The Kidini Canon – Misafu ya Kidini
The basic texts of Kidini are God (Umajina), Ancestors (Mizimu), Mortuary Rites (Maziko), Ceremonies (Maadhimisho), Law (Miila), Legends (Masimulizi), Spirits (Misambwa) and Heroes (Balubaale). Normally the Books of God, Ancestors, Rites, Rituals and Law are combined into a single volume, the Misafu ya Utawa (the Books of Piety) and the rest go into the Books of Knowledge (Misafu ya Elimu). Like many religious texts, the Misafu are confusing, to say the least, and largely unintelligible outside their cultural context. There are several accessory texts that are associated with the Misafu but not a direct part of the Kidini cannon. The favorite of these is the Msafu ya Busara na Vitendawili (Book of Wisdom and Riddles), which is used for teaching children.
Msafu ya Umajina
The Umajina text sets out the Kidini theology. The word "Umajina" means something like "many namedness". There are three parts, the Primaverse, Evocations and Stories. The Primaverse deals with the the names of God - the primary incantation lists 26, each with an epithet - Ngai the Great One, Mulungu the Creator, Nyame the Father, Leza of Heaven, Huveane the Raingiver, Wele the King of the Ancestors, Imana the Merciful, Iruwa the Protector, Dziva the Mother, Dyaweh the Benevolent, Nzambi the Inconquerable, Tilo the Eye of the Sun, Mredana Bride of Creation, Mukuru Lord of the Future , Asa the Seer, Utixo the Omniscient, Tuwatabi the Sky Woman, Chiuta the Great Bow of Heaven, Pamba the Great Warrior, Adroa Lord of the Earth, Ngazi the Earthmother, Katonda of the Clouds, Ruhanga King of Kings, Khuzwane the Ancient One, Kaluma Worker of Miracles and Sororezhou the Head of the Elephant. This is an obvious attempt at syncretism - a collection of all the various names from every people, together in a simple easily recited hymn. Seven of the names are feminine. The Umajina aspect of Kidini has been very successful - each time a new people is encountered, a name is added, and the Way gains another people.
Areas of great natural beauty are often considered sacred to one of the aspects of God. Umajina may communicate through lesser spirits, especially the baCwezi kubandwa or just as often through signs and omens. These priests are often seen as rain-makers, for, if anything, Umajina is the God of Rain.
The primary characteristic of God in Bantu theology is that he is otiose and distant, taking no part in daily affairs. Other than this simple praise, He features very little in Kidini. On the other hand, the Umajina (many names) are of great import to wazungua (book sorcerors), who take an almost kabbalistic view.
The Evocations are a collection of prayers, each one focusing on one of the aspects of God. Each of the names has several Evocations. The following will serve as an example:
"O Imana wa Umajina, if only you would help me!
O Imana of pity, Imana of my father's home, if only you would help me!
O Imana if only you would help me just this once!
O Imana, if only you would give me a homestead and children!
I prostrate before you, Imana wa Umajina.
I cry to you: Give me offspring, give me as you give to others!
Imana, what shall I do, where shall I go?
I am in distress: where is there room for me?
O Merciful, O Imana of mercy, help this once"
and:
Wele the Many-Named, you who made us so that we may walk on your earth
You who make the cattle and the things which are on it
The next section, Stories, is just that - myths that mention God. There are 46 Stories, gleaned from numerous cultures, all of which refer to God only as Umajina. The myths are inconsistent, redundant and mutually contradictory - God is expected to beyond human understanding. It is nowhere clear whether or not Umajina and Kazikamuntu the First Man are separate beings. There are, for example, five creations myths, four concerning the origin of men and two about the origin of death. A few examples: Umajina vomits up the celestial bodies, the animals and then man. Umajina creates the Moon and the Morning and Evening Stars as his wives, who later give birth to all the plants and animals. Umajina breaks off a reed, which becomes the First Man (Kazikamuntu). Umajina planted the Great Tree of Heaven, the leaves that fell from the tree became the animals, the seeds fell and broke open and became the first men. Umajina married the Earth and her children crawled up from caves. Kazikamuntu was then expelled from the garden and given new wives, created to be subservient, and these became the mothers of humanity.
Misafu ya Mizimu na Maziko - Books of Ancestors and Mortuary Rites
The Mizimu canon is the central text of Kidini. There is no single Book of the Ancestors - the text varies for each clan and even moreso in different cultures. The Book of Ancestors contains descriptions of all the major rituals related to propitiating the living dead. Some of the rituals are to be performed on special days to honor particular ancestors or to petition them for aid, others exist to ask forgiveness for particular wrongs. It also contains instructions for creating ancestor urns/reliquaries, sanamu and windchimes that can be used to communicate with the ancestors.
The Msafu ya Maziko contain the clan's burial and ascension rituals. The baKwazi text is often taken as an exemplar. It describes 25 mortuary rituals for various types of people - warriors, leaders, married women, children, criminals, priests, people killed by lightning, etc. In general, a body is buried for a year, then dug up and transferred to an urn and taken to the clan mortuary.
The details of the ritual for the death of prominent man with a family will serve as an example. First and foremost, the relatives of the deceased must be notified. Word of mouth is not sufficient - there is a specific ritual conducted by the Mwalimu which magically conveys the bad news. Every known relative and associate of the deceased will experience a pall and a chill, and will simply know. These people are the Waguswa, the touched. From the time of this knowledge until the burial, these people are contaminated - they must not have sexual intercourse (for fear of giving birth to a monster) and they must follow specific food taboos. They are chafu, polluted, as is anything they touch. If they cannot attend the burial, after three days of mourning they may be purified by any Mwalimu. The man's brothers, widows, children and grandchildren, to whatever degree through direct patrilineal descent, will shave their heads - this is the public indication that they are in mourning. They are called "Wasonona" and have special duties. The grave is dug by the man's brothers. If he has no brothers or they cannot attend, any of the Wasonona may, given the Mtawa's blessing. All of the deceased's possessions are contaminated and must be purified. The ritual cleansing includes a bit of osteomancy which determines whether each object will go to the eldest son (who redistributes them, he is allowed only one keepsake) or go into the grave.
Cemeteries are extremely dangerous areas - one does not enter a graveyard without reason. The graves are shallow and lined with rock, and the barkcloth wrapped body is interred in a cairn of stones. All of the relatives and friends of the deceased bring stones, and there is great lamentation during this part of the ceremony. After the burial the man's house is burned (these days, it is his bed), which is followed by a dance of lamentation by the widows. Each widow will cut herself in the groin area and collect some blood in a calabash, which is mixed with palm wine and shared by the Wasonona, uniting them in grief. Thereafter there is a eulogy ceremony in which basically every mourner speaks a few words of encouragement, leading strength to the new mzimu. Afterwards the Waguswa (but not the Wasonona) are cleansed and may leave. On the next day the Wasonona gather at the grave and the Myombe attempts to contact the deceased. In most cases, this works. At this point, the deceased is an mvaripasi, and is believed to be in a transitional state somewhat like sleep. The Wasonona will ask questions of the Mfumu to confirm that the correct spirit has been contacted, then it is asked whether or not there was witchcraft or foul play involved in his death. If contact cannot be made, there is an investigation - it may be that the mzimu is angry, or that it has been killed or stolen by witchcraft or any number of things. The Wasonona will stay in mourning for a full year, meaning that the household basically stays intact. The cemetery must be guarded - the Wakaburi are very useful to witches and necromancers, not to mention the dangers of hyaenas.
After the year has passed, it is time for the Ascension ceremony that will guide the spirit to Kuzimu. The mourners will disinter the body and assist the village Watawa in transferring the bones to an urn. This is a festive occasion with drinking and lovemaking. At this time, after the disinterment and before the transferal, the Mzimu is very close to the living and very powerful. It will often briefly possess the drunken revelers. Widows who have been faithful will have their youth and beauty restored for one night, and may make love with whomever they choose. If they become pregnant, the child is considered a legitimate offspring of the deceased. When leaving the family, the urn must be taken to the clan ossuary, carried on the back of a cow of a specific type which is given to the clan priests.
In modern, urban funerals, cemeteries are located a day's walk from the city and are run by a clan priests. They are inhabited by certain types of ants and beetles that are very adept at cleaning flesh from bones. Clan ossuaries containing ancestor urns are located in the clan's estate in that country. Ossuaries are grand affairs, the most beautiful and elaborate architectural marvels in the Empire. Cemeteries, on the other hand, are run almost as businesses - people buy their own plots while alive, choosing the best guarded one they can afford.
Every clan and some societies, especially hero societies, have unique funeral rights, and there have been struggles between clans and societies as to who gets the spirit of a powerful person who dies suddenly.
Msafu ya Miila - the Book of Laws
The Book of Laws concerns itself with taboos, both general and clan specific. It reads much like Leviticus - "A man must not cross the path of a hyena, or he will be impure". Mixed in with these are more general laws and their punishments, such as "A man must not kill another man in anger, or his life is forfeit to the clan of the slain". This is covered in detail in the section on Ritual Purity. A note on language - there are several words relating to laws and customs that sound very much alike. Mwila/Miila is a term for anything that is forbidden, while mwiko/miiko refer specifically to taboos. There are other words, mlao or law and mghwa or custom, that are used in legal terminology.
Msafu ya Maadhimisho - the Book of Ceremonies
Maadhimisho are life stage ceremonies. These include birth, weaning (2 to 3 years), circumcision, marriage and elderhood. Some clans have additional gradients for warriors and advanced elders. This books also contains summaries of the obligations of each stage, put forth as oaths taken during the ceremonies. Almost all clans practice male circumcision. In the Empire, female genital mutilation as such is unknown. The ritual that replaces it is called ukugcaba, where small incisions are made in the genital area near the labia with a piece of glass. A cloth is dabbed in the blood, which the newly minted young woman will wear around her head. These scars are considered desirable and are believe to enhance sexual pleasure
Msafu ya Masimulizi - the Book of Legends
This is a book of folklore, about half of which is entirely about animals and would be familiar to anyone who has read Aesop's Fables or the tales of Brer Rabbit. Most of these are morality tales, the explanatory types of fables being found in the Stories section of the Msafu ya Umajina.
Msafu ya Misambwa - the Book of Spirits
Misambwa are an order of nature spirits apart from the Mizimu. Their Msafu is a collection of verses and evocations praising aspects of nature, both in general and in particular. These spirits were not widely worshiped by the Bantu of Earth, though they are known to the baGanda and baKongo and other peoples, but they gained much prominence in Ubantu. There are verses for the Lord Sun (Kumwene), the Moon as the Queen of Heaven (Jenkozana), the Earthmother (Nkwoga), the Rainbow (Musoke), the Lightning Birds (Impundulu), the River Spirits (Misimbi), Mountain Spirits (Mikishi), Ocean Spirits (Migoloko), Wind Spirits (Mikela), Fire Spirits (Mipalia), Metal Spirits (Mibamba) and the Forest Spirits (Mijengi). There are eight elements in Ubantu cosmology: Air, Fire, Earth, Stone, River, Sea, Wood and Metal. Temples to the Eight Directions are found throughout urban Ubantu. The Sea Queen (Dzivaguru) is a little different, and seems to have been recently added, probably in compensation for Mojili, the Majisafi Goddess.
This book also has a few basic ritual for honoring mihondoro and misangu. Some believe these are the spirits of ancient chiefs who predate the founding of Siyathemba, but in any case they are now the leaders of all the local nature spirits. They are analogous to the Roman genii loci. Their shrines are marked by particularly elegant and ancient trees surrounded by piles of stones. In rural areas one day each month is devoted to honoring the local Mhondaro, in which the land isn't working. Instead there is a picnic and festival at the shrine, where an animal (usually a goat) is sacrificed and the tree is watered with its blood and copious amounts of beer. Failure to do so results in poor harvests and crop failures.
Msafu ya Balubaale - the Book of Heroes
The book of heroes has short biographies of the twelve hero-saints plus tales about the founder of the clan and his descendants. The twelves saints were standardized a few centuries ago when a series of operas were published. The content of this book varies substantially in the vassal states. For instance, in Ishyangombi it is entirely about Ryangombe and his relatives, which are the founders of the clans in that area.