The presence of such a talisman as a dream catcher in the house helps to protect against nightmares, thanks to which the sleep becomes calm and strong, and in the morning a person feels asleep.
Most likely, when a person first hears about dream catchers, this concept is associated with a work in the genre of horror, be it a book or a movie, but not with a talisman that protects against bad dreams. And yet, these talismans are quite widespread and known to many, dream catchers can be purchased in almost every souvenir or charm shop. Of course, nightmare defenders, produced in factories in batches of several hundred pieces, play only a decorative role and have no special properties. Real dream catchers are crafted by craftsmen using special weaving techniques.
Legends of origin
It is believed that these amulets first appeared in North America. And there are two stories about their origins.
The first belief comes from the Ojibwe Indian people. In ancient times, their habitat was Turtle Island. Along with the tribe lived the Spider-Grandmother - Asabihashi. She was their ancestor and showed concern for the people, but over time, the tribe began to expand its habitat, and it became more and more difficult for her to visit every baby cradle. Therefore, Asabihashi came up with the idea of teaching women to weave special talismans that were supposed to protect the dreams of children from nightmares. The dreamcatcher was a branch bent into a ring, which was wrapped around a rope, forming a web inside with a small hole in the center. Feathers were additionally used. The principle of operation was as follows: bad dreams flew past through the hole, and good dreams lingered in weaving and descended to the person who was sleeping, along the feathers. Such amulets were used not only by children, but also by the adult population.
The Lakota Indian family has another legend. It tells that once the elder of the tribe had a knowledge, which a mentor appeared to him in the form of a spider. Talking with the elder, the teacher weaved a talisman and taught how to use it. The principle was different from the first story: good dreams flew freely through the center, and nightmares lingered in the web and disappeared at dawn.
Materials (edit)
Traditionally, dream catchers wove in compliance with the rules: a willow branch was used for the ring, the feathers were owl's for women and eagle's for men, and the web was woven from the sinews of animals, later replaced by threads. Additionally, amulets were decorated with beads of stone, wood and bone.
In the process of weaving, you need to be focused on the ultimate goal, thoughts should be kind. Weaving is done with a single thread at a time, so breaks are not appropriate here. The choice of material for modern catchers is much more, but they all need to be natural.
