In Zulu mythology, Tikoloshe, Tokoloshe or Hili is malevolent creature.
Description
Tikoloshe is described either as a bear-like humanoid or a dwarf-like water sprite. The latter would have only one arm and one leg, the face of an old man on a boy's body, and— by some accounts a disproportionately long penis and a single buttock.
Every African knows what a Tokoloshe is. Some call it Tikoloshe. It looks like a very nasty looking teddy-bear in appearance, in that its head is like that of a teddy-bear, but it has got a thick, sharp, bony ridge on top of its head. Tokoloshes have a hole in their head. They are also immensely strong. The ridge goes from above its forehead to the back of its head, and with this ridge it can knock down an ox by butting it with its head. Zulu shaman Credo Mutwa
On the west coast of Africa the Tokoloshe, or Teikolosha as it is known there, is a worm like creature which has a head of a dog like creature and a sharp tongue made of gold. It is said that the Teikolosha will burrow through the sand and eat the crops of villages that have a resident that has done wrong. Once all the crops have been consumed the Teikolosha will lay eggs in place of where the crops were but what will grow will be more crops but these crops will be poisonous and bleed when cut. Anyone who attempts to fight the Teikolosha will be banished to the African underworld and it is thought that their children will age rapidly and crumble to dust.
Powers
Tikoloshe are considered a mischievous and evil spirit. They are created from dead bodies by shamans who direct them again their enemies. After removing the eyes and tongue from a full-sized corpse, the wizard is said to thrust a heated iron rod into the skull which reduce its size to that of a small child. Life and obedience are breathed into the tokoloshe by means of a secret powder blown into its mouth. Whatever means are used to create a tokoloshe, the price includes the death of a relative within a year. The witch keeps the tokoloshe docile by cutting the fringe of hair that hangs over its eyes. Witches sometimes inherit these demon lovers from their mothers. They can become invisible by swallowing a pebble and only the person who is cursed will be able to see the tokoloshe.
Behavior
Despite their small size, tikoloshe can create considerable havoc but seem to enjoy also such tricks as terrifying school children, stealing milk, raping women and biting off sleeping people’s toes. For that reason, in certain places people raise their beds on bricks with one brick laid on top of the other one, about 3 feet above the ground.
Sightings
- In the late 19th century, Mrs. Minnie Martin, the wife of a British official in Basutoland (Lesotho), was with a servant and a dog when they encountered a escaping from her cowshed.
- In late 1918, an Afrikaans household in Steynsrust, in the Orange Free State and near the Lesotho border, was troubled by the nocturnal goblin, which remained invisible. A witch doctor who had been imprisoned for burglary was suspected of invoking the tokolosh for revenge.
- In September 1998, a Queenstown woman, Nothemba Bekebhu, had a strange visitation. Her furniture was taken over by five tokoloshes who made themselves comfortable. They had come to demand equal housing rights, and insisted that their grievance be passed on to President Mandela. Ms Bekebhu, a remedial education specialist and part-time sangoma, contacted Mr. Mandela's office. However, staff at the office wanted to speak to a tikiloshe spokesman before taking action, and the tokoloshes refused to cooperate.
- In 1999, a woman of in the Bradfield suburb of Bulawayo, Zimbabwe, paid an inyanga (n'anga) to exorcise her home. Although of Portuguese descent, the woman had grown up in Africa. She believed that a neighbour's maid had summoned a tokoloshe that was tormenting her. The exorcism was apparently successful, and the suspected maid fell ill and had to leave. In the same year, Mr. K. K. Manyika, director of security for Zimbabwe's parliament, said that he had been attacked by several invisible tokoloshes sent by a disgruntled employee. In July of that year, six women in Guruve, Zimbabwe, resigned as teachers after accusing a male colleague of using a tokoloshi to bewitch them so that he could rape them as they slept.
- The Sunday Times reported another tokoloshi infestation on January 30th, 2000. The victims were the Sejake family of Motlonyane village, near Mafikeng (Mafeking). Household objects were thrown about, insulting writing appeared on walls, family members and visitors were spat at, and swearing was heard. The culprit was never seen, except by Mr. Sejake's son. The tokoloshe was unusual in that it hated the child, and repeatedly destroyed the boy's homework until he had to leave his books at school.
- In 2001, a team from South Africa's television documentary series, Carte Blanche, accompanied Mr. Mohammed Abid, an imam from Pakistan, when he exorcised an Indian household in Stanger, Natal. A boy in the house was possessed by a tokoloshe. Video recordings made in the house were inexplicably distorted.
- In June of 2002, five buildings burned down at the Tihalogang Community Secondary School, 25 miles (40 km) from Francistown, Botswana. At the same school, girls accused a tokoloshe of harassing them in various ways. Exorcisms by the indigenous Zion Christian Church were successful.
External links
- "'Tokoloshe' mom killer goes free", news story
- "Killer’s belief in omens, spirits led to attack on toddler", news story
- "Man who cried 'tokoloshe' guilty of murder", news story
- "Tales of the Tokoloshe", book
- "Tokeloshe", Sci Fi Channel website
- Oh, Diamond, Diamond, thou little knowest the mischief thou hast done!, South African artists' film featuring an impression of the Tokoloshe