The Meaning Of Power And Religion In The Epic Of Sundiata

Ibn Battuta has idiosyncrasies, prejudices, and arrogance. He is also a man of curiosity, and conviction. It is because Ibn Battuta represents or comes across so much like ourselves that it is easy to dive more deeply into his writing and stories and see things through his eyes. What the reader can see is a picture of African civilization before European influence. Battuta’s stories

Under Mansa Musa, Mali became the the largest and one of the most renown kingdoms in Africa. Gold was abundant and the empire was prosperous; what more could one ask for? Though as it turns out fame and prosperity can be fleeting. The empire

In this poem, one is able to learn that, all human beings are destined to die. As much as we might strongly desire to live forever, the inevitable truth is that, death in inevitable and all will die. Gilgamesh thought, because he was half man and half god that he is immortal, but to his surprise, only gods are immortal, but all human beings are destined to die someday. If human beings were given a choice to become immortal, everyone would go for it, just as Gilgamesh feared death and wished that he were immortal. Gilgamesh embarked on a journey in search for eternal life, only to come back facing the truth that he will never have eternal life. Siduri tells him that, “You will never find that life for which you are looking. When the gods created man, they allotted him death, but life they

German Egyptologist Hellmut Brunner translates the “Inscription of Antef,” which defines a philosopher as: “[He is the one] whose heart is informed about these things which would be otherwise ignored, the one who is clear-sighted when he is deep into a problem, the one who is moderate in his actions, who penetrates ancient writings, whose advice is [sought] to unravel complications, who is really wise, who instructed his own heart, who stays awake at night as he looks for the right paths, who surpasses what he accomplished yesterday, who is wiser than a sage, who brought himself to wisdom, who asks for advice and sees to it that he is asked advice. (Inscription of Antef, 12th Dynasty, 1991–1782 bc)” This displays that a philosopher is a multi-faceted human being, a jack-of-all trades. A philosopher is one who is able to give advice on topics of interest, and when he or she does not know, they are not afraid of searching through texts from civilizations older than themselves. They do this as a means to solve the various problems that they are given. Africana philosophy is a tool such that one is able to tap into past texts in order to provide support for those around them. In this essay I will further discuss Africana philosophy as well as its characteristics and how it differs from Eurocentric philosophy.

Haour, A. (2005). Power and permanence in precolonial Africa: A case study from the Central Sahel. World Archaeology, 37(4), 552-565. Retrieved from the JSTOR

The griot ends the epic by praising Sundiata and his rule of the golden age of the Mali Empire. He tells the audience that Mali is eternal and that reminders of history are everywhere, but only the griot can know

9. “Benin lost their faith in gods, their art deteriorated, and human sacrifice became more common.” (page 330)

The author Maryse Conde has based the story of Segu on real life events and practices of the late 18th and early 19th century. The author has tried to bring out the tensions that existed in Africa at that time by using the four brothers of the Traore family,Tiekoro, Siga, Naba and Malobali as scapegoats. She talks about each of these characters in depth to show us their influences on the city. She shows how traditional religion and Islam impact each character in the story.

Sundiata an epic of old Mali is a story about Sundiata Keita who was the founder of the Mali Empire in West Africa. This story is an oral tale of a young king’s rise to power and is narrated by Djeli Mamoudo Kouyate’ who was a griot or traditional storyteller. Griots are known to be ancient historians, keeping track of their culture and passing down this information which lasts, generation after generation. In Sundiata an epic, Kouyate’ expresses how important it is to the Malinke culture to preserve this oral history. “I teach kings the history of their ancestors so that the lives of the ancients might serve them as an example, for the world is old, but the future springs from the past” says Kouyate’ ( 1 ).  Preserving Malinke culture and history was ideal in teaching the younger generation of their rich heritage and what it means to live the life of a Malinke.

Because Ghana was an earlier civilization in that zone and is stated throughout the book it is not shocking that the people still pray to God. There are numerous mentions of Sundiata praying to God; before his encounter and before leaving his home. What amazed me is that is wasn’t a big discussion of what Christians would be known as pagan gods; idols. However, witches were brought up a few times. A superstition, is when Soumaora dies and black birds of misfortune comes. Another on page 8 was tossing an egg over your shoulder which will stop your enemies from hurting you. Another example would be time the blood of a virgin had to be sacrificed. Another sacrifice is when Djata had to give a hundred white bulls, a hundred white rams, and a hundred white cocks. According to page 71 bulls, rams and cocks were also sacrificed. In this time, ethnic religions such as having witches in the area happened often and accepted. The mentioning of God, Islam, witches, ancestors, and superstitions I strongly believe that Sunduata was a Christian that understood and followed Islam. Sunduata was okay and did not try to prevent, or get rid of other religions. I’m very curious of why he was ok with numerous different ways of worship. I assume he did not care because no mattered where he was during his traveled religion did not play a huge role. Another reason might be because he doesn’t want anyone else to feel abandoned

Perhaps one of the main reasons the Epic of Gilgamesh is so popular and has lasted such a long time, is because it offers insight into the human concerns of people four thousand years ago, many of which are still relevant today. Some of these human concerns found in the book that are still applicable today include: the fear and concerns people have in relation to death, overwhelming desires to be immortal, and the impact a friendship has on a person’s life. It does not take a great deal of insight into The Epic of Gilgamesh for a person to locate these themes in the story, and even less introspection to relate to them.

This essay deals with the nature of a cross cultural encounter between the Benin people and Portuguese traders in the 15th and 16th centuries, which resulted in the depiction of Portuguese figures in Benin brass plaques. It will propose that this contact between people with different cultures was on the basis of 'mutual regard' (Woods, K. 2008, p. 16), and although the Portuguese had qualms about idolatry in Benin it will show that assumptions by Europeans up to the 20th century of the primitive nature of tribal African societies was inaccurate with regard to the Benin people, who had a society based on the succession of the King or 'Oba', a Royal Family and Nobility. The essay will finally suggest that Benin’s increase in wealth following

Sundiata, West African King of Mali, spent most of his childhood years physically impaired, later gaining powers and capabilities to serve in his given position. Gilgamesh, on the contrary is the King of Uruk and a tyrant beast who has promiscuous characteristics. In both epics, the protagonists venture out on journeys to pursue different goals. In terms of geographic location, Sundiata’s passage occurs in western African amongst the Mande people in the Mali Empire (Miller 354). On the other hand, the Epic of Gilgamesh focuses on Sumerians in Mesopotamia (Modern day Iraq) (Miller 27, 30). The two historical epics have many parallel themes such as origins, superhuman traits, and heroism; amongst these are also many differences, for example the battles fought by both Kings and dependence on technologies in different cultures.

The sacred traditions, customs, and beliefs of ancient Mali is a story of epic proportions. To retrieve the great lineage of the First Kings of Mali and learn the history behind certain rituals told by an exquisite narrative that is perfectly woven together through different stories. The legend of Sundiata stresses the importance of understanding and respecting one’s history. In D. T. Niane’s “Sundiata An Epic of Old Mali,” the African history of Mali is presented through tribal customs, honor, and jealousy between brothers.

“Segu is a garden where cunning grows. Segu is built on treachery. Speak of Segu outside Segu, but do not speak of Segu in Segu” (Conde 3). These are the symbolic opening words to the novel Segu by Maryse Conde. The kingdom of Segu in the eighteenth and nineteenth century represents the rise and fall of many kingdoms in the pre-colonial Africa. Therefore, Segu indirectly represents the enduring struggles, triumphs, and defeats of people who are of African decent in numerous countries around the world. There are three major historical concepts that are the focus of this book. One is the spread of the Islamic religion. Another is the slave trade, and the last is the new trade in the nineteenth