Why the Dog Hid His Mother in the Sky
Why the Dog Hid His Mother in the Sky is Yoruba folktale about a famine in the land of the animals.
Why the Dog Hid His Mother in the Sky
A long time ago, there was so much famine in the animal kingdom. No animal knew what to do to solve the problem. When things got very bad, the king called all the animals together for a meeting. He had gotten tired of always being hungry and having nothing to feed his family.
The meeting was held in his palace, and since the situation affected the entire community, every animal was in attendance. All the animals looked pale due to hunger. The king was heartbroken at the sight before his eyes, and he rushed to open the meeting so that they could find a solution to the problem.
“My people, good morning. I know we are all very tired and not in the mood for anything else save food right now. I also know that you are used to getting food whenever you come to the palace, but today’s case is very different. There is no food on the land, which is the main reason for this meeting. We need to come together and find a way to solve this problem. Our people normally say that two heads are better than one. Now more than ever, we need to maintain that status quo. So if you have any suggestions regarding what we can do to get food, the floor is all yours.” The king ended his speech, but the animals were too tired that no one could say a word.
After a few minutes, Tortoise spoke out. “My king, I thank you for that speech. My people, we need to act and we need to act fast. Our land is in serious trouble and it is up to us to find a solution to this impending problem.”
“If you have something to say, go straight to the point,” Elephant yelled, and the other animals agreed. They were not in the mood for Tortoise’s long speech.
“Okay, what I am about to say may sound very terrible, but just hear me out. We have no food in this kingdom, but we do have each other. What I am suggesting is that we eat our mothers in the meantime, just until can get food for ourselves.”
“Are you mad?!”
“How can you even suggest that?!”
These and many more were the uproars that came from the animals at the meeting. Nobody wanted to give in to the idea of eating their mother, but after a series of considerations, they decided that it was for the best, so they agreed to come up with a timetable as to when each animal mother would be killed.
When Dog saw that the other animals were not joking about the decision, he decided that he would never kill his mother, and feed her to the other animals. So he took her to the sky and hid her there. Before he took her there, he told her that he would be coming to see her at intervals, and also gave her the signal he would use whenever he wanted to see her.
The signal was that he would sing a song for her, and once she hears that song, she would drop a rope, and he would climb the robe to see her. Dog and his mother said their goodbyes, and Dog reminded her of the song he would sing whenever he wanted to meet her. One day, Dog went to meet his mother in the sky. He sang the song.
Iya Iya ta?kun wa le o
Alu jon jonki jon
Gbogbo araye pa yeye re je
Alu jon jonki jon
Aja gbe ti re o d?orun
Alu jon jonki jon
Iya Iya ta?kun wa le o
Alu jon jonki jon
Which means
Mother, Mother, send down your rope
[Chorus]
All have killed and eaten their mothers
[Chorus]
Dog has taken his mother to the sky
[Chorus]
Mother, Mother, send down your rope
[Chorus]
When the mom heard the song, she dropped the rope, and Dog climbed up to see her. They did this for weeks till one day, Tortoise followed him and saw how he called his mother out of the sky. He got very angry and decided that he was going to teach them a lesson.
One day, when Dog was nowhere in sight, he went to the same location and sang the same song Dog sang when he wanted to meet his mother. Dog’s mother didn’t look down, she just dropped the rope, and Tortoise began climbing it. Soon, Dog came in and saw what was happening. He immediately sang a different song. This time, the song told his Mother that he was not the one on the rope and that the mother should cut it.
Immediately, Dog’s mother took a big pair of scissors and cut the rope. Tortoise fell and broke his shell. When he stood up, he was able to fix it, but it wasn’t as smooth as it was in the past. That is why up till now, Tortoise back is never smooth.
Moral Lesson
It is not good to what to trick others or get revenge.
Owners of the story: The Yorubas
More folktale, folklore, and fable
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