Ancestors Day ‘well savoured’ with pomp and ceremony
The day’s proceedings concluded with the various stakeholders in attendance signing a letter directed to Minister Nathi Mthethwa as the director of Arts and Youth Development, Moleleki Ledimo, was in attendance, on behalf of the Department of Arts and Culture.
African traditional rituals and customs were the order of the day when hundreds of traditionally clad Africans ‘savoured’ the second anniversary of the Ancestors Day celebration on May 8.
Castle Milk Stout together with the Congress of Traditional Leaders of South Africa (Contralesa), and the National House of Traditional and Khoi-San Leaders savoured the moment of celebration, marking the second Ancestors Day commemoration since its inception in 2021.
“May is Africa Month and we wanted to make sure that people use the first weekend of this month to remember those that came before us, who taught us our ways as Africans.
“We basically wanted to open Africa Month by commemorating and remembering who we truly are,” said Khensani Mkhombo, the brand manager for Castle Milk Stout and the brains behind Ancestors Day.
Mkhombo added the stakeholders had embarked on a campaign to lobby the government to officially declare May 8 as Ancestors Day on the national calendar.
Bishop Joshua Maponga III focused his talk on the Pan-African Journey of Spirituality. Maponga’s educational talk was followed by an inspirational talk by broadcaster Hulisani Ravele, who detailed her own spiritual journey and her growth towards spiritual enlightenment, titled ‘Ndila: A personal journey of discovery’.
Ravele shared with the audience her journey of tracing her ancestry and how it helped her understand who she really was. “I realised that I didn’t know much about who I am and decided to go back home to ask questions,” she said.
Ravele added that it was important, especially for young people, to learn not just about their clan names, but about their ancestors.
Related article:
