Encore: The Round Mossy Stone

Circle Round

This episode of Circle Round features a classic West African folktale about Anansi the spider, a notorious trickster who uses a magic mossy

Key takeaways

Anansi discovers an engraved stone that acts as a magic spell to make listeners fall asleep.
The spider targets various animals including Elephant, Lion, Monkey, Antelope, Buffalo, Leopard, and Chimpanzee.

Main topics

West African folklore
Trickster tales

Notable quotes

Behold a marvel like you've never seen, this big round stone wrapped in moss of green.

Conclusion

A charming and educational tale that demonstrates how trickery eventua

Transcript preview

Speaker 1 (0:00) Hey, everybody. This is Circle Round, and I'm Ben Brock Johnson, one of the people who helps make the show. And I have a secret. Circle Round Season 10 is coming out soon. Brand new episodes, and boy, are they fun. We just need a little more time to make them perfect for you. But for today, we wanted to bring back a Circle Round classic, a story about a familiar trickster who is about to learn a lesson. So... Circle round, everyone, for The Round Mossy Stone. Speaker 4 (0:43) WBUR Podcasts, Boston. Speaker 4 (0:51) Has anyone ever played a trick on you? Playing tricks can be harmless, even funny. But they can also be harmful, because feelings get hurt. And that's not funny at all. In today's tale, a sneaky spider pulls a fast one on his friends. Little does he know, but the tables are about to be turned. Speaker 4 (1:18) I'm Rebecca Shear, and welcome to Circle Round, where story time happens all the time. Today, our story is called The Round Mossy Stone. Versions of this story come from West Africa and feature a character you've met in many Circle Round episodes, Anansi. Speaker 4 (1:37) Some really great people came together to bring you our version of this folktale, including Bashir Sylvain, who co-stars in the sci-fi action movie Jurassic World Rebirth. So circle around, everyone, for the round mossy stone. Speaker 4 (2:04) It was a sizzling summer morning, and Anansi the spider was walking through the forest. Speaker 5 (2:12) It's a real scorcher today. Even in the shade, it's as hot as blazes. I need a cold drink. There's got to be a creek or a stream around here somewhere. Speaker 4 (2:24) Wiping the sweat from his eight eyes, he quickened his stride through the undergrowth until... Speaker 4 (2:32) He chanced upon a shallow stream with water so clear you could count the pebbles on the sandy bottom. Setting his eight legs in motion, he scurried over and took a big drink. Oh, Speaker 5 (2:46) this water is so cool, so refreshing. I no longer feel the least bit hot. But I sure feel hungry. Speaker 4 (2:59) The truth is, Anansi always felt hungry. For a small critter, he had an enormous appetite. Speaker 5 (3:07) Boy, what I wouldn't give for some delicious ripe fruit. Like a mound of mangoes. Or a bunch of bananas. Of course. It means I'd have to pick fruit. Which means I'd have to do work. And goodness knows I don't want to do Speaker 4 (3:24) that. It was true. As much as Anansi loved eating, he despised working. But he Speaker 3 (3:32) was a clever Speaker 4 (3:33) spider Speaker 3 (3:33) with Speaker 4 (3:33) a mischievous mind. And as he paced alongside the stream, he began spinning ideas like a web. Speaker 5 (3:41) All right. Let's think about this. The animals in the forest... are always picking their own fruit, right? Collecting a nice big stash to eat as they please. So what if I trick one of them into picking fruit for me? Or I could convince them that their fruit has gone bad and I'll volunteer to dispose of it for them. Speaker 4 (4:06) Or, Anansi fell silent, for ahead of him, in Speaker 2 (4:10) the Speaker 4 (4:10) shade of a tree, was a stone. The stone was big and round and covered with green moss, so vibrant, so vivid, it practically glowed. The green moss reached all the way around the stone, save for one bare spot in front, which seemed to be Speaker 2 (4:29) engraved Speaker 4 (4:30) with words. Speaker 5 (4:32) Hmm. It's not every day that you see an engraved stone in the forest. It's not every day that you see an engraved anything in the forest. Let's see what it says. He scuttled Speaker 4 (4:45) over and began to read. Speaker 5 (4:48) Behold a marvel like you've never seen, this big round stone wrapped in moss of green. Speaker 4 (4:56) Well, no sooner had he uttered those words than he fell to the ground in a faint and was out cold. Speaker 4 (5:10) Anansi slept for an entire hour. Speaker 5 (5:13) When Speaker 4 (5:14) he woke up, he tried to piece together what happened. Oh, let's Speaker 5 (5:21) see. The last thing I remember is coming across this mossy stone, then reading the words engraved on it. Speaker 1 (5:28) You know, Speaker 5 (5:29) Behold a marvel like you've never seen, this big round stone wrapped in moss of green. Speaker 4 (5:36) And just like that, he was out like a light again. Speaker 4 (5:46) When he came to an hour later, he also came to a realization. That's Speaker 5 (5:52) it! The words on the stone must be a spell. A magic spell. If you read them out loud, which I definitely will not do ever again, then you fall fast asleep. Speaker 1 (6:06) Wait Speaker 5 (6:07) a minute. A Speaker 4 (6:09) crafty grin spread across the spider's face. Speaker 5 (6:12) If I play my cards right... Then this stone could be my ticket to a free meal. Why, it's a trickster's jackpot!