Zimbabwe's Cultural Heritage

The myths surrounding multiple births

40 The myths surrounding multiple births Multiple births - be they twins, triplets or quadruplets – have traditionally caused alarm and apprehension among African societies. Several myths and practices relate to twins, known as amaphahla or amawele in Ndebele and mapatya in Shona. Twins used to face similar prejudices and misconceptions to albinos (inkawu/masope), physically challenged children and those who cut the upper teeth first. “It was sometimes possible for a woman expecting twins to know about her condition. A sort of shallow linear depression would be visible on her womb,” says Gogo Emma Matshazi. This was the case before the twins turned to have their heads towards the birth canal. Babies that were born feet first were named Fulatha or Nyovane among the Ndebele. King Lobengula Khumalo’s mother, Fulatha Tshabalala, was born in this manner. The seniority of the twins was very important, determining inheritance and succession. It was believed that the twin who was born first was younger and the twin who was born second was older. It is difficult to understand why this was so. Perhaps the younger twin was faster and thus came out first. The elder twin, possessing less energy, was last to emerge. This thinking fits in with the seniority of the ancestors and the order in which they take possession of a spirit medium. The younger ancestors take possession of the medium first. The more senior seizes the medium last. During a traditional dance, this could very well be in the early hours of the morning. A drama screened recently by the South African Broadcasting Corporation was based on the seniority of twins. The series was entitled ‘Ityala lamawele’. The twin who emerged first had his small finger cut off. That twin, however, receded into the womb. The second twin then came out first. Which one was the senior? “Twins were regarded as abnormal, something unnatural. They were seen as a curse, some sort of bad luck,” says Emmanuel Mugomba. The belief was that twins were not ordinary. In some African societies they were considered to have no brains or to be unusually sharp and clever. Others even suggested that twins possessed special powers from God. Beliefs that people hold influence their attitudes and hence their behaviour. Beating twins was thought to bring bad luck to the perpetrator. Beating a twin was like beating a spirit, ithongo. Where twins were thought to possess special powers, they were asked to settle squabbles or to foretell the weather. 41 However, those societies who saw twins as some kind of misfortune conducted ceremonies to prevent misfortune happening again. In such societies twins “... were experienced as a threat to their whole existence, as a sign that something wrong had happened to cause the births and that something worse still would happen to the whole community if the ‘evil’ were not removed. So they killed the children for the sake of the larger community, to cleanse, to ‘save’ or protect the rest of the people” (Mbiti, 1969). “The midwife was empowered to kill the twins. The matter was not announced to the family. Old women buried the dead twins quietly on the river bank. The grave was not to be identified. When community members asked about the fate of her pregnancy, the response would be ‘Aiwa wakatadza’ (‘She failed’),” says Emmanuel Mugomba. A similar fate seems to have greeted twins among the Zulu of South Africa. One of them was killed by having a lump of earth placed in its throat. If this was not done, the belief was that someone else in the family would die (Krige, 1977). Among the Ndebele the terminology used in reference to twins was also different. People never said a twin was ill. They would say ‘it is a cry-baby’, ‘kuyadedesa’, or ‘it is proud’, ‘kuyimbudlwana’ or ‘kuyazigqaja’. When a twin fell ill, he or she was not given herbs. “Its mother took it to the ash midden (isilotha) beyond the palisade and abandoned it briefly. Someone else would go to pick it up,” says Gogo Emma Matshazi. The ash treatment suggests some unnatural attributes of twins. “When a twin boy is troublesome, they simply put ashes on the nape of his neck and give him some ashes and water to drink” (Krige, 1977). A trip to talk at the ash midden was also used to normalise relations between two feuding men, ukukhumelana umlotha (‘licking the ash’). Another treatment for twins was incense called imphepha. The incense was burnt and the...