In the sunbaked villages of Senegal, where the ancient Wolof people have passed down their wisdom through countless generations, there lived a family touched by both love and misfortune. At the heart of this household was an elderly mother whose gentle spirit had nurtured her children through many seasons, but who now found herself afflicted by a painful ailment that refused to heal.
The old woman’s suffering centered on a persistent, throbbing sore that had developed on her foot. Day after day, the wound caused her tremendous pain, making each step an ordeal and preventing her from performing the daily tasks that had once brought her joy. Her condition weighed heavily not only on her own heart but on the hearts of her devoted daughters, De N’Galack and Patte N’Galack, who watched helplessly as their beloved mother’s strength gradually diminished.
De N’Galack and Patte N’Galack were dutiful daughters who had inherited their mother’s compassionate nature. They tended to her with unwavering dedication, applying traditional remedies and seeking advice from the village elders, but nothing seemed to provide lasting relief. Their mother’s pain became their pain, and their desperate search for a cure consumed their thoughts both day and night.
It was during this time of family distress that a hyena appeared at their dwelling. This was no ordinary creature, for hyenas in the Wolof tradition are known for their cunning and their ability to speak with human voices when it suits their purposes. This particular hyena approached the daughters with an air of confidence that seemed to promise salvation for their mother’s suffering.
“I possess the knowledge to heal your mother,” the hyena declared, his voice smooth and persuasive. His yellow eyes gleamed with what the daughters mistook for wisdom and benevolence. “I have cured many such ailments in my travels across the land. But my healing methods are ancient and powerful, requiring complete privacy to be effective.”
The hyena’s proposal was both specific and unsettling. “You must shut me in alone with your mother,” he continued, his tone becoming more insistent. “During the healing process, she may cry out in pain, but you must not be alarmed by her screams. Do not worry about any sounds you may hear, for her cries will simply be the natural response to my powerful medicine working its magic upon her body.”
De N’Galack and Patte N’Galack exchanged uncertain glances. The hyena’s words filled them with both hope and unease, but their desperation to help their suffering mother overcame their natural caution. They reasoned that if there was even the smallest chance this creature could provide the healing their mother needed, they must take that chance, regardless of their personal misgivings.
With heavy hearts but hopeful spirits, the daughters agreed to the hyena’s strange conditions. They carefully helped their mother into the small room where the healing was to take place, then reluctantly secured the hyena inside with her. As they closed the door, they whispered prayers for their mother’s recovery and tried to silence the growing anxiety that gnawed at their hearts.
As darkness fell over the village, terrible sounds began to emerge from the sealed room. Their mother’s voice rose in anguished screams that pierced the night air like arrows through their daughters’ souls. The cries were filled with such pain and terror that De N’Galack and Patte N’Galack found themselves trembling outside the door, their hands reaching for the handle time and again.
But each time they moved to enter, they remembered the hyena’s warning about the healing process. They forced themselves to believe that their mother’s suffering was temporary, a necessary part of the cure that would ultimately restore her health. Through the long, dark hours, they held each other close and waited, their faith in the hyena’s promises the only thing preventing them from breaking down the door.
When the first light of dawn broke across the horizon, an eerie silence had fallen over the house. The screaming had stopped, and the daughters allowed themselves to hope that the healing had been completed successfully. With anxious hearts, they approached the door and called out to their mother but received no response.
Growing increasingly worried, they finally unlocked the door and stepped inside. The sight that greeted them was beyond their worst nightmares. Their beloved mother was gone, and in her place lay only scattered bones, picked clean by the treacherous hyena who had vanished into the morning light.
The discovery of their mother’s fate filled De N’Galack and Patte N’Galack with grief so profound that their wails of anguish echoed across the village. When their brother learned of the tragedy, his sorrow quickly transformed into burning rage. He vowed to hunt down the creature responsible for their family’s devastation and ensure that justice was served.
The brother’s search led him to the village of N’Diarack, where he discovered the hyena engaged in a grotesque celebration of his crime. The evil creature had fashioned a drum and was parading through the streets, beating out a rhythmic accompaniment to his boastful song. With shameless pride, the hyena sang of his deception:
“De N’Galack and Patte N’Galack gave me their mother to cure. I broke her foot. I beat the drum at N’Diarack Tamina Taminam Talah!”
The hyena’s cruel boasting and complete lack of remorse for his heinous act filled the brother with righteous fury. Without hesitation, he raised his gun, took careful aim at the dancing figure, and fired. The shot rang out across the village square, and the hyena fell dead, his celebration of evil coming to an abrupt and fitting end.
Moral Lesson
This powerful Wolof folktale serves as a stark warning about the dangers of placing blind trust in strangers who make grand promises, especially during times of desperation. The story teaches that vulnerability can make us susceptible to manipulation by those with evil intentions, and that we must balance our hope for help with careful judgment of character. It reminds us that some individuals will exploit others’ love and desperation for their own cruel purposes, and that justice, though sometimes delayed, will ultimately prevail against such wickedness.
Knowledge Check
Q1: Who are the main characters in this Wolof folktale from Senegal? A: The main characters are an elderly mother with a foot sore, her two daughters De N’Galack and Patte N’Galack, a deceptive hyena, and the daughters’ brother who seeks justice.
Q2: What cultural significance does the hyena hold in West African Wolof tradition? A: In Wolof tradition from Senegal, hyenas are portrayed as cunning, deceptive creatures capable of human speech, often representing evil tricksters who exploit human vulnerability and desperation.
Q3: What does the village of N’Diarack represent in this Senegalese folktale? A: N’Diarack represents the place where evil celebrates its victories, but also where justice ultimately catches up with wrongdoers, as shown by the brother’s successful hunt for the hyena.
Q4: How do the daughters’ names De N’Galack and Patte N’Galack reflect Wolof cultural naming traditions? A: These traditional Wolof names from Senegal reflect the cultural practice of meaningful naming, with the repetition of “N’Galack” suggesting the sisters’ close bond and shared identity within their family structure.
Q5: What is the primary moral lesson of this West African folktale? A: The primary moral warns against placing blind trust in strangers making grand promises during desperate times, teaching that vulnerability can be exploited by those with evil intentions, but justice will ultimately prevail.
Q6: Why does the hyena’s boastful song include the phrase “Tamina Taminam Talah” in this Wolof story? A: The rhythmic phrase “Tamina Taminam Talah” represents traditional Wolof musical expression, showing how the hyena mockingly celebrates his crime through cultural forms, making his evil even more offensive to the community.
