African Mythology - The Tokoloshe

If you are planning to visit South Africa in the near future, here is a little bit of African Mythology that you may find rather interesting. It does not matter which part of Southern Africa you are visiting , the mere mention of the word "Tokoloshe" is enough to send shivers down the spines of many South African's regardless of which ethnic group they belong to.

According to Zulu Mythology, a Tokoloshe is an evil and mischievous spirit that resembles a hairy bodied gremlin with gouged out eyes. It is believed that by swallowing a magic pebble, the Tokoloshe has the ability to become invisible to adults and as a result can only be seen by little children.

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According to the local folklore, Tokoloshe's are created by evil witch doctors and are then summoned to cause trouble and attack a targeted person. The Tokoloshe gets its power from a hot poker which is thrust into it's skull during the creation process. Once you are targeted by a Tokoloshe, it will continue terrorizing you and only a witch doctor has the power to banish it. It is common belief that by placing a brick under each of your bed legs, will keep the Tokoloshe from bothering you at night.

If you enjoyed this article, please give it an upvote and I do hope that this does not discourage you from visiting South Africa as it is a wonderful country which is full of mysteries. To all those that still have concerns, bricks can be acquired from any local Build-it or Builders warehouse, just ask any of the locals for directions and don't forget mention "beetroot" for a discount. 😆😆😆