Long ago, before Mali became a powerful empire, Nare Marghan, the king of Kangaba, was approached by a group of hunters. These hunters, who had the gift of prophecy, told the king that he would meet an ugly woman who would bear him a son who would be a great king. And so it came to be that Nare Marghan married Sogolon, who was known as Buffalo Woman because of her looks. And Sogolon soon gave birth to a boy who became known as Sundiata, which means "The Hungering Lion."

Life was hard for Sogolon and Sundiata. Sassouma, Nare Marghan's first wife, was jealous of Sogolon and the new child and often made fun of them. This was easy to do because Sundiata was a slow child who crawled long after other children began to walk, and he did not have his father's beauty.

When Sundiata was 7 years old, Nare Marghan died. Sogolon then ordered her son to walk, and, to the astonishment of all, Sundiata began to walk. Not only did he walk, he also quickly became a skilled hunter. Yet, even then, the prophecy of the hunters was not fulfilled, for Sassouma made sure that her son, Dankaran Touman, became king.