Charwe Nyakasikana (C. 1840 - 1898

The stature done by David Mutasa of Mbuya Nehanda original commisioned by the government was initially reseleased to the public after the President had gone to view it. When it was shared on social media there was a huge backloash at the depiction of Nehanda as a young girl and some were especially offended by the perky breasts and her protruding buttocks. There was a feeling that nehanda had been overly sexualised and and that would be offensive for her to be remembvered in such a way. It was not just the issue of sexualisation that was an issue but that of her likenss too. She apparently did not look like the Nehnda image that had been in the public domain over the years. With the pressure from Social media the government did a u-turn and had another stature comissioned, a 3 metre high bronze statue. This was unvieled at a ceremony on the May 25, 2021, which coincided with Africa Day. The stature was erected on the intersection of Samora Machel Avenue and Julius Nyerere Way, two iconic African leaders

By Cynthia Marangwanda (35 yrs, Zimbabwe) @cynthiamarang

The name Mbuya Nehanda is often cloaked in myth and misconception. To some it is synonymous with a heroic and fearless warrior woman who gave her life for her people’s freedom. As D.N. Beach (1998) notes “the figure of ‘Mbuya Nehanda’ has become the best-known popular symbol of resistance to colonial rule in modern Zimbabwe.” To others it is a name associated with a woman whose exploits have been exaggerated and over-inflated for the purposes of political and cultural expediency. Beyond all this lionising and vilifying, not enough attention is paid to her significant spirituality and its feminine nature, or its connection to similar historical archetypes beyond Zimbabwe. This is my area of interest in this article.

My approach is based on the perspective expressed by Ruramisai Charumbira (2015) that “Nehanda’s power (and that of her mediums) came from older African historical epistemology that understood the world as feminine, governed by forces of fertility in nature. Indeed, life itself was wrapped around the (goddesses or) female spirits that kept the cycles of life in balance.” This is the same worldview referred to by Merlin Stone (1976) wherein “people revered their supreme creator as female” in ancient times. She terms this female creator “Great Goddess” or “Divine Ancestress”.

When it comes to Mbuya Nehanda, a distinction needs to be made between the spirit and its medium or host. There is a widespread but incorrect belief that Mbuya Nehanda is the woman who was hanged by the British

Song by Pauline Tendai Gundidza (36 years, Zimbabwe) paulinegundidza @Pauline_MaiSkye

Pauline Gundidza is a contemporary mbira artist from Zimbabwe. Her career began with her fronting an award winning group called Mafriq and she is currently a solo artist and band leader of Vanhu. Her music is a fusion of traditional Zimbabwean music and contemporary art. She has delivered several hits in various genres and performed at international festivals in Africa and Europe. Apart from being a powerful vocalist and mbira instrument player, Pauline is also an activist for various causes including human, women and children’s rights, health and cultural heritage. She is a mother of two daughters, Skye and Minana Josphats.

Producer: Malecko (Great Wall Records)

&PUNCTUATION SYMBOLS

ANATOMY

THE WORDS OF NEHANDA

“Mapfupa angu MY BONES WILL RISE FROM THE DEAD achamuka”

By Elton Farai Mjanana (42 yrs, United Kingdom) @EltonMjanana @mjanana.farai_elton

For all that she is famous for, whether mythical or real… Nehanda has been given a raw deal in a future she predicted. A statue was was erected smack in the middle of the intersection of Samora Machel Avenue and Julius Nyerere Way in Zimbabwe’s captivating capital city Harare.

More than a century ago, the body carrying the spirit of Nehanda, being Charwe, was killed by colonial settlers as she had proven to be stubborn, unyielding and determined to defy everything that they stood for. She and others like Sekuru Kaguvi led the what became known as the First Chimurenga, the war of resistance. So stubborn she was that in her final hour, facing the hangman’s noose, she still refused to convert to the Settlers’ Christianity, instead declaring that her bones will rise.

And rise her bones did because sometime in the early 70’s the Zimbabwean Nationalists decided to engage in a war to fight for independence – the Second Chimurenga. So it goes: Nehanda’s death becomes the beginning of her legend. Urban legend or … proper legend? It doesn’t matter how one looks at it – the thin line between the body housing the spirit of the Nehanda and the Nehanda herself, all became rolled on one and one meant the other while the other meant the one. Simple! Maybe

In 2021 the Zimbabwe government launched a new $50 note in commemoration of Mbuya Nehanda.