When a woman of the Ubuntu
African tribe knows she is pregnant, she goes into a consecrated circle with other women,
and together they pray and meditate until they get to "The song of the
child. "When a child is born, the community gets together and sings the child's song. When the child begins his education, he sings his song. When he or she becomes an adult, the community get together again and sings it. When it comes to their weddings, those persons hear their songs sung. Finally, when
their soul is going from this world, family and friends approach and sing their song to accompany it in the "journey". In the Ubuntu tribe, there is another occasion when men sing the song. If
at some point a man commits a crime or aberrant social act, the men take him
to the center of town and the people of the community form a circle around her.
Then they sing "your song." The tribe recognizes that the correction
for antisocial behavior is not punishment, but is the love and memory of true identity. Those who love you can not be fooled by mistakes you have committed, or dark
images you show to others. They remember your beauty as you feel ugly, your
total when you're broke, your innocence when you feel guilty and your purpose
when you're confused.
