The Epic of Sundiata: Legendary Founder of the Mali Empire
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In a world where history often fades into the background of our modern lives, there lies a tale of extraordinary power, resilience, and transformation that continues to resonate through the ages. This is the story of Sundiata Keita, the legendary founder of the Mali Empire, whose epic journey from exile to emperor remains a cornerstone of West African history and culture. Within this narrative, we explore not just the events that shaped an empire, but also the profound lessons on leadership, perseverance, and the indomitable spirit of humanity.
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Embarking on a journey through the sands of time, we uncover the riveting story of Sundiata Keita, the legendary figure whose valor and wisdom laid the foundation of the Mali Empire.
The Prophesied Leader
Born in the 13th century to King Naré Maghann Konaté and his second wife, Sogolon Condé, Sundiata was not the typical heir apparent. Crippled from birth, his early years were fraught with challenges, marked by a prophecy that foretold his rise to greatness. This prophecy not only set the stage for Sundiata's destiny but also ignited a series of events that would lead him to become the founder of one of the greatest empires in African history. It's a narrative that speaks to the heart, reminding us that greatness often emerges from the most unlikely beginnings.
The Journey of Transformation
Sundiata's story is a compelling chronicle of transformation. Despite his physical limitations, he possessed an unparalleled resolve. His childhood, filled with adversity, was a crucible that forged his character, teaching him the virtues of patience, tenacity, and humility. Sundiata's miraculous first steps, taken at the age of seven, were a turning point, symbolizing the dawn of a new era for the young prince and his people.
Exile and Alliance
The death of his father precipitated a period of exile, a time of reflection and growth for Sundiata. Roaming the lands beyond his kingdom, he encountered diverse cultures and forged alliances with other states and peoples. These alliances were crucial, laying the groundwork for his return. Sundiata's journey during exile epitomizes the quest for knowledge and the importance of building relationships, resonating with the proverbial truth that unity is strength.
The Battle of Kirina
Sundiata's return marked the beginning of an epic confrontation with Sumanguru Kante, the tyrannical ruler of the Sosso kingdom. The Battle of Kirina, a pivotal moment in West African history, was not just a clash of armies but a battle of destinies. Sundiata's strategic brilliance and the loyalty of his allies culminated in a decisive victory, paving the way for the establishment of the Mali Empire. This victory underscores the themes of courage, strategy, and the power of a united vision.
A Legacy Etched in Time
The Mali Empire, under Sundiata's reign, flourished into a beacon of prosperity, culture, and learning. Sundiata's policies promoted social cohesion, economic prosperity, and cultural dynamism, leaving a legacy that would endure through the ages. His story, passed down through generations by griots, continues to inspire with its universal themes of overcoming adversity, the pursuit of justice, and the quest for peace and prosperity.
Sundiata Keita's epic tale, rich with historical significance and moral lessons, transcends the annals of history to serve as a beacon of inspiration and leadership. In today's world, where challenges abound, "The Epic of Sundiata" reminds us that the spirit of resilience and unity can forge empires out of adversity. It's a narrative that not only captivates the imagination but also ignites the flame of hope and determination in the hearts of all who dare to dream big.
The Role of Griots in West African Culture
Griots are more than mere storytellers; they are the soul of West African heritage, holding the keys to centuries of oral history. Their role encompasses several crucial functions:
Historical Chroniclers: Griots recount the history of empires, battles, and royal lineages, preserving the collective memory of society.
Cultural Guardians: They keep alive the customs, traditions, and values of the community, passing them from one generation to the next.
Musical Maestros: With their instruments, griots convey stories and histories, using music to enhance the emotional and cultural resonance of their tales.
Advisors and Mediators: Often serving as counselors to kings and leaders, griots use their wisdom and knowledge of history to advise on political and social matters.
Untranslatable Words and Cultural Essence
The language of the Mali Empire, as captured in "The Epic of Sundiata," contains words that defy direct translation, each a testament to the unique worldview of its people:
Nyama: The spiritual force that griots believe enables them to command words and music with power.
Fadenya: The rivalry and competition between siblings, which can drive personal growth and strengthen familial bonds.
Jaliya: The art and profession of the griot, encompassing storytelling, history, music, and more.
The History and Legacy of the Mali Empire
At its height, the Mali Empire was a hub of culture, wealth, and learning, marked by significant achievements:
Architectural Wonders: The construction of monumental buildings, such as the Great Mosque of Djenné and the University of Timbuktu.
Economic Prosperity: Control of gold trade routes that made Mali one of the wealthiest empires of its time.
Cultural Flourishing: The patronage of the arts, literature, and science, making Timbuktu a center of Islamic learning.
Sundiata's Epic Journey
Sundiata's path from a challenged child to the emperor is marked by key moments of adversity, learning, and triumph:
Overcoming Disability: Despite not walking until the age of seven, Sundiata's will to overcome his physical challenges set the stage for his future greatness.
Exile and Return: His exile taught him resilience and the value of alliances, leading to his return and claim to the throne.
The Battle of Kirina: Sundiata's strategic acumen was showcased in this decisive battle against Sumanguru Kante, leading to the establishment of the Mali Empire.
The Importance of Leadership and Resilience
Sundiata's leadership style and his resilience in the face of adversity offer timeless lessons:
Unity and Diversity: His ability to unite a diverse empire under a single vision showcases the power of inclusive leadership.
Vision and Strategy: Sundiata's vision for a prosperous and united Mali, coupled with his strategic prowess, teaches the importance of planning and foresight.
Legacy of Peace: His rule is remembered not just for its military victories but for the peace and prosperity it brought to his people.
Sundiata's epic, passed down through generations by the griots, continues to inspire with its themes of courage, leadership, and resilience. It serves as a powerful reminder of the impact one individual can have on the course of history, and the importance of preserving and honoring our cultural heritage.
RESEARCH & RESOURCES
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Sundiata: An Epic of the Mali Empire
I've always been fascinated by untranslatable words. Those words where one language isn't quite able to capture the essence of a word's meaning. Sudoku, for instance, is a Japanese word, which loosely translates to leaving a book unread after buying it until you have piles of unread books. Sounds so pleasant doesn't it? At least to me. But there's a distinct feeling and cultural emotion behind the word that can't quite be translated into American English. Like a teabag you would have to seep yourself and soak yourself thoroughly in Japanese culture to get a real sense of the word.
The West African word griot, is one of those words. If you look at Webster's dictionary, they define a griot as a member of a traveling group of storytellers and musicians who maintain a tradition of oral history. Makes them sound so simple and unimportant. It doesn't quite capture the feeling and the cultural emotion of the word. Webster's does not capture its essence and its true meaning. Today we are going to be like teabags, seeping and soaking ourselves in African history through the epic and story of Sundiata, the founder of the Mali Empire.
But to understand this masterpiece of oral storytelling we have to understand what a griot is. The griot is inseparable from this story. You see, without a book to relate this story because West Africa was steeped in the oral tradition, so without a book to relate the story, there's no written word, the griot is the book. Sundiata had a griot who remembered his deeds and passed them down to another griot, who passed it down to griots, who passed it down to more griots for some 765 years. This story takes place in the mid 13th century or in medieval times.
Now the word griot was a prime example of the colonization of language. It has been made European but in the native West African tongue, the word djeli is more accurate. Djeli literally meaning blood. Now this should let you know how important these people were and are in West African society. They are the masters of the word, the keepers of tradition. Just as blood is crucial to the survival of the body, griots are crucial to the survival of history and tradition. Now in the pre-colonial era, griots were walking encyclopedias, hyper serious historians.
Advisers to kings. Mediators in national and international disputes. Ambassadors, diplomats, archivists, genealogists, masterful musicians, and so much more. You can see why this word is untranslatable. Now as a historical storyteller myself, I could only hope to aspire to this level of prestige and craft of oral storytelling. To have the poetic and rhythmic and dramatic cadence to my stories. To be a living, breathing heartbeat and primary source of history. That's what a griot was.
So it is only through the griot or the djeli, that I am able to relate this epic of Sundiata Keita. It is only through them that I tell you this story. Now the griot whose words were transcribed was named Mamadou Kouyaté, who hails from the same Malinke culture of Mali as Sundiata, the founder of Mali and he is the one who this story has been passed down to for those 765 years. I wish I could have been there to hear Kouyaté tell the story and breathe new life back into this medieval story. To see the soul and the art and the griot celebrating Africa's finest most subtle and sublime music and stories but Djeli Mamadou Kouyaté starts the epic of Sundiata this way when he says, "I am a griot. It is I, Djeli Mamadou Kouyaté, son of Bintou Kouyaté.
We are the vessels of speech, we are the repositories which harbor secrets for us. Without us, the names of kings would vanish into oblivion. We are the memory of mankind; by the spoken word we bring to life the deeds and exploits of Kings for younger generations. 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. My word is pure and free from all untruth. It is the word of my father. It is the word of my father's father. I will give you my father's word just as I receive them. Royal griots do not know what lying is.
Listen to my words, you who want to know; by my mouth you will learn the history of Mali. Listen then sons of Mali, children of the black people. Listen to my word for I'm going to tell you of Sundiata, the ancestor of those who draw the bow; the master of a hundred vanquished Kings. I am going to tell you of Sundiata, Lion of Mali, he whose exploits will astonish men for a long time yet. He was great among kings. He was fearless among men. He was beloved of God because he was the last of the great conquerors."
Buckle up everyone, this is the story of fate and of destiny. And this is the story of heroism. This is the story of a family. And this is the story of magic and a story of exile, and the story of return. This is a story of Mali. This is a story of Sundiata, the Lion King an epic of the Mali Empire. Let's get into it!
Welcome to The Humanity Archive podcast. I am your gracious host Jermaine Fowler and today I have a fascinating story for you. One that you may have never heard, but even if you have, you've never heard it in a way that I am going to tell it. Now, when I was researching for this West African epic of Sundiata, I had a thought; that looking back at Black global history, is like trying to look through a foggy window. You know things are clear on the other side yet you never can quite see past the hazy gloom of European colonialism.
Trust me, I would like nothing more than to tell this story of Sundiata without any mention of European influence, but one can not escape the influence on the history itself. The influence being that; so much of this oral history was surely lost in the translation to English, and much of the analysis on this epic is in the European perspective. There's also this ugly fact and the unfairness of all of this is that; if someone colonizes and conquers and enslaves you, then they can bear your history and they often do. A people with a history, have an identity. So if you erase that history, it's like erasing fingerprints and hiding evidence so this story didn't even resurface until the 1960’s.
And even when it did surface, it never really has become mainstream in America, as say the old English epic of Beowulf. I watched that movie in social studies class. It never has become as popular as the ancient Greek epic poem The Odyssey by Homer. So this story in its history was largely erased and then some of it was hidden, right? The griots, this is a secret history. So they weren't so quick to tell. So the combination of these two things has made for the epic of Sundiata to become obscure to us. And then in the '60s, scholar and historian D.T.
Niane went to a tribe, gained their trust and was able to transcribe this story, but it was also transcribed before by the French. So when it comes to the continent of Africa, we don't see a lot of their stories. To a lot of Westerners, Africans don't exist. Patricia C. McKissack who was a prolific writer and who gave us so much Black history, mirrors this sentiment when she says, "For well over a thousand years from about A.D. 500 to 1700, the civilizations of Western Africa flourished. Most of us know nothing about them. During the same period, Europe suffered from constant warfare and only slowly recovered its lost glory.
The history of the dark ages of the Renaissance is taught in every school. Most of Africa's history, except for that of Egypt, remains unknown to the general reader. But there were great kingdoms in the Western Sudan waiting to be discovered. Once knowledge of these old empires resurfaced, some claim that Jews, who had rebelled against the Roman in Cyrenaica (Libya), had migrated to the Western Sudan around A. D. 115 and built these civilizations. Another group pushed the theory that Sudanese achievements were the results of Arab invasions and the coming of Islam. Some even suggested that African accomplishments were the result of visitors from outer space.
Any wild idea was more acceptable than to admit that Africans had the intellect and ingenuity to develop and control well-ordered empires. The purpose of all of these erroneous theories was simply to justify slavery and attitudes of racial superiority." So there are all these misconceptions and stereotypes about African civilization I feel compelled to shatter, before I really get into the story. The history of Africa is long. It dates way back, way back to the birth of civilization. Yet even though Egypt is called the flower of antiquity, many refuse to believe the ancient Egyptians were Africans.
They call the people of Africa, South of the Sahara, Sub-Saharan Africans, in order to separate them from the achievements of Egypt as if it was some impenetrable barrier, but it wasn't as we'll find. There were camel caravans going back and forth, but not only in Northern Africa, there were empires everywhere in Africa, in Kush, there were the Zulu, there was those in Aksum, in Ethiopia, and Nubia. And then there was the West African traditions and empires in Ghana, Mali and the Songhai. So on the next two episodes, we're going to zoom in on the Mali Empire of West Africa.
And yes, I said empire and yes, I said in Africa. An empire in the fullest sense of the word and with all the accoutrements, the military power, the central government, the rulership, the politics, all of it right there in Western Africa. The people who ruled the Mali Empire, also called the Mandinka or the Mandingo people, were a force to be reckoned with. They were skilled navigators of the mighty Niger river. They were agriculturalists domesticating crops like millet, sorghum, african rice, peanuts, okra, and cola. They were Blacksmiths making advances in the moulding of iron into tools and weapons.
They had a fully formed military with skilled horsemen forming an adept calvary. They had tremendous wealth with gold being the most prized export. They were hunters with fantastic abilities in tracking and staying alive in the wilderness. They were monarchs and kings and queens with the fate of nations at their fingertips. They were also musicians and cooks and mothers and fishermen and fathers and teachers and artisans. And they also enslaved their enemies and were shot through with sexism like many societies of the medieval world. They may not have been any better in some regards, but they certainly were not any worse than any other civilization on the globe at this time and that's what I want you to understand, contrary to the beliefs that we have been shot through with that have us disregarding the continent of Africa and its history.
We need to put it right up there and uplift it with all other civilizations in history. So the Mali empire was an Empire and a civilization in all its glory and all its flaws. They were thoroughly and completely human. And when I think of Mali, I think of this impressive country bordered by the Sahara Desert, which is the scorching and dusty and barren ocean of brown sand. Then I think of those great mosques, like the one at Djenné in Mali. Look it up, it's fantastic! There are these wonderful beige colored sand castle buildings dwarfing people on the street. And it is in this setting in the 13th century where our story is going to begin.
Now the first thing that we have to remember is that the story of Sundiata is an epic and by definition, and typically one derived from ancient oral tradition, narrating the deeds and adventures of heroic and legendary figures of history or the history of a nation. And they often include some mythical and fantastic and unbelievable stuff. So I'm going to tell you that right now. So it's this larger than life kind of tale. For instance, in the epic there's a line that says when Sundiata was born, that the sky opened up and it darkened and these great clouds hid the sun and then the thunder lit up the night sky. This is the kind of drama that is laid on thick.
So there's the immaculate conception and this prophecy that says Sundiata will be this great ruler. And what's really interesting is that the griot who is telling the story of Sundiata says you have to believe him for he is not capable of telling lies. We cite other books; the sources in our writing. His sources are his ancestors. His credentials are a code of honor to tell the story exactly as it's been told to him. Look at it like this too, even if the Sundiata story is mythology, we can go to the late Professor Joseph Campbell for he makes the argument that even mythology is true.
When he says, "mythology is not a lie. Mythology is poetry. It is metaphorical. It has been well said that mythology is the penultimate truth. Penultimate because the ultimate can not be put into words. It is beyond words, beyond images, beyond that bounding rim of the Buddhist Wheel of Becoming. Mythology pitches the mind beyond that rim to what can be known, but not told." Campbell believed that myths hold the key to understanding human experience. They may vary superficially from culture to culture, but at their deepest level, they all reveal the path to self fulfillment, social integration, and ultimately transcendence.
Some deep stuff there Joseph Campbell was onto. You can look at his whole philosophy and ideas in these fantastic Bill Moyer specials that he did in like the '80s I think it was. And he had this whole philosophy and theory of the hero's journey. And this is very much a hero story we're learning now, so that's why I tied him in. But the story of Sundiata starts with a retelling of the lineage of the Bombora Kings or the Mandingo Kings or the Malinke Kings. Is there a code? A lot of you have heard the term Mandingo warriors. Well this is where it comes from. So Sundiata comes from this long line of hunter kings. His fathers and grandfathers were hunters and rulers.
His father Maghan Kon Fatta was called Maghan the Handsome. So apparently he's this handsome and dashing man. And the griot makes a point to say that Kon Fatta had three wives and six children. Now this is where some of you out there may really have to shift your thinking a bit because polygamy was as common in West Africa as monogamy is in America. I think we have to take pause there because we have to look at that. According to anthropologists, and if you look at it through that view, only one in six societies enforces monogamy as a rule. Why? Pragmatic maybe? If you have more children, you have more manpower. High levels of infant mortality may have been a factor.
When many children do not survive past the age of five, a family needs more than one child to be economically viable. Now we know that our American society is injected heavily with Christianity and that Christianity condemns polygamy as an offense against the dignity of marriage. And I'm sure that may be the view that a lot of the audience out there holds. But agree or disagree this was a way of life that cultural imperialism stamped out, forced out. So the critical question here is whether it's right to force people to believe the way that you believe, like literally force them? Even if you believe what they're doing is wrong. I'll leave that rhetorical question up to you to ponder.
But relevant here is, I think that these types of things immediately adds a taboo to the Western mind that allows us to form a bias against people. For instance, if people of Africa marry different than us, it's alien and taboo, therefore they are alien and taboo. If they dance and worship differently than us, then that is alien and taboo. Therefore they are alien and taboo. You see where this can lead to the dehumanization of a people, to the alienation of a people, to the condemnation of a people. So I think we do have to be careful there. But back to Sundiata. We are told that his father, Maghan Kon Fatta, was King of Mali and his seat was in the capital city, which was called Niani.
And one day a sooth saying hunter foretells that he will produce a great ruler through his marriage of an unsightly and ugly woman. Pause one more time because I have to say a word on soothsayers. Now again, keep in mind that a lot of this story is grounded in the traditional, what has been deemed as an African belief in a system of magic. Now again, we have to stop colonist European perspective, like a snake sheds it scaly weathering skin. Those definitions that would consider this magic as unrefined superstition. Those of Africa would say these are wise men and wise women not soothsayers and not fakes. They had real beliefs and traditions we're talking about here.
So I don't think we should just brush them off. And we can go to African scholar, John S. Mbiti, because he fiercely argued that African religion deserved the same respect as any other. And he says, "there is a mystical order governing the universe. The belief in this order is shown clearly in the practice of traditional medicine, magic, witchcraft, and sorcery. It is held in all African societies that there is a power in the universe and that it comes from God. It is a mystical power in that it is hidden and mysterious. African religions were as deeply rooted and as legitimate as Christianity, Islam, Judaism, and Buddhism."
Why is it so hard for us to have a respect for and a tolerance for a traditional African religion even if we don't believe in it? Because even if we don't believe in Buddhism, people have an underlying respect for it. Even if we don't believe in Islam, we have an underlying respect for it. Why don't we have that same respect for African religion? And this goes back to what I said just a couple of minutes ago about the alienation, dehumanization, and condemnation of people who we don't understand. And that's why I think the story is pivotal to our understanding of those on the continent of Africa.
We have to hear the stories. We have to hear their history so that we can see their humanity. But in any case, religion is a tricky thing, right? Precisely because the beliefs are so strong. So later these two hunters bring a woman to offer as Maghan Kon Fatta's wife and Maghan Kon Fatta sees that this is the foretold woman Sogolon. The hunters earn her by defeating a monstrous buffalo that was terrorizing a land far, far away. Through the showing of kindness to an old woman, they were taught the secret of the buffalo. And then they were given their choice of woman by the King whose realm was being terrorized by the buffalo. Now the old woman told them to choose the ugliest maid and they did.
Now I'll be honest again. I got to inject some personal thought here, that hearing about choosing women like this sounds a little disturbing, but I can't help but notice, today that arranged marriages like this were the norm in Russia and America and all across the world for the first half of the 20th century. Arranged marriages were common in families in the United States and in some wealthy families they still are. And I say that just to caution you again, by judging African systems of being and relating in society in isolation, you have to tie them into the normalcy of human behavior.
Whether you think it's right or wrong, don't isolate it, don't alienate. But unfortunately gender equality took a bit of a backseat, but I'm glad that's being discussed more now. So anyway, the king takes Sogolon for his wife and we fast forward. And then Sundiata is conceived. Now Sundiata's father has three wives. Sassouma is the mother of King Dankaran Touman. Sogolon is the mother of Kolonkan and Djamarou and Sundiata. And Namandjé was his third wife and she was the mother of Manding Bory. And he would go on to be Sundiata's best friend and that's his half brother.
Now this extended family is going to play a pivotal and important role in this whole story and that's why I spent so much time talking about these marriage arrangements and kind of how this whole thing plays out. Now in childhood Sundiata faces two obstacles; first because of the prophecy, the king's first wife, Sassouma Bérété, spreads vicious rumors about him and his mother Sogolon in an effort to elevate her own son's stature. And second Sundiata is disabled. He does not even walk until the age of seven. And here we see this intermarriage rivalry as one of the challenges of this polygamous lifestyle for these two wives.
And in this particular story it's going to cause some life-threatening issues for Sundiata because not only is there scorching jealousy in this particular case, but only one son can ascend the throne. And this is the stuff that assassinations are made of, jealousy and lust for power. We see the anger brewing inside of Sassouma Bérété whose own son Dankaran Touman she wanted on the throne. And we see this jealousy in the story when the Djeli tells us, "Sogolon, Sundiata's mother, now walks freely in the king's great enclosure and people also got used to her ugliness. But the first wife of the king, Sassouma Bérété, turned out to be unbearable.
She was restless and smarted to see the ugly Sogolon proudly flaunting her pregnancy about the palace. What would become of her, Sassouma, if her son, already eight years old, was disinherited in favor of the child that Sogolon was going to bring in to the world? All of the King's attention went to the mother-to-be. Soon, dark schemes took form in the mind of Sassouma Bérété." So Sundiata was born and there is this disability. Now make no mistake, the same stigma of the disabled, the same prejudice of the disabled, the same things that happen in current society seem to have taken place in ancient Mali as well.
The town's people questioned, when Sundiata was three, what three year old has not taken his first steps, especially when prophesied to be a future king. On the contrary, Sassouma's son Dankaran, he was becoming a fully formed young man. At seven, Sundiata still crawled about. One day, the king who was distraught because of his disabled successor Sundiata, came to the house a blacksmith and a seer who said, "When the seed germinates, growth is not always easy; great trees grow slowly, but they plunge their roots deep into the ground."
This reinvigorated Maghan Kon Fatta's confidence in prophecy. So he bestows upon Sundiata his griot, Balla Fasséké, the son of his own griot. Now all Kings had griots, all prince's had griots. So this is the ultimate form of confidence that even though things look bleak, even though his son could not walk, even though he barely spoke that belief that he would overcome and lead the Mali empire, Sundiata and Balla were then inseparable friends. It was the griot who passed down the story of kings. So the griot and the princes and kings were inseparable.
Then the King Maghan Kon Fatta dies. And against his wishes, his elder son, Dankaran Touman is given control by the elders who do not see much future in the crippled boy, Sundiata. So this is where we really start to see the sibling rivalry between Sundiata and his brother and all the uninterrupted hostility. And it makes me wonder, are children capable of envy in this time in life? And I mean envy in all of its intensity and distinctness. Now, if I think back about the relationship between me and my two brothers and how we used to argue over the video game controller, I'd say yes. Here we have brothers who are battling for a literal throne. So Sassouma is now the queen mother and Sundiata was now spoken of with scorn and with hatred.
Sassouma banished Sogolon and Sundiata and his siblings to a backyard of the Royal Palace, like dogs never allowed in the house. And this is a public ridicule. Sundiata is a sideshow, persecuted, laughed at, stigmatized, unable to walk. One day when Sogolon was 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. Now remember this is an epic. So Sundiata didn't just stand on two legs uneventfully in the story, he stood up and the ground shook and the rod he used to help himself up transformed into a bow.
All in dramatic fashion, all to uplift this hero in even more compelling fashion. It is said that his first steps were those of a giant. Sundiata's griot, Balla Fasséké, fell into step and he pointed his finger at Sundiata and he cried, "Room! Room! Make room! The lion has walked. Hide antelopes. Get out of his way!" And the griot Djeli Mamadou Kouyaté, who is telling us this story says, "From that day forward the queen mother had no more peace of mind, but what can one do against destiny? Nothing. Man, under the influence of certain illusion, thinks he can alter the course which God has mapped out. But everything he does falls into a higher order which he can barely understand."
So Sundiata has went from the scorned and ridiculed child to the popular contender. His brother Manding Bory is by his side. And he has a lot of the other princes, whose fathers had sent them to the court at Niani, and they fell in around him. His griot, Balla Fasséké, is instructing him and at a young age he had already attained the title of simbon, master hunter. It is said he had the strength of ten men at the age of 10. Frightened that her own son would lose his control, the queen mother Sassouma Bérété, tries to kill Sundiata. So she consults some witches to assist. And they would only assist if a wrong was done to them. So a scheme was put into place for the witches to steal some vegetables from Sogolon's garden, which it was Sundiata's duty to watch.
So he's off on a hunting trip and then he comes back just in time to catch them stealing and something happens. They thought it was going to punish them brutally but he shows them empathy. He sees that they're poor and hungry older women and he feeds them. From then, they can do him no harm. So Sassouma exiles Sundaita, Sogolon, and their immediate family and to make matters worse, Sundiata's griot, Balla Fasséké is taken as a prisoner after he was sent as part of a delegation to the powerful king to the land called Sosso.
And this is a land of the Ghana Empire and this powerful king's name is Soumaoro Kanté. We're going to hear a lot more about him a little later in the story, but Sundiata has lost his griot. So he is in exile and for seven years he and his family traveled from asylum to asylum. Sometimes being shown great hospitality and occasionally being mistreated by their hosts. Seven winters passed and as Sundiata passes through the towns and cities of Mali, he is making allies because people love him. He has strength and he has power and he has vision. And remember he was a natural leader.
Remember this, he gains love and he gains respect. So the family finally settles in Ghana, in Wagadou, land of the Soninke people. The land of the most ancient West African Empire. And the Soninke were great traders. And there were tethered camels everywhere and this landscape looks different. All the while Sundiata learns of new people and new customs and 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. This is how impressed he was with the young man.
And the story goes like this from the mouth of the griot, he says, "It was at the court of Mema that Sundiata and Manding Bory went on their first campaign. Moussa Tounkara was a great warrior and therefore he admired strength. When Sundiata was 15, the king took him with him on campaign. Sundiata astonished the whole army with his strength and with his dash in the charge. In the course of a skirmish against the mountaineers, he hurled himself on the enemy with such vehemence that the king feared for his life. But Mansa Tounkara admired bravery too much to stop the son of Sogolon. He followed him closely to protect him and he saw with rapture how the youth sowed panic among the enemy.
He had remarkable presence of mind; struck right and left and opened up for himself a glorious path. He eclipsed all the young princes and was the friend of the whole army. Sundiata was loved by most. And those who didn't love him, feared him. He was made Viceroy of Mema and ruled in the king's absence." Now before we go too much further, because we were about halfway through this, I want to pause just like the griot Djeli Mamadou Kouyaté and remember he is the contemporary griot who has this epic passed down to him over hundreds of years, and he has something to say about Mali's oral history.
Because again, I cannot refrain from telling you how important this oral history is. It conveys something that written words cannot. And he says, "Other peoples use writing to record the past but this invention has killed the faculty of memory among them. They do not feel the past anymore for writing lacks the warmth of the human voice. With them, everybody thinks he knows, whereas learning should be a secret. The prophets did not write and their words have been all the more vivid as a result. What poetry learning is that which is congealed to dumb books? Get your mind around that. I, Djeli Mamadou Kouyaté, I'm the result of a long tradition.
For generations we have passed on the history of kings from father to son. The narrative was passed on to me without alteration, and I deliver it without alteration, for I have received it free from all untruth." And again, I just want to keep weaving that into the story because it is so important to this story as this living and breathing thing. So as Sundiata is preparing to assert his claim to the kingdom of his fathers, he has to contend with Soumaoro, the king of kings. Soumaoro is this vicious and ugly figure. He is this wizard and he is something like out of a nightmare.
The story of this evil villain is like a horror movie you watch with the lights on. It's said that he has a seven storey tower that he lives in and he's this great sorcerer and he has these walls draped in human skin and it's full of secret chambers and he keeps the heads of kings that he slayed on pikes in the secret room. People believed he was invincible because of his magic. His reign produced nothing but bloodshed and terrorism. Sundiata also learns during his exile about this evil sorcerer, King Soumaoro Kanté, who is slowly forcing the cities of Mali and beyond under his control through cruelty and conquest. 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.
Around the same time, Dankaran Touman, the king of Mali and Sundiata's half-brother, tries to wage war on Soumaoro. He is devastated. Now Soumaoro is the King of Mali. The conquering of Mali sets up the final chapter of our story here. Though his choice to return to Mali and battle the sorcerer king upsets Moussa Tounkara, Sundiata is getting half Tounkara's army. He asked to go reclaim his throne and go against the man who has reigned death and destruction and terror on his motherland, his homeland, his soil in Mali. He has a lot of vested interest here. People all around him are calling on him.
He can't let them down. Encouraging him to go home, his people need him. The people said, "Maghan Sundiata. I salute you, King of Mali. The throne of your fathers awaits you. Whatever rank you may hold here, leave all these honors and come and deliver your fatherland. The brave await you. Come and restore rightful authority to Mali. Weeping mothers pray only in your name. The assembled kings await you, for your name alone and inspires confidence in them. Son of Sogolon. Your hour has come. You are the giant who will crush the giant Soumaoro." After these words, profound silence reigned over the room.
"Very well," he said, "it is no longer time for words. I am going to ask the king's leave and we will return immediately. Manding Bory, take charge of the envoys for Mali." Sundiata got up and all of the envoys stood up. He was already king. At the age of 18 he had this stateliness of the lion and the strength of the buffalo. His voice carried authority. His eyes were live coals. His arm was iron. He was the husband of power. Moussa Tounkara, King of Mema, gave Sundiata half of his army. The most valiant came forward of their own free will to follow Sundiata in the great adventure.
The Calvary of Mema, which he had fashioned himself, formed his iron squadron." Sundiata goes to many cities and lands that he visited during his period of exile on his way to Mema. And he slowly builds his army with the allies and the people who had admired him before. And the story gets very real here because the griot describes Sundiata's military formed nations, and his units and his strategies and battles. So Sundiata advances his army to where Soumaoro is, but Soumaoro sends a detachment under his son Sosso Balla to block Sundiata's route. And the story of the battle goes like this, "All of the war chiefs thought it was best to fight in the morning but Sundiata was immoveable.
So the orders were given and the war drums began to beat. On his proud horse Sundiata turned right and left in front of his troops. He entrusted the rear guard composed of a part of the Wagadou Calvary to his younger brother, Manding Bory. Having drawn his sword, Sundiata led the charge shouting his war cry. The Sossos were surprised by the sudden attack for they all thought that the battle would be joined the next day. The lightning that flashes across the sky is slower, the thunderbolts less frightening and the flood waters less surprising, than Sundiata swooping down on Sosso Balla and his smiths. In a trice, Sundiata was in the middle of the Sossos like a lion in the sheepfold.
The Sossos, trampled under the hooves of his fiery charger, cried out. The horsemen of Mema, wrought a frightful slaughter in the long lances pierced of flesh like a knife sunk into a pawpaw. Charging ever forward, Sundiata looked for Sosso Balla. He caught sight of him and bounded towards the son of Soumaoro. His sword held aloft. His arm came sweeping down, but at that same moment a Sosso warrior came between Sundiata and Sosso Balla and he was sliced like a calabash. Sosso Balla did not wait and disappeared from amidst his smiths. Before the sun disappeared behind the mountains, there were only Sundiata and his men left in the valley."
Sundiata has won his first battle but the war isn't over. But finally his army has come up against those of Soumaoro. And though Sundiata is successful in his battles, he could not harm the sorcerer king because the latter has magical protections. The story goes that Sundiata throws his iron tip spear and it bounces right off the chest of Soumaoro like it hit a rock. We're told that Soumaoro catches one of Sundiata's other arrows in mid-flight and then he magically disappears off the battlefield. Sundiata is bewildered. He wonders how can he defeat such a man. A sorcerer himself, he turns to magic for help and through sacrifice he is able to craft a magical arrow.
At this point Sundiata's griot, Balla Fasséké had escaped and met Sundiata's half sister to reunite with him. And now Sundiata had the singer who would carry on his memory by his words. We're told that Sundiata pitches camp in the valley of the Niger River preparing for this final showdown. And this was going to be the final battle. Yet there was never a declaration of war and this was a custom in West Africa. So here we see this exchange between Sundiata and Soumaoro, their very first exchange of words. And again, this is an epic. So it's actually carried on, like their voices, through the voices of two owls. Like there are two magical owls. They have these pet owls, I guess, that are magic in part of their whole magical tradition.
But just imagine these two talking to each other, and it's fascinating and it's full of bravado and it's almost like a hip-hop rap battle. So this is them going back and forth.
Soumaoro: "Stop young man! Henceforth I am the King of Mali. If you want peace, return to where you come from."
Sundiata: "I am coming back, Soumaoro, to recapture my kingdom. If you want peace, you will make amends to my allies and return to Sosso where you are king."
Soumaoro: "I am King of Mali by force of arms. My rights have been established by conquest."
Sundiata: "Then I will take Mali from you by force of arms and chase you from my kingdom."
Soumaoro: "Now then I am the wild yam of the rocks. Nothing will make me leave Mali."
Sundiata: "Know also that I have in my camp seven master smiths who will shatter your rocks. Then yam, I will eat you."
Soumaoro: "I am the poisonous mushroom that makes the fearless vomit."
Sundiata: "As for me, I am the ravenous cock. The poison does not matter to me."
Soumaoro: "Behave yourself little boy or you will burn your foot, for I am the red hot cinder."
Sundiata: "But me, I'm the rain that extinguishes the cinder. I'm the boisterous torrent that will carry you off."
Soumaoro: "I am the mighty silk cotton tree that looks on high on tops of other trees."
Sundiata: "I am the strangling creeper that climbs to the top of the forest giant."
Soumaoro: (upset) "Enough of this argument."
Sundiata: "You shall not have Mali. Know that there is not room for two kings on the same skin."
Soumaoro: "Sundiata, you will let me have your place."
So now for the final fight! And I would say that the odds are with Sundiata at this point. He is a master of a very formidable army and they're full of morale and excitement.
He's the people's champ. He has destiny working for him as well. Then there is Balla Fasséké and he is the ultimate morale booster. The night before the showdown he gives a riling speech and says, "Now, I address myself to you Maghan Sundiata. I speak to you King of Mali. You Maghan, you are a Mali. It has had a long and difficult childhood like you. You are the outgrowth of Mali just like the silk cotton tree is the growth of the earth, born of deep and mighty roots. To face the tempest, the tree must have long roots and gnarled branches. What will we have to teach our sons so that your memory will stay alive?
What unprecedented exploits? What unheard of feats? By what distinguished actions will our sons be brought to regret not having lived in the time of Sundiata? Griots are men of the spoken word. And by the spoken word, we give life to the gestures of kings. But words are nothing, power lies in deeds. Be a man of action. Do not answer me anymore with your mouth, but tomorrow on the plain of Krina show me what you would have me recount to coming generations." And here I'm going to let Djeli Mamadou Kauyoté tell us of this final battle and try to channel the words as he might have said them.
He says, "With his powerful voice Sundiata cried his war cry. The order was repeated from tribe to tribe and the army started off. Soumaoro stood on the right with his calvary. Sundiata and his calvary charged with the great dash, but were stopped by the horsemen of Diaghan and a struggle to the death began. The archers of Wagadou stretched out their lines towards the hills and the battles spread over the entire plain, while an unrelenting sun climbed the sky. The horses of Mema were extremely agile and they reared forward with the force of their hooves raised and swooped down on the horsemen of Diaghan, who rolled on the ground trampled under the horses hooves.
Presently the men of Diaghan gave ground and fell back towards the rear. The enemy center was broken." The battle goes on more. And Sundiata knicks Soumaoro with the magical arrow and the sorcerer king loses his power. Soumaoro retreats and escapes and Sundiata pursues Soumaoro for several days, finally trapping him in a cave with nowhere to go. He has won. The prophecy is fulfilled. And from that day forward we see that destiny has run its full course. The lion king is crowned that day. Sundiata returns to Niani and he founds the Mali Empire splitting it up to show respect for all those rulers who promised to serve him.
And again, Djeli Mamadou Kauyoté ends the epic by praising Sundiata, his rule as this golden age in the Mali empire when he says, "Maghan Sundiata was unique in his own time. No one equaled him and after him no one had the ambition to surpass him. He left his mark on Mali for all time and his taboo still guide men in their conduct. Mali is eternal. To convince yourself of what I have said, go to Mali. At Tigan, you will find the forest dear to Sundiata. Go to Kirikoroni near Niassola, and you will see that tree which commemorates Sundiata's passing through these parts. Men of today, how small are you beside your ancestors?
And small in mind too. For you have trouble grasping the meaning of my words. Sundiata rests near Niani, but his spirit lives on and today the Keitas still come to bow before the stone under which lies the father of Mali." What is the legacy of Sundiata and the Mali Empire? I think first we have to pay homage to the politics of Sundiata's Empire. You see when he conquered and ascended the throne, we're told he was a just ruler and he gathered all the kings and created the Kouroukan Fouga. And this was the Mali constitution of human rights. And as far as we know, it's one of the oldest constitutions.
Some say it even predated the Magna Carta of England. So when we discuss the world history of political thought, it would be a travesty not to mention this amongst the great traditions and constitutions that affirmed the rights for communities and citizens. For instance, this constitution affirms a right to life and there's an edict in there that says all the community are responsible for educating the children, not just the parents. So it has all these different rights and responsibilities of the community in it. The legacy of Sundiata lives on through the art, and through the music, and through the culture, and the religion, and the myths, and the legends, and the proverbs, and the remnants of the great mosques and other buildings. But for me, my grand hope is that this story uplifts and highlights epics or oral narratives as windows to the past.
And I hope it highlights the rich history and heritage of West Africa and also Africa as a whole and that it uplifts this epic right next to all the other grandest and greatest epics the world over. I hope that through these stories that we can begin to garner a respect and a connection to the oral tradition, not just blow it off. And the tradition that we have of reading books that we say that civilizations don't have a monopoly on history just because they created an alphabet. I hope that we have a respect for those in the indigenous cultures, like the griots whose duty was to memorize and recite historical information.
There are so many other similar myths from other parts of Africa, in Ireland and Tibet. So again, I hope these national myths show us more of our similarities than it does our differences with these themes: family, and heroism, and courage, and jealousy even. The good and the bad. The humanity of us all. That is my profound hope. And remember the words of Djeli Mamadou Kayouté. You must believe in this fantastic story and the glory of Sundiata, the founder of the Mali empire, for the royal griots do not know what lying is.
Thank you. Thank you. Thank you for tuning in to my first episode in Season 2 of The Humanity Archive podcast. I sincerely hope you enjoy listening to this story as much as I enjoy telling it. Rich details of Western Sudanese culture: the music, the dress, the customs, the people, the resilience of the religious practices, the hunting and trading, the political organization in the primacy of storytelling, and the preservation of history through the spoken word. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe on Apple and Spotify and leave a review. And also you can join my Patreon community where I have study guides and additional bonus podcast content as well as other resources to help you learn. Join me next time for part two and the final part of this short series entitled Mansa Musa: Master of Gold. I'll see you next time.