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Overview

After parting from a dishonest travelling companion, an honest man buys young chickens to resell and loses his way in the forest. At a group of tombs an ambiroa, the ghost of an old woman, calls to him gently. She leads him into a tomb and conceals him in a large heap of bones, warning that the other ambiroa would kill a living visitor. Their arrival is represented through voices and breaths. One senses a living person, but the old woman denies that anyone is present.

The returning ghosts recount their activities. One has frightened three thieves into abandoning money stolen from Randriambe, then hidden it at the foot of a ramy tree north of the path to the village. Another describes a sick child in Rakombe’s village and a louse suffering on the rock where rice is beaten. The narrative makes the child’s recovery depend on removing that louse. These are two different pieces of knowledge supplied by different members of the company, rather than an undifferentiated claim that every ghost causes disease.

After the company leaves, the grandmother figure tells the concealed man to retrieve the money and quietly carry it wrapped in cloth, then explains how to approach the sick child’s household. He follows the advice, recovers five hundred piastres and cures the child. The family rewards him with fifty more piastres and eight cows with their young, and he returns home rich. The closing explanation credits ancestral protection for his fortunate travels. The old woman’s sheltering role therefore coexists with the danger posed by the other ghosts; it does not turn the entire tomb company into harmless guides.

Tomb dwellingVoices and breathsProtective old woman’s ghostDetection of living visitorKnowledge of hidden wealth
01

Origins & earliest records

Renel 1910, tale 23, pp. 132–136, with the selected regional/local heading. Introduction V–VIII explains the teacher-mediated collection and French translation; no individual teller is named for this tale.

02

Records & interpretation

Complete tale 23, pp. 132–136, and heading read in retained primary text, with source-chain introduction I–XI. Described events remain attributed to this historical narrative.

Selected bibliography

Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.

  1. 01

    Contes de Madagascar, première partie: Contes merveilleux

    Charles Renel, editor and translator; Malagasy collection intermediaries · 1910

    Tale 23, pp. 132–136, complete; introduction V–VIII source chain.

Family & connections

A source-supported family tree or inspiration record has not yet been compiled for this profile. Related reading below indicates a connection in subject matter, not a proven lineage or creative influence.

References

Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.

  1. Historical collected French narrativeRenel 1910, tale 23Research access: 2026-10-05

Image credits

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