The Maasai Legend on Why Women Don't Have Cattle
One of the famous stories from the Maasai community in Arusha, Tanzania
The Women's cattle, Maasai Folktale (2020) by Advithi EmmiProject FUEL
Long ago wild animals used to be women’s cattle. One morning, a cow was butchered before a woman took her cattle to the field. Soon the cattle moved away to graze in the pasture and walked away a little too far.
A woman told a kid to go and check on them. When the mother of the child came to know, she said, “Oh no, my child is not going until he has eaten the kidney.” His mother forbade him to go until the child had eaten.
Gradually, all the livestock moved away and got lost in the bushes. After eating, the children tried to bring back the cattle, but to their dismay, they had all gone wild. This incident explains how women lost their cattle.
The cattle then went and lived with men who took good care of them. This is why up to this day, all the cattle is owned by the men, and women wait for the men to look after them.
Project FUEL would like to thank the Maasai community in the Losimingori village of Arusha, Tanzania for opening their hearts and home to this research.
This exhibit is part of the Wise Wall Project, an initiative of Project FUEL, to document, design, and strengthen the wisdom of rural communities and marginalized villages using art and community outreach programs. In the third edition of this project, we collaborated with the Maasai, in Arusha, Tanzania, to build an on-ground community centre for the people and bring an exclusive insight into the life, lifestyle, and learnings of this inspiring community.
Illustration: Advithi Emmi
Research, Interviews and Curation: Project FUEL
Project Partners: Vijana Inspiring Foundation, Vikram Solar Ltd., Lions Club of Dar es Salaam and Arusha, Google Arts & Culture
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