Four Seasons Before Lunch Gauteng (Pretoria)

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 I have lived in Pretoria for half my life, but even at almost 50, l still am not ready for mornings like this . I step out of  home in the morning at 7 a.m., greeted by a warm, gentle breeze and sunshine so golden it felt like summer had arrived overnight. The sky was clear; the jacaranda trees glowed purple; the air smelled of warmth and possibility. “Perfect day,” l muttered, locking his door. By the time l drive out—five minutes later—the sky starts to be darkened. A cold wind came crawling in from nowhere, sweeping dust across the pavement. The temperature dropped so suddenly that  l have  to switch the heater for warmth. Laughing. “Ah, Pretoria… you never disappoint.” Halfway to the office, the heavens opened. Not soft rain— a storm . Sheets of water hammered the road, street gutters overflowed instantly, and distant thunder rolled like a grumpy giant waking up too early. People scattered, hiding under bus shelters already too full.  “Ten minutes ago...
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King Goodwill Zwelithini would have been 'planted' in a seated position - UKZN cultural expert

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 Suthentira Govender

Senior reporter
 
18 March 2021 - 16:48
Cultural expert Prof Nogwaja Zulu said King Goodwill Zwelithini would have been laid to rest in a seated position in keeping with custom for Zulu monarchs.
Cultural expert Prof Nogwaja Zulu said King Goodwill Zwelithini would have been laid to rest in a seated position in keeping with custom for Zulu monarchs.
Image: Sandile Ndlovu

King Goodwill Zwelithini would have been laid to rest in a seated position, adorned in animal skins, with maize seeds and traditional beer among other items placed before him.

This is according to University of KwaZulu-Natal cultural expert Prof Nogwaja Zulu, who on Thursday unpacked the rituals usually practised for a Zulu monarch's burial.

King Zwelithini was “planted” on Wednesday night in a private ceremony at an unknown location in KwaKhethomthandayo, Nongoma.

Zulu explained why King Zwelithini's burial was referred to as a planting.

“It is believed that kings were born out of a reed - a tall, slender-leaved plant of the grass family, which grows in water or on marshy ground” he said.

“It is believed that the first Zulu king was born out of the reed plant ... Being born that way, kings are believed not to die but to have bowed.

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“When a king is being buried, it is believed he is being planted, he is going back to where he came from - that reed.”

He said according to Zulu belief, the king was not dead but had transcended to another world.

“We don't refer to his body as a corpse but as a body, as if he is living.

He goes to the world of the after-life, to the world of kings who were born from the reed.
Prof Nogwaja Zulu

“The burial at midnight is a symbol - the king is departing from the present life at midnight and he transcends to the new world at the break of a new day. He goes to the world of the after-life, he goes to the world of kings who were born from the reed.”

Zulu said the burial of Zulu kings had always been shrouded in secrecy.

“Sometimes not all members of the royal family will know where he is buried. There will be some people who will be guarding the grave site for some period, I believe.

“In terms of the burial, I'm taking this from what has been written by Prince Zeblon Zulu in his book. In it he says before King Mpande - the half brother of King Shaka - died, he told his chief confidante to hunt a lion, so that he would have a blanket. So we know from that, that kings when they die are usually wrapped in a lion's skin.”

Zulu said the skin of a male ox could also be used to shroud a Zulu monarch.

“These animals signify strength and power. Lions also signify royalty.

“A king will also go with seed - maize and corn seed. Those symbolise that when he is in the other world, he should give plenty to this world so that his children don't starve.

“I think there would also be African beer and a clay pot. The king sits, he does not sleep. They would have dressed him in the skins. 

“He faces the east. It's symbolic because this is where the sun rises and it will be a new day for him.”

TimesLIVE

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