admin
Mbulelo Mpofu, Showbiz Reporter
WHAT is the most feared phenomenon that man has ever faced? Is it venomous snakes, roaring lions, or scorpions who strike lightning-fast?
One would presume a lot would say death and some of the after-burial incidents that may occur, especially paranormal encounters with ghosts.
Last month, South Africa mourned the death of Mampintsha (real name Mandla Maphumulo) and one thing that helped those close to him grieve, was the release of the doves, a ceremony which was led by his wife, Babes Wodumo.
Such a scenario was indicative of the diverse ways humanity has devised to deal with grief. Now, of course, death has robbed people of happiness and the pre and post-burial phases are often accompanied by bizarre and weird rituals and ceremonies.
The release of the doves’ ceremony is a borrowed feature from Western nations. What about Africa, what are some of the rituals that we do when our loved ones breathe their last?
Some of them would make one sleep with their lights on and they border on the spiritual realm.
Saturday Leisure took to the streets of Bulawayo to ascertain some of the “unpopular” rituals and ceremonies associated with death.
From the excursion, the most popular of those rituals was that of having items that the deceased loved put into the same coffin where they lie, a ritual that Nkosana Mathe said was a way to appease the dead.
“Siyesababa ukupokelwa bhudas (We are scared of being haunted). We always put items they valued in their coffin to accompany them. For example, if a person loved a certain cup, we wouldn’t use it, but rather put it in their coffin to avert their spirit coming back to haunt us for it,” Mathe said.
Justice would not have been done if these bizarre instances do not include the age-old, “the corpse has to rest before it is buried”.
A Christian who preferred to only be named Gracious said the dead have no need to repose.
“The dead know nothing and this ritual of saying that when on our way to their final resting place we have to rest is hearsay. It doesn’t have any Biblical substantiation. It doesn’t matter whether the deceased repose or not. In fact, what are they resting for since they are dead?
“This is just an excuse by someone who just thought of resting. Instead, resting for those surviving the deceased would make sense in any case,” said Gracious.
Lately, suicides have been plaguing society, plunging it into a bottomless pit of despair and leaving more questions than answers, more so if the deceased did not leave a suicide note.
Many times, when someone dies, their lifeless body is kept at home before burial, a taboo when one committed suicide.
Bulelani Khoza, an elderly traditionalist attributes the barring of entry of the body belonging to someone who committed suicide into the home protects the entire family from evil spirits.
“If someone has committed suicide, we consider them demon-possessed to commit such a heinous act, and therefore, his/her body won’t lie in state at their home. Uyab’ehlungiwe umuntu lo ngakho imkhokha le ingasala ingena wonke amalunga omdeni (This person would be possessed and allowing his body to lie in state at his homestead would be an invitation of evil spirits to the whole family). Suicide is not the proper way of dying so that explains the barring,” Khoza shared.
He also shared that a suicide victim’s body is subjected to a severe beating to “knock some sense into their head”. One who kills themselves is not celebrated, rather, he remains a shame to their family.
Sometimes, these burial rituals are reflective not only of religious beliefs but also of financial status and geographical realities.
Lately, there has been a debate on the proposed cremation of children 12 years and below as a space-saving mechanism for the Bulawayo City Council (BCC). Cremation refers to the burning of a corpse. This proposal was met with mixed emotions with a bulk of the people expressing disdain at it.
“We understand the issue of shortage of burial space, but cremation isn’t good. It steals a significant amount of closure from the process of death to grieving itself as basically, nothing is left for the grieving family to hold on to. With burial, we get to do a tombstone unveiling and get to have some form of reference for our loved ones,” said Amanda Guyo.
There was an interesting, but shocking take on how a twin is buried. Twins are a special case because they have a different form of endearment to each other that epitomises the true definition of the phrase “Blood ties”.
Gogo Ndiweni, a centenarian gladly shared how a twin or twins are buried. Their burial is a typical “out-of-the-way method”.
“Twins are extraordinary, hence they deserve extraordinary burials. In our culture, when one twin dies, the other has to share the coffin with the deceased or, in rare but extreme cases, get buried with the other one for a while. In a normal set-up, they just enter that coffin and that’s it. This is because twins have a special and very spiritual bond.
“Omunye kumele abhodle njalo avume ukuthi the other is gone and them sharing a coffin has been said to bring closure and help the remaining twin grieve properly and heal. It’s not an easy pill for people to understand and accept that someone has died. What more can it be for twins, identical or not?” quizzed Gogo Ndiweni.
Most of these bizarre rituals are done as a way of affording deceased loved ones, a proper send-off, honour, and remembrance, or to fend off evil spirits and shield living members of any harm that may occur if due diligence is not done.
What weird practices have you seen during burial services and in what way have they changed your perceptions of death and what happens in the afterlife? – @eMKlass_49
Online Reporter