Capturing Death

In some communities, people perform a death avoiding ritual known as kuteya riva. Literally, kuteya riva is the rigging of a deadfall trap for catching mice. For ritualistic purposes, however, this is a spiritual trap that is kept hidden in a mountain. As long as it is not disturbed, the person lives on.

To provide for the possibility that one could become too old to personally trigger the trap, they share details of the trap with a trusted relative such as a muzukuru.

Some scholars have argued that this triggering of the riva by someone else is equivalent to euthanasia. And if they personally triggered it – a suicide?

Source: Zimboriginals.com