Oh! The Thing I Greatly Feared Has Come Unto Me!!!!!!!

[_Waziri_]

Oh! The Thing I Greatly Feared Has Come Unto Me!!!!!!!

Islam is its philosophy of social living always encourages its adherents to go out of the outskirts of their cities to look for strangers, bring them home, accommodate them, feed them for at least three days.

Embellished in this virtue of Islam is the exhortation that Muslims should trust people wherever they see them until they prove otherwise. So our grandparents of the pre-colonial era, who were saddled with the responsibilities of running the affairs of the Islamic State of Zazzau hosted the white man who told them that he was from Egypt, an Arabian, only moving around in God's earth, in search of knowledge and wishing to stay by at Zaria to tap from the knowledge reservoir which served as the intellectual engine room of the Caliphate. Thus he was accommodated and officially called SHAROO, the way people of his kind of race were being addressed according to the norms of the day.

But strangely enough, this man was always going around with a dog at his tail. One day, one distinguished scholar made an observation during a session in the court where the famous king KWASAU attend to the affairs of the state. "Your honor, permit me to make a submission concerning that new scholar who came from Egypt seeking for knowledge. Your honor, in the Islamic jurisprudence books we read, from Al-Kawaid, Kurtubi to Mukhtasar , we have never seen where it is said, one can keep a dog, not to talk of, going around with it. But your honor, our new scholar keeps dog and always moves with it. It is desired if he should be called to some kind of cross-examination". All the distinguished scholars around, subscribed to that suggestion and in line of the principles of justice and fair hearing set by Islam, the king sent for Sharoo.

When Sharoo came he was asked. Obviously ignorant of the rulings in Islam regarding dogs, Sharoo submitted that he was only used to having some animal following him and that was why he keep dog at his tail. Again, respecting the principles of Islam that gives people second chance, Sharoo was allowed to save his face and to honor him and his wishes, the Sarki Kwasau extended his kindness further and took from his gardener a good looking Ostrich   for Sharoo to replace the dog he keep at his tail. Thus Sharoo came to be known as Sharoo me Jimina(Sharoo who has an Ostrich at his tail). So he lived with them for years, he was trusted. He used to go to many houses and schools spread in the kingdom, seeking for knowledge.  Youths and children always visit to keep him company in the evening.

As days followed nights, so our grand parents heard the story of the brutal British armies, conquerors, piercing through Hausa Land, capturing cities, raping women, humiliating leaders, and making captives the populace as slaves. The story of their victory at Sokoto against Sultan Attahiru sent jitters into their veins and town criers beat the drums of Jihaad and the great warriors vow to die for their ideology but never to submit to the degrading humiliation of the devilish British conquerors.

The days drag, as the sweeping hurricane was flooding prominent cities and villages of Hausa land with insurmountable momentum. Every encounter with the British army everywhere conferred them with victory. They loot resources and cart away slaves.  Soon they were at Bida, and Suleja. The kings marveled at their might sent a word to King Kwasau of Zazzau not to fight them but only submit to their defeat kindly. For that will be the only way to intercept the gravity of the injury they would inflict on the people there, as it is mentioned in the Qur'an: Innal Muluka Iza Dakhalul Karyata Afsaduuhaa, Wa Ja'aluu A'izzata Ahlaha Azillah... , "When foreign occupying powers, enter into a city they despoil it and turn its nobles its meanest..."

Our ancestors acted accordingly, only to see at the head of the British army their beloved friend and confidant Sharoo Me Jimina.  What they did not know earlier was the truth that Sharoo was not an Arabian but a British spy in disguise who all along been documenting their activities with maps sending to his contingent.

The submission of our grandparents followed by series of executions of many of their great Ulama'a, some with a stint of forming serious opposition where taken as slaves. The king was humiliated, removed and sent on exile. Some were brutally incarcerated. Others fled to Mecca. To these British forces belong the credit of separating brothers and sisters. Till today we live with the memory of Aliyu Gadanga, one of our grandparents who Fled to Mecca. His grand children (our cousins) visit us from time to time. They look very much like us even though they cannot understand our Hausa. Sometimes at meetings only tears will say goodbye.

Some among our grandparents stayed back in the face of the humiliation, perchance they could save the future generations from the ideological shifts that the British government   came with.

Yes, foreigners have occupied our land. Institutions of learning and administration where evolved with new and strange ideologies being propagated. They began to teach them the kind of social studies, which suggested that man was descended from ape not created by God. Our grandparents staged in opposition and declared that this new ideology was not Islam and as such would not allow their children to be subjected to it. But yet they were forced and some children where even stolen to study at the British missionaries schools. Many lost their faith, the great Islamic values and upon all their identity. Our ancestor were left with no option than to hold their head with two hands and cry like the Biblical Prophet Job (Ayyub) saying "Oh the great thing I feared has come unto me".

Today after almost a century of that conquest and under a new organizational and social structure, we, their descents still hold our head with two hands in a wailing cry: Oh the great thing we feared has come unto us! For still ours is a structure that never seems to have brought any promise, politically, socially, ideologically, morally, and economically. We live in a quandary, sometimes in complete crises of identity. Sharoo Me Jimina betrayed our ancestors, and after almost a century we still cry like Job the Prophet saying: "Oh! The thing we greatly feared has come unto us!!!!!!!!!!!! "

[Eskimo]

:D Zaria surrendered without shooting a single arrow! infact it was used as a base to launch attack on Kano.

[_Waziri_]

:lol: Mhmm Kaji Eskimo maras kunya :lol: , You people at Kano what did you do?

With all the arrows you threw what happened to Sarki Alu? Kai!!!! on a more  serious note now. I feel like tears gushing out of my eyes.  I think after the conquest  the britishers took him away and of to this day nothing is known about what they did with him. They really inflicted alot of injuries on us.

I just dunno what to do. Should I say we should just forgive? Well even if we do not forgive what can we do? Perharps just continue remembering for the sake of record keeping?

[alhaji_aminu]

salam
khalil is there any documentary evidence of 'Sharu mai jimina' living in Zaria. I know victims like to exaggerate atrocities to garner sympathy from neutral observers.
Mind you I am not downplaying the suffering and the squalor brought about by colonialism. Just trying to get the facts right.
kan na manta, cha nake sarkin Kano Alu was exiled to Lokoja.
Mallam Iro Waziri ka ilmantar da mu kan yadda Katsina tayi surrender. Nasan turawa ta kofar unguwarmu ( kofar yan daka) sukayi attacking KT. apart from that, I know nothing.

[_Waziri_]

Yup,

Aminuddeen, actually the story of Sharoo Me Jimina was told us by an elder cousin who was very old and now dead. He too took it from our grandparents who really suffered the scourge.

There may not be anything written and documented about everything, but that will not necessarily mean it did not happen. Sincerely speaking in my future works of biographies, I intend to collect these oral and confirmed stories for proper documentation.

Concerning Sarki Alu, as you could see above, I too indicated some doubt ... but yet I will still confirm. Or kila Eskimo alias "Kanawa 'yan duniya" lol,  will give us more insight.

For Katsinawa kuma, I throw that one to EMTL and any other bakatsine in the Forum. If they cannot tell then we will do "Ature" to them for not knowing what formed their past. Ko yaya ka gani?

Waziri

[alhaji_aminu]

haba yallabai Waziri.
I ka san cewa Kano, like many other cities has two faces to it.
Ban san ko EMTL zai iya bani sirar kasar katsina domin kasan yan FTA are more like Zazzagawa than Katsinawa. I am sure kasan rivalry dake existing between these peoples of kraduwa da KT proper.
a-n-y-w-a-y, that is all history!
sai anjima

[Eskimo]

Ai Katsinawa su ba ma a labarin yadda turawa suka ci su sosai..Ga alama dai ana cin Kano sai suka tsorata. Amma ETML suppose to have a detail.

Khalil, ai ko da yaushe if I remeber the way our Grand Parents confront the whitemen I marvel at their courage and boldness!!

Luggard, when he saw the ganuwa of Kano , he said he never expect to see such a giant wall in the heart of Africa.

I cant remember what he said when he saw the wall of Zaria, the town he captured without a single blow. :D  :D

[_Waziri_]

Aminudeen,

You are very right, Funtua is suppose to more like Zaria than Katsina. I was only carried away with the current arrangement. By the way, if there is any real Bakatsine around or even from the Blue bloods should come forward and give a rendering, though I can see Eskimo has already started "borrowing your mouths to eat onions you" (direct translation pls).

And over to you Eskimo(Kanawa 'yan duniya), you really have got us right, But here you hear:

Luggard did not say anything when he saw the Ganuwa at Zaria but  he was told about how the real HEROES in Zaria used to crush the real ZEROES in Kano way back before the Britains :lol:  And he would also understand that ppl of Zaria out of true foresight perceived they would lose the battle and therefore opted for expediency. But when you have some BAKANO who cannot see anything but MONEY after victory, he would certainly jump into a war that he could not win but rather have his KING cought and humiliated like............... :lol:  :lol:  :lol:

[Eskimo]

:D  :D You forget to add that our emir ran away before they arrived!!!

[al_hamza]

IT is very very sad, the numerous problems we face today are direct causes of the british imeprialistic occupation. The greatest leaders of our beloved hausa land were litterally enslaved and treated as animals, but my dear brothers today have only grins and jokes for their Mujahid ancestors?

[Eskimo]

IT is very very sad, the numerous problems we face today are direct causes of the british imeprialistic occupation. The greatest leaders of our beloved hausa land were litterally enslaved and treated as animals, but my dear brothers today have only grins and jokes for their Mujahid ancestors?

They are ofcourse our great ancestors and I am damn proud of them, what they did and the most legacies they left behind...They indeed left behind a huge cultural heritage that uniquely set us apart from others! UP for them especially in the roll they play in the Jihad.

I may not want to drag this thread to that end..but truly suma sun kwafsa on many things and may be responsible for some of our sufferings of today too. Dont forget that if not for the coming of British, the caliphate wouldnt have been by now!

[_Waziri_]

Eskimo it will do well if you can try exploring alll angles of the debate including where our grand parents failed that we may find reason to reflect more. But certainly the Caliphate woud'nt have lasted even if the Britishers did not intervene. But what then could have replaced it?

How I wish we can debate this question with a resonable degree of insight.

[EMTL]

Aminudeen,

You are very right, Funtua is suppose to more like Zaria than Katsina. I was only carried away with the current arrangement. By the way, if there is any real Bakatsine around or even from the Blue bloods should come forward and give a rendering, though I can see Eskimo has already started "borrowing your mouths to eat onions you" (direct translation pls).
]

Assalamu alaikum,
Haba Waziri.......... ai kasan Katsina ita tayi maku Zage-zagi (Kaduna State) Mulkin Mallaka kafin daga baya muka baku yanci (jiharku) mu koma gida Katsina a shekarar 1987.

Tuna-baya-shine-roko.

[EMTL]

haba yallabai Waziri.
I ka san cewa Kano, like many other cities has two faces to it.
Ban san ko EMTL zai iya bani sirar kasar katsina domin kasan yan FTA are more like Zazzagawa than Katsinawa. I am sure kasan rivalry dake existing between these peoples of kraduwa da KT proper.
a-n-y-w-a-y, that is all history!
sai anjima

Assalamu alaikum, Tabbas akwai alaka ta makwabtaka da aminchi tsakanin mutanen Funtua da Zaria.....musammam Birin Gwari, amma dai tun daga Damari har zuwa Dan-kama duk kasar Katsina ce. Lokacin da kudanchin Katsina suka nemi sabuwar Jihar KARADUWA STATE akwai yunkurin da akayi na shigo da BIrnin Gwari ta zamo cikin Babuwar Jihar Karaduwa- ko da anyi hakan dai, a iya cewa, Gamin-ganbiza-ne, duk da yake babu tsammanin ayi zaman doya-da-manja.

[Eskimo]

malam waziri,
I was just trying to remind bro Hamzah that we are not making jest of our ancestors, we respect them instead.

What could have replace the Caliphate were it not for Britain?? Did you realised that our jihadist ancestors slightly deviated from the way of Dan Fodio either deliberately or by Human error. Just before the advent of British, there was chaos and confusion in the Caliphate. Some Emirates like Kano are fast becoming autonomous..Kano even dare rejected the Emir appointed by the Caliph and a civil war was fought. "Were it not for the British conquest in 1903, the Sokoto caliphate may well
have evolved into a mixture of confederal and federal principles. ... "

Is it not as the result of their negligence that massacre of Yelwa-Shandam, Jos, Kafanchan, Tafawa Balewa, Zangon Kataf and Numan is in our history book now! if only they had continued with the policy of Mohammed Bello and the Rightly Guided Chalips of Sokoto. Those christian areas in our midst was their slave reservation center. At the time of the British conquest, the Sokoto Caliphate was one of the largest slave societies in modern history. Infact the Sokoto Caliphate had more slaves than any other modern country, except the United States in 1860.

I wonder if there was any organised Islamic Mission after the Jihad...Because from all indication the tribes with majority muslims in the Calipahte were muslim even before the Jihad. These are the then civilised ethnic groups. Nupe, Hausa, Fulani, and Yoruba. (The case is the same with another jihadist state Borno, where mostly the muslims are Kanuris).
The remainig minor tribes remain pagan including the Zurus at the doorstep of the Caliphates Capitals of Sokoto and Gondu! In Nassarawa State for instance most part of the state is the Caliphates Domain, But the Muslims are mostly Hausa Fulani Ethnics!

To my opinion, it is the British conquest that reawakened the Islamic Spirit in our Grandpas. After being defeated by the infidel forces, they now realised that to save their face they must turn to religion where their honour and authourity was! The british 'normalised' the Caliphates with some changes in our sharia and they liberated the 'slave zone'. Hence the white strip on the caliphates green flag.