If you know what dream catcher meaning is, then you may know that internet is loaded with DIY videos for making dream catchers for decorating rooms. They are a common object seen in souvenir and gift shops as well. People make them according to traditional design but end up improvising with other materials as well to make it seem more aesthetic and fitting to their room theme. However, the question is, do dream catchers really just fulfill the purpose of decorating rooms and houses, or is there a deeper meaning behind their existence? 

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History Of Dream Catchers

As it happens, dream catchers are actually talismans of an ancient Native American tribe known as the Ojibwe Chippewa tribe. They carry a more deeper purpose than just adorning the rooms as ornaments. 

Authentic and traditional dream catchers are made of all-natural materials that hold spiritual importance. The Ojibwe referred to dream catchers as asabikeshiinh which means ‘spider’. They called it that because of the characteristic web-like pattern present in the middle of the hoop. According to legend, a mystical spider woman who was protective of the babies and children came up with this talisman to extend the protectiveness to people leaving at great distances. 

This is why people of this tribe consider spiders as symbols of protection and natural guardians of their habitats. Therefore, now it exists as a maternal keepsake that is passed from mothers and grandmothers from one generation to another generation as a means of protection.

How To Make An Authentic Dream Catcher

Although you will see dream catchers of various designs and styles being sold everywhere, yet still a traditional dream catcher is made with characteristic style with specific materials. It is very much handmade and is very small in size, only about a few inches. These materials are all-natural, the hoop is made from a red willow branch that is bent in the shape of the hoop, the woven pattern is made of game animals’ leftover sinews, and sometimes they cover the wooden hoop with animal hide as well. Sacred charms like feathers and wooden beads are hung from most traditional dream catchers. 

How Does A Dream Catcher Work

It is said that these people believed that the night air is filled with good and bad dreams. And this dream catcher acts as a filter for these dreams. That good dreams pass through the woven net (spider’s web) and gently drift through the feathers to the sleeping person. While the bad dreams and nightmares got caught up in the web at night and burned by the sunlight that hit the dream catcher when morning came. 

That is why it is recommended to hand a dream catcher above the bed and at a place where it catches the morning sunlight. According to some folks, the hanging beads symbolize the weaving spider, while some people believe that it symbolizes the good dreams that could not be passed down but remained immortalized in the form of the beads.

Similarly, another traditional concept is that a dream catcher has spiritual powers and is used for both adults and children. It carries the power of the spirits and lets the people’s mind act in a way they ought to. It lets good energies in and negative vibes out of the person’s body.

Therefore, a dream catcher is not just an ornamental item that you use to decorate your home with, it is a talisman that is thought to bring good vibes and provide protection.