A New Year Gift to the world...From the Land of the tigers.
"History is a people's memory
And without a memory, man is
demoted to the level of animal."
____Malcom X
Ofu Ruru (Songs of my Memory) tells the story of Ejigbo Mekun, the Land of the tigers. How it came to birth, and the incredulous challenges that the descendants of Fadu Onimewon/Elejigbo, the founder of Ejigbo Awori, Lagos State have had to face so many times in the hands of the descendants of his visitors. In other words, Ofu Ruru tells of the constant raging cries of resistance and revolution to undone all the mess that have been made of this town, Ejigbo Mekun, over the last almost two decades.
***Ofuu Ruru loorere o
Okee ruru L'EEjigbo. X 2
Ile bi so o gbe e tiwa o
Ejigbo rere lo o ti bo o
Oluwa wa e ya a wa wo
E ya wa wara e wa wose
Ayee, aaye X 2
Aaye lotun o, aaye losi X 2
Awa o mo ya wa baatete ko
Ese Owo looye kaatete ko o
Ese omo looye kaatete ko X 2
Aayee, aaye X 2
Aaye lotun o aaye losi X 2
Awa o mo ya wa baatete ko...
Ifadunlaiye Onimewon,
I am a poet,
But I do not know how to start
The poem of your life.
Ejigbo Mekun**
The Land of the tigers,
City of my birth,
The Land of my ancestors.
I have wandered,
Far away from your lap,
Long lost in transit,
Like a thirsty Arabian desert camel
Craving aimlessly to savour,
From the sacred milk of the gods.
I have wandered,
So far away,
In search of the white-man's literacy.
Until one night,
You beckoned unto me,
And every-night,
Amidst the agony of nostalgia,
And every-day,
Amidst the horror of long hours of tuition,
And the menace of the news of his raging madness,
And cries of sorrows back home.
Shattered,
I sought a way of dancing towards you,
To embrace,
And feel the warmth of your arms,
I so longed to run to you,
To feel your pain and share in your agonies,
But, I could not,
Because I had been chained down,
Deep below the white-man's honey-pot.
Mewon,
I have made my pledge,
That when I break away,
Freed from my wilderness,
I must come back home,
To face my divine destiny.
I must heed the call of the gods,
To undone the mess they have made,
Out of the city of my birth,
The Land of my ancestors.
I must pay homage to the muses,
And begin to write the poem of your life.
I must sing the songs of my memory,
And dare to deliver the message of my ancestors.
Chorus: ***Ofuu Ruru loorere o
Okee ruru L'EEjigbo. X 2
Ile bi so o gbe e tiwa o
Ejigbo rere lo o ti bo o
Oluwa wa e ya a wa wo
E ya wa wara e wa wose
Ayee, aaye X 2
Aaye lotun o, aaye losi X 2
Awa o mo ya wa baatete ko
Ese Owo looye kaatete ko o
Ese omo looye kaatete ko X 2
Aayee, aaye X 2
Aaye lotun o aaye losi X 2
Awa o mo ya wa baatete ko...
Onimewon,
They always wondered who I am,
And I am always keen to remind them,
That I am the great-great grandson,
Of the legendary Ifa priest, hunter and warrior,
Divinely moulded with the kindred spirit of the wild,
IFADUNLAIYE ELEJIGBO,
I am the Royal Prince of this jungle,
But the age long wilderness' rumbles
Have made this fragile heart,
A heart of stone and steel.
The wickedness of man
And the constant uneasiness in the land,
Has permanently made the shadow dancer out of me.
I come from the Land of the tigers,
And the sacred spirits of my ancestors live in me.
Because it was once told and retold,
From the sacred ballads of Onimewon,
"That there was a time,
When the spirits walked with us,
And left behind, the Undying..."
I am the Undying...!
They have tried so many times,
To kill us, and take away our memories...
But, so many times...we have refused to die,
Our memories immortal.
From far distant tales,
Of many, many gallantry of Elejigbo,
Little did they know, that,
It has long been told, and retold,
From generations to generations...
That "There was a time,
When the spirits walked with us,
And left behind,
The Undying..."
We are the Undying...We are Shadow Dancers!
Fadu,
I have learned,
From the old ballads of IMUEWON**
The living tales of how they came,
Into this city of my birth,
The Land of my ancestors.
I have learned,
That when they came,
You stretched your kind arms of brotherhood,
And gave them food and shelters,
You gave them life,
You gave them hope,
And made their future bright,
You guard them away from furious peril,
You saved them from slavery,
In the hands of some distant strangers,
Who might have traded them away,
As spoils of war.
But suddenly,
They stabbed you from the back,
And tried to steal this Land from you,
They tried to kill your memory,
In adverse possession,
They tried to turn your history upside down,
Claiming that you have been fenced,
Far behind the open airfield,
They tried to take your honour away from you,
Claiming they now own this city of my birth,
The Land of my ancestors.
Chorus: ***Ofuu Ruru loorere o
Okee ruru L'EEjigbo. X 2
Ile bi so o gbe e tiwa o
Ejigbo rere lo o ti bo o
Oluwa wa e ya a wa wo
E ya wa wara e wa wose
Ayee, aaye X 2
Aaye lotun o, aaye losi X 2
Awa o mo ya wa baatete ko
Ese Owo looye kaatete ko o
Ese omo looye kaatete ko X 2
Aayee, aaye X 2
Aaye lotun o aaye losi X 2
Awa o mo ya wa baatete ko...
Onimewon,
I will tell the world, that,
Their evil schemes are telling tolls on your children,
They have turned many of your natives to vagabonds,
They have made strangers out of true born,
They have sowed the seeds of hatred
And discord in the hearts of your sons,
They have worn them with the garments
Of betrayal, arrogance, selfishness and materialism,
They have made them to abandon your course,
And tread the path of the infamous impostors,
Who have rocked your age long boat,
And carelessly soiled our ancestral Royal Oath With their filthy feaces.
Ejigbo Mekun,
We but calling you,
The mother womb of the earth,
Living under your bossom shade,
Sitting carelessly with laxity,
And hating our present state,
Because we have become the shame of your race,
And now in this very anniversary of my wandering,
My heart becomes the citadel of disgust,
And I am unable to write the poem of your life.
But I,
Wandering Urchin,
Perhaps, I am a sleeper,
Steeped in deep slumber,
Let me be awake! Awake!!
And return back to the values,
And legacies of my ancestors,
Which have been divinely bestowed on us,
From the very beginning.
O Elejigbo,
The tom-tom of revolution beats in my heart,
I want to write the poem of your life,
Which the muses have long haunted,
Beyond my mythical dreams.
Fadu,
My mind is not at rest,
My head spinning like a carousel,
Because they always want me to keep quiet
In the face of oppression,
In the face of persecution,
In the face of manipulation,
In the face of intimidation,
In the face of harassment,
In the face of incarceration,
In the face of assassination and murder,
They want me to shut my mouth,
In the face of injustice,
In the face of botched hospitality,
In the face of adverse possession,
In the face of constant threat and terror.
They don't want me to talk about myself,
Because they want to kill my identity,
But I say No!!!
I must tell the world my history,
Because I know who I am,
I must sing the songs of my memory,
I must heed the call of the gods,
And dare to deliver the message of my ancestors.
Chorus: ***Ofuu Ruru loorere o
Okee ruru L'EEjigbo. X 2
Ile bi so o gbe e tiwa o
Ejigbo rere lo o ti bo o
Oluwa wa e ya a wa wo
E ya wa wara e wa wose
Ayee, aaye X 2
Aaye lotun o, aaye losi X 2
Awa o mo ya wa baatete ko
Ese Owo looye kaatete ko o
Ese omo looye kaatete ko X 2
Aayee, aaye X 2
Aaye lotun o aaye losi X 2
Awa o mo ya wa baatete ko...
Onimewon,
So many a time,
With their bogus lies and mischief,
They have tried to send me back and forth
To the darkest of the gallows,
Yet, they have sent many on a bloody journey of no return.
They have tried to make me run far away
From the city of my birth,
The Land of my ancestors.
Alas! They tried to batter my history,
And turn it upside down.
They have tried to tie me to a stake,
And take my memories away,
Many a time,
They have tried to crucify and slaughter me
On the open alter of hatred and malice,
Praying,
That I must pay so dearly with my life,
For daring to open up my mouth,
To sing the songs of my memory.
But unmoved,
I look up to their face,
To tell them that...I am but just a poet,
I must sing my songs,
So, let me be gone
For singing the songs of my memory.
If they kill me,
They cannot kill the spirit of the tigers in me,
If they maim me,
They never can maim the ancestors in me.
Still, I will tell the world,
That they cannot erase my memory,
They cannot kill my history,
I will not allow them to take my honor away from me,
If I must die,
Then I must sing the songs of my memory,
And dare to deliver the message of my ancestors,
I am not afraid of dying,
Because I am but just a messenger of the gods.
But Alas! The spirits of my ancestors live in me,
Because I am a Shadow Dancer, the Undying...
Chorus: ***Ofuu Ruru loorere o
Okee ruru L'EEjigbo. X 2
Ile bi so o gbe e tiwa o
Ejigbo rere lo o ti bo o
Oluwa wa e ya a wa wo
E ya wa wara e wa wose
Ayee, aaye X 2
Aaye lotun o, aaye losi X 2
Awa o mo ya wa baatete ko
Ese Owo looye kaatete ko o
Ese omo looye kaatete ko X 2
Aayee, aaye X 2
Aaye lotun o aaye losi X 2
Awa o mo ya wa baatete ko...
Elejigbo,
Just before I pay so dearly with my life,
I will dance my pen round my soul,
And with every single drop of my blood,
I will write your name out of the debris of their mess,
I will take it back!
And tongue them away from the city of my birth,
I will sing the songs of my memory,
And dare to deliver the message of my ancestors,
I am not afraid of dying,
Because I am but a messenger of the gods.
Chorus: ***Ofuu Ruru loorere o
Okee ruru L'EEjigbo. X 2
Ile bi so o gbe e tiwa o
Ejigbo rere lo o ti bo o
Oluwa wa e ya a wa wo
E ya wa wara e wa wose
Ayee, aaye X 2
Aaye lotun o, aaye losi X 2
Awa o mo ya wa baatete ko
Ese Owo looye kaatete ko o
Ese omo looye kaatete ko X 2
Aayee, aaye X 2
Aaye lotun o aaye losi X 2
Awa o mo ya wa baatete ko...
____Martin Luther Kings Jnr.
Nota Bene:
OF EJIGBO AWORI LAGOS STATE , ITS HISTORY AND DESTINY...
Fadu Onimewon Royal Family of Ejigbo Awori Lagos State are the descendants of Ifadunlaiye (The First Settler and Founder of Ejigbo) a Prince from Ile Ife who migrated alongside his brothers Prince Olofin Ogunfunminire Atewonrin, Prince Adeyonmbo, Prince Akinbaiye and Prince Aro e. t. c. Prince Ifadunlaiye left Ile Ife and sojourned with his Kinsmen to finally settle at Imu-Ewon (a place where thorn trees are concentrated) in 1469, the reason why he is being referred to as Onimewon (Oni-imu-ewon...the owner of the place where thorn trees are concentrated). Ejigbo town could have been named and called IMU-EWON today but by divine divination, It was Ifa Oracle after consultations that named this town, "EJIGBO". Ejigbo Awori is under Oshodi/Isolo Local Government Area of Lagos State. Prince Ifadunlaiye was an Awori, a great warrior, hunter and Ifa faithful. He later founded his own Kingdom here as divined by ifa after consulting the Oracle who named the town as Ejigbo. By the Oracle's divination, Fadu Onimewon was ordained as the King of Ejigbo (ELEJIGBO), Hence, his title The Alade of Ejigbo. Fadu Onimewon Royal Family is the Paramount Chieftaincy Family in Ejigbo Awori Lagos State, Nigeria. Ijon is a town far distant from Ejigbo, and it is located at Ayobo area under Alimosho Local Government Area of Lagos State. The Ijon people were according to oral, judicial and historical accounts refugees in Ejigbo Town. They sought refuge in Ejigbo during the Egba and Dahomey war in 1861, and Fadu Onimewon (ELEJIGBO) and his people extended the hand of friendship to, hospitalised and accommodated them. Fadu provided shelters for them alongside other visitors during that time, and also gave them expanse of Land to farm. Disappointedly, for many years now, the visitors have grown to become ingrates and tries to steal our Land away from us by mischievously turning the history of this Town (Ejigbo) upside down. Their descendants have also taken up the futile ventures of their forefathers but hey... they will always meet the TRUTH at the other end of the bridge, because the Odu Ifa (Ifa Divination) that has appeared in the recent past has confirmed that the Goose has come back home to roost..."Ogbe fohun folohun". Hence..."OFU RURU (Songs of My Memory)"
Below is the verse of the divination of the birth of #Ejigbo #Awori #Lagos #State. In other words, the verse of the #Odu #Ifa that gave birth to Ejigbo Awori Lagos State is "#Owonrin #Otura"... Owonrintura... i. e Owonrin L'otun, Otura L'osi (Owonrin appearing from the right of the divination tray while Otura appeared from the left), combination of which resulted in "#OWONRIN-#ELEJIGBO.
OBATÁALÁ (wonrinòturá) Gbágánrán mójú.A difá fún àbànikosi.Tò n ré ilè kétu. Iya ò bí mi nílé ifón. Baba ò bí mi ní ejibò kóro.Àànú orisa ló se mí. Ni kò jé kí n mu emu. Ó fun ruru lowu. Ó kè riri lÉjigbò. Ifón réré ni mo ti wá o. Ònà Èjigbò ni mo rìn. Olúayé e yà wá o.E wá wòrò alapa kan. Oluayé e yà wá o. E wá wòró elese kan o. Oluaye e yà wà o. E wá wòró tó n rinru Oba-Nlá laláse ,Orisa-Nlá lalase.Atatakoro. Oba-Nla lalase. Taa la óò máa sin? Orisa la óò máa sin bojumo bá mó.Taa la óò máa sin?Orisa la óò máa sin bórun bá pé.Taa la óò máa sin?Orisa la óò máa sin bódún bá dé. Ifa ki yin o, Ire nifáa yin wi o, Ifa ò súbi. Héèpa bara Àgbonniregun...
Aboru Aboye o...
EJIGBO And ISOLO... THE UMBILICAL CONNECTION!
Amongst the descendants of Ifadunlaiye or Fadu Onimewon /Elejigbo known as 'OROOLE' (Grand-Son) married 'DADA ASO' (Grand - Daughter) of Akinbaiye Osolo. So invariably, the Children of Oroole son of Fadu Onimewon /Elejigbo are also the Children of Akinbaiye Osolo. This is the blood relationship between Fadu Onimewon of Ejigbo and Akinbaiye of Isolo aside the fact that they both sojourned from Ile Ife. Fadu Onimewon Royal Family is the Paramount Chieftaincy Family in Ejigbo Awori Lagos State and Fadu was the first Elejigbo, while Akinbaiye Royal Family is the Paramount Chieftaincy Family in Isolo Awori Lagos State and Akinbaiye was the first Osolo. It is so because they were the first settlers in both towns. This is also so in all Awori Lands in Lagos and Ogun State.
Oriki wa...
Awa Laakere Koro,
Omo Ejigbo Mekun,
Omo Fadu Oro Onimewon ti o se e ba fori gbori,
Omo Ogun Ile, Omo Ogun Ode,
Omo Epo were were lita Ijigbo.
Ko se e foko ro, ko se e fada ro,
Bo o ro, o o le lo,
Omo Alade Merindinlogun Lejigbo Ile...
Wednesday, 27th December 2017.
2.47am,
Ejigbo Lagos.
@AdeolaGoloba 2017
