"Thenge" Oath - the First oath.
"1) I speak the truth and swear before Ngai and everyone present here.
And by this Batumi Oath of Mungi
That if I am called upon to fight forour land,
To shed my blood for it,
I shall obey and never surrender.
And if I fail to do so:
- May this oath kill me
- May this thenge kill me
- May this seven kill me
- May this meat kill me [eaten as part of the ritual]
"(2) I speak the truth . . .present here
And before the children of Kikuyu and Mumbi
That I shall never betray our country
That I shall never betray a member of Muingi to our enemies
Whether they be European, Asian, or African.
And that if I do this:
- May this oath etc
"(3) I speak the truth . . .present here
That if I am called upon at night or during a storm
To destroy the house or store of a European or other enemy
I shall do this without fear and never surrender
And if I fail to do this:
- May this oath etc
"(4) I speak the truth . . .present here
That is I am called upon to fight
Or to kill the enemy.I shall go
Even if the enemy be my father or mother or, my brother or my sister
And if I refuse:
- May this oath etc
"(5) I speak the truth . . .present here
That if the people of Muingi come by day or night
And ask me to hide them
I shall do so and I shall help them
And if I fail to do this:
- May this oath etc
"(6) I speak the truth . . .present here
That I shall never seduce the woman of another man
That I shall never take up with any prostitutes
That I shall never steal anything belonging to a member of the Muingi
Nor shall I ever hate or speak badly of another member
And if I fail to do these things:
- May this oath etc
"(7) I speak the truth and swear before Ngai and everyone present here
And by this Batumi Oath of Muingi
That I shall never sell my country for money or any other thing
That I shall abide until death by all the vows I have made this day
That I shall never disclose our secrets to thje enemy
Nor shall I disclose them to anyone who is not a member of the Muingi
And if I break any of the vows I have consciously made
I will agree to any punishment that this society decides to give me
And if I fail to do these things:
- May this oath kill me
- May this thenge kill me
- May this seven kill me [ceremonial acts]
- May this meat kill me [eaten as part of the ritual]"
A Mau Mau arch and strangled cat are displayed at Kiambu, Nairobi, Oct. 23, 1952, after they were found with a message, written in blood in the Kikuyu language, reading "With effect from today, October 23, 1952, any person who continues to work for the whites will be destroyed by the power of this thenge oath".
"1) I speak the truth and swear before Ngai and everyone present here.
And by this Batumi Oath of Mungi
That if I am called upon to fight forour land,
To shed my blood for it,
I shall obey and never surrender.
And if I fail to do so:
- May this oath kill me
- May this thenge kill me
- May this seven kill me
- May this meat kill me [eaten as part of the ritual]
"(2) I speak the truth . . .present here
And before the children of Kikuyu and Mumbi
That I shall never betray our country
That I shall never betray a member of Muingi to our enemies
Whether they be European, Asian, or African.
And that if I do this:
- May this oath etc
"(3) I speak the truth . . .present here
That if I am called upon at night or during a storm
To destroy the house or store of a European or other enemy
I shall do this without fear and never surrender
And if I fail to do this:
- May this oath etc
"(4) I speak the truth . . .present here
That is I am called upon to fight
Or to kill the enemy.I shall go
Even if the enemy be my father or mother or, my brother or my sister
And if I refuse:
- May this oath etc
"(5) I speak the truth . . .present here
That if the people of Muingi come by day or night
And ask me to hide them
I shall do so and I shall help them
And if I fail to do this:
- May this oath etc
"(6) I speak the truth . . .present here
That I shall never seduce the woman of another man
That I shall never take up with any prostitutes
That I shall never steal anything belonging to a member of the Muingi
Nor shall I ever hate or speak badly of another member
And if I fail to do these things:
- May this oath etc
"(7) I speak the truth and swear before Ngai and everyone present here
And by this Batumi Oath of Muingi
That I shall never sell my country for money or any other thing
That I shall abide until death by all the vows I have made this day
That I shall never disclose our secrets to thje enemy
Nor shall I disclose them to anyone who is not a member of the Muingi
And if I break any of the vows I have consciously made
I will agree to any punishment that this society decides to give me
And if I fail to do these things:
- May this oath kill me
- May this thenge kill me
- May this seven kill me [ceremonial acts]
- May this meat kill me [eaten as part of the ritual]"
A Mau Mau arch and strangled cat are displayed at Kiambu, Nairobi, Oct. 23, 1952, after they were found with a message, written in blood in the Kikuyu language, reading "With effect from today, October 23, 1952, any person who continues to work for the whites will be destroyed by the power of this thenge oath".
