SOME THOUGHTS ON WHAT IT MEANS TO BE AFRICAN part 1

Ali awiri ndi anthu aliyekha nchinyama-Where there are two (people) they are human where there is one, he/she is an animal.

Umunthu ngumunthu ngabantu/motho ke motho ka batho ka bang.= loosely translated we are people because of other people.

Such proverbs embody the belief that the individual identity is a function of the collective relationship. It is only through a sharing of common humanity that a person becomes fully human (Lavine 2005). Simply put, these African sayings point to a deep belief in community: We are, therefore I am.

Without participating in community and the unity thereof, a person’s personhood/humanity/Umunthu is questionable. He or she never learns how a person should behave to qualify as “human(e)”. Indeed that one person in some African cultures is referred to as being animalistic or beastly in nature, lacking in humanity (Umunthu).

Proverbs or sayings in the African context are deeply meaningful and didactic in nature. They reveal the African philosophy of life. They are descriptive as well as prescriptive and instructional. They are also one of the vehicles through which philosophy of life and the African culture is passed on and perpetuated.  

Here are more African proverbs from Malawi. These particular ones are chosen for their specific illustration of the community emphasis as explained above:

Mutu umodzi siusenza denga – one head cannot carry a roof

It takes more than one person to get the job done. A job is better done if more than one person does it. This is especially true to such taxing work like lifting a roof. This is more than just ‘team work’ although that is part of it. It is about acknowledging the need for community for support, and survival.

Mzati umodzi siumanga nyumba-a house cannot be built on one supporting pillar.

An English equivalent in terms of the essential message is “united we stand divided we fall”. The explanation for this saying is similar to the one given above. For people to build a strong and reliable structure, they need to have more that just one beam to hold up the house. Supporting beams and other structural additions are necessary. This also points to the importance of every individual in the community. If everyone does their part, then the community, like the house built with so many different materials, will stand. Some are like the mud or clay, some like the twigs, thatching grass, main and supporting beams of the house. But all are playing a role without which the house cannot stand or will be weak. There is also a kind of work ethic being espoused here. If you do your part and I do mine, things will work.

Ichi nchiyani nkulinga muli awiri-“what is this” is a question that can be asked when there are two of you.

When one encounters a new or unusual phenomenon, they will want someone to help them figure it out or offer an explanation. Again there is a hint of two heads are better than one in this saying. Apart from this, problem solving is also portrayed as a team sport.

Lende nkukankhana: in order to ride a see-saw the person on each end must ‘push’ for the game to continue (another way of interpreting this is to refer to a swing on which one usually pushes another.)

For things to work, people must help each other. Another idea embedded here is that people must pull their weight. You will notice that a see-saw only allows one person to ‘swing’ at a time. You push so that your ‘friend’ (meaning counterpart another reference to African thinking. The other person is called nzako meaning friend) can enjoy then next it will be your turn. Notice also how a see-saw requires you use your whole weight in most cases to push the other side up. I would say this means that one has to be fully vested in the community.

You rely and depend on the other person to do their part. And you acknowledge that when you do yours you are essentially ensuring your own enjoyment because someone else will also push you when its your turn. This saying also speaks of a kind of patience in waiting for your turn to come as not everyone can have their ‘fun’ at the same time as in the analogy of the see-saw. But the assurance is that if the other people are human(e) then you will get  your turn. What ensures this humanity in people is belonging to community which teaches values, responsibility, togetherness, teamwork, moral uprightness and humility.

If ‘lende’ is understood as a swing, then it follows that only one person at a tie can get on one. But he needs the help of another to push him. While on the swing the individual has fun but never forgets that he is having fun because there is someone toiling on their behalf. This lends humility and appreciation to proceedings. Again if standing at a particular vintage point, another person may only see the one in the swing as they are raised high above everyone else but does see the pusher. As such this is also a reminder for those who are ‘flying high’ to remember their roots; To remember who pushed for them to get so high. This will keep them grounded and human(e).

Apart from proverbs, there are certain phenomena that may not make sense to a cultural outsider which tell of the belief in community as a humaning agent as well as a support system for each member.

Let me start by saying that because of this emphasis on the ‘we’ my joy becomes your joy, my suffering is your suffering. Chadza pano nchatonse (whatever has come here is for all of us) is a proverb that illustrates this well. It means that whatever happens to me or you or them is happening to us. Whether that thing is good or bad, for better or worse we will deal with it or enjoy it together. For when a good thing happens it affects us all by extension of belonging to the community and humanity as a whole.

When a person dies in the community, it is a message that is quickly passed around to all who are in the community as well as relatives and friends. They all come together to support the bereaved immediate family but also feel bereaved themselves as they have lost a “limb”- a part of the community. They interacted with this person in different communal activities. The chief is alerted because as their overall superior he should know all that is happening in his area and must be seen to participate and be a part of all significant occasions in this area. Not showing up at the funeral; not showing sorrow/a sad countenance; rejoicing or celebrating while others are in mourning; not, at least, contributing materially to the proceedings is heavily frowned upon. This shows that you are not ‘about’ the community. You don’t care what happens to the other person and therefore lack ‘umunthu’. To be human is to sympathise and assist when others are in trouble. To be human is not to rejoice in the face of sorrow as if to belittle the pain of others which is really your own pain. A good illustration is how when a person steps on thorn, only the foot has been pricked but the whole person is affected and suffers. The person is not at peace until the thorn is removed, the wound soothed and healed, for only then does the pain truly cease.

In many situations that I have observes, if a person habitually does what is frowned upon, people will sabotage their events as well. The community shows its disapproval by withholding similar things. Some may not show up for the funeral or may stay just a little bit. Maybe they wont be singing as they would have is you had not acted that way. However they will not leave you completely alone. For that is inhumane. They remember though you did someone wrong you are still in mourning and still in need of assistance. And they hope that you will learn your lesson from that experience. To be sure the close relatives and immediate neighbours will likely be present through out. At times, the chief may, in his customary speech, say things that refer to the action the offender did or didn’t do. For example he will say:

“when things of this nature happens, it is important for us to all be present (hmm and hums of agreement from those gathered can be heard). We must support each other for the burden of death is great and the sorrow can crush us. The people gathered here mourn with you”

Speeches like that in these particular situations may pointedly be aimed at offenders (actual or potential). This is never done in malice of contempt but as a way of teaching. The elder or chief speaks and owing to his position the people listen and know that his words are wise. Apart from this, the person who has offended is believed to possess enough ‘humanity’ to acknowledge and change their behaviour. To those in the gathering who do not know of the situation, the speech is general and just reiterates what they all know should be. As such there is no ridicule intended but as the saying goes, ‘wankulu siauzidwa’- a person who is old enough need not be told. In this case he need not be told that this is about you and that if you don’t change blah blah blah. A person who is old enough will receive the message and use it. This would be as opposed to a child who may not yet be steeped in the ways of the people or may not yet be expected to perform certain duties. But a person who is old enough knows what is expected of them. Partially perhaps because they have undergone initiation and all the rites of passage appropriate for their age and station and as such know how an elder speaks (kuyankhula mwachikulu) when he seeks to make a point. If an close elder is present, and the people concerned are young and may not understand or know, the elder is expected to speak with the younger folk at another time and explain why the chief said what he did and why it is important to do the right thing. Not for the sake of doing it but because it is what is human and what is good and what is acceptable and what is what they too (in the immediate situation) wanted. A ‘do unto others’ kind of approach which to the young though still not fully mature, already makes sense since they have already been enculturated/socialized in this way of life. They already know what it means to say “kumeneko sikukhala” that is not how to live. While this may cause discomfort or some embarrassment, it is ‘balmed’ by the presence of the people and their (genuine) assistance and support. It is also counted upon that the person’s discomfort will remind them not to forget to do what is right.   

The same goes for situations where there is rejoicing. People don’t need invitations to attend a wedding celebrations, ceremony or feast. The families are expected to provide food for all who come. Eating together is part of communal bonding. Their friends, neighbours and wider community contributes food stuffs, utensils and their services so that there is no lack of food. Where there is a gathering, people must eat together and maybe drink together. In Malawi, people expect to drink thobwa (a traditional beverage which can be fermented into traditional beer) or in the modern times, soft drinks and other not-so-soft drink (!).So there is much dancing, singing and general hilarity during weddings. The bride and groom are treated with special favour and so are their parents who are honoured for having raised their children into upstanding member of the community. Their upstanding nature is announced by their decision to wed, a choice that is approved as opposed to eloping or promiscuity. Marriage is also a rite of passage which is cause for celebration. There is also celebration because the two families of the newlyweds are now one family. They celebrate their union and get to know each other better as has already been happening before the wedding through other interaction. The parents of the bride and groom call each other “sewere” in Chichewa. I do not know the apt translation but I hazard a loose and literal translation. Kusewera  means to play. And I am guessing “sewere” means play mate though I don’t know the history behind this. After the wedding, the two families are expected to behave as a united family. They become relatives (kumanga ubale).

These are some of the ways in which Africans/Malawians live, their philosophy of life manifests and is perpetuated. Community and its requirements ‘outrank’ the individual but individuals find their being and fulfilment in community. This may be hard for a cultural outsider to grasp especially if they are of the western school of thought where individuality and individual freedoms are highly regarded and guide society. Let me point out here, rather emphatically, that communal living does not preclude individual identity or selfhood. It in fact engender it. It is the understand in of all members that they find their personhood in the community and the community is fully realized through the different persons that live in it.