Introduction
The remarkable work of Djanka Tassey Conde on the oral epic titled Sunjata emphasizes on celebrating the founder of the Mali Empire in West Africa in the thirteenth century. Although the oral poems originating from the Mali people considerably contains nuance due to the nature of transmitting historical information; the story remains a known epic not only among the native Mandinka, but also among the people of Senegal and Gambia. The discussion focuses on determining how oral tradition is being used as history through the lenses of destiny. Furthermore, the discussion also focuses on finding what people can learn about destiny and how Sunjata was used as a historical source. Taking into consideration is the fact that during the time when history was non-existent, oral tradition was a primary source of information for the people to know and tell others about their history. Another important question to answer in this discussion is how the theme of destiny plays a role in Sunjata. However, one can only assume that destiny was used a central theme in the oral epic because of the lack of factual basis to justify the circumstances of the main character in the oral epic.
The Role of Destiny in Sunjata
The oral epic of Sunjata came originally in Mali. In this side of the world, family is of an extreme importance. However, the Lion King’s insult to his mother is quite inappropriate for a family-oriented culture in Mali. The mentioning of this particular act from the King contradicts the utmost desire of the people of Mali to value family honor in their everyday life. The relationship between family values and destiny played an important role in the oral epic. A particular evidence of such relationship is the belief that Sundiata is destined to the king of Mali despite usurped scheming of Sunsiat’s stepmother. Before taking the throne, Sundiata was exiled and gladly accepts it because in him is the belief that it is his destiny to rule Mali just as foretold.
The role of destiny in the oral epic is the insinuation of desire in pursuing a pre-determined goal. In the epic Sunjata, the main character’s goal is to assure the stability of the kingdom by fighting in wars and defeat oppressors in order to preserve the freedom of the people. It is not in Sundiata’s goal to usurp the throne of the hereditary kingdom, but to primarily restore peace and the people’s freedom. However, despite being exiled and his throne taken away, Sundiata was still able to get back and fulfill his destiny to be a king. Having said that, it appears that regardless of the circumstances, one would still end up in a place where destiny wants them to be. Destiny is instrumental for Sundiata because it acts as guiding path for him towards goal attainment. It was foretold that Sundiata will be king, but the events that followed made it almost impossible for him to become what the prophecy had foretold. However, destiny acts as gravity that pulls one back to his place in the world no matter how far one goes out of orbit.
Lessons about Destiny from Sunjata’s Historical Time
The lessons about destiny from Sunjata’s historical narratives suggest the critical importance of remembering history. The oral epic teaches kings not only about celebrating ancestry, but also to value the past as an example for the future generations. The author emphasizes the prominence of destiny in every ones’ lives as exampled from Sundiata’s rise to rule. It is ironic to some extent that Sundiata’s enemies are trying to bring him down, which in return hinders the process of achieving the his goal, but the hindrances became instrumental in enabling Sundiata’s destiny. It is difficult to perceive destiny, as the outcome of one’s action will determine the end result. Even the wisest of man may not be able to determine his own destiny, as people are all subservient to greater forces far beyond control. Such characteristic makes it difficult for people to master an intervention mechanism that will determine destiny. One can only perceive what they want to become in the future, but along the way, there are turning points that changes the outcome. On the other hand, whatever the outcome can be considered as a materialization of one’s destiny.
The concept of destiny was also emphasized in the oral epic through testaments about patience and heroism. In the oral epic, Sundiata was welcomed not only by his people as a new king, but also by the gods that made him stronger in each battle. It becomes apparent that the concept of destiny is an early assumption drawn from the characteristics of the individual being prophesized. For example, Sundiata was foretold as a future king, but the circumstances that he had gone through makes it difficult to believe that he is a king material. However, physical and intellectual attributes were taken into consideration in establishing the assumption about Sundiata’s destiny. Through collective actions such as being able to defeat Soumaoro and earning Sundiata the hero status have created the prerequisites of his destiny as the next king. Sundiata knew that he would be king, but a great amount of patience, trustworthiness, and not despairing were instrumental in his succession to the throne. The aforementioned attributes became the testaments that helped in realizing Sundiata’s destiny.
Out of all that was mentioned about Sunjata and the role of destiny in the life of the hero in the oral epic, one of the most important lesson about destiny is to exercise patience. Destiny as described earlier cannot be determined, unless prominent features and characteristics attests to what a person is about to become. For example, when a child showed strength in leadership that manifests on circumstances such as being elected as president of several student clubs; the manifestation of being destined to become a future leader is apparent. If for example, the young leader showed interests in political subjects, it reinforces the assumption that the child is destined to be a political leader in the future. However, one does not simply wait for destiny to unfold, there are relative processes in which a person has to go through to realized his vision and destiny. It is the same thing that happened to Sundiata in the oral epic, which despite being exiled and losing sight of his goal, circumstances led him to his destiny through reinforcements such as becoming a hero and defeating Soumaoro. Sundiata’s destiny was not realized until the aforementioned circumstances had occurred. It took patience and resilience for Sundiata to achieve his status and destiny or not, the outcome of his endeavors are true testaments to his personal destiny.
The Use of Sunjata as Historical Source
The search for history in a rather fictional literary piece suggests digging through a pile of haystack for any relevant historical fact. The oral epic is considerably a significant source of historical information for the people of Mali because of the lack of available Arabic historical resources during the period described in the epic. One of the historical artifacts found in the oral epic is the famous mansa. However, external writings or supporting evidence that can substantiate the identity of Sunjata is missing. In such absence, scholars believe that the oral epic is no more than a piece of cultural tradition that was passed on from generation to generation. On the other hand episodes of oral accounts testifies to the validity of the oral epic as a true manifesto of the reign of Sunjata. The difficulty of finding historical evidence from the oral epic is the fact that there is no physical evidence either in writing or otherwise that can attest to claims made in the oral epic. The problem with orally disseminated history is the lack of validity because given that the plot of the epic is dating back in the thirteenth century; the cumulative generations of people passing over the epic may have omitted or added portions to the original epic. The more difficult challenge that historians face in validating historical claims based on oral epic is the credibility of the person telling the story to the next person.
For example, a story told two years ago is susceptible to alterations as embellishments to the plot is being added. When the same story is being told in the current time, the essential elements of embedded history may have already been lost. If the scholars working with the Mali people in establishing the validity of the oral epic are facing limitations in terms of sufficient external writing sources, they must accept the oral sources as is and disregard validation. The effects of the lack of archival documentation about the Sunjata varies from having variations of available tradition to conflict of information during documentation. Moreover, finding factual historical narratives from the oral sources concerns interpretation. Having no sufficient evidence that Sunjata have existed in the thirteenth century and relying solely on oral narratives creates a problem with interpretation. Oral traditions are at some point unsupported by documentation; therefore, any critical information forgotten during transmittal to the audience may result to differentiation in interpretation. One missing element is likely to result to new perceptions about the story. The same thing with adding new elements to the oral narratives, adding portions to the story that were not mentioned in prior recital of the oral epic will create a new version of the story. Furthermore, the continuous practice of omission and insertion changes the characteristics of the story, which is also likely to create new versions of the story that fades the remaining bit of historical relevance from the original version.
Conclusion
The discussion about the role of destiny in Sunjata along with the discussion about finding historical relevance from the oral epic constitutes an idea that history was never absolute. It means, whatever known history drawn from oral narratives could be either accurate or fabricated. However, the important element that remains intact in Sunjata is the consistent emphasis on destiny, which the oral narratives was able to consistently emphasized. At best, the oral epic teaches a lesson about patience and the role of destiny in one’s life.
Works Cited
Conrad, David C, and Djanka T. Condé. Sunjata: A West African Epic of the Mande Peoples. Indianapolis: Hackett Pub. Co, 2004. Print.
