Anase and the Pot of Wisdom is an excellent example of a well-told story that brings us nearer to the time when people had little knowledge of their surroundings. In this ancient period, the people didn’t cultivate crops or weave cloth themselves. The only source of wisdom in the Asante traditional religious system was the supreme god, Nyame, who dwelled in the sky. He had all the knowledge of the whole universe tucked into a clay vessel.
Long ago in Africa, an intelligent spider called Anase received a special endowment from the supreme god Nyame. This pot of wisdom was no ordinary gift. It contained all the wisdom in the world, in fact, all the knowledge in the world. Anase was over the moon happy, and full of expression of gratitude upon the receiving of such a valuable item. Having the pot in her hands made her happy. Anticipation came every time she looked at the pot, she discovered something new. However, Anase let greed take over, taking this valuable wisdom unto herself and not sharing it.
It was a challenge to climb such a tree while holding the pot, especially for Anase. She found the pot’s weight hard to bear. The neck of the pot was in front of her and made it quite difficult to climb. As a result of this challenge, she developed a plan of placing a rope around her belly. She also placed it around the pot so that it could be frontal as she was climbing. Furthermore, she tied another rope on the pot such that one end was placed at the base where she sat.
At that moment, a young boy standing below noticed Anase’s struggle and offered a suggestion. What is the matter with tying the pot to your back instead? If the hands could move closer to the chest, climbing would be much easier.” After hearing this advice, Anase intervened and it became incredibly easier for her to climb the tree.
With determination and much ease, Anase decided to finally reach the top of the tree. But as she sat there with the pot of wisdom on her hands she found herself thinking. Even as she had information from all over the world, she knew the young boy was wiser than her. Such revelation makes Anase furious.
Driven by anger, Anase threw the pot from the tree one day. When it broke into pieces, falling apart, the wisdom within it was dispersed throughout the earth. This shift changed the dynamics as knowledge is no longer exclusive to one person.
Due to this, the people of the world were able to gain everyday skills like farming, weaving clothes, and basket making. These skills which to date enhance the lives of many. So the wisdom went from Anase throughout the entire world to make sure that no one person is wise in the entire world. Because there is little wisdom in the whole world as compared to the giant tree of wisdom that was in Anase.
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