

Love spells     http://www.mamahadija.com/love-spells.html

Money spells   http://www.mamahadija.com/money-spells.html

Lotto spells      http://www.mamahadija.com/lotto-spells.html

Lost love spells     http://www.mamahadija.com/lost-love-spells.html

Revenge spells    http://www.mamahadija.com/revenge-spells.html

Psychic healing  http://www.mamahadija.com/psychic.html

Traditional healing    http://www.mamahadija.com/traditional-healing.html

Witchcraft spells      http://www.mamahadija.com/witchcraft-spells.html

Principles of Traditional Healing

There are “four pillars” of Traditional Healing which according to the Roman historian Piny the Elder (23-79 AD.) were: “Eruditio, Perspicacitas, Beneficentia et Caritas”.

Roughly translated these mean: “learning, insight, kindness and empathy”. These are the basic principles that should guide the Traditional Healer in all his or her actions.

Traditional Healing always deals with natural laws, because all life is subject to these natural laws and ill-health is usually due to an inherent or acquired weakness that has allowed an abnormal imbalance to occur, either within an organism, or between the organism and its environment.

Therefore Traditional Healers do not only work at correcting any weakness or damage to the life force or psyche that has allowed an illness to “conquer” the individual, but also work to correct the resultant internal imbalances that allow the disease to persist.

Mama Hadija is a traditional healer & spell caster  http://www.mamahadija.com

Love spells     http://www.mamahadija.com/love-spells.html

Money spells   http://www.mamahadija.com/money-spells.html

Lotto spells      http://www.mamahadija.com/lotto-spells.html

Lost love spells     http://www.mamahadija.com/lost-love-spells.html

Revenge spells    http://www.mamahadija.com/revenge-spells.html

Psychic healing  http://www.mamahadija.com/psychic.html

Traditional healing    http://www.mamahadija.com/traditional-healing.html

Witchcraft spells      http://www.mamahadija.com/witchcraft-spells.html

Sudwala Caves Cultural Village

While the caves invite you to discover the history of the earth itself, the village invites you to discover Nguni history, art and culture. Look out for beadwork, clay pots, woven items, woodcarvings and ceremonial artefacts of the Zulu and the Swazi; and the Ndebele people.

Did you know?
Four of South Africa’s 11 official languages are Nguni languages, namely Zulu, Xhosa, Swati, and Ndebele.

Sudwala Caves and Cultural Village is close to the city of Nelspruit and the Kruger National Park. The village takes its name from the Sudwala Caves, an incredible array of chambers characterised by stalactites, stalagmites and flowstone formations.

While the caves invite you to discover the history of the earth itself, this Mpumalanga cultural village invites you to discover the history, arts and crafts of the Nguni people.
The village largely represents the traditional way of life of three of the Nguni subgroups: the Zulu and the Swazi and the Ndebele.

Many of the crafts used in traditional daily life, such as sleeping mats, kitchen utensils, weapons and decorative items are still produced in the village. Traditionally, the manufacture of these items is a basis for trade and empowerment in Nguni communities.

Today, artists have adapted their craft to meet the demands of the marketplace, although traditions are maintained and practiced in cultural villages in Mpumalanga, as well as in other rural villages.

Traditional items to look out for when visiting Sudwala Caves and Cultural Village include beadwork, clay pots, woven items, woodcarvings and ceremonial artefacts. Most materials are gathered from nature and, adapting with the times, some incorporate found materials such as recycled copper wire.

What makes these arts and crafts unique is the way in which traditionally they are imbued with social meaning. Beadwork for example combines colour and composition to shape messages that are woven into decorative geometrical designs.

These shapes are also significant and the craft itself is a way of communicating ideas, feelings and information relating to a person’s status and social relationships.

At the village, you are also invited to explore the different types of housing preferred by each group, noting the different techniques, materials and decorative styles used.

You can also meet a local healer, enjoy traditional dancing and singing and share a specially prepared meal.

Mama Hadija is a traditional healer & spell caster  http://www.mamahadija.com

Love spells     http://www.mamahadija.com/love-spells.html

Money spells   http://www.mamahadija.com/money-spells.html

Lotto spells      http://www.mamahadija.com/lotto-spells.html

Lost love spells     http://www.mamahadija.com/lost-love-spells.html

Revenge spells    http://www.mamahadija.com/revenge-spells.html

Psychic healing  http://www.mamahadija.com/psychic.html

Traditional healing    http://www.mamahadija.com/traditional-healing.html

Witchcraft spells      http://www.mamahadija.com/witchcraft-spells.html

Matsamo Cultural Village

At Matsamo Cultural village experience the life of the traditional Swazi when you stay in a custom-built ‘hive’.

In this traditional Swazi village the colourful Matsamo people tend their cattle, cultivate their crops and produce beautiful crafts. You’ll be entertained to rousing dance and song performances and traditional cuisine, and allowed to wander where you will.

Did you know?
Chief Matsamo linked with King Mswati II to create a formidable defence against invading tribes.
Matsamo Cultural Village is a traditional village near Swaziland and a must for visitors looking to experience authentic Swazi culture, which is well preserved in this area.

Matsamo is named after Chief Matsamo, a prominent Shongwe chief and contemporary of King Mswati II.

He was the first Swazi chief to reside permanently in the area, and as a reward for his loyalty in defending the territory against invaders from the north, Mswati II allowed Chief Matsamo to remain in charge of the region as an eminent member of Swazi royalty. Today the region is still under the control of the Matsamo Tribal Authority.

When you visit Matsamo Cultural Village you’ll be treated to age-old folk songs, rhythmic dance performances, including the famous Rain Dance, and music with authentic African instruments, as well as traditional Swazi cuisine.

You can also wander on a tour through the village with its many huts and spaces, interacting with the villagers as they go about their daily activities, cultivating their crops, preparing traditional food and fashioning beautiful craft works.

Matsamo Cultural Village near Kruger Park first opened its doors in 2001 and enjoys great support from the broader community.

Each staffer has shares in the holding company and it provides an income to more than 100 people, making it an award-winning responsible tourism project and a former winner of South Africa’s Imvelo Responsible Tourism Award.

If you stay overnight, you’ll sleep in a traditional ‘hive’ (beehive hut), nestled among other ‘hives’ in the village, and while they remain delightfully true to their African aesthetic, they do feature separate toilets, hot and cold water and air-conditioning for your comfort.

Each ‘hive’ is also nicely secluded, so you can have a private barbeque or just relax in the rural village setting.

Also at Matsamo is a well stocked curio shop with local crafts, and a spacious restaurant with a stunning panoramic view.

Mama Hadija is a traditional healer & spell caster  http://www.mamahadija.com

Love spells     http://www.mamahadija.com/love-spells.html

Money spells   http://www.mamahadija.com/money-spells.html

Lotto spells      http://www.mamahadija.com/lotto-spells.html

Lost love spells     http://www.mamahadija.com/lost-love-spells.html

Revenge spells    http://www.mamahadija.com/revenge-spells.html

Psychic healing  http://www.mamahadija.com/psychic.html

Traditional healing    http://www.mamahadija.com/traditional-healing.html

Witchcraft spells      http://www.mamahadija.com/witchcraft-spells.html

Mgwali Cultural Village

Traditionally, the Xhosa are famous for their brightly coloured clothing and textiles, long-stemmed pipes, beadwork and music.

Visit Mgwali village and market and learn how Xhosa arts and crafts are linked to their cultural practices, while enjoying authentic Xhosa hospitality.

Did you know?
Xhosa dance music is often polyphonic, with two or more voice parts, beginning  at different points in the cycle and often overlapping extensively.

Mgwali Village in the Eastern Cape is a typical Xhosa cultural village. Visitors are invited to experience various aspects of Xhosa culture, including traditional food, social rituals and the role of Xhosa art and craft in shaping identity.

When you arrive, your tour guide will walk you through the village and introduce you to its residents.

 You will be invited into people’s homes, where you can participate in daily rituals, such as preparing a meal or seeing how traditional Xhosa beer is made, before sharing it with the residents.

You will also visit a traditional healer or ‘sangoma’, and meet the village pipe makers. Xhosa pipes are highly sought after. Pipe-makers use locally grown wood and, when people are gathered in a group, it is customary to pass a pipe around for everyone to smoke.

The significance of pipes in Xhosa society can be illustrated by the metaphor used when someone dies − Wayibeka Inqawa − ‘He has laid down his pipe’.

The market place is at the heart of the village. Here, you can watch local crafters practising skills that have been passed down through generations.

Along with their pipes, the Xhosa are famous for other South African arts and crafts, like their brightly coloured clothing and textiles, beadwork and music.

During the course of your visit, you will be able to enjoy some traditional songs and dancing. Look out for ‘ithumbu’, a bead necklace worn by dancers or ‘iqoqo’, a decorative, beaded band worn around the lower back when dancing.

You will also see first-hand how beading and weaving are used in elaborate outfits in bright colours worn by Xhosa women. These are typically adorned with braiding and beads over a skirt and, along with a colourful headdress, show the stages of a woman’s life.

Before your tour is over, you are welcome to join the bustle of villagers selling and swapping their goods at the market.

You can buy local craft work and meet the artists and craftsmen. Look out for objects made from wood and natural clays, such as cooking pots, traditional Xhosa village mats and baskets made from reeds and grass.

Mama Hadija is a traditional healer & spell caster  http://www.mamahadija.com

Love spells     http://www.mamahadija.com/love-spells.html

Money spells   http://www.mamahadija.com/money-spells.html

Lotto spells      http://www.mamahadija.com/lotto-spells.html

Lost love spells     http://www.mamahadija.com/lost-love-spells.html

Revenge spells    http://www.mamahadija.com/revenge-spells.html

Psychic healing  http://www.mamahadija.com/psychic.html

Traditional healing    http://www.mamahadija.com/traditional-healing.html

Witchcraft spells      http://www.mamahadija.com/witchcraft-spells.html

South African Traditional Medicine

Traditional medicine features in the lives of thousands of people in South Africa every day. In fact it is estimated that 80% of the population uses traditional medicines.

 Yet, so many stereotypes exist for the traditional healers and their medicines that are collectively called muti.

 To begin to properly understand the healing dynamics of South African traditional healing and medicine lets begin looking at the medicines: the muti.

 Muti is a word derived from medicinal plant and refers to traditionally sourced plant, mineral and animal based medicines.

Muti has come to be associated and equated with body parts used for witchcraft in South Africa. One often hears about sensational stories of human killings to obtain human muti.

This may happen on occasion but this is done by deranged individuals who have twisted beliefs, akin to serial killers in the western psyche. These atrocities are not truly indicative of what traditional healing is.

 True traditional healing uses plants, minerals and animal products so as to bring about physiological or psychological effects in a person.

Even though animal products such as Rhino horn have aroused much anger due to exploitation, many of the animal products used such as horns and fats used in TCM etc have been shown to have hormonal actions on the body and are therefore medicinal. Minerals too often have effects on mood and can be used to relax a person.

All of nature can be used as medicines, even poisons in very small doses. The problem with animal muti is that it is not sustainable and the animal dies in the process of obtaining the medicine.

Plant muti is a sustainable source of medicines without the type of animal suffering associated with animal muti.

 South African traditional plant medicines are fascinating with so many colors forms and effects. It is an art to know these and to use them correctly to bring about health and harmony, the aim of all true traditional healers.

Mama Hadija is a traditional healer & spell caster  http://www.mamahadija.com

Love spells     http://www.mamahadija.com/love-spells.html

Money spells   http://www.mamahadija.com/money-spells.html

Lotto spells      http://www.mamahadija.com/lotto-spells.html

Lost love spells     http://www.mamahadija.com/lost-love-spells.html

Revenge spells    http://www.mamahadija.com/revenge-spells.html

Psychic healing  http://www.mamahadija.com/psychic.html

Traditional healing    http://www.mamahadija.com/traditional-healing.html

Witchcraft spells      http://www.mamahadija.com/witchcraft-spells.html

Traditional medicine

Traditional medicine (TM) refers to the knowledge, skills and practices based on the theories, beliefs and experiences indigenous to different cultures, used in the maintenance of health and in the prevention, diagnosis, improvement or treatment of physical and mental illness.

Traditional medicine covers a wide variety of therapies and practices which vary from country to country and region to region. In some countries, it is referred to as “alternative” or “complementary” medicine (CAM).

Traditional medicine has been used for thousands of years with great contributions made by practitioners to human health, particularly as primary health care providers at the community level.

TM/CAM has maintained its popularity worldwide. Since the 1990s its use has surged in many
Traditional medicine is the sum total of the knowledge, skills, and practices based on the theories, beliefs, and experiences indigenous to different cultures, whether explicable or not, used in the maintenance of health as well as in the prevention, diagnosis, improvement or treatment of physical and mental illness.

Complementary/alternative medicine (CAM) The terms “complementary medicine” or “alternative medicine” are used inter-changeably with traditional medicine in some countries.

They refer to a broad set of health care practices that are not part of that country’s own tradition and are not integrated into the dominant health care system.

Herbal medicines Herbal medicines include herbs, herbal materials, herbal preparations and finished herbal products, that contain as active ingredients parts of plants, or other plant materials, or combinations.
  • Herbs: crude plant material such as leaves, flowers, fruit, seed, stems, wood, bark, roots, rhizomes or other plant parts, which may be entire, fragmented or powdered.
  • Herbal materials: in addition to herbs, fresh juices, gums, fixed oils, essential oils, resins and dry powders of herbs. In some countries, these materials may be processed by various local procedures, such as steaming, roasting, or stir-baking with honey, alcoholic beverages or other materials.
  • Herbal preparations: the basis for finished herbal products and may include comminuted or powdered herbal materials, or extracts, tinctures and fatty oils of herbal materials. They are produced by extraction, fractionation, purification, concentration, or other physical or biological processes. They also include preparations made by steeping or heating herbal materials in alcoholic beverages and/or honey, or in other materials.
  • Finished herbal products: herbal preparations made from one or more herbs. If more than one herb is used, the term mixture herbal product can also be used. Finished herbal products and mixture herbal products may contain excipients in addition to the active ingredients. However, finished products or mixture products to which chemically defined active substances have been added, including synthetic compounds and/or isolated constituents from herbal materials, are not considered to be herbal.
Traditional use of herbal medicines Traditional use of herbal medicines refers to the long historical use of these medicines. Their use is well established and widely acknowledged to be safe and effective, and may be accepted by national authorities.

Therapeutic activity Therapeutic activity refers to the successful prevention, diagnosis and treatment of physical and mental illnesses; improvement of symptoms of illnesses; as well as beneficial alteration or regulation of the physical and mental status of the body.

Active ingredient Active ingredients refer to ingredients of herbal medicines with therapeutic activity. In herbal medicines where the active ingredients have been identified, the preparation of these medicines should be standardized to contain a defined amount of the active ingredients, if adequate analytical methods are available.

In cases where it is not possible to identify the active ingredients, the whole herbal medicine may be considered as one active ingredient.

Mama Hadija is a traditional healer & spell caster  http://www.mamahadija.com

Love spells     http://www.mamahadija.com/love-spells.html

Money spells   http://www.mamahadija.com/money-spells.html

Lotto spells      http://www.mamahadija.com/lotto-spells.html

Lost love spells     http://www.mamahadija.com/lost-love-spells.html

Revenge spells    http://www.mamahadija.com/revenge-spells.html

Psychic healing  http://www.mamahadija.com/psychic.html

Traditional healing    http://www.mamahadija.com/traditional-healing.html

Witchcraft spells      http://www.mamahadija.com/witchcraft-spells.html