*Edited to add, November 2021: This post was originally published in 2015 (!!!) and a lot of comments have been left since then. It randomly goes viral still, so I wanted to include a short update and frame: the point of this article is to a) dig for resources around a specific popular story, b) use the popularity of this specific viral post as a way to discuss how virality and white supremacy warp content, and c) actively resist the messed up ways non-indigenous and non-African people share content about indigenous African practices—with little attention to context, attribution, history, sources, and evolving ideas. At *best* this whole birth song thing this is a true yet terribly decontextualized practice/story stripped of credit to its author and tribe (and given a messy, inaccurate set of attributions and images since), and at worst it’s a racist, warped mish-mash invention from people who aren’t indigenous African. The reality may be a mix of both these things. If you have any direct sources, feel free to leave them in the comments or shoot me a message. I’m happy to update the sources and links on this post as things emerge. As of yet, though, none of the sources shared have confirmed the story as it’s been shared. It would be amazing to find a legitimate source for the story, and if so I’ll add it. Even then, the way the story has been re-crafted/shared/stripped would remain an issue!]
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[Original Post Below]
As many of you know, I spend a lot of time browsing Tumblr. Though it has a ton of problems (like refusing to shut down blogs being used to harass women, trans folks, and people of color), I’ve had an account since 2008 and it has accompanied me on my journey through college, years in the working world, and now—graduate school while I juggle staying in my field with expanding my horizons. I’ve found brilliant things on there, and while some posts only garner a tiny modicum of attention even if they’re wonderful, other posts can spread like WILDFIRE and go hugely viral. One such post is this one, about an “African birth song,” which almost has 150K notes:
[T]here is a tribe in Africa where the birth date of a child is counted not from when they were born, nor from when they are conceived but from the day that the child was a thought in its mother’s mind. And when a woman decides that she will have a child, she goes off and sits under a tree, by herself, and she listens until she can hear the song of the child that wants to come. And after she’s heard the song of this child, she comes back to the man who will be the child’s father, and teaches it to him. And then, when they make love to physically conceive the child, some of that time they sing the song of the child, as a way to invite it. And then, when the mother is pregnant, the mother teaches that child’s song to the midwives and the old women of the village, so that when the child is born, the old women and the people around her sing the child’s song to welcome it. And then, as the child grows up, the other villagers are taught the child’s song. If the child falls, or hurts its knee, someone picks it up and sings its song to it. Or perhaps the child does something wonderful, or goes through the rites of puberty, then as a way of honoring this person, the people of the village sing his or her song.
In the African tribe there is one other occasion upon which the villagers sing to the child. If at any time during his or her life, the person commits a crime or aberrant social act, the individual is called to the center of the village and the people in the community form a circle around them. Then they sing their song to them.
The tribe recognizes that the correction for antisocial behavior is not punishment; it is love and the remembrance of identity. When you recognize your own song, you have no desire or need to do anything that would hurt another.
And it goes this way through their life. In marriage, the songs are sung, together. And finally, when this child is lying in bed, ready to die, all the villagers know his or her song, and they sing—for the last time—the song to that person.
You may not have grown up in an African tribe that sings your song to you at crucial life transitions, but life is always reminding you when you are in tune with yourself and when you are not. When you feel good, what you are doing matches your song, and when you feel awful, it doesn’t. In the end, we shall all recognize our song and sing it well. You may feel a little warbly at the moment, but so have all the great singers. Just keep singing and you’ll find your way home.
Heartwarming. Much inspiration. Wow. So beautiful we could all cry a thousand tiny tears.
So what’s the problem, in a nutshell?
The “African birth song” [seems to be] the half-baked invention of a White man that essentializes the “African experience” and does not event attempt to give any real details because it relies on collective ignorance about Africa that centers the world on a White axis. The text above does not provide any sources or even NAME this African tribe (though other versions do, but I’ll get into that later). The story uses exotification, the Noble Savage Myth, and people’s ignorance to make others feel warm n’ fuzzy and perpetuate incorrect narratives in the name of New Agey birth BS. This Tumblr post specifically, as many others have when they get reblogged, also uses the image/body of a RANDOM, unnamed indigenous woman from the Himba tribe. The list of problems goes on, because in the eyes of many non-African people, Africa is apparently just one huge jungle where everyone looks and acts the same, and all women run around topless feeling super connected to Mother Earth or something, giving birth in The Most Spiritual Ways We Should All Be Inspired By.
Himba woman whose picture is used in reblogs of this story and always remains nameless.
Though this post focuses on Black and Indigenous folks, the same rule applies when discussing all other communities of color: we are not here to be your nameless, faceless inspirational memes. We want to be seen for who we are, and we want our own voices uplifted, not those of White folks who cannibalize our histories and profit off inaccuracies and tall tales.
Origins Of “THE AFRICAN BIRTH SONG” And Its Variations
While the story sounded cool and all at face-value, I knew there was more digging to be done because this smelled pretty fishy. What’s the real root of this “African Birth Song”? Beyond Tumblr and Facebook, I found some other birth/parenting websites linking to this story, and that it has even been translated into Spanish and into Portuguese. It has been called “Your Song,” “The Song of Men,” “Remember Your Song,” “The Song of the Soul,” and more. The Birth Psychology website [link since broken] sources this book (“Welcoming Spirit Home: Ancient African Teachings to Celebrate Children and Community” by Sobonfu Somé) as the origin of the text but, SURPRISE, I looked at it and the book doesn’t actually make mention of this story—though it does describe other ritual birth practices in certain African tribes.
Some don’t even try to source it to a person, and say this tradition comes from Namibia as a whole. Others say it’s rooted in the Himba people (the picture above, and the “featured image” for this post by J. Gerrits, are Himba women), even though the location of that tribe is apparently in an arid area, so there wouldn’t be a “jungle” to go to as the story say. Meanwhile, other Internetters say the source is the “Ubuntu tribe” even though there is, uh, no such thing—Ubuntu is a philosophy. Again, we see a trend: folks ascribing things to peoples they do not know or understand because they sound “appropriate” or “distant enough” to be credible (and again, such credibility relies on assuming the audience is NOT from Africa or any of these communities).
This is actually Aminata Traorè, the Ex-Minister of Culture from Mali, NOT Tolba Phanem.
Those that try to credit an individual (aside from Sobonfu Somé) cite “Tolba Phanem (African poet), 2007” and use another image of a Himba woman to accompany the post. Some websites say that Tolba Phanem is a great women’s rights activist, and show off her “picture.” Except a reverse image-search on Google shows me that the picture they are using is actually of Aminata Traorè, the Ex-Minister of Culture from Mali.
It actually looks like Tolba Phanem doesn’t actually exist, and the person who truly originated this story is a dude named Alan Cohen*, who published it in Issue #33 of Pathways to Family Wellness—”a quarterly print and digital magazine whose non-profit mission is to support you and your family’s quest for wellness.” (If someone does find that Phanem is a real person, do let me know. I found nothing on her that was accurate/unrelated to this “poem/story.” And even the websites that cite very specific sources for this story don’t seem to return any hits or information—AND they also show incorrect facts that I *can* verify easily which makes them less credible from the get-go.)
[*EDIT 4/19/16: Commenters have been kind enough to keep digging and sourcing further. There seems to be another thread to this story linked to a White, Jewish man named Jack Kornfield which you can read about in this comment thread. I reached out to him but never received a response. Seems like HE may have been the originator of this story before Alan Cohen, but there is still no information about legitimate connections to actual tribal practices. — Added November 2021 note: naming Kornfield’s racial and ethnocultural heritage here as it’s important to contextualize his relationship to these possible tribes. While religiously he’s a Buddhist practitioner, I’m discussing racial and ethnocultural ties. Please don’t come into my comments if you have little understanding of the fact that being Jewish isn’t “just a religion.” Additionally, keep anti-Semitic nonsense off my page because I won’t tolerate that either.]
So there we go. This story is a load of crap being adorned with “exotic” origin stories in efforts to legitimize it. Thankfully, I wasn’t the only person who was skeptical, but not everyone’s skepticism drew them to my same eyebrow-raising and frustration. For example, this person was also skeptical, but much to my facepalming, this was their conclusion:
I’m an artist. A spontaneous, story-singing artist.
I work in the abstract and unproven, the ethereal and profound.
I make up stories and songs all of the time.
And they’re true.
They are invented and (sometimes) nonsensical, and maybe they never happened, but at the heart and at the center, they are true.
Because when we hear them (or tell them), we can imagine and believe that they really happened.
Or wish that they had.
This is a true story.
On some level, I get it. I used to do a lot of art, and I am surrounded by artists, writers, and storytellers. I know not everything that gets written down has to be non-fiction, and that we can spin stories out of grains of truth and blah blah blah. I get it. But to use THAT as an excuse for writing racially busted stories, and especially those that go viral on social media? No. Your art is not an excuse. Your art does not exist in a vacuum. Your art is not separate from the systems of racism and oppression in which we live, and to be an artist is not to be exempt from cultural critique and social responsibility. If you want to tell a story about healing, restorative justice, song-singing, and birth, then make it stand on its own merits and power instead of being lazy and using some nameless, faceless “tribe” to help make it sound more legitimate.
Connections To Reality & Healing/Justice
So is this “African birth song” remotely related to actual tribal birth practices in Africa? Or indigenous work around healing? Sort of. Does the idea of being “in tune with our song” sound deep, and like it would be amazing to find ways of achieving justice that don’t just rely on punitive measures, but instead look beyond that and aim for reintegration and accountability? Heck yes. But none of that erases the racist mess I describe above. However, let’s leave that behind for a bit so we can look at what connection this actually has to reality.
Because I don’t know much about birthing practices in Africa, and I doubt I could do ANY sort of justice to an entire CONTINENT in a single blog-post, I’ll focus on the healing/justice portions.
Indigenous/ABORIGINAL/FIRST NATIONS healing circleS
- Here’s a quick explanation of what healing circles are all about and where they come from. Though there are not a ton of studies about them as far as “evidence-based research” goes, there are some folks working on this kind of thing (example!), and I was honored to meet a group of them at the 2014 National Sexual Assault Conference.
- There are other kinds of circles, too, not just about healing from violence or intergenerational trauma (great video at this link).
Restorative justice, transformative justice, and community accountability
The line “The [group] recognizes that the correction for antisocial behavior is not punishment; it is love and the remembrance of identity” encapsulates a big part of the RJ, TJ, and CA models. While different organizations may have different definitions of these concepts and how they relate to each other, at its core, the ideas behind these models and principles are that a) communities as a whole must be involved in eradicating violence, b) perpetrators of violence should not just be “passively responsible” for their actions, and c) healing must be directed by survivors and those impacted by the violence. Finally, a tenet of TJ (though not always RJ) is the idea that we must transform—not merely slightly modify—our societal structures that currently enable violence and set up punishments for it.
- Here’s a great resource that explains both TJ and CA with text, graphics, and a list of resources. It also gives credit where credit is due (read: to groups like Incite! Women of Color Against Violence and Generation Five for their work theorizing, writing, and operationalizing these concepts). This other resource also gives more historical background on it because our current police state wasn’t always what it is now, and this one discusses how the RJ model has been co-opted by the criminal justice system in certain ways (and thus how TJ can be an alternative to that).
- Another slew of resources aggregated by Critical Resistance on addressing harm, accountability, and healing. It lists books, toolkits, zines, websites, articles, and more. While CR focuses on the prison industrial complex (PIC), this list of tools is about multiple forms of violence, including sexual assault, DV, state violence, and so on.
- Here’s the Creative Interventions Toolkit, which “embracing the values of social justice and liberation, is a space to re/envision solutions to domestic or intimate partner, sexual, family and other forms of interpersonal violence.”
- If your jam is classroom-based work and workshops, here’s a resource built as a TJ curriculum with activities you can use.
- Here in Boston there are people doing this work, including Black & Pink, the Cambridge Healing and Transformative Justice Program by the American Friends Service Committee, the Civil Rights and Restorative Justice Project at Northeastern, the Massachusetts Restorative Justice Collaborative, and the Center for Restorative Justice at Suffolk University. I’m not personally familiar with all these groups, so I can’t vouch for them, though!
- Here’s a “wheel” and list of community accountability strategies at the intersection of domestic violence and deaf culture.
- The Revolution Starts at Home is a fabulous book, and here’s an excerpt on these kind of strategies from a grassroots lens.
- Here’s another CA wheel that focuses on domestic violence and explains what kind of actions should be taken by men, media, educational systems, the justice system, clergy, etc. (though it’s heteronormative and presents men as the only batterers).
- Here’s a community accountability model that explains the different levels at which actions promoting/curbing men’s violence against women take place. If you’re in public health or social work, you may also recognize the model because it looks like an example of ecological models/theories.
SO IS THIS STORY WORTH IT OR NAH?
I think the ideas about healing and community-building in this story are awesome, but Mr. Cohen is not the originator of the concepts AND he’s using a racist, colonialist, tired ol’ lens to share his regurgitated opinion. Thus, I think that while this story has some good nuggets in it, there are WAY better resources and texts out there to illustrate these concepts in ways that are historically accurate, relevant, and non-oppressive. We ALL deserve better than this story.
While this may seem small to some of you, this is part of a larger trend—this is a pattern, not a story in isolation. If you’re an educator, activist, teacher, parent, speaker, power-wielder of some sort, imagine incorporating this into a lesson about media literacy in a classroom, so students can find appropriate sources of information for projects. Imagine incorporating this into a workshop about birthing practices if you work with expecting parents. Imagine bringing this into a discussion about POC solidarity, or a lecture about art and social responsibility, or a class about international feminism.
Ran across this article abstract but can’t access the full article. I don’t have the patience to read through all of the other articles now so I have the education to determine if this source is legitimate. I was literally about to invite my sister and nephews over to sing my son his birth song and figured I should read up on it first. I am thinking the main take-away from this post is that RJ, TJ, and CA principles should be incorporated into active community-based processes rather than simply idealized or referenced in a culturally insensitive way. Thank you for bringing light to this issue. https://www.jstor.org/stable/3819843
I am a white minister and I regret to say that this story had been recommended to me by colleagues, and that I used it several years ago. Before I used it again, I decided to try to source it, which I usually do before quoting anything. And I am learning to be suspicious of vague attributions like this one. (Well, WHAT people? WHERE, exactly?) Thank you so much for putting the truth out there, and exposing the story for exactly what it is. For not only informing people that it is false, but also educating on how it ties in with racism and the dominant white culture. BTW Jack Kornfield is an excellent Buddhist teacher, but he really failed on this one.
Bonjour, merci pour votre partage et vos recherches
Just want to say THANK YOU for this brilliant and detailed article. I’ve shared it and hope others learn as much as I did.
Found the source::
Excerpt from: Welcoming Spirit Home: Ancient African Teachings to Celebrate Children and Community,
by Sobonfu Some, about her own Dagara tribe of Burkina Faso:
“Life Song of the Child – Welcoming Spirit Home
There is a tribe in Africa where the birth date of a child is counted not from when they were born, nor
from when they are conceived but from the day that the child was a thought in its mother’s mind. And
when a woman decides that she will have a child, she goes off and sits under a tree, by herself, and she
listens until she can hear the song of the child that wants to come. And after she’s heard the song of this
child, she comes back to the man who will be the child’s father, and teaches it to him. And then, when
they make love to physically conceive the child, some of that time they sing the song of the child, as a
way to invite it.
And then, when the mother is pregnant, the mother teaches that child’s song to the midwives and the
old women of the village, so that when the child is born, the old women and the people around her sing
the child’s song to welcome it. And then, as the child grows up, the other villagers are taught the child’s
song. If the child falls, or hurts its knee, someone picks it up and sings its song to it. Or perhaps the child
does something wonderful, or goes through the rites of puberty, then as a way of honoring this person,
the people of the village sing his or her song.
In the African tribe there is one other occasion upon which the villagers sing to the child. If at any time
during his or her life, the person commits a crime or aberrant social act, the individual is called to the
center of the village and the people in the community form a circle around them. Then they sing their
song to them.
The tribe recognizes that the correction for antisocial behavior is not punishment; it is love and the
remembrance of identity. When you recognize your own song, you have no desire or need to do
anything that would hurt another.
And it goes this way through their life. In marriage, the songs are sung, together. And finally, when this
child is lying in bed, ready to die, all the villagers know his or her song, and they sing—for the last time—
the song to that person.
You may not have grown up in an African tribe that sings your song to you at crucial life transitions, but
life is always reminding you when you are in tune with yourself and when you are not. When you feel
good, what you are doing matches your song, and when you feel awful, it does not. In the end, we all
recognize our song. Just keep singing and you’ll find your way home.”
Hi Ronja! I have a copy of the book, actually. This text is not in there. As included in the original post above, though various websites attribute this text to that book, while the book does talk about related birth practices, this isn’t it and this isn’t even a paraphrasing of what the book actually discusses about birth practices, the use of song, and such. If I’m missing something let me know though!
mea culpa!!! i have to learn at this ripe age of 85 to NOT be so gullible to accept what could be beautiful and but learn to see what is. That while man wrote this soars my stomach. again, mea culpa. This is yet another lesson….thank you
I actually got here because I was reading my old blog and found that story above there. As a young adult, I was immediately moved, hence the re-post on my own blog. But now, a little older and “jaded”, my initial thought was “Which tribe was this actually from?” So I started my own research and found your blog instead. A bummer to discover that it was all just made up.
I did find out though that there is an actual group in India who assigns a unique lullaby to every member (though the way the song is made is not as whimsical as told in the original Tumblr post), if it helps anyone: https://www.thebetterindia.com/129583/unique-whistling-village-kongthong-meghalaya-lullaby/
This story cropped up in my FB feed today, and though it did reference the Himba people, it set off all kinds of skepticism for me. It implies that Himba women never get pregnant accidentally or without intention. It implies that Himba people all remain in their communities of birth for a lifetime. Still, some of the ideas wrapped up in the mess are lovely, especially the community gathering to remind a wrong do-er of their identity and place in the society. That is a lovely image whether it’s truth or fiction.
Anyway, thank you for taking the time to break this down for me. Your piece gives me much to think about and I appreciate it.
Hi Aida,
I appreciate your work and advocacy. However, I also find that your research does not really reveal that this story is not true. Like many stories that come from oral traditions it is really hard to find the source. It does not mean these things never happened. How do these stories survive and get passed on?
I also do not get why you would want to describe two authors as white and Jewish; considering your point, you would best describe them as non- Africans. I assume you would have the same view if those authors were African American Christians, at least I would hope so. Oral traditions are hard to track and credit and for sure we should all make every effort to do so. When we can’t though let’s not just assume the story is fake. How about thinking that folks have been inspired cross-culturally and that there is some mystery and inspiration with a life of its own that carries a story.
with respect for a diversity of views.
Hi Dawn! Thanks for your comment. However, the story as it is being presented and articulated online is *in fact* not true. Might it have origins in actual stories and practices, including indigenous oral traditions? Absolutely! That’s noted above and is a different matter.
Assuming the story is fake and presenting that assumption as truth is obviously a problem, I agree. That’s also not what’s been done above. A gut instinct based on experience with similar stories led me to research and do community outreach, then present the findings while acknowledging that more information may come to light and that it’s possible there are indeed similarities with actual practices—just not in the ways it’s being passed around online. 😉
Naming how a story is being diluted, repurposed, and changed in the context of globalized White supremacy is important work that should not take a backseat when stories are at face-value inspiring. Humans are complex beings and I trust we can hold the nuance of that or work toward it when we find it hard.
Roma Hearsey Doula
it’s interesting to read the viewpoint given in the article you share… but the need to quash this story alarms me for reasons I’ll explain. And So I respond. I see and understand the passionate view of the author and she makes many fine points, but not without risk. It seems clear from her findings that the origins of the ‘Birth Song Story’ state’s one the post above are not known and not from the tribe the post claims. If the source is not known then I agree, as Aida Mandulay articulates, It would be better that the story stand in its own strength without bring attributed to any culture, time or race for credibility. It doesn’t need credibility if it is shared as a song that sings to our own soul.
I think it would be a great shame that the inspiration it brings was sanitised out of our psych. The offence lies not in the content, but in the form the content takes. Perhaps if it could be written as a fantasy story like this.
“ Imagine If, when a woman (or transgender person with a womb TGWW – please replace her abs she with his and he as you as appropriate), knew was ready to welcome life in her womb she took a journey deep inside her self, and in this journey she aspired to call out to the universe, in hope that the Soul who wishes her to be their mother, could hear her. And imagine in this ritual she heard a song deep inside that she began to hum. She carried this song in her heart and began to dream the vision of being a mother… she hummed this song and her partner and loved ones began to sing it too. Imagine if all our beloveds began to sing a song that called in new life, imagine if we all gathered together when a child was conceived to let them know they were loved and wanted. Imagine if this song welcomed the child on the day of their birth. Imagine if this song became the resting place for this child’s heart throughout its life. Imagine if we all had our own song. Imagine if we all felt loved this way and people with a song that lived in their soul.”
I offer this version that originates from my creative imagination as a way to preserve the beauty of the idea of a Birth Song. To offer a new possibility.
It is interesting that the author found no links to the origin of this story, her reference to Sobonfu Somé is interesting to me as I heard this very story when attending Sabonfu Somé’s talk in Lewes East Sussex in 2011 that was cantered around being birthed into the world and the birth journey. Sobonfu referred to the practices of the Dagara Tribe…. and she spoke of this very practice of singing a birth song. She said she lived that practice in the place she was raised in Burkina Faso in West Africa. (Country about the size of Colorado, made of sixty tribes speaking as many languages). Sobonfu spoke of knowing her life’s calling, she knew her song, (literally or metaphorically speaking). She used speaking and story telling to heal and awaken the spirit and bring word medicine to the west. She brought her lived experience of her people to the west to help us remember and see how lost and sick we are. This was her intention according to my memory of her talk.
So with that experience what I can say to conclude is, though the source and origin of this story is uncertain it’s validity the content has not been disproven. Certainly if we cannot be accurate then let’s not validate and falsely claim the origin of things, but rather than invalidate the content perhaps we can allow what inspires us to have value and a place.
As a convenient parallel example The origins and authors of the many versions of a pretty popular story book called THE HOLY BIBLE are not by any means certain, and it’s content is not proven nor can it be, it is always being questioned and re written yet it’s content is valued by millions all the same. The written word and the library of human literature is riddled with bullshit and deception but in the quagmire there is so much gold.
Thank you for reading all the way to hear if you have. Take what you will from it. HMD x
Hannah Mae Dawson
Hannah, thank you for sharing as you did. I am about to present this Sunday an inner child workshop and I fortunately I built my speech around the horseshit of a reel. I love how you reimagined this. Looks like I will be spending some time reworking my speech this week.
I agree that it is a lovely idea and I do believe that we can sing to our unborn children as well as our inner child and shall be adding your idea of just imagine!
Thank you again and for sharing!
Along the interesting discussion that arises from the comments, I think there’s several different but close questions that can be fronted. Those questions concerns the value of fables and myths, and the existence of a border between myths of one’s own society and myths of foreign societies. Can there really be myths of an existing live cultures or are all myths always need some kind of distance from their object?
Can we speak of good and bad myths? Authentic myths vs non-authentic ones?
Is a story about one’s ancient ancestors more legitimate and true then a story about one’s neighbour society’s past? ( For this last question, I think each of them exhibits different kinds of systematic obligations that form different identity narratives. One as a positive identity narrative to be identified with, and one negative to be used as a model for what is foreign and different from US, in ether a positive or negative way.)
From an historiographical point of view there are no true or false myths, no good or bad ones. Its only the formation of a myth that should be in the focus of interest for the historian.
But non historiographicaly, and maybe non academically, I think we can ask, and maybe even should ask, what value dose different myths can hold for us. Which myths do we choose to endure, and haw do we choose them, and what can we gain from an historical analysis like the one presented in this fascinating post. In the heart of the issue lies some difficult questions about narration, authenticity, and truth.
Hi Aida
I am currently writing a play entitled the Balm Yard. It is a part of my aim to use African cultural Retentions retentions in my work as a playwright I came across the Birth song and it provided me with the perfect vehicle for telling my story of the people of the Balm Yard. I have been searching for cultural examples of this but found none that I could trust. Having read your article, I am even more sceptical. However, I am still convicted that it is a perfect vehicle for telling my story. I would like your thoughts on this. It is clear that it is not the truth but could be based on truisms? Could it a distortion of the truth How can it use it without perpetuating a lie and thereby reinforce this long practice of reducing our history and culture to mere exotica
Some other folks asked about this in the comments section—check that out! In short, there are other documented stories of tribal practices that are in the neighborhood of this that you might be able to respectfully reference or cite instead of this!
Hi there! Thank you so much for this article. I had a college assignment to produce a radio short story programme and as I was searching for a sound and music-rich story I found this one in the form of a children’s book. At first I was thrilled for having found it as it perfectly served the purpose. Then, having a college minor in African Cultures – I mean, it just takes a little critical thinking – , I was also suspicious about the origin of this story. If it were to be authentic though, I wanted to know exactly what tribe the book was referring to, so I could use music specific from that tribe (and not some stereotypical “African tribal music”) and sounds that made sense with the region they live in. The book I read, which shares the same structure as the story you posted, just says (in Portuguese) “adapted from an african tale” – without, of course, sourcing it properly. It was then that I bumped into your blog post. After reading it and the comments, I was searching for the Jack Kornfield book and I was grab an online copy to see if it sourced the story. Searching through the surrounding text, the references, additional readings and credits available at the end, I was not able to find a source for this tale, so I’m at a dead end. There’s also a video on YouTube of Kornfield telling the story (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U4o9zni3OW8) but he doesn’t add more to what’s on the book – even though he mentions he “heard” the story (2:10).
Part of me wants to find the true source of the story, if it’s an authentic one, because it would be great to use it in my assignment but from what I, you and everyone here can gather from reading and searching about it, I really don’t think it is. That being said, thanks once again for not letting me engage in and encourage ignorance towards all the subjects that were discussed here by telling this story in yet another format.
Thanks for your digging and your comment, Francisco! If you find any other sourcing/information, definitely let me know! I’m always happy to add/be corrected in anything I post 🙂
Hi Aida.
Thank you for your insightful and well researched post.
Although the originator of the fictional tale was a racist and ignorant white man, I am grateful to him for his musings, as he led me to you.
I acknowledge that most white people are largely ignorant in African history and culture. For me, this was the sad result of years of indoctrination and fear-mongering yby the prevailing government.
I am a white women born and raised in Africa and sadly, one of those ignorant asses that you vent about.
The good news, however, is that once the truth has been revealed, it must be acted on. Many of us are digging deeper to understand our black and coloured brothers and sisters better. I would implore you to do the same.
As a 42 year old women unable to conceive, this “story” gave me hope and a vision for my own child.
In order to keep the story unoffensive, it should have been presented as a parable or fiction, not as reality. That being said, it sparked hope for me.
I look forward to reading many more of your insightful writings.
Regards,
Mandy
Thank you so much for your article and research!
Years ago, when I first heard this story, I tried to track down its source. The earliest version I could find was in a book by Jack Kornfield. He didn’t cite a source, which I found suspicious. I wrote asking him for his source (care of his publisher), but never got an answer. (It might never have reached him.)
I’ve always suspected it was made up. With two degrees in anthropology, I know we humans never completely conform to just one way of being, and this story sounds too pat and tidy to be true.
I appreciate a good fable as an allegory for ways of being better human beings, but a fable presented as a true story is a lie.
Thank you so much for this article! I had a vague memory of the story and was looking it up to get references, etc to include it in a sermon on Sunday and the first thing I came upon was your article. After reading your wise and convicting piece I will not be using this story, even as a fable, and I am pondering how in the future I might use your unpacking _of it_ as an example of the work we all need to be doing. Thanks again for this piece and for your work in the world!
Thank you so very much for this. I am writing a master’s paper on birth trauma and was told this story by a white cis-man person in the community whom I interviewed. As a queer white cis-female jewish english as a first language (the list goes on) somatic therapist intern, I had a somatic experience of receiving this information much like a load of bricks being dropped in my stomach. I wanted to ask for a reference….I wanted to ask which tribe?…and I didn’t for countless reasons that have to do with both my privilege and my marginalization…I went to research this story and found this. UH! It put words to what I was feeling. It offered a gentle reminder to check my privilege when I feel this and to speak up, and to honor my marginalized parts and not be too hard on the places where I’ve learned to shut down my voice. This is really appreciated. It’s a yucky story and yet another way that academics can colonize and by-pass actual HUMANS.
Way to ruin a great story with the truth
Thank you, this story just hit me wrong, fishy as you said, much as I like the idea of bringing someone back into the fold by singing their song, etc. But I had no clarity on how it was using Africa/a tribe as exotic, and hadn’t even recognized that the woman pictured was nameless. Your writing brought so much into focus. Thought-provoking.
This simple story PALES to the ridiculousness that christians will go through to foist a virgin birth, walking on water, raising the dead and ascending into ‘heaven’ on the population. At least this story is somewhat believable!!
I want to thank you for the article, and also for your courteous responses to comments from defensive white people.
I love the idea that somewhere babies are all wanted and welcomed, and that each of us has a soul song. It’s a lovely myth. Now if we could just pass on the myth without the racism and cultural appropriation, that would be great.
In one fell, unexpected swoop, your research has unveiled all of the resources and contacts I have been looking for to continue my work in the most impoverished and drug infested Hoods of San Francisco. I was recently assaulted, a botched robbery attempt gone public (in the end, she could not steal what I chose to gift her, my phone), near the Street altar of my Friend, murdered one year to the day on that sidewalk, in his neighnorhood, where he’d play Music and express his very unique self. I’m currently researching and writing an article about what happened that day, to the block and the World. The experience was opportunity to show what I’ve been telling about my belief in non violence, a piece of the path to greater Health in the Hood. It’s a test I’ve expected a long time. After 20 minutes of holding the fallen Goddess close, my face bloody but eyes and words clear with good intent, trying to connect with her on a Heart level, I told her: I’m going to gift my phone to you, so you don’t have to carry the burden of stealing it from me. I can buy another phone, but you can’t buy Honor, self-respect or a clear conscience. I let her go, andstood proud on the corner, then kneeled to the Sun, the proof of my convictions dripping on the same sidewalk my Brother had bled to death on exactly a year before. Through four rounds of her desperate blows, inside the circle of all who watched us, I kneeled a Woman of clear conscience. Many there have watched me mourn my dead Brother all year, through words, tears, Art, community, Music, Dance and giving. I did not want them to help me during the ordeal. My younger Brother had begun choking her the moment after she snatched my phone out of my hands, but I would not allow him to hurt her. She took my phone while I was trying to honor her request for a song, a year long tradition. The only proper way to deal w her I believe, was by myself. Any other meddling, any morsel of violence f et on me or anyone else, would have distracted from the reality and Truth of what happened. I looked up the Himba story because I remembered the concept of encircling those who had broken a rule, and were reminded through song and Love to remember who they were. This is the concept is golden, ancient, tricky, and invaluable. As sweet as the manufactured story you have exposed, is this concept, an excerpt I wanted to add to my message to the community. Now, with all of the resources you have compiled, I can study and consult directly with people that have put this concept into action on the Streets, and help me understand how to bring it to our troubled Streets in ssn Francusco. The Himba parable is a worthy metaphor, and so are the story’s TRUE roots. To Love away the reasons people hurt others is the most direct path to the mighty goal of healing, Peace, Justice, and growth everywhere. Thank you ~☆
here are some other links that might be of interest to you and other readers
http://africanpoems.net/tag/yoruba/page/2/
https://www.soas.ac.uk/cas/events/04mar2013-child-naming-song-poetry-of-south-east-yoruba.html
Thank you for sharing! This one described a Yoruba naming ceremony in more detail too: https://www.ileoduduwa.com/naming-ceremony-yoruba-culture/. I also just realized why one of my former students was named Taiwo (this person was a twin and there’s Yoruba conventions around naming twins).
Hi Aida,
Thank you for this. I went through a similar journey when I wanted to use the story for my textbook on cultural psychology. I found the Some’ reference but agree it is bogus. I also tried to contact Kornfield and also received no reply. Like you, I agree this is colonial BS (not post-colonial, given it’s still ongoing, btw). While I can somewhat sympathize with the “artistic license” defense, I strongly disagree. It could be considered “art” were it published as a fictional account of a made-up culture, sure, but this account stakes its credibility on the vague assertion of cultural origin. Thanks for the rebuttal.
phi·los·o·phy
noun
•the study of the fundamental nature of knowledge, reality, and existence, especially when considered as an academic discipline.
•a particular system of philosophical thought.
plural noun: philosophies
“Schopenhauer’s philosophy”
•the study of the theoretical basis of a particular branch of knowledge or experience.
“the philosophy of science”
Hm. “Philosophy of Ubuntu”
The study of the Ubuntu system of thought. The study of
the experiences, knowledge, and existence of such system.
Ubuntu: Applying African Philosophy in Building Community. The philosophy of Ubuntu derives from a Nguni word, ubuntu meaning “the quality of being human.” Ubuntu manifests itself through various human acts, clearly visible in social, political, and economic situations, as well as among family.
Hm. “Ubuntu” is a Nguni word. Ubuntu Philosophy is derives from the meaning of that word. Language travels. Religion travels. Beliefs are adopted. So yeah, if the philosophy has been found in mainly in Africa, I think it’s safe to say that referring to the tradition as the “African birth song” gives credit to all those who practice the philosophy while raising awareness of the heightened spiritual practices of a continent that has been painted otherwise by whiteness; taken advantage of, and exploited.
I can’t understand how people don’t get that while this might be an ‘inspiring story’ or ‘positive’ it’s still not okay because it’s NOT TRUE. Like, how would you feel if someone took a picture of you and your child and shared it around the internet with some false story about how you raise your child? It would be just a little uncomfortable, don’t you think?
The other big problem is that these people are constantly treated to stereotypes. It isn’t just one ‘nice’ or ‘inspiring’ story. People spread stuff like this and then pretend to know anything about African cultures. That’s lazy. If you really want to honor African cultures then learn about them. Learn about the different countries, ethnic groups, and tribes, and how they actually live. That is truly treating a culture with respect: acknowledging their reality instead of insisting on a story that isn’t true, however ‘lovely’ it might seem.
When I first read the story about the “birth song” I cried tears of release. There was something that cut deep to into my humanity. This demonstration of community and forgiveness contrasted with our culture is heart breaking. I see and understand the issues with this story and the way it was shared online. The “Noble Savage” myth is a form of racism however benign it may seem. However, this story serves powerfully as a fable. So my question to you Aida and who ever may read this is this: What is an appropriate way for us to share lessons inspired by people of oppressed groups? We could do as science fiction sometimes does and create an imaginary group, perhaps some sort of alien, and ascribe this story to them. But is that not more offensive? I am white and middle class as fuck, so I don’t feel entitled to comment. The bible provided fables that may have helped to steer people at least in a direction of social control, but that text, as pointed out by another responder to this blog, is much more racist. People need direction and the closest thing our culture has to lesson teaching fables is children’s movies which of course, usually come with their substantial dose of propaganda. So again, how do we tell stories like this? Is it possible that this may have been the best way? I pray to nothing that schools will start actually teaching histories of non-white nations in a serious way. Beyond that I hope they start teaching about the way people have lived for 95% of their existence: in small bands of nomadic foragers. But this does not serve the aims of public education, which is to indoctrinate, so I’m not holding my breath. Without these contexts the people sharing stories like these online are drowning in ignorance, so the details are bound to get messed up. All stories like these will be reduced to a game of telephone. Is it possible that we don’t all have time to all educate ourselves about the intricacies of countless societies both in the past and the present? Perhaps this is the best we can do in our current system of casual racism. Maybe we should be more concerned about the racism inherent in public education and our society at large then an over simplification of a beautiful story. The work you did on this subject is still very important and I thank you for bringing these issues to light.
Hi Cameron! Great questions! I think these kinds of things are best done, often, in collaboration and/or by nourishing the originators of the practices themselves—so doing things like teamed works of translation, uplifting stories and resources through boosting their signal without coopting the narrative or diluting the messages, doing nonfiction work that acknowledges who/what the lessons are inspired by, and so on. There’s always a question of what resources get taken up by dominant groups when they “share” lessons from oppressed groups and how lessons/practices get taken out of context, since that is pretty rampant, and there are many examples of how the “same” content presented by members of groups at a power differential from each other end up being most adopted in society when the content comes from the more powerful group. Rather than “how/can I do this?” asking ourselves “SHOULD I do this? What are the impacts of me doing this? Does this play into oppressive tropes and legacies, and if so, how?”
The beauty (and difficulty) of this is that these “smaller” things are inextricably tied to the “larger” things (e.g. structural racism in public schools), so we don’t have to “pick” one—we can draw the connections between both and see the ways in which dismantling “one” can help with “the other.”
I wish THIS article would go viral. Thank you! I’m a preconception and conscious parenting coach and I so wanted that story to be true! I wasn’t about to use it until I could find more information on it. Thank YOU for doing the research. It’s a beautiful story, and beautiful idea, and it’s not okay for people to make these things up and not credit the people. And when will the world catch up and realize Africa is a continent with many countries and within them many tribes? You can’t just say “Africa!”
Thanks all for your reflections and research on this story.
I was inspired by this story, but felt the need to look for more detail. And here it is! This article is vastly more thought-provoking and inspiring than the original story. Thank you for the time and effort it took to educate us (by which I mean, me, a cis-gendered, European-descended older male committed to being an ally for the right of ALL of us to pursue dignity and happiness). The list of resources you provide is very helpful. Blessing you with gratitude for your willingness to share your insight and values.
Hi Aida
I feel two things have gotten mixed up in your critique. I understand that you are an academic and thus value exact references. I certainly understand the need for this in the academic world.
However I think the use of fable, myth, therapeutic story telling should not be devalued because its not referenced. The way I read Jack Kornfield is as a teacher who gets us to self examine by using stories, myths and examples from many cultures. He uses myth and metaphor to illustrate aspects of ourselves. Unfortunately I don’t have my Jack Kornfileld books with me where I am at present. I do however remember that Jack Kornfield references his work very well. This may all be cleared up if we get hold of the original text, my memory is that Jack Kornfield cites a place in Mali where the information comes from.
It seems churlish to blame either Kornfield or Cohen for the proliferation or the morphing of the story on the internet, without references being cited.
I have no objection to drawing on positive (or negative) aspects of any culture to enhance my understanding of human behaviour and the lacks or strengths in my culture. The fact that a touching and for most people, I imagine, thought provoking story is told without exact reference is not an issue for me in this instance. The story (perhaps myth if you like) draws my attention to how in many cultures in the world, including my own, babies are not welcomed in and given value as beings “with their own song” prenatally let alone pre -conceptually. The fact that this example is used to illustrate what we lack in our culture around welcoming new beings in, does not mean that every aspect of the real or mythical tribe/people is held up as perfect.
It could be argued that it is racist to not report on positive traditions for fear of evoking images of the “Noble Savage”.
I too grew up in South Africa and have spent time in rural communities. When I am teaching I draw on examples of what I have observed and learned from a culture that is different to mine. Often it is the positive that I may draw on. This doesn’t mean that I don’t see flaws in other aspects of what I see.
Finally I find the derogatory way you describe both Alan Cohen and Jack Kornfield as “White Jewish Men” racist. That is their ethnic origin but why is it relevant in this context. If we can only comment on our culture and tell stories from our tribe of origin, that would make the world rather dull and secular.
Hi Jenni! I just replied to another commenter speaking on the “fable vs. fact” issue and you can read that here: http://aidamanduley.com/2015/03/10/the-real-origin-of-the-african-birth-song/#comment-29739. As someone who’s a trained therapist and someone whose professional orientation is rooted in social justice, I can certainly see the value of using myths and storytelling. That said, I find it irresponsible to use stories in the ways described above. My issue is less (still, but less) with “do you have the specific reference” at *that* point, and more about critiquing the ways subtly and insidiously racist ideology (which does include “positive racial stereotypes”) seeps into therapeutic work and attempted-to-be-inspiring tales such as these. There’s some excerpts from his book in the comments section (you can find the link in the aforementioned comment thread) but they do not seem to add any positive spin or “fix” for what I’ve outlined above. If you have original sources or further bits from his book that clarify I’m super happy to incorporate them.
To draw on aspects of a culture to better understand human behavior and the relationship to other cultures, we should make sure we’re not just making up what we perceive to be an aspect of a culture. This story could work really well without reliance on problematic racialization and coopting. There’s certainly space for visioning how things could be instead of how they are, or for using narrative to explore other possibilities of how we may exist in the world, or using them to highlight XYZ in society, without relying on tired tropes. That said, if there’s an actual tribe that does this practice as described, I’m happy to source it.
I find it curious (albeit not surprising) that you find my naming of their racial/cultural background derogatory when it’s just stating their background (as far as I’ve been able to find sources for, of course). Many people who don’t discuss race frequently in these contexts get upset or confused when it’s brought up, especially if what’s being named is the race of a dominant group. Their background is relevant given that this entire piece is about race, the ways in which certain groups are marginalized (and the ways in which certain groups express power), and it’s important to note that neither of these people are from the groups about which they’re discussing alleged practices. I’m not interested in a dull, secular world, as it sounds like you aren’t either, but I am certainly interested in racial justice and ensuring that when we share stories we do so in just, respectful ways.
Actually I spent two years in The Netherlands mentoring a woman from Zambia who had been kidnapped by family who had escaped from her tribe in ‘the bush’ and went back to get her. She told me a lot of her traditions or maybe you would call them ‘fables or myths.’ They were not the elaborate details of your birth song story, but yes, they believe that birth begins in the mind. Yes they create a song for their baby. Yes they have someone in the village is the keeper of the story of the tribe. Her father was the voodoo or medicine man ie the tribe’s doctor. The things she learned about plants and herbs and their effects on treating people helped her get through Nurse Practioner school with top grades to become a midwife because she wanted to go back and raise the standard of living for her people however the tribe destroyed her small clinic because they do not want to give up their ancient traditions. So my Zambian girl went back to the Netherlands to attend medical school.
I’m so happy this person was able to draw from their cultural knowledge to become a midwife and be successful, even though it didn’t fit when she returned home. To your question/comments about the fable piece: if the stories someone shares are of their direct experiences, I wouldn’t call them myths or fables, no. As mentioned in other comments, it seems there are elements of the “birth song” myth that are indeed drawing from various African tribes’ practices (some of which you mentioned), but that’s the exact issue—making a foreigner’s mishmash out of various cultural practices and then weaving a story out of it that isn’t from the voices of the people in those cultures themselves.
I had just printed a copy of this story to share with my music students. After reading your article, I have changed my mind. Your article has also enlightened me, a cis, white female, why positive stereotypes are harmful. Thanks for opening my eyes!
I heard this story a long time ago through Jack Kornfield, a Buddhist teacher.
It’s a beautiful story, but I’ve always believed it to be a metaphor, like myths and metaphors lots of spiritual teachers use to explain a point. The problem here is that you have read it (online) out of context and jumped to conclusions. I know that sounds rude of me to say, and I don’t doubt for one minute there are countless occurrences of misuse of different tales from different cultures not credited correctly and used and abused, but not just by the white man, but also black, brown, yellow… man and woman.
I strongly believe teachers should cite their references when they are making claims or referring to something that actually happened or was said. In the case of a parable then it’s just reciting a myth, no citation necessary, especially when it’s coming from a place of positivity and good intention. In fact I’ve heard a very similar story to this (on audiobook, can’t remember who) where they used a very similar story to the birth song, only the adapted it and used Native Americans and the example, nothing wrong with this, it’s just a metaphor for “wouldn’t it be nice to know each other’s song”
Hi Dram! Did Jack name it as a metaphor or myth, or present it as a factual or historical piece? Those are certainly two different situations 🙂 In print, where I’ve found him discussing it, that doesn’t seem clarified, and in fact it does seem to be discussed as more factual than it seems to be. Here’s the lines I’ve cited: http://aidamanduley.com/2015/03/10/the-real-origin-of-the-african-birth-song/#comment-20272. If you have more info/context, I’m happy to hear or include it.
Either way, though, I do strongly believe it is a problem when we start crafting metaphors that rely on racism-rooted concepts as I outlined in the article. Even when we have good intentions, we can still cause direct and indirect harm (here’s two accessible pieces on the impact of “positive stereotypes” along the lines of race and gender which also include some discussion of research studies on it: https://www.npr.org/sections/13.7/2015/07/20/424640508/the-negative-in-positive-stereotypes + https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/ulterior-motives/201302/the-pain-positive-stereotypes).
I was just about to write about this, thus adding to the deluge of misinformation, thank you so much for questioning it and saving me from a heap of embarrassment!
Thank you …I’ve seen this on Facebook time and time again. Today my bullshit meter went off with the question of what a cool tribe I want to know more…who are they?
I was going to repost ….now I know better 🙂
I don’t understand why this is considered to be “racist.” It doesn’t carry negative connotations. In fact, it’s a wonderful message. I would feel blessed to be part of any group/tribe who had this kind of practice. And there is obviously some truth to it.
Hey Sara! I invite you to check out the article again, since it does talk about why even something that on the surface sounds nice and “carries a good message” is actually underlyingly racist. In short, though, racism and stereotyping don’t all come packaged in obviously negative statements. A part of how racism works is through depersonalization and dehumanization, mechanisms that can come through via “positive statements” as well as negative ones. In fact, they usually require both to successfully operate in society! 🙂
There’s some interesting research on the damage of “positive stereotypes” discussed here: https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/ulterior-motives/201302/the-pain-positive-stereotypes and there have been articles written about that issue in a variety of outlets (e.g. https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/oliver-burkemans-blog/2012/dec/12/stereotypes-bad-even-when-good, http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=15734426)
Well said: “If you want to tell a story about healing, restorative justice, song-singing, and birth, then make it stand on its own merits and power instead of being lazy and using some nameless, faceless “tribe” to help make it sound more legitimate.”
Just wanted to send a quick thank you for this article.
Thank you SO MUCH for that. As an African with an MA specialising in African cosmology, this lie has driven me mad for years, particularly because of its racist ‘noble savage’ imposition of western new age ideology. Really, I can’t say enough thank yous and I will post a link to this blog every time I see the story.
Thank you for this thorough analysis! What is disturbing to me is how easy it would have been for the gentleman who first promulgated this story to simply state “a woman” or “a small, close-knit community” without the cultural voyeurism he perpetuates. That he feels he doesn’t even need permission to hijack people’s identity tells me he thinks he owns those people. We expect better.
I came across this story years ago and later went looking for a printed version and found the book What is My Song, by Dennis, Sheila and Matthew Linn. They wrote a story based on what they call an African FABLE…not tradition, and attribute the story to Jack Kornfield. Did you come across him in your research? I suggest it as another source for your research. I value some of your insights, but recogjnize a big difference between using a fable for inspiration and attributing it to a cultural practice. I have used the fable for many purposes without attributing it to any made up or real community.
I hadn’t come across this; thanks for sharing it! The Cohen piece dates to 2002, and this book is from 2005. The Kornfield books are from 2002 and 1993. Found the latter but don’t have access to the full book so I can’t tell how he contextualizes this further:
“There is a tribe in east Africa in which the art of true intimacy is fostered even before birth. In this tribe, the birth date of a child is not counted from the day of its physical birth nor even the day of conception as in other village cultures. For this tribe the birth date comes the first time the child is a thought in its mother’s mind. Aware of her intention to conceive a child with a particular father, the mother then goes off to sit alone under a tree. There she sits and listens until she can hear the song of the child that she hopes to conceive. Once she has heard it, she returns to her village and teaches it to the father so that they can sing it together as they make love, inviting the child to join them. After the child is conceived, she sings it to the baby in her womb. Then she teaches it to the old women and midwives of the village, so that throughout the labor and at the miraculous moment of birth itself, the child is greeted with its song. After the birth all the villagers learn the song of their new member and sing it to the child when it falls or hurts itself. It is sung in times of triumph, or in rituals and initiations. This song becomes a part of the marriage ceremony when the child is grown, and at the end of life, his or her loved ones will gather around the deathbed and sing this song for the last time.” – A Path with Heart (Bantam Books, 1993), p. 334.
I’m going to try to reach out to Kornfield to ask him for more information about the tribe he’s referring to! (My critiques of the way this story has been deployed online, stand, certainly, but it’d be good to know how factual/close to an actual tribal practice this is).
Jack Kornfield is a founding and famous teacher in the Insight Buddhist meditation community. The Insight tradition is a Theravadan tradition that for better or worse practices Theravadan Buddhism stripped of Thai cultural contexts (I say better or worse because while it’s questionable in its colonialism-esque context to drop cultural pieces of Buddhism there are some cultural pieces that hold folks back. For instance, most non-Western Buddhists believe for instance that women cannot attain Enlightenment and must re-incarnate as a man to do so).
It’s very unlikely you’ll receive a response to your email and based on Insight’s methods, I doubt Jack Kornfield knows if this story is real or has a particular culture he might ascribe it to.
Interesting post Aida Manduley.
Well, is the ‘African Birth Song’ not a story? What happens when someone LIVES to share your story? Will justice be found in the story or will justice be found in our connection to the story? When is discrimination healthy, positive…. discerning? Do we all have the potential to see past institutional limitations such as citing or accrediting sources. By sharing your post, have you “discriminated” against another… have you discussed with Mr. Cohen-his connection to the story vis a vis your own connection?
What is race? Are we of one humankind…?
Is Ubuntu more than a just a philosophy? ‘I am, therefore we are…’
You, Aida Manduley are affected by the way the story was originally shared, therefore we are too…
JS
its an inspiring story
Hi- The origin of the birth song is the oriki. It is a real tradition. The following article may give some clarification:
Oriki: Ancestors and Roots
Kwame Ture and Ekwueme Michael Thelwell
The Massachusetts Review
Vol. 44, No. 1/2, A Gathering in Honor of Jules Chametzky (Spring – Summer, 2003), pp. 97-111
Published by: The Massachusetts Review, Inc.
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/25091928
Hi Margaret! Thank you for that link and info. In scouring for information about this topic, I actually came across the oriki tradition, but it’s not what this writer was talking about. It’s possible he was inspired by that tradition, but the way he conceptualizes it in his writing and presents it to the public contains many more embellishments and a drive off the path of what oriki seems to be about based on the literature I consulted. Similarly, there is documentation about Himba tribe birthing and childrearing practices that sound adjacent to this story, but don’t fit the full framework Cohen is presenting which leads me to believe he mish-mashed various tribal practices, added his own spin and ideas, and then repackaged it. If anyone else has more info, though, I’m happy to hear it and edit the post above as necessary!
More:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Or%C3%ADk%C3%AC = Oriki (with all the accents it becomes hard to read in an url)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isibongo
Thank you! Totally relevant to this discussion, and seeing what different African peoples do for naming ceremonies I think gives context to how this specific “birth song” post came about.
Thank you for the digging 🙂 A friend told me the story the other day, but didn’t know the name of “the tribe” – so I wanted to find out about what exactly the story behind it was – and found your post. Still a great story, but from now on I will share it as an idea spread by someone 🙂 Thank you for your work and for sharing it with the internet 😉
I’m not sure how long you’ve lived in Africa. I was born there and lived in (South) Africa for 40 years.
I don’t know, nor do I care, where or how this story originated, however, it’s not unique. I have been to many rural villages and met the locals there. Certain cultures have very similar “rituals” – like giving birth in the river, accompanied by the other women of their village, singing during the birthing process, bringing an atmosphere of peace, love and calm..
I don’t see any of this as racist. The Bible is more racist and “full of crap”than this beautiful story. You’re a great writer. I’d love to see you write something about the evil, racist, sexist god of the bible and the horrific message of fear and intimidation that it preaches.
Thanks for your comment, Shelley. I’m not saying African birth rituals are racist, or trying to create a hierarchy of racism where this is better/worse than the Bible. I’m merely pointing out this particular situation and why a White man creating a fictional “Noble Savage” story is a racist act. The story itself, without context, is super beautiful and inspiring, certainly, but the story cannot be divorced from its origins and its implications for African folks [both those living on the continent as well as those abroad]. Relatedly, how many White/European/Anglo folks [and communities of color w/o the education about these issues that would allow them the ability to spot it] across the globe have spread this story is really telling of the racialized reception and understanding of this story.
Religious texts aren’t my forte, so I’d rather leave the breakdowns and analyses of things like the Bible to those with more schooling and knowledge about those pieces and their cultural contexts 🙂