THE history of the world and of mankind is replete with stories of wars, famine, tragedies of humongous proportions, homicides, betrayals, human sufferings and unimaginable agonies after agonies. My late good friend, Apagun Oluwole Olumide who was murdered March 16 2012 used to quote his father as saying “we met the world in a mess and we would always leave it in a mess”. His father’s Yoruba aphorism of universal application: jugbujugbu-jagbajagba l’aba ile aye; jugbujugbu-jagbajagba na l’ama fisile sii” resonates in my ears and in my thoughts anytime I reflect on the many problems and challenges that routinely confront individuals, families, towns and cities, and nations the world over.

The Jews put it succinctly in their inspired writings: “As it was in the beginning, so it is now and ever shall it be, world without end.”

Whenever you open the pages of any World History book, what stare you in the face are horrible stories of early homicides, the unending wars in the city states of Sparta, Athens, Rome, Carthage, Thermopylae, Ijaye, Owu, Ishamuro, Dahomey and Benin, among several others. As cities evolved into countries and nations, wars and battles raged on more ferociously and brutishly. And the more mankind advanced in their technology, the more weapons of mass destruction came their way. And, of course, all wars leave in their wake needless destruction, misery and incurable bitterness and enmity.

The world has never been short of amputees and millions deformed, blinded and those made deaf by atrocities of warfare. Millions lose their loved ones, marriages crash, families are torn apart, and lots of personal properties and fortunes are destroyed.

Religion and religious intolerance have been a great part of the mess the world has always been. The moment mankind invented religion and came up with the most illogical notion that one religion was better than the other the world has never known peace and never lived in harmony. In the days of Yoruba gods, Egyptian gods, Persian gods, Mexican gods, Phoenician gods, Igbo gods, and the many gods of the very many human societies, mankind lived in harmony as far as religious faiths were concerned. It was the Arabs and the Jews, the two Semitic peoples, and easily the most fiercely possessive and intolerant peoples on the face of the earth who came up with the concept of their God not willing to share ownership of followers and adherents with another God!

The notion of ‘one way and only one way’ which had degenerated from religious faith to political arena with people of the United States of America breathing down the rest of mankind with their bogus One political World Order has also set the world on fire.

As the world moves from one crazy notion to another crazy notion, and with mankind bedevilled with the idea of SUPREMACY, wild and uncontrolled and immoderate competition has continued to put a terrible wedge between one person and another, one family and another, one society and another and one country and another country.

In human relationships, all the ills that had reared their heads since the beginning of time are still regrettably with us up to this moment. Perfidy, homicide, suicide, adultery, rape, stealing, treachery, rabid jealousy, hypocrisy, kidnapping and ritual murders, and heartless deceit are still blossoming.

The story of Sodom and Gomorrah is a child play compared with what the world is putting up with now. Man marries man and woman marries woman with government consent, even in churches! Immorality has taken a centre stage in the affairs of man. And so it was when the world was not one percent as big, as diverse, and as populated as it is now.

Divorce rates in the so-called developed world is beyond human imagination and comprehension. And lamentably, the more churches, the more mosques, the more Synagogues, the more Iledis, the more Temples of the over 1000 religions in the world the more immorality and faithlessness grow.

As you are reading this piece fierce wars are raging in Syria, in some other Middle east countries, in some African countries, and also in some locations in the heart of Europe. All these wars have their attendant calamities and unspeakable human suffering.

Every generation tries to improve the standard of the world, to attend to the needs of their immediate societies and to develop the world so to say. But as every generation builds with one hand, another succeeding generation pulls own what its predecessor has attained and turned full circle the hand of the clock.

Nearer home, the great Zik, the immortal Awo, the heroic Bello, and several other leaders of their generation did their best to give the country Nigeria a big start. Even with that laudable resolution there were challenges and obstacles. And as soon as the great leaders left the scene, Nigeria went back to square one! It has been one trouble after another ever since.

In corporations after corporations, some shinning stars would emerge only to be supplanted by imbeciles. It never ends.

There is therefore no exaggeration if it is said that we can only try our best. It is not ever likely that anyone or any group can permanently end the ills of the world or stop the world from immersing itself in perennial mess.

Several visionary individuals have laid down their lives in their strong desires to change the way things are done in the world. Some brought new ideas in politics, religion, science and technology, economics, education and law. At the end of the day, all their efforts end up either being misinterpreted and misapplied or being completely jettisoned.

There were hungry and homeless people thousands of years ago. There are still many more homeless and hungry people in the world today. There is labour unrest here and there as there were hundreds of thousands of labour unrest in the world from time immemorial.

Whatever circumstances you are facing today, somebody somewhere has faced the same defining circumstance before.

We struggle day-in-day-out in the vain attempt that we can change the world and end the rot that it is plagued with only to find to our chagrin out on our dying bed that the world remains majestically in the mess in which we met it..

Jagbajagba jugbujugbu l’abaye, jagbajagba jugbujugbu na la maa fisile sii!! Because, as it was in the beginning, so it is now, and ever shall it be, world without end!

•This piece column originally appeared in today’s edition of Daily Sun. Amanze Obi can be reached via amaobi@yahoo.co.uk

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