The Sunday News
THE Khami Ruins, although remaining a largely undisturbed and non-operational archaeological site, is still being used by a number of people in surrounding communities for spiritual purposes.
The ruins, just outside Bulawayo, have been preserved essentially because they are rich in culture and have a vibrant story to inform about the history of the country and its peoples.
The dry-stone building traditions (proceeding from the traditions of the Great Zimbabwe monuments) enhance the sacredness of the area, where human presence is traceable over 100 000 years.
It is no surprise then that the ruins carry a lot of spiritual meaning for the local communities in and around Bulawayo.
During an earlier visit to the ruins, I was very fortunate to meet up with a spirit medium in the area that goes by the name “Yohan” (a corruption of the biblical John, I remember him saying).
Yohan believes that the Khami Ruins are to the local community more than just a tourist attraction, but a link with their ancestors.
There is something uplifting about walking through the ruins in their exactness of some 500 or so years ago; but I cannot quite figure it out.
Yohan gives some direction: “This is an area where we can have contact with our ancestors for both worldly and spiritual guidance.
“Their spirits can provide knowledge about moral and ethical issues. I have since discovered my purpose and it is to spread out this knowledge to the world, especially the youth who seem to have lost all sense of morality in this day and age,” he said.
Well, considering the awesomeness of the ruins and the cultural traditions reflected therein, I suppose there is a lot we can learn from our ancestors. The ruins are clearly an extraordinary piece of evidence to a society long gone, but also offer information on what were seemingly an intricate socio-economic, religious and spiritual way of living and a strong, united civilisation.
Spiritualism is basically a belief system or religion, which follows the idea that the spirits of the dead residing in the spirit world have both the facility and proclivity to communicate with the living. This is achieved through the “spirit medium” (in this case Yohan).
Here in Zimbabwe spirit mediums are said to communicate with ‘‘Mwari’’ (God) through the ‘‘vadzimu’’ (Shona), or ‘‘amadlozi’’ (Ndebele), who are the deceased ancestors. The vadzimu/amadlozi are believed to constitute an invisible community within the community of the living, always around their descendants, caring for them and participating in their daily lives.
So how did Yohan become a spirit medium?
“Anyone may become a medium through prayer, study and practice. I am still growing and perfecting in my purpose,” he said.
The ruins are located to the west of the Khami River (from which they draw their name), 22 kilometres from Bulawayo, the Khami Ruins (capital of the Torwa dynasty in the 15th Century) are to be found on a 1 300-metre hilltop downstream from a dam that was built between 1928 and 1929.
They cover an area of about 108 hectares spread over a distance of about two kilometres from the Passage Ruin to the North Ruin. Even if you do not believe in spiritualism, the ruins are just a great place to visit for their historical worth.
