Ndiaby Fall is at two kilometers to the south of the city of Kebemer. It is in this locality where CHEIKH IBRA FALL was born around 1855. This province was inhabited by GUEDJI and DOROBE (nobility of the cayor) who were able to claim to the exercise of the strength. In contrast to a tendency that would want that Ndiaby Fall has been founded in the XVIII century. This region preexisted to the battle of Danki (1459). Ndiaby is part of the localities called falléne-dedd (name of Fall) that had accommodated "the first Lamanes of the Kayor (land owners), become later royal dynasty of the Kayor and Baol, following the triumph of the Lamane Ngoné Sobel on the Bourba Djoloff to the XV century. One can quote among others palléne-dedd, Nguiguis, Ndande, etc.
Thus it is established doubtless that Cheikh Ibra Fall is a garmi. This assertion is of big importance, because it will have to be one of the basic bases of any work on the Cheikh. It is necessary equally to underline that Ndiaby will become a big teaching center of the koran like Pire and Coki. The parents of Cheikh Ibra Fall were well known in the province as teachers such as Yoro Ndiaby Fall and of Barane Ndiaby Fall. Modou Rokhaya Fall is a Garmi. This assertion is also very important, because it is one of the bases of any work on the CHEIKH. MODOU ROKHAYA FALL, father of MAME CHEIKH IBRA FALL is a direct descendant of BARANE NDIABY FALL. He got married to Sokhna SEYNABOU NDIAYE a member of his maternal uncle living in the NDIRA, precisely in WAKHI. He had with Sokhna Seynabou Ndiaye, IBRAHIMA FALL(le future LAMP FALL), SALIOU FALL and ROKHAYA FALL. Few years after the birth of this last one, he left (for reasons again unknown )Ndiaby to go in the Ndiaré. He installed himself in a town called Sali Asta where he lived for few years with his children before his death. It was enough time to inculcate to CHEIKH IBRA FALL the Koran and the rudiments of the Arabic language. It is said that he learned everything from his father. (The colonial administration confirmed this fact as well as those collect orally). Sokhna SEYNABOU NDIAYE got married a second time in the region, but the children from this second marriage did not survive the strong mortality of the era. Becoming big and strong, Cheikh IBRA FALL remained with his siblings to support morally and materially his mother. This locality is situated currently in the department of Louga between NDIAGNE and WARAKH. It is in this party of the NDIARE that it will be necessary to place MAME CHEIKH IBRA FALL. It is here where he passed a good part of his childhood. Exactly, it lived in three localities: NDIABY FALL,SALLY ASTER and WAKHI. But he lived a lot longer in the two last localities in the NDIARE to the very heart of the NDIAMBOUR. Besides, the colonial administrator always presented him as a ndiambour-ndiambour. The colonial police force, a poorly informant indicated that CHEIKH IBRA FALL had been born in Keur Atoumane Fall situated in the NDIAMBOUR. Unfortunately, such information is used by certain researchers, distilling voluntarily or involuntarily the truth. The NDIARE is a province of the NDIAMBOUR, to the limit of the natural border with the KAYOR. He obtained his fame for two reasons. The first one is linked to the presence of the teachers of Islam. The second is that the NDIARE devoted to all fugitive or slave an impunity and a liberation. This statute was recognized for it by all the kingdoms of the Senegal. This was a king of Switzerland, with consideration to the role that Switzerland played at the time of the second World War. The origins ndiambour-ndiambour of CHEIKH IBRA FALL were an important plus. They developed in him a certain spirit of opening. The Ndiambour was a circulation zone of merchandise coming from Mali, Maghreb and from the interior of the Senegal. The commerce remained the activity dominating province. Thus, the Ndiambour became an intermingling place cultural for products of all sorts bursting out of everywhere to converge towards this high place. Cheikh Ibra Fall grew in this locality. Thus it had to be impregnated of a certain philosophy of the communication. The economical success of the mouridisme has gained a lot to the wide capacities and experience of Cheikh Ibra Fall obtained during his existence in the Ndiambour. One considers that the conversion of Cheikh Ibra Fall to the mouridisme marked a date and that gave a new impulse to the brotherhood. Predestined, this encounter unfolded itself in circumstances that left perplexed the contemporary ones even Serigne Touba. And what needed to arrive, arrived: the divine decree accomplishes itself, for the biggest glory of the islam in Africa and in the world.
After his koran studies completed by the knowledge of the Islamic science, Cheikh Ibra decided to leave his original fief. What are the reasons that he took this decision? It would be perilous to speculate on it or give hypothesis. To this level it exists a lot of supputations and of sometimes tinged conjectures of legend. Nevertheless we will leave two versions to have an approach that will have the luck to take us towards the truth. In the matter of the first, Cheikh Ibra presented himself to us as being an enlightened person. This mystical elevation always was recognized in him by his entourage. Being very young, he pleased himself to meditate and to collect himself. One can quote the episode of the "daxaar-mbet" that is the given name to a tamarinier in ndiaby-fall. One day, the people of Ndiaby are disturbed by the cries of a goat to the surroundings of the tree. They rushed in mass. When they arrived, the young Ibrahima Fall loosened the animal. To the question why he had let go of the goat, he replied to them. "Did you not hear what this animal was saying to me? It implored me to leave him live. In addition the one that is forgiven (by God) also must know to forgive ". These days, the tree is part of the sanctuaries for the pilgrimage of the faithful ones. One admits equally that Cheikh Ibra spoke very often of the one that he must serve (Cheikh Ahmadou Bamba). Following this hypothesis, Cheikh Ibra Fall felt predestined to a mission that became more and more clear while he become older. Thus, to maturity, the illumination transforms itself in premonitory dream. It would have seen Serigne Touba in dreams and it is from this moment that he decided to leave for his search. The second version commonly admitted by the researchers and the colonial administration, is that Cheikh Ibra was a rich merchant and he prospered a little everywhere in the localities of the Ndiambour, Baol and Kayor. It is during these numerous movements that he met Cheikh Ahmadou Bamba. The mystical dimension of the Cheikh exerça an important effect on him and it froze all his activities to devote himself to the guide of the Mouridisme. This last hypothesis is swept and denied by the peregrinations. In fact, it is established that Cheikh Ibra Fall full of religious thirsts and of a burning desire to discover the one that will be later his master, stayed in several localities. The divine inspiration had suggested him the name of Ahmadou Bamba, but it was unaware of exactly of what it was. It would seem that he would have stayed in Gambie some times in a locality of the name of 'Bamba'. The last step of the peregrinations is, doubtless, Taïba Daxaar with a marabout of the name of Serigne Bamba Sylla. This is where he met the messengers of Cheikh Ahmadou Bamba who come to bring presents to his master that had secured friendship with Mame Mor Anta Sally. In all these movements, Cheikh Ibra believed to discover Bamba that lived in his subconscious. Cheikh Ibra succeeded in meeting Ahmadou Bamba, by the mediation one of Cheikh Adama Guèye that was part of the messengers towards Serigne Bamba Sylla or Serigne Taïba Daxaar. The encounter took place the 20 of the month of Ramadan to M’backé Kadjoor. When Serigne Touba was put to the current that its messengers had returned accompanied of a host, he asked to be introduced to him. To the view of Cheikh Ahmadou Bamba, Cheikh Ibra Fall felt transported in another universe. He had the intimate conviction that he had just found what he was looking for. Then, he removed his boubou and knelt himself in front of Cheikh Ahmadou Bamba. This attitude indicates a certain philosophy in the corporation woloff. A slave was held in the same position, nude trunk in front of the new master that had just obtained him/her. This episode of the encounter between Cheikh Bamba and Mame Cheikh Ibrahima Fall covered an importance capital in the comprehension of the conversation between the two men. The attitude of Cheikh Ibra is full of symbolism. It would be difficult indeed impossible to return (in French) literally what they were saying Serigne Bassirou Mbacké, brings us some elements in his theological work '' The kind deeds of the eternel'' that is a biography of Serigne Touba Mbacké. So the big Mouride Cheikh Ibrahima Fall, who was besides one of the big men of good intention wrote: '' When I presented myself to the Cheikh for affiliation oath''. I did not leave my house searching for such a guide, If I had only found his grave, the trueness of my intention to follow his example would send me to my objective. I am ready in oath to obtain nothing of this world and to preoccupy me exclusively in God and future life. '' Then, the Cheikh replied to him:'' O Ibrahima! As for me, if I had no tracks of the Prophet but these stars and this sky (that it is established in an authentic way that the Prophet looking at them), I would have been sure that my intention to his service and my love for him would assure me the satisfaction of my needs and driving (in the good way) in accordance with the better destiny than Very High God reserved Faith and the love in him. That says, I accept your oath and you are anxious to obey the orders and to vote the bans and to orient your preoccupation towards God. But do not await of me in this life a shelter or other equipment''. The mouridisme took as birth certificate the affiliation of Cheikh Ibra and the disappearance of Mame Mor Anta Sally in 1883. The presence of Cheikh Ibra and the disappearance of Mame Mor Anta Sally are the catalysts of the emergence of this brotherhood. From 1883 to June 30 1930 date of his disappearance, Mame Cheikh Ibrahima Fall will have been the central personage of the mouridisme. His impression remains and will remain ad vita aeternam. It is still visible through the Baay Fall. It is necessary to underline that the word Baay Fall comes from the language Wolof. It is composed from '' baay'' and '' Fall''. '' Baay'' means the father while '' Fall'' is a name that carries a big party of the community wolof. This is also the surname of the founder of the family of the '' Baay Fall''. Therefore literally Baay Fall would mean '' Father Fall''. In fact, the wolof does precede the word '' Baay'', with individual property. Thus, one will say '' Baay Sikim'', because the man has a beard not very ordinary. One can use equally the word '' baay'' to idealize a person, a reality, etc. In any case, the word releases a certain humor that can, sometimes, turn to the satire. For example '' Baay Touba'' contains more this statute than of humor. One would say '' Baay alcati'' to denounce often the arbitrary power of the policeman. Brief, the word reflects, a certain difficult ambivalence to bypass, if one knows that the general khalife of the mourides was called in his time '' Baay Lahad'' -Serigne Abdoul Ahad- because one wanted to indicate his character and his imperturbable principles. To understand the word Baay Fall, it is necessary to keep the last direction that we have just illustrated through '' Baay Lahad''. Nevertheless, one should not refuse the other meanings of the word. That allows us to seize the whole reality of the movement. During the set up of the structures of the Mouridisme, one does not differentiation between Mourides and Baay Fall. To this era, the talibés of Cheikh Ibra make a scene through a behavior and a life method that often were disparaged by the populations belonging to the other brotherhoods. Paul Marty explains the multiples complaints as rising of an intellectual mahonnêteté
Pulled from the Newspaper 'Touba', Islamic Bimonthly
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