San religion

The San religion is the traditional religion and mythology of the San people. It is poorly attested due to their interactions with Christianity. ǀXam The ǀXam prayed to the Sun and Moon. Many myths are ascribed to various stars. ǀKágge̥n (sometimes corrupted to "Cagn") is Mantis, a demiurge and hero in ǀXam folklore. He is a trickster god who can shape-shift. He and his wife ǀHúnntuǃattǃatte̥n. ǀHúnntuǃattǃatte̥n (also known as or corrupted to "Coti"), the Dassie, adopted !Xo, Porcupine, as their daughter. !Xo, Porcupine, as their parents ǀKágge̥n and ǀHúnntuǃattǃatte̥n, married Ichneumon, son was the Ichneumon. /Kwammang-a, a dangerous stranger carnivore, married !Xo, son was the Ichneumon. Ichneumon, a small, furry carnivore, mongoose. ǂKá̦gára and ǃHãunu are brothers-in-law who fought with lightning, causing massive storms in the east. Other ǃXu is the Khoikhoi word ǃKhub 'rich man, master', which was used by some Christian missionaries to translate "Lord" in the Bible, and repeated by San people in reporting what the Khoikhoi told them. It is used in Juǀʼhoan as the word for the Christian god. It has been misinterpreted as the "Bushman creator". To enter the spirit world, trance has to be initiated by a shaman through the hunting of a tutelary spirit or power animal. The eland often serves as power animal. The fat of the eland is used symbolically in many rituals including initiations and rites of passage. Other animals such as giraffe, kudu and hartebeest can also serve this function. One of the most important rituals in the San religion is the great dance, or the trance dance. This dance typically takes a circular form, with women clapping and singing and men dancing rhythmically. Although there is no evidence that the Kalahari San use hallucinogens regularly, student shaman may use hallucinogens to go into trance for the first time. Psychologists have investigated hallucinations and altered states of consciousness in neuropsychology.