African Folktales

by Roger Abrahams

  Now, every day Rubiya used to leave his parents house just to play with the female children of the neighbors. But one day as he was playing, he hit one of his friends on the head with his finger, and so great was his strength that he split open her forehead and drew blood. When her parents saw the wound they went straightaway to the sultan to complain that there was a male child named Rubiya, who had been hidden by his parents in defiance of the law that the sultan had made. When Rubiya’s parents heard of what had happened, they were afraid, and said, “If we keep him here, the sultan will put him to death, and us, as well, for having hidden him.” Now, on the farm that belonged to this man and his wife, there lived a jinn who killed all who approached, and for this reason no one could tend the land. “It is better that we should send him to the country farm for the jinn to devour,” said Rubiya’s parents. So his father, giving Rubiya a great sword that he had in the house, led him from the town. After they had walked for some time along the high road, they came to a narrow footpath all filled with grass and overgrown, and the man said to Rubiya, “Follow this footpath and it will lead you to the farm in the bush. So Rubiya followed the footpath, and in due course arrived at the farm, which he found to be full of ripe pineapples, bananas, and other fruits. There were palm trees with coconuts just lying on the ground beneath them, for men were afraid to come and gather them because of the jinn.

  Rubiya entered the house at the farm. There, in an inner room, he found a female jinn, whose head he cut off with his sword. Leaving her lying there, he hid himself in the outer room of the house. Presently her husband, the jinn who occupied the farm, returned, saying, “I smell the blood of a human being.” He called to his wife, but received no answer. Presently, he went into the inner room and found her body. Then, Rubiya came from his hiding place and, seizing the jinn, drew his sword to kill him. But the jinn cried, “If you will spare me, I will reward you.” Rubiya asked what he would give him, and the jinn replied, “I will give you a bowl of magic water, and if you wish to know if any friend of yours is in trouble, you have but to look therein. If the water remains clear, no trouble has befallen him, but if the water becomes black, then he is in need of assistance.” Rubiya said, “Give me this magic water, and I will spare you.” So the jinn brought the water, and gave it to Rubiya, who took it and drove the jinn from the farm.

  Then Rubiya gathered together a great bundle of coconuts and, slinging them over his shoulder, set out to return to his parents. But on the road he met men who asked if he had seen Rubiya, for they had been sent by the sultan to arrest him. Rubiya said to them, “You are not capable of arresting Rubiya, for he is very strong.” But they replied that should they meet him, they were ready to try. Then Rubiya said, “I am a friend of Rubiya, and if you can seize me, you can seize him.” He drew his sword and slew all of those men except two. One of these he bound, and he cut off the ears of the other, and told him to return to the sultan and inform him of what had happened.

  When the sultan heard that Rubiya had overcome the men whom he had sent to seize him, he was very angry, and sent forces to seize Rubiya. But Rubiya slew them also, all except two. Of these two, one he bound, and he cut off the hand of the other, and told him, “Go to the sultan, and tell him that if he sends men to seize me a third time, I will enter his palace and kill him.” Then Rubiya set free the two men whom he had bound, and said, “Will you go with me and be my brothers?” The men agreed to this, so the three of them set out.

  One day, as they were traveling in the bush, they heard voices. Rubiya crept up quietly, and looking through the branches, saw two jinns talking together. Now one of them was that jinn who had formerly dwelt on the farm that belonged to Rubiya’s father, and he was telling the other jinn how he had been seized by Rubiya and had only escaped with his life by presenting him with the magic water. When Rubiya heard this, he rushed out and seized the jinn whom he had not seen before. But the jinn cried out, saying, “If you will spare my life, I will give you certain seeds that I have. If you want to know whether any one of your friends is in trouble, you have but to pour water upon one of these seeds and a tree will spring up. If the leaves of this tree are fresh, then your friend is safe, but if the leaves are dried and dead, then your friend has need of your assistance.” So Rubiya took the seeds, and allowed the jinns to depart.

  Rubiya and his brothers traveled until they reached a land ruled by another sultan. Entering the chief city of that land, they found lodging in an upper floor, and lay down to sleep. At daybreak, Rubiya wanted to walk in the streets, and coming down from his room, he went to open the door of the house. But the woman who owned the house said to him, “Don’t go out so early, for there is a great lion that goes about the city from sunset until dawn, forcing everyone to stay in their homes.” But Rubiya said to her, “I don’t fear the lion.” So he went out, and the woman shut and bolted the door behind him. As he was wandering, he met the lion. He drew his sword, and, as the lion sprang at him, he slashed at its head and killed it. He cut off the lion’s claws and tail, took them, and went away. Though he didn’t know it, the daughter of the sultan was looking from the window of the palace nearby, and saw all that had happened.

  Soon one of the sultan’s soldiers passed, and saw the body of the lion. He took his spear and stabbed the lion many times with it, and, after bathing his arms in its blood, he ran to the sultan and told him that he had killed the beast. The sultan was overjoyed when he heard this, and said, “As a reward for your bravery, I give you my daughter, the princess, in marriage.” But the princess said, “I will not marry this man. Let me first see the body of the lion that he has killed.” Then the body of the lion was brought in, and the princess said, “Where are the claws?” The soldier replied, “It has killed so many men that it has lost its claws.” Then the princess said, “Where is the tail?” The soldier replied, “It has no tail.” Then the princess said, “Who has ever heard of a tailless lion? You didn’t kill it, but another great man did, one I saw from the window of my palace.” Then the princess described Rubiya to her father, and he sent men to search for him. They soon found him, and brought him to the palace. When he showed the sultan the claws and tail that he had cut from the lion, the sultan ordered the soldier who had pretended to have killed the lion to be put to death. He offered his daughter to Rubiya in marriage, but Rubiya said, “I am but a youth, and these, my brothers, are older than I am. Therefore, it is only fair that they should marry before I do.” So one of Rubiya’s brothers married the daughter of the sultan, and Rubiya gave to him the magic water, and said to him, “Look in this water every morning, and if it remains clear you will know that I am safe, but if it becomes black that is a sign that I am in trouble.” So the man took the water, and Rubiya went away with the brother who remained with him.

  At length they reached a land ruled over by another sultan. Now this sultan had previously possessed seven daughters, but now only one remained and she was a maiden of extraordinary beauty. About this city, there was only one place where water might be obtained, and this was a great lake situated nearby. This lake was inhabited by a great seven-headed serpent who each morning had to be given one of the sultan’s daughters to devour, before the people of the city might draw water. On the night of Rubiya’s arrival, the youngest daughter was placed on her bed at the edge of the lake, so that in the morning, when the serpent emerged, he might devour her. Rubiya, when he heard the story of the serpent, remained near the princess so that he could save her.

  When the dawn broke, the waters of the lake turned blood red, then drained away until only mud remained. After the water boiled and bubbled and rose again, the serpent emerged from the lake to devour the princess. Rubiya drew his sword, cut off the seven heads of the serpent, and killed it. Then he went to the princess and placed on her finger a silver ring that had his name engraved upon the inside of it. When he had done this, he returned to the city.

  Presently, one of the sultan’s servants came down to the lake. When he saw the dead bo
dy of the serpent, he ran to the sultan and told him that he had slain it and saved the princess. The sultan was overjoyed, and promised to give the princess in marriage to the servant. But when the princess heard of his intention, she said to the sultan, “I do not want to marry this man.” Then the sultan said, “Though he is a slave, he has saved you from the serpent, and therefore you should gladly reward him.” Then the princess said to the servant, “Do you know this ring and what is written on the inside of it?” The servant said, “I don’t know it.” Then the princess said, “The one who slew the serpent placed this ring upon my finger, and he knows what is written there.” That morning Rubiya came into the presence of the sultan, and said, “Your daughter has a silver ring upon her finger, and on the inside is written my name—Rubiya.” The princess answered, “It is true. This is the one who slew the serpent.” When the sultan heard this, he was overjoyed, and offered his daughter to Rubiya in marriage. But Rubiya replied, “I am but a youth, and this man, my brother, is older than I am. Let him, therefore, take the princess and marry her.” So Rubiya’s brother married the daughter of the sultan, and Rubiya gave to his brother the magic seeds, saying, “Pour water upon one of these every morning, and a tree shall spring up. If the leaves of the tree be fresh, then you shall know that I am well; but if they be dried and withered, I am in need of you.” Then, after showing his brother the road he was about to take, he set out.

  After many days, he came to the land of the jinns and, entering one of their cities, he hid himself in a house. Presently, the jinns came into the city, bearing loads of ivory and silver and rich merchandise. Rubiya came forth from his hiding place, drew his sword, and slashed at them, right and left. Amongst them were those two jinns who had given him the magic water and seeds, and when they saw who he was, they fled, spreading the report of his coming on all sides. When Rubiya had slain all the jinns in that city, he continued his journey till he came to another of their cities, and here also he hid himself in one of the houses. Again, the jinns arrived bearing merchandise and silver and ivory, and again Rubiya drew his sword and killed them one by one, until none remained. When he had completely cleared the city of jinns, he traveled on until he came to the chief city of that land, where the sultana of the jinns lived, there being no sultan. Though she was an old woman, she appeared as a young girl of great beauty, with firm outstanding breasts. When Rubiya saw her, she came towards him and said, “I have been waiting for you, and now you shall take me to be your wife.” To this Rubiya agreed, and the maiden continued, “But first, you shall wash these dirty clothes for me.” Rubiya agreed to this, as well. And leaving his sword in the house, he went out with the clothes to washthem. When he had gone, the maiden took his sword and hid it.

  When Rubiya returned with the clothes the maiden said to him, “Now, I will kill you, for you have destroyed everyone in two of my towns.” On the walls of that room hung many swords, all cunningly manufactured out of clay. When Rubiya heard the maiden’s words, he seized one of these swords and struck her with it. And when that sword broke, he seized another and struck with it, but it, too, broke into pieces. Then the maiden took up a black rod and struck Rubiya with it, and he immediately turned into a stone.

  Now, every day, to see if he was well and safe, Rubiya’s brothers faithfully examined the magic water and the leaves of the tree that sprang from the magic seeds. One morning, the one with the magic water found that it turned black when he looked into it, and he who had the magic seeds found that when he poured water on them, up sprang a tree whose leaves were dried and withered. So each started out to search for Rubiya, and they met upon the road. They said to each other, “Rubiya has treated us as his brothers, and has married each of us to a sultan’s daughter. Therefore, we must do our best to help him.” So they traveled on, searching for Rubiya, and passed through the two towns of the jinns where the inhabitants had been slain. In due course, they arrived at the principal city of the jinns, and came to the palace of the sultana. When she saw them, she said, “I have been waiting for you, and now one of you must marry me and the other will be my brother-in-law.” The two brothers agreed to this, and they remained in the house conversing with the sultana. After a time she said to them, “Observe this stone. Some days ago, a youth named Rubiya came this way, and I struck him with this black stick and he became a stone.” One of the brothers said to the maiden, “Will he always remain a stone?” and the maiden replied, “No. For when the stone is struck with this white stick, then it will vanish and Rubiya will remain in its place.” When the brothers heard this, they drew their swords and killed the queen of the jinns. And then they took the white stick that she had shown them, and struck the stone with it, and the stone disappeared and Rubiya stood in its place.

  Rubiya gave each of his brothers one of the conquered cities of the jinns, and the third city, in which the sultana of the jinns had dwelt, he kept for himself. Rubiya returned to his own land, to the house of his father and mother, and his brothers returned to their wives. The story is finished.

  —Swahili

  14

  The Flying Lion

  Once upon a time, Oom Leeuw used to fly, and nothing could escape him. His wings were not covered with feathers: they were like the wings of Brother Bat, all skin and ribs. But they were very big, and very thick, and very strong, and when he wasn’t flying, they were folded flat against his sides. When he was angry he let the points down to the ground, tr-r-r, like Oubaas Turkey when he gobbles and struts before his wives, tr-r-r, and when he wanted to rise from the ground, he spread them out and flapped them up and down slowly at first, then faster and faster—so, so, so—till he made a big wind with them and sailed away into the air.

  Oh, but it was a terrible sight! Then, when he was high above the earth, he looked down for something to kill. If he saw a herd of springbok, he would fly along till he was just over them, and pick out a nice fat one; then he would stretch out his iron claws, fold his wings and—whoosh!—down he would fall on the poor bokkie before it had time to jump away. Yes, that was the way Oom Leeuw hunted in the olden times.

  There was only one thing he was afraid of, and that was that the bones of the animals he caught and ate would be broken to pieces. No one knew why, and everyone was too frightened of Oom Leeum to try and find out. He used to keep them all at his home and he had crows to look after them, two at a time—not like the ugly black crows that build in the willow trees near the dam, but white crows, the kind that come only once in many years. As soon as a white crow baby was found, it was taken to Oom Leeuw—that was his order. Then he kept it in the mountains and let it grow big; and when the old white crows died, the next eldest became watchmen, and so there were always white crows to watch the bones when Oom Leeuw went hunting.

  But one day, while he was away, Big Bullfrog came along, hop-hop-hoppity-hop, hop-hop-hoppity-hop, and said: “Why do you sit here all day, you whitehead crows?” And the white crows said: “We sit here to look after the bones for Oom Leeuw.” “But you must be tired of sitting!” said Big Bullfrog. “Fly away for a while and stretch your wings. I’ll sit here and look after the bones.” The white crows looked this way and that way, up and down and all round, but no! They couldn’t see Oom Leeuw, and they thought: “Now is our chance to get away for a fly.” So they said, “Cr-r-raw, cr-r-raw,” and stretched out their wings and flew away. Big Bullfrog called out after them: “Don’t hurry back. Stay as long as you like. I will take care of the bones.”

  But as soon as they were gone, he said: “Now I shall find out why Oom Leeuw keeps the bones from being broken. And he went from one end to the other of Oom Leeuw’s house, breaking all the bones he could find. He worked quickly! Crack! crack, crack, crack! Wherever he went, he broke bones. Then when he had finished, he hopped away, as fast as he could. When he had nearly reached his dam, the white crows overtook him. They had been to the mountain, and when they returned and saw all the broken bones, they were frightened.

  “Craw, craw” they said, �
��Brother Big Bullfrog, why are you so wicked? Oom Leeuw will be so angry, he’ll bite off our nice white heads. Without a head, who can live?”

  But Big Bullfrog pretended he didn’t hear. He just hopped as fast as he could, and the white crows went after him.

  “It’s no good hopping away, Bullfrog,” they said. “Oom Leeuw will find you wherever you are, and with one blow of his iron claws, he will kill you.”

  But old Big Bullfrog didn’t take any notice. He just hopped on, and when he came to his dam he sat back at the edge of the water and blinked the beautiful eyes in his ugly old head, and said: “When Oom Leeuw comes, tell him I am the one who broke the bones. Tell him I live in this dam, and if he wants to see me, he must come here.”

  The white crows were very cross. They flew down quickly to peck Big Bullfrog, but they only dug their beaks into the soft mud, because Big Bullfrog wasn’t sitting there any longer. He had dived into the dam, and the white crows could only see the rings round the place where he had made a hole in the water.

  Oom Leeuw was far away, waiting for food, waiting for food. At last he saw a herd of zebras, and he tried to fly up so that he could fall on one of them, but he couldn’t. He tried again, but no, he couldn’t. He spread out his wings and flapped them, but they were quite weak.

  Then Oom Leeuw knew there must be something wrong at his house, and he was angry. He struck his iron claws into the ground and roared and roared. Softly he began, like thunder far away rolling through the kloofs, then louder and louder, till—“hoor-rr-rr-rr, hoor-rr-rr-rr”—the earth beneath him seemed to shake. It was a terrible noise.