Old Mother Nitala crouched comfortably on her sun-warmed rock, as she had since almost the beginning of days, and prepared to great the next soul. This one approached tentatively, staring about her with wide eyes. When she saw Old Mother Nitala, she stopped.<\/p>\n
Old Mother Nitala gazed at this one thoughtfully. She was dressed in white cloth from neck to her bare toes, and clutched a square brown object to her breast. A \u201cbook,\u201d Old Mother Nitala had once heard a spirit call it.<\/p>\n
\u201cHello?\u201d the woman spoke. \u201cI don\u2019t seem to know where I am.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou are dead, my granddaughter,\u201d Old Mother Nitala informed her.<\/p>\n
\u201cDead?\u201d Relief bloomed in the woman\u2019s face. \u201cThen I must be on my way to Heaven!\u201d<\/p>\n
Old Mother Nitala nodded gravely. \u201cFirst you must travel this path and be judged.\u201d She gestured at the trail behind her. <\/p>\n
The woman frowned dubiously at the muddy path. \u201cI\u2019m sorry, but I was expecting something a little different? Saint Peter? Pearly Gates? A host of angels?\u201d<\/p>\n
Old Mother Nitala shok her head. \u201cDown that path lies only your judgement.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow does it, um\u2026 work?\u201d<\/p>\n
Old Mother Nitala sighed. \u201cThere are three trials, my granddaughter. The first is through the marshes. If in your life you have shown wisdom, you will pass freely. If you have been a fool, the crocodiles will eat you.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe second trial is through the forest. If in life you have been generous, you will pass freely. If you have been mean or unkind, the wild dogs will eat you.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe third trial is through the plains. If in life you have been brave, you will pass freely. If you have been a coward, the lions will eat you.<\/p>\n
\u201cPass all three trials, and you will return to the World to guide your children\u2019s children\u2019s children as a beloved ancestor.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWHAT??!!!?? That\u2019s not how it is supposed to work!\u201d the woman shrieked. \u201cI taught Sunday School for years! I know my Bible!\u201d She shook her book at Old Mother Nitala. \u201cThere\u2019s nothing in here about crocodiles!\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLook,\u201d Old Mother Nitala said patiently. \u201cThis was all very clearly explained in the songs of your Mothers.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMy mother taught me songs about Jesus, thank you very much, and the Lord our Father who created the world\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n
Old Mother Nitala cackled. \u201cYou think a man<\/i> could have given birth to the world?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course! The Bible says it, and I believe it! You\u2019re just a\u2026 a\u2026 an old witch or something sent to test my faith at the last moment! Lucifer sent you! Well, I\u2019ll show you!\u201d The woman stalked down the trail to the marshes, indignation in every stride.<\/p>\n
Old Mother Nitala shook her head, hoping the woman wouldn\u2019t give the crocodiles indigestion.<\/p>\n
The next soul approached. This woman had shaved her head, and was draped in bright orange cloth. When she saw Old Mother Nitala, the woman put her palms together and bowed respectfully. \u201cCan you tell me where I am, Grandmother?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou are on your way to judgement, my granddaughter.\u201d Once again, as she had since almost the beginning of days, Old Mother Nitala explained the three trials.<\/p>\n
\u201cOh! So there is no Great Wheel of Transmigration? I cannot be reborn as either mouse or man?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNo, my granddaughter.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt seems as though I\u2019ve been wrong my entire life! This is very interesting! You said it\u2019s down this path?\u201d The woman bowed a final time and walked into the marshes.<\/p>\n
Old Mother Nitala smiled. That one would do well, she thought.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Old Mother Nitala crouched comfortably on her sun-warmed rock, as she had since almost the beginning of days, and prepared to great the next soul. This one approached tentatively, staring about her with wide eyes. When she saw Old Mother Nitala, she stopped. Old Mother Nitala gazed at this one thoughtfully. She was dressed in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[133],"class_list":["post-9980","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-fiction","tag-business-of-the-afterlife"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.confabulatorcafe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9980","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.confabulatorcafe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.confabulatorcafe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.confabulatorcafe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.confabulatorcafe.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=9980"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.confabulatorcafe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9980\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.confabulatorcafe.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=9980"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.confabulatorcafe.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=9980"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.confabulatorcafe.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=9980"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}