Intro
This short story comes from Moussa Travélé's 1923 book "Proverbes et contes bambara."
Summary
A "traditional religious practitioner" and a "Muslim religious practitioner" disagree about their powers. One of them vows to kill the king's son and the other to protect him. But whose powers are greater and what happens to the king's son?
Listen
Text
Kafirikɛ y'i kali ko ale bɛ se ka masakɛ denkɛ faga ni biɲɛ ye.
Morikɛ y'i kali ko hali marifakisɛ tɛ se k'à faga, janko biɲɛkisɛ. Morikɛ ye sɛbɛn sɛbɛn k'à siri masakɛ denkɛ kan na.
Kafirikɛ ye biɲɛ da kala da la ka masakɛ denkɛ bon. Biɲɛ taara dindan san ni dugu cɛ cɛnin da fɛ; à tɛ bin; à tɛ cɛnin sɔrɔ; à dun tɛ mabɔ à la. Cɛnin jɔra o, à sigira o, biɲɛ b'à nɔfɛ, à dun tɛ se à ma, fo ka taa se tile saba la.
Cɛnin donna ɲɛgɛn na. Biɲɛ dontɔ à nɔfɛ, à gosira da la. Biɲɛkisɛ binna dugu ma. Biɲɛkala cira cɛnin na; o binna ka sa.
Ko nin maa fila, jumɛn ka gɛlɛn? Dɔw ko kafirikɛ don. Nka morikɛ ko biɲɛ; à ma biɲɛkala kofɔ dɛ!
Vocab
- kafiri
- pagan; animist; non-Muslim; infidel
- k'i kali
- to swear [an oath]
- biɲɛ
- arrow
- mori
- Quranic teacher/scholar; Muslim "holy man"; Fr. marabout
- janko
- "let alone" [in negative sentences]; "all the more so" [in positive sentences]; "a fortiori"
- sɛbɛn
- written text; paper; amulet
- kala
- arc
- ka mɔgɔ bon fɛn na
- to pelt sb with sth [as in, "to throw sth at sb" or "to shoot sth at sb"]
- ka dindan
- to hover; to be suspended
- ka mabɔ fɛn na
- to move away from sth
- ɲɛgɛn
-
bathroom
- k'à gosi
- to strike sth; to hit sth
- ka sa
- to die
- maa
- person [Segu Bambara]; cf. mɔgɔ