The ombiasy is often known as the medicine man, or shaman of the village, whose ability to divine, cure, or wield magic (fanafody gasy) is respected and feared. The ombiasy’s healing art centers on his divination method using the sikily, seeds from a sacred tree, which he arranges in patterns linked to the Arabic calendar and astrology.  His divination composes the diagnosis of the situation, and prescription of the appropriate medicinal plant, with its associated astrological and magical properties.  Often, the woody stem of the plant is grated in water, mixed with clays, and then ritually sprinkled onto a series of areas on the patient's body.

Here is an example of a plant remedy of the ombiasy:

The leaves of Mokarana (Macaranga coursi, Euphorbiaceae) are crushed in water and given orally and as a face wash to treat coughing and discomfort in children.  It is associated with Asarata, the astrological sign (Cancer).  Also brings in money and protects the village from epidemics.  

The renin-jazas, are women numerous in rural villages who serve as the traditional birth attendants.  They often incorporate knowledge of herbal baths with their massage techniques. A woman traditionally rests in the house for 4 months after pregnancy in order to recover and spend time with the baby.  She may employ different washes using water boiled with medicinal plants, during different periods of recovery, to give her warmth, cleanse the birth canal, restore appetite, repair the vagina, etc..  

A common wash for a woman after birth is:

Wild basil, Romba (Malagasy), (Ocimum gratissimum)-  one week after giving birth a woman uses a decoction of romba and voangibe (Citrus sp., Rutaceae) rubbed on her body. Afterwards, she applies a mixture of grated tamotamo and "pain de riz" (mofo vary) on her face.

The third type of healer that I have met is the tromba, women (or more rarely, men) who work through possession, often in association with their partners who translate the spirit’s message.  These healers often had experienced a grave illness, a sign of their calling, caused by the spirit which wanted to use them as its instrument of work.  Their whole lives are adapted to the spirit’s presence, and they live according to its constrictions, often avoiding certain foods, and asking for permission to make important decisions and to travel.  The spirit or spirits (they may be multiple) are summoned through a ritual including a symbolic offering for the spirit, and a bowl of water infused with aromatic medicinal plant gratings, and a spoken prayer.  The spirit may give insight on the origins of the illness, such as disrespect of the ancestors or a neighbor's jealousy, and may prescribe herbal medicines within a healing ritual.    

Fangota, an aromatic plant's stem is often grated in water used during the ritual

Prescriptions range from herbs found in the forest, to honey and zebu bone ashes