Chapter VIII: Barozi Legends

There are many legends amongst the Barozi, very few of them are historical, and they are more like our fairy tales. Many of them have equivalents among other native races, though generally differing in title. A selection is given herewith.

MWALIYE.

A man once sent his relations through the country to find a wife for him. After many and long journeyings they found a very beautiful girl. Her mother consented to the marriage and she left for her husband’s village, taking her younger sister for company. The girl had never ground meal since her birth, which in a country where all women grind the meal for the porridge, was a very strange thing. When she arrived at her mother-in-law’s house, her mother-in-law told her to grind meal for food, as she refused to grind any more for her. Mwaliye replied that she did not know how to, but her mother-in-law insisted, so Mwaliye took grain in a basket, a dish and a grinding mortar from her and went to get water. When she came back to the mortar she said, “Alas, to-day I have become a slave!” She then began to grind the meal, and as she stamped it with the long wooden pestle, she sang. This is what she sang: “At home I do nothing but look at the sun, here I am turned into a big flour pestle.” As she sang this, the foot of the mortar sank into the earth. She went on singing and her feet sank into the earth and the dishes sank in as well. Still she wept and went on singing. Then the mortar sank into the earth, and was finally followed by the pestle and the girl.

When her husband came back, his mother was very sad as she did not know what to tell him. A little bird came near the mother’s house and sang a song: “Your Mwaliye has gone very far down under the earth with her basket, and her plates and her mortar and her pestle.” When Mwaliye’s little sister heard that, she ran to the place where Mwaliye had disappeared and started to sing a song: “Open up the hole! Open up the hole! My elder sister! Open up the hole! When she sings thus, she saw the sun! Open up the hole!” When she had sung this, they saw the top of the pestle appearing, so she repeated her song till at last Mwaliye returned with all her things. Then she told her husband how her mother-in-law had made her grind meal and he was very angry.

SABWIZA AND HIS YOUNGER BROTHER.

Sabwiza was supposed to be a very handsome man. He was also a hunter of great renown. One day he went hunting elephants with his younger brother. But his brother hated him and planned to kill him. They soon found elephants and began to stalk them. When they came close Sabwiza loaded his gun and got ready to shoot. Then his younger brother who was close behind him, caught him and killed him. When he was dead, the younger brother went home and told the people of the village that Sabwiza had died whilst hunting. The whole village wept for Sabwiza; as they sat wailing for him, they looked up at the sky and saw Sabwiza walking on the clouds carrying his hunting gear. Then he disappeared.

Shortly after this the people took the younger brother and made him headman in Sabwiza’s place. He was given all Sabwiza’s goods and Sabwiza’s wife as well. But whenever he sat with his wife or eat food or did anything, Sabwiza always appeared. So the younger brother died of fright.

THE THUNDER AND THE ELEPHANT.

The elephant always said he was not afraid of thunder. One day the thunder told the elephant that he, the thunder, was the more powerful of the two. But the elephant denied this and said that he was the more powerful. Then the thunder said, “All right! go a long way off and bellow. If I hear you, then you are the more powerful.” Off went the elephant for a very long distance, and trumpeted as hard as he could, but the thunder could not hear him at all. Then the thunder started. It made a fearful roar and the lightning flashed. Then the elephant was very frightened. The thunder called out to him and said, “Do not be afraid, it’s only your blood brother.” The thunder slapped him on the back, but the elephant was very frightened and called the thunder his master.

THE WOMAN AND THE HYENA.

One evening as it was getting dark, a woman sat cooking her husband’s food. A hyena approached the hut, the woman did not see it was a hyena, but thought it was her husband. She was holding the child in her arms. When she wanted to stir the porridge, she handed the child, as she thought, to her husband. The hyena took the child. When the woman had finished cooking, she said, “Give me the child and let me nurse it.” But the hyena then ran off with the child.

When the woman heard her child cry out, she looked round and saw it was a hyena. The hyena ran away and ate the child. The husband hearing his wife weeping, came running and asked what the matter was. The woman told him, and they both sat down and wept for their dead child.

SINGALAMBA.

Singalamba was a hunter. One day he went hunting in the forest with his son. He did not kill anything, so he killed his son. After drying his son’s flesh in the sun, he tied it up in bundles and went home. On the road home he heard a bird singing this song: “Look at this man who has eaten his son, when I get to the village I will tell them the meat is human flesh—Singalamba has eaten his son.” Singalamba threw sticks at the bird and killed it; he then lit a fire and burnt it up. Further along the road he heard another bird singing the same song. He threw sticks at it again, but this time he missed and the bird flew on to the village. When it got there it perched on the roof of Singalamba’s hut and sang the same song. When his wife heard the song she asked Singalamba if the meat were the flesh of her son, but he said, “No, our son has gone with meat to his grandmother.” Then the woman sent to ask her mother if the little boy had arrived with the meat. Her mother sent back word that the boy had never come at all. So the woman again accused her husband of killing his son, and at last he confessed. Then the people were very angry at being deceived, and his wife took all her things and left him and went away home, and never came back to him again. The man soon after died.

THE STORY OF THE GREEDY WOMAN.

There was once a woman who loved eating above everything else. When the other people in the village usually went off to till their gardens, she put a stone in her cheek and pretended to be very sick with toothache. When the people saw what they thought was a bad swelling, they wanted to cure her by cutting it, after the custom for relieving swellings, but she refused, saying she was afraid of the pain. So they went off to the gardens leaving her behind. Directly they were gone, she spat the stone out of her mouth and got some grain, ground it, cooked the meal and eat it. She then lay down and slept. When the people returned they asked her if the pain were better but she always said “No!” She did this for a long time, but one day she was seen cooking food by an old woman who had also been left at home on account of ill-health. When the people came home this old woman told them how they had been deceived. So they made a plan to catch her. The next day that they went off to the gardens, they only went a little way and then crept very quietly back to the village and hid. When they saw the woman who was supposed to be sick, get up and cook food, they all came out of their hiding places and laughed at her. Then she was very ashamed for the rest of her life.

KABWELI.

One day some girls were travelling to the chiefs village to work for him. When they left their home a little boy named Kabweli followed them. When they saw him, they tried to drive him away but he refused to leave them. Again, when they had gone about half-way, they tried to persuade him to go ahead, but he refused and came along behind them. So they went on. Everyone passing them said “Where are you girls going?” They replied “To the Lumbi to the village of our chief Nangandu-ku-ambwa” (lit. the one who is called the Crocodile man). When the passer-by met Kabweli a little behind the girls, he asked “Where are you going, Kabweli?” And Kabweli always answered “I am going with these girls to the chief. I throw away the cinders.” The work of servants travelling with their masters, amongst other things was to throw away the ashes. And so they journeyed on and whenever the girls slept, Kabweli threw away the ashes. But when the got at last to the chief’s village they found the chief was just dead and that a lot of people had gathered to mourn him.

When Kabweli arrived and heard the news, he went to where the chief’s body was and looked at it. Then he said, “Do not bury him for a little.” The people listened and obeyed him. Then Kabweli went into the forest to look for certain medicinal roots. When he found them, he boiled them and bathed the chief’s body with the juice. Then Nangandu got up and was quite well again much to the surprise of all the mourners. Then he gave Kabweli many presents.

THE GREEDY MAN AND HIS CLEVER WIFE.

There was once a man who was very greedy. He used to go hunting and fishing and whenever he brought back meat, he used to get up in the night, while his wife was asleep and eat it all, but when his wife got up in the morning and asked where the meat had gone, he always said the dogs had eaten it all up. So she went to the “Mantis” and told him and the “Mantis” told her to go home and put white shells in her eyes when she went to sleep. So she did this and when her husband got up to eat the meat, he looked at his wife, and thought her eyes were open. So he lay still for a little and then had another look, but she still seemed to have her eyes open. He did this all night and got no sleep, he was afraid to get up and eat the meat as he thought his wife was looking. At dawn he fell asleep and shortly afterwards, his wife woke up, took the shells from her eyes and went out and found the meat quite safe. Then she woke her husband up, but he was very sleepy as he had had no sleep, and he said “Go away, I want to sleep.” So she ate up all the meat.

THE WOMAN AND THE HARE.

Once a woman lived in a cave. The hare came and asked her to marry him. She agreed. The hare was very proud and took the lion to see the beautiful woman. When the woman saw him, she sang “What does the lion want here? I do not like the lion, I only love the hare.” Then the hare was very proud indeed. Every day the hare brought one or another of the animals to see his future wife, but the woman always sung the same song. But at last the hare in his folly, took a man to see her, and she fell in love with the man and married him. Then the hare wept bitterly for many days.

THE DOCTOR SNAKE AND THE LITTLE BOYS.

Once a big chief took sick. His indunas called many doctors, but all failed. At last they went and asked the “mantis.” The mantis told them to go to a certain cave near a large rock, where they would find a doctor. So the big indunas sent some small indunas. When they got there they sang this song, “Come out, come out, Mutombo! And all the people may see you.” Now this Mutombo was a big snake. Then Mutombo put his head out of the cave, and, when they saw his snake’s head, they fled in terror. Returning home, the big indunas mocked them and went the next day themselves. But when they saw Mutombo they also ran away. Then the little boys said they would try. When the snake saw the little boys, he came out and went with them, riding on their shoulders. When they drew near the village, the people saw the snake, and all fled in fear, until the boys told them it was the doctor. Then Mutombo cured the chief, and all the little boys who fetched Mutombo were given villages and cattle, and the big indunas who had run away were made their servants.

MANGE.

Mange was a chieftainess who ruled the Bakwangwa. Her brother, who was also a chief, hated her. The Bakwangwa also hated her, as she was a very cruel woman. At last she fell sick and died. She was buried by her people at Ituku, near a big swamp. Soon afterwards she came out of her grave in the shape of a very strong wind that broke all the branches of the trees. When she got as far as the swamp at Ikwiji she went down into the bottom of the swamp with all her cattle and people, and built her village there. Soon after this every one who passed by the swamp heard things that astonished and frightened them. Some heard cattle bellowing, some drums being beaten, people talking, women grinding meal, and many other noises. It is said nowadays if any one sees those cattle they die.

THE HARE AND THE ANIMALS.

Once upon a time there was a great drought in the country. So the animals all agreed to dig a deep well. This they did, and then went off to graze in the forest. A hare came along and filled his two gourds with water, and then dropped dung into the well. When the animals came back and saw the dung in the well, they were very angry, and kept asking one another who had done this dirty trick. The next day they went off to graze, but left the hippopotamus on guard. Along came the hare, carrying his gourds for water, and a small gourd of honey. He sat down and greeted the hippopotamus, who asked him what he had in his little calabash. The hare told him, and the hippo asked if it was good to eat. The hare dipped a feather in the honey and gave it to the hippo to lick. The hippopotamus was delighted, and asked for more. The hare agreed to give him more, on the condition that the hippo let himself be tied up fast to a tree. The hippopotamus was so greedy that he readily consented. After he was tied up fast, the hare drew water and threw some more dung into the well. When the animals came back, they laughed at the hippo for being deceived by the hare. Then all the animals took turn to guard the well, but the hare deceived them all and dirtied the well every time after he had drawn his water. At last the tortoise was left in charge. He lay in the water close to the edge and pretended to sleep. When the hare saw the tortoise was on guard, he laughed, and said, “I shall have no trouble in deceiving that old fool.” So thinking the tortoise slept, he started to fill one gourd. The tortoise seized it. Then the hare beat him with his disengaged hand—the other was gripping the gourd—but the tortoise seized him by the hand, the hare tried to kick him, but the tortoise seized his foot, then he tried to bite him, but the tortoise caught him by the teeth—in fact, the hare tried everything but the tortoise held on until the animals came and found them and killed the hare for his impudence.

NYAMBI AND KAMUNU.

A long while ago Nyambi and his wife Nasileli were the only people on earth. Nyambi was a very clever person and made trees, rivers, animals, birds, fishes, and when he had finished these he made a man Kamunu and his wife. He found this man Kamunu was quite different to the other things he made; if Kamunu saw Nyambi making a spoon or working iron, he immediately did the same. So Nyambi began to be rather frightened. One day Kamunu made a sharp piece of iron, and threw it at a lichwe antelope, killed it and eat it. When he found it was easy, he killed many animals like this. Then Nyambi was very angry with him, and asked him why he ate his brothers in this way. Then Nyambi drove Kamunu far away. Kamunu stopped away for some time, but at last he thought Nyambi would forgive him, so he came back. Then Sasisho (a small unknown animal), who was messenger to Nyambi, reported that he had seen Kamunu carrying an anvil and a pot of medicine. Then Kamunu asked Nyambi to give him a place to plant his gardens. This Nyambi did for him. When Kamunu’s mealies grew, the eland came and ate them, so Kamunu killed one of the eland. When he told Nyambi, Nyambi forgave him. Then Kamunu’s dog died, and shortly after his pot broke, and again soon after this his son died, and on each occasion Kamunu came to Nyambi to get medicine to prevent these accidents. But Nyambi was afraid of making Kamunu too powerful, so he told him he did not know of any medicine. At last Nyambi got tired of Kamunu, and jumped over a big river to an island in the middle, but Kamunu cut down a big bundle of reeds and floated across on this. Then Nyambi called all the animals and told them that Kamunu was the strongest and cleverest, and would kill all if they gave him the chance. So the weaker animals and birds all agreed to run away whenever they saw him, and the strong animals said they would try to hurt him if they saw him. Then Nyambi told the animals to bring fire-wood and make a huge fire. When this was done, he put the Nyungu-luila-matanda (a large pot of special medicine) on the fire to heat. When the fire was very fierce and the pot very hot, he called all the animals and Kamunu to see who could take the pot off the fire. The animals all tried in vain. Then Kamunu saw how hot it was, and threw water on the fire, and, taking a bundle of grass well soaked in water, he lifted the pot up with the grass and took it off the fire. Thus Nyambi showed the animals how wise Kamunu was. Soon Nyambi got so frightened of the cleverness of man that he called the spider to spin a thread from the earth to the sky, and by this means Nyambi went to live in the skies. Nyambi is the god of the Barozi, while Kamunu is the first man on earth.

THE HARE AND THE CROCODILE.

The hare used to live on an island with the tiger-cats. He used to look after their camp and all the fish they caught. One day the hare stole the fish and ate them. He then tied himself up with ropes of twisted grass, and began to bawl at the top of his voice “Mawe! (my mother) Shangwe (my father) come and untie me.” When the tiger-cats came back, they found him thus, and asked him who had done it, and who had stolen the fish. The hare told them it was some strange people whom he did not know. So the next day one of the tiger-cats hid instead of going with the others, and saw the hare steal the fish and tie himself up. When the others heard this they got up in the middle of the night and left the island. When the hare woke, he found them gone, and no boat left for him to cross in. At the river bank he saw a crocodile, so he said, “Old cripple, carry me over to the other side!” So the crocodile agreed. As they were going over, the hare said, “Phew! Crocodile, you stink.” The crocodile said, “What is that you say?” The hare said, “I only said you make a splendid boat and swim very well.” When they got to the bank the hare jumped on to the shore and told the crocodile to put mud on his back and lie at the edge of the water. Then the hare went off and found the hyena. He told the hyena that he knew of a splendid bit of meat which he would share with him if only he would take it to the water and wash it. The hare then took the hyena and showed him the crocodile’s head by the water, and said, “There it is.” The hyena could not see the rest of the crocodile’s body because of the mud on it. So he went and made a grab at the meat. Then the hare called out to the crocodile: “There’s the meat I promised you;” so the crocodile seized the hyena and ate him.

Photo by J. Walton, Esq.]