Ubuntu: “I Am Because We Are”
- 20 hours ago
- 3 min read
Every trip leaves you with a few ideas that stay with you even after you’ve unpacked your suitcase. For me, one of those ideas is Ubuntu. I first heard the term at the conclusion of the Lesedi Cultural Village presentation as we all danced together in the boma.
Ubuntu is a philosophy that has deep roots in the cultures of southern Africa, particularly among peoples such as the Zulu and Xhosa. While it is often translated as “I am because we are,” the idea goes much deeper. It suggests that our humanity is inseparable from the humanity of others—that we become fully ourselves through compassion, generosity, and our relationships with one another.
The concept became known around the world through leaders like Nelson Mandela and Desmond Tutu, who saw Ubuntu as a path toward healing after apartheid. Mandela described it with a simple story: a traveler arrives in a village without asking for food or water, and the community welcomes and cares for them. The question, he said, is not whether we succeed as individuals, but whether our success helps those around us flourish as well.
I found myself thinking about Ubuntu throughout this journey.
The photographs accompanying this post are not pictures of famous landmarks or spectacular wildlife. Instead, they are photos of people—our guides, museum educators, artists, drivers, hotel staff, craftspeople, and countless strangers who welcomed us with genuine warmth. Every stop along the way seemed to include someone eager to share their knowledge, talk politics, tell a story, recommend a favorite restaurant, or offer a smile. I cannot explain how welcoming everyone was.
It happened in Cape Town and in Durban at the Phansi Museum working with the artists who generously shared their knowledge. It happened with our safari guides, whose passion for wildlife transformed every game drive into a lesson about the environment. Or with Luther, the unofficial mayor of Belito, who gave us the grand tour when we arrived and share the area’s history. It happened with our uber driver who spoke nine of South Africa’s eleven official languages and delighted in explaining the country’s extraordinary cultural diversity. And with our guide at Robben Island who shared his unique experiences as an inmate in the prison.
South Africa often describes itself as the “Rainbow Nation,” a phrase coined by Archbishop Desmond Tutu to express the hope that a country long divided by apartheid could become one where people of every background belong. That vision remains unfinished. Like many countries—including here in the USA—South Africa continues to wrestle with inequality, political division, and the complicated work of building a more just society. The aspiration is still being tested every day.
But what I experienced, over and over again, was the everyday practice of Ubuntu. It wasn’t found in monuments or museums. It was found in conversations. In generosity. In hospitality. In people who understood that sharing their culture was not giving something away, but creating connections with us.
As an art teacher, I came to South Africa hoping to better understand indigenous and contemporary African art. I certainly learned about beadwork, textiles, rock painting, painting, sculpture, and architecture too. While those objects all hold valuable lessons, perhaps the most important takeaway was our interaction with the people.
If Ubuntu teaches that “I am because we are,” then every meaningful encounter on this journey became part of who I am. That may be the best souvenir I bring home.
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