Anansi gets the Sky God Stories

Once upon a time, there were no stories in the world. Kwanku Anansi the spider once went to Nyan-Kopon the sky god in order to buy the stories of the sky god. The sky god said, "What makes you think you can buy them?" The spider replied, "I know I can." Thereupon the sky god said, "Great and powerful cities like Kokofu, Bekwai, Asumengya came and they could not buy them, and yet you who are only a man without a master, you say you can »

The spider said, “What is the price of stories? The Sky God said, "They can only be purchased for Onini the Python, Osebo the Leopard, Mmoatia the Fairy, and Mmoboro the Hornet." The spider said, "I'll bring some of that." »

The sky god said, "Go and bring them then!" »

Anansi set out to capture them. First he went to where Python lived and debated aloud whether Python was really longer than the palm branch or not, as his wife Aso says. Python overheard and, when Anansi explained the debate, agreed to lie down along the palm branch. Because it cannot easily make itself completely straight, a true impression of its actual length is difficult to obtain, so Python agreed to be tied to the branch. When he was fully bound, Anansi took him to the Sky God.

To catch the leopard, Anansi dug a deep hole in the ground. When the leopard fell into the hole, Anansi offered to help him with his webs. After the leopard emerged from the hole, it was bound in Anansi's webs and carried away.

To catch the hornets, Anansi filled a calabash with water and poured some on a banana leaf he held above his head and on the nest, shouting that it was raining. He suggested the hornets enter the empty gourd, and when they agreed, he quickly sealed the opening.

To catch the fairy, he made a doll and covered it with sticky gum. He placed the doll under the Odum (Tree of Life) where the fairies play and put some yam in a bowl in front. When the fairy came to eat the yam, she thanked the doll who of course didn't answer. Annoyed at his bad manners, she hit him, first with one hand and then with the other. Hands stuck together and Anansi captured her.

Anansi handed over his captives to Nyan, the sky god. The latter said, “Kawku Anansi, from today and forever, I present to you my sky god stories, kose! kose! kose! my blessing, my blessing, my blessing! We will no longer call them the stories of the sky gods, but we will call them the stories of the spiders!

It is my story that I told. If it's sweet, or if it's not sweet, take it somewhere else, and let it be mine.

Anansi and the Sky God Stories from an African Tale as told by Gerald McDermott.