In a world that moves at breakneck speed, we’ve become masters of jumping to conclusions. A tweet, a glance, a rumor, and the verdict is in. We love to categorize: the good guys on one side, the perfect scapegoats on the other.

Today on the Eliktara Group blog, we invite you to slow down the pace through the impactful lyrics of a musical work of rare lucidity: “Tika Aloba” ( Let him/her speak ).

This text in Lingala resonates as a benevolent warning against the poison of prejudice and an ode to patience.

The truth is a “dancing snake”

The song’s refrain presents an absolutely striking metaphor:

“Tika aloba, tika ayebisa yo. Soki opesi ye time, truth eza nioka ya kobina. » (Let him talk, let him tell you. If you give him time, the truth is a dancing snake).

Why compare truth to a dancing snake? Because truth is almost never linear, simple, or fixed. It is sinuous, complex, and changes depending on the perspective. To understand it, you mustn’t try to freeze it with a stick; you must give it time ( “soki opesi ye temps” ) so that it can unfold before your eyes.

The illusion of the ideal culprit

The song highlights our unfortunate tendency to throw stones and jump to conclusions ( “Tobwakaka mabanga, tobetaka masasi na miso” ). It’s so much easier to label someone and think, “Look at that man, he must be guilty!”

However, the text reminds us of a profound human reality:

“Every face hides its share of secrets.”

Behind what we think we see, behind people’s masks or silence, there are stories, traumas, and contexts that we are completely unaware of. Scratching just a little beneath the surface ( “kotimola mwa moke” ) often reveals narratives far larger and more complex than the simple scenario our minds had imagined.

Who’s pulling the strings?

One of the verses poses the real underlying question: “Prejudices dance like puppets, but who pulls the strings? That’s the real question.”

Often, our snap judgments don’t reflect the other person, but ourselves . They reflect our own fears, our conditioning, our lack of empathy, or our need to feel superior. By refusing to listen, we become puppets of our own cognitive biases.

3 reflexes to adopt to apply the wisdom of “Tika Aloba”:

1. Take the time for a coffee: As the text poetically suggests ( “tomela kopo, kafe ya makasi” ), let’s sit down and listen to each other’s stories before the worst happens (misunderstandings, breakups, conflicts).

2. Suspend the verdict: Faced with an unclear situation, let’s resist the urge to judge. Let’s give the other party the benefit of time and the opportunity to speak.

3. Let history carry us away: Letting ourselves be taken far away ( “tika yo moko bamema yo mosika” ) means accepting to open our horizons and accepting that the world is not all white or all black.

In conclusion: Give the gift of listening

The next time you find yourself judging a colleague, a loved one, or even a stranger a little too quickly, remember this refrain. Grant them this quarter of an hour of grace. Let them speak. You might be surprised by the beauty or complexity of the dance that unfolds before you.