..::Matam Press ~BOOK REVIEWS::..

“In a word, I thoroughly enjoyed it. This work is important because page by page she deconstructs the negative images associated with
simian beings --especially since Black folks are so strongly associated with them. I especially liked the piece on monkey martial arts
practices. This book is one more piece in the puzzle in the restoration of ancient cultures."
Liaya -Aneb Nua
Writer, Tantra Yoga Teacher and Student

“Monkey is a subject that I have always avoided because the subject never interested me until I began to read the book. The book filled
with so much researched information on animals and monkeys whom are worshipped and used as sacred objects especially in Africa,
Asia and South America. It never dawned on me about how animals were used until I came upon this statement "Animists believe that all
life is energy and all life is sacred." This statement became profound because my ancestors were animists, and from animism evolved the
major world religions whether one wants to admit it or not. I've only heard of totems when it came to Native Americans. I would see
something like masks on them but I never really knew what they were used for except for as symbols of something. The book for me
opened up some things I knew and some things I never knew or how to make a connection. One particular reference "blew my mind" and
that was about "Baba". I know this is used in Nigeria for an elder who is knowledgeable. I find that the word Baba came from a monkey
god that took the form of a baboon in Ancient Kemit. The book stated " it may be associated with the baboon particularly as an alpha male,
energetic and full of vital force and wisdom. This is the hidden science and philosophy found in totemism". I think, Sako Ma: A Look at the
Sacred Monkey Totem is full of discoveries for those who don't know much about animism or sacred monkeys. It may be the only one of
it's kind. “
Adwoa DuPont ~
Student of Nichiren Buddhism/egroup moderator of PB Nichiren Buddhists
http://www.geocities.com/pbnbhome

"With wizened clarity, Matomah Alesha recovers the scattered shards of the ancient ancestral dream. Sako Ma: A Look at the Sacred
Monkey Totem is Alesha's radiant remembrance of the forgotten spiritual links between animal and humankind; links that since the times of
prehistory have been observed in the traditional totemic worship practices of African, Asian and South American cultures. Exploring the
myths, legends, folklore, fables and factual observances of humankind regarding its primate cousins, Alesha challenges us to recall the
lessons of the sacred monkey totem, to reclaim the wisdom of the Old Ones and to reacquaint ourselves with the Great Mother of us all."
Paco Taylor
Author and Art Historian
http://www.LodgeoftheBlackMadonna.com

"A Look at the Sacred Monkey Totem is an intriguing look at one person’s spiritual journey. It is a journey of searching deep inside ones
Higher Self, channeling the Ancestors, and connecting to the great spiritual guide—Totem. Her mystical journey has inspired me to seek my
own Sacred Totem. "
Jeanine De Oya –
Portal into the Light of Truth: The First Book of Wicca for African Americans.