A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.
Overview
The mouse appears when Bulane’s favoured wife throws the newborn child behind the pots. It takes him into its hole, cares for him and later comes out to play with him. The jealous woman’s discovery of that scene prompts a fresh attempt to destroy both child and guardian. The animal’s defining actions are attentive care, understanding secret human conversations and timely rescue; the tale supplies no giant size or unusual bodily form.
It overhears the woman asking Bulane to burn the neglected wife’s hut and moves the child beneath the cattle-kraal wall before the chief burns the building. When the woman discovers the survivor under a cow and requests the demolition of the kraal, the mouse again hears the plan. It carries the child to the traders’ hut, where he is safe before the kraal is pulled down.
The mouse then leaves him and goes back to its own home. The boy eventually recounts its protection to Bulane, and his lunar mark confirms his identity. The final assembly restores the mother and appoints the boy chief, but gives no further encounter with the mouse or stated reward for it. Its departure is therefore retained as the guardian’s actual last action.
Origins & earliest records
Jacottet presents this tale in parallel Se-Suto and English with comparative notes. No individual contributor is identified in the inspected episode; the publication date is not a first oral attestation.
Records & interpretation
XXVIII, The Child with a Moon on His Breast, complete bilingual pp. 190–195; English pp. 190, 192, 194. Full-moon image gloss p. 190 note; ten-wife crescent/star variant pp. 192–193 notes.
Selected bibliography
Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.
- 01
The Treasury of Ba-suto Lore, vol. I
XXVIII, The Child with a Moon on His Breast, complete bilingual pp. 190–195; English pp. 190, 192, 194. Full-moon image gloss p. 190 note; ten-wife crescent/star variant pp. 192–193 notes.
- 02
The Treasury of Ba-suto Lore, volume I
The Treasury of Ba-suto Lore, volume I, Morija/London, 1908, actual title-page OCR. Full preface and introduction xxii method statement read; complete XXVII–XXIX, bilingual pp.184–201, English narratives and all explanatory notes independently read. Facing Sesotho placement inspected without independent translation.
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.
Located primary passages
Specific passages supporting details in this entry, grouped by their published witness.
The Treasury of Ba-suto Lore, vol. I
The Treasury of Ba-suto Lore, volume I, Morija/London, 1908, actual title-page OCR. Full preface and introduction xxii method statement read; complete XXVII–XXIX, bilingual pp.184–201, English narratives and all explanatory notes independently read. Facing Sesotho placement inspected without independent translation.
- A mouse preserves the moon-marked child through successive concealments and removes him to safety among traders.
The mouse is a protector, not an established biological mother or named deity. The favored wife’s alleged divination is a deliberate plot device, not an independently verified oracle. Its departure before recognition is retained; no unprinted reward or return invented. Specific teller not assigned from volume-level names; English correction by J. C. Smith credited.
References
Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.
- Collected Se-Suto text with English translation and notesJacottet — complete selected bilingual taleResearch access: 2026-10-05
Image credits
A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.