Kure kwegava ndokusina mutsubvu
A jackal will consider very far, only that place where there is no mutsubvu fruit tree (this is wild black fruit indigenous to Zimbabwe and loved by jackals).
Tsanagudzo
Kana kuine chinhu chaunodisa chiri kure newe, moyo wako unopisa zvokuti unozoona nzvimbo yachiri seiri pedyo. Mazwi etsumo iyi anoreva kuti munhu anogunun’una kufamba rwendo rurefu kana kuita basa rinorema kana achiziva kuti zvinhu zvaanofarira hazviko ikoko kana kuti haazviwane kana apedza kuita basa racho.
What the Words Say
A jackal will consider very far, only that place where there is no mutsubvu fruit tree (this is wild black fruit indigenous to Zimbabwe and loved by jackals).
What It Means
If there is something a person loves greatly and desires to have, they will try their best and go the length in order to get it. For instance if a young man is sent on an errand, he may complain that it is far, but if the girl he is courting resides further, but on the same path as where the errand takes him, he will gladly take up the errand.
Cultural Context
The proverb is based on the love that jackals have for the mutsvubvu fruit such that the jackal can travel for miles just to get a taste of the fruit while it may feel lazy to travel a few hundred metres to get other foods. Our ancestors used this proverb to illustrate how desire can be used to motivate or get the best of someone and inversely to understand and address a lack of motivation.
How It's Used
Application of this proverb is based on noticing what motivates people to go far or do more in meeting various tasks. What the proverb also teaches is if you work with people and want them to perform at their best level, it is important to know what their desires (mutsvubvu) are to keep them motivated. Conversely when one is too eager to do a certain task, it can be questioned whether there is a hidden desire that is not yet apparent.