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Lines 338 - 351
338 |
- Vha Muhuyu ndi mahodoga:
The people of Muhuyu lurch like baboons:
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339 |
- Ndi manyani .
They are baboons who eat up the maize.
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340 |
- Muhuyu wa gunda -
The fig which the baboons cannot get
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341 |
- U nga vhafhiri.
Is eaten by those who pass by.
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342 |
- Muhuyu Vho-Ramugoma (?Ramugondo?);
At Muhuyu lives the Master of Drums;
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343 |
- Magoma a lila ha Thovhela:
The drums sound well at the chief's place:
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344 |
- Mulimi (?Mulima?) ndi mulondavhathu.
Mulimi takes care of his subjects.
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Lines 338 and 339, 340 and 341, and 342-344 are not necessarily sung together, although there is a connection in people's minds between the place Muhuyu and the fig-tree (muhuyu). Furthermore, line 340 refers to a woman who is a flirt, with the fig as a symbol for her sex. A further line is sometimes added, which confirms this: Ndi fula nga lutanda (I pick the small, late fruit with a long stick i.e. the penis) (see line 123). (See also milayo Nos. 178 and 179.)
345 |
- a fhisa Niyani;
The sun is hot in the country of the Niya;
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346 |
- Vhukalanga otsha nama; (cf. line 217)
In the country of the Karanga you can roast meat in the sun;
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347 |
- Malungudzi vhea khali.
And at Malungudzi you can even cook with your pots (in the sun).
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These lines refer to the increasing heat as you journey north of Vendaland, from the well-watered mountains to the dry savannah country. The people of Luvhimbi came from Malungudzi hill in Zimbabwe. One master said that near Malungudzi are rocks with the marks of human footprints and animal tracks: these are said to have originated in the days when rocks were softer.
348 |
- (Ha) Tshihanane vha nga ;
At Tshihanane they are like the Niya;
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349 |
- (Ha) Tshihanane vho vha vho dzula,
At Tshihanane they had sat down,
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350 |
- Vha bika masimuni,
They cook outside (in the temporary huts) by their gardens,
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351 |
- Vha tshi vhuya vho hwala .
And they come home carrying their porridge whisks.
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Besides the literal meaning, these lines refer derogatorily to the habit of making love outdoors (see mulayo No. 190). Tshihanane is also in the dry country to the north-east of Vendaland.
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