OBATALA VISITS WOLE SOYINKA AT AGE 83
*OBATALA VISITS WOLE SOYINKA AT AGE 83.* I gave a public lecture at the Schomburg Centre, Harlem, New York in the late 90s and the subject of homosexuality was addressed by me, and one theatre director accused me of intolerance. The sum of my submission was, “The Yoruba do not have the word ‘homosexual’ in their vocabulary and by this reasoning, homosexuality is alien to the Yoruba nature and origin.” Someone shouted, “Did the Yoruba have a word for television? Words are created with new things. Yoruba language would soon create the Yoruba word for homosexuality.” The theatre director who bombarded me with emails thereafter, accused me of being intolerant of gay persons. I disconnected him from my email. Was this an act of tolerance? The Iyanifa of New York sent me back to Obatala, and I came home to Abeokuta. The Obatala Priest told me in a village: “If you must understand the worship of Obatala, remember this: It is tougher than Christianity. You must say goodbye to anger. You ...