VOA标准英语2010年-Tales of Witchcraft Abound in Zimbabwe

“When she came to barter¹ with rural folk the trouble started. One of our neighbors requested [sugar] on credit and she refused. Before the end of the day she was bleeding from the nose, mouth and ears.”

In Zimbabwe, witchcraft² is still common in rural areas.  Hardly a week passes without a local report or newspaper story on the practice.  For example, police recently cornered a man at the Mbare Mbare bus terminal, after they discovered a live cobra snake in his luggage.  He told officers the reptile³ was one of his witching tools.

About two weeks later, some women were discovered wandering naked in the early hours of the morning near Highfield. After being confronted by locals, they claimed they’d “flown” from a rural location during one of several night time escapades. But they said something went wrong and the spell wore off, before they could return to their original location.

Four years ago, the government proclaimed that supernatural powers do exist. But it says it still prohibits the use of magic if it harms someone.

Many Zimbabweans, especially those who grow up in rural areas, find it difficult to dismiss the existence of witchcraft.  Tendai Manyimo,30,  lives in Chitandara. He explained that his wife is a vendor⁴ and that her face became contorted after she was bewitched by rival vendors⁵. He claims she’d been running a successful sugar sale venture:

“When she came to barter with rural folk the trouble started. One of our neighbors requested [sugar] on credit and she refused.  Before the end of the day she was bleeding from the nose, mouth and ears,”  he says.
Manyimo said a faith healer cured her.

David Nyemba, 77, from Mazhambe village believes he was bewitched by his aunt while he was employed as a driver in the city three years ago. He says a turning point came in his life when he quit his job in order to return to village life:

 “I was the darling of the company management ,” he says,  “and I did not realize I could have some hidden enemies.”

“My aunt pretended to like me and gave me money to spend. My instinct told me to refuse, but I went against my better judgment⁶ and spent it. I was demoted and harassed⁷ constantly by my superiors [which] never used to happen.  I got the answers after visiting a traditional healer.”

Margaret Mashayamombe,83, is a traditional healer in Mutenda village, Chihota.  She says witchcraft is used in families for revenge and spite.

Mashayamombe also says the frequency of recent reports on witchcraft indicates forces of good are triumphing over evil.  She says Zimbabweans should respect traditions by performing rituals favored by their forefathers⁸.

“Life was okay,” she asserts, “until some over-ambitious individuals went outside the country to get advice from traditional healers there on how to get rich quickly. That is where the problem began, because they came back with remedies that are harmful [to] others. All this is now being exposed due to the powers of the spirits of our forefathers.”

Sarudzai Nyota, 33,  a member of the apostolic faith sect⁹, says she believes the country would be better off without elevating the supernatural.  Sarudzai says people should turn to God and seek salvation¹⁰ through Jesus Christ, as a way of overcoming being susceptible¹¹ to witchcraft.

[Nyota says] The Christian¹² church believes there’s only a “good” spirit, meaning what is called the Holy Spirit, whereas witchcraft has origins in Satanism.

 

1 barter   

n.物物交换，以货易货，实物交易

参考例句：

• Chickens,goats and rabbits were offered for barter at the bazaar.在集市上，鸡、山羊和兔子被摆出来作物物交换之用。
• They have arranged food imports on a barter basis.他们以易货贸易的方式安排食品进口。

2 witchcraft   

n.魔法，巫术

参考例句：

• The woman practising witchcraft claimed that she could conjure up the spirits of the dead.那个女巫说她能用魔法召唤亡灵。
• All these things that you call witchcraft are capable of a natural explanation.被你们统统叫做巫术的那些东西都可以得到合情合理的解释。

3 reptile   

n.爬行动物；两栖动物

参考例句：

• The frog is not a true reptile.青蛙并非真正的爬行动物。
• So you should not be surprised to see someone keep a reptile as a pet.所以，你不必惊奇有人养了一只爬行动物作为宠物。

4 vendor   

n.卖主；小贩

参考例句：

• She looked at the vendor who cheated her the other day with distaste.她厌恶地望着那个前几天曾经欺骗过她的小贩。
• He must inform the vendor immediately.他必须立即通知卖方。

5 vendors   

n.摊贩( vendor的名词复数 )；小贩；（房屋等的）卖主；卖方

参考例句：

• The vendors were gazundered at the last minute. 卖主在最后一刻被要求降低房价。
• At the same time, interface standards also benefIt'software vendors. 同时，界面标准也有利于软件开发商。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

6 judgment   

n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见

参考例句：

• The chairman flatters himself on his judgment of people.主席自认为他审视人比别人高明。
• He's a man of excellent judgment.他眼力过人。

7 harassed   

adj. 疲倦的，厌烦的 动词harass的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He has complained of being harassed by the police. 他投诉受到警方侵扰。
• harassed mothers with their children 带着孩子的疲惫不堪的母亲们

8 forefathers   

n.祖先，先人；祖先，祖宗( forefather的名词复数 )；列祖列宗；前人

参考例句：

• They are the most precious cultural legacy our forefathers left. 它们是我们祖先留下来的最宝贵的文化遗产。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• All of us bristled at the lawyer's speech insulting our forefathers. 听到那个律师在讲演中污蔑我们的祖先，大家都气得怒发冲冠。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 sect   

n.派别，宗教，学派，派系

参考例句：

• When he was sixteen he joined a religious sect.他16岁的时候加入了一个宗教教派。
• Each religious sect in the town had its own church.该城每一个宗教教派都有自己的教堂。

10 salvation   

n.（尤指基督）救世，超度，拯救，解困

参考例句：

• Salvation lay in political reform.解救办法在于政治改革。
• Christians hope and pray for salvation.基督教徒希望并祈祷灵魂得救。

11 susceptible   

adj.过敏的，敏感的；易动感情的，易受感动的

参考例句：

• Children are more susceptible than adults.孩子比成人易受感动。
• We are all susceptible to advertising.我们都易受广告的影响。

12 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。