A return to Ancestral Wisdom
Interview with Dominic Venton, World Tribal Alliance Founder
Author: Lea Kosovac
From November 5th to 10th last year, something unique and profound took place at the southern tip of Africa. It was a monumental event, a gathering called Origins. This initiative of the World Tribal Alliance brought together, for the first time, living tribal elders from across the globe with the shared intention of using ancestral wisdom and ancient practices to help humanity reconnect with nature and heal the wounds of the past.
The World Tribal Alliance was founded by Mohanji, a world-renowned humanitarian, philanthropist, and environmentalist. In this interview, Dominic Venton, CEO of the World Tribal Alliance, shares his perspective on the event and its deeper significance.
The Awakening Times: The Origins gathering was WTA’s first large physical event. How did this vision come into existence?
WTA: Origins came as the result of a conversation between Mohanji and myself about the significance and urgency for the planet to hear from the representatives of Mother Earth. Within the human collective, certain unbroken ancient lineages exist, and within those lineages, individuals have been taught by the land certain wisdom over thousands of years,and in some cases tens of thousands of years. The living representatives of those lineages must be brought together so that their stories and wisdom can be combined, fortified, and made available to the world.
The Awakening Times: Where did the idea of “Origins” arise, and why was it important to return to that point now? Why South Africa, and why these specific locations?
WTA: South Africa was chosen because it was described to us as the land of our common human ancestry. Through what was shared with Mohanji by Craig Foster, we were introduced to emerging archaeological understandings that early examples of creative human expression are found along the coastline of the Cape Peninsula, including Blombos Cave. This coastline was presented to us as a place where the human story of creativity and expression began to take form.In addition to the archaeological significance of the region, the Cape Peninsula was also described as holding powerful energetic openings or portals. These include Table Mountain, Robben Island, and Cape Point. Each of these places carries both spiritual significance and deep historical trauma. Robben Island, for example, is associated with the suffering of political prisoners and the history of the leper colony. Cape Point is where the Atlantic and Indian Oceans meet and was experienced as a powerful site of release and cleansing. Table Mountain is regarded as a sacred portal and a place of initiation. At the same time, this land carries unresolved trauma connected to violence against indigenous peoples, particularly the San people. The San people were described as representing an uninterrupted lineage connected to this land and to our shared human ancestry. Queen Eloise shared that in her culture the womb must always be cleansed with sacred herbs. The womb of Mother Earth, understood as this land of origins, was never cleansed after the violence enacted through colonization by the Dutch and the British. The
elders felt that it was necessary for those who had gone out into the world to return with their medicine to heal this land.
The Awakening Times: What does “Origins” represent in the context of tribal wisdom and human consciousness?
Origins created a space where that accumulated wisdom of different tribal lineages could be combined and made available to humanity. The intention was to offer humanity a viable alternative way of being, one that could support our continued survival and our return to balance with nature.
The Awakening Times: Who were the participants, elders, seekers, representatives, and what did each bring to the space?
WTA: The gathering brought together elders from many ancient lineages across the world, including representatives from Brazil, Peru, Scandinavia, South Africa, Hawaii, New Zealand, and North America. The understanding was that these elders would speak as voices through which entire cultures are expressed. Each of the elders who eventually became part of the gathering emerged through what often felt like miraculous circumstances. From the beginning, Mohanji instructed me that I was not to proactively seek anyone out. The feeling was that the elders would naturally emerge and that Mother Earth would provide her children for this work. What transpired aligned with that instruction. Each elder who came forward felt the same call and urgency to be part of this gathering and shared the same understanding of why this work needed to take place at this time. There were also over one hundred participants present on the land. These people were
described as representing the entire planet by their presence on very sacred portals over the course of seven days. Their role was not to lead ceremonies or speak on behalf of lineages, but to help hold the energy field with the elders.
South African filmmaker Craig Foster, known internationally for the Academy Award-winning documentary My Octopus Teacher, described the gathering as “A truly life-changing experience for us all. Absolutely mind-blowing.”
The Awakening Times: How did the diversity of tribes and backgrounds shape the field of the gathering?
WTA: The diversity of tribes and backgrounds created an energy field in which deep historical pain could be acknowledged and released. Elders from different parts of the world shared the trauma experienced by their people, including displacement, violence, and cultural erasure. Their goal was to consciously release this trauma and pain into the land and the ocean during ceremonies. Through this process, something shifted within the elders themselves. Several elders said that they were fundamentally changed by what took place. Some shared that they felt reborn in South Africa. Others spoke of ceremonies within their own lineages that had not been activated for hundreds of years being reactivated through this gathering.
Yube Kaxinawa, a representative of the Huni Kuin (Kaxinawá) people of the Brazilian Amazon and a guardian of her community’s ancestral traditions, reflected on the deeper impact of the gathering: “This gathering has empowered myself, Sia and our people. We now are performing again the most sacred ceremonies of our ancestors that were left for centuries. We are walking together and we will succeed. Haux Haux!”
The Awakening Times: Many participants spoke of something profound or “magical” occurring at the Table Mountain event. How would you describe what happened there? And did Mohanji share any specifics about it?
WTA: The sunrise ceremony at Table Mountain was intended as the birthing of a new consciousness and a new day. It was the first time such a ceremony had taken place there in this form. During and after the ceremony, people from different parts of the world contacted us to describe having astral experiences at the same time as the event, including visions of portals opening. Following this, one spiritual master contacted Mohanji and said that he could see a fire over Mohanji’s third eye and that Mohanji was doing enormous spiritual lifting. Mohanji responded by saying that he was fine and that he was simply doing his job. From my perspective, it felt as though entire lineages were being cleared through his system during this time.
Maestro Don Hipolito, an Indigenous spiritual leader from Peru and a ceremonial guardian of Amazonian wisdom traditions, shared his reflection after the gathering: “I am now reborn. The planet will feel this gathering for generations to come. I bow to Maestro Mohanji.”
The Awakening Times: Was the gathering successful in terms of its deeper intentions?
WTA: What became clear to me through the process of Origins is that we had done something more than gather elders and heal land. By having over one hundred people on very sacred portals over seven days, representing the entire planet, we modeled a behavior. This behavior was of the heart of a higher dimension. It was about working together in harmony. By modeling this way of being, we grounded into this reality a new option for how people can act. This way of behaving is not of the mind. It is of the heart. Because of this, it is difficult to plan in conventional ways. As the person responsible for the smooth running of the World Tribal Alliance and for its development, I am learning that this work cannot be approached from the mind alone. A certain surrender is required in order for this work to unfold in
alignment with how it is meant to happen.
Auntie Puna, a respected elder from Hawai‘i and representative of Native Hawaiian spiritual traditions, expressed her gratitude following the gathering: “I have no words to describe the gratitude that I feel for Mohanji, Dominic and the WTA. Together we are changing the world.”
The Awakening Times: Can you share moments, insights, or experiences that were not visible to those following online?
WTA: The night before the opening ceremony at Cape Point, there were predictions of gale force winds that would have made the ceremony impossible. On the day itself, however, there was hardly any wind at all, and the ceremony could take place as intended. At Robben Island, during the cleansing ceremony, one of the elders later described entering a portal and communicating with the representatives of those who had suffered there, including political prisoners and members of the leper colony. A healer from Hawaii described having an astral experience in which Nelson Mandela appeared and said that the work being done was essential if humanity was to move beyond patterns that create suffering.
Auntie Awhitia, a Māori elder from Aotearoa (New Zealand) and a guardian of her people’s spiritual traditions, reflected on the deeper significance of the gathering: “We are infinitely blessed to be given this opportunity for the healing of the planet through the celestial consciousness of Baba Mohanji.”
The Awakening Times: Will “Origins” become a signature WTA event, potentially returning to the same location each year?
WTA: We are waiting for the right location for the next gathering and the time and the date and all of it to emerge. The feeling is that it may be India, it may be Norway for the Northern Lights, or it may even be Hawaii or Australia. We really do not know. When the time comes, we will make that information available through our channels.
The Awakening Times: What is currently unfolding within the World Tribal Alliance, new projects, directions, or calls to action?
WTA: The purpose of the World Tribal Alliance is to build a bridge from the ancient world to the contemporary world, and to do it as well as we possibly can, and as beautifully as we can. The elders’ wisdom is being made available through YouTube and Instagram. We have a podcast where we interview the elders, clips, and content created by an Oscar winning film crew. The full Origins series will be released in high definition and 4K, including interviews, ceremonies, and background material. People who want to support WTA can follow these channels and donate through our website.
All money donated goes directly to projects. These include a cultural center in Cusco, Peruwith Don Hippolyto and Maestro Tito La Rosa, the Escuela de Alegría with Yube and the Huni Kuin, a water project with Aunty Awatia in New Zealand to clean polluted rivers, and a medicinal plant garden or forest with Maestro Ketsimbetse to protect endangered traditionalplants and harvest seeds so that this knowledge and these plants are not lost. The most helpful contributions are the monthly ones.
