In the high valleys of the Altiplano, where the wind whispers across golden grasslands and the earth yields precious vegetables to those patient enough to tend them, there lived a Rabbit who had developed a rather unfortunate habit. Day after day, he would hop into a certain woman’s vegetable patch and feast upon her crops. He nibbled the tender lettuce leaves, crunched through the sweetest carrots, and munched on whatever else caught his fancy, eating with such abandon that the garden’s bounty diminished week by week.
The woman who owned this patch worked hard for every plant that grew in the harsh mountain soil. She watered each seedling carefully, pulled weeds with aching hands, and protected her vegetables from the brutal highland sun. So when she discovered that Rabbit was the thief stealing her harvest, her patience finally snapped. Her anger burned hot as cooking coals, and she made a solemn vow: she would catch this gluttonous Rabbit and kill him for his crimes.
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To carry out her threat, the woman devised a cunning trap. She gathered sticky miske a thick, viscous resin that clung to everything it touched and carefully molded it into the shape of a person. She positioned this silent figure directly in the middle of the path that Rabbit always used to reach her garden, then hid herself nearby to wait.
The next morning, Rabbit came hopping along the road as usual, his mind already savoring the breakfast that awaited him in the vegetable patch. But suddenly he stopped short. There, blocking his path, stood a strange figure a person he had never seen before, standing perfectly still in the middle of the road.
“Excuse me,” Rabbit said politely, his nose twitching. “May I pass?”
The figure said nothing. It simply stood there, silent and unmoving as stone.
Rabbit’s ears flattened with irritation. How rude! He hopped a bit closer and spoke more forcefully. “I said, excuse me! Let me pass!”
Still, the figure remained silent, offering not a word of explanation or apology.
Now Rabbit’s blood began to boil. This was intolerable! Who did this person think they were, blocking the road and ignoring him so rudely? Without thinking, Rabbit raised his front paw and slapped the figure hard across its body.
Immediately, his paw stuck fast to the miske. Rabbit’s eyes widened in alarm as he tried to pull free, but his paw would not budge.
“Release me!” Rabbit screamed at the figure, tugging frantically. “Let go this instant!”
But the figure stood silent as always, and Rabbit’s fury overwhelmed his better judgment. He struck the figure with his other front paw and that one stuck too. Panic rising in his chest, he kicked at the miske person with one back foot, then the other, and within moments found himself completely adhered to the sticky trap, unable to move even an inch.
At precisely that moment, as fate would have it, Fox came trotting down the same path. Fox was always hungry, always looking for his next meal, and his eyes gleamed when he saw Rabbit stuck helplessly to the strange figure.
But Rabbit’s mind worked quickly, even in desperate circumstances. Before Fox could speak, Rabbit called out cheerfully, “Oh, my friend! How fortunate that you’ve arrived! Please, pull me off this thing!”
Fox approached cautiously, eyeing Rabbit with suspicion. “Why are you stuck there?”
Rabbit sighed dramatically, as though greatly put upon. “The most extraordinary thing happened! A wealthy gentleman stopped me on the road and begged me to marry his beautiful daughter. Can you imagine? But I refused I’m far too young to settle down and this made him so angry that he stuck me here as punishment! But he felt guilty afterward, you see, and he promised to bring me the finest juntuma coffee with fresh warm bread and delicious turtillunde as an apology. If you’d like to have these wonderful things, friend, just come here and take my place! I’ve already had enough adventures for one day.”
Fox’s mouth began to water at the mention of such delicacies. Coffee, bread, turtillunde what a feast! And all he had to do was stand in Rabbit’s place for a little while?
“Of course, no problem,” Fox said eagerly. “I will take your place!”
Rabbit explained exactly how Fox should position himself, and soon Fox pressed himself against the miske figure, becoming thoroughly stuck just as Rabbit had been. As soon as Fox was trapped, Rabbit somehow managed to twist free perhaps the miske had begun to dry, or perhaps his cleverness found a way and he hopped away quickly, laughing to himself.
Fox waited impatiently, his stomach growling in anticipation. After some time, he began to shout, “Jinca apánima, juntumande turtillunde!” calling for the promised treats to arrive.
And sure enough, a gentleman appeared, walking toward Fox with a large pot in his hands. Steam rose from it in promising wisps.
“Good, you have arrived!” Fox called out happily, his tongue already anticipating the coffee’s rich taste.
But as the gentleman drew near, Fox saw his face clearly for the first time and realized with horror that this was no kind benefactor. The woman who owned the vegetable patch had sent her husband, and in his hands he carried not coffee but a pot of boiling water!
Before Fox could cry out, the man hurled the scalding water directly onto him. Fox screamed and screamed, writhing in agony as the hot water burned his fur and loosened the miske’s grip. Finally, he tore himself free and ran off into the wilderness, yelping with pain and fury.
As Fox licked his burns and caught his breath, one thought consumed him: revenge. That lying Rabbit had tricked him! Fox would find him and eat him, no matter how long it took.
Meanwhile, Rabbit had made his way toward the lake, hoping to put distance between himself and any pursuers. But Fox was a skilled tracker, and before long he picked up Rabbit’s trail. When Fox finally found Rabbit resting by the lake’s edge, his eyes blazed with hunger and rage.
“Now I will eat you!” Fox snarled, advancing with teeth bared.
Rabbit’s heart hammered against his ribs, but his voice remained calm. “No, no, wait a moment, my friend!” He glanced up at the night sky, where the full moon hung like a silver plate, then looked down at the lake’s dark surface. There, shimmering on the water, floated the moon’s perfect reflection, round and pale as cheese.
“Before you eat me,” Rabbit said quickly, “wouldn’t you like to have some of that delicious cheese from the lake? Look how large it is! It would make a fine meal before your dessert.” He gestured toward the moon’s reflection.
Fox looked at the shimmering circle on the water. His mouth watered again he did love cheese, and this piece was enormous! Without hesitation, Fox dove into the cold lake, splashing and swimming, trying desperately to grab the cheese. But no matter how he grasped at it, the reflection slipped away, reforming just beyond his reach. He dove again and again, growing exhausted, until finally he had to crawl out onto the shore, shivering and empty-handed.
But Rabbit had long since disappeared.
Fox’s rage doubled. Twice now that cursed Rabbit had made him look like a fool! He set off once more on Rabbit’s trail, determination burning in his chest like fire.
This time when Fox found Rabbit, he showed no interest in conversation. “I will eat you now!” he roared. “No more tricks!”
But Rabbit stood calmly, holding a large stone above his head with both paws, his face showing deep concern. “No, my friend, please wait! Look I am holding up this stone because the sky is falling! I can feel it pressing down! I need you to hold this for just a moment while I run to my cousin’s house nearby. There’s a birthday party about to begin, and once I make sure everything is ready, we can both go together and feast! After the party, if you still wish to eat me, I won’t resist. But please, whatever you do, do not let go of this stone, or the sky will crash down and kill us both!”
Fox looked at the stone, then at Rabbit’s earnest face. Could it be true? He did feel something pressing down from above but perhaps that was just the thin mountain air. Still, better safe than sorry. Fox took the stone from Rabbit and held it high above his head, feeling its weight strain his muscles.
“Hurry back!” Fox called as Rabbit hopped away. But Rabbit did not return.
Fox’s arms began to ache. Then they began to tremble. How long had he been standing here? The stone grew heavier with each passing moment. Finally, Fox thought to himself, “I’m going to drop it and see what happens.”
He let go.
The stone plummeted straight down onto his head with a resounding crack. Fox saw stars and staggered sideways, his skull ringing with pain and his vision swimming. When his head finally cleared, he realized the truth once again: he had been tricked! The sky had not fallen at all!
Now Fox’s rage knew no bounds. He would find Rabbit and tear him apart, tricks or no tricks! Once more he followed the trail, his head throbbing with each step.
Not far away stood an old stone well, deep and dark, its walls slick with moisture. Rabbit positioned himself beside it, holding an empty bottle and making tremendous noise shouting, banging the bottle against the stones, creating such a commotion that it sounded as though all hell had broken loose.
When Fox arrived and saw Rabbit, he screamed with fury, “I’m going to eat you! No more delays!”
But Rabbit’s eyes were wide with fear genuine fear this time, though not of Fox. “Do not eat me, my friend listen!” He tilted his head toward the path behind Fox. “Can you hear that? Someone is coming to kill us both! I heard them talking they have guns and dogs! We must hide immediately, or we’re both dead! Quick, into the well! You go first, and I’ll follow right behind you!”
Fox heard the rustling in the brush, heard what might have been footsteps or might have been wind. His fear of death outweighed his hunger. Without another thought, he leaped into the well’s dark opening.
Fox fell and fell, tumbling through empty air until he crashed into the icy water at the bottom with a tremendous splash. He thrashed in the darkness, looking up toward the circle of sky far above.
And there, silhouetted against the light, was Rabbit’s face peering down at him.
“Die, my friend!” Rabbit called cheerfully. Then he began dropping stones into the well, one after another, each one finding its target. The stones struck Fox again and again until finally he moved no more.
Rabbit stepped back from the well’s edge, his heart light with relief. The cruel Fox who had threatened to eat him was gone forever. In his joy, Rabbit began to dance beside the well, hopping and spinning in circles, celebrating his victory over the predator who had hunted him so relentlessly.
And from that day forward, Rabbit returned to the woman’s vegetable patch no more, having learned that even the cleverest tricks might eventually run out.
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The Moral of the Story
This Aymara trickster tale teaches that intelligence and quick thinking can overcome brute strength and aggression. Rabbit, though small and vulnerable, survived against Fox’s repeated attacks through wit, creativity, and an understanding of his enemy’s weaknesses greed, gullibility, and pride. However, the story also reminds us that our actions have consequences; Rabbit’s initial theft brought danger upon himself, and even his cleverness led ultimately to violence. The tale illustrates that while trickery can be a survival tool for the powerless, it walks a fine moral line and sometimes leads to darker outcomes than we intend.
Knowledge Check
1. Why was Rabbit in danger at the beginning of the Aymara folktale?
Rabbit was in danger because he had been stealing vegetables from a woman’s garden in the Altiplano highlands, eating so much of her crops that she became furious. She created a trap using miske (sticky resin) shaped like a person to catch him, intending to kill him for his thievery. Rabbit became stuck to this miske figure, which started the chain of events in the story.
2. What is miske and how was it used as a trap in the story?
Miske is a sticky, viscous resin traditional to Andean cultures that clings to anything it touches. In the story, the angry garden owner molded miske into the shape of a person and placed it on Rabbit’s path. When Rabbit tried to slap the figure for blocking his way, his paws stuck to it, trapping him completely until Fox arrived. This is a common motif in trickster tales across many cultures.
3. How did Rabbit trick Fox at the miske figure?
Rabbit convinced Fox that a wealthy gentleman had stuck him there for refusing to marry his daughter, and that the gentleman would soon bring delicious juntuma coffee, bread, and turtillunde as an apology. Rabbit offered to let Fox take his place to receive these treats. When Fox became stuck to the miske, the woman’s husband appeared with boiling water instead and scalded Fox, allowing Rabbit to escape.
4. What trick did Rabbit use involving the lake in the Andean legend?
When Fox threatened to eat him by the lake at night, Rabbit pointed to the moon’s reflection on the water’s surface and claimed it was a large cheese. Fox dove into the lake repeatedly trying to grab the “cheese,” but could only grasp water since it was merely the moon’s reflection. This gave Rabbit time to escape again, demonstrating his ability to use natural phenomena cleverly.
5. What is the significance of trickster characters in Aymara folklore?
In Aymara and broader Andean folklore, trickster characters like Rabbit represent the survival strategies of the powerless against stronger opponents. These tales often feature clever small animals outsmarting larger predators, reflecting the indigenous experience of using intelligence and creativity to overcome colonial oppression and natural hardships in the harsh highland environment. Tricksters embody both admirable wit and moral ambiguity.
6. What cultural region does this Rabbit and Fox story come from?
This tale originates from the Aymara people of the Altiplano (high plateau) region in the Andes Mountains, which spans modern-day Bolivia, Peru, and Chile. The story’s references to highland agriculture, specific Andean foods, traditional materials like miske, and the harsh mountain environment all reflect the cultural context of Aymara communities living around Lake Titicaca and throughout the Andean highlands.
Source: Adapted from traditional Aymara oral folklore collected from the Andean highlands
Cultural Origin: Aymara people, Altiplano region (Andean Plateau), Bolivia, Peru, and Chile
