American Literature

The paper focuses on how the epic of Sundiata has within it hidden connotations towards the spread of the religion of Islam and its adoption by the African people. This is evidenced by the characterization of Sundiatas mother and father which when examined closely could be interpretations of the region at the time and the integration of Islam within it. The paper also attempts to show the importance of women in the epic of Sundiata wherein if it wasnt for their influences since the beginning of the epic Sundiata would not have become the person he was and he wouldnt have become the king of Mali if it wasnt for their interference and assistance in crucial moments of his life. It is in this discussion about women that the paper focuses on how there is a hidden meaning in the story about women wherein it implies that even if a woman stands against a man the man will always triumph. The paper also delved in to the similarity of the epic of Sundiata and that of the epics of the ancient Greek culture.

The story of Sundiata is a semi-historical account of the founding of the Mali empire, in it the main protagonist Sundiata was supposedly an individual of great spiritual power who used this power to defeat his foes and unite the people of Mali into a prosperous empire. While it is true that there was an individual by the name of Sundiata who founded the Mali empire the reason why the story of Sundiata or rather the epic of Sundiata is called a semi-historical account is due to the fact that it blends elements of magic and sorcery with historical fact.  Several scenes present within the story allude to the special nature of the protagonist from the prophecy of his birth that would supposedly make him the king of Mali, his supposed possession of strange mystical powers that enabled him to defeat his rivals who possessed powers of their own, and finally to the use of special totems that supposedly enabled a person to possess special qualities that made them powerful on the battlefield. When read closely the epic of Sundiata can actually come to be interpreted as possessing religious connotations. At the time of its creation the region was actually undergoing a religious transformation as such certain parts of the story when examined closely shows the influences of this transformation. The story in itself though originating from a male dominates culture shows how women are an integral part in the life of Sundiata and were among one of the main reasons why he came to be and were behind his rise to power. Not only that but the epic of Sundiata can also be said to be similar to other forms of ancient epics such as those found in Greek literature. This paper will try to examine the story of Sundiata in order to determine the different connotations associated with it involving religion and prophecy as well as delving into the importance of women in the story and how it compares to other forms of ancient epics.

Religion and the epic of Sundiata
Though it may not be explicitly stated in the epic there are actually religious connotations present in the tale. Africa at the time of Sundiata was actually undergoing a period of religious transformation wherein Islam had taken root among its many indigenous groups. The father of sundiata, Maghan, was actually an Islamic convert. Through the marriage of Maghan, an Islamic, and Sugalon, a representation of the traditional mysticism of Africa we see that the combination of the two creates a strong individual who leads the region to greatness. When it comes to oral history not everything is transferred exactly as it was told originally. African beliefs about magic and spiritual beings posses a rich and deep body of mythology and stories that can attest to the amazing oral tradition of the Griots, similar to the one mentioned in the tale of Sundiata, who have shared it orally from young to old alike throughout the many centuries. With oral traditions sometimes those telling them tend to embellish certain parts which explains why there are instances in the epic wherein Sundiata supposedly annihilated dozens of men with just one sweep of his sword which seems highly unlikely.

There are even times when storytellers add and remove parts in order to convey a message that they themselves want to impart. Sundiatas mother perhaps was never hunch backed or ugly  nor did she probably possess mystical powers rather the story teller at the time probably included these qualities to show that the marriage between African mysticism and the religion of Islam could produce greatness. Perhaps the storyteller was himself an Islamic convert and wanted to connote a message that Islam and Africa were compatible with one another and could produce something profound. Which in the end it did since the relationship between the region and Islam did result in several years of prosperity for the region. An interesting observation in the story is the portrayals of Sundiatas mother and father, the portrayals in themselves also contain significance. If we assume that the storyteller in this instance was a Griot Islamic convert then the portrayal of Maghan as being handsome and Sugalon as being ugly could come to be interpreted as Maghan representing the greatness of Islam and Sugalon representing the current state of the region. That by combining the two greatness for the entire region could be achieved. Not only that but evidenced by the death of Sugalon when Sundiata was about to go to war and claim his destiny could also be interpreted as a dying of the old ways to be replaced by the new.

Importance of women in the epic of Sundiata and a hidden meaning in the story.
Though African society is a male dominated culture the women in the epic of Sundiata played important roles from the start of the epic all the way to the struggle for power and leading to the conclusion which was the victory of Sundiata. It can be said that if it were not for the women in the life of Sundiata he would not have become the lion king of Mali, in fact he wouldnt have even been born at all. To prove this point at the beginning of the epic we see the future father of Sundiata Maghan Kon Fatta sitting under a silk-cotton tree when he is told a prophecy by a hunter who had given him a portion of his kill. The hunter states that the king will marry an ugly hunch backed woman that will be brought to him by two hunters however it is through that woman that a son will be born to him that will rule over the entire region. From this and the succeeding events of the hunters being guided by the spirit of the buffalo woman enabling them to kill the rampaging buffalo and their subsequent presentation of the hunch backed woman Sogolon to Maghan it can be seen that it was through the subtle machinations of women in the form of a womans spirit that guided the hunters that lead to the birth of Sundiata. If it wasnt for the spirit guiding the hunters then they wouldnt have been able to kill the buffalo and take Sugalon to Maghan. Early on in the life of Sundiata he was portrayed as being fat, lazy and being unable to even walk however due to the insults of the kings first wife Sassouma at his mother for giving birth to a cripple Sundiata took it upon himself to ease the sadness of his mother by having a blacksmith fashion a steel rod for him to use to force himself to stand. From this it can be seen that though it wasnt intentional it was through the kings first wife Sassouma that Sundiata found a reason to walk after many years of crawling on the ground. Sassouma herself could even be said to be one of the primary reasons why Sundiata became what he did for if it wasnt through her actions of having him exiled then Sundiata probably would not have been able to travel extensively the way he did and learn the skills and wisdom needed to defeat Soumaoro. The last contribution of a woman in the epic of Sundiata is through his sister Nana Triban. It is through her that he learns that Soumaoros totem animal was the cock and by using the animal Sundiata would be able to defeat Sooumaoro. Sundiata fashioned an arrow with a white cocks spur on the tip which he used to defeat Soumaros by riding him of his magic. Thus from start to finish it can be seen that Sundiatas life even before he was born has been influenced by women and it is through them that he was able to become the lion king of Mali.

Though the tale shows the importance of women it does have a hidden meaning regarding women that is not immediately apparent. From the epic it is well known that Sassouma hates Sundiata and wishes him nothing but ill will and death and takes steps to bring this about. Ironically though it is through her that Sundiata actually achieves his goal and becomes the lion king of Mali. If it wasnt for her actions during Sundiatas youth which resulted in his exile he wouldnt have been able to the wisdom and achievements needed to make him what he was. Not only that but it was due to this exile that he was able to be part of the court of Moussa Tounkara who gave him half of the Mema army which enabled him to gather more men to defeat Soumaoro. It was also through Sassoumas own daughter Nana Triban that Sundiata was able to learn the weakness of Soumaoro. From all these events the hidden meaning becomes obvious that even if a woman wishes ill will and death upon a man the man by right of sort of divine will or right will still triumph over the woman. Though woman are important in the tale of Sundiata his inadvertent victory over Sassouma without even trying shows that the tale is steeped in the African concept of male superiority over women.

Similarities with Stories from Greek Mythology
The story of Sundiata actually has similarities to that of two pieces of ancient Greek literature namely that of the Odyssey and Oedipus. While the story of Sundiata may not contain parts wherein he kills his father and marries his mother a familiar theme in the stories of Sundiata and Oedipus is the importance placed on fate and destiny. In both stories before they were even born their destinies were already prophesized and both fathers believed in the power of prophecy. It is at this point where the similarities in both fathers end since in the case of the father of Sundiata he believed wholeheartedly in the power of prophecy and fate that some things were inevitable and inescapable so much so that he married an ugly woman just to conform to the prophecy of him bearing a son through her. The father of Oedipus also believed in the power of prophecy however he believed that destiny could be changed and took steps to ensure that the destiny of Oedipus wouldnt come to pass by leaving him to die on a mountain when he was a baby. It must be noted though that the reason why the father of Sundiata believed wholeheartedly in the prophecy might be because it was mostly positive and having several wives in Africa was normal so much so that having an extra ugly one wouldnt be an inconvenience however in the case of the father of Oedipus it was mostly negative and meant his death. In such a case it is understandable that a person would fight fate even if they believed in the power of it.

In the case of the similarity of Sundiata and Odysseus both protagonists experienced a long journey before they were able to go back to their homes and both were indebted to Kings for helping them when they were lost. In the case of Sundiata it was King Mousa Tunkara the king of Mema who gave him refuge when he was in self imposed exile while in the case of Odysseus it was the King of the Phaeacians that helped him get back home by giving him a ship to get there. One other similarity between the two is the use of a bow and arrow to win their own perspective trials. In the case of Odysseus he used a bow to shoot an arrow through 12 rings set in a line during a competition to defeat the suitors who were attempting to court his wife in the belief that he was dead . While in the case of Sundiata it was through the use of an arrow wrapped in the tail feather of a white rooster that enabled him to defeat the sorcerer Sumanguru.