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This first story, "How Stories Came to Earth", was
copyrighted 1995 by Kaleki, and was instrumental in the formation of Anansi
Walks the Web. This Anansi publication conforms to specific
requirements that the copyright holder be acknowledged and that the initial
publication not be substantially altered. Anansi Members and WebWalkers
are cautioned that these requirements also apply to their usage of the
story.
The story is from the Ashanti legend of "Anansi the Spider"
and was first told long ago in the West African country now called Ghana.
It's cental character is Kwaku Anansi, the heroic trickster "spider-man",
who is a central figure in many West African stories. In the story, the
noble and wise spider (Aku) captures four fearsome creatures to pay the
price that the sky-god asks for his stories. With the helpful advice of his
wife, Aso, Anansi brings the stories to Earth and since then they have been
called "Spider Stories". Spider Stories have spread to all corners
of the Earth in the same way that spider webs marvellously appear.
How Stories Came to Earth
An Ashanti Legend
It was long ago in Africa, child, when there was First Spider, Kwaku
Anansi. He went everywhere, throughout the world, travelling on his strong
web strings - sometimes looking more like a wise old man than a spider.
In that long-ago time, child, there were no stories on Earth for anyone
to tell. The sky-god kept all stories to himself, up high in the sky, and
locked away in a wooden box.
These the spider wanted, as many creatures had before him, so that he
could know the beginnings and endings of things. Yet all who had tried for
the stories had returned empty-handed.
Now Anansi climbed up his web to the sky-god, Nyame, to ask for the
sky-god's stories.
Child, when the powerful sky-god saw the thin, spidery, old man
crawling up to his throne, he laughed at him, "What makes you think
that you, of all creatures, can pay the price I ask for my stories?"
Spider only wanted to know, "What is the price of the stories?"
"My stories have a great price, four fearsome, elusive
creatures: Onini, the python that swallows men whole; Osebo, the leopard
with teeth like spears; Mmoboro, the hornets that swarm and sting; and
Mmoatia, the fairy who is never seen. Bring these to me."
Bowing, the spider quietly turned and crept back down through the
clouds. He ment to capture the four creatures he needed as price for the
stories. He first asked his wife, Aso, how he might capture Onini, the
python that swallows men whole.
She told him a plan, saying, "Go and cut off a branch of the palm
tree and cut some string-creeper as well. Take these to the stream where
python lives."
As Anansi went to the swampy stream, carrying these things, he began
arguing aloud, "This is longer than he; You lie, no; it Is true; this
branch is longer and he is shorter, much shorter."
The python was listening, and asked what spider was talking about, "What
are you muttering, Anansi?"
"I tell you that my wife, Aso, is a liar, for she says that you
are longer than this palm branch and I say that you are not."
Onini, the python, said, "Come and place the branch next to me and
we will see if she is a liar."
And so, Anansi put the palm branch next to the python's body, and saw
the large snake stretch himself alongside it. Ananasi then bound the python
to the branch with the string-creeper and wound it over and over - nwenene!
nwenene! nwenene! - until he came to the head. Then the spiderman said to
Onini, "Fool, I will now take you to the sky-god."
This Anansi did as he spun a web around the snake to carry him back
through the clouds to the sky kingdom.
On seeing the gigantic snake, Nyame merely said, "There remains
what still remains."
Spider came back to Earth to find the next creature, Osebo the leopard,
with teeth like spears.
His wife, Aso, told him, "Go dig a large hole."
Anansi said, "I understand, say no more."
After following the tracks of the leopard, spider dug a very deep pit.
He covered it over with the branches of the trees and came home. Returning
in the very early morning, he found a large leopard lying in the pit.
"Leopard, is this how you act? You should not be prowling around
at night; look at where you are! Now put your paw here, and here, and I
will help you out."
The leopard put his paws up on the sticks that Anansi placed over the
pit and began to climb up. Quickly, Anansi hit him over the head with a
wooden knife - gao! Leopard fell back into the pit - fom! Anansi quickly
spun the leopard to the sticks with his web string.
"Fool, I am taking you to pay for the sky-god's stories."
But the sky-god recieved the leopard saying, "What remains, still
remains."
Next the spiderman went looking for Mmoboro, the hornets that swarm and
sting.
Spider told his wife, Aso, what he was looking for and she said, "Look
for an empty gourd and fill it with water."
This spider did and he went walking through the bush until he saw a
swarm of hornets hanging there in a tree. He poured out some of the water
and sprinkled it all over their nest. Cutting a leaf from a nearby banana
tree, he held it up and covered his head. He then poured the rest of the
water from the gourd all over himself. Then while he was dripping he called
out to the hornets,
"The rain has come, do you see me standing here with a leaf to
cover my head? Fly inside my empty gourd so that the rain will not beat at
your wings."
The hornets flew into the gourd, saying, "Thank you - hhhuuummm -
Aku; thank you - hhhuuummm - Anansi."
Anansi stopped up the mouth of the gourd, and spinning a thick web
around it, said, "Fools, I'm taking you to the sky-god as price for his
stories."
The sky-god, Nyame, accepted Mmoboro, the hornets that swarm and sting,
and said, "What remains, still remains."
Anansi knew very well what remained - it was the fairy, Mmoatia, who is
never seen. When the spider came back to Earth, he asked Aso what to do. And
so, he carved an Akua's child, a wooden doll with a black, flat face, and
covered it with sticky fluid from a tree.
Walking through the bush, he found the odum tree, where the fairies
like to play. He then made eto, pounded yams, and put some in the doll's
hand and even more of the yams into a brass basin at her feet - there by the
odum tree. Anansi next hid in the bushes, with a vine creeper in his hands
that was also tied to the doll's neck.
It wasn't long before the fairies came, two sisters, to play. They saw
the doll with the eto and asked if they could have some. Anansi made the
doll's head nod, "Yes", by pulling on the string-creeper. Soon the
faries had eaten all the eto and so, thanked the doll, but the doll did not
reply. The fairies became angry.
One sister said, "When I thank her, she says nothing."
The other sister replied, "Then slap her in her crying place."
This the fairy did, she slapped it's cheek - "pa!" - but her
hand stuck there. She slapped it with her other hand - "pa!" - and
that hand stuck, too. She kicked it with both one foot, then the other, and
both feet stuck to the sticky wooden doll. Finally, she pushed her stomache
to it and that stuck.
Then Anansi came from his hiding place, and said, "Fool, I have
got you, and now I will take you to the sky-god to buy his stories once and
for all."
Anansi spun a web around the last of the four creatures and brought
Mmoatia up to Nyame in the sky kingdom. The sky-god, seeing this last catch,
called together all his nobles. He put it before them and told them that the
spider-man had done what no-one else had been able to do. He said in a loud
voice that rang in the sky,
"From now and forever, my sky-god stories belong to you - kose!
kose! kose! - my blessing, my blessing, my blessing. We will now call
these "Spider Stories"."
And so, child, stories came to Earth because of the great cunning of
Kwaku Anansi, and his wife, Aso. When Anansi brought the wooden box of
stories to his home, he and his wife eagerly learned each one of them. And
you can still see today that Aku and Aso tell their stories. Everywhere you
look, they spin their webs for all to see.
The End
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Storytelling Initiative.
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