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Reality in the world is moving at confusing, meteoric speed, brewing equally confusing human behaviour and desires. While there is hardship that is normally judged by its external features, there is an unseen suffering which has caged the human spirit in certain slavery.

This is the main concern in Ignatius Tirivangani Mabasa’s third novel ‘‘Imbwa YeMunhu’’ (2013, Bhabhu Books, Harare). The novel fearlessly blasts spiritual bondage using the inner feelings of characters that have fallen victim to the deceit of fleshly desires.

Mabasa is an award-winning author, storyteller and poet whose style of writing especially the Shona novel is somehow postmodern. For being inventive, he has a growing following of readers who have known him as ‘‘the Marechera of Shona language/writing’’.

From the title and right into the story of ‘‘Imbwa YeMunhu’’, Mabasa displays great talent in his creation of a Shona language that impacts upon the reader’s mind with images, song, humour and poetry. Mabasa the implied author is a strict observer, ready to give a rebuttal against things ‘‘untruthful’’.

In this novel, he breaks the norm of linear or chronological narration. The story, told from the viewpoint of Musa, a writer, is broken into titled short pieces which could be termed ‘‘Musa’s diary entries’’.

A diary is at first a private collection of one’s thoughts and experiences but when it is published, much is revealed beyond what the diary owner might have imagined! Musa bares it all. His story is like a moving a ‘‘rock of glass’’ that keeps splitting itself into sharp splinters each flying in a different direction and yet landing on the same ground of hunger for spiritual freedom.

Musa is a writer, an alcoholic, a psychopath or sociopath (someone with antisocial characteristics) but he is, above all, a spiritual dog.

Why did Mabasa choose Musa a writer to tell the story of ‘‘Imbwa YeMunhu’’? Is it because as an author himself, Mabasa understands the ‘‘soul’’ of a writer and that the ‘‘soul’’ writes best? Sometimes the narrator takes you to realistic places like the Book Cafe, once a popular venue for arts and culture activities and the University of Zimbabwe where you meet known Zimbabwean writers.

Musa shows a great deal of belief in himself but does not seem to understand why he is ‘‘sick’’. A gifted persona, Musa climbs up the educational ladder to university where he absorbs knowledge and his passion for reading Zimbabwean literature is sharpened. But slowly his life turns darker internally.

Interesting is the will of resistance which Musa has, the will to follow the real God but then there is the ‘‘man with his dogs’’ whom he dreams about.

‘‘Imbwa YeMunhu’’ is frightening in its exploration of different souls seeking certain liberation. The characters are possessed by a certain spirit which is controlled by this ‘man with his dogs’ — the Devil. It is a spiritual tragedy and yet an uplifting tale that waves at us to stop what we are doing and ponder for a moment about the meaning of this worldly meaningless life or the meaninglessness or insanity of a fast-moving worldly life!

Musa, the narrator, sees visions that no one else is seeing, hears voices that others do not hear. In his nightmares (or waking life or day-dreaming, for one is not sure with Mabasa’s style of plot), the most recurring vision or image which seems also to have inspired or inspired by the book’s title is that of a man who owns lots of ‘human dogs’ and Musa believes he must be one of the ‘‘human dogs’’ because he (Musa) feels he is not in control of his life. At some point, while thinking why his brother Hamu always refers to him as ‘‘imbwa yemunhu’’, Musa narrates, “Pamwe mukoma vanoona murume uya wembwa dzake achindiita imbwa yake, ini ndichimutevera! Ndinofunga kuti ndizvo zviri kundipa kuti kana ndarara, ndirote ndiri imbwa, ndichinwa doro nedzimwe imbwa tiri mubwawa. Bwawa rembwa, rinoridzwa mimhanzi yembwa, imbwa dzichitamba museve! Ndiri imbwa asi ndiri munhu here, kana kuti ndiri munhu asi ndiri imbwa?”

Although at times Musa the narrator gets humorous, the reader could feel the private fears, the uncertainties and little hopes underlying his and other characters’ actions. Musa knows that believing in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is an essential gateway to ‘‘the truth that sets free’’ which he is seeking, yet he is in chains, some kind of chains. In a section titled ‘‘Mweya’’, Musa says, “Mweya wangu une mhumi nemapere zvakaugarira mumakwenzi zviri kurwerwa rute.”

But shockingly, in a section titled ‘‘Kuzvirutsira’’, Musa seems to strongly defend sin!

He falls in love with Juli, Richard’s wife. And when his uncle from Domboshava advises him to stop such unacceptable behaviour, he defends self as follows, “Kana zvandiri kunzwa nekuda kwerudo zvichiuraya, kubva ngandife zvangu. Kufa rufu rwunotapira, ndigogadzira chitunha chinosekerera vanhu vanenge vachindidongorera mubhokisi rangu”.

Such biting irony, which is purely a suicidal mentality, has gripped some young people in real life. They know very well the consequences of their actions but they are not able to break free as if they live under a spell or curse. There is no longer self-discipline.

Juli is a bird in a marital cage. She is another spiritual slave. Richard, her husband ‘‘the dealer’’, has no time for her. She is kept waiting in vain for love. And she finds love dangerously from outside her marriage, in Musa’s arms.

Juli stands for women who have found marriage as a situation similar to being behind bars. The promises of oneness which men made to their wives when they were lovers dwindle into nothing but absence and sometimes, abuse. Like a dove that does not stay at a noisy home, love flies away.

The gothic part comes alive in the section titled ‘‘MuGehena’’ — hell. Here, whoever the reader is, you question your own life and find the answer right there! The conversation in Hell between Musa and the woman (wife of a high-placed minister of State) is humorously piercing.

In short, materialism does not save the spirit. Reading this part alone, one can feel the hair-raising eternal darkness which Hell’s inhabitants subsists upon — the final condemnation and spiritual agony of those who belonged to the ‘‘man and his dogs’’.

‘‘Imbwa YeMunhu’’ is not a preachy piece of Christian literature. Although it upholds God as the only answer to man’s quest for real freedom, the novel creatively addresses serious spiritual issues that men and women pretend not to care about.

It is not sweetened gospel; it is a rich literary product. It’s sarcasm against worldliness is ‘‘bitter to swallow’’ but in the end, it is healing.

His other thrilling novels are ‘‘Ndafa Here’’ and ‘‘Mapenzi’’. He has intensively published his poetry in group anthologies and at times performed for school children. His book ‘‘Meri Ne- bhutsu Tsvuku’’ was a NAMA nominee for Outstanding Children’s Book in 2013. Mabasa churned his own brand of ‘‘gospoetry or gospel poetry’’, a mixture of music, preaching and poetry, which is still popular only that he has not fed his fans with some more since the release of his gospoetry CD called ‘‘Yadhakwa’’ in 2007.