rainmaking charms are ‘kept under lock and key’ until the first Saturday in October, when the Balobedu nation gathers at the royal kraal in the Bolobedu district. Shoes are strictly forbidden in the kraal.
A cow, named Makhubo, is led into the kraal. Beer is poured and praises are sung; the beer is offered to the cow. ‘When it’s had enough, it’s led out of the kraal with the other cattle,’ says Molokwane.
The remaining beer is taken to a special shrine adjacent to the kraal, where the rainmaking charms are laid out. Skins are laid out around the shrine, and mainly elderly people sit to one side. The beer is poured over the charms as the Rain Queen calls on the ancestors to make rain, and simultaneously the people praise the queen.
Once a complicated beer-drinking ritual is completed by those present, big drums are produced and songs for unity are sung, and the people dance around the shrine.
From there, the ceremony returns to the kraal, where the nation dances for the rest of the day. Children also take smaller drums and run around the village, singing, says Molokwane, adding: ‘When they pick a drum, we know it’s time to drink.’
Makhubo, the cow used in the rainmaking ceremony, also has a matrilineal heritage, says Molokwane. When she gives birth to a female calf, that calf then takes the Makhubo name, just as successive Rain Queens take the name of Modjadji, the first queen.