| Esoteric South Africa |
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Soul safaris are the new travel buzzword. As the world speeds up, so people slow down when it comes to holiday time. But rejuvenation is no longer only defined by lying in the sun on a tropical beach. Rather, holiday makers are seeking out more meaningful experiences that focus on personal growth and healing. So if it's esoteric adventure, pilgrimages and places of spiritual retreat that you're after, South Africa has a rich and unique offering.
Esoteric South Africa
OCEAN ADVENTURES Swimming with dolphins is considered to be a life changing experience, and these mystical mammals abound along the South African coastline. Schools of dolphins are a common sight of shore, often riding the breakers and mingling with surfers and swimmers. But this experience can also be enjoyed through a number of companies offering swims with dolphins, either exclusively or as part of a spiritual travel package. The South African coast is also a favoured spot for whales, which use the sheltered bays of the Cape coastline to give birth. Southern rights, humpbacks and Bryde's whales are the most common and May to October is the prime whale-watching season. The Western Cape town of Hermanus is one of the best places on earth to enjoy land-based whale watching and the huge mammals sometimes come in as close as 20 m from land. Boat-based whale watching is also very popular, but be sure to use a registered, reputable company that does not intrude on the whales' territory. More mentally challenging is cage diving with sharks. Again, the Western Cape's Walker Bay is the spot to see massive great white sharks, in their own environment. It's adrenaline-churning stuff, and using a reputable company is imperative. SPRINGS AND SPAS Hot springs are found across South Africa, and there is little to beat relaxing in a natural rockpool in a warm mineral bath, fresh from the earth. Resorts across the Western Cape, Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, the Northern Cape and Mpumalanga offer day visits and longer packages. Treatment spas are also extremely popular, with a massive variety of treatments, both traditional and uniquely African, available. Single treatments, full-day packages or few-day body and soul indulgences are offered in settings ranging from forests to deserts, mountains to waterfalls, indoors and outdoors in the wilds. Many luxury game lodges also have spas, so combining pampering with the ultimate wildlife experience. IN TOUCH WITH THE EARTH Labyrinth walking, as a form of meditation, is believed to be a striving to reach the innermost part of the self on a journey to ultimate oneness with God. South Africa has a number of these unicursal sacred shapes, including some unusual ones (like a cactus labyrinth in Graaff-Reinet) that are uniquely African. Esoteric spirituality is closely linked to Rustlers Valley, a farm near Fickburg in the Free State that is renowned for music festivals, permaculture and the rainbow people it attracts, as well as its African sweat lodge, where cleansing ceremonies are held. The rhythm of Africa is practiced through drumming, which is no longer an activity limited to hippies and wanderers. Organised drum circles can be found in all major centres across South Africa. ALTERNATIVE THERAPIES Alternative healing is popular in South Africa, with everything from acupuncture to zen, aura soma to wicca, cheirology to vibrational healing - and hundreds of other therapies - on offer. Mind, body and spirit fairs are held regularly across the country, and the annual Exploring Conscious film festival attests to the growing number of people that challenge conventional thinking. SACRED SPACES AND SECRET PLACES Cape Town's majestic Table Mountain is one of South Africa's most recognised icons. It's also southern Africa's most powerful sacred site - and one of the world's major earth energy sites. Here the male (Shango) and female (Mau) ley lines (thought to be two of the 12 major Druidic lines that circumnavigate the earth) intersect, and one of the earth's 12 major Solar Disks is situated on the slopes. In Limpopo, the World Heritage site of Mapungubwe (Hill of the Jackals) was home to one of the first African kingdoms. These great ruins show human occupation around 850AD and the rich artefacts (including a gold bowl and gold rhinocerous from around 1200AD) are evident of flourishing trade. Another of the country's World Heritage sites, the uKhahlamba-Drakensberg Park, offers a mountain wilderness of clear waterfalls, mystical peaks, dramatic cliff-faces and breathtaking vistas. An ancient home to shamans and medicine men, the range is rich in San rock art (over 35 000 individual paintings at over 600 sites). Hiking, biking, horseriding, paragliding and rock climbing are just some activities that allow one to commune with nature. Mpumalanga's Blyde River Canyon, incorporating Three Rondavels, God's Window and Bourke's Luck Potholes, is considered a place of enhanced spiritual power, with Three Rondavels said to represent the trinity of father, mother and child. Moving west to the dry, remote tracts of the Northern Cape, Driekopseiland is South Africa's most controversial San rock art site - some 3 000 mysterious patterns including spirals, rows of dots, cross-hatching and concentric circles. One modern theory links these ancient markings to the Celts, a premise strengthened by African legends. Ancient takes on a new meaning at the Cradle of Humankind in Gauteng, home to Mrs Ples and modern homo sapiens - a time for reflection. South African culture, heritage and myth are infused into everyday life and spiritual interpretation. Muti (traditional African medicine) still holds strong influence, and this can be explored at Johannesburg's Museum of Man and Science and the Faraday Street Muti Market, where sangomas (shamans) 'throw the bones' (forecast the future) and inyangas (traditional herbalists) prescribe muti for any ill. Traditional healers also abound at Mautse Ancestral Valley and numerous other holy caves in the Free State, visited by thousands of pilgrims each year. The land of the VhaVenda, in the far north of the country, is steeped in mystical lore, and one of the most sacred sites is the remote Lake Fundudzi, South Africa's largest inland lake and site of numerous traditional rituals. Near Thohoyandou lies the settlement of Ga-Modjadji and the secluded palace of Modjadji, the Rain Queen, whose rituals remain shrouded in mystique. Moving to KwaZulu-Natal, the eerie Ghost Mountain (or Tsheneni) is a significant Zulu ancestral site, and was also the site of a bloody clash between Zulus and Boers. Locals speak of dancing lights and mysterious noises that echo from the peak. Home of African mystic and author High Sanusi Credo Vusamazulu Mutwa is Khayalendaba in Soweto, which gives a fascinating insight into African myths. He also has a cultural village at Shamwari in the Eastern Cape. Whichever province you choose to visit, there are esoteric offerings for all personalities and preferences - all with a unique touch of Africa.
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