KeKe and The Gods

By Azeem Bhola

Olorun,  God  of Gods, creates the heavens and the earth… and proceeds to create humanity. The Goddess, Mamiwata,  is totally against  their creation and is hell bent on their destruction, as she sees only the 'evil spirit' of Mankind.

Set in the beginning of early African Mythology; experience   the wonderful mystical era brought to life in 'Keke and The Gods'. Characters and beliefs that have vanished, and been forgotten, with the passage of time.

Delve into this magical world, living within the fantasies of 'Pesi' and its people.

UNPUTDOWNABLE! A touching and vivid novel; full of adventure, challenge, perseverance and emotion.   - T. Shafi  

Absolutely fascinating and takes you into a different world of magic and fantasy. A Must Read.   - D.W. Wilson

I'd like to see a movie made out of this story someday.  Gripping and entertaining.               - P. Ochienge

• Language: English
• Publisher: Azeem Bhola
• Release date: Feb 26, 2018
• ISBN: 9781386617297

Book preview

Olorun,  God  of Gods, creates the heavens and the earth... and proceeds to create humanity. The Goddess, Mamiwata, is totally against their creation and is hell bent on their destruction, as she sees only the ‘evil spirit’ of Mankind.

Set in the beginning of early African Mythology; experience   the wonderful mystical era brought to life in ‘Keke and The Gods’. Characters and beliefs that have vanished, and been forgotten, with the passage of time.

Delve into this magical world, living within the fantasies of ‘Pesi’ and its people.

UNPUTDOWNABLE! A TOUCHING and vivid novel; full of adventure, challenge, perseverance and emotion.   - T. Shafi  

Absolutely fascinating and takes you into a different world of magic and fantasy. A Must Read.    - D.W. Wilson

I’d like to see a movie made out of this story someday. Gripping and entertaining from beginning to end.            - P. Ochienge

Pronunciations

Orun    (O’Roon)

KeKe     (Kaykay)

Olorun    (All-O’Roon)

Mamiwata    (Maami-Waattaa)

Emere    (Ee-May-Ray)

Abuk     (Abook)

Atai    (A-Tie)

Obatala   (Oh Ba Taa La)

Baragoi    (Baa Raa Go Ee)

Muso Koroni  (Mooso Co Ro Ni)

Laikipia    (LaaeeKipEEA)

Azuku  (A-ZooKoo)

Kore  (Koray)

Wairimu  (WaaiReeMoo)

Oshun  (O’Shoon)

Ndegwa  (DaygWaa)

Nburu  (Booroo)

KambaNane  (Kamba Naanay)-

an 8 stringed musical

Instrument

This book has been written

using simple dialogue

and passive voice,

in order to maintain

the authenticity of village life

and to preserve the ethnicity

and cultural beliefs 

of the olden days.

1. AND THE WORLD WAS CREATED

OLORUN WAS THE CREATOR of all that was in the universe, He was the ultimate god; the god of gods and all the lesser gods were in awe of him. His domain had no boundaries; it was limitless, and stretched from the spirit world to the living world. Before anything had been created, he wandered the universe for endless millennia, and the solitude  had made him very ill. Everywhere he looked, he saw only darkness and emptiness.

He was troubled by a ballooning bellyache that got bigger and bigger, to the point that suddenly one day he vomited out the sun, and light burst forth into the universe.  He then proceeded to choked out the moon, the stars, and lastly he threw out the earth; an earth that was lifeless over which the sacred waters covered the entire surface.

Olorun sat back to admire his creation and looked upon all the stars. However, after some time he began to get lonely again. Obatala, one of the lesser gods, approached him and suggested that he be given permission to create living things. Olorun had known about the consequences of creating living things; they were to be created mortal, so as not to compete with the gods. Death had to be an inevitable end, and no living spirit could attain the status of the gods.

After much deliberation, Olorun agreed to the request from Obatala. To aid Obatala, Olorun gave him a long golden chain, a snails shell filled with sand, the five-toed sacred white hen, and a palm nut.

At last, Obatala got his wish. He put everything in a bag and lowered the golden chain from the heavens onto the sacred waters. He began his journey down the golden chain, which seemed endless; step after step he went down far away from the heavens. While descending he could feel the sacred hen getting restless and scratching away as it knew best.

Finally, he had reached the sacred waters. As he looked down while hovering over the waters, he removed the snails shell and scattered the sand onto the water. He then released the sacred hen that jumped onto the sand and began to scratch obsessively, to spread the sand all over the waters evenly. The sand seemed to multiply as the hen scratched. It scratched and scratched in all directions until all the sand had been spread over the sacred waters. Obatala watched in amazement, and once the hen stopped scratching, he could see land and mountains upon the sacred waters.

Obatala knew that this was just the beginning and there was still much to do; he proceeded to dig a hole and plant the palm nut. Almost instantaneously, a palm tree sprang out of the earth. Obatala was thrown back, and as he lay there, he could see this magnificent tree towering into the heavens. As he watched, he saw high above that the palm nuts were ripening. He got up and moved aside, and as he did so, the first palm nut fell into the water, which immediately turned into a fish.  All the palm nuts that fell into the water turned into fish of all kinds , while all that hit land turned into animals, plants and trees of all shapes and sizes.

It had been a long day and the sun had set. Obatala decided to rest and continue in the morning. He lay besides the mother palm tree and thought about all the wonderful things he had seen. All of them were the creation of Olorun - the god of gods. He had been a mere servant in actioning his deeds. As he lay back, he could see above him the moon with the stars shining brightly.

In the morning, he was awakened by some strange sounds that he had never heard before. It was the song of life; it was all the birds around him. He listened intently, and the more he listened, the more he got hypnotized. Looking up as far as the eye could see, far into the mountains, the entire land was covered by dense thick forest and the bustle of life could be heard into the distance.

For the first time in the history of creation, there was life.

It was time to go back to the sky god Olorun. Obatala jumped back onto the golden chain and started climbing up. As he climbed up and up, he would occasionally stop and look back at the earth.  In all the black emptiness, the earth was shining a magnificent blue color, looking like a blue jewel. What delighted him the most was that it now carried life. From a distance, no one could tell.

Obatala had reached back into the heavens and was now standing in front of Olorun, Your creation of life has indeed been a miracle and its beauty is unsurpassable.

Olorun replied, All life has been created with a spirit- that spirit is part of me that will return and rejoin with me after death.

The hustle and bustle of life on earth had taken root. Olorun would look down in admiration to the perfect world he had created. The only pain he felt was that all life would eventually face death. Creating living things that were immortal was out of the question. Only gods had the right to be immortal.

Thousands of years went by and the cycle of life and death continued on earth. A process repeated itself time and time again. Olorun once again had felt the need to create, but this time he wanted to create a being in the image of the gods; a being that was far more intelligent than all that existed on earth.

Olorun could take the shape of any living thing. In fact, it was known that gods appeared on earth through animals, whereby after a short stay, they would ascend back to the heavens. Olorun, however, most of the time appeared in his human form; it was not flesh and bones, but a halo of light with the outline of the human form. He stood at nearly the size of an oak tree, with the appearance of a warrior. His hair was just floating streaks of light. In his right hand, he carried a double-headed spear. His facial appearance was that of a man.

Long ago Obatala had descended to earth via the golden chain. However, Olorun traveled back and forth from the heavens and earth on the sacred chameleon. Chameleons were believed to possess magical properties, that could see into the future, and whose intelligence was beyond all other animals. If a chameleon visited one, it was a sign of good fortune to come.

Olorun jumped on to the sacred chameleon, which by now was changing through all the magnificent colors matching all the background as they began their descent from the heavens. All around, stars filled the sky, and in the distance were the sun and the earth that, for now, appeared as a tiny star. It was not long before they were hovering above the clouds and descended down to land.  The chameleon was busy changing into the colors of all it could see. First, the clouds, then the magnificent blue of the waters, then the magical colors of all trees and flowers. 

Olorun jumped off the chameleon just before it touched the ground, and with a thud landed at a distance. He stood there motionless, and with a piercing look, took in all that was happening around him. At a distance, he could see a waterfall, with the water gushing from a great height and creating a thunderous crescendo.

Seeing all the teaming life filled him with pride; he turned and looked in every direction and out of the forest Ndovu, the elephant appeared. Ndovu was the wise man of the forest; he would oversee all the other creatures and settle any disputes that arose between them. By instinct Ndovu knew, that standing in front of him was Olorun the creator god.

Olorun said, I have returned to the earth so that I can create a man who will be a reflection of myself, and will be the ruler of the earth. 

Ndovu replied, Olorun, you are the wisest of them all, but as you can see, we all are living here in perfect harmony, and each of us worships and gives thanks to you in their own way. Creating an all powerful creature in the form of a man will eventually destroy this Eden.

Olorun replied in an unfaltering tone, I have already decided and I will instill within him a good and merciful spirit.

Ndovu replied again, You are the wisest of all the gods, you see all that is within us, I am merely your servant and I implore you not to plant the seed of man on this sacred land. Man will grow strong and powerful and I fear, not only for my unborn children, but all other creatures that carry your spirit.

Olorun skimmed his eyes across the land in silence with an uneasiness that he had never felt before. Olorun thought that there might be some truth in what Ndovu was saying. However, the need to create a human in his reflection was greater.

Olorun replied, I have decided and I cannot turn back now. It must be done.

With this, Ndovu stepped back. There was sadness in his eyes as he witnessed the creation of man.

In addition, with that, Olorun swooped down and placed both his hands on the earth; slowly the sand rose and began to form the shape of a man. His halo of light had grown intense and filled the night sky; the piercing rays of light lighted up all the surrounding. With the sand having taken the shape of a man, Olorun knelt down and with a single sigh, breathed life into it. Slowly, the lifeless form turned to flesh and bones. Then reaching into his own heart, he pulled out with his right hand an intense light that he placed into the heart of the man; this was his spirit - a spirit that was immortal and would one day return to Olorun.

As of today you will be known as Abuk, the first man! exclaimed Olorun. With this, he stepped back and Abuk lay there with the breath of life having taken hold.

I leave you in Ndovu’s care until you can gain your strength. being the last words spoken before Olorun jumped back onto the sacred chameleon, and ascended rapidly back to the heavens; the chameleon keeping busy as ever, found joy in changing into as many colors as it disappeared through the clouds.

Ndovu looked down at Abuk, and with his front leg nudged him. He remained there motionless.

Ndovu thought, "How could this fragile looking creature become the ruler of the world?" What worried him the most was that uneasy feeling he had deep inside.

As the sun rose in the early morning, and as the first rays of light hit Abuk’s face, he began awakening from his slumber. His eyes opened and gradually, he sat up, remaining in that position for some time, all the while gaining strength. He looked up for the first time and was observing all things around him with great detail. He could hear all these strange sounds; strange sounds of animals and birds that he would eventually become accustomed to. The bird songs were quite intense and somehow had a soothing effect on him. Mother Earth’s music was welcoming him to his new world.

All the other creatures gathered in the distance and peered through the forest to catch sight of this thing with two legs and two arms, some in amazement, and others in awe... however, the weaverbird decided to take a closer look. Abuk saw this weaver buzzing above his head; its magnificent blue feathers glistening in the sun, with the buzz of its wings captivating his attention. He reached out, as if to grab it, and within an instant the weaver-changed direction. Repeatedly Abuk tried, and each time he missed. Giving up, he stretched his hand out holding it still. The weaver gently perched onto his hand, turned round, and glanced at Abuk as if welcoming him to their world.

Ndovu, from a distance had kept an eye on Abuk as he began to roam the new land. Abuk’s curiosity had overtaken him as he felt and touched everything he could. Down by the ocean he had played with the dolphins that seemed to take him as one of their own. Food was in plentiful and all he had to do was reach out. He had learnt to fish and had built a shelter to keep him out of the thunderous downpours.

As time went by Abuk had begun to feel loneliness within. He would sit all day in sadness and had longed for a companion. "Why was he alone?" he wondered time and time again. All the creatures around him had companions. He felt lonely- everyday he would sit, wallowing in his lack of companionship. 

One morning, Abuk, as if possessed, with stone axe in hand, began chopping down the baobab tree next to his shelter. He was in a frenzy, as if possessed. Swing after swing he went on, without even stopping for a breather. Once down, he began carving it. On an on he went and the echo of all the chopping reverberated through the forest. Ndovu, from a distance, wondered if Abuk had gone insane. It was late afternoon and Abuk had not stopped; he continued late into the evening and at nightfall, he stopped. Just as suddenly as he had started, there was total silence.

Next morning, Abuk was laying besides the object he had made, through his imagination he had carved out the figure of a woman. This was it; this was the companion that he sought. Abuk, standing back, thought that he would pray to Olorun to breathe life into her.

Each night he would lay besides her and each night, he would stretch his hand out to Olorun, Oh Olorun, god of gods, breathe life into this being, so that I may have a companion like all your other creations.  

Olorun, hearing his pleading heart, could not bear to deny him. He sent the goddess of love and fertility, Muso Koroni, to breathe life into the figurine that Abuk had carved out. A woman was to be created with a loving spirit; a spirit of a mother; a spirit of fertility.  

, The goddess, Muso Koroni, was a striking beauty. She was a woman with many breasts and was considered as the mother of all things. 

As she descended from the heavens towards Abuk, she reached out and grasped the moons rays in the palms of her hands. Reaching upon the lifeless figure of

Reviews for KeKe and The Gods

[Tany Az · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

An imaginative piece of literature. One of the best new releases I've read. It opens up a window into a world that I never knew existed. A Great Read for all ages !