Shingai Musasiwa, also known as the Nyaminyami (Zambezi River God) or Zambezi Snake

spirit, is one of the most important gods of Tonga people. Nyami Nyami is believed to protect
the Tonga people and give them sustenance in difficult times. The River God is usually portrayed
as female.
Variously described as having the body of a snake and the head of a fish, a whirlpool or a river
dragon, the Nyami Nyami is seen as the god of Zambezi Valley and the river before the creation
of the Kariba Dam. The Nyami Nyami is regularly depicted as a snake-like being or dragon-like
creature with a snake's torso and the head of a fish.
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It can be found as pendants on jewelry,
usually carved out of wood, stone or bone, occasionally ivory, silver or gold both as a fashion
accessory and as a good luck charm similar to the wearing of a St Christopher medallion.
Elaborate traditionally carved walking sticks depicting the Nyami Nyami and its relationship
with the valley's inhabitants were popular with tourists visiting Zambia and have historically
been gifts to prestigious visitors.
It is the traditional role of tribal elders and spirit mediums to intercede on behalf the inhabitants
of the river valley when Nyami Nyami is angered.
The Nyaminyami is said to reside in the Zambezi River and control the life in and on the river.
The spirits of Nyaminyami and his wife residing in the Kariba Gorge are God and Goddess of
the underworld. The Tonga people believe the building of the Kariba Dam deeply offended
Nyami Nyami, separating him from his wife. The regular flooding and many deaths during the
dam's construction were attributed to his wrath. After the Dam was completed the Tonga believe
that Nyami Nyami withdrew from the world of men.
Legend
Although there are several different legends surrounding the Nyaminyami the Kariba legend is
the most documented and widely known fable.
The Kariba Legend
"The BaTonga People lived in the Zambezi Valley for centuries in peaceful seclusion and with
little contact with the outside world. They were simple folk who built their houses in kraal along
the banks of the great river and believed that their gods looked after them supplying them with
water and food.
But their idealistic lifestyle was to be blown apart. In the early 1940s a report was made about
the possibility of a hydro-electric scheme to supply power for the growing industry that
colonialism had brought to the federation of countries that were known as Northern Rhodesia on
one side of the river and Southern Rhodesia on the other, now Zambia and Zimbabwe.
In 1956, construction on the Kariba Dam project was started.
Heavy earth-moving equipment roared into the valley and tore out thousands of hundred-year-
old trees to build roads and settlements to house the workers who poured into the area to build a
dam that would harness the powerful river. The BaTongas peace and solitude was shattered and
they were told to leave their homes and move away from the river to avoid the flood that the dam
would cause.
The name Kariba comes from the word Kariva or karinga, meaning trap, which refers to a rock
jutting out from the gorge where the dam wall was to be built. It was believed by the BaTonga to
be the home of Nyaminyami, the river god, and they believed anyone who ventured near the
rock was dragged down to spend eternity under the water.
Reluctantly they allowed themselves to be resettled higher up the bank, but they believed
Nyaminyami would never allow the dam to be built and eventually, when the project failed, they
would move back to their homes.
In 1957, when the dam was well on its way to completion, Nyaminyami struck. The worst floods
ever known on the Zambezi washed away much of the partly built dam and the heavy equipment,
killing many of the workers.
Some of those killed were white men whose bodies disappeared mysteriously, and after an
extensive search failed to find them, Tonga elders were asked to assist as their tribesmen knew
the river better than anyone. The elders explained Nyaminyami had caused the disaster and in
order to appease his wrath a sacrifice should be made.
They weren't taken seriously, but, in desperation, when relatives of the missing workers were due
to arrive to claim the bodies of their loved ones, the search party agreed in the hope that the
tribesmen would know where the bodies were likely to have been washed to.
A Black calf was slaughtered and floated on the river. The next morning the calf was gone and
the workers bodies were in its place. The disappearance of the calf holds no mystery in the
crocodile infested river, but the reappearance of the workers bodies three days after they had
disappeared has never been satisfactorily explained.
After the disaster, flow patterns of the river were studied to ascertain whether there was a
likelihood of another flood and it was agreed a flood of comparable intensity would only occur
once every thousand years.
The very next rainy season, however, brought further floods even worse than the previous year.
Nyaminyami had struck again, destroying the coffer dam, the access bridge and parts of the main
wall.
The project survived and the great river was eventually controlled. In 1960 the generators were
switched on and have been supplying electricity to Zimbabwe and Zambia ever since.
The BaTonga still live on the shores of Lake Kariba, and many still believe one day Nyaminyami
will fulfill his promise and they will be able to return to their homes on the banks of the river.
They believe Nyaminyami and his wife were separated by the wall across the river, and the
frequent earth tremors felt in the area since the wall was built are caused by the spirit trying to
reach his wife, and one day he will destroy the dam.