Pui (Book of Heroes)

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The Pui , like the Dausi, is a collection of epic heroic songs from West Africa . It is written in the Soninke language , which used to be common in the entire West African Sahel region . The Pui should consist of a total of twelve parts, of which only eight parts are known in prose form. There is no direct connection between them; an original text is not available. The collection was freely translated into German by the German ethnologist Leo Frobenius .

content

  1. The first heroic legend is about the cowardly noble Samba Kullung, who is made drunk by his mistress, a king's daughter, and made to perform numerous heroic deeds during the war.
  2. In the second legend, a woman is captured by 60 men from Ségou and freed by her husband Sirani Koro Samba. Although the 60 men tried to bribe him, a bard praised their defeat after the fight.
  3. In the third part of the Pui, Buge Koroba goes to war, while at home his favorite wife Nyelle is beaten up by the other women and predatory Fulbe drives away the herds. But they cannot find Buge Koroba's herd because he has hidden them on an island. The hero pursues the Fulbe and takes the cattle from them again.
  4. In the fourth part, the Fulbe hero Gossi willfully violates two orders of the king, which is why he is sentenced to death. In the war, however, Gossi saves his king's defeated army and is acquitted by the king. He refuses a reward because he just wanted to prove his courage.
  5. In the fifth heroic legend, the king of Ségou kidnaps the bride of the hero Kumba Sira Maga, who then sneaks into the royal palace to visit her. The king sends him to an enemy city as a punishment. The hero does his job and is allowed to marry his wife as a reward.
  6. In the sixth part, Hamadi Fing is driven from his homeland by three heroes. Later, his son Bassala-n 'Sa goes to the heroes and is accepted by them. When they fight against four hunters, Bassala-n 'Sa is the only one who can overcome his opponent, whereupon he reveals himself.
  7. In the seventh part, Sagate Singo beats a gang who wanted to steal his sheep. Even after meeting them again on a trip, he defeats them.
  8. The eighth part is about Sira Maga Njoro, a prince of the Massina Empire . He has the messengers of the King of Ségou, who are supposed to collect tribute, killed, marries a girl whom his uncle would also have liked to have married, and takes on the King of Konaré . The King of Ségou and the uncle attack Sira Maga Njoro with a large army. The hero is badly hit by a copper arrow and escapes into the city. His brother goes into battle wearing Sira Maga's clothes, which causes confusion among the opponents.

literature

  • Leo Frobenius : minstrel stories from the Sahel. Diederichs, Jena 1921