It was a time of famine, when the land lay bare and food was scarce, and many creatures wandered in hunger. Amid this harsh season lived an old woman, alone and childless, who possessed a single treasure: a magical horn. This horn was unlike any ordinary object, for it provided her with everything she needed. When she desired food, the horn filled her stores with meat, enough to sustain her even when drought and hunger ravaged the land. Though the earth was dry and the rivers low, she lived in quiet sufficiency, sustained by the bounty of this wondrous gift.
Her hut, built at the edge of the village, was modest, but inside its earthen walls lay baskets of food, smoked meats, and stores that seemed endless. The old woman guarded her horn closely, for it was her only source of life and comfort. Having neither son nor daughter to depend upon, she relied wholly upon its magic, and so she resolved never to lend or sell it.
One day, as the sun slid westward and shadows lengthened across the parched land, the hyena arrived at her home. His ribs showed beneath his rough, spotted hide, and his eyes gleamed with the hunger of a trickster. Approaching with feigned respect, he called out, “Mama, my mother, may I enter and rest?”
The old woman welcomed him politely, offering water, but she kept the horn at her side. Soon the hyena’s gaze fell upon it. His heart swelled with greed, for he sensed its power. With false sweetness, he said, “Mama, I beg you, lend me this horn. I too suffer greatly in this famine. If I had such a horn, I could survive.”
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The old woman’s eyes narrowed. “No, no, my son,” she replied firmly. “I know you too well. You are a hypocrite. If I give you this horn, you will not return to me again. You will abandon me in my need.”
But the hyena pressed on with words as slippery as oil. He flattered her, calling her wise, kind, and generous. He spoke of visiting often and sharing the blessings. His tongue spun promises until the old woman’s suspicion weakened. Against her better judgment, she yielded, saying, “Very well, take it. May it sustain you.”
The hyena snatched the horn eagerly and left with great haste, never once glancing back. True to the old woman’s fears, days became months, and months grew into years, yet the hyena did not return. Three long years passed, and the old woman’s stores, once abundant, emptied. The meat was gone, the baskets bare. Hunger gnawed at her bones until she could endure no longer.
Driven by desperation, she set out to reclaim what was hers. Wrapping her frail body in cloth, she began the long trek into the wilderness. The journey was cruel. For twenty-five days she walked, her feet torn by thorns, her throat dry as dust, and her body weakened by age and hunger. The bush stretched endlessly, thorny scrub and rocky ground, yet she pressed on, determined to find the horn and the deceiver who had taken it.
At last, at the foot of a tall mountain, she found the hyena. His once-proud body lay lifeless, skin hanging loose over bones, his jaws slack and his eyes empty. Greed had consumed him, and without wisdom to guide the horn’s power, his end had come. The old woman bent over his carcass and there, beside him, lay the horn, untouched but waiting.
With trembling hands, she lifted it to her breast, relief flooding her weary heart. She carried it homeward and swore to herself, “Never again will I lend this horn to anyone. Once deceived is enough to teach wisdom.”
From that day forward, the old woman lived once more in comfort. She filled her stores anew, but she trusted no one with her horn, for her suffering had taught her that misplaced trust brings ruin.
Moral Lesson
This Gambian folktale teaches that blind trust in the untrustworthy leads only to grief. The old woman’s kindness was exploited by the hyena, whose greed and deceit brought ruin not only upon her but upon himself.
The lesson endures: once trust is broken, it is wise to guard oneself with caution. Generosity should be balanced with discernment, for not every plea comes from sincerity.
Knowledge Check
1. What magical object sustained the old woman during the famine?
A horn that provided her with food and meat.
2. Why did the hyena ask to borrow the horn?
He pretended to need it for survival but truly wanted it for selfish gain.
3. How did the old woman first respond to the hyena’s request?
She refused, calling him a hypocrite who would never return it.
4. What persuaded the old woman to hand over the horn?
The hyena’s smooth words, flattery, and false promises.
5. What happened after the hyena took the horn?
He never returned, leaving the old woman hungry until she searched for him.
6. Where did the old woman finally find the horn again?
Beside the dead hyena’s body at the foot of a mountain.
Folktale Origin
Source: Gambian folktale, The Gambia.
