Celani Sikhakhane
A 37-year-old maiden among reed dance participants at the weekend has been part of the ceremony since the age of 12.
Zanele Magudulela is a journalism and film graduate now working for a production company based in Gauteng. She said living in Johannesburg has been a constant battle against temptation so that she can remain a maiden.
Zanele Magudulela, who is originally from Newcastle in KwaZulu-Natal, told Scrolla.Africa during the ceremony at the eNyokeni Royal Palace that she had been under pressure for years to lose her virginity in the City of Gold. But she refused to succumb.
“There are so many people, including my male friends, who have tried to break my virginity but I have refused.”
She explained that whenever she feels tempted, she asks herself whether it is worth all those nights sleeping in the cold and dancing in the rain at the reed dance just for one night of fun.
“That is why I always turn down those love offers.”
Magudulela said virginity is something that makes her feel as if she has something special in her life.
“At the age of 12 I told my parents, especially my father, that I am taking this route and he has been supportive ever since.”
She added that she didn’t choose to keep her virginity because she was saving herself for marriage. “The reality is that not all of us are destined for marriage,” she said,
Magudulela was among the 50,000 maidens who gathered at the eNyokeni Royal Palace for the long-awaited reed dance ceremony, after a two-year hiatus during lockdown.
The reed dance was traditionally a ceremony to teach women about adulthood and motherhood, but it has evolved. Now it is also an occasion to provide young women with an education on contemporary issues and to give practical advice.
During the two-day ceremony, institutions of higher learning assist maidens with application forms and tell them about study and bursary opportunities.
The ceremony was revived by the late queen regent Mantfombi Shiyiwe kaSobhuza and her husband, the late king Zwelithini kaBhekuzulu, in 1984.
