As South Africa celebrates Heritage Month, a growing number of young people are questioning whether some cultural traditions serve their intended purpose in modern society. For example, some have unique spiritual and traditional rituals, such as new year celebrations and spring rituals. While heritage remains an important source of identity and belonging, debates are emerging about which traditions should be preserved, adapted or reinterpreted for a new generation.
The celebrations are centred on remembering and preserving our historical knowledge systems, indigenous languages and African heritage. Amid the festivities, young people question the ancient traditions, guided by history, that are practised in modern society and the systems they follow because they believe not all practices are relevant today.
This brings us to a question: Does history oppress or liberate us? The question can be answered across all spheres of history, including the traditional, spiritual and political.
The current generation believes that, traditionally, history takes us back, gets us stuck in a world we never lived in and deprives us of the liberty to experience life holistically. This is because every aspect of our lives is referenced to how life was lived before, which imposes those beliefs on the modern world.
The younger generation argues that overreliance on historical practices can discourage innovation and independent thinking. It encourages people who cannot think for themselves but instead rely on outdated innovations and revelations from their ancestors to survive. Hence, the question is whether some traditions are relevant to modern society.
Dr Imboni uZwi-Lezwe Radebe, in his teachings, argues that some traditions practised in the modern day are outdated because traditions evolve with time, generations and the spiritual revelations of the time. Perhaps what is celebrated is an outdated tradition? Just like the curriculum, it gets old and needs to be reviewed and updated to meet job market needs. But why are people practising the same traditions, the same way their ancestors did? In organisational terms, it sounds like people who are resisting change, people who still fetch water from rivers that have dried up.
To the younger generation, using history as a manual rather than as a reference is no different from oppression. Radebe says spirituality gives us the liberty to be co-creators through spiritual guidance.
At the same time, the same history and all its elements are said to be problematic and inauthentic, as they are arguably diluted by colonial influence and not written by Africans, according to Negedu and Ojoma (2018).
Another challenge is knowing when authentic history starts and ends and how we reference it. Hence, young people are confused about what the term Masibuyele embo (let us go back to our roots) means.
Consequently, scholars are advocating that our history be rewritten by its custodians, arguing that Western perspectives have diluted its writing in favour of Eurocentric perspectives (Negedu and Ojoma, 2018). September then becomes a very exciting and confusing month for South African youngsters, as contradictory information is shared and various traditions are observed in different places. Which roots are we going back to when they are questioned? And who has authentic knowledge about this history?
Politically, history is oppressing black South Africans as it influences their daily lives, said Vuyolwethu Zungula. He further argues that our history is not in favour of black South Africans, as the apartheid government engineered a society that oppressed black South Africans. He referred to the history that was created from the arrival of colonial imperialists and the beginning of the apartheid government.
The African new year debate rages on.
Young people are stuck between identifying the authentic African calendar that black South Africans should follow and, as the Blue Nation, celebrating their new year alongside the Basotho Nation on the first day of August each year at the Prophetess Manstopa Anna Makhetha Mountains in Clocolan, Lady Brand, Free State. Some celebrate the new year on 23 Septembe at Inzalo Yelanga in Mpumalanga, others go to Intaba ka Nonesi in the Eastern Cape, on 18 and 19 September, to celebrate the African new year. Africans should have a common understanding of African ways. It seems that even African spirituality itself is fragmented, making it difficult for the younger generation to know which one is authentic.
However, the introduction of Western perspectives and colonisation has diluted African ways of living, including African spirituality and has caused division among the black community. Hence the various celebrations of the African new year by the same people for the same purpose. From a critical perspective, the celebrations are no different from those of the many churches, worshipping the same god we have in South Africa.
Eventually, black South Africans who subscribe to African spirituality need to come together and hold one big celebration of the African new year, based on the researched and spiritually validated date. The existence of multiple interpretations of African spiritual practices can create uncertainty for some young people seeking cultural grounding, leading some to abandon their true identities and subscribe to Western ideologies because their own is difficult to understand, with many voices preaching it differently.
Without having to choose among modernity, spirituality and tradition, black South Africans need to find ways to allow the three to coexist. Heritage remains a valuable element because it connects people to their history but its continued relevance may depend on its ability to adapt to changing social realities. The challenge for younger generations is not whether to abandon their roots but how to understand and reinterpret them in a rapidly changing world.
Lusanda Madikane is an award-winning author, founder and CEO of MoyaComms and its weekly LinkedIn newsletter, a Mail & Guardian Top 200 Young South African 2025 honouree, Sunday World Unsung Hero, public affairs writer and Students for Liberty coordinator.