Chameleon: Slow and Steady Results in Death

Perhaps you've heard the saying, "The early bird gets the worm."

This folktale from the Zulus of Africa has a slightly different take on that proverb: "The early lizard delivers death."

In the beginning the Zulu deity, known simply as the Great One, created the world. He populated it with men and women formed from reeds. The Great One then created the sun and the moon, and lastly all of the animals.

This having been done, the Great One called upon the chameleon known as Unwaba.

(I couldn't help but use Disney's Pascal for a picture.  He's the cutest chameleon!)

The god commanded Unwaba to go to mankind and tell them that they would live forever. Tasked with delivering news of their immortality, Unwaba set out. However, chameleons are rather slow critters. They trod along slowly yet steadfastly. This was exactly how Unwaba moved.

While the chameleon slowly trekked along, the Great One changed his mind. (Gods are, across most mythologies, incredibly fickle and prone to mood swings.) The Great One decided that he did not want mankind to live for forever. In fact, he desired nothing other than himself to be immortal. The land animals, the fish, the birds...everything would eventually die.

With this in mind, the Great One sent out yet another messenger, the lizard Intulo. Intulo was tasked with delivering the news that all must one day pass.

It became a race, because whichever message was delivered first would be the one which stuck. A god's word, once passed on to his subjects, becomes law. Had Unwaba been the first to make his announcement, mankind would have lived forever.
 

Unfortunately, Unwaba did not know that he was participating in a race. He continued his steady journey. Intulo the lizard, being considerably faster than the chameleon, sped ahead of him and was the first to arrive at the village of man.
 

By the time Unwaba showed up, the dreaded news had already been delivered. Mankind was doomed to one day die. His own message now inconsequential, Unwaba turned and headed wordlessly back into the forest.

Because of the slowness of the chameleon, death entered the world.

This story is told in various forms throughout many of the cultures of Africa. Sometimes the chameleon races against animals other than a lizard – a hare, for instance. Always, the outcome is the same: death.

Chameleons often play the role of messenger in African folktales. As I said in my Intro, African animals in these stories often have a point to make about mankind. In this case, I would hazard a guess and say that it is best not to dawdle when carrying news of utmost importance.

Interestingly enough, Intulo makes an appearance in modern pop culture. One of the Final Fantasy games (I believe XI?) has a giant lizard players can fight named Intulo. I found this rather intriguing.

I'll see you guys next week!