Ilu

How is the python enjoying the sun?

An idiomatic greeting — asking how things are going. The reply is "Àba nà nkọ" (back and sides), meaning all is well.

When wealth reaches home, its earner is known

True source of wealth reveals itself in time.

Wealth makes the heart strong

Security breeds confidence.

Wealth is enmity; a child who gains wealth gains enemies

Prosperity attracts envy.

Money resides in the thorns

Wealth requires risk/boldness.

Whoever wants to be wealthy must strive, for money is in the thorn

Take risks to achieve goals.

No one grows rich by throwing away what he acquired

Thrift builds wealth.

One who has people is greater than one who has money

People outrank money.

The poor person's chicken is his cow

Be content with what you have.

After flying, the termite falls to be eaten by the toad

Fortunes can reverse.

Destitution breeds disdain

Poverty attracts contempt.

An indigent does not take the title "he who completes whatever he undertakes"

Don't make claims you cannot back up.

Tell a poor man the way to wealth and he says staying poor suits him

On resignation to one's condition.

A poor man's goat is his cow

The little the poor own is precious.

The world is a feast; after enjoying it one returns home

Life is transient.

The world is a market; after trading one returns to god

A temporary marketplace.

The world is a grand masquerade; you cannot view it fully from one spot

Perspective requires movement.

The world revolves; nothing is permanent

Change is constant.

While there is life there is hope

Endurance.

However long the night, dawn will break

Hard times don't last.

Patience is the journey of life

Life demands patience.

A human being is a synthesis of fire and water

On the dual nature of persons.

Death knows no king; it kills mighty and low alike

The great leveller.

A dead person shall have all the sleep necessary

The dead rest fully; the living should work.

Every iron will go to the blacksmith's furnace

All lives end the same way — in death.

When a corpse accepts its status, it is buried on time

Accept reality and things proceed.

The gong announces a warrior twice — at birth and at death

Honour brackets a great life.

On the day one's chi agrees to death, death will find him even if he hides in a hole

Death is inescapable.

Wisdom is the way / Wisdom is life

Prudence guides living.

When one deliberates alone he commits murder

Two heads are better than one; seek counsel.

One who asks questions never loses his way

Inquiry prevents error.

Tell a wise one and he understands; tell a fool and he runs into the bush

Wisdom vs. folly in receiving counsel.

The traveller knows more than the grey-haired

Experience surpasses mere age.

The blacksmith who cannot forge a gong should study the kite's tail

Learn from nature/models.

Eyes that see bad but keep faith will also see good

Persevere through adversity.

One who does not know bitterness cannot appreciate sweetness

Contrast gives understanding.

What the cow sees and flees, the fowl merely gapes at

Fools rush in / fail to grasp danger.

Tell a child to wash his body, he washes only his stomach

The immature do things by halves.

A presumed fool asleep in his own father's house is no fool

Judge context before calling someone foolish.

Patience has victory / there is reward in patience

Good things come to those who wait.

A hot soup is licked gently

Handle difficulty carefully.

Drop by drop the palm wine fills the container

Small steps accomplish great ends.

Sudden difficulty constrains a warrior, but overcoming it is what makes him one

Adversity proves character.

The big game appears when the hunter has given up for the day

Never give up too soon.

If an animal escapes today, tomorrow is another day to hunt

Keep hope; new chances come.

The world is like a cow's udder; it yields no milk unless squeezed

Nothing comes without effort.

A palm nut that would become oil must pass through fire

Success requires hardship.

The mouth that eats must work; the working hands will eat

Labour and reward are linked.

The machete that fells a tree today went through the forge yesterday

Preparation precedes achievement.

Soiled/working hands bring an oily (well-fed) mouth

Diligence brings plenty.

"Later, later" is the death that kills a lazy person

Procrastination is fatal.

At the cock's morning crow the lazy man hisses

The lazy resent the call to work.

A roaring lion catches no prey

Talk without work yields nothing.

A goat that died in a yam barn was not killed by hunger

Laziness/complacency amid plenty.

Multitude/unity is the glory of a king

There is power in community.

One tree does not make a forest

No one succeeds alone.

When oil stains one finger, it soils the others

Individual actions affect the whole.

When the right hand washes the left, the left washes the right

Mutual aid.

A land's firewood is enough to cook for all its people

Communities are self-sufficient.

One's neighbour is one's kin

Neighbours are family.

A human being is another's guardian spirit

People are destiny-helpers to one another.

It takes a village/community to raise a child

Collective responsibility.

No load is too heavy for the (community of) driver ants

Unity overcomes any burden.

A child who washes his hands may dine with elders/kings

Merit earns a place among the great.

A baby on its mother's back does not know the road is long

The sheltered don't feel the labour borne for them.

The growing wren looks as if it will outgrow its mother

On promise and growth.

If a child lifts his father up, the father's scrotum blindfolds him

Respect the generational order.

A child who knows his fathers has known the ancestors

Heritage is learned through family.

Children learn by watching parents

We teach by our deeds.

A child cannot repay a mother's nurture

Some debts are not monetary.

Seeing a child, one is reminded of his father

Children reflect their parents.

An elder is not told to come out of the sun

Elders need no instruction on the obvious.

What an elder sees sitting down, a child cannot see even standing on a chair

Elders' insight exceeds youth's vantage.

If you avoid an elder because of bad breath, you won't gain wisdom

Don't let minor faults deny you knowledge.

An elder does not sit idle while the she-goat suffers birth tied to a post

Elders must intervene when needed.

Respect to the great advances oneself

Reciprocal respect.

When a person consents, his chi consents

Human will and destiny act together. (cf. TFA: "when a man says yes his chi says yes also")

Where a person falls is where his chi pushed him down

On fate and personal downfall.

A person cannot be greater than his chi

Destiny sets limits.

Whoever runs ahead of his chi outruns himself

Don't try to outpace your destiny.

One mother gives birth, but not one chi creates

Siblings have differing destinies.

One whom his chi has not felled cannot be harmed

Destiny protects.

One for whom things go well does not visit the diviner

We only ask questions when things go wrong.

Mankind cannot exist without the manifest spirit of God

The divine sustains humanity.

No one may chew God's head; all must return God's head to God

Ultimate accountability to God.

The God who gives the poor man yam will give him the knife to cultivate it

Providence supplies what is needed.

For a foe I can easily defeat, must I beg God for help?

Some things need no extra help.

He who brings kola brings life

The divine blessing of the kola rite (see Category 20).

A good name is better than riches

Reputation over wealth.

In whatever you do, hold to righteousness (ofo)

Act with integrity.

The leopard's coat is beautiful but not its heart

Appearances deceive (all that glitters is not gold).

A person is known by his handiwork

Deeds define character.

A madman is not as ashamed as his relatives

Kin bear one's disgrace.

A dog answers to the name its owner gives it

Reputation follows what one is called/known for.

The pepper shrub is circled, not climbed

Approach dicey situations with care.

The grasshopper the crow caught was deaf

Heed warnings or perish.

The ram retreats before it charges

Assess before acting.

If a fish sleeps, another fish swallows it

Don't be complacent.

If the ear won't heed warning, it goes when the head is cut off

Ignoring counsel brings ruin.

A fly with no adviser follows the corpse into the grave

Take counsel or die with your error.

The chicken looks up while drinking because what kills it comes from the sky

Stay watchful for danger.

The privileged should stay humble

Humility amid good fortune.

Pride blinds one to one's own failure

On arrogance.

When an eagle stoops to eat a toad, its beauty/dignity is lost

Guard your honour.

It is pride that makes an elder chase a cow

Vanity leads to undignified acts.

The arrogant seem to have never been humble

On the pride of the powerful.

A one-legged man thanks God only when he sees a legless one

Be grateful for what you have.

The fowl frowns at the cooking pot, forgetting the knife that killed it

Misplaced resentment / ingratitude.

Praise the mighty for what he has done and he will do more

Gratitude spurs further good.

May a visitor not trouble his host, so on leaving he departs without a hunchback

Mutual host-guest goodwill.

Let him with palm kernels give to the grasscutter, since it cannot climb

Share with those who cannot get for themselves.

Only the child who gives the elder a cracked palm-nut enjoys his protection

Kindness is repaid.

He who brings kola brings life (and peace and blessing)

Central kola-hospitality formula (igo oji).

When kola reaches home it tells where it came from

Origins reveal themselves.

He who abhors dog meat should not eat its soup

Be consistent; avoid hypocrisy.

No one swallows phlegm to appease the pangs of hunger

Don't substitute the worthless for the real need.

Does the fowl eat for the food to enter the goat's stomach?

Each reaps his own effort.

Though leaves fill the bush, people go in seeking okazi

The best is still sought among the plentiful.

Proverbs are the oil with which the Igbo eat words

Proverbs make speech digestible. (Achebe: "palm-oil with which words are eaten")

Igbo speech is in proverbs upon proverbs

Communication is metaphorical.

Salute the deaf; if heaven doesn't hear, the earth will

Do right regardless of who is watching.

The unspoken blames the mouth; the unheard blames the ear

Communication needs both speaking and listening.

You don't tell the deaf that war has broken out

Some events announce themselves.

A true/good word needs no rebuttal

Truth defends itself.

There is no matter that cannot be talked over

Dialogue resolves disputes.

The Igbo have no king

No single tyrant rules unchallenged; egalitarian ethos.

When a king departs, another replaces him

Leadership continues.

A cap fits best on its owner's head

Roles suit their rightful holders.

Kill a warrior in a home quarrel and you'll miss him in real war

Don't destroy your leaders.

The mouth/voice that speaks for the kindred

A leader represents the community's collective voice.

A leader who abuses supporters ends isolated

Leadership depends on the led.

Let the kite perch and the eagle perch; whichever denies the other, let its wing break

Live and let live; mutual right to exist.

Let each face what is allotted to them

Personal responsibility.

A just verdict / truth has backing

Truth prevails in judgment.

Let us keep sacrificing and let the gods take the blame

On deferring ultimate judgment.

Whatever one does, one bears its consequences

Accountability.

Let the water live and the fish live

Live and let live; fairness to all parties.

Truth is life

Truthfulness sustains.

What was secret is revealed in the marketplace

Hidden things come to light.

Counting your teeth with your tongue doesn't mean you'll lose any

Self-examination is not self-harm.

Truth is life, falsehood is death

Honesty over deceit.

Whoever stops his friend from becoming king won't have a king for a friend

Help others rise.

The nose and mouth are too close to quarrel

Close kin/neighbours shouldn't feud.

When the eye weeps, the nose weeps too

Empathy binds the close.

(Enyi di na anya)

Friendship is sweetest at a distance — Familiarity can breed friction.

If a wife makes the soup watery, the husband learns to dent the fufu before dipping

Adapt tactics to circumstances.

Husband and wife are one flesh; they eat from one bowl

Marital unity.

A wife is wealth; a husband is strength

Complementary marital roles.

Willingness to overlook is what makes love endure

Tolerance sustains relationships.

A small room holds ten friends if there is love among them

Love makes space.

A woman is not sold like a goat

Bride price is honour, not purchase.

The female toad says a husband is so sweet she carries him permanently on her back

Humorous encouragement to cherish one's spouse.

A woman who has married twice knows which husband is better

Experience enables comparison.

A hard-working/good woman is never refused food by her husband

Virtue earns provision.

He who has only daughters is virtually alone

*(Traditional patrilineal view; include with cultural caveat.)*

Time waits for no one

Act promptly.

When the breadfruit ripens, it falls

Everything happens in its time.

When a thing completes seven cycles, it departs

Natural cycles/limits.

Whenever one wakes from sleep is one's own morning

It's never too late to start.

Today is what we all know; no one knows tomorrow

Uncertainty of the future.

Tomorrow is pregnant (with the unknown)

The future is uncertain; plan carefully.

The tortoise says trouble is his own, that's why he carries it on his back

Shoulder your own burdens.

The tortoise says many hands at work are pleasant, but many mouths to feed are embarrassing

It is hard to feed a crowd.

The tortoise travels with his instrument in case he meets other musicians

Always be prepared.

What makes the leopard fearsome is in its claws

Power lies in one's true strength.

If a snake fails to act like a snake, children will tie firewood with it

Assert your capability or be taken for granted.

When a rat swims with a lizard, the rat won't dry off like the lizard

Don't imitate blindly; know your own nature.

The vulture and kite don't scramble for food: one scavenges, one preys

Don't compete beneath your level.

All lizards lie flat, but no one knows which has a stomach ache

Everyone has hidden troubles.

For the cow without a tail, God drives away the flies

Providence cares for the helpless.

What is gained crookedly leaves crookedly

Ill-gotten gains don't last.

The head that disturbs the wasp gets stung

Trouble-seekers reap trouble.

He who holds another down in the mud must stay in the mud too

Oppressing others traps oneself.

If the sacrificial yam doesn't die prematurely, it eventually germinates

Things improve despite present hardship.

The firewood one gathers in the dry season is what one relies on in the rains

Today's actions determine tomorrow's position.

What saves also kills, and what kills also saves

Cause and effect are double-edged.

Look for the black goat while daylight lasts

Seize opportunity in time (make hay while the sun shines).

Favourable conditions embolden people

On opportunity/appearance.

Adapt strategy to changing threats

Life is dynamic.

Strange events have causes

Nothing happens without reason.

Excessive haste produces disaster

Haste makes waste.

No one picks up a dead lion in his own compound

Great things don't come from comfort zones.

A mature eagle feather never fades

One well-trained/educated stands the test of time.