I Remember a Great Man.

Today, I remember a great man. 

Papa James Olawole would have been 108 years old today if he had not crossed the threshold into the Astra plane as he did in 2005. He was not just my father and a live-in philosopher but also a sage from whom many people "tapped" wisdom and philosophies. There was a time some of my close friends made it such a regular habit to come seek papa’s wise opinions on various personal issues that I “threatened” to start charging them “professional fees”. 

It was papa that introduced me, among other things, to a spiritual school of thought that placed a very high premium on the act of charity. Initially, I disagreed with him a bit because he was also the same person that was in the habit of counseling me vigorously about being careful in doing too much. He would often back this wise counsel up with a Yoruba adage that says, “Oore ni'won.” (There is a need for moderation and caution in rendering assistance to people).

Papa however shook his head slowly as he gave a response that will remain forever in my consciousness: “On the one hand, as fasting cleans the body, so does the act of generosity purifies the soul. The more eager and cheerful you are to give, the better purified is your soul. On the other hand, the need for caution arises when doing certain favor to certain individuals. For instance, it's not wise to obtain a plate of food from someone and hand it over to another person. What if it contains poison?"

The Dilemma of a Perfect Gentleman.

I have always believed in the wise words of sages.

I particularly treasure the admonition that a woman of virtue can consider herself, a precious jewel, that must not be given out to the swine of a man, lest he tramples his foot on her. Another word of wisdom is to never bother teaching a pig how to sing. The effort will be a waste of your time and the pig will end up getting angry.

What however happens where a "precious jewel" is handed to an appreciative gentleman who not only loves, adores and cherishes her but also gets over-protective, lest her great values be tarnished? I guess the sages of old would have expected only sheer gratitude from such a woman; except that in today’s world, there is tendency for the woman to react negatively rather than gratefully. And trying , under that circumstance, to explain the situation to an ungrateful woman can only get the man frustrated while the woman gets hassled.

Learning at the Feet of Giants.

I have received a series of e-mails from readers in regard to my writings in this blog. I was humbled especially by many of the readers who expressed admiration for the demonstration of esoteric knowledge and wisdom in the various writings.

I have also been bombarded with mails from some other readers who expressed curiosity about my age, professional background, life experiences and above all, the sources of the wisdom displayed in my various subjects in the blog.    

In response to these questions therefore, it's pertinent to state that I have been privileged to learn and acquire considerable wisdom at the feet of wise elders in the past fifty something years. In a nutshell, all of these endeavors can be summarized with the following voice of a sage:  

"If I know what I know, 

it is by seeing further ahead 

and if I have seen further ahead, 

it is by standing upon 

the shoulders of giants." 

- Sir Isaac Newton.