XOLANI Mkhebesi (23) of section D in Botshabelo, Free State dreamt of becoming a doctor when he was younger. But in primary school he became so ill that he had to drop out of school in grade 9.
Today, the young inyanga trains twasas to become traditional leaders.
Xolani said his late mum took him to doctors, but they could not find the cause of his strange illness. When he started to have visions of his dead grandfather, who was also an inyanga, his mum took him to prophets and sangomas.
“Most of them told my mum I had the calling,” he said.
Between 2005 and 2007, Xolani was involved in two car accidents.
“I had a vision of a big snake coiled in the middle of the road. It had all the colours of the rainbow on its skin,” he said.
Xolani screamed at the sight of the snake, which scared the driver and made him lose control of the vehicle. After he was involved in another accident after having the same vision, his mum took him to his gogo, who is also a sangoma, for training.
“After graduating in 2013, I was ready to train others.”
So far, he has trained three traditional healers. Two of his students are sisters Boitumelo (19) and Meisie Kgoboko (17).
Meisie said: “He taught us how to connect with amadlozi and heal people.”
