TRADITIONAL ELEGY: "AJAKAYE LEFT TODAY, LAST YEAR" BY AJAKAYE STRIDA

Daddy left today, the same day he left last year, 

and the world feels the absence he left behind, 

for he did not fall to sickness 

but closed his eyes in quiet authority,

having eaten àmàlà and 

asked only for rest and privacy, 

a man who understood the rhythm of departure.

I have never known such a man, 

one who prepared his grave months 

before the call of eternity, 

a grave untouchable and vast, 

larger than a parlour, 

because his life demanded a presence, 

and in our hearts he dwells still.

Alhaji Chief Saminu Ayinla Ajakaye, 

mo júbà, 

diamonds do not die, 

they only change locations.

When I heard you had joined your ancestors, 

my voice broke in disbelief, 

and I ran to Ajakaye Naira Mosque 

to find crowds that answered before words could, 

and I cried kí ló dé, 

aahhhh, ayé òh, 

for only a life so full can summon such witnesses.

Only eight of my brothers bathed you with reverence, 

while your grandchildren dug the earth you had already chosen, 

the place 

and the door you designed yourself.

Ajakaye, Olórí-Ẹbí of Iba, 

Mayégun of Igando, 

Atóbájáyé of Igbesa, 

Bobagunwà of Igando.

It was only sleep that took you and not illness, 

for you were one month and thirteen days from ninety, 

yet eternity arrived early and you met it calmly, 

completing the work you began with hands, mind, and spirit alike.

I know you are already in the other world, 

continue to father me from beyond sight 

until I live long in prosperity and 

return naturally as you did, and if there is another world, 

may you choose me again, 

be my biological father, and 

let me return as your child.

© RASHIDAT OLAMIDAYO AJAKAYE 

STRIDA... guiding you to striking confidence in academic and creative writing

2026

It is a modern free-verse elegy that mourns and honors the death of Alhaji Chief Saminu Ayinla Ajakaye. The poem blends narrative lament with Yoruba oríkì and panegyric traditions, using titles, praise names, and cultural rituals to commemorate his life. It moves from grief to reverence and spiritual continuity, affirming death as a transition rather than an end.