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Peter Matika, [email protected]

A PREGNANT wosana dancer was the spectacle of the day during a culinary exchange programme between the European Union and Amagugu Cultural Centre in Matobo early this week.

Wosana is a traditional dance by the Kalanga people and is performed as a rain making ritual. The dance, according to history, has existed for many years.

The wosana dance, a heritage from the forefathers, involves the invitation of ancestors through trance to pray for rain.

It was during the entertainment performances that the dancer, *Silethokuhle Dube caught the attention of the crowd that was gathered at the culinary expo.

Clad in a black skirt and top coupled with long strings of beads on her neck, the heavily pregnant woman, who was supported by other dancers, enchanted the people with her captivating vigorous dance.

Dube spoke to Saturday Chronicle about her pregnancy, customs and dancing and revealed that she was one of the unique wosana dancers allowed to perform the dance during pregnancy.

“My term is almost over. Dancing the wosana is a tradition and culture I have known since birth. There are not many people that are allowed to perform the dance. It’s mostly regarded as taboo but it’s not a big issue,” she said.

Dube said she was initiated at a young age and being pregnant would not stop her from being a wosana.

An elderly woman who was in her company said there were rituals followed if a wosana fell pregnant.

“Wosana is part of the Kalanga culture and  not everyone qualifies to be a wosana dancer. There  are certain laws we conform to and as you can see she’s pregnant but she doesn’t mingle much with people,” said the woman who preferred anonymity.

She said for one to be a wosana, the person should have an ancestral calling.

“It comes not as a choice or preference. One becomes possessed with sickness that can’t be healed at the hospital. The person will then be taken to a hill where they spiritually meet their ancestors for an initiation ceremony,” said the woman.

She said once they are done, the person is initiated into the spiritual realm.

“The person will be healed and become a complete wosana after being attended to by a traditional healer. The person will then join other veteran wosanas to pray for rain,” she said.

The  woman added that there are various views about the wosana and some people believe they should remain virgins.

“More commonly, these women and girls live in sacred places in the Matopos, sometimes from as early as birth in response to some covenant of their parents. As virgins they are said to be married to the spirit and as such are not supposed to engage in sex,” she said.

They serve the religion’s officials, performing and dancing at ceremonies, cultivating their fields and attending to domestic chores around the village. 

“In return, they’re helped to identify their host spirits and to develop their perceptual powers and the quality of their performance as mediums. They eventually return to their home districts unless as occasionally happens, they are selected by male religious officials to remain as wives or associates,” said the woman.

She said the wosana are perceived as taboo to all men, but them entering into sexual union or becoming the wives of religious sacred place leaders is not only accepted but is seen as a prestigious,” she said.

*Not her real name