By OMOSEYE BOLAJI
I could not believe that time had passed with such disarming, nigh-frightening pace. We were at a workshop on writing and were now hopefully rounding things off. I was startled to see the ineluctable signs of darkness approaching outside.
But Pule Lechesa, poet and literary essayist, was still in his element discussing literary subjects with some enthusiastic young aficionados of literature. “Come, Chief,” he beckoned to me. “These guys are so much interested in (William) Shakespeare’s life, and I was telling them just now about his death and his final wishes, specifically, his curse.”
I stared at him. “His curse?” I said.
Lechesa unleashed his munificent grin. “Yes. Remember that when Shakespeare died, he made it clear he did not want his final resting place disturbed.”
Lechesa, always one for intriguing quotations, went
on to quote Shakespeare’s curse with relish: (By the way the epitaph carved into the stone slab covering Shakespeare’s grave includes a curse against moving his bones): “Blessed be the man that spares these stones and curse be he that moves my bones.”
Suddenly, I found myself reeling, my hand clutching my forehead. One of my shortcomings, alas, is that I am many times over-sensitive and I have to struggle to pull myself together, even in public. This was one of those occasions! This talk of curses had set this particular reaction off.
My mind went back to my childhood; a youngster in school profoundly affected by a certain curse familiar to every Yoruba man and woman. It was the famed curse of Oba (king) Awole of Oyo well over 200 years ago, which we had studied in school and is still engraved in my memory. At the time the curse used to frighten me, keeping me awake at night as I pondered it both in Yoruba and in English language.
For those unfamiliar with the curse, we might recall briefly that in those days the Oyo (Yoruba) empire was very powerful with well organised arms of government, including the military. History has it that Afonja, the then Are Ona kakanfo (Generalissimo of the army, from Ilorin) spearheaded the removal of Oba Awole. This revolt led to secession of Ilorin (a Yoruba state) that would play a key role in the destruction of the erstwhile powerful Oyo. Oba Awole committed suicide, but first cursed the empire after firing arrows in all directions.
His horrific curse went thus:
“My curse be on you and your disloyalty and your disobedience, so let your children disobey you. If you send them on an errand let them never return to bring you word again. To all points I shot my arrows, you will be carried as slaves. My curse will carry you to the sea and beyond the seas. Slaves will rule over you, and you their masters will become slaves. Broken calabash can be mended but not a broken dish; so let my words be irrevocable…”
But I was in South Africa now, as all this unfolded in my mind quickly. I sat down, still trying to pull myself together. “Are you okay, Mr. Bolaji?” the concerned participants asked. One went to get a glass of water for me.
I tried to joke about it. “It’s just old age,” I said. “I’ll be fine now.” Meanwhile I was thinking about curses generally, which always imply a wish that some sort of adversity or misfortune should befall someone or a group. Certainly, not the most positive of thoughts!
Yet even in the Bible, God cursed the serpent, the earth and Cain. Noah also cursed Canaan. Come to think of it, even Christ cursed the barren fig-tree…
Enough of curses!
No comments:
Post a Comment