Dream catchers are one of the most fascinating traditions
of Native Americans. The traditional dream catcher was intended to protect the
sleeping individual from negative dreams, while letting positive dreams
through. The positive dreams would slip through the hole in the center of the
dream catcher, and glide down the feathers to the sleeping person below. The
negative dreams would get caught up in the web, and expire when the first rays
of the sun struck them. The dream catcher has been a part of Native American culture for generations. One element of Native American dream catcher relates to the tradition of the hoop. Some Native Americans of North America held the hoop in the highest esteem, because it symbolized strength and unity. Many symbols started around the hoop, and one of these symbols is the dream catcher.
Using a hoop of willow, and decorating it with findings,
bits and pieces of everyday life, (feathers, arrow heads, beads, leaves etc) the dream
catcher is believed to have the power to catch all of a person's dreams,
trapping the bad ones, and letting only the good dreams pass through the dream
catcher.
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