Global IssuesZIMBABWE: Holy Water Is Serious Business
'I am making much more profit selling seawater than I used to get from selling groceries and small household goods,' Carlos Marufu, a holy water dealer based in Harare told IPS.
'I travel to the coast of Durban in South Africa or Beira in Mozambique every month to fetch seawater. I usually bring five 20 litre containers of water per trip, but at times the demand is so high I have to double the quantities, or go twice or thrice a month.'
The collapse of formal economic structures has pushed many Zimbabweans to find new ways of making money. Many have established themselves as dealers in foreign currency and precious stones, which in the past was the preserve of foreign shopowners.
Marufu and other Zimbabwean entrepreneurs have struck gold selling water to traditional and faith healers. There are others who travel to Botswana to fetch clay, which they say helps overcome all complications for pregnant women.
Seawater is the most valued, but there are other types of water that are also -- according to the dealers in demand, including water falling from rocks or cliffs, and water trapped in caves.
'When I bring the water here, I repack it into small 500 ml and 375 ml bottles,' says Marufu. 'There is no fixed price for a bottle, I just negotiate with the buyer. But whatever the charge, we factor in the transport costs, and the other expenses we incur along the way. Most of the time, we take orders before we go to get the water.'
In a good month, Marufu says he earns up to a thousand U.S. dollars from selling holy water, which is much more than what most average workers earn in Zimbabwe.
IPS caught up with one regular buyer of seawater, Richard Makiwa, a prophet who is based Harare's high-density suburb of Dzivarasekwa.
'Most of the water you get here is contaminated, it's got some artificial stuff that is not good for our operations,' he said. 'The whole idea is to get water that is free from the dirt that the witches and wizards here are familiar with. Some of these things are mysteries which you will never understand unless you are possessed.'
Makiwa said in some cases he supplies his clients with seawater, but at times they have to bring it themselves, especially those who require large quantities. To avoid being sold the wrong type of water, Makiwa says they always stick to their regular dealers.
'But even if a new supplier comes, we can tell without carrying out any tests whether the water is fake or not,'he added.
Among the people waiting for consultation at Makiwa's surgery was 37-year-old Tonic Nhamo. For him, seawater was the most powerful liquid he has ever seen.
'I used to have problems with my wife,' said Nhamo. 'Prophet Makiwa told me my problems could only be solved if I washed myself with seawater. I wanted to go to Beira in Mozambique, but he advised against that. I had to go to Durban because there are few Zimbabweans there, and its difficult for whoever was bewitching me to launch a counter attack because of the distance, and language barrier.'
President of the Zimbabwe National Traditional Healers Association (ZINATHA), Prof. Gordon Chavunduka would not be drawn into giving details of the use of holy water.
'Yes, seawater is very useful, but it is against our ethic for anyone to discuss such details in the public. This is supposed to be confidential information between the patient and the practitioner,' said Chavunduka.
There are those who believe that 'this excitement about seawater is a fuss about nothing'.
'Water is water, whether it is rainwater, seawater, water from the tap, as long as it is water, there is no way it can suddenly be bestowed with certain functions that it doesn't have. This is all a matter of belief. Most of the people who use these things believe it works for them, and they will go out of their way to prove that indeed it works,' said Sheunesu Moyo, a youth leader at a Pentecostal church in Harare. Acclaimed Bulawayo-based prophet, Thabiso Ngwenya, who has made waves with supernatural powers he claims have helped many people, said seawater was one of the prescriptions he got in the spirit.
Ngwenya claims to have the power to recover stolen goods, solve marital problems, help people who do not conceive and even cure some illnesses like cancer -- all through the bottles of water he gives to each of his patients.
'I just give people water that I would have prayed for and God simply replies. God is using me to save His people,' he added. 'I do not mix the water with anything, I just pray for it. That is why the water has to be pure, natural water.'
Scores of patients gathered at Ngwenya's house in Pumula South in Bulawayo were unanimous that his magic water works.
Some of them had come from as far as Botswana and South Africa. Among them was Moegomosti Matude, of Botswana who had come to give thanks to Ngwenya. 'My husband had gone for three years without a trace but when I came here, I was given some water and prayers and after a week my husband was back home.'
There have been media reports of high profile musicians from South Africa and Botswana coming to consult him. Born on June 5, 1975, Ngwenya is now a celebrated individual in Bulawayo. Before he started his prophetic works, Ngwenya says he spent two years 'staying in the wilderness in isolation surviving on insects'.
In a small pamphlet distributed to his potential patients, Ngwenya says he can 'solve all problems through prayer with the aid of a bottled water bomber'.
Reads the pamphlet: 'The person (prayed for) then smashes the bottle onto a rock. While smashing the bottle you say out what you wish for in the presence of the prophet. If you fail to break the bottle then there is a second trial for you. Holy rains are cast over the multitudes that attend the seminar. The rains come in the form of holy water prayed for by the prophet.'
The importation of seawater is also giving customs officials nightmares. They are not sure whether or not to charge duty on the water. 'It is understandable if a person brings a carton or so of mineral water for drinking. But now we have to deal with people who bring at times hundreds of litres of water. Most of the water would be in cooking oil or fuel bottles,' said a Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (ZIMRA) official who requested anonymity.
© Inter Press Service (2008) — All Rights ReservedOriginal source: Inter Press Service