Posted on January 19, 2011
The pigrimage: Ubumbano lamaQwabe on the symbolic pilgrimage to the peak of the iTshe lamabele
On the 12th of December 2010, the Qwabe kinship group held a prayer meeting at eTsheni lamaBele, a mountain inside the Ongoye Forest Camp nature conservatory in northern KwaZulu-Natal. The day began with an opening prayer by Ms Tholakele Gumede with Mr Nkanyiso Gumede, a member of the organising committee, as programme director. Mr. Israel M. Gumede , the chair of the uBumbano lwamaQwabe, then asked the attendants to head uphill to the top of the mountain on a symbolic pilgrimage. The youth were at the tip, followed by the women who were then backed by the men and the elders of the group. Iziqubulo were chanted, amahubo were sung and women ululated while mkhulu Magnose Gumede, an elder of 80 years of age, saluted the ancestors with the izibongo (praises) of the Qwabe. On reaching the top of the mountain mkhulu Magnose, surrounded by some of the elders, burnt impepho, presenting the participants and the intention of the day: a prayer and a sacrifice to acknowledge wrongs within Nguni history and to cleanse the kinship group. A goat and a cow were slaughtered as a sacrifice.
On addressing the attendants about the proposed agenda Israel Gumede emphasised that this was not to be regarded as a celebration as it was a prayer in response to messages that had been brought through some of the members of the group directly from the ancestors via visions and dreams. Ms Jabu Gumede from eQoloqolo was one of the messengers who had been sent to pass a message by the ancestors:
"Ngabona ihawu elalimacala mabili phezu kwayo lentaba. Kulo kwaphuma umuntu wathi phakathi kwalelitshe kunemfihlakalo yakwaQwabe. Wathi uma sifuna ubuzwe baloluBumbano buqhakanjiswe, kuyomele sibambe umkhuleko ukuze akhululwe, UShaka uye azibonakalise kimi njalo. Ngakhe laphaya ngezansi komfula la ekuthiwa wayejwayele ukufika khona aphumule bese eyahlamba. Ngalokhoke uyafika kimi njalo acele ukuhlanjwa.
I saw a big two-sided cowhide shield (ihawu), on the top of this mountain. A man came out of it and told me that inside this rock is the secret of the Qwabe. He said if we want our kinship group to be recognised we must hold a prayer meeting and make a sacrifice so that he can be set free, Shaka visits me every now and again. I have my home down the river where he is reported to have frequently come to rest and bathe. So he comes to me and he always asks to be 'bathed' (cleansed).
"And that is why we are here today,"Â concluded Israel Gumede.
The chairperson then affirmed Mr Saba Gumede, one of the panellists, and many other family members have been coming with similar testimonies since the inception of the uBumbano in 1995. The chair confirmed that the issue has been addressed to all the local Qwabe chiefdoms in KwaZulu-Natal and has been communicated to King Zwelithini Zulu, who is also in support of this event. He further assured the attendants that regional Qwabe chiefs were in agreement of the proceedings of this prayer meeting even though they could not all be present for various reasons.
Also present in the meeting were Mr Myeza (a relative), Mr Zibusiso ZamaQwabe representing the amaQwabe of the Johannesburg region and Mr Mboneni Qwabe from eShowe who recently accompanied the chairperson during a recent interview with IZwi Lomzansi, a local radio station.
UBumbano LwamaQwabe
"Kwakungephutha ukuthi isiqu somuntu wokuqala owakhiwa umdali abe umNguni ogama lakhe kwakuwuNtu…idlozi likaMayandela owazala uQwabe kanye noZulu," kubeka uIsrael Gumede enkulumweni yakhe yokuvula.
"It was by no mistake that the first human creation by the creator was a Nguni by the name of Ntu, the ancestor of Mayandela whose offspring was Qwabe and Zulu,"Â stated Israel Gumede in the opening of his speech.
UBumbano LwamaQwabe is a non-profit organization focused on (re)discovering the origins of the Qwabe kinship group and Qwabe himself. The aims of the organisation include uniting the Qwabe people as a 'nation' and (re)discovering its correct history, rekindling the dignity of the Qwabe and uniting the amaQwabe in celebration of their ceremonies and their identity. The Qwabe kinship group also seeks to correct the mistakes related to the izithakazelo of the royal house of Qwabe as 'Mpangazitha', not 'Ndabezitha'.
UBumbano lwamaQwabe is made up of two segments, i.e. a think tank and a task team. The findings of the task team assert that the history of Qwabe can be traced back beyond the Stone Age while Zulu identity began in the 1800s during King Shaka's reign. That means that Zulu identity is not (authentically) the entire Nguni nation's. It was enforced on groups that were defeated by Shaka's regime. The Qwabe are therefore Nguni not Zulu. Qwabe was the heir of Mayandeya:
"Ngisho neNkosi uZwelithini ukhuleka emaqhugwaneni amabili amele imikhosi emibili ehlukene njalo uma ezothatha uhamba olubalulekile, i.e. uQwabe kanye noZulu. Zibuze ukuthi kungani, kusho uIsrael Gumede.
"Even King Zwelithini prays to two different huts resembling two different kinship groups, i.e. Qwabe and Zulu, every time he has to embark on an important journey. Ask yourself why? said Israel Gumede.
There are many different surnames under Qwabe. While it is true that the Qwabe and the Zulu family acknowledged each other as descending from Mayandeya, some Qwabe people resided under Zulu and Mpande, and some resided under Khondlo and Phakathwayo of the Qwabe. Nguni identity has therefore never diminished. There are other Qwabe people who were deserted at Nongoma and they ended up being sheltered by Zulu, Qwabe's brother.
ITshe lamaBele is an important historical site for the Qwabe. Inkosi Mzimela is looking after the land of the Qwabe because this is where the Qwabe ancestors dwell. Other places that belong(ed) to the amaQwabe include Thongathi, Ballito (otherwise known as Ogqoyweni) and the place where the King Shaka International Airport is erected. This in the near future will need to be redressed. The overall long term goal is to ascertain the correct history, terminology and cultural practices of black Zulu speakers in South Africa as Ngunis not Zulus.
Recommendations and democratic arrangements
The recommendations that were then put forward are that the kinship group needs to have a website. All the groups under the Qwabe must know and acknowledge all the Qwabe amakhosi. Two ceremonies must be celebrated annually with government acknowledgement as events of high priority where traditional clothing will be the dress code. This would be 'the Qwabe' way of priding themselves of their history and cultural heritage.
The attendants of the prayer meeting then agreed that Mayandeya and his queen should be celebrated and honoured, and that iNkosi Meseni (uMgunywa kaMusi) should be celebrated and honoured as the hero who went into exile during the 1906 Impi Yamakhanda ('Bhambatha Uprising').
Mr. M.C. Gumede, the committee's treasurer then closed with words of gratitude while Mr. Saba Gumede of Ndwedwe closed the proceedings with a prayer.
The way forward and the role of the Youth in uBumbano LwamaQwabe.
When asked how the uBumbano communicates, the chairperson explained that messages are usually sent via the amakhosi in rural areas. Those in the urban areas hold frequent meetings to discuss relevant issues. Both Mr Melusi Christopher Gumede, the treasurer, and Mr Israel Gumede lamented the lack of involvement of the youth in the uBumbano: "This is a disgrace as we are (re)building a legacy for them. One then worries who will take this legacy forward one day when we pass on", the treasurer moaned. The chairperson had also highlighted spoken of communication and documentation in the organisation requiring modern technology and education in which the youth should intervene as pioneers. Even mkhulu Magnose, when addressing the ancestors, pleaded with abaNguni to bless the youth with the vigour to involve themselves positively in the re-discovery of their own legacy thus unleashing all their blessings that are currently buried in the mistakes of the past and today's ignorance.
The next step, as explained by the chairperson, involves a regional committee meeting, which is scheduled February 2011, where a Qwabe constitution will be formulated. This will then be presented to King Goodwill Zwelithini Zulu. Once that is done the agenda will then expand to addressing the 'Nguni identity' issue to the nation through the representatives of existing kinship groups. The mission will be to correct the wrongful reference to the Nguni as 'Zulus'.