Hey, tabanka, tell me where you were,
What’s your feeling, where are you bound?
Hey, tabanka, where were you?
Where were you holed up, where are you going?
Hey, tabanka, where were you hiding?
What’s your feeling, where were you lost?
Hey, tabanka, which way are you going?
What’s your reason?
The king of tabanka with his sword,
Commanding all, marches on!
Hey, tabanka, where were you hiding?
What’s your feeling, where were you lost?
Hey, tabanka, which way are you going?
What’s your reason?
The king of tabanka with his sword,
Commanding all, marches on!
Poor farmer, your words are just bitterness
The sowing season rekindles hopes of plenty
Maize and beans watered by the deceptive rain
Put smiles on faces
The farmer often has a lump in his throat,
His life is very hard
With his batuku and his tabanka,
He wants to see his land made fertile
By the kiss of the rain.
When the slopes turn green,
The farmer’s heart will open to joy
Hey, tabanka, where were you
Where were you lost?
Where have you come from, where are you going?
Hey, tabanka, how beautiful you are!
Where will you go?
The king of tabanka with his sword,
Commanding all, marches on!
The rain didn’t come to the farmer
Full of shame, the Moon only half-appeared
In its rage, the Sun burned his soul
The rain didn’t come to the farmer
But why, why?
Patience, patience, my God!
The king of tabanka with his sword,
Commanding all, marches on!