TY - JOUR AU - Schmidt, Sigrid PY - 2020/12/31 Y2 - 2024/03/29 TI - Born in the caul, born in the rain: Damara and Nama people with extrasensory abilities in Namibia JF - Southern African Humanities JA - SA Humanities VL - 33 IS - SE - DO - UR - https://www.sahumanities.org/index.php/sah/article/view/461 SP - 119-132 AB - <p>In the Namibian world view, ‘ordinary’ people may receive supernormal abilities because of special&nbsp;conditions at the time of their birth. A birth in the caul may give outstanding cleverness, provided&nbsp;the caul is treated properly; alternatively, as in Afrikaans folk belief, it may give the depressing ‘second&nbsp;sight’. A birth in the rain brings the person into a close relationship with the rain so that they will be&nbsp;able to influence the rain. Likewise, a birth during other weather phenomena, for example, a storm,&nbsp;thunderstorm, or cold weather, will relate the person to these phenomena. Because twins are born on the&nbsp;same day they have the ability to calm heavy thunderstorms. Contact with supernatural forces is achieved&nbsp;via fire: either by burning some of one’s hair or by urinating into the fire. There are no strict rules for&nbsp;these ceremonies, some people ‘just try’. Influences from neighbouring peoples and two hundred years&nbsp;of Christianity can be observed. At the base of this network of weather phenomena, there seem to be&nbsp;more or less personified deities of which, however, there are only vague traces.</p><p>KEY WORDS: supernatural abilities, birth, caul, weather phenomena, rain, Nama, Damara, twins,&nbsp;ancient deities.</p> ER -