Tradition / Region: Zulu mythology, South African Mythology
Alternate Names: Basket-bearer
Category: Mountain dweller, Hyena
The Myth
Among the Zulu people there was once a feared creature called the Isitwalangcengce—the Basket-bearer.
It was shaped somewhat like a hyena, low and powerful, but its most terrible feature was its head. Its skull was shaped like a woven basket, hollow within, with an opening at the top. Into this living basket it placed its victims.
The Isitwalangcengce was immensely strong. Even the bravest warrior could be overcome by it. It did not attack at random, but chose its moments carefully. On feast days, when meat was freshly butchered and children carried portions from house to house, the monster crept near the village. It hid beside doorways or behind fences, waiting in silence.
When a child passed close enough, the Isitwalangcengce would seize them in an instant and thrust them into the hollow of its basket-head. Then it would run off into the bush before anyone realized what had happened.
The creature did not eat its prey whole. It had a favorite rock somewhere in the wilderness. There it would smash the heads of its captives against the stone and lap up their brains, leaving the rest of the body behind.
Yet for all its strength, the Isitwalangcengce was foolish.
Once, a man was captured and carried away inside the creature’s head. As they passed through thick bush, he reached out quietly and snapped off branches, stuffing them into the hollow around him. When the cavity was filled with twigs and leaves, he grasped a tree and pulled himself free, leaving the basket-head still heavy with branches.
The Isitwalangcengce noticed nothing. It continued on to its rock. Only when it tipped its head to pour out its meal did a heap of branches tumble onto the stone instead of a victim. By then, the man was long gone.
When he returned safely to the village, he told everyone exactly how he had escaped. Word spread quickly. From then on, if anyone was seized, they knew what to do—fill the monster’s head with branches and slip away.
With its trick discovered, the Isitwalangcengce lost much of its terror. Over time it became little more than a warning told to children: behave, or the Basket-bearer will carry you off.
And the children, hearing the tale, smile quietly—because they know the way out.
Gallery
Sources
abookofcreatures.com contributors. (n.d.). Isitwalangcengce. In abookofcreatures.com, from https://abookofcreatures.com/2015/03/23/isitwalangcengce/
Interpretive Lenses
Religious Readings
- Christian Ascetic Deep Dive
Philosophical Readings
- Nietzschean Deep Dive
Psychological Readings
- Jungian Deep Dive
Esoteric Deep Dive
- Hermetic Deep Dive
Political / Social Readings
- Marxist Deep Dive
Other
- How to Invite The Isitwalangcengce