The South African Dragon Slayer

While still on the subject of gift-giving for the holiday season, I present this new drawing I made for Mythology Worlds.

It depicts a monster-slayer story from the BaSotho people from the African countries of Lesotho and South Africa...which I first learned from a mythology-based podcast on Spotify.

The monster-slayer in question is Thakane, and her story goes like this:

After her chief father died, Thakane was put in charge of raising her two little brothers...who weren't satisfied with the clothes and shields she made for them for fighter school.

They wanted clothes and shields made from the skin of a water dragon.

Thakane, with a team of warriors by her side, went on a dragon hunt.

When they came to a stream, they threw in some meat...and Thakane yelled insults to get the dragons to come out.

...but instead of a dragon, a frog came out of the stream.

The frog told Thakane and her band to move along.

When they came to a huge river, they tried the same trick

...but this time, an old lady came out.

The old lady (who had been spared by the dragons, who had eaten all of her fellow villagers) led Thakane and her party to her underwater village.

Thakane and her party must have taken underwater lessons from Mario of video game fame...because somehow they were able to stay underwater indefinitely!

While the dragons were sleeping, Thakane slayed the biggest one.

The surviving dragons chased Thakane and her party out of the river...but Thakane held them back with a magic pebble that turned into a mountain.

Back at the village, Thakane made for her brothers some new clothes and shields from the skin of the dragon she had slayed.

In other words, Thakane slayed a dragon to make gifts out of it.

Happy holidays!

Those who celebrate Christmas, I hope you finish your gift shopping soon!

...and be thankful you don't have to slay a dragon to get it done