Wole Soyinka is the first African to win the Nobel prize in literature. He was born on this day, July 13, in the year 1934 in Nigeria. He has written a lot of poems, playwrights and essays and received the Nobel prize in 1986.

Here are some of his inspiring words of wisdom.

“Human life has meaning … as long as it is lived in the service of humanity.”

“The greatest threat to freedom is the absence of criticism.”

“Books and all forms of writing are terror to those who wish to suppress the truth.”

“The writer is the visionary of his people… He anticipates, he warns.”

“Romance is the sweetening of the soul with fragrance offered by the stricken heart.”

“I am a glutton for tranquility.”

“Don’t take shadows too seriously. Reality is your only safety. Continue to reject illusion.”

“I don’t know any other way to live but to wake up everyday armed with my convictions, not yielding them to the threat of danger and to the power and force of people who might despise me.”

“We must learn to accept that not all who walk on two legs belong to the community of humans – I view Boko Haram in that light.”

“You are not a complete human being if you are not educated, schooled or cultured.”

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