Shona Tribes and the Divine Light: The Case of a Covenant in African Settings

By Aaron Matingwina

The Shona people of Southern Africa have a long bond with (Mwari) God of their ancestors. Their actions seem to speak to the existence of a covenant between them and God. This is shown through their spirituality, historical narratives, and their philosophical worldview. Some among them converted to other religions but this has not stopped them from some of their traditinal religious practices. Many among them still honor God and they are marrying through their traditional practices. They are very proud of their totems and are still burrying their dead through their traditional practices. It seems their covenant with God is unostentatiously existing and the living, the ancestors and God are the spiritual covenantal kinship guarding this covenant. The book tries to bring this to attention through analysing Shona historicity, language, philosophy and social structure.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Aaron Matingwina
• Release date: Sep 18, 2023
• ISBN: 9798223008132

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Shona Tribes and the Divine Light:

The Case of a Covenant in African Settings

Aaron Matingwina

Dedication

I dedicate this book to my wife Mavis Makanaqah, my sons Aaron Jnr and Tinotenda, my daughter Tadiwanashe and my parents Vengesa and Seritha. Their love, patience and understanding made this work easier for me. Their belief in my capabilities also psychologically empowered me. May the LORD God continue to immensely bless them? 

Acknowledgments

My gratitude goes to Professor Henry J. Mugabe and Doctor Dudzai Chimeri of the Zimbabwe Theological

Seminary. I give kudos Dr M. Chiromavi, Mrs H Mugabe, Dr E. Konyana, Rev J Mususa, Rev H. Mugovo, Rev R. Chinodakufa, Mr A. Munyonga, Mr K. Mutetwa for their sterling work in the academic field. They are academics of the highest order who deserve to be applauded. I also thank Mr Dube,Mr Homba, Mr C Chinowona, Chief D Chiwundura, Rev S. Mukubvu and all those who shared with me their real life stories concerning the Shona spirituality. I also give kudos to all the authors whose writtings I cited in this work. Their contribution to the academic world is highly important for all humanity. 

Preface

Shona people were introduced to foreign religions from the precolonial times. However they have managed to maintain their religiosity, in almost the same way as their ancestors did. Nothing seems to be completely able to cut their ties with their vadzimu/holy ancestors. They are still connected to them and God through totemism, marriage practices, funeral rites, and philosophy among other things. They are very proud of their totems, roora (the bride price) is still a necessity and with it the mother's beast (mombe yehumai) is still regarded as sacred. The land is still regarded by many as a gift from the holy ancestors and God. Mbira music is still very popular, revoking memories of an ancient paradise punctuated with the tempestuous melodies of the holy ancestors. Shona stone sculpture is getting more popular by the day as spiritual figurines are curved out of stone depicting Shona spirituality in style.  The whole Shona spiritual kinship including their ancestors and Mwari their God points to the Shona as the tribes of light and a covenantal people. Whether consciously or unconsciously, the Shona people seem to be always rising to the occasion of being the guardians of the covenant between them, the holy ancestors and God. Such a deep bond with God and the ancestors calls for the need for an introspection into the Shona people's historicity, religiosity, language, social structure and philosophy to see whether the Shona are really the tribes of light and a covenantal people. This work tries to do that.

Table of Contents

Dedication

Acknowledgments

Preface

Table of Contents

Chapter 1

SHONA PEOPLE

1.0.  Introduction

1.1.  The Shona

1.2.  Tovera

1.3.  Murenga

1.4.  Chaminuka I

1.5.  The Medium and the Bateleur Eagle

1.6.  Nehanda I

1.7.  Mushavanhu

1.8.  Runji

1.9.  The Idea of God among the Shona people

1.10.  Peripheral Spirits (MaShavi)

1.11.  Conclusion

CHAPTER 2

ORIGINS

2.0.  Introduction

2.1.  The Shona Story of Creation

2.2.  The Vahera Creation Narrative

2.3.  Ancient Egyptian Language in Comparison With the Shona Language

2.4.  The Kalahari Basin and the Story of Human Origins

2.5.  The Zowa/Zowe plains of creation

2.6.  Mazambara

2.7.  Umbe, Ume and Vambe

2.7  Shona Order of Reality

2.8.  Conclusion

CHAPTER 3

TOVERA ’S COVENANT WITH GOD

3.0.  Introduction

3.1.  The Trailblazers

3.2.  The Calling of Tovera for the Word of God

3.3.  Shona Prayers

3.4.  Covenants of Royalty

3.5.  Covenants between Each Clan and God

3.6.  The Shona as the Tribes of Light

3.7.  Covenants between the Holy ancestors and Family Members

3.8.  Marriage Covenants

3.9.  Covenants of Friendship

3.10.  The Time Factor

3.11. Further analysis

3.12. Conclusion

Chapter 4

SHONA SPIRITALITY VIS-A-VIS PROCREATION

4.0.  Introduction

4.1.  Totems and procreation

4.2.  The Barika Concept

4.3.  The Bereka Concept

4.4.  Begotten Children of God

4.5.  The Power of the Izwi in Creation and Procreation

4.6.  The Dust/Guruva

4.7.  Air/Mhepo

4.8.  Water/Mvura

4.9.  Fire/Moto

4.10.  The Spirit/Mweya

4.11.  Hope for Renewal through Procreation

4.12.  The Zimbabwe Bird

4.13.  Brick Bats on the Shona Covenant

4.13.1.  Colonialism

4.13.2.  Lack of information

4.14.  Conclusion

Chapter 5

THE SHONA SPIRITUAL KINSHIP

5.0.  Introduction

5.1.  The Theology behind Shona Spirituality

5.2.  Shona Theological Worldview as a Tree of Life

5.2.1.  The Roots

5.2.2.  The Tree Trunk

5.2.3.  The Main Branches

5.2.4.  The Smaller Branches

5.2.5.  The Twigs

5.2.6.  The Fruits

5.2.7.  The Buck

5.2.8.  Life

5.2.9.  The Field

5.3.  Conclusion

Chapter 6

HUNHU

6.0.  Introduction

6.1.  Hunhu as the Human Manual

6.2.  Hunhu as the Glue between God and Man

6.3.  Hunhu and People to People Relationships

6.4.  Hunhu as the link between humanity and nature

6.5.  Hunhu and the Human Body

6.6.  Munhu and the Nhu Component

6.7.  Pillars of Hunhu

6.7.1.  Faith as the First Pillar

6.7.1.1.  Faith and Blessings

6.7.1.2.  The Works of Faith

6.7.1.3.  Seeding

6.7.1.4.  Mercy

6.7.1.5.  Justice

6.7.1.6.  Loyalty

6.7.1.7.  Sacrifice

6.7.2.  Prayer, the Second Pillar

6.7.2.1.  The Use of Items in Prayer

6.7.3.  Compassion, the Third Pillar

6.7.3.1. Sharing

6.7.3.1.1.  The Zunde Ra Mambo

6.7.3.1.2.  Sharing of Ideas

6.7.4.  Courage, the Fourth Pillar

6.7.5.  Wisdom, the Fifth Pillar

6.7.5.1.  Hunhu and the Four Anchors of Wisdom

6.7.5.1.1.  The Divine Light/Mwari Mudzimu Unoyera

6.7.5.1.2.  The Holy balances

6.7.5.1.3.  The Word

6.7.5.1.4.  Purity and Holiness

6.8.  Conclusion

REFERENCES

SHONA MYTHOLOGY ON WORLD AND HUMAN

Chapter 1

SHONA PEOPLE

1.0. Introduction 

This chapter looks into who the Shona people are. This will touch on the historicity of the Shona people so as to lay bare how the foundation of their nation was laid. There will be also an introspection on the religiosity of these people as the groundwork for a deeper analysis on this aspect of their lives in the next chapters is done. Their religiosity is an integral part of the Zimbabwe Shona civilization hence a very important part of both their ancient and modern lives. The Shona people’s belief in godliness would be the basis on which we would eventually see events which speak to a covenant between them and God acting themselves out in the following chapters. 

1.1.  The Shona.

Shona is the name for a coetaneous group of clans claiming descentancy from Tovera, his son Mambiri and the Divine King Murenga Sororenzou Pfumojena. These peoples speak mutually intelligible Shona dialects such as, but not limited to Karanga, Kalanga, Manyika, Zezuru, Korekore, Venda, Nambya, Ndau, Teve, Danda, Lovedu, Buja and Barwe. They occupy the land in the eastern flanks of Botswana, the whole of present day Zimbabwe, the land of the Venda and the Lovedu in present day South Africa up to some areas of Gauteng, and the land between the Vambe and Zambezi Rivers extending to the Ocean. 

As a nation of biologically, linguistically, and culturally contemporary peoples you can further divide the Shona into tribes either according to their mutually intelligible dialects or according to their totems which cut across all the dialects. According to Latham (1986), the Tonga are close relatives of the Shona people. He also writes about the Shona people, their ancestors and Mwari as a spiritual kinship. 

The New African Magazine (2012) in its fourteenth of December publication, says that, from the long past, the Shona have been a gentle, deeply reflective people, mystically inclined and armed with enduring patience.

From the Herald (2013) of the sixth of February, we see a republication of the same story. The headline however changes from Shona Sculpture Enthrals London (in the New African Magazine) to London Loves Shona

Sculpture (the Herald Newspaper). In this story a Shona Sculpture enthusiast Juliet Highest says the Shona are also known as the People of the Mist because of their long habitation of the homely mist filled mountains of the eastern highlands which include the might Nyanga Mountains. 

The publication also like many others reveals the Shona people's hand in the creation of the Shona Great Zimbabwe civilization. As per her own look of things Juliet Highest is quoted as saying, Shona stone sculpture is perhaps the most important art form to emerge from Africa this century and Prince Charles of Britain has become a collector. She adds that, spiritual connection and myth may have well linked contemporary

Zimbabwean Sculpture to steatite carvings particularly of the birds, created at Great Zimbabwe, the impossing city structure built circa 1500 AD and surrounded by massive walls. The world renowned birds she mentioned remain as some of the best display of Shona stone artistry ever to grace the world. 

Common things about the Shona include their descendance from Tovera, their belief in Mwari as God, cultural and language similarities. Apart from genealogical, language or cultural connections to the Shona identity there are also other things that can make people identify themselves as Shona. We have genealogically non Shona Zimbabweans who grew up identifying themselves or are identified by many people as Shona though they are for example white Zimbabweans. The acceptance of genealogically non Shona into the Shona fold means the term Shona is now being seen differently as it was seen before. The description Shona is now not limited to a certain racial group. It now refers to all people who identify themselves or are identified as such by others. In that light the term

Shona can now be seen as referring to a coeval group of clans whose members can trace their genealogy to Tovera,

Mambiri  and  Murenga  Sororenzou  (Shologulu/

Thohoyandou) including those who are not part of these clans but identify themselves or are identified by others as fellow Shona coetaneous partners linguistically and culturally. 

In the music circles, there are some great musicians who churn out scintillating Mbira tunes among other genres. Mbira tunes are an integral part of Shona spirituality.

On the name Shona, Latham (1986) quotes Von Sicard (1950:138) who said the word Shona can be spelt differently as Sayuna, Syouna and Sena among other forms, and the most ancient recorded one is Ibn Said (1214-86) who spelt it Seyouna. Dapper, called them the

Sajona and Jansson on his map (1639) spelt it as Sayona.

The notion that the words Sayuna, Syouna and Sena are forms of the word Shona is corroborated by the Shona Nhewa Simboti Clan praise poem in which they reveal their connections with the Sena people. According to

Hodza (1974) their praise poem they say, "Tatenda muTawangwena muSena/we thank you of Tawangwena the Sena. Hodza (1974) also captures the Moyo Mugonderwa clan praise poem in which they call themselves the Teve. They say "maita mu Teve wangu yuyu," meaning, I thank you, oh my Teve buddy.

Latham also shows other works written about the Shona in 1634 by Baretto de Rezende (in Theal Vol.11 page 411), and also quotes Avelot (1912) speaking of Pays du Ma-Shona, (referring to Sofala now Beira as Port Mashona) and also says Moffat repeatedly wrote about the Shona from 1884 (Moffat R, 1945). As it looks the name Shona has been upon the these people for a very long time indeed from the first recorded incident in the thirteenth century  by the Arab writer Ibn Said up to today.

1.2.  Tovera  

The word Tovera in the Korekore dialect means to follow. With that in mind I can say the name Tovera in the Shona dialect means the one to follow or the follower. According to what we will read in the following chapters Tovera could have earned this name for being an ardent follower of the Izwi/Voice of God. As a result of his close connection to God, the children of Tovera could also have looked up to him as the one to follow presumably giving him the name as a nickname. 

Tovera is famed as the father of Mambiri, the father of Murenga Sororenzou Pfumojena, also known as Murenga Shologulu in Western Shona (Kalanga) and Thohoyandou in Venda. According to Chivaura (2020) Tovera is the father of Mambiri, who is the father of Murenga Sororenzou the founder architect of Zimbabwe. 

1.3.  Murenga

Mazire (2018) says Murenga is the father of Chaminuka, Nehanda, Mushavatu (the founder of the Shava dynasty), and Runji. According to Nyakuava (2022) Tovera is the father of Mambiri, who is the father of Murenga, the father   of   Chaminuka,   Nehanda,   Mushavanhu

(Mushavatu), Runji and Kaguvi. Chaminuka, Nehanda, Mushavatu, and Runji are the children of Murenga Sororenzou Pfumojena and VaNyachava who his Vahosi (the Head wife). Kaguvi, Murenga's long lost son is discovered by Murenga's daughters in the forest as a mysterious young man. Murenga gives him the mandate

Reviews for Shona Tribes and the Divine Light

[Catherine Moyo · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

an excellent must read,well researched !Would be grateful if the author could continue with geneologies