African Tale

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Retold by The Legendary Connection

TLC#00085

Alternate title: How Wisdom Became the Property of the Human Race

Once upon a time, in a faraway land called Fanti-land, there lived a clever spider named Anansi. Anansi was very wise. In fact, he had all the wisdom in the world! People from all the villages came to him every day to ask for advice and help, and he always knew what to do.

But one day, the people upset Anansi. They had offended him, and this made him very angry. "I know just how to punish them," Anansi thought. "I will take back all my wisdom so no one else can use it!"

Spider Anansi worked hard, gathering up all the wisdom he had shared. He collected it all and put it into a big pot. The pot was very heavy, but he sealed it up tightly so no one could open it. "Now," he thought, "I must hide this pot where no one can ever find it."

Anansi had a son named Kweku Tsin, who was clever and curious. Kweku Tsin noticed his father acting strangely and thought, "Father must be up to something!" So, he decided to watch his father closely.

The next morning, Kweku Tsin saw Anansi quietly sneak out of the house with the big pot hanging around his neck. Curious, Kweku Tsin followed him without being seen.

Anansi walked deep into the forest, far away from the village. Finally, he stopped in front of the tallest tree, which looked almost impossible to climb. "This is the perfect place," he thought, and he began to climb the tree, trying to carry the heavy pot up with him.

But there was a problem! The pot was so big and heavy that it kept swinging in front of him, making it almost impossible to climb. Again and again, Anansi tried to reach the top of the tree, but the pot kept getting in his way.

Kweku Tsin watched from behind a bush. He saw how much his father was struggling and couldn’t stay quiet any longer. “Father!” Kweku Tsin called out, “Why don’t you tie the pot to your back? That way, it won’t get in your way, and you can climb the tree easily!”

Anansi stopped and turned to his son, surprised. “I thought I had all the world’s wisdom in this pot,” he said. “But it seems you have more wisdom than I do! I didn’t even think of that, yet you knew what to do right away!”

In his frustration and anger, Spider Anansi threw the pot down to the ground. The pot hit a big rock, cracked open, and all the wisdom inside spilled out. The wind blew the wisdom far and wide, spreading it all over the world.

From that day on, wisdom wasn’t just in one place—it was everywhere, for everyone to share.

And that’s how wisdom spread throughout the world.

The end.

Source: Sinclair, William Henry Barker (1882-1929) Cecilia. “West African Folk-Tales.” Https://Www.gutenberg.org/Files/66923/66923-h/66923-H.htm, 11 Dec. 2021, www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/66923/pg66923-images.html#ch3. Accessed 6 May 2024.