One bright morning in the highlands of Imerina, Madagascar, two notorious tricksters, Kotofetsy and Mahaka, wandered past a rice field where an old woman bent low among the weeds. Her back was stooped, her hands roughened by years of toil, and the sun bore heavily on her. The two tricksters, clever and mischievous by nature, watched her intently. They were not moved by pity but by an opportunity.
“Grandmother,” they called out sweetly, “you should not trouble yourself with such tiring work. Go home and prepare us a good meal. We will weed your rice field for you. Rest now, for we are like sons to you.”
The old woman’s heart softened. She had no children of her own nearby, and the words “like sons” touched her deeply. Her face broke into a grateful smile as she replied, “Thank you, my children. Truly, you treat me as though you were born of my womb.” Without suspicion, she hurried home to prepare a special dish of chicken and rice for her unexpected helpers.
But while her heart rejoiced, Kotofetsy and Mahaka revealed their deceitful plan. Instead of carefully removing weeds, they began uprooting every single rice plant in the field. Green stalks, roots and all, were piled carelessly on the ground until the once-rich plot stood bare and ruined. When they finished their mischief, they headed to the old woman’s house.
Inside, she had worked tirelessly. The chicken simmered in a clay pot, and fragrant steam filled the air. She spread a mat and placed the rice and chicken upon it, inviting them to sit. “My children,” she asked, “did you weed my rice field properly?”
“Very well,” Kotofetsy and Mahaka assured her, smiling broadly. “Go and see for yourself. We will rest here until you return.”
Trusting their words, the old woman hurried to her field. But when she saw the destruction, her heart shattered. Where once her rice had grown strong and green, there remained only bare soil. “Oh, woe upon me!” she cried, her voice carrying across the empty field.
Meanwhile, in her absence, Kotofetsy and Mahaka struck again. Slipping into her yard, they caught all her sheep and slaughtered them. To hide their crime, they placed the severed heads upon her bed, covering them carefully with a lamba cloth so that only the mouths protruded. From a distance, the arrangement resembled two men asleep, mouths slightly open. With the carcasses of the sheep packed away, the tricksters fled before she could return.
The old woman came back, clutching a rice-pounding pestle in her hands. Her eyes burned with fury as she stormed into her house. Seeing what she believed were the tricksters resting on her bed, she shouted, “You destroyed my rice, and now you shall pay with your lives!” She lifted the heavy pestle and began striking the heads beneath the cloth with all her might. Blow after blow fell as she released her anger.
But when she finally pulled back the lamba, expecting to see the crushed skulls of the men, she froze in horror. Before her lay only the bloodied heads of her sheep, lifeless and mute. A wail tore from her chest as she staggered back. “Oh! Poverty has entered my home through the wild dog and the wild cat I sheltered!”
In Merina tradition, the wild dog and the wild cat are feared as destroyers, symbols of cunning, greed, and ruin. By likening Kotofetsy and Mahaka to these creatures, the old woman captured the truth of her bitter betrayal.
Moral Lesson
This tale warns against misplaced trust. The old woman, eager for companionship and grateful for help, placed her faith in strangers without questioning their motives. Kotofetsy and Mahaka exploited her kindness, leaving her not only cheated but stripped of her food, her livestock, and her dignity.
The story teaches that trust must be guarded with wisdom. Generosity is noble, but when given to the wrong people, it turns into an open door for ruin. Those who fail to temper kindness with caution risk being destroyed by deception.
Knowledge Check
1. Who were Kotofetsy and Mahaka in the story?
They were tricksters who deceived the old woman by pretending to help her.
2. What task did Kotofetsy and Mahaka claim they would do?
They promised to weed the old woman’s rice field.
3. How did they trick the old woman after ruining her rice field?
They slaughtered her sheep and placed the heads on her bed to look like sleeping men.
4. What cultural symbolism did the old woman use to describe them?
She compared them to the wild dog and wild cat, feared animals in Merina tradition.
5. What is the central lesson of the tale?
The dangers of misplaced trust and the harm caused by deception.
6. From which culture and region does this folktale originate?
It is a Merina folktale from Madagascar.
Source: Merina folktale, Madagascar.
