Kindezi and Montessori: Education as Sacred Technology

Learning and studying the African roots of education is especially important right now, in a time when so much of our history is being thrown off the shelves, stripped from our lips, and threatened with erasure from the memory of our youth.

It is urgent that we transmit knowledge through our stories, sit in wisdom circles with elders, and be transformed. I was reminded of the importance of this work when I traveled back to Zimbabwe after many years.

The last time I was there, the country was newly liberated from colonial rule. I was only an elementary student tagging along with my mother, who was supporting the liberation process. Returning last year as an educator, I worked with thirteen Zimbabwean educational leaders who wanted to liberate themselves-and their students-from a new oppressive regime.

Through storytelling and liberatory pedagogy, they stepped into the role of the Ndezi, reclaiming the wisdom of Kindezi. One participant, Daniel, reflected:

'The Liberatory Storytelling was an eye-opener both to my personal and professional development. Based on my personal background, I say mine could be titled 'A Life of Struggle. Your teaching helped me realize that there is a person trapped inside who must emerge and fly. I cannot break a student free while I am also trapped. If I'm liberated, then I can liberate others."

Witnessing this level of transformation affirmed for me that African pedagogy is not just theory - it is a living force of liberation.

KINDEZI: THE KONGO ART OF CARE

Kindezi-the Kongo art of caring for children-was a profoundly subversive practice in a colonial world that denied African humanity. To center the child was to center life itself: the bud of the community's future.

This sacred work preserved African ways of being and upheld a social order rooted in the child's dignity and power (Fu-Kiau, 2001). As the Kongo saying reminds us:

"Moyo a kanda bilese" - community life is in its youth.

KINDEZI: THE KONGO ART OF CARE

Given the historical nature of Europeans and Africans it is not surprising that Kindezi predates the work of Maria Montessori-her philosophy echoes its wisdom. Under a fascist Italian regime, Montessori sought to protect and "construct a new humanity" despite destructive conditions (Montessori, 1949).

In Kindezi tradition, the Ndezi-a caretaker and spiritual midwife-is called to transform themselves first, embodying wisdom and integrity in order to guide the child's liberation (Fu-Kiau, 2001). Montessori echoes this with her mandate for the spiritual preparation of the guide, affirming that education requires inner work of spiritual transformation from the adult (Montessori, 1966).

EDUCATION AS SACRED TECHNOLOGY

Both Kindezi and Montessori approach education as a sacred act: the work of helping the Muntu-the person-to "shine with the power of a living sun" (Fu-Kiau, 2001).

In Kindezi, this cycle of transformation extends across generations. Elders, like children, are revered not for age alone but for spiritual mastery, moral leadership, and their role as storytellers and keepers of sacred knowledge. Another Kongo principle captures this well:

"Ntugasani" - building wise individuals with critical consciousness.

When we hear Montessori's call for liberation in her pedagogical framework, we can recognize it as an echo of this African tradition. Education was never intended to be a mechanical transfer of information.

It was, and remains, a liberatory, spiritual technology-a means to restore humanity, heal community, and seed new worlds. Transformation of society begins with reverence for the child, the spiritual preparation of the adult, and the restoration of community as the true environment for growth.

"KINDEZI TAUGHT US THAT TO CENTER THE CHILD IS TO CENTER LIFE ITSELF-THE BUD OF THE COMMUNITY'S FUTURE. GUIDED BY THE NDEZI, EDUCATION IS NOT MERE INSTRUCTION BUT A SYMBIOTIC PROCESS, A SACRED TECHNOLOGY THAT AWAKENS THE MUNTU, RESTORES HUMANITY, HEALS COMMUNITY, AND SEEDS NEW WORLDS." -KOREN CLARK

AN INVITATION

This winter, my goal is to extend this experience across the diaspora. In my upcoming Masterclass on African wisdom and Artificial intelligence November 7th-9th, I will guide

educators, parents, and leaders through these liberatory frameworks.

The journey will culminate in a three-day retreat in Zimbabwe, where together we will:

• Embody the richness of African pedagogy in practice

• Connect deeply with one another and the land

• Step into the transformative path of the Ndezi, helping our children-and ourselves-shine as Muntu.

If you have ever longed to root your practice in ancestral wisdom, or to experience what it means to educate for liberation, I invite you to join me Dec. 12th-15th.

3-day Retreat Zimbabwe