Origin of Death, according to the Maasai

There is a legend that the Maasai tell about the origin of death. They say that there was once a man known as Leeyio who was the first man that Naiteru-kop, a deity associated with creation, brought to earth. Naiteru- Kop told Leeyio that when a man dies and they dispose of the corpse, he must remember to say, 'man die and come back again, moon die, and remain away'. Many months passed away. One day, a neighbour's child died and Leeyio was called upon to dispose of the body. When he took the corpse outside, he made a mistake and said, 'Moon dies and comes back again, man dies and stays away.' So after that, no man survived death. A few more months passed, and Leeyio's own child died. The father took the corpse outside and said, 'man die and come back again, moon die, and remain away." On hearing this, Naiteru-kop said to Leeyio, "You are too late now for, through your own mistake, death was born the day when your neighbour's child died." This is how death came about, and why, up to this day, when a man dies he does not return, but when the moon dies, it always comes back again.

Advithi Emmi is an Indian artist and art educator. For her art is a reflection of self and the society, it's an inexplicable journey that aids introspection. She believes in collaboration over competence, and have had several stints with different community-based projects and organizations, where she has contributed creatively to their growth while working hand-in-glove with the best in the field. In recent times, her work is mostly based on visual documentation of traditional knowledge and culture. As an art educator, she works towards sharing and instilling her experience with young minds.

In the third edition of the Wise Wall Project, we are collaborating with the culturally rich and one of the oldest communitys in the world, the Maasai community, in Arusha, Tanzania, in partnership with Vikram Solar Ltd., Vijana Inspiring Foundation, Lions Club of Dar es Salaam and Arusha City, and Google Arts and Culture. Along with building an on-ground community centre and museum for the community, we are bringing an exclusive insight into the life, lifestyle and learnings from this inspiring community.

The Wise Wall Project is an initiative of Project FUEL that aims to document, design and strengthen the wisdom of rural communities and marginalised villages using art and community outreach programmes. The arts lead the way to raise support for the challenges these villages face today like migration, quality education and access to basic amenities like water and roads.