Significance of Study
In the last decades the Sunjata epic has enjoyed much attention as a masterpiece of African oral literature; at American universities it is often part of undergraduate courses on literature or world history. The Sunjata epic is considered part of the historical heritage of the famous medieval Mali empire: already in the fourteenth Century the Arab traveler Ibn Battuta heard griots praising the king of Mali as a direct descendant of Sunjata. Although it is not certain whether the memory of Sunjata had at that time already been shaped in the literary genre of the epic, it is beyond doubt that Ibn Battuta’s Sunjata was the same Sunjata as recalled by pre- sent-day griots. Today, Sunjata is remembered in large parts of West Africa as the founder of “Mande” or “Manding.” Although present-day Mande is but a small region around Kangaba—100 kilometers southwest of Mali’s capital, Bamako—in the context of the Sunjata epic, “Mande” has a much broader meaning for the West African audience and is similar to “society” or “the civilized world” in general. Thus although maybe once a king of a founder of a royal dynasty, Sunjata has become a mythical fïgure, a culture hero with a pivotal position in West African oral history, and the Sunjata epic has become the primus interpares among all African oral traditions. Part of the Sunjata epic’s prestige is based on the fact that it is, as far as I know, the only epic in the world that is entirely orally transmitted as well as claimed to be performed in a ceremonial context, namely, the famous septennial Kamabolon ceremony in Kangaba, Mali. In this cere- mony the Kamabolon sanctuary—a traditional hut with colorful paint- ings—is restored, and the night before the new roof is put on top of the hut, the “canonical” version of the Sunjata epic is recited in the restored but still roofless sanctuary. The whole Kamabolon ceremony lasts five days and may be regarded as a recreation of society (see Dieterlen; Gisse and Kamissoko; de Ganay; Jansen, “Hot Issues”). The ceremony basically has the function of inaugu- rating a new kare (“age group”), since those who form the new hare and those who form the future new kare are responsible for most of the ritual labor, such as restoring the walls of the sanctuary, constructing the new roof, and keeping the audience at a distance. The parts that attract the largest audiences are performed the last two days. First, there is the arrival of the Diabate griots in Kangaba, on Thursday afternoon, and the subse- quent famous nocturnal recitation that can be considered as a tribute to the ancestors and the recenüy deceased leaders. Second, there is the action of putting the new roof on top of the sanctuary. This is done on Friday afternoon. Only young men from the local royal Keita lineage are allowed to participate in this ritual labor( Jansen)
Literature Review
Sundiata: An Epic of Old Mali Summary
The epic of Sundiata is told by the griot (storyteller and keeper of history) Djeli Mamadou Kouyaté. He begins with details of Sundiata’s ancestors, as the force of history is important in the tale of the man whose victory will create the Mali Empire.
Sundiata’s father, Maghan Kon Fatta, was king of the city of Niani. One day, a soothsaying hunter foretells that he will produce a great ruler through the marriage of an ugly woman. Later, two hunters bring a woman to offer as his wife, and he sees this is the foretold woman, Sogolon. The hunters earned her by defeating a monstrous buffalo that was terrorizing a land far away. Through showing kindness to an old woman, they were taught the secret of the buffalo and then given their choice of woman by the king whose realm was being terrorized. The old woman told them to choose the ugliest maid, and they did. The king takes Sogolon for his wife, but she refuses to let him consummate the marriage until magic powers help him to rid her of a wraith (spirit) that was making her resistant. Sundiata is conceived.
In childhood, Sundiata faces two obstacles: first, because of the prophecy, the king’s first wife Sassouma Bérété spreads vicious rumors about him and Sogolon in an effort to elevate her own son’s stature; and second, he is crippled and does not walk until the age of 7. Despite his physical limitations, his father sees wisdom in his son and gifts him griot Balla Fasséké, the son of his own griot. The king dies soon afterwards and his eldest son, Dankaran Touman, is given control by the elders, who do not see much future in the crippled boy. One day, when Sogolon is embarrassed by the queen mother, Sundiata uses a rod to help himself stand on two legs and from this day onwards, his strength is unmistakable.
Frightened her own son will lose his control, the queen mother Sassouma Bérété orchestrates exile for Sundiata, Sogolon, and their immediate family. For seven years, they travel from asylum to asylum, sometimes being shown great hospitality and occasionally being mistreated by their hosts. All the while, Sundiata learns of new peoples and customs, while impressing most people he meets. He spends a particularly long time with Moussa Tounkara at Mema, who helps raise Sundiata and teaches him the ways of war so as to potentially groom the boy as his heir.
Sundiata also learns during his exile about the evil sorcerer king Soumaoro Kanté, who is slowly forcing the cities of Mali and beyond under his control through cruelty. When Niani falls to the sorcerer king, a search party is sent to Ghana to find Sundiata and ask him to claim his mantle as ruler. Though his choice to return to Mali and battle the sorcerer king upsets the Moussa Tounkara, he is ultimately given his blessing and the first of his subservient armies.
Sundiata goes to many cities and lands that he visited during his period of exile, slowly building up his army. Finally, his armies come up against those of Soumaoro. Though Sundiata is successful in his battles, he cannot harm the sorcerer king because the latter has magical protections. Sundiata turns to magic for help, and through sacrifice is able to craft a magical arrow. In their largest battle, Sundiata nicks Soumaoro with the arrow and the sorcerer king loses his power. Soumaoro retreats and escapes.
Accompanied by Fakoli, Soumaoro’s nephew who revolted after being betrayed by his uncle, Sundiata pursues Soumaoro for several days. They finally trap him in a cave with nowhere to go; they have won. After his victory, Sundiata defeats the kings who stayed loyal to the sorcerer king. He then returns to Niani and founds the Mali Empire, splitting it up to show respect for all the rulers who promise to serve him.
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 all.
- Introduction
The Epic of Son-Jara is a West African tale written down in the beginning of the twentieth century. In this epic, the people praise the life of a great king and warrior, the son of King Nare Fa Maghan, and Sogolon Conde, the hunchbacked sister of a noble. The story tells of a joyous king, until Sogolon gives birth to a terrible child, Son-Jara. This child is prophesized to be born as a great ruler, so the first son of Nare, Dankaran Tuman, becomes extremely jealous and makes plans to get rid of the boy. Dankaran kills Sogolon’s bull, which was her only source of food and Son-Jara’s only friend. Sogolon’s enraged son then kills Dankaran’s son. Forced to flee, they led a hard life and Sogolon was continuously ridiculed. Son-Jara then sets out to avenge his father’s insults and find a place where people will respect his family. He leaves Sogolon and takes a series of jobs at courts of foreign kings, ultimately becoming a famed warrior. He receives his impetus to return home upon his death, and kills Dankaran. After success in battle against the enemies of Mali, Son-Jara becomes king. He is still not content and, having learned that Sogolon is at an advantage and her enemies have been reduced to slavery, Son-Jara summons the ancestors and takes his place as one of the greatest Mali kings. At this point, the epic recounts the glorious days of old Mali, amply illustrating the virtues that the jatigi and nyamakalaw of the Mande – praise-singer and craftsman castes – respectively sought to depict. This story has even been compared to the Homeric epics, for it too was a tale sung by a jeli. The oral tradition was originally performed before a royal audience by a historian bard or jeli who, like Sogolon, was a guardian of a historical heritage, perpetuating the link with the ancestral past. This particular bard, Fa-Digi Sisoko, performed his eulogy in honor of a request by Fama Dagnoko, a noble of the Traore clan, who had been forced to flee following a political incident in post-colonial Mali. The Hempscrubers, or the royal musicians – jelis of modern-day Bamako, also hold that it was a Traore jeli, Mamadou Kouyate, who ordered the epic in its entirety, wishing to immortalize the deeds of the warriors and kings of his noble caste. This historical slant can be attributed to the medieval struggle between the jatigi and nyamakalaw castes for patronage. The jeli Sisoko was himself a nyamakalaw and spent much time at the court of Fama Dagnoko, who was the general of Samori Toure, the founder of the short-lived Wassoulou empire.
1.1. Background of the Epic
Oral literature is fundamental to the Malinke identity, and its historical core possesses a well-structured epical tradition. The epic of Son-Jara is one of the most famous of these oral epics and is still performed by specialist jalis or griots. Much of what is performed of this epic today is modernized, and it is not the purpose of this essay to sift through all the possible historical events that are told of the hero but rather to concentrate on the themes surrounding Son-Jara’s life, particularly that of his childhood. With the arrival of Islam in the 13th century, the Malinke people began to transcribe their oral epics using the Arabic alphabet. And from that time, several versions of the “Son-Jara” epic have been recorded. Fa-Digi Sisòko was a contemporary of Sunjata, the leader of the Malinke people. He claimed to have been taught the epic by a jinn in the form of a scorpion and began to memorize the entire epic at the age of eighteen, completing this in 1912 after some 70 years. This version has been monumental in the recording of the epic, and Nieta is fortunate to have a collection of Fa-Digi’s performances on tape. The most commonly cited version for academic use is that translated and transcribed by Bintia Diawara. This version was taken from a performance by a jali called Wandama, who resided in the village of Kontron, in the Kangaba region of Mali. This was written in the early 20th century, and work upon it continued until the time of Diawara’s death. Finally, John William Johnson collected a version from the Maninka jali Djanka Tassey Conde. This version was collected in the region of Kankan and was in the form of recital rather than performance. This has been published in two volumes and presents a direct Maninka to English translation. Throughout this essay, I hope to use a combination of all these versions, with a tendency toward that of Diawara’s.
Characters in The Epic of Son-Jara
Bilal: An Etheopian slave who lived in Mecca at the time of Mohammad. He became a friend and companion of the Prophet Mohammed & consequently the patriarch of African Muslims. Son-Jara’s father (and therefore Son-Jara as well) is a descendent of Bilal, suggesting both his authority & perhaps a sense of magic or power.
Dankaran Tuman: Son-Jara’s half brother; the son of Fata Magan and Saman Barete. Dankaran Tuman is actually born before Son-Jara (on the same day), but a mix up in announcements causes him to be declared the younger son. He becomes Son-Jara’s chief rival for control of the Manden, and he participates in Son-Jara’s exile.
Dan Mansa Wulanba & Dan Mansa Wulandin: Two brothers from the Manden who, with the help of a magic weapon, kill Du Kamisa, who has transformed herself into a buffalo to terrorize the people of her ungrateful Nephew, Magan Jata Kòndè of Du.
Du Kamisa: The Aunt of Magan Jata Kòndè who transforms herself into a buffalo after her nephew cuts off her breasts and banishes her from his kingdom.
Doka the Cat: Son-Jara’s bard. Sumamuru wants Doka the Cat as his own bard, but Doka protests that he can only serve one master, Son-Jara. So Sumamuru commits a grave insult to Son-Jara by injuring Doka so that he cannot leave.
Fa-Koli: The nephew of Sumamuru who defects to Son-Jara when his uncle, who has a hundred wives already, steals his only wife.
Fata Magan the Handsome: Son Jara’s father and the first King of the Manden.
Jeli: The Manding name for a bard, or storyteller. The French word, griot, is also used to describe the same thing.
Kala Jula Sangoyi: The first jeli, or griot, to tell the story of Son-Jara.
Magan Jata Kòndè: The ruler of the Twelve Towns. He mistreats his aunt, Du Kamisa, who turns into a buffalo. When his realm is rescued by the bravery of the Dan Mansa brothers, he gives them Sugulun Kòndè to take with them to the Manden.
The Manden: The central kingdom of the epic. Land that Son Jara rules and builds into the capital of the Mali Empire.
Mèma: The land where Son-Jara lives in exile from the Manden. In several particulars, Mèma resembles Medina, where the prophet Mohammed lived in exile while he prepard to overtake Mecca.
Nakana Tiliba: The principal Queen of Darkness.
Saman Berete: The first wife of Fata Magan the Handsome; mother of Dankaran Tuman. Saman Berete is responsible for the curse the prevents Son-Jara from walking for nine years and for his subsequent exile to Mèma.
Son-Jara Keita: The Epic Hero, son of Fata Magan the Handsome and Sugulun Kòndè; the builder and first great king of the Mali Empire. Also called Nare Magen Kònate.
Sugulun Kòndè: Son-Jara’s mother. She is brought to the Manden by Dan Mansa Wulanba and Dan Mansa Wulandin after they kill the Buffalo that has been menacing the Twelve Towns.
Sugulun Kulunkan: Son-Jara’s sister. Sugulun Kulunkan spies on Sumamuru by pretending to come to him as one of his wives.
Sumamuru: The Blacksmith King. Sumamuru is an evil sorcerer-king who conquers the Manden from Dankaran Tuman while Son-Jara is in exile in Mèma. Sumamuru, rather than Dankaran Tuman, becomes Son-Jara’s principal enemy in the latter part of the narrative. In order to gain control of the Manden, Son-Jara must raise an army and lead an assault on the Blacksmith King who has usurped the land. Also called Susu Mountain Sumamuru.
The 9 Queens of Darkness: Surogate mothers to Son-Jara. Possessing 9 times the power of one mother, they teach him the magic that allows Son-Jara to master his world. “They have slain the 99 Master-of-Shadow” (1918). I wonder if they look somethng like the beautiful mask below?
https://jan.ucc.nau.edu
Summary of the Epic Story of Sundjata
Part I: An Extraordinary Childhood
Naré Fa Maghan [Maghan Kon Fatta Konate in Keita], ruled over the small kingdom of Mali, beginning ca. C.E.or A.D. 1200. [“Nare” is a place name in Mali, one of the capitals of the Kings of Mali. “Maghan” or “Magan” is a given name Sundjara and his father share; some say it means “master.” “Konate” is the clan name of Sundjara and his father’s family.] King Maghan was the son of a long lineage of distinguished hunters, known for their bravery, skill and their ability to communicate with jinns, spirits that hold influence over human lives. At this time, Manding [or Mande] rulers like Maghan had adapted the religion of Islam, but the new faith from the north had not altered their belief in the world of spirits. So when a hunter from the north came to Maghan and made a prophecy, the king and his griot took it very seriously. The prophecy said that two hunters would come to the king with a very ugly woman. Despite her ugliness, the hunter said, the king must marry this woman, for she would bear him Mali’s greatest king ever.
Sure enough, two hunters later appeared with a hunchbacked woman. They explained to the king that this woman, Sogolon Kedju, was in fact the human double of a buffalo that had ravaged the land of Do, killing hunters and citizens alike. Armed with secret knowledge, these two hunters had felled the buffalo and brought the woman to Mali. Hideous and wild, Sogolon was also endowed with extraordinary powers. She had been the hunter’s prize, and now they were offering her to the king of Mali. Honoring the prophecy, Maghan quickly married Sogolon, and they conceived a child.
King Maghan’s first wife, Sassouma, was jealous. She has always assumed that her son, Dankaran Touman, would claim the crown of Mali. Now this interloper stood to threaten what she felt was her son’s destiny. Sassouma plotted to kill Sogolon, but the buffalo woman’s powers were too great, and the boy was born. He was named Mari Diata, but as the son of Sogolon, people later took to calling him Sogolon Diata, and eventually, Sundiata [AKA: Sundjata].
Having feared the new arrival, Sassouma was relieved when the new child turned out to be lazy, gluttonous and ugly. At three years old, Sundiata could not walk and rarely spoke. Even at seven, the boy still crawled, spent all his time eating, and had no friends. The king was deeply disturbed. How could this pathetic child become a great king? Still, honoring the hunter’s prophecy, the dying king gave his seemingly crippled son a gift that signified his desire that the boy should become king after all. That gift was a griot named Balla Fasséké, the son of the king’s own griot
However, when king died, his first wife saw to it that her son, Dankaran, claimed the throne. Sundiata, still on all fours, could do nothing about it. One day, Sundiata’s mother needed some leaves from the mighty baobob tree for her cooking, and she asked Sassouma if she could borrow some. Sassouma agreed, taking the opportunity to insult Sogolon’s useless son. At last, Sogolon could take no more. She returned to her son, crying and angry, and told him about Sassouma’s insult. Looking up, her son then said, “Cheer up, Mother. I am going to walk today.” Sundiata then told a blacksmith to make for him the heaviest possible iron rod, and then, with trembling legs and a sweaty brow, he proceeded to lift himself up, bending the rod into a bow in the process. Before an a crowd of amazed onlookers, Sundiata thus transformed himself. And his griot composed and sung “The Hymn to the Bow,” on the spot. That hymn remains a part of the Sundiata musical epic still sung by griots over eight-hundred years later.
Part II: Exile
Now that Sundiata was fit to claim the throne as his father had wished, he represented a great threat to the false king Dankaran, and his plotting mother Sassouma. Sundiata’s mother decided to take her son into exile for their safety, but before they could leave, Dankaran sent Balla Fasséké, Sundiata’s griot, and also Sundiata’s half-sister, on a mission to the sorcerer king, Soumaoro Kanté. Soumaoro was the king of the Sosso, and he had been threatening all the kingdoms in the region with his growing army. Sundiata was furious at the loss of his griot, but his mother convinced him that the time to set things right would come later. Promising he would return to claim his crown, Sundiata went into exile with a small entourage, not to return for many years.
Here’s the rest of the story that remains untold in the film Keita:
Sundiata came to manhood while traveling through kingdoms hundreds of miles from his home. Along the way, he learned to hunt, to fight, and to wield proverbs containing the wisdom of his ancestors. One day, in the far off kingdom of Mema, Sundiata discovered people selling baobob leaves in the market. They had to be from Mali, for there were no baobob trees in Mema. The baobob sellers came to Sundiata’s home and told him that the evil Sosso kin Soumaoro had conquered Mali, sending timid Dankaran into exile. At once, Sundiata began to gather a force of fighters, the core of his future army. Sundiata was determined to reclaim his kingdom, Mali. Sadly, on the eve of his departure from Mema, his mother Sogolon, the once powerful buffalo woman, died.
Meanwhile, Sundiata’s griot and his half-sister remained captives in Soumaoro’s court at Sosso. The brave griot, Balla Fasséké one day dared to enter the sorcerer king’s secret chamber while the king was away. There, the griot found poisonous snakes writhing in urns, and owls standing watch over the severed heads of the nine kings Soumaoro had beaten. In the midst of this ghoulishness, stood the biggest balafon that Balla Fasséké had ever seen. Any ordinary mortal would have died instantly in this chamber, but the young griot had sorcery of his own, and even ventured to play the king’s balafon, which produced a magnificent sound that charmed even the snakes and owls.
Soumaoro returned livid to find the griot in his chamber, but Balla Fasséké, thinking fast, improvised a praise song to Soumaoro that was so clever it disarmed the evil king. Soumaoro then declared Balla his griot, making war between Soumaoro and Sundiata inevitable.
Part III: Return of the King
As Sundiata made his way homeward, he passed through all the kingdoms he had come to know during his exile, gathering fighters, archers and horsemen as he went. At Tabon, near the Malian city of Kita, Sundiata’s army launched a surprise attack on Soumaoro’s forces. Though a smaller force, Sundiata’s side prevailed, sending the Sosso army into retreat. At the next battle, Sundiata and Soumaoro came face to face. Again, Sundiata’s forces dominated the field through superior tactics, but Soumaoro escaped using his own formidable magic. One moment, the Sosso king stood before Sundiata on his black-coated horse, his tall helmet bristling with horns. But a mere instant later, Soumaoro stood on a far distant ridge. Sundiata despaired, feeling that his enemy’s magic made him invincible.
Even as Sundiata’s army grew, he knew he would need more that might to defeat Soumaoro. So he summoned soothsayers to council him on harnessing supernatural powers. Following their advice, Sundiata ordered the sacrifice of 100 white oxen, 100 white rams, and 100 white cocks. As the ritual slaughter began, Sundiata’s griot and his half-sister arrived at his camp. They had escaped captivity in Soumaoro’s city.
Sundiata’s half-sister then told him that she had been forced to be Soumaoro’s wife, but that in doing so, she had learned the secret of his magic. Soumaoro’s totem, his sacred animal, and so the source of his amazing power, was the cock. This animal had the power to destroy Soumaoro. Like Samson losing his long hair and with it his strength, like Achilles with his vulnerable heel, Soumaoro too had a weakness that his enemy could exploit. Armed with this knowledge, Sundiata fashioned a wooden arrow with a white cock’s spur as its tip.
The great showdown between Soumaoro and Sundiata came at the battle of Kirina. On the eve of the battle, the two men observed the ritual of declaring war. Each sent an owl to the other’s encampment, and the owls delivered messages of bravado.
“I am the wild yam of the rocks,” boasted Soumaoro, “Nothing will make me leave Mali.”
Sundiata replied, “I have in my camp seven master smiths who will shatter the rocks. Then, yam, I will eat you.”
The verbal jousting continued. Soumaoro said, “I am the poisonous mushroom that makes the fearless vomit.”
And Sundiata replied, “I am the ravenous cock. The poison does not matter to me.”
“Behave yourself, little boy, or you will burn your foot, for I am the red-hot cinder.”
“But me, I am the rain that extinguishes the cinder; I am the boisterous torrent that will carry you off.”
“I am the mighty silk cotton tree that looks from on high on the tops of other trees.”
“And I, I am the strangling creeper that climbs to the top of the forest creeper.”
Having thus declared their intentions, Sundiata and Soumaoro made war at Kirina. In the midst of full battle, Sundiata aimed his special arrow and fired. The cock’s spur grazed Soumaoro’s shoulder, and all was lost for the Sosso king. By the time Sundiata’s victorious forces entered Soumaoro’s city and opened his secret chamber, the snakes there were almost dead and the owls lay flopping on the ground.
Victorious, Sundiata invited the leaders of all the 12 kingdoms of the savanna to come to Kaba, a city in old Mali. There, he told them they could keep their kingdoms, but that all would now join in a great, new empire. From that day forth, Sundiata’s word became the law respected throughout the 12 kingdoms. The Empire of Mali was born, stretching from the forests of the south far into the Sahara Desert, north of the great Niger River bend. Sundiata ruled over this massive, thriving empire until his death in the year 1255. His empire survived for more than two centuries.
“Mali is eternal,” says the griot Mamadou Kouyaté, concluding his account of the Sundiata epic. “But never try, wretch, to pierce the mystery which Mali hides from you. Do not go and disturb the spirits in their eternal rest. Do not ever go into the dead cities to question the past, for the spirits never forgive. Do not seek to know what is not to be known.”
https://web.cocc.edu/cagatucci/classes/hum211/CoursePack/coursepackpast/sundjata.htm