Elements area
Taxonomy
Code
Scope note(s)
Source note(s)
Display note(s)
Hierarchical terms
Aliwal North and Burgersdorp
BT Aliwal North
Aliwal North and Burgersdorp
164 Images & Collections results for Aliwal North and Burgersdorp
RARI RARI-RARI-RSA-ORE3-54.jpg
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Item
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14/12/1996
Part of RARI
Bushman beliefs suggest that bags had a special significance beyond everyday use. Their relation to trance metaphors is illustrated in San mythology, where parallels were drawn between getting into a skin bag and getting into an animal- that is, taking on its potency. Therefore, bags painted next to a dance or by themselves, are probably an indication of a trance experience.
Depictions of felines in rock art are common.
Lions in general were believed to have some of the shaman’s accomplishments: they knew things that ordinary people could not possibly know, they could become invisible, and they could cause things to happen by supernatural means. They could also transform themselves into hartebeest and then, when the hunters appeared, revert to their feline form.
Not surprisingly, Bushmen believe shamans can turn themselves into lions. It was also believed that shamans obtained lion-power by eating a lion’s gall, which is believed to be the seat of its potency. When malevolent shamans roam in feline form, the shamans in the camp enter trance and chase them off. Hollmann, Jeremy
RARI RARI-RARI-RSA-ORE3-6.jpg
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16/11/1998
Part of RARI
