Ifa and the "wise man"

In one of her informative and educative books, Chief FAMA Aina Adewale-Somadhi shared a story about a man who thinks he knows it all. The story is shared here-under.

Ologbon kan ko ta koko omi si eti aso

Rinna rinna, won o mo iye yepe ile

A rin na ka, won o mo ibi ile gbe pekun, (ati bee bee)

No one, regardless of his/her wisdom, can store water by tying it in a knot of a piece clothing
No one can come up with any reasonable amount of dirt, in terms worldwide
No traveler  can boast of having covered every living space in the world—countries, cities, towns, villages, hamlets, and huts

If there is any feeling of "I know all there is be known on anything" by anyone, meaning a "Know-it-all" person, Ifa enjoins such person to rethink the assertion. Because, no one can possibly know everything there is to be known. Ifa says  we cannot even possibly know all that is required to run our personal lives smoothly. Ifa reminds us that when confronted with issues that defy logic, we should seek expert advice. Following the logic that Ifa advises us to imbibe, let us use one of Orunmila  examples for clarity.

In the story, Orunmila  tells us of a wise man who was intent on hiding '”wisdom" for reasons best known only to his ''wise" self.
Theoretically, the man put the "wisdom" in a keg and decided to hide the keg by climbing to the top of the tallest tree he could find. He found a very tall tree; and moved the keg in order to proceed with his project.

Neighbors saw him climbing the tree when they set out in the morning on daily activities. Surprisingly, the man had not made much progress by the evening when every one was retiring to their home from the day's activities. In a culture where it is the norm to greet and talk to each other, one of the returning neighbors asked if the "wise man" needed help. The "wise man" complained of the slowness of his upward climb. The neighbor looked and suggested, "You probably need to slide the keg that you have in front of you to the back." Meanwhile, the 'keg of wisdom" was between the "wise man" and the tree he was trying to climb. Naturally, the man's upward movement was impeded by the keg.

The "wise man" realized his folly and conceded he was not as wise as he thought he was prior to the experience. The story seems so simple that it sort of defies logic, but in human endeavors, some things are so simple, sometimes, that we miss the simplest part of the solution.

Approach any challenge that might come with today's activities as a challenge that might need a bit of additional help.

Source: Reflections on the wisdom of Ifa by Chief FAMA Aina Adewale-Somadhi