If India’s main cultural heritage is yoga, then without any doubts, Malawi’s main cultural heritage is carefreeness. When you read about the most common Malawi Facts, very seldom you will stumble upon the fact that Malawians are the friendliest people on the face of the earth. If you scrape underneath the superficial fascination that the rest of the world has with the Black Continent, you will see that the commonly presented Malawi Facts have little to do with the Malawian reality.

Beyond the Malawi Facts and Fictions

If you Google Malawi Facts, the results you will be presented with are somewhat gloomy. You can read all about the country’s political struggles after the independence, the locals that live on the very brink of poverty, the ruthless nature of Mother Nature that either scorches the soil with its blazing sun, or washes everything with its over generous rainfalls. You can read that Malawians are social media virgins and their idea of virtual social gatherings is talking to their ancestral spirits in a tribal gathering. But beyond these pulp facts or fictions are the true Malawi Facts.

The True Malawi Facts

The fact that Malawi has very little cities is always highlighted by the western visitors, but what they fail to notice is that the locals live in close knit village communities in which sharing is not just some imaginary word, but the main ingredient for happiness. These people share together their poor material existence and very wealthy spiritual context. The Malawi Facts speak that the country is lacking educational amenities, but what they fail to unveil is the zeal for knowledge seen in the eyes of the children who do not need a state of the art school supplies to get close to the knowledge they seek. These children are not underprivileged, but quite the contrary. They are privileged because they are challenged to think outside the box, rather than learning from the flashy touchscreen school boards where everything is within reach.

Tribal Medicine

The mainstream tribal medicine practiced in Malawi is often labeled as one of the oddest of all Malawi Facts. The way that Malawi tribal doctors practice medicine hasn’t advanced in hundreds of years, but you cannot say that their methods are outdated. Even today the western doctors are trying to discover the recipes for various cures, courtesy of the Malawi tribal shamanism. But when you ask these so called doctors about the recipe, all you will get is a number of plant names and the vastest desire for the wellbeing of the person in need. Because Malawians honestly believe that every person in this world is an added treasure, and that the world’s value is diminished when this person decides to cross to the other side.

The Secret Society of Gule Wamkulu

Just like the western world has its own secret societies, Malawi also has its own: Gule Wamkulu. The identity of the members of this secretive society remains a lifetime mystery and their prime role is to banish the spirits who want to do harm by depleting the sources of energy that are found in every living being in Malawi. You will see these members along the dusty roads singing and dancing under the veil of the tribal shrouds and intimidating masks. Their primordial approach to life many times is ridiculed by the Westerners, not knowing that Gule Wamkulu ridicule the insatiable desire for more, a common trait in people today.

These Malawi Facts never make it to the front pages of the magazines and in the news, simply because people still refuse that in some part of the world there are people who can be happy and grateful every time they see a butterfly. Malawians celebrate the sunbeams, the raindrops, the wind that whirls around their mud cottages, and the fish they share with the eagles. They celebrate life in all its forms. Now, that is a Malawian Fact you probably won’t read on the cover of your favorite magazine, even though it is a sensational news without an ounce of pretentiousness.