Dreaming research

Focus on the South African xhosa ethnic group

Abstract

„If you want to learn, follow what you see in your dreams” – said a xhosa, who could save his horse’s life thanks to a prediction he saw in his dream. This South African ethnic group’s special relationship to dreams reaches back to a tradition of several centuries. The tribe, who call themselves amaXhosa and their language isiXhosa, keep in touch with their ancehstors, make predictions, and heal members of their community with the help of traditions connected to dreams even to this day. The so-called African Dreaming Root plays an important role during their ceremonies, which evokes one’s consciousness while dreaming. These xhosa roles might even seem a mystery to the modern world but it has to be noted that the findings of dream research, which has been present since the middle of the 20th century, are not that different from the approach of the tribes living close to nature; it can be said that studies often prove them scientifically. Along with highlighting the connection between traditional dream cultures and modern research works, the present study takes the reader on a journey to the remarkable world of the South African xhosas’ dream traditions. Besides demonstrating the concepts of African Dreaming Root and lucid dreaming, this writing invites the Reader to take a journey into the peculiar world of the South African xhosas’ dreaming traditions.