ABADALA besiy’emsebenzini, Izingane zisiy’eskolweni; Otsotsi bedlal’ ifejafeja, Bethi fanyafanya amafuth’omkhobo!
There are two lines of superstition here, namely a belief I medicinal success or luck and a belief in the existence of fairies (imikhobo).
Ifejafeja yikutshaya amakhasi otsotsi abathi yinjuka (it is the game of cards.) Ukuthi fanyafanya lulimi lwemikhobo (the language of fairies).
The game of cards is a serious affair for some people. They make a living out of it and therefore, they must play to win. They spend a lot of money to buy “medicine” that will give them luck (inhlanhla) whenever they play.
Some of this muthi they wash their face with so that their opponent is blinded to any tricks they may play and some of the muthi smeared on the fingers that do the actual playing, so that they pick the right card at the right time.
If he is failing to win it may be because the opponent has stronger muthi and he can only resort to a dog-fight to scoop the whole loot. Many card-players believe very strongly that muthi works.
The belief in muthi for luck is very strong in Ndebele society. They use muthi to get a job, to earn promotion or to win respect and dignity.
Some managers and CEOs use muthi to be “feared” by their subjects. When a person is facing a law-suit they use muthi to win the case.
- Chamisa under fire over US$120K donation
- Mavhunga puts DeMbare into Chibuku quarterfinals
- Pension funds bet on Cabora Bassa oilfields
- Councils defy govt fire tender directive
Keep Reading
(Bathi umajistrithi usuka abhayize angaboni ukuthi usekukhulula.) It is not only believed but it is known that many men of the cloth (abafundisi lamabhishopi) use muthi to mesmerise their congregations.
Muthi is used to gain favours. It is believed that you can win your boss’s favour by charming him or her with muthi. You can become a favourite at work by using the right muthi.
Muthi is a favourite to the young people in search of love. A young man buys imithi from a medicine-man which he concocts to a mixture. He puts some of it on his tongue and then works it into a salivary form.
He now closes his eyes and whispers, “Hawu, Ameliya wami! Angithi usungowami? Thambisa inhliziyo yakho ungethule l’umthwalo wothando emahlombe ami!” He then squirts the saliva mixture in the direction of where the desired girl lives.
Girls do it to, in private, of course. To win the attention of the young man their heart craves for: “UStimboko ngiyamthanda bakithi, kodwa kanginanzi.”
She will buy muthi from a medicine-man which she will smear on her hands whenever she is sure she will meet him. When she shakes his hand inhlanzi ihle idlele – whiphu! isibanjiwe. (The fish has been caught).
Some big fish sit in meetings or other important gatherings with confidence and great respect among other attendants. This great feeling of confidence is from a root in their pocket.
Kuthiwa impande leyo ihlala ilokhu idikiza. Ugogo wakhe wathi angayitshiyi. Uthi enhlezi abelokhu eyibambabamba esizwa ukudikiza kwayo.
The question is whether the confidence is in the root or in his belief that the root has power. Kasazi. We live in a believing world.
In our opening song we saw a phrase: amafuth’omkhobo. Kuyini umkhobo? Kuthiwa kawusiso sidalwa, yisivuswa. The English version is fairy. These two, umkhobo and fairy are not real equivalents.
Umkhobo is a resuscitation of a dead person who has a human likeness but differs in many respects. The person may be no more than two feet tall, with long hair, is bearded and has big red eyes. The hands are mere thick stomps. The voice may be hoarse and thick or thin and eerie.
A fairy is an evil being controlled and commanded by its maker who is an accomplished witch or wizard. The main function of umkhobo is ukuloya (to bewitch) at the instruction of its boss.
She may send it to Ndimande’s home ukuyamcaba and to do all sorts of evil things. It does its work at night only.
Sometimes fairies waylay people at road crossings at night and beat them up. They then cast a spell on you and you lose your voice or sight.
What is surprising is that these creatures are invisible. You feel all that they are doing to you but you don’t see them. Strange! What you call a stroke, hatshi, yizinto zabantu, bamtshayise ngemikhobo.
Abanye umkhobo bathi yimfakabili because it dies first as a human being but later it dies a second death as a fairy. If you are lucky to find a dead umkhobo and you extract its fat – my, you are lucky.
When you concoct it with some other ingredients everything is in your command: Otsotsi bedlal’ifejafeja bethi fanyafanya amafuth’omkhobo.
All the above may sound more like a joke than reality but many people do strongly believe that imithi ikhona njalo iyasebenza. This is part of the Ndebele culture which controls the lives of many.
To conclude our incomplete discussion on imithi lokuloya we mention the less familiar aspect known as ukuhlunga. Nxa umuntu enhlungiwe uloyiwe, a spell has been cast upon him so that harm will befall him. If you are bitten by a snake uhlungiwe. Your dog can bite you if the ukuhlunga has been cast upon you.
But the unfortunate part of ukuhlunga is when the witch causes your husband to attack you viciously and then send you packing for good.
