Unodumehlezi Kamenzi

UMazisi Kunene yindwele kasonkondlo, obunyoningcwe bakhe kunqakiswana ngabo umhlaba wonke, ungumeluki futhi wemisebenzikazi efana nendeyindekugqama njengale: Emperor The Great – uNodumehlezi KaMenzi ne-Anthem of The Decades – Inhlokomo Yeminyaka. Sikhuluma lapha ngomlobi wezinkondlo ezibalwa uze ukhathale, izindaba ezimfishane, imilolozelo, izaga eziliqoqo elifike ezinkulungwnanei eziyishumi. Leli qhawe lamaqhawe lazalwa eMahlongwa ngowe 1930, endaweni esogwini lwaseNingizimu naKwaZulu-Natal, eNingizimu Afrika. Isiphiwo sikaMazisi Kunene esasingavamisile entangeni yakhe savela nje esalusa, esenga, ezingela, ebumba izinkunzi zobumba, baziqhathe, enza konke okwakwenziwa ayebutho linye nabo. Kodwa uyise nomkhulu wakhe bashesha babona ukuthi umzukulu wabo wayephiwe ubumbongi ngendlela emangalisayo. Bamkhuthaza ukuba abhale. Kamumva simuzwa eth: “Ukubhala akusimina, kodwa ngamandla angiqhoqhobala njengehhashi”. Inkambo kaKunene engungqondongqondo emphakathini futhi engusomfundokwazi ovelele, siyilandela sifinyelele koStandford University lapho aba nguSolwazi khona Ebucikweni bokubhala base-Afrika nako-Univesity of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) lapho ayefundisa khona Ubuciko bokubhala base-Afrika nezilimi. Kwathi uma ebuya ekudingisweni waba nguSolwazi we-African Languages e-University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN). USolwazi Mazisi Kunene waba sekudingisweni iminyaka engama 34. Ngaleso sikhathi waqala futhi waphatha ihhovisi le-African National Congress (ANC) eLondon. Kamuva wathatha unkosikazi nezingane zakhe waya eLos Angeles ephokophelele umkhakha wobusomfundokwazi. I-Emperor Shaka the Great – uNodumehlezi kaMenzi, ngamangwevu uKunene awabhala ngeLembe lapho ayekhombisa khona ubunsengetshe balo emaqhingeni ezempi nasekulweni. Le ndekugqama inanela ukuthi umbonotalagu weSilo uShaka kwakuyikubumba imisinga yosikompilo neyozombusazwe, okwakufanele kube ngumgogodla wokuhlanganisa njengenhlaka isizwe sakwaZulu. UKunene ubona isilo sakwaDukuza sinamandla abaphansi anobumfihlo esasikwazi ukubopha ngasibopho sinye ukuzika kolibo losikompilo kusikompilo lwama-Afrika kanye nendlela ababuka ngayo umhlaba. Lokhu kushicilelwa futhi kwalo msebenzi ngonyakwa weshumi emva kokuba uMtimande edlulela kwabakubo, kuqukethe iphupho lakhe kwasekuqaleni lokuthi ibhuku liyoshicilelwa ngesiZulu okuyilona lulimi ugqozi lwakhe olwachichima lwaphumela emhlabeni ngalo. Lokhu kuqondana ngokwesiboniso sosikompilo kulolu shicilelo lukaNodumehlezi kaMenzi – Emperor Shaka The Great kukhuthaza ukuba kuphindwe kudliwe amathambo ekhanda, kubukwa amagalelo kaKunene ekugxiliseni imiqondo yakhe kulokho okucatshangwayo nokwenzakalayo ezikhathini ezahlukene.

Mazisi Kunene is the much-celebrated author of epics, such as Emperor Shaka the Great (UNodumehlezi KaMenzi) and Anthem of the Decades (Inhlokomo Yeminyaka), as well as numerous poems, short stories, nursery rhymes and proverbs that amount to a collection of more than 10 000 works. He was born in aMahlongwa in 1930, a small rural village on the South Coast of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa. Notwithstanding his cultural duties as a young man born into Zulu tradition, his calling as an imbongi was taken very seriously by his father and grandfather who encouraged him to write. Professor Kunene described this `calling’ to write as `something [that] is not me, it is the power that rides me like a horse’. Kunene lectured widely and was Professor in African Literature at Stanford University and in African Literature and Languages at the University of California, Los Angeles. On his return to South Africa, he was Professor in African Languages at the University of KwaZulu-Natal. He went into exile in the 1960s for more than 34 years, during which time he established and managed the African National Congress office in London and later moved to Los Angeles with his family to pursue his academic career.