An Acoli prayer from Uganda. We hear the words of a hunter perparing for the hunt and praying that his spear will be adequate.
The spear with the hard point,
Let it split the granite rock:
The spear that I trust,
Let it split the granite rock:
The hunter has slept in the wilderness,
I am dying, oh:
The spear that I trust,
Let it split the granite rock:
The spear with the sharp point,
Let it crack the granite rock:
The hunter’s spear is sharp,
I am dying, oh:
The spear that I trust,
Let it split the granite rock.
from Oral Poetry from Africa 1984
compiled by Jack Mapanje and Landeg White,
Longman
