Time is the wisest of all things that are; for it brings everything to light,” says Thales, a philosopher from Miletus.
It is through the passage of time that things are revealed. A man’s true character is tested through time. That is why if one wants to judge someone as a good person or a bad person, they should just give time some time; it will reveal who they truly are.
Lucius Banda’s piece titled ‘Nthawi’ bears such a philosophical teaching. In this song, the great musician sings:
Nthawi yandiphunzitsa chiphunzitso/abale nditha kuwaloza…
The singer is telling a story of his life through the debilitating course of time. It is through the journey of life that he became wiser about the reality of life.
For Banda, the motif of time is a recurring in his songs and, most importantly, he is a symbol of time himself and, at the same time, a product of time.
The Balaka based musician started his music career in the early 1990s and, throughout the years, he has become better and better in an industry where many have just shone briefly like a meteor and fallen into oblivion.
In the album Son of A Poor Man, there is a track titled ‘Mabala’ which talks about the end of time for the one party state regime.
In this song, the artist says that nothing is permanent as it is only a matter of time for such things to come to an end.
“Inu mumati zizakhala choncho, mpakana liti abale….” he questions the political establishment at the time.
To show that time and Banda are bed fellows, he even has a whole album titled Time in which one of the tracks says that all things are temporary, including the political power that people posses.
This album came during the time of the late Bingu wa Mutharika, when Banda was at daggers drawn with Bingu, the enmity that also partially led to his incarceration in 2005. Lucius Banda sings that the only precious thing we have in the world is time and that when we lose it, we cannot replace it.
In Enemy, there is a track titled ‘Wachikondi Forever’ in which he promises his loved one eternal love. The idea of love that stands firm through the tempests of time is a universal theme. Lucius uses this knowledge to deliver a point that true love ought to endure the test of time.
Then, there is a track titled ‘Kalata ya chitatu’ in which he says:
Padutsa zaka faifi chilembereni kalata yopita kwa amalume/Anatchona ku Jubeki….
The number five represents years that have passed since he wrote a letter to his uncle. The greatest success in
this song is the chronology of events that happened in the country’s socio-political sphere. The deaths of Vic Marley, Bishop Nyanja, Dumbo Lemani and all took place during these five years.
Again many things changed when a new president came to power. This is the philosophy of Heraclitus of Ephesus that the only thing which is permanent is change itself.
Yahwe is another album in which, in the song titled ‘Kupupluma’, where he sings:
Usalire mchemwali wanga/
Kupupuluma udakwatiwa ndi wothawa nkhondo/
…ona lero adakuthawa/
Adanka kwawo…/
Udayiwala kulima…/
Mwamuna sing’ombe…
This is intended to be both a rebuke and a piece of advice to his sister, who behaved myopically. The future is a time when a person should prepare for as time will definitely glide into it and one does not need to be caught unawares when events unfold.
The artist sings a song about his teacher by looking back in time to acknowledge what a teacher did for him in an album titled Enemy.
It is human to turn back the hands of time and reflect on many things that shaped one’s life. For Banda, there is one person worthy praising and that’s his teacher, someone who prepared him to face his future time with confidence. And, if he is managing his present time well, it is a result of a teacher in his past.
An album called Thank You has a track called ‘Sagona’ in which the character does not sleep but utilises time to work very hard. This is a great philosophical teaching especially to some people who love to waste time doing nothing but at the same time expecting something. If only people know how to utilise time, then they will be successful.
William Shakespeare writes in Macbeth that in order to beguile time, be like time. If people were to be economic with time like time itself, they would gladly reap the fruits time gives as it passes by.
In the album called Take Over, there are tracks titled ‘Musamunyengerere Mwanayu’, ‘Mundikumbuke’ and ‘Kalata Yachiwiri’ whose message centres around time.
‘Musamunyengere mwanayu’ warns sugar daddies not to spoil the youth as they are the leaders of tomorrow. In ‘Kalati Yachiwiri’, he is addressing his uncle again, informing him about the events that took place here at home about “matenda (HIV/AIDS) kuno avuta, komanso fetereza anadula”.
The saddest time for Banda was when he was imprisoned and this is evident in the album titled Johnny, in which he bids farewell to his son as he is going to prison where he will stay for many years.
In the album called Life, the artist says “Nkhani zakale kale simukukhuluka/
Chondiwawa ine/
Ndachoka nanu kutali.
This is a good teaching as in life some people tend not to forgive the wrongs of others even after many years.
In an album titled Jah, Banda sings that ‘pang’ono pang’ono a Yesu Azabwera’. The theme of this song is the advent of Christ which is one of the teachings in Christianity.
Thus, Banda is trying to inculcate some hope in people whose hearts are broken and are weary of the tribulations of this life. There is a time they should look forward to and that’s the coming of the messiah.
In Cell 51 there is a song titled ‘Azatimva’, in which the persona is promising his detractors that in a time of the future, things will turn out well with him and they will hear how blessed he will be. This song also instils hope in people who are facing challenges in life that they should always work hard and look ahead as there comes a time in the future when all the present troubles will end. They say every problem has a life span and Banda is preaching this philosophy of time.
Finally, in the album Cease Fire’, there is a song ‘Ulimbe Mtima Mwana Wanga’ in which the artist is telling his son that he should wait for some time before his father comes back from the city where he’s gone to work.
Thus Banda has not only remained relevant to the music industry because he sings songs that revolve around the philosophy of time but has also survived time’s callous bruises that would have silenced many others. He is no doubt an epitome of time itself as it has taught him huge lessons of life.
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