Leopard Warrior by John Lockley

Author:John Lockley
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Sounds True

12

Back to Africa

Umgoduso (Final Initiation), Dreams, and Signs

I felt part of something greater, and overwhelmed with gratitude, as I touched down in Johannesburg. I was greeted by the smells of African plants, the sounds of thunder and lightning, and the smiling, jovial atmosphere of the local people. I was home, and my heart was at peace. Another adventure was about to start, and I felt buoyed up by a hidden force.

Within the first few weeks of returning home, I received the dream I had been waiting for. Before I went to sleep, I had meditated and then went outside to gaze at the stars. They were shining brightly, with a magic and energetic pull all of their own.

In my dream, a wild ox came searching for me. It appeared “otherworldly,” simultaneously innocent and supernaturally strong. Intense white light permeated the entire dream—it was almost like looking directly at the sun. Part of me felt afraid, but the animal’s wild innocence also carried the invitation of an unusual relationship that I couldn’t quite yet understand.

When I awoke, I was happy. I felt sure this was my final dream, that my ancestors had spoken through the ox and my sangoma apprenticeship was over. But like all my sangoma dreams, I had to discuss it with my teacher for validation.

About a month later, I returned to my teacher’s home in the heart of the Eastern Cape. As I drove my old VW over the weather-beaten dirt road of the township, I waved to passers-by who called out to me: “Molo, Cingo” (Hello, John) or “Camagu!” Rain had just fallen and the dirt roads were muddy and slow. I could smell the loamy quality of the soil as the sun beat down. Little children waved to me from the side of the road, shouting, “Cingo, Cingo!”

I was anxious about how I would be received after being gone for so long (almost two years), but my elders treated me just as before, with a lighthearted ease, as if I had just left the room for a moment. They admonished me gently for being out of touch, and I promised I would always communicate in the future. The atmosphere in Mama and Tata’s house was the same as always; it radiated a palpable feeling of love and togetherness.

I described my dream to MaMngwevu, the ox looking for me, and my feeling of fear. She laughed and cried out, “Inkomo yakho!” (That is your ox!) She smiled sweetly and turned to her husband, and they both nodded approvingly, saying, “Ugqibile ukuthwasa! Uyaphuma ngoku. Uyagoduka.” (You’ve finished your training! You are getting out now! You are going home!) I had finished my training and they would now take me home to my family (which she meant metaphorically, mystically, and literally).

Mama and Tata explained that first we needed to work on the closing initiation ceremonies, which would last a full week. Mama described a few things we would need and said they were difficult to obtain and required a lot of preparation.

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