Royalty will reign tomorrow, says sangoma

Horse racing is the sport of kings and the Hollywood Bets Durban July tomorrow promises the usual set of social royalty, influencers and thoroughbreds, both on and off the field.

A sangoma, Fezile Pretorius, said the theme may extend to which horse finishes the main race first this year.

“It’s all about royalty and power this year,” said Pretorius, who consulted two divination tools and dreamt of a prophesy that hinted at this year’s big winner.

Vision revealed purple and gold

First, his nighttime vision revealed the colours purple and gold. “Those colours represent royalty, power, wealth. It may relate to the name of the horse, the silks worn, or the spirit behind it,” he said.

Looking at tomorrow’s race card, there are four horses in an extended field of 20, including two reserves, connected to royalty. Son of Raj is presently listed as a reserve, “but don’t write it off”, he said.

“The symbolism is strong. Raj means king. That’s enough to keep an eye on it.”

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The Real Prince, Native Ruler and Royal Victory are all named to start. Then, Atticus Finch, a fictional character from To Kill A Mocking Bird represents power, while the same could be said for Litigation and On My Honour.

Pretorius, who practices from the Heavenly Healing centre in Benoni, does not throw the bones as gambling is not an appropriate use of its power.

Instead, he sought further clarity from tarot cards that narrowed his selection.

Further clarity from tarot cards

“The standout in the reading was yet again the Emperor card. That confirmed authority, status, and control.

“These are traits tied to a winning energy. There was definitely a celebration, too. A party. And again, royalty imagery that came through strong.” He noted a lion. A throne. A leader. “That’s power. That’s money.”

There was also a hint in the cards that the winning horse could be lighter in colour than some of its competitors.

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Meanwhile, bookmakers have made Eight of Eighteen the favourite to take the honours.

Pretorius used cowrie shells to ask direct questions. These shells are traditionally used across many African and Afro-Caribbean divination practices and reinforced the message that horses tied to authority, names of rulers or nobility, are the ones to watch.

“One shell short of a perfect ‘yes’,” said Pretorius. “The ancestors say a ritual needs to be done, a prayer. There’s work that must go into securing a win. But the message remains: royalty is key.”

One shell short of a perfect ‘yes’

To test the divination method, several horses were run through the shells.

While not every horse linked to regal naming passed the cowrie test, Pretorius said the top prospects at the time of the reading carried consistent signs.

We asked specifically about each horse using the shells. Royal Victory received confirmation. So did Native Ruler and Son of Raj.

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