Mwanamalundi: The Historical African Figure Whose Supernatural Abilities Dwarfs Biblical Tales

Another unpopular documented African history

Introduction:

There are many African history that are unknown to the world. Today, I am going to bring to you a sensational story of another African historical figure who possessed uncanny supernatural abilities, to the Marvel characters.

The early life of Mwanamalundi.

Mwanamalundi was born in the village of Ng’wakwibilinga, Kwimba District, Mwanza Region, Tanzania in 1892. His father was Bugomola, and his mother was Ngolo. The couple struggled for a long time to have a son and were close to old age without having a child. This greatly troubled Bugomola, who deeply desired an heir. This situation made Bugomola very calm and quiet for much of his life.

In the Sukuma community at that time, if a woman did not conceive within 6 to 12 months of marriage, she had to visit a traditional healer to find out the cause. There were no churches, mosques, or hospitals at that time, so traditional healers were the only ones who could solve such problems.

Elder Bugomola and his wife Ngolo decided to visit a traditional shaman on the eastern side of their village (Ng’wakwibilinga) to find a solution to their problem. The shaman knew the reason for their visit even before they could explain it themselves. The healer prepared medicine for them and told them that Ngolo (the wife/mother) would conceive and give birth to a baby boy, who would become famous in the future. However, unfortunately, Bugomola (the father/husband) would not live to see the child, as he would die before the child was born.

This news made Bugomola very happy, even though he was told he would die before seeing his child. His wife was also pleased to hear that she would conceive. Bugomola didn’t mind his death because he was already old. His greatest joy was that he would have an heir. They returned home full of happiness. Bugomola couldn’t hide his joy. He spent much of his time smiling and laughing, which was quite different from how people were used to seeing him.

A few weeks later, Ngolo conceived. When her pregnancy was only three months along, Mr. Bugomola passed away suddenly, without any illness. Ngolo, who was a widow at that time, carried the pregnancy to full term, until nine months had passed.

One day before Ngolo gave birth, a large cloud covered the sky. Heavy rain with thunder and lightning began to fall. The baby inside her womb leaped unusually, and then a childlike voice was heard from the womb, saying, “máyù nibyalage,” meaning, “Mother, give birth to me!” Ngolo was shocked and frightened after hearing that voice, she called her mother-in-law and some neighbors to be witnesses to the voice. Fortunately, the voice was heard again, and suddenly Ngolo went into labor. It was in 1892 when Ngolo gave birth to a baby boy with miraculous traits from the womb. The baby was named Igulu, meaning Sky.

Igulu (Mwanamalundi) was born in good health, except that his legs were thin and had large feet from birth. Due to the thinness of his legs, the community gave him the nickname “Mamilundi,” meaning “thin legs.”

Mwanamalundi’s early life.

Igulu was a very shy person in his childhood. He used to run away from strangers so they wouldn’t see him and would hide his face out of embarrassment. Despite his shyness, he loved to wander the streets with his friends. Some parents did not like his habit of wandering with their children. Several times, Igulu’s friends’ parents insulted him whenever he returned from wandering with the neighbors’ children. They would say, “Mamirundi galyo lilihumbura bana bise,” meaning, “his long legs lure our children away.”

In his youth, Igulu loved to dance to a drum called Kahela. Whenever he participated in dancing, he liked to cover his face with a black cloth. In competitions of dancing to that drum, Igulu and his friends failed to win. People like Samíke, Ng’wanikinga, Ng’wanilong’ho, and Gíndù Nkíma were almost unbeatable in drum dancing.

These were individuals who knew how to dance the drums more skillfully than Igulu (Mwanamalundi). Often, the use of supernatural powers played a part in their victories and their acceptance by the people.

The pursuit for magical powers

The failure of Igulu (Mwanamalundi) and his friends to be recognized by the community, especially in dancing, led him to make a decision to visit a traditional shaman. Igulu persuaded his peers to go to a shaman who would give them charms that would make people like them and ensure they won all drum dance competitions. His friends agreed because, at that time, going to a traditional shaman was a common thing.

The journey to the far east of their village arrived. The shaman was an old woman, old enough to be called “grandmother” in the village of Nyaraja, in the Iramba district of Singida region. They were warmly welcomed by their host. It took them a week without being attended to, but on the eighth day, the shaman instructed them to take machetes and diggers to the forest to dig up magical herbs that would help them be liked by people.

In the forest, the old shaman found three chameleons for the three youths seeking magical herbs, then told them to dig holes half their height. The boys dug the holes while the chameleons clung to their heads. After finishing digging, the shaman told them to cover the holes with dry firewood.

The boys followed the chaman’s instructions, and she removed the chameleons that were clinging to their heads, applied some herbs to their mouths, and placed them on the firewood covering the holes they had dug. Soon after placing the chameleons on the firewood, a fire was lit to burn the chameleons.

Within minutes of watching the chameleons burn, suddenly a rhinoceros appeared in a mysterious way and began to chase everyone, including the shaman. Igulu (Mwanamalundi) had to climb a tree to save himself. The other two boys fled and never returned.

The old shaman was mauled by the rhinoceros until she lost her life, then the rhinoceros approached Igulu (Mwanamalundi), who was up the tree, and began attacking the tree with its horn. The rhinoceros failed to knock down the tree, only stripping its bark. When it got tired, it left and disappeared into the thin air.

Igulu (Mwanamalundi) climbed down from the tree and went to check on the old shaman, who was now dead. Igulu carried the body of the old shaman back home. While on the way, the shaman’s body, which was on his shoulders, began to breathe as if it was alive. Suddenly, the grandmother sneezed and woke up, then asked Igulu (Mwanamalundi), “Bhaja hálí abhayanda abhalaha,” meaning, “Where are your friends?” Igulu told her that his companions had fled after seeing the rhinoceros.

The Old shaman, who was now completely alive and uninjured, asked them to return to the scene to collect the medicine. While on the way back, the grandmother praised Igulu, calling him “a real man” whose true intention was to seek the magical herbs. The old shaman collected the bark peeled off by the rhinoceros and left with it.

Upon reaching home, the grandmother decided to tell Igulu (Mwanamalundi) the truth — that the rhinoceros was her. She had transformed to test their endurance and true intention through hardship. Since Igulu alone had shown resilience, the grandmother awarded him special charms that would grant him charm and strength for his dances. The two friends went straight home and never returned to the shaman. The old shaman gave Igulu instructions after giving him the medicine. She forbade Igulu (Mwanamalundi) from slapping or pointing a finger at anyone. If he did, the person would die immediately.

Returning to dance with supernatural powers

When Igulu (Mwanamalundi) returned to his village and danced for the first time after coming back from the shaman, he won. There were times when Igulu decided to dance on top of a large rock. As he danced on these rocks, his footprints became imprinted on the stones he danced upon.

These footprints can still be seen today in the village of Nyandekwa, in Kahama district, Shinyanga region, Tanzania. It’s about 10 kilometers from the district headquarters. There were also times when Igulu carved game pits (for a game similar to mancala) on the stone using just his heel. These marks are still visible in Nyandekwa village, Kahama-Shinyanga.

After winning local competitions, Igulu decided to challenge more formidable rivals from the village of Ng’wagala in Maswa district, including Samíke, Ng’wanikînga, Ng’wanilog’ho, and a powerful magician woman named Gíndü Nkíma. These four were considered unbeatable in their dance skills, but Igulu (Mwanamalundi) bravely entered the competition with them once again.

When Mwanamalundi arrived at the competition, he performed a miracle by extending his height like a tall stick, without using any stilts, and then began to dance, as usual, with his face covered by a black cloth. While he was dancing with the height of a tall stick, some people tried to touch and uncover his legs to see what was hidden.

All those who dared to touch his legs died shortly afterward. In that dance, Gíndü Nkíma used her supernatural powers to restore Igulu (Mwanamalundi) to his normal size, without the height of a tall stick. By doing this, Mwanamalundi lost the contest.

Mwanamalundi left Maswa and went to the village of Nela, where another competition was planned. He won that competition. Since he always traveled with a group of food preparers, this victory angered Gíndü Nkíma, his biggest rival, who decided to cast a spell on the food being prepared for Mwanamalundi, making it impossible to cook, even if it was boiled for a whole week.

Indeed, Mwanamalundi’s cooks complained that the food was not cooking at all, and the firewood was running out. They asked Mwanamalundi for help. After the cooks complained, Mwanamalundi pointed to a certain forest and told the cooks to go and cut firewood from there. Unfortunately, when he pointed his finger, he didn’t realize that the forest was inhabited by livestock and herders, all of whom died and dried up like firewood.

This event, where the livestock and their herders were killed and dried up like firewood, angered Chief Masanja III, who ordered his soldiers to quickly arrest Mwanamalundi to hold him accountable. Chief Masanja’s soldiers were very afraid to arrest Mwanamalundi, fearing they might die. They had no choice but to arrest him because they feared the chief more than Mwanamalundi.

The arrest of Mwanamalundi.

Before Mwanamalundi was arrested, he knew it was going to happen. So, he went quickly to bid farewell to his mother and left her with instructions. Mwanamalundi milked a little milk into a cup and gave it to his mother, telling her, “If this milk starts to curdle, know that I am in trouble; if it curdles completely, know that I am dead!” Mwanamalundi also took an ax without a handle and leaned it against the wall, telling his mother, “If I am arrested and taken to be killed, this ax will climb up the wall as I am being led to be executed. When we reach the place where I will be killed, this ax will rise to the top of the wall, showing that we have reached the end of the journey!” His mother accepted the instructions, and not long after, Mwanamalundi was arrested by Chief Masanja’s soldiers.

Chief Masanja III decided to take the matter to the colonial rulers (the Germans) to decide Mwanamalundi’s fate. An investigation was conducted, and Mwanamalundi was found guilty of murdering innocent people. The punishment for this crime was to be hanged.

On this journey to the gallows, Mwanamalundi was accompanied by Makongoro Igana, who was the chief of Ilemela. This chief was guilty of beating Germans with a stick after they passed on the wrong side of the road according to his customs. Whenever Chief Makongoro traveled on a donkey, his right hand would hold a long stick, which he used to hit anyone who passed on the wrong side during his travels.

Unfortunately, the Germans were unaware of Chief Makongoro’s custom. The day the Germans passed him on the wrong side, he hit them with his stick, as was his custom. The Germans couldn’t tolerate this and arrested him, charging him with crimes that led to his sentencing to be hanged.

The second person who accompanied Mwanamalundi on the journey to be hanged was Kaliyaya. Kaliyaya was a man who was highly influential in his community. His popularity gained him many followers, who were feared to be plotting to overthrow the German rulership. So, the Germans saw it fit to charge him and sentence him to death before he could overthrow them. Kaliyaya was just an ordinary man, but he had great influence and was loved by many.

The third person who accompanied Mwanamalundi on the journey to be hanged was Chief Italange of Bugando. This chief got into a dispute with the Germans after he claimed a large area of Lake Victoria’s coastline and its ports, and he refused to give them to the Germans. To take away his wealth, the Germans decided to charge him and sentence him to death.

When the time came for the hanging, Mwanamalundi was the first to be placed in the noose. As soon as the rope was released to kill him, it broke on its own. The execution was postponed, and instead of being hanged, his sentence was changed.

Then it was Chief Makongoro Igana’s turn. When the noose was placed around his neck, and the rope was pulled to kill him, a miraculous vision like a movie appeared on the wall. It was a scene showing ancient war events from centuries ago. The soldiers turned to watch the movie. It lasted for no more than a minute and then ended. When they turned back to look at Chief Makongoro, they saw that the noose was no longer around his neck. He, too, was set aside, and his sentence was changed.

Next was Chief Italange. When the noose was placed around his neck, the rope snapped, just like with the others. He was also set aside, and his sentence was changed. When it was Kaliyaya’s turn, the noose was released to hang him, and it did kill him. He had no ancestral protection; he was just an ordinary man.

Mwanamalundi Performing Miracles in the island

At this point, the German authorities ordered the soldiers to take the three men to Tabora. On their way to Tabora, they reached Nzega and decided to rest under a large tree near Chama Secondary School. The German soldiers began asking Mwanamalundi about his powers, and then they asked him to perform one last miracle before being taken to prison.

Mwanamalundi told the soldiers that he still had great power and that he could even dry up the tree they were resting under. He said this while tapping the tree. Before he could finish his sentence, the tree dried up immediately, and dry leaves began falling. The German soldiers were terrified by this event.

When they arrived in Tabora, Mwanamalundi and the two chiefs were joined by other prisoners who were guilty of treason and economic sabotage, and they were sent to Mafia Island to serve a three-year sentence.

In prison, Mwanamalundi shared a room with Chief Makongoro Igana. Chief Makongoro asked Mwanamalundi, “Don’t you have a way to save yourself from this place?” Mwanamalundi replied that at that moment, he couldn’t save himself, but he had left behind magic involving an ax and milk with his mother. The chief asked, “Do you have any other supernatural abilities?” Mwanamalundi told Chief Makongoro that he could plant potatoes and cassava, and they would be harvested within minutes, ready to eat. While on the island, they agreed to travel to the mainland to get potato and cassava seeds to witness the miracle of planting and harvesting in minutes.

At that time, prisoners on the island were often left free, as there was no way for them to escape. Mwanamalundi and Chief Makongoro went to the sea within the island. Makongoro held a stone, and Mwanamalundi held a stick. When Makongoro threw the stone far into the sea, Mwanamalundi struck the water with the stick, and the water parted, leaving a path to where the stone had landed. They did this until they reached the mainland. They collected potato and cassava seeds and demonstrated their supernatural abilities to each other.

Whenever they escaped from prison, they left behind their doppelgangers/ shadows that appeared as if they were real people. Sometimes, Mwanamalundi and Chief Makongoro would be seen in Mwanza or Shinyanga while also appearing in prison at the same time. This greatly confused the Germans.

When their sentences were over, they were flown home. Mwanamalundi’s community gave him the new name “Ng’wenhwandege,” meaning “the one who was returned by plane,” as he was believed to be the first Sukuma person to fly in an airplane.

When Mwanamalundi returned home after finishing his sentence, his mother was overjoyed. She was happy because the milk hadn’t curdled for three years, showing that her son was alive wherever he was. The milk remained fresh for three years. The ax began to descend from the wall as Mwanamalundi approached home. When he arrived in the neighborhood, Mwanamalundi did not abandon his passion for music. He continued dancing in various areas.

Chief Masanja, who had saved Mwanamalundi from being hanged and later imprisoned, decided to expel Mwanamalundi from his realm of governance. Mwanamalundi then decided to move to a village called Seke, under Chief Mahizi, where he continued dancing and performing his magic.

Mwanamalundi saving villagers from Maasai robbers

While in Seke, located in Kishapu district, Shinyanga region, Mwanamalundi performed a supernatural event that earned him respect in the village. Many cattle from Seke village were stolen by the Maasai from Tabora. The villagers wanted to pursue the cattle that very night, but Mwanamalundi refused. He assured the villagers that the cattle were safe and would be returned safely the next morning, not that night. The villagers agreed because they trusted Mwanamalundi.

That night, Mwanamalundi sent his supernatural powers to surround the Maasai, causing them to fall into a deep sleep along with the cattle. When they were followed the next morning, they were found fast asleep. The villagers killed the Maasai and returned with their cattle. Mwanamalundi was given a new name in the village, “Kishosha mang’ombe nga Seke,” meaning “The one who returned Seke’s cattle.”

Mwanamalundi with Chief Chalya

At one point, Mwanamalundi invaded the forest of Chief Chalya of Ng’hung’hu to dig up certain medicinal roots. Chief Chalya had a premonition that there was an intruder in his forest digging up medicinal roots. The chief set off to where his premonition had guided him. Indeed, he found Mwanamalundi digging up some medicinal roots. The chief asked Mwanamalundi, “Why have you entered my domain without informing me?” Mwanamalundi replied, “You are the chief of all people, but I am the chief of all trees!” This response angered Chief Chalya, who returned to his kingdom in rage and ordered his soldiers to arrest Mwanamalundi for punishment.

When the soldiers, accompanied by Chief Chalya, arrived in the forest where Mwanamalundi was, they did not find him. Instead, they found a swarm of lions sleeping in the area. The soldiers had to flee to save themselves from the lions, who began to chase them. When they reached the chief’s kingdom safely, they found Mwanamalundi had already finished eating their food and was leaving. The chief had no choice but to let Mwanamalundi go without any further disputes.

Death of Mwanamalundi.

Mwanamalundi passed away in 1936 from natural causes and was buried in Ididí Jihū in the village of Seke, Kishapu district, Shinyanga region, at the age of 44. The event of his death was called “hang’witulo gwa shigela,” meaning “The war of fleeing from the Maasai.” This is because when Mwanamalundi was on his deathbed, there was a loud sound like an earthquake. Many people fled in fear, thinking that the Maasai had invaded their area to kill them.

After the loud sound, darkness fell suddenly, darkness so intense that even chickens began to return home, and hyenas started walking in the streets thinking it was night. Even after his burial, his grave emitted a lot of smoke that rose to the skies and created temporary darkness.

Conclusion.

Mwanamalundi is also remembered for his ability to walk in the air without touching the ground, transforming into different creatures such as animals, birds, plants, trees, or stones, and his ability to walk on water or stay underwater for long periods. Mwanamalundi is just one of the famous figures in the Sukuma reigns. There were notable people before him, such as Níndwa, Italange, and Sïta. All of them were miracle workers like Mwanamalundi.