CAAQIL, WADAAD, IYO GEEL JIRE

Saddex nin baa walaalo ahaa. Mid wuxuu ahaa caaqil, midna wadaad, ka saddexaadna geeljire. Aabbihii dhalay ayaa si lama filaan ah ifka ka tegey asagoon ka dardaarmin sidii raggani uu ka xjiaabtay ay xoolaha dhaxalka ah u qeybsan lahaayeen.

Caaqilkii ayaa wuxuu ku dooday in xoolaha loo badiyo maadaama markastoo dadka kale ay damcaan in ay qaaraan ka qaadaan uu xoolahooda difaaci jiray oo aan hal neefna laga qaadi jirin. Labadii kale ayaa ku gacan seyray.

Waddaadkii baa hadloo wuxuu ku calaacalay in tiro badan la siiyo maadaama uu weligiis xoolahaasi xirsi xir iyo xijaab la daba taagnaan jiray, Qur'aan akhriskana ay caado u aheyd. Wuu ku hungoobay codsigiisi.

Geel Jirihii ayaa wuxuu xasuusiyey labadii kale in uu asagu xoolaha ka celin jiray ugaadha sida libaaxa, shabeelka, haramcadka iyo dhurwaaga waana laga diiday.

Haddaba, maadaama lays mari waayey, ayaa caaqilkii labadii kale ku wargeliyey in ay raadshaan cid kala saarta. Wuxuu u sheegay in uu jiro nin abwaan ah oo caan ku ah garsoorka iyo xaq dhowrka.

Safar dheer ayey u kicitimeen si ay ula kulmaan ninkan ku caan baxay xaajo goynta. Goortey u tageen abwaankii, ayuu faray in uu jiro nin asaga ka abwaansan oo deggan masaafo aan sidaasi u dheereyn. Hase yeeshee, wuxuu ku wargeliyey in ay jiraan labo libaax oo dad cun ah oo hadhsada waddada ay sii mari doonaan.

Xoogaa markey sii socdeen, ayey la kulmeen labadii libaax oo heegan ku jira. Labadii libaax mid ka mid ah ayaa hadlay oo wuxuu ku yidhi raggii, "naga fakan meysaane iska soo saara midkiin sifa aynu u cunno." Caaqilkii ayaa u jawaabay oo ku yidhi, ".bal noo yara kaadiya aynu tashanne oo aynu iska soo saarre kii aad cuni laheydeen."

Caaqilkii ayaa wuxuu u jeedsaday dhankii wadaadkii, wuxuuna ka codsaday in uu libaaxyada ka xijaabo. Waddaadkiina wuxuu yidhi, "xilligaan soo dhaqaajinnay illaa hadda un baan Qur'aan akhrin hayee, LIBAAXII ALAMTARA SOO DHAAF."

Kadib caaqilkii wuxuu la hadlay Geel Jirihii. Wuxuu ku yidhi, "heedhe, adiga un baa weligaa xoolaha raaci jiraye, bal si un naga dheh bahalladan oo naga celi", wuxuuna Geel Jirihii ugu jawaabay, "kuwanoo kale weligey ma aanan arag oo waa libaaxyo nooc kale ah."

Xaajadu markey halkaasi mareyso, ayuu caaqilkii wadaadkii iyo Geel Jirihii ku yidhi, "haddaan bahalladan inaga celiyo, nus dhaxalka ma qaadanayaa."? Wey aqbaleen.

Caaqilkii ayaa u tegey labadii libaax wuxuuna ku yidhi, "annagu aabbaheen boqor weeye, ee adinku, labadiinna keebaa boqor ah."?.Labadii libaax ayaa is galay oo dagaallamay. Ayagoo is rifaya, ayey si tartiib ah ka dhex xaluusheen. Abwaankii loo tegi lahaana looma baahan oo halkii ayey ka soo laabteen.

Caaqilkii ayaa kala badh qaatay dhaxalkii, labadii kalena intii soo hadhay ayey qeybsadeen.

Seyyid Muhammed Abdulle Hassan

All nations, whether big or small, colonized or uncolonized, poor or affluent, pride in their past and present historical events with heroes and heroines, legends or legendary figures, nationalists and freedom fighters revered as role models in commemorative events and national celebrations. No wonder Kenyans celebrate Kenyatta Day and Moi Day in honor of the first and second Presidents respectively.

In Somali written and oral history, Ahmed Gurey, also called 'Gran' or the left-handed, is reputed to have been the first Somali freedom fighter to repel with decisive force against Abyssinian imperialism and European colonialism of Somali inhabited lands in the run up to the 15th century. However, many loquacious Somalis, devoid of creative research skills or ignorant and biased in nature seem not to understand the historical significance of the wars fought by this brave man who fought with valor. On the other hand, Seyyid Muhammed Abdille Hassan, a man named 'Mad Mullah' by the British occupation forces based in northern Somalia at that time has not been given the credit he deserves simply because a dangerous cancer in the minds of many Somalis-a disease that has afflicted the young and old in equal proportion and known as tribalism-has tragically swept the faculty of thinking of many into disrepair and dissuaded them from grasping the truth.

Since our discussion today is mainly centered on Seyyid Muhammed Abdille Hassan and his skirmishes against the combined Abyssinian-Italian-British forces and local Somali Askaris in the payroll of the occupation forces, it is equally important we mention that the Dervishes-the gallant forces of the Seyyid-were the first to be bombarded by aircraft in the history of Africa. Also, it is worth comprehending that the Seyyid was the first Somali to graduate from an institution of higher learning and the first to object to the payment of poll tax imposed on his people by the British colonial government. He was the first Somali to construct a garrison at Taleex which is visible to this day. Students and admirers of Somali history need to be reminded of how he contracted a German engineer to lay down the foundations of this massive garrison which up to now stands as a landmark of Somali history.

It was Seyyid Muhammed Abdille Hassan who revived the struggles of Ahmed Gurey and also taught Somalis the importance of self-rule or self-determination. The offspring of the horses and mules he abandoned when he betook himself to the jungles of the Ogaden region-especially in the village of Iimeey-his final death bed- remain visibly scattered in the countryside-a testament to the majesty and prowess of a bygone hero. Never in the history of Somalia has a man so eloquently created a living genesis of poetry and prose that still begs for publication and translation. The letter he wrote to the then British colonial administration protesting against proselytizing, indoctrinating, and brainwashing his people must be put be put into context.

Perhaps, it is wrong to associate or measure or place in par the heroic struggles of the Seyyid with modern African freedom fighters like Patrice Lumumba of the Congo, Kwame Nkurumah of Ghana, Jomo Kenyatta of Kenya, Gemal Abdelnasir of Egypt, and Haile Selassie of Ethiopia-because the techniques the Seyyid applied and the era and duration of his struggles are incompatible with the struggles of modern African freedom fighters.

Major General Mohamed Siyad Barre, President of Somalia from 1969 to 1991, deserves a pat on the back for introducing the Seyyid's struggles into Somali schools curriculum. On the other hand, President Barre left a historical legacy by having statues erected in Mogadishu in honor of the Seyyid and his predecessor-the legendary Ahmed Gurei even though we are told that callous warlords in cahoots with a few misguided militias have uprooted them for sale as scrap metal in the Arabian Peninsula.

It is almost 18 years since General Barre departed the political spectrum and to date, with the exception of a few rapacious hooligans who carved out the nation into Cantons, killed thousands, and displaced millions, what Somalia awaits to see is a leader who will unite the people and rewrite a novel history without distortions.


If there are any Somalis denying Seyyid Muhammmed Abdille Hassan his place in history due to their protracted paucity and meagerness of historical integrity, I would suggest they delve in to the golden pages of living history splashed across encyclopedias in modern libraries or most importantly present their queries before the numerous internet search engines like Google and Yahoo that never shy away from uncovering the truth.