A Zulu Funeral

After a walk from about 5.45am around town ( and observed the security that most houses have in town but will save for another post) and to the outskirts I had breakfast and then Sindy from World Vision arrived for a lift to the funeral. She has lived with Mam Dube for over 20 years and is like family. The drive to Ladysmith was scenic. Rolling green hills and fields of corn and Soy with cattle, dotted with Zulu villages and townships along the way. The numbers hitch hiking is testimony of the poor transport system.

We arrived at the funeral late after getting lost. The funeral service was held in the front yard of a house in a new estate on the edges of Ladysmith. A large marquee covered the back and front yards. The back was where the food preparation took place. Plastic chairs were supplied on both sides of the fence and the casket was at the front. About 150 people were in attendance and though late we were by no means the last to arrive as many who travelled from as far as Joburg joined us. At the front were a row of pastors from various churches, at least seven. An MC led the service and the program listed 24 people to speak.

Between each speaker, the MC spoke, telling jokes, praying, leading singing and then introducing the next speaker. Some spoke for 10-15 minutes and others for only a few minutes. There were no tears until the end when the female members of the family spoke and a group of about a dozen sang a song. I was later told there had been a service the previous evening and some of the speakers listed had spoken there. Sindy and I were seated in an uncovered area. I went to the car to retrieve my water bottle as it was hot (my right arm is sunburned as is my face). At midday there was a huddled discussion as time was running out. The program seemed to stop suddenly as chairs from one side were moved and people went to the back. An announcement was made about a collection being taken for the family and people were invited to the cemetery. All in all three hours service at the home.

At the cemetery there were three marquees set up for three burials to take place, ours being the first. Lots of singing which was fantastic again. I was next to a woman I had sat near at the house who had a fantastic voice and led much of the singing here. A small homily from a pastor, more singing and the coffin was lowered into the grave and a number of poles (about twelve) were placed in and over the coffin, followed by a woven floor mat before the earth was shovelled in and gravediggers stamping the earth with their feet. I wandered off as this was surely going to take a while and wandered around the graves. Overwhelmingly those buried in recent years were in their twenties and early thirties. The occasional person in their fifties to seventies. A whole generation wiped out by the HIV/AIDS pandemic.

I was called back by Sindy as people left to return to the house. A ceremonial handwashing as people filed in to be handed a food box with meat, rice, vegetables and plastic cutlery. I was asked to sit at the head table where we were served on plates. One of the pastors had come from Joburg. His relationship to the deceased was a family member was in his congregation. I wandered out the back to see a full mobile kitchen with the biggest cook pot I have seen. On opening the lid the Sotho woman invited me to jump in. I reminded her those days were over and she laughed. However it was the main cooking pot, still loaded with meat. Other pots not as large did the rice and veges. I was introduced to Mam Dube’s children and some of her grandchildren. They have done well as a nurse, social worker and uni students.

As people left they were given food boxes. There was still lots left over. Traditional Zulu custom requires the deceased’s family to accommodate and feed people coming to pay their respects. Dying is an expensive business for the living. I was thanked many times by family members for coming. It was a useful insight into how death and grieving happen in Zulu culture as well as the huge cost. I was told that families go into debt to ensure they follow custom in dealing with the death of a family member. The whole process today was six hours in total. This was additional to a service the previous evening.