About 70% of the Mozambican population seeks health from traditional healers, especially in rural areas. For this reason, the practices of these specialists deserve the attention of society? Where do they come from? How do they learn the art of healing? What is their true story? Little or nothing is known apart from the prejudices created by colonization of “witch doctors” and “black magic” that prevail today.

Ballad dos Deuses (Dance of the Gods) is the result of two years of ethnographic research on the training process of traditional healers in Gaza, Mozambique. Amilton Neves uses black and white photography to convey the power behind these traditional practices and the strong role traditional healers play in Mozambican society today.