What is "bwiti"

n. (context religion Bwiti English) An ancestor, especially one appearing in a drug-induced vision to an initiate of the '''Bwiti''' religion. n. (context religion English) A syncretistic religion and spiritual discipline practised in Gabon and Cameroon.

Bwiti is a spiritual discipline of the forest-dwelling Babongo and Mitsogo peoples of Gabon (where it is recognized as one of three official religions) and by the Fang people of Gabon and Cameroon. Modern Bwiti incorporates animism, ancestor worship, and Christianity into a syncretistic belief system.

Bwiti practitioners use the psychedelic, dissociative root bark of the Tabernanthe iboga plant, specially cultivated for the religion, to promote radical spiritual growth, to stabilize community and family structure, to meet religious requirements, and to resolve pathological problems. The root bark has been consumed for hundreds of years in a Bwiti rite of passage ceremony, as well as in initiation rites and acts of healing. The experience yields complex visions and insights anticipated to be valuable to the initiate and the chapel.