metaphor

Mountain Metaphor & Ritual in African Leadership

storytelling — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 02:55:10 -0700

By : Ralf Sibande with Steve & Eugenie Banhegyi

Note: this article is written using the perspective of Zulu leadership and knowledge systems.

The western business leadership education model provides comprehensive and detailed information in myriad specialist fields but fails to emphasise a holistic and integrative approach to human development in the context of working life. This lack of a holistic approach causes a problematic discontinuity between the experience of home/community life and the world of work where the all-important ‘soft skills’ of interpersonal behaviour are rarely reflected upon.

The mountain metaphor offers the opportunity of looking at leadership from a uniquely African perspective. The experience of a rite of passage underlines the idea of on-going change and movement away from an old role and into a new one. In the rite of passage, the initiate experiences a new, expansive and different world; one where they are expected to be and do more. The rite also helps them release the ‘old self’ - the set of old role expectations, attitudes and behaviours.

In sub-saharan African cultures, the social process of leading young adults into adulthood is known as going to the mountain. It is done for both young men and women. Going to the mountain is a prerequisite rite of passage before taking one’s place as an adult in a community of peers. The initiates are not only introduced to the secrets of the tribe and clan, but are guided to assume proactive leadership roles in their communities. They are helped to undergo accelerated physical, mental and attitudinal changes that have profound implications for the individual and the culture’s continuity. The most important lessons taught at the mountain are:

The initiate is led to discover his/her sense of individuality by revealing their unique qualities. These qualities are captured in the poetry of the individual’s praise song and the praise song of his clan or family. If an initiate excels in some personal quality, for example courage in the face of danger, this quality will be reflected in his personal praise song. This individuality is harnessed and expressed within the group.
Learning experiences reflecting the harsh realities of the African environment : hunger, danger, war, strife, inter-tribal rivalry, drastic changes in the weather conditions, political uncertainty etc. are simulated for the initiates to enhance their survival skills and to internalise of their cosmology. Tests are created in which their individuality is given a chance to expose itself and grow. Personal qualities such as public deportment and speaking, patience, courage and bravery, moral rectitude are cultivated within the moral-ethical constructs of the tribe.
The importance of the rites of initiation lies in storytelling, action and feedback as a vehicle for accelerated group learning, team building and transference of values. The African teaching-learning/knowledge management paradigm is rooted in practice and story-telling by seasoned elders lead the initiates into a journey of self-discovery and personal development. Initiates are engaged holistically in terms of their thinking with the aim of impacting their entire being and changing them from fearful children into fully fledged, morally accountable adults happy and eager to assume their roles in their community and tribe. The African learning experience engages the entire human being. By contrast, the western paradigm tends to emphasise cognitive development at the expense of other aspects of the human being – an emphasis that may lead to disproportionate and dysfunctional development.

The leaders on the mountain peak earn their status through a proven practical record of successes. Not only do they embody their culture and mythology, they are actively engaged in an on-going interpretation and creation of reality and ‘telling the living story’ to the levels of leadership below them.

The formulation of a global vision is influenced by the spiritual roots of the mountain peak leaders. Values such as loyalty, selfless and inspired dedication and personal sacrifice are impossible without the belief in shared spiritual myths. In a secular and hedonistic modern world, there is a need to revisit the African leadership model because it has so much that is original to teach us and offers another fresh perspective to look at leadership issues.

Mountain peak leadership has the task of creating a unifying culture. In Africa, there is often a tremendous sense of community and the real and metaphorical spaces between people are much narrower and closer than in the West. In the pre-colonial past, a circular geometry in the construction of private dwellings, eating from the same dishes, communal washing in the river, shared parenthood of children, membership in age-group cadres, and the inculcation of the values today described as representing ‘ubuntu’ were all symbols of interdependence.

The Zulu word umholi has the root stem hola which stands for the verb to receive one’s reward and indeed leadership is perceived as a rewarding experience. In the modern capitalist society umholo is one’s salary or stipend. A leader within this context is the one who receives not only the material reward but the more important intrinsic reward of self-esteem and self-actualisation by virtue of his/her selfless dedication to the task and well-being of his/her followers. The leader also receives the revelation from the mountain top. African leaders deserve their reward because they earn it through the general good that they share with the rest of the community. This is in contrast with many western corporate leaders who maximise personal gain regardless of the surrounding sea of material poverty in their midst. Without a solid base, the apex of the mountain is inconceivable. Hence the African expression “umuntu ngabanye abantu” (One’s humanity is impossible without acknowledging the humanity of others.)

In contrast to the western hierarchical-military-pyramid chain of command, mountain peak leadership describes an interdependent system in which everything – no matter how insignificant - is seen as a vitally important part of the whole. An African leader who loses sight of this fact is generally referred to as “akanabuntu”’ (“He/she is devoid of human content.”) He/she is perceived as being alienated from the balance of the mountain, becoming a self-destructive force until acted upon by equal and countervailing forces of restoration. Another African proverb underlines the idea of unbalanced leadership; ‘if you are not living the dream, then you are living the nightmare’ shows how the way the leader thinks can move the organisations.

Within this context, the African mountain peak leader is not judged by status or knowledge but rather by humanity or human content. In the African workplace, you don’t just work with people in order to achieve deadlines and goals; you are in a relationship with them and the larger whole/enterprise. And until you acknowledge their humanity – by acknowledging and revealing your own - you cannot inspire them to do their best. Acknowledging their humanity means showing genuine interest in them, sharing experiences and wisdom, participating in mundane matters such as common meals, bereavement, or joys and sorrows. Sharing a meal in the staff canteen does not subtract from an African leader but inspires respect, loyalty and love. Many of the most powerful stories about Nelson Mandela, for example, are never reported in the media but instead do their rounds as urban legends in Johannesburg households. For instance, his recent personal, private and unannounced visit to a community hall in Alexandra, Johannesburg to take part in a community meeting was widely spoken about.

In Africa people do not respect trappings of power such as cell phones, expensive cars, bigger homes, slender girl friends, imported designer Italian suits and perfumes. Whilst these might be envied, they are not respected. Rather, people respect the emotional intelligence to transcend these artificial badges of distinction and empathetically connect with the other, thus creating the possibility of mutual trust and the conditions necessary for collective synergy.

In Africa age is respected. The mountain peak leader may be young but must respect those older than him/herself. In the age of first names, casual open necked shirts and performance bonuses, it is easy to lose sight of this important aspect. The greatest social blunder in Africa is to ignore the humanity of the other person.

In this context, oppression and inhumanity to others become symptoms that suggest the dysfunctional performance of a leadership role. Crime is perceived not only as a personal transgression, but as a symptom of a community out of balance. The role of the Sangoma is then to restore community balance and harmony. Apart from punishing the offender, restoration involves healing the entire community. A communal feast is a spiritual experience in which everyone participates in an act of fellowship and unity. Participation demonstrates freedom from prejudice, animosity or any other personal impediment whereas non-participation may brand one as a ‘witch’ not because people believe in witches but because it strikes a dissonant chord to the melody and spiritual unity of the community.

The concepts of Mountain Peak Leadership are useful in designing future models of people-centred organisations and cultures. In these cultures, technology serves as an enabler of relationships and a mechanism to effectively store and transmit useful knowledge across generations. Technology, symbols and rituals are also consciously designed to create and support an environment necessary for peaceful coexistence, mutual love and empathy, community belongingness and the survival of the extended family of which the workplace is seen an integral part.

The persistent and endemic problems of fraud and corruption in the corporate and public sectors in South Africa may be worsened by lack of Leadership commitment and by the neglect of core leadership values. The leaders on the mountain peak have a wider, far-sighted, longer term and prophetic view of what they are doing. This view makes it vital for them to ‘tell the story’ of the future and foresee the consequences of their actions. They also know that they are role models whose every word and deed undergo minute analysis and reflection by their followers – the leader becomes increasingly aware because what the leader says and does becomes a precedent.

Fireside Chat

Culture and Postmodernism

storytelling — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 08:00:34 -0600

Postmodernism is a term used by philosophers, social scientists, art and social critics to refer to aspects of contemporary art, culture, economics and social conditions that are the result of the unique features of late 20th and early 21st century life. These features include phenomena such as globalisation, consumerism, branding, the fragmentation of authority, and the knowledge economy. An important characteristic of postmodernism is that we now have myriad different symbols and metaphors through which we can view the world – these include politics, religion, consumerism, science, art etc... Anything that cannot be physically sensed, such as social justice or one's concept of God, must be referred to by metaphor and symbol. The result is that meaningful communication about issues such as families, politics, sexuality, crime & violence without the use of shared metaphors and symbols is impossible. Some common metaphors in use today include:

Religion and God
Science & Evolution
Romance and sexuality
Capitalism
Racism, supremacy and exclusivity
Psychology and "new age"
Power, entitlement, dominance and submission
Artistic and aesthetic worth
Traditional political categories (Left, Right, Centre, Independent etc.)
Wealth, poverty, disability and security
Philosophy

Your views and beliefs about the world most likely centre around some of these metaphors. For example, if you see the world in terms of cause-effect and experimentation, you are oriented toward science. If you experience the world as a place of wonder and beauty, you will be oriented towards art and aesthetic.

People who share metaphors can communicate effectively and work together constructively. People who do not share common metaphors experience communication difficulties and find it extremely difficult to see each other with anything beyond fear and hostility. Due to this lack of communication between groups, most discussions around important issues quickly degenerate due to the absence of real understanding.

Fireside Chat

Memetics, Memeplexes, Culture and HIV

storytelling — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 01:36:02 -0600

Virology has provided our culture with many useful insights and the term 'viral' and the viral metaphor spring up in the form of computer viruses, viral marketing, memetics and memeplexes. Human beings are by nature metaphorical beings and understand complex concepts through metaphor and analogy. In other words, we understand something in terms of something else.

However, trying to understand a virus in terms of a virus throws the thinker into ever more greatly convoluted loops of logic. To think about HIV, what we need is a good metaphor for HIV - what is it 'like'? What organisms or systems do we know of that do the things HIV does? Could the emergent properties of billions of human beings transacting with each other be doing to our planet what HIV does to our bodies?

A particularly useful area for those working with HIV is the field of memetics and memplexes. The term meme (pronounced like dream) was coined by Biologist Richard Dawkins in his 1976 book "The Selfish Gene" As examples of memes, he suggested “tunes, ideas, catch-phrases, clothes fashions, ways of making pots or of building arches”.

Memes are habits, skills, songs, stories, or any other kind of information that is copied from person to person. Memes, like genes, are replicators. That is, they are information that is copied with variation and selection. Because only some of the variants survive, memes (and hence human cultures) evolve. Memes are copied by imitation, teaching and other methods, and they compete for space in our memories and for the chance to be copied again and agin. Large groups of memes that are copied and passed on together are called co-adapted meme complexes, or memeplexes.

The word “meme” is now found in the Oxford English Dictionary where it is defined “meme (mi:m), n. Biol. (shortened from mimeme ... that which is imitated, after GENE n.) “An element of a culture that may be considered to be passed on by non-genetic means, esp. imitation”.

According to memetics, our minds and cultures are designed by natural selection acting on memes, just as organisms are designed by natural selection acting on genes. A central question for memetics is therefore ‘why has this meme survived?’. Some succeed because they are genuinely useful to us, while others use a variety of tricks to get themselves copied. From the point of view of the “selfish memes” all that matters is replication, regardless of the effect on either us or our genes.

Some memes are almost entirely exploitative, or viral, in nature (chain letters and e-mail viruses). These consist of a “copy-me” instruction backed up with threats and promises. Religions have a similar structure and this is why Dawkins refers to them as "viruses of the mind" Many religions threaten hell and damnation, promise heaven or salvation, and insist that their followers pass on their beliefs to others. This ensures the survival of the memeplex. Other viral memes include alternative therapies, new age fads and cults, children’s games, urban legends and popular songs, all of which can spread like infections.

At the other end of the spectrum memes survive because of their value to us. The most valuable of memeplexes include all of the arts and sports, transport and communications systems, political and monetary systems, literature and science. Memetics has been used to provide new explanations of human evolution, including theories of altruism, the origins of language and consciousness, and the evolution of the human brain. The Internet can be seen as a vast realm of memes, growing rapidly by the process of memetic evolution and not under human control. The field of memetics is new and controversial, with many critics, and difficulties to be resolved.

Steve Banhegyi

Fireside Chat

Homological Transfer

storytelling — Mon, 25 May 2009 02:49:11 -0600

A particle physicist who knows about Brownian Motion (the random movement of particles in a solution) provides useful know-how and input into solving problems of traffic traffic control or the management of disease transmission. Anthroplogists used to studying pre-industrial cultures can provide insights into how social and community systems could be better designed. Film producers and directors have a wealth of experience in project management that has proven to be useful in helping design approaches to service delivery for government.

Seeing the similarity between processes, appropriating metaphors and language from one area of endeavour and applying them in another is probably something we all do - and now there is a word for it - Homological Transfer. Homological Transfer literally means to transfer logic of similar kind between areas of expertise. It engages the study of know-how, metaphors and stories and their systematic re-utilisation in different contexts. Homological Transfer is a knowledge creation process that takes principles and know-how from a field of study and applies them in a completely different context - and so is probably more in use than many would admit, especially given that we often end up doing that for which we were not formally trained.

Questions: What principles, stories and ideas have you found useful in getting things done, and from where did you learn them?
Clearly, transfer of know-how does not always have a positive impact and there are many examples of this too. Can you think of some?

Steve Banhegyi
steve@storytelling.co.za

Fireside Chat

Words of Knowledge - the Ukhamba (Calabash) Metaphor in Southern Africa

Qhakijane — Sun, 24 May 2009 09:07:09 -0600

The word ukhamba is a Zulu word for a huge clay pot. It is commonly used by all African cultures. In Zulu ukhamba consists of two words: ukukhama (which means to squeeze out or compress out as in milking a cow) + bamba (to hold in place so as to receive that which is squeezed out). This meaning clearly explains the metaphor of thinking hard (ukukhama) and receiving the treasures of thinking into human memory (ukubamba). Therefore ukhamba is a container, a reservoir, and a protector of that which is valuable and good for physical and spiritual nourishment. It is a central piece in the rite of social fellowship. The rite itself is treated with respect and studied deference.

As a spiritual concept ukhamba shares the same status as the female womb, which offers protection, sustenance and nurturing to the unborn child. Its contents have the potential of becoming something more greater than itself, like the unborn child who one day gets birthed and grows into an important leader. It may be likened to the eucharistic rite and those who share the contents of the ukhamba to others do so from a squatting or kneeling position.

In the strict Zulu ritual it is never placed on a table or coffee table. It is placed on the floor on a reed mat. The kneeling position symbolises its potency and strength and two messages are conveyed by the kneeling posture: first it is a sign of respect to the fellowship ritual taking place and secondly it is a sign of strength because kneeling symbolises humility in strength by not assuming a proud upright posture yet conserving one’s energy and reflexes to be used with deliberate control.

The place of the ukhamba is the centre. The gathering may sit is a semi-circle or full circle depending on the number of people present. People sit according to their sex and age group. It is then dispensed by a younger member of the gathering who approaches it kneeling and uses a smaller gourd umancitshana or udiyo (literally a stingy measure) and first tastes off a small amount before giving it over to the gathering. Quaffing and swallowing in one gulp are not encouraged. A simple small sip is preferable and the contents may only be finished by those who are wiser or older.

This tasting off is always done in a kneeling position and those who receive the gourd may drink from it from a kneeling or sitting position. The tasting off is euphemistically called ukukhipha ubuthi (the removal of poison) meaning that there is no malice or any hidden grudge in the ritual. More in the spirit of the participants of the holy eucharist making up with one another before partaking the Lord’s emblems.

It is a social offence to behave recklessly or disrespectfully during social drinking. Good public deportment and less talkativeness are the hallmarks of good breeding and manners. The young person must keep quite and speak only if addressed and listen attentively to the elders.

This ritual combines the four elements of Zulu mythology in a dynamic interactive process.

The reed is a very important emblem of Zulu myths. Zulus and many Africans believe that the first humans emerged from a primordial reed. This is not a literal fact but explains the mutual interdependence of human life and plant life. The hollow reed played a very pivotal role in the myths of Osiris, Moses and the Exodus of Jews from Egypt. The common thread to all myths is the emerging of all players in the stories into a better life. Hence Zulus emerge from the reeds. The Sotho’s do even better to validate this point, because when a child is born a reed is transfixed next the hut where the new born is kept. It is no wonder that Zulus eat from a reed mat (isithebe) , sleep on a reed mat, protect the Queen Mother’s hut with a stockade made of reeds; Swazi and Zulu maidens symbolise their virginity by carrying reeds to the Queen Mother’s hut in ceremony of First Fruits, and any gift is placed on a reed mat on the floor.

The clay pot is made out of earth. The earth symbolising the Eternal Mother and Womb from which all emerge and gets buried in order for others to emerge. The clay pot gives shape to its liquid contents and this means the shaping of all human knowledge by a lived life on earth. There is also another dimension of the earth which Zulus believe is necessary for human life: namely the earth is called umhlaba (literally that which stabs or brings about adversity). This resonates very well with Judeo-Christian concept of the Fallen Nature. Zulus conceive the earth as Umhlaba (the stabber) but are also mindful that healing and recovery is also brought about by herbs (therefore inhlaba (the Aloe plant) and man’s duty to strive against adversity and bring out the best of his ingenuity and creativity.

Water is the base substance which forms part of the contents of ukhamba. In Zulu water is amanzi (literally the heaviest substance in Zulu cosmology). If something is heavy or difficult in Zulu it is said inzima. Like all ancient languages Zulu is amenable to anagramatic analysis. Hence Nzima is the word manzi spelled backwards. This heaviness denoted by Manzi is not about weight but is about the magical cleansing properties of water in purification, preservation. While nzima makes heavy and difficult Manzi is the opposite but equal force which unmakes the heaviness by cleansing And restoring balance. This property of water resonates very well with the Hebraic concept of MEM (the water, the nursemaid, the cosmic mother). This has even prompted other researchers to conclude that Zulu is an ancient language because all ancient human languages denote water by the letter M and Zulu is the only surviving ancient language where the M-sound is preserved as a root sound to denote water.

The Fire is not explicitly seen here because it does not refer to physical Fire or the phlogiston but Fire is seen in the vivifying influence of the social gathering as seen in the sharing of beer and knowledge. This fire hides inside the watery beer but imparts a viva force to the drinkers of the beer. This living force stands for the pioneering spirit of all knowledge as a forward driven advancing and groundbreaking power that consolidates human knowledge and creates possibilities for knowing further and more.

The power of our knowledge systems lies within the power and original meaning of the words within our languages. I have demonstrated how the humble drinking of African beer within a Zulu culture can unlock the formidable latent power of African power. It is this power which resides within our subconscious that needs awakening so that it can help reserve the forgotten teachings of our Ancestors called Ubuntu. Ubuntu is more than humanity it is the sum total of all teachings and concepts that Unkulunkulu (not God), but Unkulunkulu, the first to emerge from the reed, as the First Human Prototype was entrusted with to teach those who follow.

Zulu culture, language & traditions

Of cultures and operating systems

storytelling — Wed, 20 May 2009 23:42:57 -0600

Without an operating system, computer hardware is inanimate and about as capable as a brick. In the early days, the operating system was considered to be an integral part of the computer until a brilliant move by Bill Gates when the hardware was separated from the operating system with MS.DOS Version 1.0. From this point, the operating system became glamorous, glitzy and branded as a consumer product - and had to be paid for separately to the hardware.

I use 3 operating systems - MS.Windows XPPro , Ubuntu 9,04 (Jaunty Jackalope) and Windows Mobile 6.0 on my HTC palmtop. I first started using Linux about 4 years ago. Up 'till then I used Microsoft exclusively apart from my experiences with some of the more exotic operating systems of the early 1980s which included the Commodore PET (with 16Kb RAM!), the Sinclair ZX-81, an o/s for designing integrated circuits called Gaelic and even an O/S called Gerbil.

In using different operating systems, I've noticed that each operating system causes me to interact quite differently with the hardware - an altogether different user experience. On Windows, there are particular rituals that are missing on Linux; I have to do defrags and chkdsks, run virus checker updates (I pay for virus checkers and anti-spyware) and and fiddle with swap files from time to time. I spend much more time on ubuntu now day-to-day and it has always been exceptionally reliable and stable. There are also thousands of software titles available for instant installation and download from Astronomy all the way to Managing a Zoo (I live in a house with teenagers!)

The point is that an operating system has many interesting parallels to culture - a culture inhibits certain behavours whilst stimulating others and in the same way certain programs can run within a particular operating system whilst others cannot. Your apple or Linux software won't run on Windows. A culture can also put you into certain patterns of being and behaving of which you can become completely unconscious - where things can become so commonplace and everyday that they become 'the way we do things around here' - they have become a paradigm.

Fireside Chat

Ukhamba - the Calabash as a metaphor for knowledge sharing and teamwork

KMAadmin — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 00:00:01 -0600

Ukhamba is the Nguni word for Calabash. You pronounce it OO-KHAM-BA. The Calabash is a gourd pumpkin that has been used by ancient people throughout Africa as a container in which to brew beer, store medicines, valuable herbs and water. But the concept of Ukhamba is more than this - it is a metaphor for knowledge sharing and teamwork. Here are some key ideas from Ukhamba as provided by Ralph Sibande and Mama Kena, a Sotho Traditional Healer and expert on culture and Nguni languages:

Meanings of Ukhamba - Unity, teamwork, replenishment, knowledge, wisdom, self-sacrifice, experience. No individual may drink alone.
When drinking African beer from the Ukhamba, it it placed in the centre of the room. When drinking your share, you do so in a kneeling position, never standing upright. You never drink and finish it off - that you leave to those who are older and wiser than you.
There are stories of the ukhamba stimulating storytelling - 'when the ukhamba is in the middle of the room, people just start to talk'
Ukhamba has a similar meaning to the Greek 'wassail bowl' - it stands for giving, receiving. An empty calabash is an insult.
The Calabash / Ukhamba is also a metaphor for transformation - the mature calabash is picked when green and then allowed to dry out in the sun. During this process, it reduces in weight by up to 95% and becomes a hollow container for its seeds. You can hear the seeds rattling around in it when you shake it hard.