How does the healing process work? To answer this question, Tobie Nathan draws on numerous cases from his practice as an ethno-psychiatrist, onhis African fieldwork, and on a dialogue established with his co-author LucienHounkpatin, a Yoruba therapist. Together they show that in order to healothers, healers must take advantage of their influence.

When dealing with immigrant patients, this means situating the patient and hisor her illness in a familial, social, cultural, and religious context. Thehealer then appears as a technician in the therapeutic field who knows how tomanipulate objects, ancient words of wisdom, and the correspondences betweenthem.

Tobie Nathan is a clinical psychologist and the director of the psychologydepartment at the University of Paris-VII. He also directs the CentreGeorges-Devereux, which specialises in psychological assistance to migrantfamilies. He is the author of L'Influence qui Guérit (1994),Psychanalyse Païenne (Opus series, 1995), andPsychothérapies (1998).

Lucien Hounkpatin is a therapist at the Centre Georges-Devreux.