Long ago, in the time when animals still made pacts and spoke with voices like our own, a snake met a frog on the edge of a quiet pond. The sun was high, the reeds swayed in the wind, and the water shimmered in the light. It was there, in the meeting of shadow and reflection, that the two creatures considered whether they might join in friendship.
The frog, ever bold despite her small frame, spoke first.
“Let us be friends,” she proposed, puffing her throat so her voice carried clearly across the reeds. “You are long, and I am short. You may reach high places, while I may slip into narrow holes where you cannot enter. You have your strength, and I have my voice, which may serve us both. Together, we could accomplish much.”
The snake listened quietly, his forked tongue flicking in and out. The idea of alliance intrigued him, for he was cunning but also proud. At length, the frog added:
“Before we bind ourselves with loyalty, let us test one another’s strength. Let us race. Whoever can catch the other shall prove his worth. Since you are older and stronger, you may begin first.”
The snake agreed at once. He coiled, then sprang forward in three mighty leaps. The frog tried her best to follow, but no matter how she bounded, she could not catch him. Panting, she conceded:
“You run well, my friend.”
Now it was the frog’s turn. She crouched low, her legs trembling with power. With one great bound she leapt across the reeds. With another, she arced over the water’s edge. At her fourth jump, however, the snake, swift and relentless, lunged after her. His jaws clamped down, and he seized her firmly from behind.
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The frog kicked and twisted, panic surging through her body.
“Do not swallow me!” she cried desperately. “Wait! Say ‘ah’ with your mouth open, just for a moment. Just one word, and then you may do as you please.”
Blinded by arrogance and certain of his victory, the snake opened his jaws wide and hissed: “Ah!”
In that instant the frog wriggled free and leapt straight into the pond. She vanished beneath the surface with a splash, safe among the cool reeds. The snake’s eyes widened in fury and disbelief.
From the banks of the pond, the frogs erupted in noisy celebration. They croaked and chanted, mocking the snake’s foolishness.
“You were tricked by a small creature! You let her go when she was already within your jaws!”
The snake, stung by humiliation, slithered back in silence. His pride was wounded deeper than any physical blow. He could not bear the sound of the frogs’ laughter, echoing through the marsh like a cruel song.
That evening, under the pale light of the moon, the snake gathered his children and spoke with solemn resolve:
“My children, today I was mocked and shamed. A frog deceived me, and all her kind have laughed at my failure. From this day forward, never spare a frog. Even if your bellies are full, swallow them whole, in one gulp, so that none may escape. Only then will we rid the world of their race.”
From that day to this, snakes have hunted frogs without mercy. The bond of friendship that might have been was broken by pride, deceit, and vengeance. And so the enmity between snakes and frogs endures across the generations.
Moral Lesson
This folktale teaches us that pride and arrogance often blind us to danger. The snake, though strong, was deceived because he underestimated the frog and overestimated his own cleverness. From this error grew his anger and desire for revenge, a bitterness passed down to his descendants.
The frog, for her part, used wit to survive, but her escape came at the cost of eternal hostility between their two races. Thus, the story reminds us that deceit may win the moment, but it can also create lasting strife. True strength lies in humility, patience, and wisdom.
Knowledge Check
1. Why did the frog propose friendship with the snake?
To combine their different strengths, his length and her agility and voice.
2. What contest did the frog suggest to test their strength?
A race in which each would try to catch the other.
3. How did the frog escape from the snake’s jaws?
She tricked him into opening his mouth by asking him to say “ah.”
4. Why did the snake vow that his children must always eat frogs?
Because he felt humiliated by the frog’s trick and the mocking laughter of other frogs.
5. What lesson does the story teach about pride?
That pride makes us vulnerable to deceit and can lead to destructive revenge.
6. From which cultural tradition does this folktale come?
It is an Antambahoaka folktale from Madagascar.
Source: Antambahoaka folktale, Madagascar.
