Tembisa Capoeirista to grade
The 34-year-old intends to practice the art until an old age.
Tembisa’s only capoeirista will be grading in a Capoeira Batizado, which will be held at the University of Johannesburg (UJ) on November 1.
Andrew ‘Erovao’ Mokhine graduated from Casa Da Capoeira in Bedfordview under Mestre (master) Paulo.
Mr Mokhine is now a professional capoeira practitioner, who performs this martial art which was developed from a need for Africans enslaved in Brazil to protect themselves in hostile environments.
“Batizado is a grading system, where we get certificates and belts similar to karatekas, but ours are designed according to the Brazilian flag’s colors,” said Erovao.
Erovao is Mr Mokhine’s pelido (nickname), which means lightning.
The tradition of nicknames was created when capoeira practice was considered a crime.
To avoid problems with the law, capoeiristas would present themselves in the capoeira community only by their nicknames.
If a capoeirista was caught by the police, he would be unable to identify his fellow capoeiristas, even when tortured.
At the UJ’s Capoeira Batizado, Erovao who currently holds a yellow rope with a green tip, will be presented with a yellow rope with a blue tip.
“It is a mentor’s level, which allows you to be a junior instructor,” he said.
Erovao said a student studies each level for a two-year period before they can graduate to a higher level.
He said each level has its own responsibilities and they have a pre-grading assessment before obtaining the actual batizado.
Watch Erovao in action in the video below:
The 34 year old intends to practice the art until an old age.
Erovao opened a training school in 2013, called Tembisa Berimbau.
Berimbau is a single-string percussion instrument, a musical bow, from Brazil, originally from Africa where it has different names.
“Capoeira is not only a sport. It is a lifestyle. Since I was interested in martial arts, I did karate, Kung-fu and boxing,” said Erovao.
His student, Thandolwenkosi Johnson who will also be grading, said he can’t compare capoeira to anything he has ever done before.
“It is not like a school where you have to be forced to go. The responsibility is on you. I have never been to a batizado before so I don’t have any other expectations,” said Johnson.
