AFRICAN PROVERBS

1. One bird in your hand is better than ten birds in the sky.
-A person that is contented is better than a person who is not.

2. When a nation is about to come to ruin, the cause begins in the homes of its
people.
- Discipline begins in our homes.

3. No one knows the story of tomorrow’s dawn.

- Every day is another opportunity for everyone.

4. What is bad luck for man is good luck for another.

- If a person sees it as a positive thing then it’s a good luck. If a person sees
it as a negative
then it’s a bad luck.

5. If one finger tries to pick up something from the ground, it cannot.

- One cannot do it alone without teamwork.

6. One who asks never loses his way.

- People who asks direction leads you to correct path.

7. A delicious stew does not last long in the pot.

-It does not take long for people to find out about something if it’s good.

8. The path does not close on a man with a machete.

- A valuable thing requires a payment of effort to maintain in good order.

9. A river does not flow so far that it forgets its source.

- Sometimes we tend to forget where we came from but we always find our
way back from where we came from.

10. However large the ear, it cannot hear seven speeches at once.
- Listening carefully makes a man wise.
11. A person who has only one set of clothing does not play in the rain.
- The person who must settle his/her affair knows best how he/she plans to
go about doing so.

12. There is no hill that never ends.

- Our journey through life will never end.

13. The zebra does not despise its stripes.

-.Be true to yourself.

14. The polite lie is better than a forceful truth.

-Telling the truth will set you free.

15. The elephant is not burdened by its own tusks.

- Doing things slowly but surely.

16. The eye with hatred in it can bore through stone.

- An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.

17. Even when there is no cock, day dawns.

- Life will go on without riches.

18. One does not follow a snake into its hole.

-Caution is the quality of approaching situations thoughtfully, considering
the possibilities and risk.

19. One gets drowned even in shallow water.

-Be careful to your words and action.

20. Do not speak of a rhinoceros if there is no tree nearby.

- You should not talk about someone, or put yourself in a situation, if you
cannot get out
of it.

21. What you do not want done to yourself, do not do to others.

- If you keep bullying your classmates someday this might happen to you.

22. “Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it”.

- Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
23. The cautious seldom err.
-Cautious people always take their time, always approach decisions
thoughtfully, never throw caution to the wind.

24. The superior man is modest in his speech, but exceeds in his actions.
-Speaks louder than words.

25. Things that are done, it is needless to speak about… things that are past, it is
needless to blame.
-Past is past.

26. With coarse rice to eat, with water to drink, and my bended arm for a pillow – I
have still joy in the midst of these things. Riches and honors acquired by
unrighteousness are to me as a floating cloud.
- Wealth and rank attained immoral means are nothing but drifting clouds.

27. Without an acquaintance with the rules of propriety, it is impossible for the
character to be established.
-Know your strength and weaknesses.

28. To go beyond is as wrong as to fall short.

-It means that you failed to reach your goal.

29. It does not matter how slowly you go so long as you do not stop.
-Slowly but surely.

30. Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in getting up every time we do.
-Try and try until you succeed.