Lank, lank gelede het die mense niks geweet nie. Hulle het nie geweet hoe om gewasse te plant of klere te weef of hoe om gereedskap van yster te maak nie. Die god Nyame bo in die lug het al die wysheid van die wêreld gehad. Hy het dit veilig in ‘n kleipot bewaar.
Long long ago people didn’t
know anything. They didn’t
know how to plant crops, or
how to weave cloth, or how to
make iron tools.
The god Nyame up in the sky
had all the wisdom of the world.
He kept it safe in a clay pot.
Op ‘n dag het Nyame besluit om die pot met wysheid vir Anansi te gee. Elke keer as Anansi in die pot gekyk het, het hy iets nuuts geleer. Dit was so opwindend!
One day, Nyame decided that
he would give the pot of
wisdom to Anansi.
Every time Anansi looked in the
clay pot, he learned something
new. It was so exciting!
Gierige Anansi het gedink: “Ek sal die pot veilig in die top van ‘n hoë boom bewaar. Dan kan ek alles vir myself hê!” Hy het ‘n lang draad gespin, dit rondom die kleipot gedraai en aan sy maag vas gemaak. Hy het begin om in die boom op te klim. Dit was moeilik om boom te klim met die pot wat die heeltyd teen sy knieë stamp.
Greedy Anansi thought, “I’ll
keep the pot safe at the top of a
tall tree. Then I can have it all
to myself!”
He spun a long thread, wound it
round the clay pot, and tied it to
his stomach.
He began to climb the tree. But
it was hard climbing the tree
with the pot bumping him in the
knees all the time.
Die heeltyd het Anansie se seuntjie onder die boom gestaan en hom dop gehou. Hy het gesê: “Sou dit nie makliker wees om te klim as jy die pot op jou rug vasmaak nie?” Anansi het probeer om die pot vol wysheid op sy rug vas te maak, en dit was regtig baie makliker.
All the time Anansi’s young son
had been standing at the
bottom of the tree watching. He
said, “Wouldn’t it be easier to
climb if you tied the pot to your
back instead?”
Anansi tried tying the clay pot
full of wisdom to his back, and it
really was a lot easier.
Gou-gou het hy die boomtop bereik, maar toe stop hy en dink: “Ek is veronderstel om die een met al die wysheid te wees, en hier was my seun slimmer as ek!” Anansi was so kwaad hieroor dat hy die kleipot uit die boom uit gegooi het.
In no time he reached the top of
the tree.
But then he stopped and
thought, “I’m supposed to be
the one with all the wisdom,
and here my son was cleverer
than me!”
Anansi was so angry about this
that he threw the clay pot down
out of the tree.
Dit het aan skerwe gespat toe dit die grond tref. Die wysheid was verniet vir almal om in te deel. Dit is hoe die mense geleer het hoe om te boer, klere te weef, gereedskap van yster te maak en al die ander dinge wat mense weet hoe om dit te doen.
It smashed into pieces on the
ground. The wisdom was free
for everyone to share.
And that is how people learned
to farm, to weave cloth, to
make iron tools, and all the
other things that people know
how to do.
