See how Mbaa-mba is provoking Mote mwe Elive.
Tales of the Animal World.
Yasi nanu. Mote mwe Elive was a simple man who extracted wine from live palm trees. He was gentle and well known for being without guile. He diplomatically avoided being embroiled in disputes and litigation. Still, Mbaa-mba, the troublemaker engaged Mote in a dispute that had a tragic end.
Whenever Mote was on top of a palm tree, extracting wine, Mbaa-mba would appear abruptly on the branches, and move towards Mote, looking aggressive as if he was about to assault and bite Mote. Mbaa-mba followed Mote on top of every palm tree. Kaki Inoni was an eyewitness to several occasions when Mbaa-mba caused fright to Mote. On each occasion Kaki Inoni shouted:
“Wolinyama,
Come and be witnesses to how Mbaa-mba is frightening Mote mwe Elive on top of this palm tree. This is a dangerous situation. I will not be surprised if Mote drops from the palm tree out of fear”.
("Wolinyama !
eje, yongo te ene ekoke eya anu ee !
e-Mbaa-mba ene,
e-sisa Mote mwe Elive anu mwa-nya liya.
Maongo manu !
Ka Mbaa-mba a-gbwe-ya Mote au-nda o-liya o")!
Mote complained to Ekai-to, a maternal first cousin of Mbaa-mba, and requested that Mbamba should stop causing him fright but to no avail. Worried by the situation, Mote's family addressed Mote in these words:
"Mote o ! Mbaa-mba is determined to cause you to drop from the top of a palm tree, and die.
You must decide now, to kill Mbaa-mba, or to allow Mbaa-mba to cause your death.
You have to kill Mbaa-mba
Henceforth, you will have to arm yourself with a heavy mbefa that you will hit
Mbaa-mba when he visits you at the top of a palm tree. It should be a mbefa that has hard thorns.
Don't Strike Mbaa-mba with a cutlass. Reason: The cutlass may by accident severely wound your yango and consequently cause you to drop from the top of a palm tree”.
During Mote's afternoon visit to his palms, Mbaa-mba appeared again on a branch that was close to Mote. Mbaa-mba opened his mouth wide and shouted:
“haaa – haaa – haaa”.
Without waste of time, Mote struck the mbefa on Mbaa-mba’s head” – “jauu”
Mbaa-mba severely wounded, dropped from the top of the palm to the ground, and died instantly. Ekai-to a first cousin to Mbamba then timidly raised alarm, accusing Mote of assassinating Mbaa-mba.
In a passionate defense Mote addressed the court:
"My Lord Chief Justice, Mbaa-mba was determined to cause me to drop from the top of a palm tree to the ground and consequently die. There can be no doubt about it. Kaki Inoni is a living witness to my testimony. Yes, it is true Mbaa-mba has died as a result of the mbefa that I struck him. Of course, I had to defend myself against repeated aggression from Mbaa-mba. May the soul of Mbamba rest in peace".
Supporting Mote, Kaki Inoni said:
"My Lord Chief Justice,
I beg your indulgence to allow me to assist this court in this matter.
I have been an eyewitness to several acts of aggression that Mote suffered from the hands of Mbaa-mba when Mote was extracting wine from the top of live palm trees”.
To the satisfaction of Wolinyama, the court upheld Mote's defense that he had a right to defend himself against aggression, and that in the circumstances he could not be considered as a murderer.
"esene noma e-Mbaa-mba yaa-sa Mote mwe Elive, e-kaa-ye nau"
Literally:
This an unwarranted provocation/familiarity that will without doubt subsequently bring severe punishment upon the troublemaker concerned.
Oma nanu.
Lexicon:
kaa-ye = provocation/harassment.
mbaa-mba = the name of a snake.
Kaki Inoni = a vulture.
mbefa = a piece of stick, about one metre long, that some one shoots against fruits on branches of trees in order to harvest the fruits.
yaa-ngo = a special rope with unique knots for climbing on palm trees.
mwengele = a person who extracts wine from live palm trees.
Oma nanu.
Imba
Mola Mbua Ndoko
P.o Box 38 Buea, South West Province
Cameroon, West/Africa.
Email:[email protected]
Website: http://www.mbuandoko.com
Mola Mbua Ndoko,
Happy New Year. Very interesting proverbs. Thanks for giving us the Mokpe name for vulture (kaki inoni).
I believe the English translation for Mbaa-mba is cobra. Cobras climb up palm trees to catch birds that come to feed on bunches of ripe palm nuts. They of course frighten palm wine tappers.
I also like proverb no. 60 which states that “one must not only look at where one fell. To prevent future disasters, one must also look at where one slipped or stumbled before falling. That is, one must look at the cause of the fall.” Very cryptic and very wise indeed.
Mola, I think your Web page should indicate that you received an award from BLCC-USA for your excellent work in recording and preserving Mokpe oral culture.
Oma nanu, Mola
Lyombe Eko
Posted by: Edwin Ndoko | January 16, 2009 at 11:55 AM