The Kind Old Woman
Hausa People – Nigeria & Niger
There was once an old woman who went to the forest daily to look for firewood. One day, she heard a deep groan when she was gathering fallen branches. It sounded like a large animal. At first, she was frightened, but then, when it groaned again, she thought:
‘That animal, whatever it is, is in pain.’ As she had a kind heart towards all living things, she ventured towards the sound. Eventually, she found a large bull who was very sick.
‘Don’t you worry,’ she said, stroking his head. ‘I will take care of you. I know all sorts of cures for every disease.’
Somehow the sick bull understood. He summoned up all his remaining strength and staggered to his feet. Then he followed the old woman towards her home.
On their way, they crossed paths with the bull’s former owner.
‘Hey, old woman! Where are you taking my bull?’ the man called out, with a mix of surprise and annoyance.
The old woman pulled herself up, her ancient back as straight as a sword, and she spoke with a tongue that was just as sharp: ‘Now listen here, your bull was abandoned and full of suffering.’
‘You are right,’ admitted the man. ‘He is very sick, and he smells rotten. We can’t stand his stench anymore, so we drove him out into the woods to end his days.’
When he said this, the old woman’s eyes blazed, she wagged her finger and declared, ‘It is wrong to abandon a living creature who has served you well, even if he is dying. I’m going to take him home and look after him myself.’
The man scoffed, shaking his head in disbelief. ‘You’re wasting your time, old woman! He’ll never recover.’
The old woman continued, leading the bull towards her home. The villagers whispered praises and words of support as she passed by.
When she reached home, she cleaned the bull, gave him water and medicine, and placed him on a comfortable bed of straw. His strength grew daily, and his once-dull coat became radiant. The villagers marvelled at the old woman’s good fortune.
Word spread quickly to the bull’s previous owner. He came to the old woman’s house and demanded the return of his valuable animal. But the old woman stood her ground, telling him firmly:
‘In days of despair and sickness deep,
This bull you abandoned, left to weep.
I nurtured him with love and care,
His strength restored, a majestic affair.
With me, he’ll stay, no more to roam.
No longer yours, he’s found a new home.’
The villagers cheered for the old woman.
‘Go away!’ They shouted at the previous owner while waving their arms, ‘You can’t take the bull! You drove him into the woods to die because you could not stand his stench. Then the old woman saved him with kindness and skill. He belongs to her now.’
Feeling outnumbered and embarrassed, the previous owner retreated with his head hung low.
Adapted by Umar Isa Dandago and Bertie Fraser (2024).
Under license Creative Commons CC BY-NC-SA. 
Comments
The Hausa people, from whom this story comes, are native to the Sahel, specifically the southern regions of Niger and northern Nigeria, but they have spread to many other sub-Saharan African countries bordering the Sahel. In fact, the Hausa people have been crossing Africa for at least 500 years, since ‘The Hausas have been heavily involved in long distance trading for many centuries’ (Sabiu et al., 2018, p. 182). This seems to have made them the largest ethnic group in West Africa, numbering around 90 million people, although
The Hausa nation has evolved from the incorporation over hundreds of years of many different peoples who joined the original stock. They are united by a common language and adherence to a common religion, Islam. (Fellow, 1997)
Together with Swahili, their language is the most widely spoken language in Africa, as well as being the lingua franca of West Africa.
We would like to thank Bertie Fraser and Storynory.com for lending this Hausa story, adapted by Umar Isa Dandago and proofread by Fraser, as it has allowed us to maintain our commitment to include stories of peoples who were colonised by European nations without engaging in cultural appropriation.
We should say, however, that we have considerably shortened the original story by Dandago in order to fit the section that most closely illustrates the principles and values of the Earth Charter. In any case, the full original story, and even an audio of it, can be found at the Storynory link in the Sources section.
We also thank Victor Matthew Ayegba, from the Hausa People in Kano, Nigeria, for opening the door to the fascinating world of sub-Saharan peoples, and for his passionate support for this Collection.
Sources
- Dandago, U. I. & Fraser, B. (2024). The Kind Old Woman. Storynory.com. Available on https://www.storynory.com/the-kind-old-woman/
- Fellow, D. (1997). Culture summary: Hausa. HRAF. https://ehrafworldcultures.yale.edu/document?id=ms12-000
- Sabiu, I. T.; Zainol, F. A. and Abdullahi, M. S. (2018). Hausa people of northern Nigeria and their development. Asian People Journal, 1(1), pp. 179-189.
Associated text of the Earth Charter
Principle 15: Treat all living beings with respect and consideration.
Other passages that this story illustrates
Principle 1a: Recognize that all beings are interdependent and every form of life has value regardless of its worth to human beings.
Principle 2. Care for the community of life with understanding, compassion, and love.
Principle 2a: Accept that with the right to own, manage, and use natural resources comes the duty to prevent environmental harm and to protect the rights of people.
Principle 7e: Ensure universal access to health care that fosters reproductive health and responsible reproduction.
Principle 15a: Prevent cruelty to animals kept in human societies and protect them from suffering.