`Undlela zimhlophe' African Dream Root :

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=90 BGCOLOR="#006699" TEXT="#080000" background="04afd5a3.jpg"> <bR> <div> <B>The Botanical Source</B></div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" width=210 BGCOLOR="#FFCC66" TEXT="#080000" background="04bd2063.jpg"> <div> <A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="The Botanical Source"><U><B><IMG SRC="107b8d140.png" border=0 width="141" height="20" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://www.thebotanicalsource.com/shop/index.php?cPath=21" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.thebotanicalsource.com/shop/i"><U><IMG SRC="11958d140.png" border=0 width="141" height="20" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id22.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="A wide range of indigenous seeds from Af"><U><IMG SRC="11948d140.png" border=0 width="141" height="20" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://www.thebotanicalsource.com/shop/index.php?cPath=28&osCsid=5d55fa2bee3df7b388a151625a1e9916" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.thebotanicalsource.com/shop/i"><U><IMG SRC="11938d140.png" border=0 width="141" height="20" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id28.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Articles about African indigenous healin"><U><IMG SRC="10828d140.png" border=0 width="141" height="20" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id20.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Contact Us"><U><IMG SRC="11928d140.png" border=0 width="141" height="20" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id23.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Photo Gallery"><U><IMG SRC="11918d140.png" border=0 width="141" height="20" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></U></A></div> <div>   <script type="text/javascript" src="http://edge.quantserve.com/quant.js"></script> <script type="text/javascript">_qacct="p-41ZhKYiACxjoQ";quantserve();</script> <noscript> <a href="http://www.quantcast.com/p-41ZhKYiACxjoQ" target="_blank"><img src="http://pixel.quantserve.com/pixel/p-41ZhKYiACxjoQ.gif" style="display: none;" border="0" height="1" width="1" alt="Quantcast"/></a> </noscript>   </div> <div>  <script type="text/javascript"> var gaJsHost = (("https:" == document.location.protocol) ? "https://ssl." : "http://www."); document.write(unescape("%3Cscript src='" + gaJsHost + "google-analytics.com/ga.js' type='text/javascript'%3E%3C/script%3E")); </script> <script type="text/javascript"> var pageTracker = _gat._getTracker("UA-3741917-2"); pageTracker._initData(); pageTracker._trackPageview(); </script>  </div> </td> <td valign="top" height=390 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000" background="04c03043.jpg"> <div> <B>`Undlela zimhlophe' African Dream Root :</B><FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" ><B> <A NAME="top"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="1" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="1" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" ></A></B></FONT></div> <div>  <script language=JavaScript>  </script>  </div> <div> <A HREF="#photos" TITLE="Undlela zimhlophe African Dream Root :"><U><B>Photos</B></U></A><B> | </B><A HREF="#prep" TITLE="Undlela zimhlophe African Dream Root :"><U><B>Preparation Methods</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="#faq" TITLE="Undlela zimhlophe African Dream Root :"><U><B>Frequently Asked Questions</B></U></A></div> <div> <B> </B><A HREF="#myth" TITLE="Undlela zimhlophe African Dream Root :"><U><B>River Myth</B></U></A></div> <div> <B>____________________________________________________________</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>The Xhosa call the plant "undlela zimhlophe" which translates as "white ways" or "white paths." The Xhosa use the roots of this plant to induce prophetic dreams and to communicate with ancestral spirits. </B></div> <bR> <div> <B>Many of the visionary plants in South Africa are oneirogenic (dream inducing). These effects have been confirmed by a number of western researchers studying South African traditional healing. </B></div> <bR> <div> <B>The Southern Bantu speakers value oneirogenics and other psychoactives because of the fundamental association of dreams with the ancestor spirits in their culture. Dreams are the primary medium through which the ancestors communicate with the diviner.</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>Definitions :</B></div> <bR> <div> <B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b7011800000000.png" HEIGHT="19" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Oneirogenic (onei·ro·gen·ic) (o”ni-ro-jen´ik) producing a dreamlike state; capable of causing dreams. </B></div> <bR> <div> <B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b7011800000000.png" HEIGHT="19" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Oneiric (onei·ric) (o-ni´rik) pertaining to or characterized by dreaming or oneirism. </B></div> <bR> <div> <B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b7011800000000.png" HEIGHT="19" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Oneirism (onei·rism) (o-ni´riz-?m) a dreamlike state of consciousness. </B></div> <bR> <div> <B>The use of the oneirogenic plant among the Xhosa of South Africa plays an important role in the initiation of Xhosa diviners (amagqirha) which is enshrined in </B><A HREF="#myth" TITLE="Undlela zimhlophe African Dream Root :"><U><B>myth</B></U></A><B>. The root, which is called `undlela zimhlophe' in Xhosa and means literally "white ways or paths," is categorized as one of the plants known as </B><A HREF="id186.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Ubulawu"><U><B>ubulawu</B></U></A><B>, which produce a frothy white foam when mixed with water and have a ritual provenience in traditional religion. Xhosa novice diviners ingest the root to induce dreams which, having personal and prophetic significance for the dreamer, are closely linked to the liminal color white, the ancestral spirits and the practice of divination.</B></div> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <B>____________________________________________________________</B></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="http://www.thebotanicalsource.com/shop/product_info.php?cPath=22&products_id=53" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.thebotanicalsource.com/shop/p"><U><B>Click here to buy undlela-zimhlophe</B></U></A><B>.</B></div> <div> <B>____________________________________________________________</B></div> <bR> <div> <B><IMG SRC="619fa4e0.jpg" border=0 width="250" height="334" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"> </B></div> <div> <B>____________________________________________________________</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>The term </B><A HREF="id186.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Ubulawu"><U><B>ubulawu</B></U></A><B> doesn't  refer to one specific plant, but to a mixture of plants or several plants that give the desired effect. </B></div> <bR> <div> <B>Xhosa herbalists and diviners classify medicinal plants in linguistic categories, such as ubulawu for example, according to perceived similarities in their properties and effects, rather than in terms of their botanical characteristics, which are considered to be inconsequential.</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>These plants are used to communicate with the ancestors, to have vivid and prophetic dreams, and are an aid in divination.</B></div> <div> <B>We are </B><B>aware of over 25 different plants and mixtures of plants that are used as </B><A HREF="id186.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Ubulawu"><U><B>ubulawu</B></U></A><B>.</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>The technical difference between iSilawu and uBulawu is this :</B></div> <div> <B>iSilawu is said to give one the direction to the answer, while uBulawu is said to give one, the answer. </B></div> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <B>____________________________________________________________</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>The plant known as `undlela zimhlophe' is Silene capensis, belonging to the family Caryophyllaceae.</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>The genus Silene has about 600 species, most of which are found in Northern temperate regions, but they are also found in Africa and South America; with 110 species (67 endemic) in China.</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>Botanical definition</B><B> : </B></div> <div> <B>A genus of caryophyllaceous plants, usually covered with a viscid secretion by which insects are caught; catchfly.</B></div> <div> <B>Silene  n  :  any  plant  of  the  genus  Silene  [syn: campion,  catchfly].</B></div> <div> <B>Origin : Silenus, the attendant of Bacchus. </B></div> <div> <B>Bacchus : The god of wine, son of Jupiter and Semele.</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>Several Silene's are known to be edible and/or have medicinal uses such as :</B></div> <bR> <div> <B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b7011800000000.png" HEIGHT="19" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Silene vulgaris young shoots and leaves - eaten raw or cooked. The young leaves are sweet and very agreeable in salads. The cooked young shoots, harvested when about 5cm long, have a flavor similar to green peas but with a slight bitterness. This bitterness can be reduced by blanching the shoots as they appear from the ground. When pureed it is said to rival the best spinach purees. The leaves can also be finely chopped and added to salads. The leaves should be used before the plant starts to flower.</B></div> <bR> <div> <B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b7011800000000.png" HEIGHT="19" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">The leaves of Silene acaulis are edible. The plant is cooked and consumed as a vegetable in Iceland and in Arctic and Alpine regions. The raw root skins have been used for food; this refers to the sub-species S. acaulis exscapa.</B></div> <bR> <div> <B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b7011800000000.png" HEIGHT="19" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">The young plant of Silene firma is cooked.</B></div> <bR> <div> <B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b7011800000000.png" HEIGHT="19" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">The flowers of Silene nigrescens are used in Tibetan medicine, and are said to have a bitter and acrid taste with a neutral potency. They are used in the treatment of hearing loss, blockages of the auditory canal and entwined intestines.</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>Other Silene's have certain medicinal effects including :</B></div> <bR> <div> <B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b7011800000000.png" HEIGHT="19" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">as an emollient and is used in baths or as a fumigant,</B></div> <div> <B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b7011800000000.png" HEIGHT="19" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">the juice of the plant is used in the treatment of ophthalmia, </B></div> <div> <B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b7011800000000.png" HEIGHT="19" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">the plant has been used in the treatment of children with colic.</B></div> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <B>____________________________________________________________</B></div> <div> <B> <A NAME="photos"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="1" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="1" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" ></A></B></div> <div> <B>Photos of `undlela zimhlophe' :</B></div> <bR> <div> <B><IMG SRC="6222ce10.jpg" border=0 width="300" height="225" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"> </B></div> <bR> <div> <B><IMG SRC="bbbfabc0.jpg" border=0 width="250" height="188" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></div> <div> <B>[ Viable </B><A HREF="id22_silene.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="A wide range of indigenous seeds from Af"><U><B>seeds</B></U></A><B>. ]</B></div> <div> <B>____________________________________________________________</B></div> <bR> <div> <B><IMG SRC="a7cc2520.jpg" border=0 width="450" height="338" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></B></div> <div> <B>____________________________________________________________</B></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="http://www.thebotanicalsource.com/shop/product_info.php?cPath=22&products_id=53" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.thebotanicalsource.com/shop/p"><U><B>Click here to buy undlela-zimhlophe</B></U></A><B>.</B></div> <div> <B>____________________________________________________________</B></div> <div> <B> <A NAME="prep"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="1" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="1" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" ></A></B></div> <div> <B>How is it traditionally prepared? :</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>It is the root that is used to prepare the sacred medicine called </B><A HREF="id186.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Ubulawu"><U><B>ubulawu</B></U></A><B>.</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>A small piece of the root is placed into a container of water and then stirred rapidly with a forked stick (the beaker of ubulawu and the forked stick is symbolic of the person’s connection to the ancestors of both father and mother).</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>This causes the water to foam or froth up - caused by saponins in the plant matter. </B></div> <div> <B>(</B><B>Saponins are a highly bioactive group of molecules. Anti-inflammatory, analgesic, antibiotic and immuno-regulating effects have been ascribed to saponins.)</B></div> <div> <B>Because of this foaming action, these medicines are also sometimes referred to as `bubbling medicine'.</B></div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <B><IMG SRC="61145f40.jpg" border=0 width="325" height="244" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"> </B></div> <div> <B>[ An initiate preparing ubulawu. ]</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>`Undlela zimhlophe' makes strong and stable bubbles, hence it is considered by some sangomas (traditional healers) to be one of the best ubulawu plants.</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>The traditional ritual lasts for three days and a description of the process follows :</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>The root is mashed into a powder before being stirred into a container of water. Foam will form, and the foam is then eaten. Each time you require more you stir some more; this should be done while kneeling.</B></div> <div> <B>The ritual lasts for three days and the bubbles must not totally disappear during this time, hence there is a regular stirring, even right through the night.</B></div> <div> <B>Limiting the intake of protein during this time will enhance the process.</B></div> <div> <B>On the third day the initiate pours the remains of the liquid over their naked body to cleanse their body; the initiate is now both internally and externally clean and their senses are clean.</B></div> <div> <B>Now what is going to be done, and who is going to be met?</B></div> <div> <B>What will be offered to them, and what will be done with what is received?</B></div> <div> <B>Will they be thanked?</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>After the ritual and the answers to one's questions have been found, protein can then be eaten which will stabilize the blood and have a grounding effect.</B></div> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <B>____________________________________________________________</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>Easy preparation methods for beginners :</B></div> <bR> <div> <B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b7011800000000.png" HEIGHT="19" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Mix half a teaspoon with a cup of water. Drink or eat the foam that forms. Then go to sleep. (One can add more water to make more foam; one can also eat as much foam as one likes.)</B></div> <bR> <div> <B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b7011800000000.png" HEIGHT="19" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Mix a heaped tablespoon with half a liter of water, and blend the water until a froth is formed. Drink or eat the foam that forms. Then go to sleep. (One can add more water to make more foam; one can also eat as much foam as one likes.)</B></div> <bR> <div> <B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b7011800000000.png" HEIGHT="19" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">Chew and eat 50mg or more of root before bedtime. This can be done daily. One bio-assayist reported that the effects become especially enhanced after doing this for 2weeks.</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>Expected results :</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>One's dreams will be exceptionally colorful, and will be remembered upon awakening. (Ubulawu is traditionally used to have educational and prophetic dreams, and to communicate with one's ancestors.)</B></div> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <B>____________________________________________________________</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>As mentioned earlier, the primary use of ubulawu plants are -</B></div> <bR> <div> <B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b7011800000000.png" HEIGHT="19" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">to communicate with the ancestors, </B></div> <div> <B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b7011800000000.png" HEIGHT="19" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">a divination tool, </B></div> <div> <B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b7011800000000.png" HEIGHT="19" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">to have vivid and prophetic dreams, </B></div> <div> <B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b7011800000000.png" HEIGHT="19" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">to access conscious dream-states.</B></div> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <B>____________________________________________________________</B></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="http://www.thebotanicalsource.com/shop/product_info.php?cPath=22&products_id=53" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.thebotanicalsource.com/shop/p"><U><B>Click here to buy undlela-zimhlophe</B></U></A><B>.</B></div> <div> <B>____________________________________________________________</B></div> <div> <I><B> <A NAME="faq"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="1" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="1" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" ></A></B></I></div> <div> <B>Frequently Asked Questions :</B></div> <div> <B>____________________________________________________________</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>Q :</B></div> <div> <B>Do the Silene roots come intact or only in powder form?</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>A :</B></div> <div> <I><B>The roots are intact, and not powdered. It doesn't need to be powdered in order for it to be effective. It is a very easy herb to prepare. One can simply break a small piece of it and blend it with some water in a blender. This will create a layer of foam; it is the foam that is ritually eaten for its' magical properties by indigenous healers.</B></I></div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <B>____________________________________________________________</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>Q :</B></div> <div> <B>Does the Silene root work if it is ground up and eaten, and not put into liquid and foamed?</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>A :</B></div> <div> <I><B>The traditional use is to `beat' it with a forked stick in water until it forms a thick foam. This foam is then ritually eaten. However Western bio-assays have shown that by simply chewing/eating 50mg of dried root without preparing it the traditional way, has been shown to be active, especially when eaten daily over a number of days.</B></I></div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <B>____________________________________________________________</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>Q :</B></div> <div> <B>What is the amount needed for the Silene root to produce effects?</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>A :</B></div> <div> <I><B>Only a small piece of root a few centimeters in length produces plenty of foam for one person. A little goes a long way.</B></I></div> <div> <I><B>If directly chewing or eating the root without preparing it the traditional way, 50mg has been shown to be active, especially when eaten daily over a period of several days.</B></I></div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <B>____________________________________________________________</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>Q :</B></div> <div> <B>What does the African Dream Root taste like?</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>A :</B></div> <div> <I><B>The taste of the foam is slightly earthy, and has a subtle vanilla-essence-like flavor as well. All in all the taste is friendly and palatable, and is agreeable to the senses.</B></I></div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <B>____________________________________________________________</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>Q :</B></div> <div> <B>Out of curiosity I am wondering if there is any known research into the active compounds responsible for these effects?</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>A :</B></div> <div> <I><B>Biologically active triterpenoid saponins have been isolated from certain Silene species.</B></I></div> <div> <I><B>Saponins are a highly bioactive group of molecules. Anti-inflammatory, analgesic, antibiotic and immuno-regulating effects have been ascribed to saponins.</B></I></div> <div> <I><B>However I have been unable (so far) to find any work done on any of the Silene's that are used in African ethnobotany. (The Silene used in African ethnobotany also apparently contains saponins in the roots.) </B></I></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>However I am currently aware of two published papers that discuss the ritual use of the plant in question. One of these papers is `Root, Dream & Myth : The Use of the Oneirogenic Plant Silene capensis Among the Xhosa of South Africa by Manton Hirst.' </B></I></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>The second paper can be found here </B></I></div> <div> <I><B>http://www.ipjp.org/december2005/</B></I></div> <div> <I><B>at the Indo-Pacific Journal of Phenomenology website; journal Volume 5 Edition 2 December 2005. </B></I></div> <div> <I><B>It is titled,`</B></I><FONT SIZE="4" COLOR="#111111" FACE="Arial" ><I><B>Dreams and Medicines : The Perspective of Xhosa Diviners and Novices in the Eastern Cape, South Africa.' </B></I></FONT></div> <bR> <div> <B>Here follows the abstract for this article :</B></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>`Based on anthropological fieldwork conducted in the Eastern Cape, the paper explores the interconnections between dreams (amathongo, amaphupha) and medicines (amayeza, imithi, amachiza) as aspects of the Xhosa diviner's culture, knowledge and experience. Background information is provided in the introduction, inter alia, on the Xhosa patrilineal clan (isiduko), divination (imvumisa, evumiso) and religious and cultural change. The ability to dream, inter alia, of the ancestors and medicines, is central to the diviner's intuition and professional stock-in-trade, which are part and parcel of a religious healing tradition. Examples of dreams involving the ancestors (iminyanya), diviners, clients and medicinal plants are presented and analyzed in relation to relevant case material. The ritual significance of dreams is explored in some detail. The distinctions between diviner (igqirha lokuvumisa) and herbalist (ixhwele), and between medicines and charms (amakhubalo), receive attention in the section on medicines. The underlying purpose of traditional Xhosa religious ideology is discussed in the conclusion.'</B></I></div> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <B>____________________________________________________________</B></div> <div> <B> <A NAME="myth"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="1" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="1" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" ></A></B></div> <div> <B>The following myth related to the usage of `undlela zimhlophe' is quoted from the article `Root, Dream & Myth: The Use of the Oneirogenic Plant Silene capensis among the Xhosa of South Africa' by Manton Hirst.</B></div> <bR> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <B>The River Myth :</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>The candidate diviner strips on the river bank and plunges into the water. Significantly, although the novice is “out of his (her) mind”, he (she) is not a potential suicide or accident victim about to drown, but goes into the river “as if by magic”, undressing as though he (she) is “going to swim”. Under the river, the novice encounters a snake, guarding the entrance to a subterranean enclosure. The snake is coiled beside wet, white clay (ifutha), resting on a grinding stone. In another version, the snake is coiled round solid white clay (HAMMOND-TOOKE 1962). If the novice “belongs to the river”, then he (she) smears the white clay on his (her) face and body and passes the snake, which does not harm the novice. However, the snake is also the “Messenger of Death.” It kills people who try to enter but do not belong there or have a complaint against them at home. The snake bites its victim’s eyes, ears and genitals. Having passed the snake, the novice goes through the hole in the ground and enters the enclosure beyond, which is not only like the interior of a thatched Xhosa hut, but also bears a remarkable resemblance to the interior of the diviner’s medicine-hut. On the floor, medicines are spread out on rushes (imizi) - barks and roots, including ubulawu. There is also an old woman, with very long, black hair, who is reputedly half human and half fish. She is “ a fish below the waist” which is a euphemism of respect (intlonipho) for the diviner’s girdle of wild animal pelts. Traditionally, the Xhosa did not each fish, which were classified with snakes (THEAL 1882:16). </B></div> <bR> <div> <B>Likewise, Xhosa diviners abstain (ukuzila) from eating the highly desirable and socially acceptable meat of various antelopes and the chacma baboon, for example, the skins of which are worn in the regalia. The old female diviner is the representative of the ancestors of the agnatic group who initiates diviners under the river. She tells the novice that he (she) has been called by the ancestors to be a diviner. “Go home now”, she says, “heal your people and other people.” Like someone being physically reborn, the novice passes out through the hole in the river bed and returns to the surface of the river. The novice stays there a moment and then sinks down, and this continues for three days. On the third day, when the fermented sorghum beer (utywala) is ready at home, siblings and relatives find the novice, who is covered from head to foot in white clay and to this extent resembles a disinterred corpse (izithunzela). The candidate diviner is accompanied home, where people are already dancing, and placed in a separate shelter, which is called intondo (medicine-hut), containing a tin beaker of frothy white ubulawu. The diviner instructs the novice to drink from the beaker. Afterwards, the novice relates his (her) experiences “under the river” to the diviner.</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>The myth is a parable of the whole process of becoming a diviner. It contains many references to cultural details already described and referred to in the preceding sections of this paper, from the initial predisposing “trouble” or affliction, i.e. submersion in a river, to the ensuing ritual consequences - the intondo in which the novice is placed at the end of the myth is, in fact, a makeshift grass shelter in which the novice is actually secluded in the intlwayelelo ritual. </B></div> <bR> <div> <B>Although considerably masked by metaphorical language, the myth also contains quite explicit details pertaining to the use of the entheogen and the ensuing experiential effects. The novice in the myth is also the analogue of the entheogen, namely Silene capensis root, which is stripped of its hairy stem and leaves before use, i.e. before “going for a swim” in the water in which the root is churned up. An analysis of a collection of Xhosa traditional nursery tales (iintsomi) reveals that the river, another analogue of the novice, always strips the hero of his apparel, weapons and other belongings and carries them off (THEAL 1882). Not only is </B></div> <div> <B>the medicine mixing-stick (ixhayi) forked like the bifurcated tongue of a snake, but under the river the novice encounters a coiled snake that resembles the twisted root when dry. The hole or entrance the snake guards, in the myth, is, of course, the hole in the ground from which the root of the plant was removed by the foraging diviner. Remember how Nontando called upon her ancestors by name before removing the root from the ground and then, before covering the hole, sprinkled a few white beads into it. Thus, in the myth, after passing through the hole or entrance, the novice encounters the old woman and all the professional trappings of the diviner, such as the regalia and intondo, in the enclosure beyond. That is the “other world” of the spirits, of death as well as of dreams, which, having visionary import for the dreamer and events in the dreamer’s life, typically occur, during sleep, in the unconscious (FREUD 1913) and are vividly manifested to the novice following ingestion of the root (i.e. “passing the snake” into the enclosure in which the spirit of the old female diviner is secreted). The river, separated and enclosed (like circumcision initiates abakhwetha secluded in the bush, the novice diviner secluded in the intondo in the intlwayelelo ritual or the frothy white ubulawu foam in the tin beaker), is the symbol of the limen or boundary between the worlds - of life and death, of reality and dreams - through which the novice must pass, with the aid of the root-snake, into the world of the spirits and the unconscious beyond (cf. DUERR 1985). The root is mixed with water, the novice ingests the white foam and, in turn, is swallowed by the river of dreams and metaphors that eventually regurgitates the novice back to the surface in much the same way as the novice ingests the foam until he (she) regurgitates some of it. The returning novice, who is found in the water by the river by siblings and relatives in the myth, all white as clay or foam. the “rising and sinking” episode of the regurgitated novice that takes place at the surface of the river in the myth, is an allusion to the ubulawu drinking sessions of novice diviners that typically take place during three consecutive days at full-moon.</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>Conclusion :</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>Myth, like the sacred root itself, is an effect operating from outside the individual to induce a mind-altering experience within resulting in self-insight and enlightenment. Dreams take place spontaneously in an intuitive world separated from routine reality and enclosed in the individual unconscious. However, dreams like myths and story-tales in general, by and through their narration inter-subjectively come to have significance for people and events in the real world. The root (undlela zimhlophe; Silene capensis) straddles the boundary between the worlds and bridges them through imagery. Not only does ingestion of the root induce dream imagery in the novice diviner, but that is also one of the important topics embedded in the imagery of the “river” myth. Relating images to social facts is the work of the myth, the diviner in divination and ritual addressed to the ancestors. Notably, the plant has a white flower, a rather obvious analogue of the diviner or novice who is closely associated with the ancestral spirits, the river and the liminal color white, as much as the myth is the analogue of the use of the root and its experiential effects.</B></div> <DIV ALIGN="LEFT"></DIV> <div> <B>____________________________________________________________</B></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="http://www.thebotanicalsource.com/shop/product_info.php?cPath=22&products_id=53" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.thebotanicalsource.com/shop/p"><U><B>Click here to buy undlela-zimhlophe</B></U></A><B>.</B></div> <div> <B>____________________________________________________________</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>  Subscribe to The Botanical Source free newsletter:<br><br> <form action="http://freeautobot.com/cgi-bin/autores/autores.cgi" target="_blank"> <input type=hidden name="do" value="add_lead_external"> <input type=hidden name="Username" value="botanical"> <input type=hidden name="Stop_Status" value="Active"> <input type=hidden name="Cycle_Number" value="0"> <input type=hidden name="Success_URL" value="http://www.thebotanicalsource.com/id310.htm"> <input type=hidden name="Failure_URL" value="http://www.thebotanicalsource.com/id309.htm"> <input type=hidden name="Notes" value="Added from opt-in form"> Email : <input type=text name="Email" value=""><br> <input type=submit value="Submit"> </form>   </B></div> <div> <B>[ Opens a new window. ]</B></div> <bR> <div> <B><U>Privacy Policy</U></B><FONT SIZE="1" COLOR="#000000" FACE="Arial" ><B> :</B></FONT></div> <div> <B><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="Symb075c00b700a000000000.png" HEIGHT="11" WIDTH="24" ALIGN="bottom" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0">We do not publish or share your email address with anyone.</B></div> <div> <B>____________________________________________________________</B></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="#top" TITLE="Undlela zimhlophe African Dream Root :"><U><B>Top.</B></U></A></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id186.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Ubulawu"><U><B>Ubulawu main page.</B></U></A></div> <bR> <div>  <script type="text/javascript"> </script> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js"> </script>  </div> <div> <A HREF="http://www.thebotanicalsource.com/shop" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.thebotanicalsource.com/shop"><U><B>Click here to return to Herbal Products</B></U></A><B>.</B></div> <bR> <div> <A HREF="id21.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="The Botanical Source"><U><B>Return to Articles.</B></U></A></div> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>