A traditional Nanabozho story teaches never to take more than you need

Evidence

Anishinaabe elder Basil Johnston tells of the time our teacher Nanabozho was fishing in the lake for supper, as he often did, with hook and line. Heron came striding along through the reeds on his long, bent legs, his beak like a spear. Heron is a good fisherman and a sharing friend, so he told Nanabozho about a new way to fish that would make his life much easier. Heron cautioned him to be careful not to take too many fish, but Nanabozho was already thinking of a feast. … Day after day he stuffed himself and, as the lake grew empty, his drying racks grew full, sending out a delicious smell into the forest where Fox was licking his lips. Again he went to the lake, so proud of himself. But that day his nets came up empty and Heron looked down on him as he flew over the lake with a critical eye. When Nanabozho got home to his lodge, he learned a key rule—never take more than you need. The racks of fish were toppled in the dirt and every bite was gone. — Robin Wall Kimmerer, Braiding Sweetgrass, 639

Categorization

• SHARE: A compact origin story about over-harvest whose lesson pairs perfectly with the mechanistic mutualism claims for any ecologist friend working on subsistence harvest.
• XREF: The ‘never take more than you need’ rule is the narrative embodiment of the Thanksgiving Address’s restraint ethic from chapters 24-26. — connects to: Maple sap is naturally thin because Nanabozho diluted it to teach gratitude — Robin Wall Kimmerer, Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom,…, 210; Nanabozho learned survival and ethics by copying animals’ own practices and standards — Robin Wall Kimmerer, Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom,…, 756

Broader Connections

• Nanabozho learned survival and ethics by copying animals’ own practices and standards #expands (0.80) — Robin Wall Kimmerer, Braiding Sweetgrass, 756