Jaha kutizisa mhandara kuona danga

Zvimwe zvinhu unoita kana uine zvawakatemba.

For a young man to make a young woman elope, he must have cattle.

Some undertakings can only be done if you have the resources to meet the requirements and consequences.

Customarily, it is possible to initiate marriage if the woman elopes to the home or residence of the man or his parents or his aunt. This is usually done when the woman is pregnant and the responsible man is not taking the matter seriously or lacks the means to marry. It can be done at the behest of the man or by the woman or her family. What ever the specifics, what is clear is that the lobola negotiations can be very complicated after eloping such that a cultured man would not easily propose such as an act. Hence for a man to encourage a woman to elope would mean that he must be prepared to deal with the lobola negations as represented by the cattle he may own. In this way our ancestors sought to educate us that when ever one decides to make a major undertaking one must be prepared for it and the consequences.

The proverb is used to question someone about to make a major undertaking if they have the necessary resources. It can also be used as a comment after noticing that there must have be a good reason behind someone initiating a major activity. However this should not be interpreted inversely to mean that if one has the means, they should ignore the normal and proper procedures as there are other proverbs which counter that and that was not what this proverb was intended for.