The Mwindo Epic: Crash Course World Mythology #29

Hi, I’m Mike Rugnetta, this is Crashcourse Mythology and today we’re talking about
a hero myth from Africa. It’s got everything – water serpents, a brag
aby, banana beer, a murder scepter, and the worst dad in the world. Even worse than Saturn
– who ate his children! Join Thoth and I for a look at the Epic of Mwindo.
[Intro] The Mwindo story comes from the Nyanga people
of the Democratic Republic of Congo. Like all myths, the story has changed from telling
to telling. But in every version, Mwindo rises from an auspicious birth to become chief of
his people, facing danger and defeating villains along the way. The version we’ll discuss
comes from a storyteller of the oral tradition: Candi Rureke.
Before we get too far, a quick note on our favorite meta-topic: pronunciation. I briefly
wanna confront not only … the difficulty I’m gonna have nailing some of these pronunciations,
but what might be indicated by the relative absence, on the internet at least, of pronunciation
guides for stories from this part of the world.
We asked you, our audience, to help with pronunciation for this episode, and others yet to come.
It was A HUGE HELP, but still if I say something that sounds wrong, please write a comment,
but also go to forvo.com and record the correct pronunciation so it’s out there in the world
for everyone!
Ok - enough talk-talk … on with the show. Mwindo’s story begins before he’s even
born. His father, Shemwindo, the chief of Tubondo has seven wives and swears that he
will kill any woman who bears him a son. He wants daughters who will bring dowry money.
This is bad news for Mwindo’s mom – because he’s a boy!
But, luckily they have some help, since Nyanga children receive guidance and protection from
their aunts, and Mwindo’s Aunt Iyangura is pretty rad. Iyangura isn’t only strong,
beautiful, and clever, she’s also married to Mukiti, the water serpent, who also has
special influence over bats and spiders. You might remember the tale of baby Hermes,
who could walk and talk and make mischief the moment he was born. Well, Mwindo one ups
him. He helps his mother collect firewood and food... while he’s still in the womb!
He’s born by leaping out of his mother’s middle, making all the midwives and obstetricians
yell: “What kind of child is that?”[1] Mwindo is born holding an axe, a magical bag,
a magic rope and most importantly: a magic conga scepter–it’s kind of like a fly-swatter–made
of an antelope tail. Shemwindo isn’t happy that Mwindo is a boy.
First he goes to Mwindo’s house and throws spear after spear into the walls, trying to
kill his only son. When Mwindo emerges unscathed, Shemwindo grabs him and buries him alive.
But Mwindo, who can speak even though he’s a baby, curses his father the whole way down,
and then just claws his way out of the grave. Finally, Shemwindo grabs Mwindo and sews him
up into a drum which he throws into a lake! The sky rumbles and it rains for seven days,
and the whole village suffers a famine. Methinks this does not bode well for Shemwindo.
Sitting underwater, still sewn into a drum, and definitely not drowning, Mwindo decides
it’s time to beat a hasty retreat. He starts to roll the drum up the river to find aunt
Iyangura (remember, she lives with the water serpent). Along the way, he defeats a bunch
of water creatures by singing to them, and spends his time boasting, calling himself
“Little one Just Born He Walked.” When he reaches his aunt, she slices him out of
the drum. Iyangura serves many roles in Mwindo’s story.
She’s a strong mother figure, and advice giving goddess, a role you’ll remember from
Joseph Campbell’s theory of the hero’s journey featured in episode twenty-five. Iyangura
also sets Mwindo on his quest. She tells him that even though Shemwindo is the worst dad
in the world, Mwindo can’t get revenge on his own. “The lonely path is never a pleasant
one to travel,” she tells him.[2] That’s why I’m glad we’re in this together, Thoth.
Huh? Oh - yeah, also you guys are cool! Mwindo listens to Iyangura, but can’t help
himself from messing with his dad. So he begins singing a long, magical song that calls all
his father’s possessions in Tubondo to come, and be his.
Mwindo might have felt clever for stealing his dad’s stuff, but it doesn’t work out
that well because Mwindo’s followers are gluttons, who gorge themselves on newly arrived
food and get sick.. Mwindo can’t believe this – he’s about to lead all these greedy
guts into battle – so he calls on Nkuba, the god of lightning, to help him.
Nkuba destroys Tubondo with seven lightning flashes, turning the village and its residents
to dust, which is maybe a bit drastic. But, Shemwindo finally gets the message: messing
with Mwindo is a bad idea. He flees to an underground lair.
But Mwindo doesn’t let his dad get away that easy. First, he brings all of his uncles
who died in Tubondo back to life and commands them to forge him baby-armor. Mwindo sets
out... and follows his father’s trail to the underworld. We’re gonna follow with
him in the Thoughtbubble. Underground, Mwindo meets Kahindo. She’s
a goddess of good fortune, but her dad is Muisa, god of the underworld. Kahindo tells
Mwindo that Muisa is protecting Shemwindo. But luckily, she hates her dad so much...
she agrees to tell Mwindo–step by step–what he has to do defeat Muisa, and find his pops.
First, she says, my dad’s gonna offer you banana beer, but don’t drink that banana
beer, because it’s actually pee. Gross. Second, my dad’s gonna offer you banana
paste, but don’t eat that banana paste, because it’s actually poo. Even grosser.
Then, after you don’t eat his snacks, he’ll ask you to pass his tests...and at that point,
you’re on your own. Mwindo tracks down Muisa, and it’s exactly
as Kahindo said, and Muisa gives him a test: cultivate a new, actual banana grove in the
underworld. Mwindo uses a magic billhook that tills the field and plants the seeds and harvests
the bananas all by itself. Muisa unwinds his magical cowrie belt and
gives it an order: fly and kill Mwindo. The belt zips off, finds Mwindo and kills him.
End of story, thanks for watching. MIKE TAKES OUT HIS PHONE Thanks Thought Bubble. Usual
for lunch, Thoth? Shrimp? Crab cakes? Just kidding. Back to the Thought Bubble.
As soon as Mwindo falls, his magic scepter brings him back to life. I told you that thing
was important. Mwindo grabs the scepter and sends it to go kill Muisa. The scepter flies
to Muisa and kills the god of the underworld! And then...brings him back to life. That magical
autonomous murder-and-rebirth scepter REALLY has a mind of its own.
Thanks for real Thoughtbubble. After the Battle of Enchanted Accessories™, Mwindo completes
more of Muisa’s tests, Muisa makes some more assassination attempts.
Eventually, Mwindo gets fed up with all the testing and belt attacking and confronts Muisa
directly. “Give me my dad. I know you’re hiding him.” Muisa refuses, and Mwindo kills
him once and for all, and keeps tracking. Shemwindo’s tracks eventually end in the
home of Sheburu-wngu – the god of all creation. Mwindo demands to know where his dad is, but
Sheburungu says that if Mwindo wants his help, he’ll have to best him in a game of wiki.
In this game, the players take turns editing the entries for celebrities to include funny
false details and the edit that lasts the longest...OK JUST KIDDING BUT I KINDA HAD
TO RIGHT? Seriously tho, in this case, a game of “wiki”
means guessing the number of black seeds held in your opponent's hand. Mwindo agrees, and
the baby and the god start to play. At first, Sheburungu beats Mwindo over and
over again, winning everything Mwindo owns except his magic scepter. With his back to
the wall, Mwindo bets his scepter and begins to win. Wager after wager, guess after guess,
Mwindo cleans Sheburungu’s clock until he wins all of Sheburungu's possessions. Including,
probably, his newly cleaned clock. But Mwindo tells Sheburungu: I don’t want
your things, I don’t want creation, I just want you to hand over my dad. Sheburungu has
to agree, and so Mwindo returns to Tubondo with a captured Shemwindo. This is Mwindo’s
turning point, when the boastful baby gets the chance to face his father. Instead of
killing him, Mwindo is magnanimous, and pardons Shemwindo for his past mistakes.
Flush with mercy, he even brings Muisa back to life - who offers his daughter Kahindo’s
hand in marriage. Mwindo refuses, saying he wants to marry in Tubondo. This is going to
be a little tough, since Nkuba lightning zapped everyone in Tubondo. So Mwindo revives them
too, bringing the whole village back to life. Finally, Shemwindo admits to the village that
he was wrong to try to kill Mwindo and that he’s sorry about that whole drowning in
a drum thing: “So may the male offspring be spared,” he said, “for he has shown
me the way in which the sky becomes daylight and has given me the joy of witnessing again
the warmth of the people and of all the things here in Tubondo.” Mwindo replies: “I will
not hold a grudge against my father … What my father did against me and what I did against
my father, all that is already over.” Mwindo’s story doesn’t end here, though
– in his subsequent adventures he learns, often the hard way, how to be a compassionate,
and respectful ruler. Mwindo thus returns to his people, wiser and fit to rule. He pronounces
a blessing that establishes rules by which to live:
May you grow many foods and many crops May you live in good houses
May you moreover live in a beautiful village. Don’t quarrel with one another.
Don’t pursue another’s space Don’t mock the invalid passing in the village.
And he who seduces another’s wife will be killed
Accept the chief. Fear him. May he also fear you.
May you agree with one another, all together, No enmity in the land nor too much hate.
May you bring forth tall and short children –
In so doing you will bring them forth for the chief.
So Mwindo has really grown up. His hero’s journey took him from braggy baby to a just
ruler, fairly governing his people. At its heart, the Mwindo story is a Freudian-style
conflict of a boy maturing to take his father’s place. Take out the magical murder scepter
and the other supernatural parts and maybe some of the more draconian rules, and it’s
also a model for an individual’s journey from boastful child to wise ruler. And it
teaches us why we should never ever take banana paste from a stranger.
Mwindo shows us how an individual must mature to become truly heroic, and also fulfills
an etiological role for the Nyanga people: he re-establishes their village. He provides
the model of forgiveness and shows how a chief must be powerful and also favored by the gods.
He demonstrates that even with auspicious beginnings and divine help, heroes are flawed
and only achieve success if they learn and grow. Thanks for watching. See you next time.
________________ [1] Quoted in Thury & Devinney p. 354.
[2] Quoted in Thury & Devinney p. 362.
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The Mwindo Epic: Crash Course World Mythology #29

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