Anansi and the Chameleon

As we have already said, Anansi was one of God's favorites. But Anansi grew more conceited and arrogant day by day.

In fact, God became so annoyed with Anansi's boastfulness that he had "deceived" God in the "Sun and Moon" episode that he was seriously considering withdrawing his patronage from Anansi.

Anansi lived in the same African village as the chameleon.

Anansi was wealthy and had the finest fields in the area, while Chameleon was poor and worked hard in his meager fields to make ends meet.

However, a year of rain fell on Chameleon's fields, which were now bountiful with good harvests. To teach Anansi a lesson, God let no rain fall on Anansi's land and the crops dried up and dust blew everywhere.

Anansi then decided to take the fields of Chameleon for himself. Anansi first tried to buy the fields, but Chameleon refused to sell. Anansi offered more and more in exchange, but Chameleon still kept the land. Early one morning, Anansi boldly walked down the road to Chameleon Fields and began harvesting the crops.

When Chameleon saw this, he got very angry and chased Anansi away. When a chameleon walks, it leaves no trace; it's virtually impossible to tell where a chameleon has been. Knowing this, Anansi took Chameleon to the tribal court to sue for possession of the fields.

The chief asked Chameleon to prove that the fields were his; Chameleon had no proof to offer. Anansi, on the other hand, took the leader to Chameleon Fields, pointing to the many footprints on the road. They were Anansi's footprints, and the chief assigned the fields to Anansi on the spot.

Although the court decision gave the land to Anansi, God has greater justice than the courts have pronounced. So, God gives Chameleon an idea for a clever plan.

Chameleon dug a very deep hole and put a roof over it. From the outside, the hole looked tiny. But, in fact, Chameleon had dug a vast underground cavern. So the chameleon took vines and flies and made a coat out of them. When the sun hits flies, they glow with a variety of colors, but they are still flies.

Chameleon came down the road wearing this cloak of flies and vines when he met Anansi.

Anansi's first words to Chameleon were, “Hello, my friend. I hope there is no hard feelings between us. Anansi saw what looked like a nice cape and offered to buy it.

Chameleon pretended to be magnanimous and told Anansi that the coat would be his, if only Anansi would fill Chameleon's "little hole" with food.
Anansi easily agreed, boasting that he would fill it twice.

Anansi then brought the coat to the chief who had acted as a judge in the trial, and gave the coat to the chief as a gift. The leader admired the coat and thanked him profusely.

Anansi worked day and night to fill Chameleon's hole with food and the hole still wasn't full. He worked for weeks and the hole still wasn't full. After a while, Anansi realized that Chameleon had tricked him.

Meanwhile, the chief walked down the road wearing a coat of flies. One day the vines snapped and the flies buzzed in all directions, leaving the chief naked and livid with anger at Anansi.

The leader was getting angrier and angrier with every step he took, as he began to see Anansi's vanity and arrogance. When the chief found Anansi, he ordered him not only to return Chameleon's property, but also to give Chameleon the best of his own fields.

As soon as Chameleon took possession of the best field in Anansi, it rained on that field for the first time in months, and now Chameleon was the richest in the village.

The moral of this African story? – Vanity and arrogance, just like humility and hard work, have rewards, each in its own way.