Synopsis
Moving seamlessly from the corruption of modern day politics to the purity of ancient sacred knowledge, this Malian tale asserts the power of Bambara culture and its capacity to reward the true believer.
These are troubled times for Mali. A new anti-corruption drive is about to start at the highest level of government. In the land of the Bambara - drought has ruined the crops, and forced tax payments and marriage celebrations postponed. Against this turmoil, the young Bambara healer Sidy seeks the secret of the seventh 'canar' (healing bowl). It is the last great pearl of medicinal wisdom that he needs to be fulfill his role as a 'complete' traditional physician - yet the 'canar' - eludes him.
Fatefully, Sidy’s search crosses the path of the man who has worsened the Bambara’s plight – the forestry minister who banned controlled bush fires – and declares his daughter – off limits. As strands of the story entwine, a boy prophet tells Sidy: “If you come for your enemy the seventh canary will come to you”. Thus encouraged, Sidy makes his way finally to the mountainside cave dwelling of the old healer Ma Coumba, to receive the final revelation to his journey.