If you sprinkle salt on your body sheep will obviously lick your body.
wa koome = to spray yourself with a liquid, for instance: water, perfume.
ikpwa = salt.
teembe = to lick.
melengu = sheep, plural; singular “molengu”.
Yasi nanu. On one occasion when Tuuva, an eleven years old boy was feeding his father’s flock of sheep with barks of plantain fruits mixed with salt, Tuuva rubbed some salt on his body - on the arms and legs and stomach and chest and the head.
After the sheep had licked all the salt on the barks of the plantain fruits they started to lick the salt on Tuuva’s body also. Tuuva panicked and shouted:
“na nweeli !
na nweeli” !
(I am dead/dying).
He ran away from the sheep but the sheep ran after him, overpowered him and knocked him on the ground. His parents were not at home. However neighbours of his parents came out and disbanded the sheep.
Tuuva’s maternal aunt on receiving news of the incident suspected that it was Mola Nalionge who had in his usual evil practices of Nyongo (evil witch craft) incited the sheep against Tuuve. Then with cutlass in hand she ran wildly through the village shouting:
“omo-veme eee !
omo-veme !
osi mo-nwa mofe !
omo veme” !
(Release/leave him. Don’t kill him too).
The inmates of the village wary of repeated accusations of Nyongo against Mola Nalionge responded:
“eee !
omo-veme eee !
omo veme !
oso nwa fe ono !
oso nwa fe ono” !
(Release/leave him.
Don’t kill Tuuva also).
When Tuuva was asked how he came about having salt on his body and even on his cockscomb he explained that he had himself rubbed the salt on his body.
Mola Kombe, an elderly man in the crowd that had assembled round Tuuva rubbed some salt on his own legs and arms and then showed his arms to two sheep.
The sheep immediately started to lick Mola Kombe’s legs and arms. Mola Kombe then explained that sheep being fond of licking salt had to lick the salt they saw on Tuuva’s body.
Concluding Mola Kombe said:
“waa koome te ikpwa melengu me yo tembe”
Nanu ndi ese eveli”
(If you sprinkle salt on your body sheep will lick your body).
This how/what the World is.
“waa koome te i-kpwa Melenugu meyo teembe”.
Literally:
Of course a person’s reputation/image will become vulnerable to assault and insults when his conduct is at variance with good behaviour. In short he will become a laughing stock.
This is why even when someone considers himself righteous and a living saint it would be unreasonable of him to behave in a manner that will subject his integrity to suspicion and impeachment.
Oma Nanu
Imba Thomas Mbua Ndoko
Chicago ILL, USA
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