Rafiki

**Rafiki** is a supporting character of *The Lion King*. He is a mandrill who serves as Royal Mjuzi of the Pride Lands. Rafiki has an eccentricity that paints him as something of a lunatic; in truth, he is a sage with a deep connection to magical and spiritual elements. With his bakora stick always on his person, Rafiki uses his wisdom to guide those in need, most notably Simba.

## Background

It is revealed in the storybook *A Tale of Two Brothers* that Rafiki was not always a resident of the Pride Lands. Years before Mufasa's reign, Rafiki was a traveler studying the African lands who eventually stumbled upon the Pride Lands, where he was attacked by a young Shenzi, Banzai, and Ed. The mandrill was saved by Ahadi, the former ruler of the Pride Lands and father of Mufasa and Scar (then known as Taka).

Eventually taking residence in the vast lands, Rafiki would soon become close companions with Mufasa and one day overheard Taka's plot to sabotage his brother's reputation, only to be foiled by the mandrill. The end results in Taka falling injured, with Rafiki using his abilities to tend to his wounds and heal him, though one mark remains on the lion's body - his scar, thus becoming the dangerously-envious Prince Scar.

Rafiki's heroic performance throughout the event leads to Ahadi requesting that the mandrill serves as the adviser to all future kings, which Rafiki accepts.

By the time of *The Lion King*, Rafiki lives in an ancient baobab tree, where he regularly performs shamanistic activities. He continues his role as Royal Mjuzi of the Pride Lands and remains a close friend to Mufasa and his family.

### Personality

Rafiki is extremely sagacious and wise. However, his way of exploiting his intelligence is highly irregular; he prefers to teach his pupils (such as Simba) by bombarding them with cryptic metaphors, and typically in a way that purposely annoys them. He takes great joy in this, and though unconventional, the methods of his teaching have proven to be effective time and time again. It should be noted that part of the reason Rafiki's teachings are quite eccentric is the fact that Rafiki, himself, is fairly eccentric. He is excitable, energetic in spite of his age, and tends to fall into fits of hysterical laughter when something amuses him. He also tends to speak in third-person when speaking of himself.

Despite this, much as his reputation would conceive, Rafiki does have a tamer side. He takes his role as sage of the Pride Lands somberly and will act diligently to ensure the balance of the "Circle of Life" remains intact. He is also deeply connected to the spiritual world, as he is seen communicating (both professionally and casually) with Mufasa's spirit in *The Lion King II: Simba's Pride*.

## Trivia

* No one in any of the films, other than himself, refers to Rafiki by his name. They either call him "the monkey" or "the baboon". His name is only used in *Timon & Pumbaa* and *The Lion Guard*. Although, in an early draft of the first film in what would become "The Circle of Life" sequence, Mufasa refers to Rafiki by his name.
* Rafiki's species, the mandrill, is one of the few species that aren't native to Sub-Saharan Africa.
	+ Rafiki is drawn with a pronounced tail, a contrast to the most diminished tails of real mandrills.
	+ Mandrills are also no longer classified as baboons. They are more closely related to other apes, like mangabeys.
* Rafiki meets Thomas, Twilight Sparkle and their friends in *Thomas and Twilight Sparkle's Adventures of The Lion King.*
* Rafiki guest star in Thomas and Twilight Sparkle's Adventures Series.
* In the *The Lion King 1½*, he knows Timon and Pumbaa, ignoring the fact they didn't know who he was when first seeing him in the jungle with Nala.
* The song Rafiki sings to himself, "Asante sana, squash banana, we we nugu, mi mi apana," is Swahili for "Thank you very much, squash banana, you are a baboon and I am not."
* According to Robert Guillaume, Rafiki's voice was partially created from a failed attempt at a Jamaican accent.[2]

* + Notably, *The Lion Guard* marks the first time that Robert Guillaume doesn't reprise his role as Rafiki, due to retiring from acting in 2014.

## Gallery

Rafiki in the 2019 live-action remakeRafiki in *The Lion Guard*.Rafiki with SimbaRafiki with Timon and PumbaaRafiki with FuliRafiki with BungaRafiki with his apprentice, MakiniRafiki with Janna