The blazing African sun hung high in a cloudless sky, casting shimmering waves of heat across the vast savanna. Along the muddy banks of a great river that wound like a serpent through the grasslands, a hunter made his way through the tall reeds, his keen eyes scanning the water for signs of life. The air was thick and humid, filled with the buzzing of insects and the distant calls of exotic birds hidden among the papyrus stems.
As the hunter paused to wipe the sweat from his brow, a desperate cry pierced the afternoon stillness, echoing across the water like the wail of a lost spirit.
“Help me! Help me, please!” The voice was deep and resonant, filled with unmistakable anguish.
The hunter’s head snapped up, his experienced ears immediately locating the source of the distress. There, thrashing violently in the shallows near the riverbank, was an enormous crocodile caught fast in a heavy fishing net. The massive reptile’s powerful tail lashed the water into foam as he struggled against the tightly woven ropes that bound him like iron chains. His ancient yellow eyes, usually cold and calculating, now burned with fear and desperation.
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The fishermen who had set this cunning trap had departed hours ago, planning to return at nightfall to collect their prize. But the scorching sun was already taking its toll on the trapped creature, whose thick hide glistened with moisture as he fought against his bonds.
“Kind man,” the crocodile moaned, his voice growing weaker with each passing moment, “have pity on a fellow creature! If I remain here much longer, I will surely perish in this merciless heat. Please, I beg you, cut me free from this terrible trap.”
The hunter approached cautiously, studying the situation with the careful eye of one who had survived many years in the wilderness. His weathered hands gripped his sharp hunting knife, but something deep in his heart made him hesitate. This was no ordinary crocodile, this was one of the ancient giants of the river, a creature that had lived for countless seasons and deserved respect, even from a human.
“If I free you from this net,” the hunter said slowly, his voice carrying the weight of hard-earned wisdom, “what assurance do I have? What will you do once you regain your strength and freedom?”
The crocodile’s eyes softened with what appeared to be genuine emotion, and his voice took on a tone of solemn promise. “I will be forever grateful for your mercy, noble hunter. You will have earned my friendship for life, and I swear by the ancient spirits of this river that I will never harm you. Your kindness will be remembered as long as I draw breath.”
The hunter’s compassionate heart was moved by these heartfelt words. Despite his better judgment, despite the voice of caution that whispered warnings in his mind, he could not bear to watch any living creature suffer so terribly in the blazing heat. With swift, practiced movements, he cut through the strong ropes and carefully pulled away the heavy net that had ensnared the mighty beast.
With a great heave that sent waves rippling across the river’s surface, the liberated crocodile slid back into the cool, welcoming water. For a moment, he floated there peacefully, his massive form barely visible beneath the murky surface, and the hunter allowed himself to feel the warm satisfaction that comes from performing a truly good deed.
But that peaceful moment shattered like glass when the crocodile suddenly turned in the water, his terrible jaws gaping wide to reveal rows of gleaming teeth like ivory daggers. His eyes, which had seemed so grateful moments before, now glowed with predatory hunger.
“Now, hunter,” the crocodile hissed, his voice dripping with malice, “I find that I am terribly hungry after my ordeal. I think you will make a fine meal to restore my strength!”
The hunter leaped back from the water’s edge in horror and disbelief, his heart pounding with the shock of such unexpected betrayal. “What treachery is this? I saved your very life! Is this how you repay the kindness I showed you in your darkest hour?”
The crocodile’s laugh was like the sound of grinding stones. “Gratitude does not fill an empty belly, foolish man. Hunger cares nothing for noble gestures. Prepare yourself to become my dinner!”
But the hunter was not ready to surrender his life so easily. His mind raced, searching for some way to escape this terrible fate. “Wait,” he pleaded, raising his hands in a gesture of appeal. “If you truly believe that such ingratitude is just, then let us ask others to judge between us. If wise creatures say you are right to devour me after I saved you, then I will not resist my fate.”
The crocodile, confident in his position and curious about this proposal, agreed readily. “Very well. Let us seek judgment from others. When they confirm that I am right, you will have no excuse to deny me my meal.”
Together, the unlikely pair set off across the sun-baked savanna in search of impartial judges to settle their dispute.
Their first encounter was with a magnificent Tree that stood alone on the grassland, its ancient branches spreading wide to provide precious shade in the merciless heat. The hunter approached respectfully and explained their situation, then asked: “Great Tree, is it fair and just that this crocodile should devour me after I freed him from certain death?”
The Tree’s dry branches rustled mournfully in the hot breeze, and when it spoke, its voice carried the weight of countless seasons and bitter experience. “Fair? You ask me about fairness?” The Tree’s voice was filled with deep sadness. “Look upon me and understand. I give cool shade to weary travelers, sweet fruit to the hungry, strong wood for their fires and homes. And how do they repay such generosity? They hack at my trunk with sharp axes and cut me down without a thought. Men are ungrateful creatures, hunter. Crocodile, you may eat him.”
The crocodile’s eyes gleamed with triumph, but the hunter’s heart sank like a stone thrown into deep water. Still, he was not ready to give up. “Please,” he begged, “grant me just one more judgment before my fate is sealed.”
They continued their journey until they came upon a gentle Cow grazing peacefully in a meadow dotted with wildflowers. Her udders were heavy with milk, and her kind eyes reflected years of patient service. Once again, the hunter told his story and asked for judgment.
The Cow lifted her great head and shook her curved horns with profound sadness. “I give creamy milk for their children’s nourishment,” she said in a voice like soft mooing wind. “I labor in their fields under the burning sun, pulling their heavy plows through stubborn earth. I bear strong calves to increase their herds and wealth. Yet when my bones grow old and my milk runs thin, they sell me without ceremony to the butcher’s knife. They are indeed ungrateful, hunter. Crocodile, you have every right to eat him.”
The crocodile’s massive jaws opened in what might have been a smile, revealing those terrible teeth once more. The hunter felt despair settling over him like a heavy blanket, but he made one final desperate plea. “Just one more judge, I beg you. One last chance for justice.”
As they continued down the dusty path, they encountered a small Hare sitting calmly by the roadside, his bright eyes alert and his long ears twitching with curiosity. There was something in his demeanor that suggested wisdom far beyond his diminutive size.
The hunter quickly recounted his tale, pouring out his heart about the rescue, the betrayal, and the harsh judgments he had already received. Hare listened intently, his whiskers quivering with concentration.
“Wait, wait,” Hare said, holding up one small paw. “I fear I don’t quite understand this situation. You say the crocodile was caught in a fisherman’s trap, completely helpless, and you freed him from this predicament?”
“Yes, exactly,” confirmed the hunter.
“And now, despite your act of mercy, he wishes to devour you as his meal?”
“That is precisely what happened,” the hunter replied.
Hare shook his head slowly, his expression one of complete bewilderment. “This makes no sense at all. How can I judge fairly when I cannot even picture what occurred? Please, you must show me exactly how everything happened. I must see this situation with my own eyes to understand it properly.”
Intrigued by this request and eager to demonstrate the justice of his position, the crocodile readily agreed. The three of them returned to the riverbank where the fishing net still lay in a tangled heap beside the water.
Hare pointed at the net with one small paw. “Now, Crocodile, please get back inside this net and show me precisely how you were trapped when the hunter found you.”
The crocodile, confident that this demonstration would only strengthen his case, slithered eagerly into the center of the net and began thrashing about just as he had done hours earlier. The heavy ropes immediately tightened around his powerful body, binding him exactly as they had before, rendering him completely helpless once again.
Hare clapped his tiny paws together with delight. “Ah! Now I see the situation clearly. Hunter, this is exactly how you found him, is it not?”
“Exactly so!” said the hunter, his face breaking into a smile for the first time since this ordeal began.
“Then the solution is perfectly obvious,” Hare declared with the authority of a wise judge. “Leave him exactly where he is! Such base ingratitude deserves no freedom, and such betrayal merits no mercy.”
The hunter thanked Hare profusely for his clever wisdom and fair judgment. Together, they walked away from the riverbank, leaving the crocodile to struggle helplessly in his net, his angry roars echoing across the water as the sun continued its merciless journey across the African sky.
The Moral Lesson
This timeless African folktale teaches us that ingratitude and betrayal often trap the ungrateful person more surely than any net or chain. While the Tree and Cow spoke from their own bitter experiences of human thoughtlessness, Hare’s wisdom revealed that true justice sometimes means allowing the consequences of one’s own choices to unfold naturally. The story reminds us that kindness should be genuine and that those who repay generosity with cruelty may find themselves ensnared by their own treachery.
Knowledge Check
Q1: Who are the three judges that the hunter and crocodile consult in this African folktale? A: The three judges are a Tree, a Cow, and a Hare. The Tree and Cow rule in favor of the crocodile based on their own experiences of human ingratitude, while Hare uses clever wisdom to trap the ungrateful crocodile.
Q2: Why do the Tree and Cow judge in favor of the crocodile in this traditional story? A: Both the Tree and Cow have experienced human ingratitude—the Tree gives shade and fruit but is cut down, while the Cow provides milk and labor but is sold to butchers when old, leading them to believe humans deserve no better treatment.
Q3: How does Hare cleverly resolve the dispute between the hunter and crocodile? A: Hare tricks the crocodile by asking him to demonstrate how he was originally trapped, causing the crocodile to get caught in the net again, then declares he should remain trapped as punishment for his ingratitude.
Q4: What does the crocodile promise the hunter before being freed from the net? A: The crocodile promises eternal gratitude and friendship for life, swearing by the river spirits that he will never harm the hunter, only to immediately threaten to eat him once freed.
Q5: What cultural wisdom does this African folktale convey about kindness and betrayal? A: The story teaches that true kindness deserves gratitude, and that those who repay generosity with betrayal often become trapped by their own treacherous nature, while clever wisdom can triumph over both ingratitude and injustice.
Q6: How does this folktale use animal characters to teach moral lessons about human behavior? A: The story uses animal characters as symbols—the crocodile represents ingratitude and betrayal, the Tree and Cow represent those embittered by past hurts, and Hare represents wisdom and justice, showing how different responses to kindness shape one’s fate.
Source: retold from The Multicoloured Dairy
