Fridays are known generally for heralding our indigenous ways of life, especially in dressing and music. This is why I, as an indigene of the Yorùbá tribe presents Yorùbá Proverbs. In this post, I present a yorùbá proverb, it's literal interpretation and it's meaning and significance to the yorùbá people, and at times, Africa at large. The Yorùbá people predominantly live in the South Western part of Nigeria, and they speak the Yorùbá language. The theme for today's proverb is Exaggeration

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Ẹnití ó lọ bu omi nínú àmù ní òun rí ẹbọra, ẹnití ó lọ pọọ́n létí odò ńkọ́, kí ni yóò rí?

Literal Interpretation

The person who went to take a cup of water from the pot said he saw a ghost on the way; what then would the person who used a pot to fetch from the stream have seen?

In ancient Yoruba communities (villages especially), where modern municipal pipe-borne water is not accessible, people use local pots to fetch water from nearby streams for domestic purposes. Usually, small pots are used to fetch water into much bigger pots which are kept in suitable locations in the house.

Whenever water is needed in the house, smaller containers are used to dish water from the big pots. In ancient houses, the location of this big pot is usually in a secluded corner and mostly likely dark. When little children are sent to dish some water from the pot, the fear of the darkness in that area makes them try to hesitate and they could give excuses like they see ghosts on the way to the pot. Elders therefore debunk these childrens claim by wondering what would then be seen by the person who goes all the way to the stream to fill the big pot with water.

This kind of situation is linked to the proverb to dismiss the claim of any person who tries to exaggerate any situation in life in order to deserve commendation or promotion or to receive higher pay for a job he has done or is about to do.

People at times make little issues appear so big or so difficult for various reasons. For example, a road side mechanic could describe a little fault in a car in a way that it appears so big to the car owner simply because he is stranded on the expressway and will not want to leave the car at that spot over the night. He therefore exaggerates so that he can make as much money as possible from this helpless car owner for a job rather simple that he might have to do on the car.

If you happen to come where the same place as me, you probably have heard of or experienced where a bike man decides to take a long route to a destination that has a much shorter route, just to get more money from his passenger who he discovers that is not familiar with that area.