The Fabled City of Pali
Video: Cited by Kazemde Ajamu
Written version retold by Ishakamusa Barashango: There was a traveler who had gone around the world He had been to many different countries. One day he was in the western portion of *Alkebu-lan and he came across a city named Pali. As he stumbled upon this city, he walked from one end of it to the other and spent all day there. His mouth opened in amazement because he has never seen anything like this in all of his travels throughout the world. He had seen many things, having traveled and studied different cultures, cities, and nations. He kept walking around shaking his head because he could not believe what he saw.
Finally, he saw a venerable old man in the direction of the setting sun. As he was moving along, he said to the man, “Sir, please forgive me for disturbing you.” The elder said, “What can I do for you, my brother”? He said, “Look, I’m perplexed. I need you to help me. I’m wondering if I got sunstroke as I was traveling or maybe I’m suffering from some type of hallucination. What kind of experience am I having?” The elder, not quite understanding the traveler, said, “Just what is it? What is happening with you, my son?” “Well, I have traveled this whole city, and every place I went, I saw fine homes, every one of them looked like mansions. Everybody in the city is dressed well, they wear their finest **kinte cloth. They have a look on their face – a glow of happiness. They seem to be prosperous. They look healthy. The children are safe. I see them everywhere, all over the city. I have not been able to find one piece of trash on the streets.
I have not found one poor person in the whole city. Not one beggar! Now that cannot be! Everywhere I have traveled in this world, you have the rich, a middle class, and on the bottom, you always have the impoverished. No matter where I go, this is the case. Even on this great continent of Alkebu-lan, I have experienced this. This is the only city I have ever visited where I have not had that experience.” It was a shock to the traveler and he just couldn’t seem to understand. “What I’m seeing,” he continued, “is that everybody in this city is wealthy! Is this true?!”
“Yes, they are,” replied the elderly man. The traveler replied, “But how can this be? How did you all accomplish this?” The elderly man replied, “Well sir, whenever someone comes to this great city of Pali and they desire to become a resident, we meet in council. The Council of Elders and the Mothers of the City come together. We interview the person and present them with questions. After our spiritual priest and priestesses observe the person, we meet again in a closed session. If we decide that this person has the kind of character we would want in our community and that they will bring something of value to this community, then we accept them as a resident.
On the day that we welcome them into the city of Pali, there is a large gathering and celebration. Everybody brings a brick and a dollar.” The traveler asked, “Well… how many residents do you have?” The elderly man thought for a moment. “Just over 100,000. So on the day, you are welcomed into the city, each person presents you with a brick and a dollar. When you come here, you start out with a mansion and $100,000.
