THIEF OF HEAVEN #English story

The hare is the hero. or uillain, of countless Afican fables. Why this is so, is not difficult to understand, for though small and harmless, the animal is extremely cunning. It's wiliness is admirably depicted in the well-known stories told by Uncle Remus,  the American West-African slave  where the hare is called a rabbit.

Tsuro felt lonely in his burrow. "I will take a walk," said he. It was difficult to find his way about the veld. He stubbed his toes against stones and walked into wag-n-bietjie thorns, for at that time there was neither sunshine nor moonshine on earth. To keep up his spirits he played his mbira. The twanging of the notes in the darkness was sweet as the tinkle of water-drops. Night-prowling beasts, leopards, hyenas, lions and baboons growled at Tsuro as he passed their lairs. But at the sound of his music they lay down and purred at his feet, so that as he walked through the jungle, there were rows of green eyes glimmering everywhere. Playing thus, Tsuro came to the end of the world. Barring his way was a gigantic spider-web. Tsuro touched it with his paws and felt that it hung Irom the sky. 'I wonder what it is like up there?' thought he Tying his mbira to his goatskin girdle," he began to climb. Up, up he Climbed into the dark blue heavens, till the bushveld spread beneath him like a sea of ebony. His movements shook the web so that sparks of light floated from it away into space. Up, up he climbed, till the clouds lay beneath him like banks of wild cotton. Still up, and up till the star twinkled around him like the diamonds found in African rivers. He was tempted to stop and catch some of them, but just then he saw a bright golden glow overhead. So he hauled himself up the last few strands and found himself in a beautiful country.

He gazed around in wonder. Here the trees and grass were green, gay with blossoms of every hue;  the rivers sparkled as they flowed: painted butterflies and birds of bright plumage fluttered in the branches. And over everything shone a golden light reflected from a great ball of fire that hung above. Never had Tsuro seen anything like this. "I should like to live here." he said "I must I
find the chief of this wonderful land."
It was not difficult to find his way to the Mambo's courtyard; the roads leading to it were thronged with people. Some had a feud with their neighbours which they wished the chief could settle; others had moved their village and their right to the land was disputed. Even in this beautifil country, Tsuro found, endless were the bickerings of mankind . . . But for all that the people were kindhearted
"We shall take you to our chief," they promised, "but you must play to us" So all the way Tsuro twanged the upcurved metal keys fastened onto his wooden mbira, and the miles melted to music.
Tsuro was the first to be ushered into the chiefs presence. "Changamire, Mambo!" He squatted low on his little hare-haunches, and softly clapped his paws in salutation. "I have come to beg leave to dwell in your beautiful land."
The chief roared with laughter. "What can a small creature like you do to fit you for the honour of living in Heaven?" "I can make sweet music." Thereat Tsuro held high his mbira, and stamping in rhythm, began to play and sing: "I am Tsuro who loves not darkness. I am Tsuro who loves flowers and butterflies and birds." In his song he described to the chief all the beautitul sights in his country, which Tsuro had never before beheld, and which therefore appeared to him far more wonderful than they did to the Chief. "Behold, you are a rare musician!" exclaimed the Mambo. "I never knew how beautiful Heaven was until you sang of it. You shall marry the Princesses Raleni and Maleni, my two comely daughters, and remain here forever." "I thank you, Mambo!" Tsuro bent low again and politely clapped his paws. After that Tsuro and the Princesses were given a sumptuous  wedding feast. Twenty fat oxen were killed for the people to eat, and the pots of palm-wine were so huge that had Tsuro fallen into one, he would have drowned. All the time the court musicians banged drums and played on flutes and whistles made of reeds, and the young people danced with palm-leaf rattles around their legs, making up songs about Tsuro, the greatest musician of them all.
By that time Tsuro was very tired and wished to go into his hut to sleep But the Princess Raleni pleaded, "Allow me first to take in the sun husband." Tsuro gave her permission and saw her unhook the sun to place it on her head, and carry it into the hut. Suddenly every hut shone with a warm golden light. Tsuro was dazzled and had to shut his eyes. When he opened them again Raleni had closed the sun inside a large calabash. Suddenly, then, there fell darkness. Then her sister Maleni begged, "Please. husband, give me leave to hang the moón in the sky." Tsuro did so and watched her open another large calabash the light that streamed from it flooded the hut with moonbeams. She lifted out the moon, placed it on her head, and carried it out. Then reaching up, she hooked it into the sky. Suddenly the whole world became silver. Every evening the same thing happened. But once a month the moon had a rest and stayed for a while in the calabash at the same time as sun.
Life in Heaven passed very pleasantly for Tsuro and his two beautiful wives. Yet after a while he grew homesick. I would gladly give up everything to see my old friends again, thought he. He missed them more every day: the clever tortoise and the foolish duiker; the lion, to whom Tsuro had given his great roar; even Grandfather Baboon whom Tsuro had once given his own tail to eat. Said Tsuro to himself, "Why should not earth be full of beautiful things the same as Heaven? If they had a bit of the sun and moon down there, it would no longer be dark and gloomy. The trees and grass would become green; there would be flowers and butterflies and birds of bright plumage just as there are here." Every day he thought about this. The sun and the moon are so large, thought he, no one would notice if I chipped off a tiny bit. So one day while the Princesses were away hoeing his fields, Tsuro chipped a little bit off the sun and the moon. He tied the pieces fast to his girdle, closed up the calabashes tight, and ran ran so fast that his small, furry body was wet through with perspiration when he reached the magic web. As fast as he could he began to climb down.
The Princesses Raleni and Maleni returned to find Tsuro gone. They opened the calabashes in turn to take out the sun and moon, and saw at once that a little piece had been chipped off each. "It is Tsuro our husband who has done this," they complained to their father. "We have traced his footsteps to the magic web."
The Chief and his daughters hastened to the web and looked down. Far below they saw Tsuro climbing. Bits of light like glow-worms twinkled
from the web as it trembled with his movements. On one side of him the piece of the moon shone silver-white; on his other side they saw the piece of the sun glowing like a ball of fire.
"Bring back the sun and the moon, you thief!" the Mambo roared at Tsuro so that the people on earth thought it was thunder. But Tsuro only put out his tongue at his father-in-law and climbed faster.
"Bring back the thief that I may kill him!" shouted the Mambo to his warriors. Rattling their spears, yelling war-cries, the army of bloodthirsty warriors began to climb down the spider-web after Tsuro. The strands shook and sagged with their weight. A few broke and the warriors came tumbling to earth like falling stars. A myriad glints of light twinkled from the web, dew-drops scattered from the silken strands and drenched Tsuro. But by then he was on earth.

"Here, all you animals!" The general of the warriors called together the lions, hyenas, elephants and baboons. "You remember how Tsuro deceived you all when he was last on earth?" "We remember!" It was Grandfather Baboon who led the chorus. "He cooked my own tail and invited me to eat it! We will all help you catch Tsuro." Tsuro was a long way in front, but he could hear the terrific noise behind him in the jungle, the savage throbbing of tom-toms and the warriors wild war-chants; the trumpeting of the elephants; the angry roar of the lion
(who remembered the painful bee-stings in his throat by which Tsuro had given him that mighty voice); and above all the furious barking of Grandfather Baboon.
"Bananzwa. . . Bananzwa. . . Bananzwa" Tsuro muttered the magic words of his tribe and twanged his mbira. Immediately all the duiveltjies on the veld gathered themselves together beneath the feet of his pursuers. The elephants' and lions' great paws gathered most. They had to sit down and pick them out. But the warriors wore sandals and the thorns could not hurt them. As for Grandfather Baboon, "lf he puts red-hot coals in my way, I'll go on chasing him!" he screamed with rage, dancing about on the three-spiked duiveltjies. And in a short while they had all caught up again with Tsuro.
"Bananzwa . . . Bananzwa. . . Bananzwa. ." Once more Tsuro twanged the mbira with his tiny thumb-claw. The magic spell caused a great thunderstorm to wash out his footprints.
"If we go around the muddy patch," advised Grandfather Baboon, "we come upon his spoor again." Sure enough, at the other side they once more saw the tiny paw-marks in the red dust of the veld. This time Tsuro had come to the banks of a river swollen by the rain he had made. The current was far too dangerous to swim across; huge tree trunks and branches were swirling down-stream. If one of those hit his small body he would be squashed to pulp.
"Bananzwa. . . Bananzwa Bananzwa. ." muttered Tsuro while twanging his mbira. Suddenly he turned into a log.
Tearing around the corner, straight for where he lay, came the army of warriors and animals with Grandfather  leading. "Where on earth has he disappeared! I saw him here a moment ago!" Grandfather Baboon was chattering with rage. "He must have got across the river somehow". "Look," cried one of the warriors, "I see something hiding behind those willows on the further bank. It must be Tsuro. I'll nab him!'' He picked up the log into which Tsuro had turned himself, aimed it, and threw it across. As soon as the log fell on the soft grassy bank, it turned into Tsuro again. "Ha! Ha!" his mocking little voice piped over the roar of the waters. "None of you can get me now!" It was true. Not even the elephants could have swum that mighty flood. In front of their eyes Tsuro climbed a tall tree, untied the piece of the sun from his girdle and hooked it into the sky. Suddenly the world was full of warmth and sunshine. He tucked the piece of the moon in his duiker-skin pouch, climbed down, and twanging his mbira, danced and sang: "I am Tsuro who loves not darkness. I am Tsuro who loves birds and butterflies and flowers." And lo! As he sang the trees and grass grew green, the river began to sparkle as it flowed, and everywhere there sprang up bright-hued birds and butterflies and flowers. Tsuro's pursuers watched open-mouthed. "Never have we beheld such a miracle!" they cried. "We had better not pursue Tsuro any more; it is evident he is a powerful magician." "As for stealing," added Grandfather Baboon, "that may not always be a bad thing. For if Tsuro had not stolen a piece of the sun and the moon, we should still all be living in darkness."  And since that time no creature on earth is as fond of stealing as Grandfather Baboon and his relations, including man.

Thief of heaven questions

1. The hare is a popular character in African mythology. What good and bad qualities does he display in this story?
2. Many myths deal with the origins of things which we take for granted, Such as the sun and the moon. Discuss why this should be so.
3. Why were the other animals so keen to help the warriors catch Tsuro?
4. At the end of the story, the baboon says that stealing may not always be a bad thing, especially if everyone benefits from it. Do you think this could possibly be true? Write an African folk tale of your own to explain the origins of one of the following:
a) winter and summer b) life and death c) the stars d) the different languages of people or animals e) fire

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