Chronicles of al-Sūdān (Taʾrīḫ al-Sūdān)

4. Punishment for those who sow discord in Timbuktu

Timbuktu (Tombouctou, Tin Bukt)
Title
Punishment for those who sow discord in Timbuktu
Short description
A suspected slanderer towards the askia is punished by tying him to a donkey and carrying him around the city as an example. According to Hunwick (2003): "A punishment recommended in Islamic legal literature for persons of standing in the community is to shame them by blackening their faces, mounting them on a donkey facing backwards and parading him around town. A similar offence might be by beating, if the offender had no reputation to lose."
Text on source
ثمّ جعل اهل سنخي يتكلّمون فيه فيما بينهم لاجل مللهم منه فلمّا سمع ذلك يارسُنْك دبي اخبره به وهو من احبائه وخاصته فما صبر عنه حتّى اخرجه لجماعته في ناديته كانه لم يصحّ عنده فقالوا له باجمعهم ما نقوم من هنا حتّى تذكر لنا من يسعى بيننا وبينك بالنميمة امّا ان تختار جماعتنا او يختاره هو فلم يجد بدّ الا ان قال انه يارسنك دبي فقبضوه ونقشوه بالحمرة والسواد والبياض وركّبوه حميرا وطوّفوا به البلد بالنداء والبريحة هذا جزاء من يسعى النميمة [ص. ٩٠]
English translation
Then the Songhay folk began to talk about Muḥammad Bonkana among themselves, as they had had enough of him. When Yari Sunku Dibi, a close friend and confidant of the askia, heard of this, he told him. The askia could not contain himself over this matter, and divulged it to his loyal following in his council chamber as if he gave [the story] no credence. They all said to him: "We will not leave here until you tell us who is sowing discord between us. Then either you opt for our group, or you choose him." He found he had no alternative but to tell them it was Yari Sunku Dibi. So they seized him and daubed him in red, black and white, mounted him on a donkey, and led him round the town, shouting and harrassing him, crying: "'This is the reward of him who sows discord."
Folios/Pages
130
Date
1536
Observations on the events description
While the donkey is part of a traditional punishment, it is unclear the meaning of the daubing of the punished in red, black and white.
The dots on the map indicate the places where sound and music events were described. They don't represent travel stages.

Participants
No other participants in this event description.


How to quote
Pintimalli A., "Punishment for those who sow discord in Timbuktu" (Event description), Echos. Sound Ecosystems in Travelogues. Published 2024 10 02.

doi: 10.25430/echos.travels.139

This work is licensed under CC-BY-SA 4.0