A man and a king must have absolute strength of character.  Without that he will not be fit to rule: Only God may rule a king.  God has forbidden adultery: Both the Bible and the Koran are clear on this point, so Sila Mabo should have refrained from coveting his brother’s wife, but he had a weak character, as the story shows, so he was unworthy of the crown.  This canto also has a lesson for women, which is basically the same: Be content with what you have, love your husband as he is, do not try to change him or to see his faults.

A curious motif is that of the true friend Siatigi, who will give even his eye to his friend, without asking what it will be used for.

Thus ends the great epic of the Dausi, an African Iliad, dealing with the ruin of a great city through the weak will of its rulers.

Jan Knappert is a lecturer at the School of Oriental and African Languages at the University
of London.