WATER STORIES
FROM AROUND HE WORLD
Edited by adhka enon and andha ao Illustrated by rupama ekhar
CONENS
Ts book s supported b pro as part o ts pro pplng Tought n chools ntate.
Who Owns the Water?
Water Stories from around the world
ISBN 978-81-8146-819-2 © Tulika Publishers First published in India, 2010 Designed by Nirupama Sekhar All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or used in any form or by any means — graphic, electronic or mechanical — without the prior written permission of the publisher. Published by Tulika Publishers, 13 Prithvi Avenue, Abhiramapuram, Chennai 600 018, India email
[email protected] website www.tulikabooks.com Printed and bound by Sudarsan Graphics, 27 Neelakanta Mehta Street, T.Nagar, Chennai 600 017,India
. e t i s b e w r u o t i s i v s k o o b r e d r o o t r o a k i l u T t u o b a n o i t a m r o f n i e r o m r o F
m o c . s k o o b a k i l u t . w w w
A story from India retold by Deepa Balsavar
5
Te Hero wins and the Swallower of Clouds A Native American story retold by Suniti Namjoshi
10
Te Green Man A story from many myths retold by Mariam Karim-Ahlawat Karim-Ahlawat
16
Selekana and the River Goddess A story from Botswana retold by Zai Whitaker
23
Queen of the World A story from Spain retold by Sandhya Rao
31
A Well is Born A story from India retold by Radhika Chadha
38
House of Sun and Moon A story from Nigeria retold by Amruta Patil
46
Koluscap and the Water Monster A Native American story retold by Sowmya Rajendran
53
iddalik the Frog An Aboriginal story from Australia retold by Suniti Namjoshi
60
Te Dragon’s Pearl am A story from China retold by Niveditha Subramaniam
66
ribute for a King A story from Greece retold by Sandhya Rao
74
Water Timeline
82
Water Facts
84
Contributors
86
Who
owns
the Water?
ORy FROM INDiA retold by Deepa Balsavar
nce upon a tme, on the outskrts o a dust lttle llage, a tn brd searched or a place to la her eggs. Te land was parched and dr and there wasn’t a bush or tree n sght. nall n desperaton, the lttle brd dscoered a shallow depresson n the ground. sng her claws to remoe the stones and loosen up the packed earth, she broadened the hole and there, underneath the hot sun, she lad her eggs. Te eggs hatched and the good mother protected and ed her babes untl the were bg enough to awa… nd here our stor would hae ended, except, ths sn’t a tale
Who
owns
the Water?
ORy FROM INDiA retold by Deepa Balsavar
nce upon a tme, on the outskrts o a dust lttle llage, a tn brd searched or a place to la her eggs. Te land was parched and dr and there wasn’t a bush or tree n sght. nall n desperaton, the lttle brd dscoered a shallow depresson n the ground. sng her claws to remoe the stones and loosen up the packed earth, she broadened the hole and there, underneath the hot sun, she lad her eggs. Te eggs hatched and the good mother protected and ed her babes untl the were bg enough to awa… nd here our stor would hae ended, except, ths sn’t a tale
6
Who Owns the Water?
o the lttle brd but a much more nterestng one o the hole she used as a temporar nest. “ hole?” ou ma ask. “hat could be nterestng about a hole n the ground?” ell, ths hole grew to be qute mportant, as ou wll dscoer. or some tme the hole remaned dust and untenanted, untl one da a passng wld boar settled hs rump nto the depresson. Te t was not comortable enough and gettng up, he scraped and dug, carng a pt o more hosptable proportons. Backng nto ths hollow, he turned around a ew tmes and wth a satsed grunt settled down to a long snooze. er long snooze t was too. Te boar turned and scrabbled n hs sleep, loosenng the earth around hs cos dugout untl the adng sun and the rumble n hs stomach told hm t was tme to get up. th a mght stretch and a nal kck, the hungr boar departed hs dabed wthout a backward glance. “nd s that t?” ou wll enqure. o whch I wll repl, “o t sn’t, dear one. ot b a long shot. ur stor has just begun.” pack o wld dogs catchng the scent o boar n the wnd came to the spot where he had lan. Te snfed the crcle that was rch wth the smell o the anmal. Te whned and snarled and dug at the smell as dggng the eluse boar hmsel out o the ground. nall, realsng that there was no dnner to be ound there, the departed, ther noses and tals hgh n the ar. nd n
Who Owns the Water?
7
dong so, the let the hole a lttle bgger and wder than the had ound t. “nd then what happened?” ou wll ask. “o other anmals come along too?” Te do ndeed, m chld. I told ou the hole had a stor to tell! ot long ater, the rans came. It poured and poured and onl those o us who hae seen the monsoons wll know what that means. It raned wthout stoppng or three das and three nghts and the dr earth soaked up the mosture, as a hungr pupp laps up mlk. Te whole earth smelled wet and resh and een the normall serouslookng serouslookng people n the llage went around wth smles on ther aces. Te hole n the ground collected the water that ell and around ts edges the grass grew a brghter green. oon bufaloes dscoered the grass spot and as bufaloes are wont to do, the wallowed n the puddl water, turnng the hole nto a mudd pt. I was not there to see, but I am told that man aternoons dd the bufaloes gather and thus wth a multtude o hooes tramplng the sol, the pt that was once a tn depresson, wdened and grew and became a lttle waterng hole. “nd the all led happl eer ater!” ou wll sa n glee. But that rarel happens n real tales, m dear. Tere s more to go, so ou wll hae to wat awhle. poor armer tlled the land near the once small depresson. s le was hard and the rans were oten cruel. In summer months he had to trael ar to get water or hs thrst crops and een then hs harest was meagre. ne da, not long ater the last o the season’s rans, he straghtened up rom hs backbreakng work and looked oer the land that was soon becomng brown agan. nd on the horzon, just beond hs ptul plot, hs ees came to rest on a patch o green. Gong closer to nestgate, the armer ell to the
6
Who Owns the Water?
o the lttle brd but a much more nterestng one o the hole she used as a temporar nest. “ hole?” ou ma ask. “hat could be nterestng about a hole n the ground?” ell, ths hole grew to be qute mportant, as ou wll dscoer. or some tme the hole remaned dust and untenanted, untl one da a passng wld boar settled hs rump nto the depresson. Te t was not comortable enough and gettng up, he scraped and dug, carng a pt o more hosptable proportons. Backng nto ths hollow, he turned around a ew tmes and wth a satsed grunt settled down to a long snooze. er long snooze t was too. Te boar turned and scrabbled n hs sleep, loosenng the earth around hs cos dugout untl the adng sun and the rumble n hs stomach told hm t was tme to get up. th a mght stretch and a nal kck, the hungr boar departed hs dabed wthout a backward glance. “nd s that t?” ou wll enqure. o whch I wll repl, “o t sn’t, dear one. ot b a long shot. ur stor has just begun.” pack o wld dogs catchng the scent o boar n the wnd came to the spot where he had lan. Te snfed the crcle that was rch wth the smell o the anmal. Te whned and snarled and dug at the smell as dggng the eluse boar hmsel out o the ground. nall, realsng that there was no dnner to be ound there, the departed, ther noses and tals hgh n the ar. nd n
8
Who Owns the Water?
Who Owns the Water?
7
dong so, the let the hole a lttle bgger and wder than the had ound t. “nd then what happened?” ou wll ask. “o other anmals come along too?” Te do ndeed, m chld. I told ou the hole had a stor to tell! ot long ater, the rans came. It poured and poured and onl those o us who hae seen the monsoons wll know what that means. It raned wthout stoppng or three das and three nghts and the dr earth soaked up the mosture, as a hungr pupp laps up mlk. Te whole earth smelled wet and resh and een the normall serouslookng serouslookng people n the llage went around wth smles on ther aces. Te hole n the ground collected the water that ell and around ts edges the grass grew a brghter green. oon bufaloes dscoered the grass spot and as bufaloes are wont to do, the wallowed n the puddl water, turnng the hole nto a mudd pt. I was not there to see, but I am told that man aternoons dd the bufaloes gather and thus wth a multtude o hooes tramplng the sol, the pt that was once a tn depresson, wdened and grew and became a lttle waterng hole. “nd the all led happl eer ater!” ou wll sa n glee. But that rarel happens n real tales, m dear. Tere s more to go, so ou wll hae to wat awhle. poor armer tlled the land near the once small depresson. s le was hard and the rans were oten cruel. In summer months he had to trael ar to get water or hs thrst crops and een then hs harest was meagre. ne da, not long ater the last o the season’s rans, he straghtened up rom hs backbreakng work and looked oer the land that was soon becomng brown agan. nd on the horzon, just beond hs ptul plot, hs ees came to rest on a patch o green. Gong closer to nestgate, the armer ell to the
Who Owns the Water?
9
ground wth grattude at the sght o the erdant bowl. ere was water to be had, and so close to hs holdng! orgettng all tredness, he raced home and brought out hs pckaxe and spade and soon the bufaloes’ pcnc spot was a perectl decent lttle pond. “Is ths stor gong to end wth a moral?” ou ask me suspcousl. o, lttle one, but there s somethng to learn rom eerthng we see and hear; so hush, whle I come to end o the tale. o happ was the armer that he told hs we who summoned the llage prest to bless ther ortune. I do not need to tell ou how soon news traels n a lttle llage and so t was qute a crowd that gathered b the sde o the pond to see the prest urrow hs brow and chant serous somethngs that nobod eer understands. Just then, the rchest armer n the llage pushed hs wa to the ront o the group. e was alwas upset when thngs took place that he was not nted to. ookng at the armer and the placd pond, a slow smle o contentment creased hs ace. “I see ou hae come to bless m pond,” he sad to the prest. “Your pond?” stuttered the poor armer. “h es,” smoothl oled the rch one. “Your patch, surel, ends just there. Ts land s all mne.” nd sang ths he crossed hs arms and planted hs eet our square on the ground. s the rch armer and the poor one looked at each other, the bufaloes, the dogs, the boar and es, een the lttle brd stopped b to see. Te all stood around the lttle jewel o blue and n eer mnd, small and bg, came a smlar thought: “urel, I had somethng to do wth ths!” nd so I end wth a queston to ou, m beloed rend. “ho owns the water?” ot a moral, just a thought - a germ o an dea to dg and make bgger.
8
Who Owns the Water?
Who Owns the Water?
9
ground wth grattude at the sght o the erdant bowl. ere was water to be had, and so close to hs holdng! orgettng all tredness, he raced home and brought out hs pckaxe and spade and soon the bufaloes’ pcnc spot was a perectl decent lttle pond. “Is ths stor gong to end wth a moral?” ou ask me suspcousl. o, lttle one, but there s somethng to learn rom eerthng we see and hear; so hush, whle I come to end o the tale. o happ was the armer that he told hs we who summoned the llage prest to bless ther ortune. I do not need to tell ou how soon news traels n a lttle llage and so t was qute a crowd that gathered b the sde o the pond to see the prest urrow hs brow and chant serous somethngs that nobod eer understands. Just then, the rchest armer n the llage pushed hs wa to the ront o the group. e was alwas upset when thngs took place that he was not nted to. ookng at the armer and the placd pond, a slow smle o contentment creased hs ace. “I see ou hae come to bless m pond,” he sad to the prest. “Your pond?” stuttered the poor armer. “h es,” smoothl oled the rch one. “Your patch, surel, ends just there. Ts land s all mne.” nd sang ths he crossed hs arms and planted hs eet our square on the ground. s the rch armer and the poor one looked at each other, the bufaloes, the dogs, the boar and es, een the lttle brd stopped b to see. Te all stood around the lttle jewel o blue and n eer mnd, small and bg, came a smlar thought: “urel, I had somethng to do wth ths!” nd so I end wth a queston to ou, m beloed rend. “ho owns the water?” ot a moral, just a thought - a germ o an dea to dg and make bgger.
The Hero Twins and the Swallower of Clouds
The Hero Twins and the
Swallower of Clouds AivE MERiCAN ORy retold by Suniti Namjoshi
a ater da the sun rose, the ran raned and the seasons passed n proper successon. Te trees grew straght and tall n the orests. Te chldren were health, the people happ. nd all went well untl a water grabbng gant took to swallowng the clouds. Ten no ran ell. oon the rers ran dr, and the brooks and the streams, and the ponds and the puddles. Great gashes opened n the earth. Te people praed or ran and when the saw a cloud oerhead ther hearts lted. It was no use. Te water grabbng gant grabbed the clouds one b one and squeezed them dr. e would wrng them out as one wrngs out the washng and let the water trckle nto hs gapng mouth. hle he dd ths, the people watched. hat else could the do? Te just watched whle the woodlands wthered and the land ded. “Ts can’t go on,” the ero wns cred. “e hae to do somethng. e must at least tr.” Te ero wns looked exactl lke each other. ell, the looked exactl lke reectons o each other. Te let sde o one reected the rght sde o the other and the other wa about. nd because the were so alke, the oten spoke together. Te looked at the tred aces o the people around
11
The Hero Twins and the Swallower of Clouds
11
The Hero Twins and the Swallower of Clouds
13
The Hero Twins and the
Swallower of Clouds AivE MERiCAN ORy retold by Suniti Namjoshi
a ater da the sun rose, the ran raned and the seasons passed n proper successon. Te trees grew straght and tall n the orests. Te chldren were health, the people happ. nd all went well untl a water grabbng gant took to swallowng the clouds. Ten no ran ell. oon the rers ran dr, and the brooks and the streams, and the ponds and the puddles. Great gashes opened n the earth. Te people praed or ran and when the saw a cloud oerhead ther hearts lted. It was no use. Te water grabbng gant grabbed the clouds one b one and squeezed them dr. e would wrng them out as one wrngs out the washng and let the water trckle nto hs gapng mouth. hle he dd ths, the people watched. hat else could the do? Te just watched whle the woodlands wthered and the land ded. “Ts can’t go on,” the ero wns cred. “e hae to do somethng. e must at least tr.” Te ero wns looked exactl lke each other. ell, the looked exactl lke reectons o each other. Te let sde o one reected the rght sde o the other and the other wa about. nd because the were so alke, the oten spoke together. Te looked at the tred aces o the people around
them and the sad, “e’ll sla the gant.” Ten the hestated and added, “ell, at least we’ll tr.” hen the people heard ths, the tred to rase a cheer, but ther throats were so dr, the could onl croak. nd the chldren tred to turn cartwheels, but the were so thrst and so hungr — ater all, no water meant no ood — that the tumbled down. eeng the state o ther people the wn eroes shed a tear, or would hae shed a tear the had had an tears let. thout sang a word, the waed to the people and set of n the drecton o the gant. Te walked n slence mostl: n part because the ddn’t want the gant to hear them, but also because there would hae been no pont n talkng. I one twn had sad to the other, “hat do ou thnk, Brother?” the other would hae repled, “I thnk what ou thnk, Brother. You know that.” Te were walkng on a path through the orest as dusk ell, when both brothers suddenl jumped back. large spder was blockng ther path. Te had nearl stepped on her. Te were goodhearted oung men and
appalled b the thought that the mght hae hurt her. “Grandma!” the cred, both speakng at once. “e almost ddn’t see ou! re ou all rght?” “ course I’m all rght,” Grandmother pder retorted. he looked at them out o her wse, old ees. “here are ou of to, m handsome oung men?” “e’re of to sla the gant,” Brother ne sad. “e’s swallowng the clouds,” Brother wo added. “nd no ran alls,” Brother ne went on. Te spoke turn b turn, addng to each other’s phrases and concludng each other’s sentences. “I, n our wsdom, ou know o anthng, Grandma ” “Tat would help us to sla the gant ” “Ten please tell us ” “Because the land s dng ” “nd our need s great.” Grandma pder looked at the two oung men and sad gentl, “Your cause s just and our need s great. ome wth me and rest n m cae or the nght. nd I wll tell ou the gant’s secret. thers hae come beore ou, and aled, ou know.” “e know, Grandma,” the wn eroes sad humbl. hu mbl.“nd we thank ou.” Te old spder told them that the gant made a practce o sprawlng across the path to hs lar and pretendng to be asleep. Ten when people came along and walked under hs legs, he would sprng to le, snap them up n hs
The Hero Twins and the Swallower of Clouds
them and the sad, “e’ll sla the gant.” Ten the hestated and added, “ell, at least we’ll tr.” hen the people heard ths, the tred to rase a cheer, but ther throats were so dr, the could onl croak. nd the chldren tred to turn cartwheels, but the were so thrst and so hungr — ater all, no water meant no ood — that the tumbled down. eeng the state o ther people the wn eroes shed a tear, or would hae shed a tear the had had an tears let. thout sang a word, the waed to the people and set of n the drecton o the gant. Te walked n slence mostl: n part because the ddn’t want the gant to hear them, but also because there would hae been no pont n talkng. I one twn had sad to the other, “hat do ou thnk, Brother?” the other would hae repled, “I thnk what ou thnk, Brother. You know that.” Te were walkng on a path through the orest as dusk ell, when both brothers suddenl jumped back. large spder was blockng ther path. Te had nearl stepped on her. Te were goodhearted oung men and
14
The Hero Twins and the Swallower of Clouds
ngers and hurl them oer a clf. Te wn wn eroes shuddered a lttle a s the heard ths. “on’t worr,” Grandma pder told them. “I wll help ou. I am so small that I’ll be able to creep under hs legs and slp b unnotced. nd then, I’ll coer up hs ees wth gant cobwebs so that he won’t be able to see ou. Tat wa perhaps we mght be able to deal wth hm.” nd that’s what the dd. Te next da when the saw the gant’s oot stckng up n the ar, and the gant’s legs sprawled across the path, the crept as close as the could wthout makng a sound. ot a twg cracked, not a lea rustled. Ten Grandma pder leapt of the shoulder o the rst twn and crept slentl under the gant’s legs. Te gant heard nothng, elt nothng. e went on pretendng to be asleep. Grandma pder scurred on as ast as she could on all eght legs. er now and then she threw out a lament and swung hersel rom rond to rond and bush to bush. hen she got to the gant’s head, she spun her webs oer the gant’s ees. e was stll pretendng to be ast asleep. Te wn eroes, meanwhle, crcled around the gant’s legs, one went to the let, the other to the rght, and caught hm unawares. Te gant groped or them. e swung hs arms ths wa and that, but he couldn’t see them n order to catch them. nd so the slew hm. Te entre countrsde sghed wth rele. Tere would be ran agan! Te clouds gathered, there was a mght thunderclap, and the ran ell. s the wn eroes walked back, Grandma pder rode on the shoulder o Brother wo. Te people greeted them n the wa returnng heroes desere to be greeted: wth shouts o jo and roars o applause. But the wn eroes held up ther hands. Brother ne held up hs rght hand and Brother wo
13
appalled b the thought that the mght hae hurt her. “Grandma!” the cred, both speakng at once. “e almost ddn’t see ou! re ou all rght?” “ course I’m all rght,” Grandmother pder retorted. he looked at them out o her wse, old ees. “here are ou of to, m handsome oung men?” “e’re of to sla the gant,” Brother ne sad. “e’s swallowng the clouds,” Brother wo added. “nd no ran alls,” Brother ne went on. Te spoke turn b turn, addng to each other’s phrases and concludng each other’s sentences. “I, n our wsdom, ou know o anthng, Grandma ” “Tat would help us to sla the gant ” “Ten please tell us ” “Because the land s dng ” “nd our need s great.” Grandma pder looked at the two oung men and sad gentl, “Your cause s just and our need s great. ome wth me and rest n m cae or the nght. nd I wll tell ou the gant’s secret. thers hae come beore ou, and aled, ou know.” “e know, Grandma,” the wn eroes sad humbl. hu mbl.“nd we thank ou.” Te old spder told them that the gant made a practce o sprawlng across the path to hs lar and pretendng to be asleep. Ten when people came along and walked under hs legs, he would sprng to le, snap them up n hs
The Hero Twins and the Swallower of Clouds 15
held up hs let hand. “he s the true hero,” the sad smultaneousl, pontng to Grandma pder. “thout her nothng would hae been possble.” Te told the people how she had crept unnotced under the gant’s legs and spun cobwebs oer hs closed ees. Te people roared and applauded and shouted hurrahs or all three o them, and the honoured them eer ater. ow, should ou eer come across an mage o two oung men, wth a rer runnng below ther eet, and the two oung men look lke mrror mages o one another, ou wll know that ou are lookng at the wn eroes. ne o the heroes alwas has a spder restng on hs shoulder. I t’s the hero on the let sde o the mage, then the spder rests on hs let shoulder. I t’s the hero on the rght sde o the mage, then the spder rests on hs rght shoulder. Grandma pder and the wn eroes don’t much mnd whch hero’s shoulder she rests on as long as the rers run and the trees n the woodland grow straght and tall and reach towards the clouds drtng aboe them.
14
The Hero Twins and the Swallower of Clouds
ngers and hurl them oer a clf. Te wn wn eroes shuddered a lttle a s the heard ths. “on’t worr,” Grandma pder told them. “I wll help ou. I am so small that I’ll be able to creep under hs legs and slp b unnotced. nd then, I’ll coer up hs ees wth gant cobwebs so that he won’t be able to see ou. Tat wa perhaps we mght be able to deal wth hm.” nd that’s what the dd. Te next da when the saw the gant’s oot stckng up n the ar, and the gant’s legs sprawled across the path, the crept as close as the could wthout makng a sound. ot a twg cracked, not a lea rustled. Ten Grandma pder leapt of the shoulder o the rst twn and crept slentl under the gant’s legs. Te gant heard nothng, elt nothng. e went on pretendng to be asleep. Grandma pder scurred on as ast as she could on all eght legs. er now and then she threw out a lament and swung hersel rom rond to rond and bush to bush. hen she got to the gant’s head, she spun her webs oer the gant’s ees. e was stll pretendng to be ast asleep. Te wn eroes, meanwhle, crcled around the gant’s legs, one went to the let, the other to the rght, and caught hm unawares. Te gant groped or them. e swung hs arms ths wa and that, but he couldn’t see them n order to catch them. nd so the slew hm. Te entre countrsde sghed wth rele. Tere would be ran agan! Te clouds gathered, there was a mght thunderclap, and the ran ell. s the wn eroes walked back, Grandma pder rode on the shoulder o Brother wo. Te people greeted them n the wa returnng heroes desere to be greeted: wth shouts o jo and roars o applause. But the wn eroes held up ther hands. Brother ne held up hs rght hand and Brother wo
The Hero Twins and the Swallower of Clouds 15
held up hs let hand. “he s the true hero,” the sad smultaneousl, pontng to Grandma pder. “thout her nothng would hae been possble.” Te told the people how she had crept unnotced under the gant’s legs and spun cobwebs oer hs closed ees. Te people roared and applauded and shouted hurrahs or all three o them, and the honoured them eer ater. ow, should ou eer come across an mage o two oung men, wth a rer runnng below ther eet, and the two oung men look lke mrror mages o one another, ou wll know that ou are lookng at the wn eroes. ne o the heroes alwas has a spder restng on hs shoulder. I t’s the hero on the let sde o the mage, then the spder rests on hs let shoulder. I t’s the hero on the rght sde o the mage, then the spder rests on hs rght shoulder. Grandma pder and the wn eroes don’t much mnd whch hero’s shoulder she rests on as long as the rers run and the trees n the woodland grow straght and tall and reach towards the clouds drtng aboe them.
The Green Man
THE
Green Man
ORy FROM ANy yHS retold by Mariam Karim-Ahlawat Karim-Ahlawat
Te sa ou call or hm, he ma grant ou audence. en toda. ho s he? e s lKhzr, the Green an. Te sa he was the one who ound the ater o e whch gae hm mmortalt. In Inda he s known as a water det, as Pr Bhadr, as aja Kdar. e rules the monsoon and hs ehcle s a large sh. Te sa owers sprout where he walks. o, ou happen to see an old, old man n a long, green garment... look agan! It ma be lKhzr hmsel. But b the tme ou look agan, he ma be gone, or he has the gt o nsblt too. ho s ths man and how dd he come b hs gts?
17
Tere are man stores. ere’s one… Tere was once, about 2,00 ears ago, a great Greek kng and general, known n sa as ZulQarnan (o the wo orns) or kandar. s kngdom extended rom acedona to gpt to Gujarat and the malaas. e had a wazr, wazr, a mnster and companon who, the sa, went b the name o lKhzr, a humble and pous man wth an amazng ntellect. Te strange thng was that sometmes he wasn’t there at all. ther he made hmsel nsble or, some sa, he traelled nto nother me, whereer he was needed. ogether, lKhzr and kandar, along wth kandar’s conquerng armes, oaged ar and wde. Te coered hal the earth. Te een traelled to Iceland. Te went to r anka. Te two companons had heard that somewhere beond all the seas n the and o arkness at the nd o the orld was the ountan o the ater o e. Te had heard that ou drank rom ths ountan ou became mmortal. ow lKhzr wasn’t reall bothered about ndng ths ountan. e was a humble man, unlke oung kandar. kandar was ull o hs own mportance - he wanted to conquer the world, and become a partner to llah. Te sa he was searchng or mmortalt. nd so he sought the ountan o e that la at the nd o the orld n the and o arkness beond the settng o the sun n the western waters. But wheneer kandar and hs wazr sat down to dscuss ths quest, lKhzr dd not show much nterest. Ts puzzled kandar. e began to doubt hs wazr. It was all er well that he was now the greatest emperor that eer led but he ddn't nd the ater o e, surel some da,
The Green Man
THE
Green Man
ORy FROM ANy yHS retold by Mariam Karim-Ahlawat Karim-Ahlawat
Te sa ou call or hm, he ma grant ou audence. en toda. ho s he? e s lKhzr, the Green an. Te sa he was the one who ound the ater o e whch gae hm mmortalt. In Inda he s known as a water det, as Pr Bhadr, as aja Kdar. e rules the monsoon and hs ehcle s a large sh. Te sa owers sprout where he walks. o, ou happen to see an old, old man n a long, green garment... look agan! It ma be lKhzr hmsel. But b the tme ou look agan, he ma be gone, or he has the gt o nsblt too. ho s ths man and how dd he come b hs gts?
18
The Green Man
lke all mortals, he would de and that would be the end o hm! kandar couldn’t bear the thought o leang all hs worldl acheements behnd when he ded. o, he must nd the magcal ountan that would ge hm le oreer! nd lKhzr thought t wasn’t mportant! ad he been an emperor nstead o just a wazr, he would know! th ths n mnd he sad to lKhzr one da, “ ead me to the nd o the orld!” Ts wa, he thought, he would nd the ater o e wthout hang to dscuss t wth the old man. kandar announced to hs people that he was gong on a long and arduous journe wth hs armes, across seas and mountans and deserts and orests, to the nd o the orld, where n the and o arkness was hdden the ountan o Immortalt. Immortalt. rom tme to tme durng ther journe, kandar would ask, “here are we gong, m rend? o look or what?” But not once dd lKhzr utter the name o the magcal ountan and kandar was dsapponted each tme. s the sted strange and dstant lands, met wth ther kngs and wse men and rulers and wazrs, kandar would make t a pont to ask each o them the knew the wa to the and o arkness where la the prng o Immortalt. Immortalt. an pretended to know, some sad the ddn’t. thers sad t was onl a tale and there was no such place, nor an such sprng. Ten, man, man months later, kandar and hs armes along wth lKhzr arred at a cold, dark desert. In the dstance, on one sde, the could see some lghts, er brght lghts.
17
Tere are man stores. ere’s one… Tere was once, about 2,00 ears ago, a great Greek kng and general, known n sa as ZulQarnan (o the wo orns) or kandar. s kngdom extended rom acedona to gpt to Gujarat and the malaas. e had a wazr, wazr, a mnster and companon who, the sa, went b the name o lKhzr, a humble and pous man wth an amazng ntellect. Te strange thng was that sometmes he wasn’t there at all. ther he made hmsel nsble or, some sa, he traelled nto nother me, whereer he was needed. ogether, lKhzr and kandar, along wth kandar’s conquerng armes, oaged ar and wde. Te coered hal the earth. Te een traelled to Iceland. Te went to r anka. Te two companons had heard that somewhere beond all the seas n the and o arkness at the nd o the orld was the ountan o the ater o e. Te had heard that ou drank rom ths ountan ou became mmortal. ow lKhzr wasn’t reall bothered about ndng ths ountan. e was a humble man, unlke oung kandar. kandar was ull o hs own mportance - he wanted to conquer the world, and become a partner to llah. Te sa he was searchng or mmortalt. nd so he sought the ountan o e that la at the nd o the orld n the and o arkness beond the settng o the sun n the western waters. But wheneer kandar and hs wazr sat down to dscuss ths quest, lKhzr dd not show much nterest. Ts puzzled kandar. e began to doubt hs wazr. It was all er well that he was now the greatest emperor that eer led but he ddn't nd the ater o e, surel some da,
The Green Man
19
n the other sde was complete darkness. chll wnd seemed to be blowng rom the darkness. kandar sad that the should moe n the drecton o the brght lghts or there the were lkel to nd people who would tell them where the mraculous sprng was. lKhzr, on the other hand, sad the needed to moe n the drecton o the chll wnd and the darkness! But or once, and onl because destn had ated t so, kandar dd not lsten to hs wazr and the parted was. kandar went of towards the brght lghts wth all hs pomp and attendants and cooks and tents and horses. lKhzr went nto the darkness wth onl a ew ollowers, among them Ilas. Te had some meagre prosons wth them, a ew contaners o salted sh, almonds and dates. da and a nght the traelled — one cannot reall sa da, because t was true the had unknowngl reached the nd o the orld, the and o arkness. But Ilas notced that as the crossed the desert t had become green and ull o owers and erns and trees! Te tred not to eel hungr, to sae ther prosons, but the were assaled b hunger pangs and sat down b a sprng surrounded b lush greener to eat a small meal o salted sh. Beore openng ther bundle o prosons, the slaked ther thrst at the clear and sweet sprng. Te water was cool and went lke qucksler down ther throats. ow energsed and relaxed the elt, hang drunk rom the sprng! Ten the opened ther tn o dred sh. B mstake one sh ell nto the pool o the sprng — and what dd the see? Te sh became ale on touchng the water, and
18
The Green Man
lke all mortals, he would de and that would be the end o hm! kandar couldn’t bear the thought o leang all hs worldl acheements behnd when he ded. o, he must nd the magcal ountan that would ge hm le oreer! nd lKhzr thought t wasn’t mportant! ad he been an emperor nstead o just a wazr, he would know! th ths n mnd he sad to lKhzr one da, “ ead me to the nd o the orld!” Ts wa, he thought, he would nd the ater o e wthout hang to dscuss t wth the old man. kandar announced to hs people that he was gong on a long and arduous journe wth hs armes, across seas and mountans and deserts and orests, to the nd o the orld, where n the and o arkness was hdden the ountan o Immortalt. Immortalt. rom tme to tme durng ther journe, kandar would ask, “here are we gong, m rend? o look or what?” But not once dd lKhzr utter the name o the magcal ountan and kandar was dsapponted each tme. s the sted strange and dstant lands, met wth ther kngs and wse men and rulers and wazrs, kandar would make t a pont to ask each o them the knew the wa to the and o arkness where la the prng o Immortalt. Immortalt. an pretended to know, some sad the ddn’t. thers sad t was onl a tale and there was no such place, nor an such sprng. Ten, man, man months later, kandar and hs armes along wth lKhzr arred at a cold, dark desert. In the dstance, on one sde, the could see some lghts, er brght lghts.
The Green Man
The Green Man
19
n the other sde was complete darkness. chll wnd seemed to be blowng rom the darkness. kandar sad that the should moe n the drecton o the brght lghts or there the were lkel to nd people who would tell them where the mraculous sprng was. lKhzr, on the other hand, sad the needed to moe n the drecton o the chll wnd and the darkness! But or once, and onl because destn had ated t so, kandar dd not lsten to hs wazr and the parted was. kandar went of towards the brght lghts wth all hs pomp and attendants and cooks and tents and horses. lKhzr went nto the darkness wth onl a ew ollowers, among them Ilas. Te had some meagre prosons wth them, a ew contaners o salted sh, almonds and dates. da and a nght the traelled — one cannot reall sa da, because t was true the had unknowngl reached the nd o the orld, the and o arkness. But Ilas notced that as the crossed the desert t had become green and ull o owers and erns and trees! Te tred not to eel hungr, to sae ther prosons, but the were assaled b hunger pangs and sat down b a sprng surrounded b lush greener to eat a small meal o salted sh. Beore openng ther bundle o prosons, the slaked ther thrst at the clear and sweet sprng. Te water was cool and went lke qucksler down ther throats. ow energsed and relaxed the elt, hang drunk rom the sprng! Ten the opened ther tn o dred sh. B mstake one sh ell nto the pool o the sprng — and what dd the see? Te sh became ale on touchng the water, and
The Green Man
1
swam awa! Tat was when the knew the had ound the sprng o the ater o Immortalt, the a’ul aaat, that kandar had searched or ar and wde! Ilas had also seen erns and grasses and owers sprng n the path lKhzr walked, and suspected he was the Immortal ant o ater and Verdure. e asked hm, “Your name s lKhzr, the Green ne, where do ou come rom?” lKhzr told hm hs home was on a lush green sland n the mddle o the seas, a place called Khdargama or Katargama (the home o Khdar or Khzr, as we know that ‘gam’ or ‘gram’ means ’llage’). nd ‘khzr’, o course, means ‘green’. It s ndeed conusng. or one, tme n these stores sn’t stable. or another, there are man questons. d lKhzr know the secret o the ountan beore he reached t? as he alread mmortal? ow dd the desert turn nto lush orest as he crossed t? as the ountan the dscoered the ountan o e at all? I t was, wh ddn’t Ilas become mmortal as well? Te stor doesn’t tell us lKhzr met kandar eer agan. But we do know that kandar didn’t attan mmortalt. e ded n Bablon llness n the palace o n 2 B at the oung age o 2 o a msterous llness ebuchadnezzar ebuchadnezzar II o Bablon. ome sa he was posoned. ow, een the ountan n the desert n our stor wasn’t the ountan o e, een there isn’t an such ountan at all (who knows?) we can be certan o one thng: that t s water that ges le to all lng thngs on earth. In our olar stem, earth s the onl planet that has water, and thereore has le. ater makes the green plants grow, whch n turn ge
The Green Man
The Green Man
1
swam awa! Tat was when the knew the had ound the sprng o the ater o Immortalt, the a’ul aaat, that kandar had searched or ar and wde! Ilas had also seen erns and grasses and owers sprng n the path lKhzr walked, and suspected he was the Immortal ant o ater and Verdure. e asked hm, “Your name s lKhzr, the Green ne, where do ou come rom?” lKhzr told hm hs home was on a lush green sland n the mddle o the seas, a place called Khdargama or Katargama (the home o Khdar or Khzr, as we know that ‘gam’ or ‘gram’ means ’llage’). nd ‘khzr’, o course, means ‘green’. It s ndeed conusng. or one, tme n these stores sn’t stable. or another, there are man questons. d lKhzr know the secret o the ountan beore he reached t? as he alread mmortal? ow dd the desert turn nto lush orest as he crossed t? as the ountan the dscoered the ountan o e at all? I t was, wh ddn’t Ilas become mmortal as well? Te stor doesn’t tell us lKhzr met kandar eer agan. But we do know that kandar didn’t attan mmortalt. e ded n Bablon llness n the palace o n 2 B at the oung age o 2 o a msterous llness ebuchadnezzar ebuchadnezzar II o Bablon. ome sa he was posoned. ow, een the ountan n the desert n our stor wasn’t the ountan o e, een there isn’t an such ountan at all (who knows?) we can be certan o one thng: that t s water that ges le to all lng thngs on earth. In our olar stem, earth s the onl planet that has water, and thereore has le. ater makes the green plants grow, whch n turn ge
The Green Man
ood and oxgen to all creatures, ncludng humans. It's a curous tale, open to dferent knds o nterpretaton. ne message rngs loud and clear we see the quest or mmortalt mmortalt as a metaphor or preserng and ndng was to sustan le: we can exst onl we presere our water bodes, keep them clean and sweet and pure, and our seas ree o polluton. nl then can we contnue to le on earth wth owers and trees and grasses and erns sprngng all around us, wth the brds and nsects, shes and anmals that le n the glades and ponds and orests. Ts contnut o le on earth, surel, s the true meanng o mmortalt. Te contnut o a Green orld, thereore, the Green an! Interestngl, there s a place n r anka called Katargama wth a mosque and a shrne to azarat Khzr, the Green an. Is r anka then the sland n the mddle o the seas that lKhzr spoke o? an plgrms come here to look or the a’ul aaat, the ater o e. Yes, ou can go there too, but who knows such a sprng stll exsts? nd would ou reall want to be mmortal? But mabe we can all be companons o the Green an n hs quest, to keep the earth pure and clean and green...
Selekana and the
River Goddess
ORy FROM BOSWANA retold by Zai Whitaker
ow lsten well, reader, because ths stor comes to ou rom the and o tores whch s, as ou ma or ma not know, Botswana n rca. nd some sa t’s a true stor and some sa t sn’t, and there are ghts about ths under a er old baobab tree. But ths need not worr us; we wll just get on wth the stor. ow the begnnng o the stor s ths, that the old rcan sun has just peeped oer the thorn trees and sprnkled a dust mornng lght on the eld and on the rer and on the mpalas standng as stll as stone statues. Te mornng lght also alls on a small llage and on the rer below t.
The Green Man
ood and oxgen to all creatures, ncludng humans. It's a curous tale, open to dferent knds o nterpretaton. ne message rngs loud and clear we see the quest or mmortalt mmortalt as a metaphor or preserng and ndng was to sustan le: we can exst onl we presere our water bodes, keep them clean and sweet and pure, and our seas ree o polluton. nl then can we contnue to le on earth wth owers and trees and grasses and erns sprngng all around us, wth the brds and nsects, shes and anmals that le n the glades and ponds and orests. Ts contnut o le on earth, surel, s the true meanng o mmortalt. Te contnut o a Green orld, thereore, the Green an! Interestngl, there s a place n r anka called Katargama wth a mosque and a shrne to azarat Khzr, the Green an. Is r anka then the sland n the mddle o the seas that lKhzr spoke o? an plgrms come here to look or the a’ul aaat, the ater o e. Yes, ou can go there too, but who knows such a sprng stll exsts? nd would ou reall want to be mmortal? But mabe we can all be companons o the Green an n hs quest, to keep the earth pure and clean and green...
4
Selekana and the River Goddess
But t’s a thn and hungr rer compared to what t was a ear ago. ntl a ear ago t was a at, health, nos rer wth wateralls and pools and large, laz sh. nd n the ran tme o ear t doubled, and the bg bull rogs came out o ther summer tunnels and made such a loud roar that ou couldn’t sleep! wake and rrtated, some o the older Batswana would carr ther reed mats outsde and sleep behnd the row o mopane trees. ne otswana een ran down to the rer n a rage and shouted at the rogs to be quet. But he onl succeeded n makng them call twce as loud. (ow beore we go an urther I must explan that Batswana means people, and otswana means one person. Ts s o course n etswana, whch s o course a language n Botswana.) But gone were the das o the wateralls and the bullrogs. as the er Goddess angr wth the Batswana? “abe she eels we hae become selsh,” sad one wse old otswana. “But what hae we done?” asked the other Batswana. “nd how can we make her happ?” But the old otswana onl looked nto the dstance and gae no answer. round the eenng cook res, the elders talked about
Selekana and the
River Goddess
ORy FROM BOSWANA retold by Zai Whitaker
ow lsten well, reader, because ths stor comes to ou rom the and o tores whch s, as ou ma or ma not know, Botswana n rca. nd some sa t’s a true stor and some sa t sn’t, and there are ghts about ths under a er old baobab tree. But ths need not worr us; we wll just get on wth the stor. ow the begnnng o the stor s ths, that the old rcan sun has just peeped oer the thorn trees and sprnkled a dust mornng lght on the eld and on the rer and on the mpalas standng as stll as stone statues. Te mornng lght also alls on a small llage and on the rer below t.
Selekana and the River Goddess
5
how to make the er Goddess happ agan. ne otswana sad ths, another sad that. nd le went on. Tere were man beautul oung grls who led n ths llage. nd the most specal o them all was elekana. ot onl was she as loel as a mopane ower and graceul as an mpala, but she was er kndhearted. ne o her man dal acts o kndness was to etch water or all the old people o the llage. he etched water or them because the pathwa to the rer was steep and the were scared o slppng and allng. In exchange or ths kndness the old ones would ge her ther bead jewelr. Te old women wear er lttle jewelr, just a small bangle mabe, so the had plent to ge awa. Te loed elekana and ths was a good wa o thankng her or etchng them pots o water and or all the other thngs she dd or them so wllngl. You ma know, or ou ma not, that the Batswana are amous or beadcrat. Te make bracelets and amulets and arm bands and wast bands, and also necklaces and earrngs and anklets n beautul, eecatchng colours. Blue and red and ellow and green… but also man unusual halcolours that hae names n etswana but not n nglsh. “Ke tumetse” the would sa, whch means thank ou, and ge her another pece o jewelr. “swee tswee” elekana would sa, wth a sh smle. Please. Please don’t, I lke helpng ou. But the wouldn’t take t back. oon elekana had the best collecton collecton o bead jewelr n the llage and she wore all o t, eer sngle thng, all the tme, whch s the wa o the Batswana. nd the other grls o the llage became more and more jealous,
4
Selekana and the River Goddess
But t’s a thn and hungr rer compared to what t was a ear ago. ntl a ear ago t was a at, health, nos rer wth wateralls and pools and large, laz sh. nd n the ran tme o ear t doubled, and the bg bull rogs came out o ther summer tunnels and made such a loud roar that ou couldn’t sleep! wake and rrtated, some o the older Batswana would carr ther reed mats outsde and sleep behnd the row o mopane trees. ne otswana een ran down to the rer n a rage and shouted at the rogs to be quet. But he onl succeeded n makng them call twce as loud. (ow beore we go an urther I must explan that Batswana means people, and otswana means one person. Ts s o course n etswana, whch s o course a language n Botswana.) But gone were the das o the wateralls and the bullrogs. as the er Goddess angr wth the Batswana? “abe she eels we hae become selsh,” sad one wse old otswana. “But what hae we done?” asked the other Batswana. “nd how can we make her happ?” But the old otswana onl looked nto the dstance and gae no answer. round the eenng cook res, the elders talked about
6
Selekana and the River Goddess
whch s the wa o the world. nd one da the became so jealous that the couldn’t bear t an more. Te made a plan. ow lsten well. Te household work s done. Te meale or maze pap has been made or lunch. It s tme to go down to the rer. elekana has three pots to ll toda, and strdes down to the water wth the rst one balanced on her head. he can turn her head ths wa and that and een laugh wth her whole bod wthout losng the pot. he sas hello to eerone she passes on the track. “umela mma” she sas to the women, and
Selekana and the River Goddess
5
how to make the er Goddess happ agan. ne otswana sad ths, another sad that. nd le went on. Tere were man beautul oung grls who led n ths llage. nd the most specal o them all was elekana. ot onl was she as loel as a mopane ower and graceul as an mpala, but she was er kndhearted. ne o her man dal acts o kndness was to etch water or all the old people o the llage. he etched water or them because the pathwa to the rer was steep and the were scared o slppng and allng. In exchange or ths kndness the old ones would ge her ther bead jewelr. Te old women wear er lttle jewelr, just a small bangle mabe, so the had plent to ge awa. Te loed elekana and ths was a good wa o thankng her or etchng them pots o water and or all the other thngs she dd or them so wllngl. You ma know, or ou ma not, that the Batswana are amous or beadcrat. Te make bracelets and amulets and arm bands and wast bands, and also necklaces and earrngs and anklets n beautul, eecatchng colours. Blue and red and ellow and green… but also man unusual halcolours that hae names n etswana but not n nglsh. “Ke tumetse” the would sa, whch means thank ou, and ge her another pece o jewelr. “swee tswee” elekana would sa, wth a sh smle. Please. Please don’t, I lke helpng ou. But the wouldn’t take t back. oon elekana had the best collecton collecton o bead jewelr n the llage and she wore all o t, eer sngle thng, all the tme, whch s the wa o the Batswana. nd the other grls o the llage became more and more jealous,
Selekana and the River Goddess
7
“umela rra” to the men. Te grls are watng or her at the rer. elekana notces somethng er strange. one o them are wearng ther jewelr! o beads, not een a rng or bangle! s she hurres down, puzzled, the come up the jungle path to meet her. Te call out n loud, excted oces. Te tell her that toda s a rersacrce da. Te tell her the hae gen the rer all ther jewelr. Te tell her that the arms o the er Goddess burst out o the water to recee ther oferngs. Te tell her she must do the same. elekana’s heart msses a beat or two because she loes her jewelr. ot onl because t’s so beautul but also because each bracelet, each rng and each necklace has been gen to her n thanks or her kndness. nd she s also a lttle puzzled because sacrces were usuall announced n adance, b an old otswana durng the eenng cooktme. But she puts these doubts out o her head, takes of her beads one at a tme, and throws them all nto the water. nd she pras to the er Goddess wth the specal words that the Batswana use ater a sacrce. he pras to the waters and to the er Goddess whle the other grls gggle and laugh behnd a thorn tree. s the gggle and hug each other n delght, the pull out ther beads rom under a ple o leaes. Te eel proud o the success o ther plan. hen elekana sees them laughng and clutchng ther beads she realses she’s been trcked. he kneels down on the bank and cres. he begs the rer to return her jewelr. “h Goddess, hae merc on me!” But there s no repl and she goes home wth sad, slow steps. sad, slow week goes b.
6
Selekana and the River Goddess
Selekana and the River Goddess
whch s the wa o the world. nd one da the became so jealous that the couldn’t bear t an more. Te made a plan. ow lsten well. Te household work s done. Te meale or maze pap has been made or lunch. It s tme to go down to the rer. elekana has three pots to ll toda, and strdes down to the water wth the rst one balanced on her head. he can turn her head ths wa and that and een laugh wth her whole bod wthout losng the pot. he sas hello to eerone she passes on the track. “umela mma” she sas to the women, and
8
“umela rra” to the men. Te grls are watng or her at the rer. elekana notces somethng er strange. one o them are wearng ther jewelr! o beads, not een a rng or bangle! s she hurres down, puzzled, the come up the jungle path to meet her. Te call out n loud, excted oces. Te tell her that toda s a rersacrce da. Te tell her the hae gen the rer all ther jewelr. Te tell her that the arms o the er Goddess burst out o the water to recee ther oferngs. Te tell her she must do the same. elekana’s heart msses a beat or two because she loes her jewelr. ot onl because t’s so beautul but also because each bracelet, each rng and each necklace has been gen to her n thanks or her kndness. nd she s also a lttle puzzled because sacrces were usuall announced n adance, b an old otswana durng the eenng cooktme. But she puts these doubts out o her head, takes of her beads one at a tme, and throws them all nto the water. nd she pras to the er Goddess wth the specal words that the Batswana use ater a sacrce. he pras to the waters and to the er Goddess whle the other grls gggle and laugh behnd a thorn tree. s the gggle and hug each other n delght, the pull out ther beads rom under a ple o leaes. Te eel proud o the success o ther plan. hen elekana sees them laughng and clutchng ther beads she realses she’s been trcked. he kneels down on the bank and cres. he begs the rer to return her jewelr. “h Goddess, hae merc on me!” But there s no repl and she goes home wth sad, slow steps. sad, slow week goes b.
Selekana and the River Goddess
Selekana and the River Goddess
But the er Goddess had seen t all. ne mornng, elekana bent oer the water to ll an old otswana’s water pot. s she pulled up the pot, she thought she heard a oce n the water. It was a ant, water sound and at rst she elt she was magnng t. Ten she remembered the old stores. It was the er Goddess! Te oce called agan and agan, and nall spoke these words: “Kndhearted “Kndhearted grl, ollow me.” elekana was conused about where the er Goddess wanted her to go. But her bod knew. er legs walked nto the water, to a small pool where moss had greened the slpper rocks. Ten there was a
7
swrl o water and she was pulled n, n, n, nto a beautul cae decorated wth the most amazng beadwork. n the cae roo were ocks o stars, but no, there couldn’t be stars n ths dark underwater room. ookng closel, elekana realsed that the were swarms o rees. ow had the got here? Te efect was magcal as the tted n and out o the crsscross curtans o beads.
9
8
Selekana and the River Goddess
Selekana and the River Goddess
But the er Goddess had seen t all. ne mornng, elekana bent oer the water to ll an old otswana’s water pot. s she pulled up the pot, she thought she heard a oce n the water. It was a ant, water sound and at rst she elt she was magnng t. Ten she remembered the old stores. It was the er Goddess! Te oce called agan and agan, and nall spoke these words: “Kndhearted “Kndhearted grl, ollow me.” elekana was conused about where the er Goddess wanted her to go. But her bod knew. er legs walked nto the water, to a small pool where moss had greened the slpper rocks. Ten there was a
3
9
swrl o water and she was pulled n, n, n, nto a beautul cae decorated wth the most amazng beadwork. n the cae roo were ocks o stars, but no, there couldn’t be stars n ths dark underwater room. ookng closel, elekana realsed that the were swarms o rees. ow had the got here? Te efect was magcal as the tted n and out o the crsscross curtans o beads.
Selekana and the River Goddess
Te er Goddess spoke agan. “Kndhearted grl, ths s all ours, as much as ou can carr. ake ake whateer ou l ke. It’s all ours.” e lekana ran here and there and then here and then there agan, pckng up the most beautul necklaces and anklets and bracelets. oon she was wearng seeral laers o jewelr and carrng more n her hands. But then, just as she turned to leae, a strong eelng shook her whole bod. Tese treasures belonged here n ths lumnous underwater cae. It wasn’t rght to take them. o, onl takng her own beads, the gts rom the old people, she let the cae and was lted up to the surace o the water b a gentle, unseen hand. an ou magne the surprse o those other grls when she walked back to the llage? Ter ees almost popped out o ther sll heads! ow lsten well, because the strangest thng o all happened about a week ater ths. Te rer swelled and almost ooded ts banks. It swelled to twce ts sze, een though there was not a drop o ran. nd the Batswana n that llage and other llages downstream and upstream neer had a water shortage agan. Te could grow meales and cassaa and other crops. nd the water pots alwas came back ull. But not the water pots o the grls who had plaed the trck on elekana. hen the bent down to ll ther pots, the water would rush awa n the other drecton, leang sand and mud or them. It was a long tme, about two ears, the sa, beore the er Goddess orgae them and let water ow nto ther pots. t least, that’s what an old otswana told me just the other da…
Queen
of the World
ORy FROM AiN retold by Sandhya Rao
“Back to earth, are we?” ernando opened hs ees to a blur o shadows that graduall became sharper untl he was able to nd the person who had spoken. man wth an unshaen ace was leerng at hm. “ater!” gasped ernando. “I beg ou!” e was hangng orward rom the oremast, rough ropes btng nto hs bones. ernando had no recollecton o how he had come to be lke ths. s mouth was dr and hs bod elt lke a bag o broken glass. s clothes were blooded and torn, hs stomach grped and the salt ar made hs cuts burn. But he was oblous to hs bod. ll he was aware o was a terrble thrst. e dd not know that he had been set upon b the crew n hs captan’s cabn and dragged across the galleon’s deck to the oremast where he had been strung up. “Ts s mutn!” he had protested. “I shall not allow t! I am our captan! You are trators!” But b the ourth da o hs ncarceraton, hs oce had weakened to a whsper. whsper. tared o ood and dened een water b hs tormentors, hs oce had eentuall aded awa. B the sxth da he had slpped nto a daze, reng onl occasonall when a bucket o water
3
Selekana and the River Goddess
Te er Goddess spoke agan. “Kndhearted grl, ths s all ours, as much as ou can carr. ake ake whateer ou l ke. It’s all ours.” e lekana ran here and there and then here and then there agan, pckng up the most beautul necklaces and anklets and bracelets. oon she was wearng seeral laers o jewelr and carrng more n her hands. But then, just as she turned to leae, a strong eelng shook her whole bod. Tese treasures belonged here n ths lumnous underwater cae. It wasn’t rght to take them. o, onl takng her own beads, the gts rom the old people, she let the cae and was lted up to the surace o the water b a gentle, unseen hand. an ou magne the surprse o those other grls when she walked back to the llage? Ter ees almost popped out o ther sll heads! ow lsten well, because the strangest thng o all happened about a week ater ths. Te rer swelled and almost ooded ts banks. It swelled to twce ts sze, een though there was not a drop o ran. nd the Batswana n that llage and other llages downstream and upstream neer had a water shortage agan. Te could grow meales and cassaa and other crops. nd the water pots alwas came back ull. But not the water pots o the grls who had plaed the trck on elekana. hen the bent down to ll ther pots, the water would rush awa n the other drecton, leang sand and mud or them. It was a long tme, about two ears, the sa, beore the er Goddess orgae them and let water ow nto ther pots. t least, that’s what an old otswana told me just the other da…
3
Queen of the World
was slapped aganst hs bod, delberatel, eer now and then, to shock hm back to hs senses. en das had gone b n ths state o beng onl halale. s mnd had wandered among past oages, chldhood, and the embrace o home. Ts last had reed hm somewhat and hs ees had uttered open. “Back to earth, are we?” It was a tme, more than sx hundred ears ago, when pan’s name perced the ar corners o the newl dscoered mercas, to whch shploads o pansh men, women and anmals oaged, and settled whereer the could nd a oothold. olders o god and solders o war carred the roal wrt orward and pan became the centre o the unerse. Tere she sat and so she ruled. Tat s wh, one da, s ajest summoned aptan Jaer ernando arquez, commander o the trusted galleon a ena del undo, queen o the world, to hs palace n adrd. ernando would ge hs le or hs queen. e would also la down hs le or hs kng. o when summoned, he went. “h! delante, eñor aptan! delante! ome n!” sad s ajest when ernando’s name was announced b the ootman.“I hae a job or ou. You wll go to the ew orld.” Te ew orld! ore than hal a ear’s journe awa! ernando had neer been so ar. s heart skpped a beat. e bowed and sad n a oce that betraed nothng, “, u ajestad!”
Queen
of the World
ORy FROM AiN retold by Sandhya Rao
“Back to earth, are we?” ernando opened hs ees to a blur o shadows that graduall became sharper untl he was able to nd the person who had spoken. man wth an unshaen ace was leerng at hm. “ater!” gasped ernando. “I beg ou!” e was hangng orward rom the oremast, rough ropes btng nto hs bones. ernando had no recollecton o how he had come to be lke ths. s mouth was dr and hs bod elt lke a bag o broken glass. s clothes were blooded and torn, hs stomach grped and the salt ar made hs cuts burn. But he was oblous to hs bod. ll he was aware o was a terrble thrst. e dd not know that he had been set upon b the crew n hs captan’s cabn and dragged across the galleon’s deck to the oremast where he had been strung up. “Ts s mutn!” he had protested. “I shall not allow t! I am our captan! You are trators!” But b the ourth da o hs ncarceraton, hs oce had weakened to a whsper. whsper. tared o ood and dened een water b hs tormentors, hs oce had eentuall aded awa. B the sxth da he had slpped nto a daze, reng onl occasonall when a bucket o water
Queen of the World 33
“You do not ask wh, ernando!” sad the kng. “on’t ou want to know?” “You hae onl to speak, u ajestad!” repled ernando. Te kng spoke. e told hm he must carr merchants and goods or panards settled recentl n hs colones n the arbbean and the mercas, and return wth rches, a treasure shp, or adrd. ernando had heard about these rches. salor hears man stores, especall o prates and plunderers who, down the ages and to ths da, terrorse passng shps. But or ernando, a ena was all the dreams he desred. er dolphn he sghted was a shnng jewel, eer humpbacked humpbacked whale more precous than rubes. glmpse o ole rdles swmmng serenel beneath the waes was lke beng blessed wth a son o Vrgn ar. “ler rom Peru, gold rom cuador, emeralds and pearls, ernando!” sad the kng. “You wll brng all these and more or other pan.” en as he spoke, hs ocals n the colones were leadng groups o dggers and ders to search the waters and the earth or treasures. ernando was apponted to brng those treasures home. “Go!” sad the kng wth urgenc. “Vaa con os! Go wth God!” thn weeks, ernando had cobbled together a crew o some one hundred and
3
Queen of the World
was slapped aganst hs bod, delberatel, eer now and then, to shock hm back to hs senses. en das had gone b n ths state o beng onl halale. s mnd had wandered among past oages, chldhood, and the embrace o home. Ts last had reed hm somewhat and hs ees had uttered open. “Back to earth, are we?” It was a tme, more than sx hundred ears ago, when pan’s name perced the ar corners o the newl dscoered mercas, to whch shploads o pansh men, women and anmals oaged, and settled whereer the could nd a oothold. olders o god and solders o war carred the roal wrt orward and pan became the centre o the unerse. Tere she sat and so she ruled. Tat s wh, one da, s ajest summoned aptan Jaer ernando arquez, commander o the trusted galleon a ena del undo, queen o the world, to hs palace n adrd. ernando would ge hs le or hs queen. e would also la down hs le or hs kng. o when summoned, he went. “h! delante, eñor aptan! delante! ome n!” sad s ajest when ernando’s name was announced b the ootman.“I hae a job or ou. You wll go to the ew orld.” Te ew orld! ore than hal a ear’s journe awa! ernando had neer been so ar. s heart skpped a beat. e bowed and sad n a oce that betraed nothng, “, u ajestad!”
34
Queen of the World
eght marners, grummets, deckhands and others, and traned them n the was o a ena. Te journe would take oer a ear and the stocked up on ood, water, and ratons. ead and eager, the set sal rom elle on a sunn prl mornng. er the next ew months, e ena called at Porto Bello, aana, Panama, Vera ruz. t each port, workers arred b mule trans carrng bags o precous gems and sler and gold bullon worth mllons and mllons. In pan, the gold and sler would be mnted nto pesos that would make that naton the most powerul n the world. Indeed, or man ears ater that, otllas o treasure shps would carr back rches to pan. ow, though, ernando watched as the workers unloaded the bags, carred them up the gangplank, and deposted them n the cargo hold. ome o them were oung, ther aces so unlned, t made hm catch hs breath and thnk o hs chldren back home. hen the last bag was hauled n, the lted anchor and set sal or home. t rst, all went well. Tere was an ar o lghtness despte the cargo, or gold and sler and gems are hea and a sht n balance could tlt the galleon. Ten suddenl, the wnd changed drecton, the clouds grew hea, and the waes began began to rse hgher and hgher untl t was no longer possble
Queen of the World 33
“You do not ask wh, ernando!” sad the kng. “on’t ou want to know?” “You hae onl to speak, u ajestad!” repled ernando. Te kng spoke. e told hm he must carr merchants and goods or panards settled recentl n hs colones n the arbbean and the mercas, and return wth rches, a treasure shp, or adrd. ernando had heard about these rches. salor hears man stores, especall o prates and plunderers who, down the ages and to ths da, terrorse passng shps. But or ernando, a ena was all the dreams he desred. er dolphn he sghted was a shnng jewel, eer humpbacked humpbacked whale more precous than rubes. glmpse o ole rdles swmmng serenel beneath the waes was lke beng blessed wth a son o Vrgn ar. “ler rom Peru, gold rom cuador, emeralds and pearls, ernando!” sad the kng. “You wll brng all these and more or other pan.” en as he spoke, hs ocals n the colones were leadng groups o dggers and ders to search the waters and the earth or treasures. ernando was apponted to brng those treasures home. “Go!” sad the kng wth urgenc. “Vaa con os! Go wth God!” thn weeks, ernando had cobbled together a crew o some one hundred and
Queen of the World 35
to tell sk rom sea. a ena had rdden nto a storm. rms ached, eet swelled, and thoughts o home assaled the crew as the struggled to keep the shp on course. Te waes beat relentlessl, shakng the galleon rom sde to sde. Te das were dark, and the nghts, when the salors had a chance to sleep, lled wth restless dreams. lowl, rats and cockroaches emerged rom hdng places. Gorgojos ermn easted on peas and bee and rce, and the blges below the cargo hold stank rom a mxture o sea water, urne and slops. alors ell ll and dscontent descended descended upon a ena. “h should we le n such lth whle the captan enjos hs cabn?” sad alador as he came down to hs quarters at the end o hs watch one nght. Te sea was chopp, the wnd was chll, and dankness hung n the ar. “ere we are, carrng the world’s rches back to pan, and all we hae to show or t s three hundred paltr pesos!” sad guel. “Tat, onl when we get home,” sad alador. “I we do.” “h should we wallow n poert whle the kng les n luxur…” Tere was truth to ths, but lke re on ol, dsenchantment spread n the quarters and grew nto a btter ur. Te word spread, and beore long, all the crew, to a man, began to help themseles to the treasure, a handul at a tme, so ernando wouldn’t notce. course he notced and when he dd, he appealed to them, reasoned wth them, commanded them, remnded them o ther dut to god and kng. But b now, the sudden wealth had turned the salors’ heads, and the reused to lsten. nd when he rejected ther suggeston to help hmsel too to the boot, the mutned. Te stormed hs cabn, berated and beat hm, and dragged hm across the deck and lashed hm to the oremast wth rough
34
Queen of the World 35
Queen of the World
eght marners, grummets, deckhands and others, and traned them n the was o a ena. Te journe would take oer a ear and the stocked up on ood, water, and ratons. ead and eager, the set sal rom elle on a sunn prl mornng. er the next ew months, e ena called at Porto Bello, aana, Panama, Vera ruz. t each port, workers arred b mule trans carrng bags o precous gems and sler and gold bullon worth mllons and mllons. In pan, the gold and sler would be mnted nto pesos that would make that naton the most powerul n the world. Indeed, or man ears ater that, otllas o treasure shps would carr back rches to pan. ow, though, ernando watched as the workers unloaded the bags, carred them up the gangplank, and deposted them n the cargo hold. ome o them were oung, ther aces so unlned, t made hm catch hs breath and thnk o hs chldren back home. hen the last bag was hauled n, the lted anchor and set sal or home. t rst, all went well. Tere was an ar o lghtness despte the cargo, or gold and sler and gems are hea and a sht n balance could tlt the galleon. Ten suddenl, the wnd changed drecton, the clouds grew hea, and the waes began began to rse hgher and hgher untl t was no longer possble
ropes. Te dded the spols among themseles. Te became prates aboard ther own shp. as passed. ll the whle, the men teased and taunted ernando, ernando, thnkng up newer and newer was o torturng hm. It became a cruel game. Te ate n ront o hm, wet drt cloths n pssng pals and touched them to hs lps, and when he begged or water, pretended to brng a ask close to hs lps and then pulled t out o reach. oon, there was nothng on hs mnd but the taste o sweet water to quench hs desperate thrst. Te nght ernando ded, another storm brewed. It came out o the blue, wthout warnng, leang the men no tme to go to ther posts. horrendous wnd pcked up drectl behnd the shp, lted her of
to tell sk rom sea. a ena had rdden nto a storm. rms ached, eet swelled, and thoughts o home assaled the crew as the struggled to keep the shp on course. Te waes beat relentlessl, shakng the galleon rom sde to sde. Te das were dark, and the nghts, when the salors had a chance to sleep, lled wth restless dreams. lowl, rats and cockroaches emerged rom hdng places. Gorgojos ermn easted on peas and bee and rce, and the blges below the cargo hold stank rom a mxture o sea water, urne and slops. alors ell ll and dscontent descended descended upon a ena. “h should we le n such lth whle the captan enjos hs cabn?” sad alador as he came down to hs quarters at the end o hs watch one nght. Te sea was chopp, the wnd was chll, and dankness hung n the ar. “ere we are, carrng the world’s rches back to pan, and all we hae to show or t s three hundred paltr pesos!” sad guel. “Tat, onl when we get home,” sad alador. “I we do.” “h should we wallow n poert whle the kng les n luxur…” Tere was truth to ths, but lke re on ol, dsenchantment spread n the quarters and grew nto a btter ur. Te word spread, and beore long, all the crew, to a man, began to help themseles to the treasure, a handul at a tme, so ernando wouldn’t notce. course he notced and when he dd, he appealed to them, reasoned wth them, commanded them, remnded them o ther dut to god and kng. But b now, the sudden wealth had turned the salors’ heads, and the reused to lsten. nd when he rejected ther suggeston to help hmsel too to the boot, the mutned. Te stormed hs cabn, berated and beat hm, and dragged hm across the deck and lashed hm to the oremast wth rough
the water and smashed her aganst a ggantc rock. a ena splt down the centre and sank. o one sured. othng remaned. But on storm nghts, a ena emerges rom the sea to the sounds o a ghastl howlng. sten, and ou wll hear them, a ena’s crew, crng, “Ge us water! Ge us water!” hen ths happens, turn back and sal awa, or ou lock ees wth een one o a ena’s men, all the water on board our shp wll turn salt. I know, or t was I who cursed them wth eternal thrst. I am Jaer ernando arquez.
ropes. Te dded the spols among themseles. Te became prates aboard ther own shp. as passed. ll the whle, the men teased and taunted ernando, ernando, thnkng up newer and newer was o torturng hm. It became a cruel game. Te ate n ront o hm, wet drt cloths n pssng pals and touched them to hs lps, and when he begged or water, pretended to brng a ask close to hs lps and then pulled t out o reach. oon, there was nothng on hs mnd but the taste o sweet water to quench hs desperate thrst. Te nght ernando ded, another storm brewed. It came out o the blue, wthout warnng, leang the men no tme to go to ther posts. horrendous wnd pcked up drectl behnd the shp, lted her of
the water and smashed her aganst a ggantc rock. a ena splt down the centre and sank. o one sured. othng remaned. But on storm nghts, a ena emerges rom the sea to the sounds o a ghastl howlng. sten, and ou wll hear them, a ena’s crew, crng, “Ge us water! Ge us water!” hen ths happens, turn back and sal awa, or ou lock ees wth een one o a ena’s men, all the water on board our shp wll turn salt. I know, or t was I who cursed them wth eternal thrst. I am Jaer ernando arquez.
A Well is Born
A Well is
Born
ORy FROM INDiA retold by Radhika Chadha Te ngneer stood beore the bg crowd and spoke n a oce both cheerul and loud. “B eenng tomorrow, I can oretell, our dr lttle llage wll hae ts own well.” Te llagers burst nto joul chatter: ater so long, the promse o water! n end to all ther problems — at last. readng a drought? thng o the past! “o more carrng pots or mles and mles,” whspered the women, all wreathed n smles. Te men remembered ther lands so barren, and how thed worred about a amne. th a well, the could rrgate ther elds, wth a well, the could get better crop elds, wth a well, the’d be ree o the terrble ear that the rans would be late agan ths ear.
opeul, excted, the loudl clamoured, “ngneer aheb, d’ou ge us our word? ll we trul be blessed wth a well ths week? ll we nall gan the water we seek?” “ week? h much sooner than that, I sa, ou’ll hae our well b the end o the da. I’m an expert n water and wells and drllng,” he sad to the crowd around hm mllng. “I’e looked at reports, I’e studed the maps. knowledge o wells smpl has no gaps. I hae sureed the land or mles around, and I'm sure there’s water here to be ound.” arl next da when the sun was stll low, and the sk sufused wth a pnksh glow, the ngneer addressed hs trusted team, “ome, let us ull the llagers’ dream.” rmed wth maps, reports, a truck and a drll, the went straght to the base o a small hll wearng saet helmets, brght and ellow, — the ngneer was a careul ellow.
39
A Well is Born
A Well is
Born
ORy FROM INDiA retold by Radhika Chadha Te ngneer stood beore the bg crowd and spoke n a oce both cheerul and loud. “B eenng tomorrow, I can oretell, our dr lttle llage wll hae ts own well.” Te llagers burst nto joul chatter: ater so long, the promse o water! n end to all ther problems — at last. readng a drought? thng o the past! “o more carrng pots or mles and mles,” whspered the women, all wreathed n smles. Te men remembered ther lands so barren, and how thed worred about a amne.
opeul, excted, the loudl clamoured, “ngneer aheb, d’ou ge us our word? ll we trul be blessed wth a well ths week? ll we nall gan the water we seek?” “ week? h much sooner than that, I sa, ou’ll hae our well b the end o the da. I’m an expert n water and wells and drllng,” he sad to the crowd around hm mllng. “I’e looked at reports, I’e studed the maps. knowledge o wells smpl has no gaps. I hae sureed the land or mles around, and I'm sure there’s water here to be ound.” arl next da when the sun was stll low, and the sk sufused wth a pnksh glow, the ngneer addressed hs trusted team, “ome, let us ull the llagers’ dream.” rmed wth maps, reports, a truck and a drll, the went straght to the base o a small hll wearng saet helmets, brght and ellow, — the ngneer was a careul ellow.
th a well, the could rrgate ther elds, wth a well, the could get better crop elds, wth a well, the’d be ree o the terrble ear that the rans would be late agan ths ear.
Te stopped n the shade o the rock mound and assembled ther stuf on the ston ground. “I we drll here, o ths I am sure: we wll nd water, both sweet and pure,” sad the ngneer, wth much condence. (nd t can be sad, n hs deence, that all the wells he had e er drlled had been wth abundant water lled.) Te team got read to work at the spot. e’ll hae a well b noon, the thought. Te drll began to groan and moan as t tore through laers o rock and stone. Te llagers heard the deaenng sound and a horde o them headed to the mound, leang the armng and cookng behnd — how could the work, wth ths on ther mnd? omen and chldren, oung men and old, hopng and prang that the would behold a wondrous sght — the brth o a well — takng ther llage to heaen rom hell. cloud o dust hoered oer the hllock as the crew ought wth the adamant rock. B noon the team had reached ts goal o percng the ground wth a deep, deep hole.
t mdda the hot sun scorched and blazed. Puzzled, the ngneer stood there and gazed at the team, at the hole, at the dust cloud. e scratched hs head, he wondered aloud. “mm. e should hae struck some water b now, perhaps t les a ew metres below. et’s make the hole deeper, let’s drll some more.” gan there sounded that thunderous roar. In the eenng sk the sun drew lower, the ngneer’s ace began to glower. B twlght the matter became qute clear: there was water, t was not here. Te ngneer turned to the watng crowd, hs shoulders sagged, hs head was bowed. “I am sorr that I aled ou toda. e’ll do t tomorrow, that’s all I can sa.” Te er next da he pcked a new spot, the bored a deep hole, but no water the got. Te ngneer’s ace grew anxous and gre, as a resh ste the attempted on the thrd da. hen een the thrd hole was dr and rejected the ngneer looked so bleak and dejected, that hs maps and reports he began to tear. Te llagers were lled wth dark despar.
39
Te stopped n the shade o the rock mound and assembled ther stuf on the ston ground. “I we drll here, o ths I am sure: we wll nd water, both sweet and pure,” sad the ngneer, wth much condence. (nd t can be sad, n hs deence, that all the wells he had e er drlled had been wth abundant water lled.) Te team got read to work at the spot. e’ll hae a well b noon, the thought. Te drll began to groan and moan as t tore through laers o rock and stone. Te llagers heard the deaenng sound and a horde o them headed to the mound, leang the armng and cookng behnd — how could the work, wth ths on ther mnd? omen and chldren, oung men and old, hopng and prang that the would behold a wondrous sght — the brth o a well — takng ther llage to heaen rom hell. cloud o dust hoered oer the hllock as the crew ought wth the adamant rock. B noon the team had reached ts goal o percng the ground wth a deep, deep hole.
4
t mdda the hot sun scorched and blazed. Puzzled, the ngneer stood there and gazed at the team, at the hole, at the dust cloud. e scratched hs head, he wondered aloud. “mm. e should hae struck some water b now, perhaps t les a ew metres below. et’s make the hole deeper, let’s drll some more.” gan there sounded that thunderous roar. In the eenng sk the sun drew lower, the ngneer’s ace began to glower. B twlght the matter became qute clear: there was water, t was not here. Te ngneer turned to the watng crowd, hs shoulders sagged, hs head was bowed. “I am sorr that I aled ou toda. e’ll do t tomorrow, that’s all I can sa.” Te er next da he pcked a new spot, the bored a deep hole, but no water the got. Te ngneer’s ace grew anxous and gre, as a resh ste the attempted on the thrd da. hen een the thrd hole was dr and rejected the ngneer looked so bleak and dejected, that hs maps and reports he began to tear. Te llagers were lled wth dark despar.
A Well is Born
A Well is Born
Just then a armer wth knd and wse ees sad, ”I ou don’t mnd, I hae some adce. I belee that water can be ound there.” e ponted to a termte mound. “nd n case ou thnk that t’s a trck, I assure ou — t’s qute scentc. I’e notced,” sad he, n a graell oce, “termte hlls are alwas damp and most. o matter how dr the summer can get, termtes nd water to keep ther nest wet. o ou drll there, o ths I am sure: ou wll nd water, both sweet and pure.” Te ngneer lstened to what he’d just heard, there was much sense n the old armer’s words. Te lled hm aresh wth gour and zest. e started to work near the termte nest. Te’d just punched a hole a ew metres deep when the saw a sght that made ther hearts leap. ater spraed up — a ountan o jo, wth brght ranbow colours mstng the sk. “Brng out the drums, brng out the horn! et’s celebrate, a well s born!” Te llagers sang, the llagers danced. Te son o water had them entranced.
43
4
A Well is Born
A Well is Born
43
Just then a armer wth knd and wse ees sad, ”I ou don’t mnd, I hae some adce. I belee that water can be ound there.” e ponted to a termte mound. “nd n case ou thnk that t’s a trck, I assure ou — t’s qute scentc. I’e notced,” sad he, n a graell oce, “termte hlls are alwas damp and most. o matter how dr the summer can get, termtes nd water to keep ther nest wet. o ou drll there, o ths I am sure: ou wll nd water, both sweet and pure.” Te ngneer lstened to what he’d just heard, there was much sense n the old armer’s words. Te lled hm aresh wth gour and zest. e started to work near the termte nest. Te’d just punched a hole a ew metres deep when the saw a sght that made ther hearts leap. ater spraed up — a ountan o jo, wth brght ranbow colours mstng the sk. “Brng out the drums, brng out the horn! et’s celebrate, a well s born!” Te llagers sang, the llagers danced. Te son o water had them entranced.
44
A Well is Born
hen the gushng water the ngneer saw, he sad to the armer n shock and awe, “ho’d hae thought a well could be ound stuated near a termte mound? here dd ou get ths amazng knowledge? I ddn’t realse ou’d been to college!” Te old armer smled and sad, amused, “I don’t blame ou or eelng conused I ou want tps on how to nd water, I’ll tell ou the erse n the Brhat amhta. I recommend ths ancent treatse wrtten b Varahamhra the wse.” It’s all about obserng le, ou know, where nsects le, how the trees grow. I to nature’s clues we pa careul heed, the secrets o the earth are qute eas to read.” Te thankul ngneer departed rch wth knowledge the armer’d mparted. e resoled to take ths learnng and spread t ar and wde, across the land. I I ma make a suggeston bold: et us combne new scence and old. Ten ths earth o ours wll be trul blessed wth the wsdom o ast and est.
Author's note: Ts poem was nspred b a mth rom the Ior oast.
A Well is Born
45
44
A Well is Born
A Well is Born
45
House of Sun and Moon
47
hen the gushng water the ngneer saw, he sad to the armer n shock and awe, “ho’d hae thought a well could be ound stuated near a termte mound? here dd ou get ths amazng knowledge? I ddn’t realse ou’d been to college!” Te old armer smled and sad, amused, “I don’t blame ou or eelng conused I ou want tps on how to nd water, I’ll tell ou the erse n the Brhat amhta. I recommend ths ancent treatse wrtten b Varahamhra the wse.” It’s all about obserng le, ou know, where nsects le, how the trees grow. I to nature’s clues we pa careul heed, the secrets o the earth are qute eas to read.” Te thankul ngneer departed rch wth knowledge the armer’d mparted. e resoled to take ths learnng and spread t ar and wde, across the land. I I ma make a suggeston bold: et us combne new scence and old. Ten ths earth o ours wll be trul blessed wth the wsdom o ast and est.
Author's note: Ts poem was nspred b a mth rom the Ior oast.
House of
Sun and Moon ORy FROM iERiA retold byAmruta Patil
Te were a handsome couple, un and oon. hereer the stood, the world turned beautul. ogether, un and oon bult a house. It took a lot o tme, and t took a lot o place — all the space the sk had to ofer, n act, but the dd t. nd when t was read, the house was bgger than the bggest, more room than heaen tsel, and lled wth the most delghtul thngs. un and oon created trees and mountans n
the dstance so there would alwas be an nterestng ew. In ther garden, ocks o clouds ran about lke so man techncolor sheep. nd the lght! B datme, the walls o the house were soothng blue, or dazzlng gold, or purpledpnk lke sunset. B nghttme, the the celng was draped n a bllon dazzlng, hea stars. Te were rather an about ths house, were un and oon — the spent hours admrng ther own handwork. oon t became obous that a beautul house was no un at all unless someone came b to see t. Te had rends aplent (wth ater beng ther best rend among all), so un and oon planned a bg housewarmng part where eerone was nted. ot a pachderm or beetle was let out, each bee and seed got a separate ntaton. hat a grand ête t was! Tere was a spectacular ound, ght and agc show, and sumptuous ood, and owers and hone at the table. Te ar smelled o wet earth and cakentheoen — and someone gted oon a chandeler o asterods. nd came b, slk cotton pods burst open n tme to htch a rde up, planets and satelltes made careul orbts, meteors showered oerhead, ocks o geese dd cleer sortes, descendng snowakes made a detour so the could get a good ew. Te sunowers (who couldn't make t because the were grounded) craned ther necks up the entre tme so the wouldn’t mss a thng. en when the part was oer, t was not all oer, and eerone got a shn precous return gt. Yes, t was the best part n the unerse. hen the had put awa the last star and settled the last cloud down to sleep, un and oon stood n ther garden. Te ought to hae been happ wth the throngs o awestruck guests who had come and gone — but the onl thng the could thnk about were the ones who ddn’t show up.
House of Sun and Moon
47
House of
Sun and Moon ORy FROM iERiA retold byAmruta Patil
Te were a handsome couple, un and oon. hereer the stood, the world turned beautul. ogether, un and oon bult a house. It took a lot o tme, and t took a lot o place — all the space the sk had to ofer, n act, but the dd t. nd when t was read, the house was bgger than the bggest, more room than heaen tsel, and lled wth the most delghtul thngs. un and oon created trees and mountans n
48 House of Sun and Moon
nd the onl ones who didn’t show up or the best part n the nerse were ater and her chldren. “e hae been to her house thousands o tmes. I help her wth her waes eer da. nd see how she gnored us on our bg da,” complaned oon. “ow, now. I’m sure she has a er good reason,” sad un unconncngl. e elt snubbed b ater’s noshow too, but knew t was a terrble dea or two people to be sulkng together. specall when one o the two people happened to be oon. he took das to recoer once she went nto a sulk crescent – sometmes she dsappeared rom the sk entrel and droe un craz wth despar. “You’d thnk our best rend would want to see us happ, but no…" oon traled of dramatcall. Te next mornng, un decded to nestgate the matter hmsel. “hem!” he cleared hs throat loudl rom the hghest pont oerhead at noon, trng to look lke he was just passng b. “You!” “h, hello,” sad ater shl, “I hear ou hosted the best part n the nerse.” “h do ou care? You ddn’t come.” “th all the guests, I ddn’t thnk ou’d een notce.” “e notce when socalled best rends gnore us. on’t ou lke to see us happ?” “ course I do! I couldn’t come because I hae a responsibility…” “esponsblt!” gufawed un. “ puddle dares talk to me about responsblt! Tat’s what ou reall are, an oergrown puddle. I could eaporate ou n mnutes, and there would be nothng let but salt and
the dstance so there would alwas be an nterestng ew. In ther garden, ocks o clouds ran about lke so man techncolor sheep. nd the lght! B datme, the walls o the house were soothng blue, or dazzlng gold, or purpledpnk lke sunset. B nghttme, the the celng was draped n a bllon dazzlng, hea stars. Te were rather an about ths house, were un and oon — the spent hours admrng ther own handwork. oon t became obous that a beautul house was no un at all unless someone came b to see t. Te had rends aplent (wth ater beng ther best rend among all), so un and oon planned a bg housewarmng part where eerone was nted. ot a pachderm or beetle was let out, each bee and seed got a separate ntaton. hat a grand ête t was! Tere was a spectacular ound, ght and agc show, and sumptuous ood, and owers and hone at the table. Te ar smelled o wet earth and cakentheoen — and someone gted oon a chandeler o asterods. nd came b, slk cotton pods burst open n tme to htch a rde up, planets and satelltes made careul orbts, meteors showered oerhead, ocks o geese dd cleer sortes, descendng snowakes made a detour so the could get a good ew. Te sunowers (who couldn't make t because the were grounded) craned ther necks up the entre tme so the wouldn’t mss a thng. en when the part was oer, t was not all oer, and eerone got a shn precous return gt. Yes, t was the best part n the unerse. hen the had put awa the last star and settled the last cloud down to sleep, un and oon stood n ther garden. Te ought to hae been happ wth the throngs o awestruck guests who had come and gone — but the onl thng the could thnk about were the ones who ddn’t show up.
House of Sun and Moon
49
sand!” nd he laughed loudl and cruell, and made ater eel ashamed and small. ll o a sudden, un stopped laughng. “on’t talk to me about our responsbltes agan,” sad he. “I run the entre olar stem and stll hae tme to buld a abulous house and plan a part and make handwrtten ntes or ngrates. o one else has more responsibility.” ater was hurt b un's rudeness, but she knew hm long enough to know he was not a bad star at heart. he repled n measured tones. “It’s true I don’t run the olar stem, but I hae chldren I can’t leae unattended. Te can’t le wthout me. ” “uh,” sad un, who was stll not n a lstenng mood. “In that case ou should’e brought our chldren wth ou. You know how popular oon and I are wth chldren.” “Te loe ou,” ater sad patentl, “but there are too man o them. nd there s too much o me. Your house would be too small to accommodate all o us.” Tat was the last straw. I there was one thng un prded hmsel on, t was the grand scale o hs entures, and he was not about to be belttled b a mere lqud. “re ou trng to mock me?” he hollered. “ka, arweather rend, I am gong. I hae just a sunset to attend to, and I'm keepng ou rom our responsibilities.” “o! o!” sad ater, who was largel pacc b nature and shed awa rom loud noses she could help t. “I was onl sang that t would be nconenent. I am a lttle large.” “ bgger house than oon’s and mne, no one has eer seen,” un
48 House of Sun and Moon
House of Sun and Moon
nd the onl ones who didn’t show up or the best part n the nerse were ater and her chldren. “e hae been to her house thousands o tmes. I help her wth her waes eer da. nd see how she gnored us on our bg da,” complaned oon. “ow, now. I’m sure she has a er good reason,” sad un unconncngl. e elt snubbed b ater’s noshow too, but knew t was a terrble dea or two people to be sulkng together. specall when one o the two people happened to be oon. he took das to recoer once she went nto a sulk crescent – sometmes she dsappeared rom the sk entrel and droe un craz wth despar. “You’d thnk our best rend would want to see us happ, but no…" oon traled of dramatcall. Te next mornng, un decded to nestgate the matter hmsel. “hem!” he cleared hs throat loudl rom the hghest pont oerhead at noon, trng to look lke he was just passng b. “You!” “h, hello,” sad ater shl, “I hear ou hosted the best part n the nerse.” “h do ou care? You ddn’t come.” “th all the guests, I ddn’t thnk ou’d een notce.” “e notce when socalled best rends gnore us. on’t ou lke to see us happ?” “ course I do! I couldn’t come because I hae a responsibility…” “esponsblt!” gufawed un. “ puddle dares talk to me about responsblt! Tat’s what ou reall are, an oergrown puddle. I could eaporate ou n mnutes, and there would be nothng let but salt and
5 House of Sun and Moon
sand!” nd he laughed loudl and cruell, and made ater eel ashamed and small. ll o a sudden, un stopped laughng. “on’t talk to me about our responsbltes agan,” sad he. “I run the entre olar stem and stll hae tme to buld a abulous house and plan a part and make handwrtten ntes or ngrates. o one else has more responsibility.” ater was hurt b un's rudeness, but she knew hm long enough to know he was not a bad star at heart. he repled n measured tones. “It’s true I don’t run the olar stem, but I hae chldren I can’t leae unattended. Te can’t le wthout me. ” “uh,” sad un, who was stll not n a lstenng mood. “In that case ou should’e brought our chldren wth ou. You know how popular oon and I are wth chldren.” “Te loe ou,” ater sad patentl, “but there are too man o them. nd there s too much o me. Your house would be too small to accommodate all o us.” Tat was the last straw. I there was one thng un prded hmsel on, t was the grand scale o hs entures, and he was not about to be belttled b a mere lqud. “re ou trng to mock me?” he hollered. “ka, arweather rend, I am gong. I hae just a sunset to attend to, and I'm keepng ou rom our responsibilities.” “o! o!” sad ater, who was largel pacc b nature and shed awa rom loud noses she could help t. “I was onl sang that t would be nconenent. I am a lttle large.” “ bgger house than oon’s and mne, no one has eer seen,” un
House of Sun and Moon
contnued cuttngl, but he was begnnng to eel a bt sheepsh about the awul thngs he'd sad. nd he reall did want ater to see the house. “I ou want to make amends, come home tomorrow eenng. Brng our entre aml and ou wll see, there wll stll be room or more.” ater stll thought t was a terrble dea, but she sghed and relented. Te ollowng mornng, ater set about gatherng all her chldren nto her apron, so none would be let behnd to parch and de whle she was awa. It was a complcated job — man o her ofsprng were sh, slpper and rather delcate — and t took all da. areull, ater scooped up her tralng bluegreen
49
51
skrt, and started her long journe towards the house o un and oon. s she made her wa up, oceans, seas, glacers, rers, streams, brooks, lakes, ponds and puddles all joned n. er seaweed and shrmp and lotus and porpose and turtle and plankton and sh and seal and crab and sea snake and mangroe joned the water parade — not to menton a mllon others ou wouldn’t know on rstname bass. It was ther rst outng eer, and eerone was besdes themseles wth exctement — the onl one who was anxous was ater hersel. empest, phoon phoon and de had de cded to come along as well, and she knew thngs could get er bosterous when the were around. B the tme the part reached the door o un and oon’s house, sprts had reached uncontrollable eer ptch. Te sk was an upsdedown bowl o water, and eer last cloud drowned n t. Jellsh had settled themseles on the garden, Baleen hale rcocheted n the sk, and when ater rang
5 House of Sun and Moon
House of Sun and Moon
contnued cuttngl, but he was begnnng to eel a bt sheepsh about the awul thngs he'd sad. nd he reall did want ater to see the house. “I ou want to make amends, come home tomorrow eenng. Brng our entre aml and ou wll see, there wll stll be room or more.” ater stll thought t was a terrble dea, but she sghed and relented. Te ollowng mornng, ater set about gatherng all her chldren nto her apron, so none would be let behnd to parch and de whle she was awa. It was a complcated job — man o her ofsprng were sh, slpper and rather delcate — and t took all da. areull, ater scooped up her tralng bluegreen
5 House of Sun and Moon
the doorbell, a gargantuan wae bult up behnd her back — eerone wanted to peer oer her shoulder to see what wonders the house held. “Be rght there,” called out oon n her sler hostess oce. “You ma want to reconsder the ntaton beore ou open the door,” sad ater, “and I wll not eel bad at all.” “er creature n exstence,” sad un n an mperous oce rom the other sde o the door, “must see the glores o the house o un and oon at least once n ther le.” o sooner had he unlatched the door dd the ggantc wae crash down nto the house o un and oon. hat a lot o water t was! Broke the door rght of ts hnges and washed awa eerthng n sght. orrents o water poured n rom eer crece, sh skdded on the carpets, a sea cow landed smack n the mddle o the dnng table. oon there were whrlpools all oer and the house o un and oon came tumblng down. oon leaped atop the asterod chandeler to eade the ood. s or un, hs dgnt was a bt dampened, but he managed to escape through the celng and wat tll the water had calmed a bt. o that was all about the da ater sted the house o un and oon. But dd the hold a grudge? o the ddn’t. Te unerse s bg, as anone can see, and such lttle thngs reall don't count. o un and oon went on to buld themseles another beautul house. ater cheered rom a dstance and sent them a ranbow when the were done. Te three o them went rght back to beng best rends agan. nd needless to sa, un and oon neer underestmated ater’s responsibility agan.
51
skrt, and started her long journe towards the house o un and oon. s she made her wa up, oceans, seas, glacers, rers, streams, brooks, lakes, ponds and puddles all joned n. er seaweed and shrmp and lotus and porpose and turtle and plankton and sh and seal and crab and sea snake and mangroe joned the water parade — not to menton a mllon others ou wouldn’t know on rstname bass. It was ther rst outng eer, and eerone was besdes themseles wth exctement — the onl one who was anxous was ater hersel. empest, phoon phoon and de had de cded to come along as well, and she knew thngs could get er bosterous when the were around. B the tme the part reached the door o un and oon’s house, sprts had reached uncontrollable eer ptch. Te sk was an upsdedown bowl o water, and eer last cloud drowned n t. Jellsh had settled themseles on the garden, Baleen hale rcocheted n the sk, and when ater rang
Koluscap and the
Water Monster
AivE MERiCAN ORy retold by S owmya Rajendran
Have you heard o the sea monster whose eyes were red suns? At night when he slept in the deep ocean, the little fshes looked at his breaths o fre and dared one another to go closer, just an inch closer, to him. But not one did. Te sea monster was so ter riying that only Koluscap, the great spirit, could stop him...
asha, the oldest woman n the llage, looked up at the burnng sk and sghed. Te sun spat out arrows o re lke an angr warror who could not be stopped. Tere were no ran clouds to be seen. asha could eel the earth under her ge up hope. It would not ran toda ether. Te stream had dred up. It had laughed and sung wth the people o the llage or so man ears. s a lttle grl, asha had tred to catch the moon as t oated n the water, leapng wth the rpples. nd now, t was gone. It s el magc that has sucked up our stream and dren the ran clouds awa, some whspered. thers sad, o, we must go upstream and nd out what has happened. o a messenger was sent to the llage where the stream began to nd out the truth. hen he reached the llage, the messenger was shocked to
5 House of Sun and Moon
the doorbell, a gargantuan wae bult up behnd her back — eerone wanted to peer oer her shoulder to see what wonders the house held. “Be rght there,” called out oon n her sler hostess oce. “You ma want to reconsder the ntaton beore ou open the door,” sad ater, “and I wll not eel bad at all.” “er creature n exstence,” sad un n an mperous oce rom the other sde o the door, “must see the glores o the house o un and oon at least once n ther le.” o sooner had he unlatched the door dd the ggantc wae crash down nto the house o un and oon. hat a lot o water t was! Broke the door rght of ts hnges and washed awa eerthng n sght. orrents o water poured n rom eer crece, sh skdded on the carpets, a sea cow landed smack n the mddle o the dnng table. oon there were whrlpools all oer and the house o un and oon came tumblng down. oon leaped atop the asterod chandeler to eade the ood. s or un, hs dgnt was a bt dampened, but he managed to escape through the celng and wat tll the water had calmed a bt. o that was all about the da ater sted the house o un and oon. But dd the hold a grudge? o the ddn’t. Te unerse s bg, as anone can see, and such lttle thngs reall don't count. o un and oon went on to buld themseles another beautul house. ater cheered rom a dstance and sent them a ranbow when the were done. Te three o them went rght back to beng best rends agan. nd needless to sa, un and oon neer underestmated ater’s responsibility agan.
Koluscap and the
Water Monster
AivE MERiCAN ORy retold by S owmya Rajendran
Have you heard o the sea monster whose eyes were red suns? At night when he slept in the deep ocean, the little fshes looked at his breaths o fre and dared one another to go closer, just an inch closer, to him. But not one did. Te sea monster was so ter riying that only Koluscap, the great spirit, could stop him...
asha, the oldest woman n the llage, looked up at the burnng sk and sghed. Te sun spat out arrows o re lke an angr warror who could not be stopped. Tere were no ran clouds to be seen. asha could eel the earth under her ge up hope. It would not ran toda ether. Te stream had dred up. It had laughed and sung wth the people o the llage or so man ears. s a lttle grl, asha had tred to catch the moon as t oated n the water, leapng wth the rpples. nd now, t was gone. It s el magc that has sucked up our stream and dren the ran clouds awa, some whspered. thers sad, o, we must go upstream and nd out what has happened. o a messenger was sent to the llage where the stream began to nd out the truth. hen he reached the llage, the messenger was shocked to
Koluscap and the Water Monster
see that ther stream had been made capte! Te che o the llage had bult a dam because he dd not want to share the water wth anbod else. tall wall now stood, holdng back the stream. Te messenger saw that t tred to leap aboe the wall, but t ell back each tme, deeated. e then went up to the che and sad, You must break the dam and set our stream ree. Te earth s dr as a bone. thout our stream, we wll all de. Ts s m stream repled the che, hs ees gleamng lke hard pebbles. Te stream begns here and so t s mne, he sad. Te messenger was a small man, but he had hs prde. e stood as tall as he could and sad, You wll regret ths. Ten, lookng at the brae stream stll leapng
55
aganst the wall, he walked awa. t rst, the people dd not understand the messenger’s words. adn’t the stream owed through ther llage or so man ears? ow could t suddenl belong to one person alone? e wll go to the che and talk to hm, the elders o the llage sad. urel, he wll see reason? Te che dd not. e onl laughed at them and sad once agan, Te stream s mne. e need water, sad an elder. I t s water ou want, I wll ge ou water, sad the che. e called out to one o hs trbesmen and whspered somethng n hs ear. Te man returned wth a small cup made o bark that contaned some mudd water. rnk to our heart’s content! roared the che. e thought t was a er good joke ndeed. Te elders o the llage returned home n slence. Ter lps were as parched as the crackng earth. oweer, the oung people o the llage would not admt deeat so easl. e cannot st around dong nothng! the sad. nd so the warrors went to the llage upstream to ght. Te tps o ther arrows shone brght under the cuttng blade o the sun. Te stood and challenged the che. But beore the words had let ther mouths, a sea monster whose ees were red suns rose rom the water and glared at them. Te che had brought hm rom the sea to rghten awa the warrors. Te warrors rased ther bows brael, but wth one lash o hs mght tal, the sea monster klled all o them. Ten he went back to the stream to sleep.
Koluscap and the Water Monster
see that ther stream had been made capte! Te che o the llage had bult a dam because he dd not want to share the water wth anbod else. tall wall now stood, holdng back the stream. Te messenger saw that t tred to leap aboe the wall, but t ell back each tme, deeated. e then went up to the che and sad, You must break the dam and set our stream ree. Te earth s dr as a bone. thout our stream, we wll all de. Ts s m stream repled the che, hs ees gleamng lke hard pebbles. Te stream begns here and so t s mne, he sad. Te messenger was a small man, but he had hs prde. e stood as tall as he could and sad, You wll regret ths. Ten, lookng at the brae stream stll leapng
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Koluscap and the Water Monster
Te sa hs ees can shoot balls o re, sad asha’s grandson, as she sat quetl b the dr stream. e s made o the sun tsel, the chld sad. asha looked at the knobbl bones on her grandson’s chest and sad nothng. e spread spread out hs thn arms as wde as he could and sad, Ts s how bg hs head s. smle cracked open asha’s tred lps. Tere was nothng let to do now but to go to Gtchee antou, the reator. Gtchee antou lstened to the people o the llage as the told hm all that had happened. e watched the sad sag o ther shoulders. e heard the wearness n ther dr oces. Gtchee antou’s heart lled wth loe. e would sae them, he decded. e called or Koluscap, the great sprt. e was the onl one who could stop the sea monster. Te people o the llage cheered when the saw Koluscap. e looked lke a warror. e was tall, taller than the tallest tree n the llage. s ace was hal black, hal whte. e could be gentle as well as terrng, the people knew. great eagle perched on hs rght shoulder. Its talons were burnng stars and ts beak was cruel and calm. wo woles, one black and one whte, walked b Koluscap’s sde. Koluscap’s strde as he walked to the llage upstream was rm and unnchng. hen he reached the llage, he called out to the che, et the stream ree or prepare to ght! Te che made no repl. Koluscap called out agan, Te stream s or eerbod, t s not one man’s plathng! tll there was no answer. ow Koluscap strung hs bow. t once, the earth shook. It was the sea monster, Koluscap knew. s woles pawed the ground,
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aganst the wall, he walked awa. t rst, the people dd not understand the messenger’s words. adn’t the stream owed through ther llage or so man ears? ow could t suddenl belong to one person alone? e wll go to the che and talk to hm, the elders o the llage sad. urel, he wll see reason? Te che dd not. e onl laughed at them and sad once agan, Te stream s mne. e need water, sad an elder. I t s water ou want, I wll ge ou water, sad the che. e called out to one o hs trbesmen and whspered somethng n hs ear. Te man returned wth a small cup made o bark that contaned some mudd water. rnk to our heart’s content! roared the che. e thought t was a er good joke ndeed. Te elders o the llage returned home n slence. Ter lps were as parched as the crackng earth. oweer, the oung people o the llage would not admt deeat so easl. e cannot st around dong nothng! the sad. nd so the warrors went to the llage upstream to ght. Te tps o ther arrows shone brght under the cuttng blade o the sun. Te stood and challenged the che. But beore the words had let ther mouths, a sea monster whose ees were red suns rose rom the water and glared at them. Te che had brought hm rom the sea to rghten awa the warrors. Te warrors rased ther bows brael, but wth one lash o hs mght tal, the sea monster klled all o them. Ten he went back to the stream to sleep.
Koluscap and the Water Monster
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Koluscap and the Water Monster
Koluscap and the Water Monster
57
Koluscap and the Water Monster
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Te sa hs ees can shoot balls o re, sad asha’s grandson, as she sat quetl b the dr stream. e s made o the sun tsel, the chld sad. asha looked at the knobbl bones on her grandson’s chest and sad nothng. e spread spread out hs thn arms as wde as he could and sad, Ts s how bg hs head s. smle cracked open asha’s tred lps. Tere was nothng let to do now but to go to Gtchee antou, the reator. Gtchee antou lstened to the people o the llage as the told hm all that had happened. e watched the sad sag o ther shoulders. e heard the wearness n ther dr oces. Gtchee antou’s heart lled wth loe. e would sae them, he decded. e called or Koluscap, the great sprt. e was the onl one who could stop the sea monster. Te people o the llage cheered when the saw Koluscap. e looked lke a warror. e was tall, taller than the tallest tree n the llage. s ace was hal black, hal whte. e could be gentle as well as terrng, the people knew. great eagle perched on hs rght shoulder. Its talons were burnng stars and ts beak was cruel and calm. wo woles, one black and one whte, walked b Koluscap’s sde. Koluscap’s strde as he walked to the llage upstream was rm and unnchng. hen he reached the llage, he called out to the che, et the stream ree or prepare to ght! Te che made no repl. Koluscap called out agan, Te stream s or eerbod, t s not one man’s plathng! tll there was no answer. ow Koluscap strung hs bow. t once, the earth shook. It was the sea monster, Koluscap knew. s woles pawed the ground,
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Koluscap and the Water Monster
ther noses twtched. Te eagle could see the sea monster as t rose rom the water. Koluscap watched ts unblnkng ee and knew t was tme. e was read. Te sea monster was urous. e’d been woken rom hs slumber b Koluscap. th a mght roar, the sea monster tred to crush Koluscap wth ts oot. But the two woles plunged ther sharp teeth nto hs scal esh. Te sea monster howled n pan. e tred to shake awa the woles, but ther ellow ees were xed on hs eet. ne step towards Koluscap and the would bte hm agan! Te sea monster turned towards Koluscap and sent out a ball o re rom hs terrble jaws. Koluscap swered and the tree behnd hm caught re. Te sea monster was so angr that he shook hs head wldl. Beore he could send out another ball o re, Koluscap’s eagle ew swtl and plucked out hs ees. ne! nd the other! Te red suns that had so terred the people o the llage were now gone. But the sea monster was stll ghtng. s prde was hurt and he was now more dangerous because he dd not care about dng. e kcked awa the woles as the tred to dg ther teeth nto hs esh. e was approachng so ast that Koluscap could eel the monster’s hot breath sngeng hs har. Koluscap began to grow. e grew and grew tll he was so huge that the sea monster was onl the sze o hs oot. nd then, Koluscap brought down hs great oot on the beast. e held on as the monster thrashed around n rage. nall, when hs oot burned no more, he lted t and looked at the sea monster gentl. th a wae o hs mght
arm, Koluscap broke the dam. Te stream was ree! In jo, t galloped towards the llage lke a wld oal. hen the people o the llage saw ther stream leap towards them, ther ees lt up. asha’s grandson smled and hs bon chest heaed n jo. asha was so happ to see the stream that she orgot her age and jumped nto t, a grl once more. s the people watched her swm n the stream, the ears allng of her back, the too, orgot themseles and leapt n. Te people swam n the stream tll nght ell and the moon oated n the water. ome o them remembered ther chores then and clmbed to the banks o the stream, tred but happ.
But some o them neer clmbed back. Te ollowed asha as she chased the moon n the stream, her sler shback glntng. Te would swm n the water oreer, the people who loed ther stream so much that the became shes. Te would swm oreer n the water that belonged to eerone.
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Koluscap and the Water Monster
ther noses twtched. Te eagle could see the sea monster as t rose rom the water. Koluscap watched ts unblnkng ee and knew t was tme. e was read. Te sea monster was urous. e’d been woken rom hs slumber b Koluscap. th a mght roar, the sea monster tred to crush Koluscap wth ts oot. But the two woles plunged ther sharp teeth nto hs scal esh. Te sea monster howled n pan. e tred to shake awa the woles, but ther ellow ees were xed on hs eet. ne step towards Koluscap and the would bte hm agan! Te sea monster turned towards Koluscap and sent out a ball o re rom hs terrble jaws. Koluscap swered and the tree behnd hm caught re. Te sea monster was so angr that he shook hs head wldl. Beore he could send out another ball o re, Koluscap’s eagle ew swtl and plucked out hs ees. ne! nd the other! Te red suns that had so terred the people o the llage were now gone. But the sea monster was stll ghtng. s prde was hurt and he was now more dangerous because he dd not care about dng. e kcked awa the woles as the tred to dg ther teeth nto hs esh. e was approachng so ast that Koluscap could eel the monster’s hot breath sngeng hs har. Koluscap began to grow. e grew and grew tll he was so huge that the sea monster was onl the sze o hs oot. nd then, Koluscap brought down hs great oot on the beast. e held on as the monster thrashed around n rage. nall, when hs oot burned no more, he lted t and looked at the sea monster gentl. th a wae o hs mght
Koluscap and the Water Monster
arm, Koluscap broke the dam. Te stream was ree! In jo, t galloped towards the llage lke a wld oal. hen the people o the llage saw ther stream leap towards them, ther ees lt up. asha’s grandson smled and hs bon chest heaed n jo. asha was so happ to see the stream that she orgot her age and jumped nto t, a grl once more. s the people watched her swm n the stream, the ears allng of her back, the too, orgot themseles and leapt n. Te people swam n the stream tll nght ell and the moon oated n the water. ome o them remembered ther chores then and clmbed to the banks o the stream, tred but happ.
But some o them neer clmbed back. Te ollowed asha as she chased the moon n the stream, her sler shback glntng. Te would swm n the water oreer, the people who loed ther stream so much that the became shes. Te would swm oreer n the water that belonged to eerone.
Tiddalik the Frog
Tiddalik the Frog N ORiiNAL ORy FROM USRALiA retold by Suniti Namjoshi
ddalk started out le lke an other rog. e was small, lel and partal to water. e led hs le and harmed no one. In short, he was a good lttle rog o no mportance. But then he started drnkng water, more and more water, huge quanttes o water. nd as he drank, hs ablt to drnk t grew greater and greater and he hmsel grew larger and larger. oon he was larger than a wombat, and heaer too. e contnued drnkng. e couldn’t seem to stop. nd n no tme at all he was larger than a kangaroo. nd stll he drank. e grew larger than a rock, larger than a hll. e grew and grew. In the end he had drunk up all the water n the whole world. Tere was no water let or anone else. nd then he just sat there whle all the anmals
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came up to hm and looked up at hm wth pleadng ees, beggng hm to dsgorge at least some o the water. You’d hae thought that ddalk mght hae begun to eel ashamed o hmsel. nd nd at rst he dd eel a lttle ashamed. ad he perhaps been a tre thoughtless? tn bt greed? e dsmssed the thought. e was begnnng to enjo hs new ound grandeur. e sat there lookng stold and unmong and exactl lke a mountan. nd t was eas or hm to do ths because b now he was as large as a mountan or een larger. Te creatures ddn’t know what to do. Te had to hae water; but no matter how much the pleaded, ddalk wasn’t pang the slghtest attenton. “I know what we hae to do,” the kookaburra sad decsel. “e hae to make hm laugh. nce he laughs a good bell laugh, all the water wll spll out o hm.” Te others thought ths was an excellent dea. Pleadng wth the rog hadn’t worked, perhaps makng hm laugh would. “I’ll hae a go,” the kookaburra ofered. “I, msel, hae such a er splendd laugh that I’m sure I’ll be able to make hm laugh too”. “a ha ha haaaa!” the kookaburra cred. “oo hoo hoo hoooo!” the kookaburra waled. “ee hee hee heeeeee!” the kookaburra screamed. It was no use. It’s true that ddalk’s expresson changed a lttle; but there wasn’t een a hnt o amusement n t. I anthng, ddalk seemed to be sneerng slghtl as to sa he reall ddn’t thnk much o such an outlandsh perormance.
Tiddalik the Frog
Tiddalik the Frog N ORiiNAL ORy FROM USRALiA retold by Suniti Namjoshi
ddalk started out le lke an other rog. e was small, lel and partal to water. e led hs le and harmed no one. In short, he was a good lttle rog o no mportance. But then he started drnkng water, more and more water, huge quanttes o water. nd as he drank, hs ablt to drnk t grew greater and greater and he hmsel grew larger and larger. oon he was larger than a wombat, and heaer too. e contnued drnkng. e couldn’t seem to stop. nd n no tme at all he was larger than a kangaroo. nd stll he drank. e grew larger than a rock, larger than a hll. e grew and grew. In the end he had drunk up all the water n the whole world. Tere was no water let or anone else. nd then he just sat there whle all the anmals
came up to hm and looked up at hm wth pleadng ees, beggng hm to dsgorge at least some o the water. You’d hae thought that ddalk mght hae begun to eel ashamed o hmsel. nd nd at rst he dd eel a lttle ashamed. ad he perhaps been a tre thoughtless? tn bt greed? e dsmssed the thought. e was begnnng to enjo hs new ound grandeur. e sat there lookng stold and unmong and exactl lke a mountan. nd t was eas or hm to do ths because b now he was as large as a mountan or een larger. Te creatures ddn’t know what to do. Te had to hae water; but no matter how much the pleaded, ddalk wasn’t pang the slghtest attenton. “I know what we hae to do,” the kookaburra sad decsel. “e hae to make hm laugh. nce he laughs a good bell laugh, all the water wll spll out o hm.” Te others thought ths was an excellent dea. Pleadng wth the rog hadn’t worked, perhaps makng hm laugh would. “I’ll hae a go,” the kookaburra ofered. “I, msel, hae such a er splendd laugh that I’m sure I’ll be able to make hm laugh too”. “a ha ha haaaa!” the kookaburra cred. “oo hoo hoo hoooo!” the kookaburra waled. “ee hee hee heeeeee!” the kookaburra screamed. It was no use. It’s true that ddalk’s expresson changed a lttle; but there wasn’t een a hnt o amusement n t. I anthng, ddalk seemed to be sneerng slghtl as to sa he reall ddn’t thnk much o such an outlandsh perormance.
Tiddalik the Frog
“et me hae a tr,” the emu sad when t was clear that the kookaburra wasn’t gettng anwhere. “I hae an eloquent neck, long slender legs and amber ees. I wll dance or hm. I wll dance so well that, who knows, perhaps he wll begn to smle a lttle. nd the smle wll turn nto a delghted laugh and the laugh wll turn nto a bellow o laughter, and then all the water wll spll out o hm and eerthng wll be ne agan.” agan.” Te emu was nclned to be ancul, but she dd dance well. nd though the creatures were parched wth thrst, the smled and applauded when she was done. But not ddalk. I anthng, he looked een more contemptuous. Te creatures were at ther wts’ end. Te kangaroo stepped orward. “e’re gong about ths the wrong wa,” he sad rml. “I know how to make hm laugh. I’ll tell hm a joke. In act I’ll tell hm a stor about a rog who was just lke hm. Tat wll nterest hm. It wll make hm laugh.” Te kangaroo swaggered up to the rogmountan that was ddalk and called out to hm, “e, lsten ddalk, I’ll tell ou a unn stor. nce upon a tme there was a rog who drank so much water that he grew bgger and bgger and bgger and bgger ” Te kangaroo paused. e had orgotten how the stor ended. e had to make up somethng quckl, so he sad, “Yes. e got bgger and bgger and bgger and bgger untl one da he burst! a ha. on’t ou thnk that’s unn?” learl ddalk ddn’t thnk that was at all unn. Te rogmountan’s expresson had become stoner and stoner.
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Te other creatures dragged the kangaroo awa beore he annoed ddalk urther. Te looked at each other. hat were the to do? “et me tr to make hm laugh,” the eel pped up. “ell, don’t tell jokes,” jokes,” the kangaroo warned . “e doesn’t lke that.” “I won’t,” promsed the eel. “nd don’t dance,” the emu put n. “e doesn’t apprecate dancng.” “o, no dancng,” the eel agreed. “nd no laughng ether,” the kookaburra told hm. “o, no laughng,” the eel sad meekl. e went beore ddalk and began tumblng. Te oung eel was an accomplshed acrobat. e stood on hs tal and rose straght nto the ar. e rose hgher and hgher, and, as he descended, he glanced at ddalk. ddalk’s expresson hadn’t changed. e stll looked bored and utterl contemptuous. Te eel grew desperate. e redoubled hs eforts. e ung hmsel een hgher. t last he ung hmsel so hgh that the wnd caught hm and tossed hm oer the top o ddalk. e came down splat on ddalk’s back and began to slther slowl all the wa down the rog mountan.
Tiddalik the Frog
“et me hae a tr,” the emu sad when t was clear that the kookaburra wasn’t gettng anwhere. “I hae an eloquent neck, long slender legs and amber ees. I wll dance or hm. I wll dance so well that, who knows, perhaps he wll begn to smle a lttle. nd the smle wll turn nto a delghted laugh and the laugh wll turn nto a bellow o laughter, and then all the water wll spll out o hm and eerthng wll be ne agan.” agan.” Te emu was nclned to be ancul, but she dd dance well. nd though the creatures were parched wth thrst, the smled and applauded when she was done. But not ddalk. I anthng, he looked een more contemptuous. Te creatures were at ther wts’ end. Te kangaroo stepped orward. “e’re gong about ths the wrong wa,” he sad rml. “I know how to make hm laugh. I’ll tell hm a joke. In act I’ll tell hm a stor about a rog who was just lke hm. Tat wll nterest hm. It wll make hm laugh.” Te kangaroo swaggered up to the rogmountan that was ddalk and called out to hm, “e, lsten ddalk, I’ll tell ou a unn stor. nce upon a tme there was a rog who drank so much water that he grew bgger and bgger and bgger and bgger ” Te kangaroo paused. e had orgotten how the stor ended. e had to make up somethng quckl, so he sad, “Yes. e got bgger and bgger and bgger and bgger untl one da he burst! a ha. on’t ou thnk that’s unn?” learl ddalk ddn’t thnk that was at all unn. Te rogmountan’s expresson had become stoner and stoner.
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Tiddalik the Frog
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Te other creatures dragged the kangaroo awa beore he annoed ddalk urther. Te looked at each other. hat were the to do? “et me tr to make hm laugh,” the eel pped up. “ell, don’t tell jokes,” jokes,” the kangaroo warned . “e doesn’t lke that.” “I won’t,” promsed the eel. “nd don’t dance,” the emu put n. “e doesn’t apprecate dancng.” “o, no dancng,” the eel agreed. “nd no laughng ether,” the kookaburra told hm. “o, no laughng,” the eel sad meekl. e went beore ddalk and began tumblng. Te oung eel was an accomplshed acrobat. e stood on hs tal and rose straght nto the ar. e rose hgher and hgher, and, as he descended, he glanced at ddalk. ddalk’s expresson hadn’t changed. e stll looked bored and utterl contemptuous. Te eel grew desperate. e redoubled hs eforts. e ung hmsel een hgher. t last he ung hmsel so hgh that the wnd caught hm and tossed hm oer the top o ddalk. e came down splat on ddalk’s back and began to slther slowl all the wa down the rog mountan.
Tiddalik the Frog
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Te creatures despared. nd then suddenl the heard a low rumble. It was ddalk laughng. e couldn’t help hmsel. none would laugh he had an eel sltherng slowl slowl down hs back. nd ddalk was tcklsh. s the eel sld oer hs ertebrae, ddalk laughed harder and harder, louder and louder. Te rumble o hs laughter ncreased to a roar. It sounded lke a waterall. uddenl the creatures realsed that t was a waterall. ll the water ddalk had swallowed was tumblng out o hm n a great rush and spreadng across the earth. Te creatures were terred. Te had been suferng rom a lack o water and now the were lkel to be drowned n a ood. Tose who could rose nto the ar and ew as hgh as the possbl could. Tose who could swm dd ther best to cope wth the ood. nd those who could nether nor swm clambered up the nearest gum tree and clung to ts branches or dear le. nd stll the water gushed rom ddalk’s mouth. nd stll the water leel rose and rose. obod knew what to do. Te knew that the water would subsde eentuall, but would the sure untl that happened? It was the pelcan who saed the da. e looked around and ound a canoe. e got nto t and rowed here and there, gudng the canoe skllull oer the surace o the waters. e rescued eerone, except possbl ddalk. ddalk was neer heard o agan, but ths was hardl the pelcan’s ault. ddalk would neer hae tted nto the boat.
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Tiddalik the Frog
Tiddalik the Frog
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Te creatures despared. nd then suddenl the heard a low rumble. It was ddalk laughng. e couldn’t help hmsel. none would laugh he had an eel sltherng slowl slowl down hs back. nd ddalk was tcklsh. s the eel sld oer hs ertebrae, ddalk laughed harder and harder, louder and louder. Te rumble o hs laughter ncreased to a roar. It sounded lke a waterall. uddenl the creatures realsed that t was a waterall. ll the water ddalk had swallowed was tumblng out o hm n a great rush and spreadng across the earth. Te creatures were terred. Te had been suferng rom a lack o water and now the were lkel to be drowned n a ood. Tose who could rose nto the ar and ew as hgh as the possbl could. Tose who could swm dd ther best to cope wth the ood. nd those who could nether nor swm clambered up the nearest gum tree and clung to ts branches or dear le. nd stll the water gushed rom ddalk’s mouth. nd stll the water leel rose and rose. obod knew what to do. Te knew that the water would subsde eentuall, but would the sure untl that happened? It was the pelcan who saed the da. e looked around and ound a canoe. e got nto t and rowed here and there, gudng the canoe skllull oer the surace o the waters. e rescued eerone, except possbl ddalk. ddalk was neer heard o agan, but ths was hardl the pelcan’s ault. ddalk would neer hae tted nto the boat.
The Dragon's Pearl
The
Dragon's Pear Pearll ORy FROM HiNA retold by Niveditha Subramaniam
In China, dragons are revered as gods. Unequalled Unequalled in power and wisdom, the dragons are believed to rule the land, the clouds, the wind and the rain. In ancient China, the most sought-ater treasure o the dragon was its pearl, which it held under its chin. But not all dragons possessed the pearl.
Te rer dragon had lost hs pearl. e ew hgh and low oer the barren hll, desperatel hopng that he would nd t. But now the sun had almost set. thout hs pearl, how would he breathe clouds eer agan? hat would happen to the people who praed to hm or ran? ho would sae them rom the great drought? Come back to me , he praed. Come back. nd, ltng hs scal wngs, he rose nto the sk and ew awa. In a small burrow under the hll, la the pearl, sael hdden. boe t grew an unearthl shade o grass. o green that ts blades glstened n the sunlght lke wet tongues. nd that s how tenearold Xao heng came upon t. e had clmbed the hll, determned to nd something . s mother
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worked so hard that her hands were coarse and her eet callused. Te had barel enough ood to eat and just enough water to le. oon, the water n ther well would run dr. I onl he could help! s he clmbed the hll, pantng and wpng the sweat rom hs brow onto hs sleee, Xao heng saw a lush patch o grass. e let out a whoop o delght. e could sell ths at the market, as cattle eed! armers would pa well or t, he knew the would. nd wouldn’t hs mother be proud! areull, he cut as much as he could carr n hs basket and ran to the market, a song on hs lps. Tat nght, when Xao heng gae hs mother the mone, she kssed hs orehead. e smled at her. omorrow, he would go agan. e shut hs ees and was ast asleep. e ran up the hll aster the next da. e had been luck once but these were hard tmes. hat there wasn’t an grass? hat he cut too much the last tme? hat someone else had dscoered t?
The Dragon's Pearl
The
Dragon's Pear Pearll ORy FROM HiNA retold by Niveditha Subramaniam
In China, dragons are revered as gods. Unequalled Unequalled in power and wisdom, the dragons are believed to rule the land, the clouds, the wind and the rain. In ancient China, the most sought-ater treasure o the dragon was its pearl, which it held under its chin. But not all dragons possessed the pearl.
Te rer dragon had lost hs pearl. e ew hgh and low oer the barren hll, desperatel hopng that he would nd t. But now the sun had almost set. thout hs pearl, how would he breathe clouds eer agan? hat would happen to the people who praed to hm or ran? ho would sae them rom the great drought? Come back to me , he praed. Come back. nd, ltng hs scal wngs, he rose nto the sk and ew awa. In a small burrow under the hll, la the pearl, sael hdden. boe t grew an unearthl shade o grass. o green that ts blades glstened n the sunlght lke wet tongues. nd that s how tenearold Xao heng came upon t. e had clmbed the hll, determned to nd something . s mother
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The Dragon’s Pearl
But t was there. Tat same unearthl patch o green. eleed, he laughed out loud and broke nto song. o matter how soon Xao heng returned to the patch, t had alwas regrown. e went as oten as he needed to. nce, he came back the same da and there the were — those blades o green dancng n the wnd. ne da, when hs knees were weak rom clmbng and the sun beat down hs back, Xao heng collapsed. e sat on the hll, pantng. s head was poundng, but he needed that grass! hat could he do now? nd t was as he shaded hs ees rom the glare o the sun that an dea occurred to Xao heng. hat he were to take the grass back home and plant t there? Te more he thought about t, the more he lked the dea. e sprang up and ran to the patch. Gentl, he dug up the tur b the roots and what do ou thnk he ound? Te dragon’s pearl. Xao heng’s ees glowed. e dusted t careull, and slpped t nto hs pocket. But as he walked home, he couldn’t help pullng t out eer now and then to admre t. It was as beautul as a cloud. hen he got home, he made hs mother close her ees and stretch out her hand. e placed the pearl gentl n her palm and cred, “Now, open!” s mother gasped. Te pearl was so loel that she ddn’t dare hold t. “etch the rce jar rom the ktchen,” she sad. Xao heng ran to get t. It was halempt. ere, nsde the grans o rce, she hd the pearl.
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worked so hard that her hands were coarse and her eet callused. Te had barel enough ood to eat and just enough water to le. oon, the water n ther well would run dr. I onl he could help! s he clmbed the hll, pantng and wpng the sweat rom hs brow onto hs sleee, Xao heng saw a lush patch o grass. e let out a whoop o delght. e could sell ths at the market, as cattle eed! armers would pa well or t, he knew the would. nd wouldn’t hs mother be proud! areull, he cut as much as he could carr n hs basket and ran to the market, a song on hs lps. Tat nght, when Xao heng gae hs mother the mone, she kssed hs orehead. e smled at her. omorrow, he would go agan. e shut hs ees and was ast asleep. e ran up the hll aster the next da. e had been luck once but these were hard tmes. hat there wasn’t an grass? hat he cut too much the last tme? hat someone else had dscoered t?
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"It s sae now," she told Xao heng. But the lttle bo dd not notce that the grass he had planted n the garden had lost some o ts brllant colour. Te next mornng, Xao heng awoke not to the calls o the brds, but to the shouts o hs mother. e rubbed hs ees sleepl and walked to the ktchen where she stood, her hands lled wth gran. “hat s t?” he asked. “ook!” she cred, and he saw that the jar o rce n whch the had put the pearl was now oerowng! ce grans were scattered all oer the oor. Xao heng's ees grew wde wth awe. “o ou thnk ths s the dragon’s pearl?” Te dragon’s pearl! s mother could not answer hm. h, she’d neer heard o such a thng! But how else could grass grow n a da’s tme or rce multpl? hle she was lost n thought, Xao heng ran out to the garden. e called out to hs mother, mpatentl now. “ook!” he sad, pontng at the patch o grass. “ook how t has wthered! It was alwas so green beore!” he was sure now and nodded her head. “It s the pearl o the rer dragon. But t s a blessng, Xao heng. mracle. It s not ours or mne to keep. Its treasures belong to eerone.” o quetl, Xao heng and hs mother began to share ther mracle. Te gae gran and ood to ther neghbours. ord spread quckl. People ocked to ther home, lke sheep. ome were thankul, and Xao heng and hs mother were happ to help
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But t was there. Tat same unearthl patch o green. eleed, he laughed out loud and broke nto song. o matter how soon Xao heng returned to the patch, t had alwas regrown. e went as oten as he needed to. nce, he came back the same da and there the were — those blades o green dancng n the wnd. ne da, when hs knees were weak rom clmbng and the sun beat down hs back, Xao heng collapsed. e sat on the hll, pantng. s head was poundng, but he needed that grass! hat could he do now? nd t was as he shaded hs ees rom the glare o the sun that an dea occurred to Xao heng. hat he were to take the grass back home and plant t there? Te more he thought about t, the more he lked the dea. e sprang up and ran to the patch. Gentl, he dug up the tur b the roots and what do ou thnk he ound? Te dragon’s pearl. Xao heng’s ees glowed. e dusted t careull, and slpped t nto hs pocket. But as he walked home, he couldn’t help pullng t out eer now and then to admre t. It was as beautul as a cloud. hen he got home, he made hs mother close her ees and stretch out her hand. e placed the pearl gentl n her palm and cred, “Now, open!” s mother gasped. Te pearl was so loel that she ddn’t dare hold t. “etch the rce jar rom the ktchen,” she sad. Xao heng ran to get t. It was halempt. ere, nsde the grans o rce, she hd the pearl.
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The Dragon’s Pearl
them. But some were so terrbl greed, t shocked Xao heng. Ten hs mother would remnd hm that the pearl wasn’t hs, n the rst place. e would smle and nod hs head. Te das were lled wth such peace, t was as unreal as the lush green o the grass Xao heng had rst dscoered on the hll. Ten one da the landlord stood outsde ther door wth an ol grn on hs ace. “ong well or oursel, I see!” the landlord remarked. Xao heng sad nothng. Te landlord nched closer. “hat s ths great secret o ours? ell me!” s mother came out and sad loudl, “e share what we hae. Tere’s nothng to hde.” Te landlord’s smle anshed. “I know ou’re hdng somethng rom me. nd the sooner ou hand t oer, the better. emember, what’s ours s mine .”
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"It s sae now," she told Xao heng. But the lttle bo dd not notce that the grass he had planted n the garden had lost some o ts brllant colour. Te next mornng, Xao heng awoke not to the calls o the brds, but to the shouts o hs mother. e rubbed hs ees sleepl and walked to the ktchen where she stood, her hands lled wth gran. “hat s t?” he asked. “ook!” she cred, and he saw that the jar o rce n whch the had put the pearl was now oerowng! ce grans were scattered all oer the oor. Xao heng's ees grew wde wth awe. “o ou thnk ths s the dragon’s pearl?” Te dragon’s pearl! s mother could not answer hm. h, she’d neer heard o such a thng! But how else could grass grow n a da’s tme or rce multpl? hle she was lost n thought, Xao heng ran out to the garden. e called out to hs mother, mpatentl now. “ook!” he sad, pontng at the patch o grass. “ook how t has wthered! It was alwas so green beore!” he was sure now and nodded her head. “It s the pearl o the rer dragon. But t s a blessng, Xao heng. mracle. It s not ours or mne to keep. Its treasures belong to eerone.” o quetl, Xao heng and hs mother began to share ther mracle. Te gae gran and ood to ther neghbours. ord spread quckl. People ocked to ther home, lke sheep. ome were thankul, and Xao heng and hs mother were happ to help
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Xao heng crossed hs arms and sad, “o!” Te landlord snorted and stormed nto the house. Xao heng walked n ater hm. “at!” he sad and as the landlord turned around, he sad, “Ts secret. I wll ge t to ou.” Te landlord’s ees glnted, as he ollowed the bo nto the ktchen. e dd not notce the strange look o determnaton n Xao heng’s ees. e just hoped to nd somethng that would make hm er rch. e dd not expect Xao heng to turn around wth a pearl n hs mouth. Te bo aced the man and, wth a glmmer o a smle, swallowed the pearl. “Xao heng! o!” cred hs mother. But t was too late. uddenl, a terred look came nto her son’s ees. “ater! I I need water!” s stomach and hs whole bod seemed to be on re. s nsdes were ragng! s ast as she could, hs mother drew what water there was rom the well and gae t to hm. e drank the whole o t, but t was not nearl enough! “ore!” he cred, hs oce hoarse. But there was no more. creamng n agon, the bo ran down to a mudd stream, or ths was all that remaned o the rer. It seemed the whole llage heard or soon the llagers had gathered on ether sde to watch hm. hat was he drnkng? o one knew when exactl Xao heng stopped beng a bo and became a dragon. o one notced, untl he stopped drnkng and turned around and lted hs majestc, glowng wngs. s golden ees were searchng. or whom?
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them. But some were so terrbl greed, t shocked Xao heng. Ten hs mother would remnd hm that the pearl wasn’t hs, n the rst place. e would smle and nod hs head. Te das were lled wth such peace, t was as unreal as the lush green o the grass Xao heng had rst dscoered on the hll. Ten one da the landlord stood outsde ther door wth an ol grn on hs ace. “ong well or oursel, I see!” the landlord remarked. Xao heng sad nothng. Te landlord nched closer. “hat s ths great secret o ours? ell me!” s mother came out and sad loudl, “e share what we hae. Tere’s nothng to hde.” Te landlord’s smle anshed. “I know ou’re hdng somethng rom me. nd the sooner ou hand t oer, the better. emember, what’s ours s mine .”
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The Dragon's Pearl
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Xao heng crossed hs arms and sad, “o!” Te landlord snorted and stormed nto the house. Xao heng walked n ater hm. “at!” he sad and as the landlord turned around, he sad, “Ts secret. I wll ge t to ou.” Te landlord’s ees glnted, as he ollowed the bo nto the ktchen. e dd not notce the strange look o determnaton n Xao heng’s ees. e just hoped to nd somethng that would make hm er rch. e dd not expect Xao heng to turn around wth a pearl n hs mouth. Te bo aced the man and, wth a glmmer o a smle, swallowed the pearl. “Xao heng! o!” cred hs mother. But t was too late. uddenl, a terred look came nto her son’s ees. “ater! I I need water!” s stomach and hs whole bod seemed to be on re. s nsdes were ragng! s ast as she could, hs mother drew what water there was rom the well and gae t to hm. e drank the whole o t, but t was not nearl enough! “ore!” he cred, hs oce hoarse. But there was no more. creamng n agon, the bo ran down to a mudd stream, or ths was all that remaned o the rer. It seemed the whole llage heard or soon the llagers had gathered on ether sde to watch hm. hat was he drnkng? o one knew when exactl Xao heng stopped beng a bo and became a dragon. o one notced, untl he stopped drnkng and turned around and lted hs majestc, glowng wngs. s golden ees were searchng. or whom?
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s mother. hen he ound her, he rose nto the ar and as the llagers looked up, clouds lled the sk and the ran ell down n great sheets. Te people wept, ther hearts lled wth jo, and the danced. t last, the great drought had come to an end. Te rer was ull! nd Xao heng, the dragon who was once a bo and now a dragon, swam serenel n the rer, turnng around man tmes to look at hs mother, who stood n the ran, watchng hm. e turned around so man tmes to look at her beore he swam out o sght that the rer s called angangan, whch means “watchng the mother, the rer bends”. Tere are twentour snakelke turns n ths rer. e don’t know what happened to the dragon who lost the pearl. But he has heard the stor, he must be at peace. e brought ran, ater all. ometmes, Xao heng es oer hs llage. nd sometmes, when hs mother sts on the rer bank, she looks up at the clouds passng hgh aboe. ome o them look lke dragons. he wonders Xao heng s up there.
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The Dragon’s Pearl
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s mother. hen he ound her, he rose nto the ar and as the llagers looked up, clouds lled the sk and the ran ell down n great sheets. Te people wept, ther hearts lled wth jo, and the danced. t last, the great drought had come to an end. Te rer was ull! nd Xao heng, the dragon who was once a bo and now a dragon, swam serenel n the rer, turnng around man tmes to look at hs mother, who stood n the ran, watchng hm. e turned around so man tmes to look at her beore he swam out o sght that the rer s called angangan, whch means “watchng the mother, the rer bends”. Tere are twentour snakelke turns n ths rer. e don’t know what happened to the dragon who lost the pearl. But he has heard the stor, he must be at peace. e brought ran, ater all. ometmes, Xao heng es oer hs llage. nd sometmes, when hs mother sts on the rer bank, she looks up at the clouds passng hgh aboe. ome o them look lke dragons. he wonders Xao heng s up there.
Tribute for a King
Tribute
for a King
ORy FROM GREECE retold by Sandhya Rao
“h should I ge ou anthng?” “Because I rule the land!” “But I am kng o the seas!” “ot or long I hae m wa.” “nd what manner o sh are ou?” “lexander III o acedon, whose ag es oer all the lands o the earth…” “Indeed! Impressed!” Impressed!” “…and wll now oer all the waters.” “I see. n ambtous amphban!” lexander couldn’t take an more. e had gone to great trouble to make t to the palace at the bottom o the sea, qute apart rom lookng qute sll, hs horse and he, wth ther newl acqured ns and glls. nd now Posedon, ruler o the seas, was darng to make un o hm. e would not take an more. e drew hs sword rom ts sheath and scattered a school o tn, ranbowcoloured shes
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swmmng just aboe hs head. Te got nto hs nostrls and mouth and ears. passng octopus wrapped ts tentacles around the sword and anked t out o lexander’s grasp. Ts sparked a manta ra to burst nto a t o gggles. tger shark swung b barng a sharptoothed grn. Posedon reprmanded them wth a wae o hs wand, and hd a smle. “o, ou were sang, lexander the Great o acedon and all the land?” he sad. “I was sang, Posedon,” repled lexander, recoerng hs composure. ot or nothng was he Te Great. “I was sang I rule the land, and now I shall rule the waters. Kneel, Posedon, and pa me rch trbute.” ondtons below sea leel are not conduce to the smooth unctonng o jonts and Posedon had no ntenton o kneelng, or pang some land creature trbute. “Ge me one good reason,” he sad, oldng hs arms rml across hs chest. “rom the begnnng or the end?” asked lexander. “Te begnnng,” prompted Posedon. lexander, whose bedtme readng was omer’s Iliad een when he marched on hs conquerng campagns, had a small suspcon that Posedon
Tribute for a King
Tribute
for a King
ORy FROM GREECE retold by Sandhya Rao
“h should I ge ou anthng?” “Because I rule the land!” “But I am kng o the seas!” “ot or long I hae m wa.” “nd what manner o sh are ou?” “lexander III o acedon, whose ag es oer all the lands o the earth…” “Indeed! Impressed!” Impressed!” “…and wll now oer all the waters.” “I see. n ambtous amphban!” lexander couldn’t take an more. e had gone to great trouble to make t to the palace at the bottom o the sea, qute apart rom lookng qute sll, hs horse and he, wth ther newl acqured ns and glls. nd now Posedon, ruler o the seas, was darng to make un o hm. e would not take an more. e drew hs sword rom ts sheath and scattered a school o tn, ranbowcoloured shes
swmmng just aboe hs head. Te got nto hs nostrls and mouth and ears. passng octopus wrapped ts tentacles around the sword and anked t out o lexander’s grasp. Ts sparked a manta ra to burst nto a t o gggles. tger shark swung b barng a sharptoothed grn. Posedon reprmanded them wth a wae o hs wand, and hd a smle. “o, ou were sang, lexander the Great o acedon and all the land?” he sad. “I was sang, Posedon,” repled lexander, recoerng hs composure. ot or nothng was he Te Great. “I was sang I rule the land, and now I shall rule the waters. Kneel, Posedon, and pa me rch trbute.” ondtons below sea leel are not conduce to the smooth unctonng o jonts and Posedon had no ntenton o kneelng, or pang some land creature trbute. “Ge me one good reason,” he sad, oldng hs arms rml across hs chest. “rom the begnnng or the end?” asked lexander. “Te begnnng,” prompted Posedon. lexander, whose bedtme readng was omer’s Iliad een when he marched on hs conquerng campagns, had a small suspcon that Posedon
Tribute for a King
was pullng hs leg. oweer, he dsmssed the thought and repled, “hen I was ten ears old, m ather, Phlp II o acedon, reused to bu a horse because t wouldn’t allow anone to mount t. But I dd. I obsered that t was rearng up onl because t was arad o ts own shadow. I managed to control t and calm t down. ather bought the horse or me. I called hm Bucephalus. e sered me well or man ears.” “Good thnkng, but not good enough reason,” responded Posedon. “I hae been tutored b rstotle,” sad lexander, wth a ar amount o prde. ter all, what better credentals could anone hae than beng taught medcne, phlosoph, morals, relgon, logc and art b the master hmsel? “mmm, ole league, but no,” sad Posedon. B now, lexander was gettng desperate. ompng on the beach was one thng. ebatng underwater was another. It was so … wet! en so, he kept hs head and thought urousl. course! ow could he hae orgotten? Te Gordan knot! It was the stuf
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o legends, starrng hm, lexander! e cleared hs throat and keepng hs exctement n check, asked, “o ou know the Gordan knot?” “hould I?” asked Posedon n return. onderng who had tutored Posedon, lexander began to explan. “ell, ou see, at one tme the Phrgans, who now owe ther allegance to me, dd not hae a ruler. You know there cannot be a kngdom wthout a ruler and the people were n a x. o the went to an oracle. he declared that the ruler would be the next person who entered the captal on hs oxcart. ho should enter but Gordas, a peasant! md great pomp and show he was nstalled kng, and hs oxcart ted to a post outsde the temple o abazos, god o the skes.” B now Posedon was be gnnng to regret hang entertaned lexander. lexander. ot so lexander who was qute warmng to hs stor. “You must note that the cart was ted to the post wth the most ntrcate knot n the world,” he contnued, “a knot so tght and strong and secure that nobod could unte t. an tred, not that the ddn’t, or t had been prophesed prophesed that whoeer undd the knot would become kng o sa. or ears, man took a shot at the knot, wthout success. Ten I came along. I thought about t or a whle, then I pcked up m sword and slashed the knot n two. It was done! oda I rule sa!” “mmm… I’e had reports rom Beas and Jhelum,” sad Posedon. “ho?” asked lexander, lookng conused. “You know them as phass and daspes. ers, trbutares o the Indus, Indos to ou, ndsble part o the waters I rule,” repled Posedon. “I hear Porus gae ou a hard tme there.”
Tribute for a King
was pullng hs leg. oweer, he dsmssed the thought and repled, “hen I was ten ears old, m ather, Phlp II o acedon, reused to bu a horse because t wouldn’t allow anone to mount t. But I dd. I obsered that t was rearng up onl because t was arad o ts own shadow. I managed to control t and calm t down. ather bought the horse or me. I called hm Bucephalus. e sered me well or man ears.” “Good thnkng, but not good enough reason,” responded Posedon. “I hae been tutored b rstotle,” sad lexander, wth a ar amount o prde. ter all, what better credentals could anone hae than beng taught medcne, phlosoph, morals, relgon, logc and art b the master hmsel? “mmm, ole league, but no,” sad Posedon. B now, lexander was gettng desperate. ompng on the beach was one thng. ebatng underwater was another. It was so … wet! en so, he kept hs head and thought urousl. course! ow could he hae orgotten? Te Gordan knot! It was the stuf
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Tribute for a King
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o legends, starrng hm, lexander! e cleared hs throat and keepng hs exctement n check, asked, “o ou know the Gordan knot?” “hould I?” asked Posedon n return. onderng who had tutored Posedon, lexander began to explan. “ell, ou see, at one tme the Phrgans, who now owe ther allegance to me, dd not hae a ruler. You know there cannot be a kngdom wthout a ruler and the people were n a x. o the went to an oracle. he declared that the ruler would be the next person who entered the captal on hs oxcart. ho should enter but Gordas, a peasant! md great pomp and show he was nstalled kng, and hs oxcart ted to a post outsde the temple o abazos, god o the skes.” B now Posedon was be gnnng to regret hang entertaned lexander. lexander. ot so lexander who was qute warmng to hs stor. “You must note that the cart was ted to the post wth the most ntrcate knot n the world,” he contnued, “a knot so tght and strong and secure that nobod could unte t. an tred, not that the ddn’t, or t had been prophesed prophesed that whoeer undd the knot would become kng o sa. or ears, man took a shot at the knot, wthout success. Ten I came along. I thought about t or a whle, then I pcked up m sword and slashed the knot n two. It was done! oda I rule sa!” “mmm… I’e had reports rom Beas and Jhelum,” sad Posedon. “ho?” asked lexander, lookng conused. “You know them as phass and daspes. ers, trbutares o the Indus, Indos to ou, ndsble part o the waters I rule,” repled Posedon. “I hear Porus gae ou a hard tme there.”
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“ell, es, he’s not bad, reall. Tat’s wh I let hm contn ue to rule,” lexander prearcated, not wantng to admt the truth openl but loath to resort to les. “But he kneels beore me, and pas me trbute,” he sad n a rush, suddenl rememberng wh he had made ths journe to the bottom o the sea. “on’t thnk ou can dstract me, I’e seen too man trcks. urrender!” Posedon was mpressed b lexander’s persstence. o he sad, “ll rght. I hae a proposton.” e gestured wth hs wand and n seconds a sea horse appeared besde hm, bearng a box on ts back. Posedon took the box n hs hands and held t out to lexander. “ere, take ths box and go back to land. Tere, ll t wth anthng, and brng t back to me. Ten I shall pa ou all the trbute ou want.” eleed at the chance or some acton and the opportunt to return to land, lexander took the box and returned to camp. e elt condent, and was n no hurr. e dred hmsel of, and had a hot meal. ll that swmmng had made hm hungr. e rested or a bt and once rereshed, he summoned hs horse and raced of to the seashore once agan. Tere he dpped the box n sea water and lted t up. Te water whch had seemed to ll the box was gone. e dpped t agan. gan the water was gone. Te box was dr. lexander nspected the box closel. “abe t has sprung a leak,” he thought. e looked around. “ka, ths should work,” he sad to hmsel and scooped up some sand wth the box. But when he lted t up, all the sand that had seemed to ll the box was gone. Te box was clean. nce more lexander nspected the box. “abe t has a hole,” he thought. e scrunched up hs ees and rubbed hs temples. Ten he
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Tribute for a King
Tribute for a King
79
“ell, es, he’s not bad, reall. Tat’s wh I let hm contn ue to rule,” lexander prearcated, not wantng to admt the truth openl but loath to resort to les. “But he kneels beore me, and pas me trbute,” he sad n a rush, suddenl rememberng wh he had made ths journe to the bottom o the sea. “on’t thnk ou can dstract me, I’e seen too man trcks. urrender!” Posedon was mpressed b lexander’s persstence. o he sad, “ll rght. I hae a proposton.” e gestured wth hs wand and n seconds a sea horse appeared besde hm, bearng a box on ts back. Posedon took the box n hs hands and held t out to lexander. “ere, take ths box and go back to land. Tere, ll t wth anthng, and brng t back to me. Ten I shall pa ou all the trbute ou want.” eleed at the chance or some acton and the opportunt to return to land, lexander took the box and returned to camp. e elt condent, and was n no hurr. e dred hmsel of, and had a hot meal. ll that swmmng had made hm hungr. e rested or a bt and once rereshed, he summoned hs horse and raced of to the seashore once agan. Tere he dpped the box n sea water and lted t up. Te water whch had seemed to ll the box was gone. e dpped t agan. gan the water was gone. Te box was dr. lexander nspected the box closel. “abe t has sprung a leak,” he thought. e looked around. “ka, ths should work,” he sad to hmsel and scooped up some sand wth the box. But when he lted t up, all the sand that had seemed to ll the box was gone. Te box was clean. nce more lexander nspected the box. “abe t has a hole,” he thought. e scrunched up hs ees and rubbed hs temples. Ten he
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Tribute for a King
mounted hs horse and raced of to a rer. e ran hs ngers n the cool, clear waters and began to pck pebbles rubbed smooth and round, lng n heaps n and around the rer. ne b one, he tossed them, pnk, ellow, black and whte, nto the box untl t was ull. But when he lted up the box the pebbles that had seemed to ll the box were gone. Te box was lght. lexander returned to hs camp and stomped nto hs tent. e placed the box on a table and stood starng at t, wllng t to reeal ts secret. e walked up and down, lost n thought. e pulled out hs wellthumbed Iliad and pped through t, hopng to nd n ts poetc pages some clues to the mster o Posedon’s box. Tnkng brought to mnd the stor o the rojan horse, a gant wooden horse that was gted to ro b the Greeks. Te rojans dd not know that hdden nsde ths gant to were Greek solders, who thus entered ro n broad dalght and plundered t b nght. “I know what to do,” exclamed lexander. e summoned hs master sculptor and sad, “are me a block o hardest stone that wll st exactl nsde ths box. ow!” Te master sculptor returned wth a block o exactl the rght dmensons. lexander lexander placed t careull n the box but when he lted t up, the block o stone that had seemed to ll the box was gone. Te box was empt. ow lexander had to concede deeat. e mounted hs athul Bucephalus and returned to Posedon’s palace. “ere,” he sad, holdng out the empt box to the kng o the seas. “I hae aled. Te waters can neer be mne or I hae aled to ll ths box wth anthng. othng stas.” “h, but ou’re wrong,” returned Posedon. “or one, the waters are not mne ether. I am onl kng, the man n charge. or another, look!” nd he
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thrust the box orward. lexander saw that t was lled wth nnumerable sea creatures o man shapes and colours swshng merrl n and out, n and out, untl nall the box dsappeared altogether and onl the water wth ts teemng le remaned. e smled. e understood.
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Tribute for a King
Tribute for a King
mounted hs horse and raced of to a rer. e ran hs ngers n the cool, clear waters and began to pck pebbles rubbed smooth and round, lng n heaps n and around the rer. ne b one, he tossed them, pnk, ellow, black and whte, nto the box untl t was ull. But when he lted up the box the pebbles that had seemed to ll the box were gone. Te box was lght. lexander returned to hs camp and stomped nto hs tent. e placed the box on a table and stood starng at t, wllng t to reeal ts secret. e walked up and down, lost n thought. e pulled out hs wellthumbed Iliad and pped through t, hopng to nd n ts poetc pages some clues to the mster o Posedon’s box. Tnkng brought to mnd the stor o the rojan horse, a gant wooden horse that was gted to ro b the Greeks. Te rojans dd not know that hdden nsde ths gant to were Greek solders, who thus entered ro n broad dalght and plundered t b nght. “I know what to do,” exclamed lexander. e summoned hs master sculptor and sad, “are me a block o hardest stone that wll st exactl nsde ths box. ow!” Te master sculptor returned wth a block o exactl the rght dmensons. lexander lexander placed t careull n the box but when he lted t up, the block o stone that had seemed to ll the box was gone. Te box was empt. ow lexander had to concede deeat. e mounted hs athul Bucephalus and returned to Posedon’s palace. “ere,” he sad, holdng out the empt box to the kng o the seas. “I hae aled. Te waters can neer be mne or I hae aled to ll ths box wth anthng. othng stas.” “h, but ou’re wrong,” returned Posedon. “or one, the waters are not mne ether. I am onl kng, the man n charge. or another, look!” nd he
81
thrust the box orward. lexander saw that t was lled wth nnumerable sea creatures o man shapes and colours swshng merrl n and out, n and out, untl nall the box dsappeared altogether and onl the water wth ts teemng le remaned. e smled. e understood.
WATER TIMELINE
The earliest irrigation practices are recorded in Mesopotamia, Egypt, Peru, and the Indus Valley Civilisation across Pakistan and India dating as ar back as 6000 BC. Sunshu Ao rom China is credited with being the rst hydraulic engineer.
Around 10,000 BC, melting glaciers cause sea levels to rise
Between 3000 and 2000 BC people use sophisticated systems to store water as also waterbased toilets during Indus Valley Civilisation in India and Pakistan. People lter water through charcoal, store it in copper containers, and puriy it by exposing to sunlight. Egyptians nd ways o storing water in desert conditions.
Over the next 2000 years, an irrigation method called Qanat is developed in Persia. It is still practised in Asia,Middle East and North Arica. Highly precise engineering techniques are used in Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa in Sri Lanka or irrigation. A dried up lake in India called Lake Sudarsana is rejuvenated and the Chinese use chain pumps to lit water.
By about 1100 AD, two carved rock slab dams are built to create a lake in Madhya Pradesh, India. The water gauge is invented by Jang Yeong-sil, Korea. Around 1400, the Mudduk Maur dam near Bhopal, India, is the highest earthll embankment dam or 300 years. Meer Allum Dam, near Hyderabad, is the rst multiple arch buttress dam and is still being used. Step-wells are carved in rock in Gujarat and Rajasthan, India.
In the 1920s, while the British Raj is sti ll holding sway, Sir WIlliam Willcocks advises that an ancient food irrigation system be used or its maniold benets: food waters to irrigate, silt to enrich soil, and sh to control malaria. Meanwhile, the Nile Basin Treaty regulates the sharing o Nile waters between Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and Congo.
In a rare instance, the Arican Sahel, a semi-desert zone bordering the Sahara, is greened by trees in the 1980s. Niger becomes the most greened region in Arica. India and Bangladesh sign 30-year treaty to share Ganga waters. Uruguayans vote to amend the constitution so that access to piped water and sanitation is a undamental human right, and government considers people more important than money while drawing up water policies
Around 5000 BC the desertication o the Sahara begins. People migrate closer to the Nile, setting oundation or Egyptian civilisation.
From 2000 to 1000 BC the Saraswati River in India dries up. The Thar desert is born.
Water is vital to human survival. Human beings store, transport, puriy, use and control water in many ways. It is a destructive orce during foods or tsunamis, and its absence causes droughts and plagues. That’s why we have so many stories about water through which human beings have tried to understand why a liegiving orce suddenly turns against them. Today, Today, we are aced with the threat o a world with less and less water. Where have we gone wrong? Looking at some acts and ollowing the history o water helps us make connections between events across time. It is interesting to create a timeline o our own neighbourhoods, villages, towns, cities and countries and see what answers w e get.
Tsunamis Tsunamis occur all through history, particularly in J apan. Over the following 2000 years, droughts and amines alternate with foods and storms all over the world. In a reak incident in 1228, thousands are killed in the Netherlands ater fooding breaks dykes. Over 400 years, bubonic plague sweeps across Europe, Asia, Arica , killing thousands. Floods and amines test people’s resilience resilience in China and India. A major amine in the H orn o Arica in the 19th century aects Ethiopia, Sudan and Somalia.
By the end of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st, 75% o European glaciers advance. There are mass movements against construction o dams such as the Narmada Bachao Andolan against construction o dams on the Narmada River, and in Brazil, there is a huge march against the Castanhao Dam. March 14 is declared International Day o Action Against Dams and For Rivers, Water and Lie. Three Gorges Dam, still under construction in China, is set to become world’s largest. 2004 is one o the worst years when a tsunami in the Indian Ocean kills 2,30,000 people across several countries.
Rising sea waters aect people in India, Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh. River Po in Italy dries up while River Kosi in Nepal breaks its dam, displacing millions. Tsunami Tsunami hits Chile.
WATER TIMELINE
The earliest irrigation practices are recorded in Mesopotamia, Egypt, Peru, and the Indus Valley Civilisation across Pakistan and India dating as ar back as 6000 BC. Sunshu Ao rom China is credited with being the rst hydraulic engineer.
Around 10,000 BC, melting glaciers cause sea levels to rise
Between 3000 and 2000 BC people use sophisticated systems to store water as also waterbased toilets during Indus Valley Civilisation in India and Pakistan. People lter water through charcoal, store it in copper containers, and puriy it by exposing to sunlight. Egyptians nd ways o storing water in desert conditions.
Over the next 2000 years, an irrigation method called Qanat is developed in Persia. It is still practised in Asia,Middle East and North Arica. Highly precise engineering techniques are used in Anuradhapura and Polonnaruwa in Sri Lanka or irrigation. A dried up lake in India called Lake Sudarsana is rejuvenated and the Chinese use chain pumps to lit water.
By about 1100 AD, two carved rock slab dams are built to create a lake in Madhya Pradesh, India. The water gauge is invented by Jang Yeong-sil, Korea. Around 1400, the Mudduk Maur dam near Bhopal, India, is the highest earthll embankment dam or 300 years. Meer Allum Dam, near Hyderabad, is the rst multiple arch buttress dam and is still being used. Step-wells are carved in rock in Gujarat and Rajasthan, India.
In the 1920s, while the British Raj is sti ll holding sway, Sir WIlliam Willcocks advises that an ancient food irrigation system be used or its maniold benets: food waters to irrigate, silt to enrich soil, and sh to control malaria. Meanwhile, the Nile Basin Treaty regulates the sharing o Nile waters between Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and Congo.
In a rare instance, the Arican Sahel, a semi-desert zone bordering the Sahara, is greened by trees in the 1980s. Niger becomes the most greened region in Arica. India and Bangladesh sign 30-year treaty to share Ganga waters. Uruguayans vote to amend the constitution so that access to piped water and sanitation is a undamental human right, and government considers people more important than money while drawing up water policies
Around 5000 BC the desertication o the Sahara begins. People migrate closer to the Nile, setting oundation or Egyptian civilisation.
From 2000 to 1000 BC the Saraswati River in India dries up. The Thar desert is born.
Water is vital to human survival. Human beings store, transport, puriy, use and control water in many ways. It is a destructive orce during foods or tsunamis, and its absence causes droughts and plagues. That’s why we have so many stories about water through which human beings have tried to understand why a liegiving orce suddenly turns against them. Today, Today, we are aced with the threat o a world with less and less water. Where have we gone wrong? Looking at some acts and ollowing the history o water helps us make connections between events across time. It is interesting to create a timeline o our own neighbourhoods, villages, towns, cities and countries and see what answers w e get.
Tsunamis Tsunamis occur all through history, particularly in J apan. Over the following 2000 years, droughts and amines alternate with foods and storms all over the world. In a reak incident in 1228, thousands are killed in the Netherlands ater fooding breaks dykes. Over 400 years, bubonic plague sweeps across Europe, Asia, Arica , killing thousands. Floods and amines test people’s resilience resilience in China and India. A major amine in the H orn o Arica in the 19th century aects Ethiopia, Sudan and Somalia.
By the end of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st, 75% o European glaciers advance. There are mass movements against construction o dams such as the Narmada Bachao Andolan against construction o dams on the Narmada River, and in Brazil, there is a huge march against the Castanhao Dam. March 14 is declared International Day o Action Against Dams and For Rivers, Water and Lie. Three Gorges Dam, still under construction in China, is set to become world’s largest. 2004 is one o the worst years when a tsunami in the Indian Ocean kills 2,30,000 people across several countries.
Rising sea waters aect people in India, Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh. River Po in Italy dries up while River Kosi in Nepal breaks its dam, displacing millions. Tsunami Tsunami hits Chile.
WATER FACTS wth water. ths, % s salt, 2% s ce, Three-quarters o the earth s coered wth water. and the rest, reshwater. ost lng thngs need reshwater to sure. bout 95% o all the freshwater s below the ground, 2% s mosture, and the rest aalable n the orm o lakes, rers and streams. Tere are 12 big river systems n the Indan subcontnent, apart rom smaller rers and streams. Te GangaBrahmaputra and the Indus network prode the most water. omen n rca and sa hae to walk to walk an average distance o at least km to nd reshwater. reshwater. Te oten hae to carr a waterload o about 20 kg on ther heads. ater dissolves more substances than an other lqud. It alwas carres chemcals, mnerals and nutrents. Te mportant rers n Inda orgnate rom one o the ollowng three sources: the Himalaya and the Karakoram ranges whch are snowed and perennal; Himalaya and the Vindhya and Satpura ranges n central Inda; and the Sahyadri or estern Vindhya and Satpura ranges Sahyadri or Ghats n western Inda whch depend on the monsoons. person can le wthout ood or about a month, but onl about a week without water. water. oughl 70% o an adult’s bod s made up o water. water. reatures reatures lke the koala bear and the desert rat do not drink water water..
It seems that the water requrement per person or santaton, bathng, cookng and consumpton s approxmatel approxmatel 50 litres per day . But oer one bllon people hae access to less than 6 litres per da. tpcal aml n the consumes eight times more water than a tpcal aml n Inda that has access to santaton and bathng acltes. ater s the onl substance that s ound on earth n the orm o solds, lquds and gases. urther, t’s the same water that gets recycled through recycled through eaporaton and ran. Perhaps Perhaps the water ou are drnkng at ths moment was drunk b a dnosaur mllons o ears ago! Rajendra Singh o lwar, ajasthan, receed the amon agsasa award n Rajendra 200 or hs poneerng work n water management. e showed how old llage wells could be recharged and the use o check dams to collect water. s organsaton, arun arun Bharat angh, has helped man llages n ajasthan mproe ther water problems. nother person who has changed the les o llagers who had alwas sufered rom water problems s Anna Hazare, Hazare, n aharashtra. Tanks to hs poneerng deas, man people hae ncreased groundwater leels n and around ther llages. Te conversion of waste water nto good water s an mportant nnoaton. stems such as mcroltraton and reerse osmoss are used or ths, as also ultraolet technologes and conentonal water treatment processes.
WATER FACTS wth water. ths, % s salt, 2% s ce, Three-quarters o the earth s coered wth water. and the rest, reshwater. ost lng thngs need reshwater to sure. bout 95% o all the freshwater s below the ground, 2% s mosture, and the rest aalable n the orm o lakes, rers and streams. Tere are 12 big river systems n the Indan subcontnent, apart rom smaller rers and streams. Te GangaBrahmaputra and the Indus network prode the most water. omen n rca and sa hae to walk to walk an average distance o at least km to nd reshwater. reshwater. Te oten hae to carr a waterload o about 20 kg on ther heads. ater dissolves more substances than an other lqud. It alwas carres chemcals, mnerals and nutrents. Te mportant rers n Inda orgnate rom one o the ollowng three sources: the Himalaya and the Karakoram ranges whch are snowed and perennal; Himalaya and the Vindhya and Satpura ranges n central Inda; and the Sahyadri or estern Vindhya and Satpura ranges Sahyadri or Ghats n western Inda whch depend on the monsoons. person can le wthout ood or about a month, but onl about a week without water. water. oughl 70% o an adult’s bod s made up o water. water.
It seems that the water requrement per person or santaton, bathng, cookng and consumpton s approxmatel approxmatel 50 litres per day . But oer one bllon people hae access to less than 6 litres per da. tpcal aml n the consumes eight times more water than a tpcal aml n Inda that has access to santaton and bathng acltes. ater s the onl substance that s ound on earth n the orm o solds, lquds and gases. urther, t’s the same water that gets recycled through recycled through eaporaton and ran. Perhaps Perhaps the water ou are drnkng at ths moment was drunk b a dnosaur mllons o ears ago! Rajendra Singh o lwar, ajasthan, receed the amon agsasa award n Rajendra 200 or hs poneerng work n water management. e showed how old llage wells could be recharged and the use o check dams to collect water. s organsaton, arun arun Bharat angh, has helped man llages n ajasthan mproe ther water problems. nother person who has changed the les o llagers who had alwas sufered rom water problems s Anna Hazare, Hazare, n aharashtra. Tanks to hs poneerng deas, man people hae ncreased groundwater leels n and around ther llages. Te conversion of waste water nto good water s an mportant nnoaton. stems such as mcroltraton and reerse osmoss are used or ths, as also ultraolet technologes and conentonal water treatment processes.
reatures reatures lke the koala bear and the desert rat do not drink water water..
Water Stori es
CONRiUORS
87
“Beng a ctgrl, m connecton wth water has alwas been ndrect and measured,” sas Nirupama Sekhar. “Ts project has been a rereshng plunge nto understandng water n a much deeper, truer sense. s desgner and llustrator, t has been an exctng journe delng nto ancent olktales, magnng seagods and talkng rogs, and conjurng up oceans, rers and ran to depct the glorous majest o the world's waters.” ter e ears o workng n teleson and desgn n umba, elh and henna, rupama s currentl pursung pursung a asters n Graphc esgn at Water Stories s the rst book she has the ondon ollege o ommuncaton, K. Water llustrated.
Amruta Patil s an author and artst. he g rew up b the raban ea n a aml
o swmmng, salng, scuba dng water babes. or surprsngl, water eatures promnentl n her work - as does her other bg loe, mtholog. mruta’s rst graphc noel (Kari , arperollns, 200) has a sewer as ts backdrop, whle her next book has a rer as one o ts narrators. mruta mruta belees that t s water - n all ts states and orms - that s the closest lkeness to the les, mnds and hstores o all people. he s currentl based n ew elh. o ew mrutas wrtng and artwork: http://amrutapatl.blogspot.com
Based n henna, Niveditha Subramaniam s currentl workng as a create wrter or a chldren’s magazne. ascnated b pcture book art and drawn to stortellng, she sas t was great un workng on a antas stor on water. “Ts “Ts mth s both a charmng creaton stor wth an unexpected turn and at the same tme a er real tale,” she sas, “because the dragon’s pearl s smbolc o the transormate qualt o water and ts dual nature - t ges ran to the llage but turns the bo nto a dragon.”
Deepa Balsavar s brngng up her daughter who she thnks s a dolphn or mabe
s a consultant n nnoaton, Radhika Chadha was drawn to the stor o ndng water or ts underlng message o hope: that we can look to both ageold wsdom and modern scence or help n a crss. he was also ntrgued to nd that the deas n ths mth rom rca resonated wth those n the Brihat Samhita, an encclopaeda wrtten n Inda n the sxth centur , b Varahamhra, amous astronomer and mathematcan, whch ges detaled nstructons or locatng underground underground water b usng bondcators such as termtes and trees.
a mermad, on the shores o a badl polluted megalopols, umba. Trough Trough her daughter’s ees she has been shown a connecton to the ast unerse and to all lng and nonlng thngs that make our planet so specal. “e “e alread know the need to protect water or drnkng and santaton and agrculture, but we destro our seas as we are destrong our land, where wll all the dolphns and mermads go?” she a sks. Te mage o water as mght and dauntng et the essence o le s an nalenable part o the Indan psche, sas Mariam Karim-Ahlawat , who currentl resdes n ew elh. or her, lKhzr s the ultmate prophet o the present da when the enronment s threatened b clmate change and global warmng, b polluton, and the dsappearance o prstne water bodes. he belees that dferent aspects o the sgncance o water n our les ultmatel cone the message o oneness wth the world, o contnuous exchange, and acceptance.
or ears, Sandhya Rao has sat on the beach near her home n henna watchng the waes come and go, magnng whales swmmng serenel n the Ba o Bengal and ole rdles makng ther msterous journes. he has neer been able to understand wh anbod would want to test ther strength aganst the sea's unquestonable power, power, ts constanc, and ts beaut. abe that’s what drew her to the stores o lexander, and the pansh treasure eets.
Water Stori es
CONRiUORS
87
“Beng a ctgrl, m connecton wth water has alwas been ndrect and measured,” sas Nirupama Sekhar. “Ts project has been a rereshng plunge nto understandng water n a much deeper, truer sense. s desgner and llustrator, t has been an exctng journe delng nto ancent olktales, magnng seagods and talkng rogs, and conjurng up oceans, rers and ran to depct the glorous majest o the world's waters.” ter e ears o workng n teleson and desgn n umba, elh and henna, rupama s currentl pursung pursung a asters n Graphc esgn at Water Stories s the rst book she has the ondon ollege o ommuncaton, K. Water llustrated.
Amruta Patil s an author and artst. he g rew up b the raban ea n a aml
o swmmng, salng, scuba dng water babes. or surprsngl, water eatures promnentl n her work - as does her other bg loe, mtholog. mruta’s rst graphc noel (Kari , arperollns, 200) has a sewer as ts backdrop, whle her next book has a rer as one o ts narrators. mruta mruta belees that t s water - n all ts states and orms - that s the closest lkeness to the les, mnds and hstores o all people. he s currentl based n ew elh. o ew mrutas wrtng and artwork: http://amrutapatl.blogspot.com
Based n henna, Niveditha Subramaniam s currentl workng as a create wrter or a chldren’s magazne. ascnated b pcture book art and drawn to stortellng, she sas t was great un workng on a antas stor on water. “Ts “Ts mth s both a charmng creaton stor wth an unexpected turn and at the same tme a er real tale,” she sas, “because the dragon’s pearl s smbolc o the transormate qualt o water and ts dual nature - t ges ran to the llage but turns the bo nto a dragon.”
Deepa Balsavar s brngng up her daughter who she thnks s a dolphn or mabe
s a consultant n nnoaton, Radhika Chadha was drawn to the stor o ndng water or ts underlng message o hope: that we can look to both ageold wsdom and modern scence or help n a crss. he was also ntrgued to nd that the deas n ths mth rom rca resonated wth those n the Brihat Samhita, an encclopaeda wrtten n Inda n the sxth centur , b Varahamhra, amous astronomer and mathematcan, whch ges detaled nstructons or locatng underground underground water b usng bondcators such as termtes and trees.
a mermad, on the shores o a badl polluted megalopols, umba. Trough Trough her daughter’s ees she has been shown a connecton to the ast unerse and to all lng and nonlng thngs that make our planet so specal. “e “e alread know the need to protect water or drnkng and santaton and agrculture, but we destro our seas as we are destrong our land, where wll all the dolphns and mermads go?” she a sks. Te mage o water as mght and dauntng et the essence o le s an nalenable part o the Indan psche, sas Mariam Karim-Ahlawat , who currentl resdes n ew elh. or her, lKhzr s the ultmate prophet o the present da when the enronment s threatened b clmate change and global warmng, b polluton, and the dsappearance o prstne water bodes. he belees that dferent aspects o the sgncance o water n our les ultmatel cone the message o oneness wth the world, o contnuous exchange, and acceptance.
88
or ears, Sandhya Rao has sat on the beach near her home n henna watchng the waes come and go, magnng whales swmmng serenel n the Ba o Bengal and ole rdles makng ther msterous journes. he has neer been able to understand wh anbod would want to test ther strength aganst the sea's unquestonable power, power, ts constanc, and ts beaut. abe that’s what drew her to the stores o lexander, and the pansh treasure eets.
Water Stories
Sowmya Rajendran works or a chldren’s magazne and enjos readng and wrtng
chldren’s lterature more than anthng else. he has a B n nglsh (tella ars, henna) and an n Gender tudes (nerst o ussex, K) and presentl les n Pune. “hen I rst heard the stor o Koluscap,” she sas, “t remnded me o the Plachmada struggle n Kerala, a case I’d ollowed closel. Tese stores - one mthcal and the other real - queston our tendenc to pla god b drawng lnes across maps. I leshed out the stor b placng asha, the anchor o the tale, as the oce or all smlar bglttle struggles that the world has seen s een across the ages. he struggles ma neer cease, but nether wll ts solders.” Suniti Namjoshi s a poet and a abulst (Feminist Fables, he Blue Donkey Fables ,
Sycorax) and also a chldren’s wrter. hough she les n ngland now, she grew up n western aharashtra where the landscape s ard and dr. he dragon at the outset o the dt dentures (a seres o 2 books set n derent countres publshed b ulka) ranges oer the countrsde drnkng up eer drop o mosture t can nd. Perhaps Perhaps that s what attracted her to the wallower o louds and ddalk, unt sas: “ggantc
88
Water Stories
Sowmya Rajendran works or a chldren’s magazne and enjos readng and wrtng
chldren’s lterature more than anthng else. he has a B n nglsh (tella ars, henna) and an n Gender tudes (nerst o ussex, K) and presentl les n Pune. “hen I rst heard the stor o Koluscap,” she sas, “t remnded me o the Plachmada struggle n Kerala, a case I’d ollowed closel. Tese stores - one mthcal and the other real - queston our tendenc to pla god b drawng lnes across maps. I leshed out the stor b placng asha, the anchor o the tale, as the oce or all smlar bglttle struggles that the world has seen s een across the ages. he struggles ma neer cease, but nether wll ts solders.” Suniti Namjoshi s a poet and a abulst (Feminist Fables, he Blue Donkey Fables ,
Sycorax) and also a chldren’s wrter. hough she les n ngland now, she grew up n western aharashtra where the landscape s ard and dr. he dragon at the outset o the dt dentures (a seres o 2 books set n derent countres publshed b ulka) ranges oer the countrsde drnkng up eer drop o mosture t can nd. Perhaps Perhaps that s what attracted her to the wallower o louds and ddalk, unt sas: “ggantc gures who nether understand nor care that water s essental to le.” Zai Whitaker s a teacher and wrter. er books are mostl about our enronment,
and the need to protect t. he also wrtes about adas people lke the Irulas o amlnadu and the Jarawa o the ndaman Islands. he enjos readng and brd watchng. he has two sons, and both o them, she sas, “are rocodle undees, and work at the adras rocodle Bank. I le n Kodakanal, a place where, not long ago, water was plentul. oda, there s just as much ran as beore, but there’s no orest to hold t n the ground. Publc Publc taps make a dr hssng sound and wateralls are trckles rather than torrents. hs stor s duplcated all oer the countr. he er Goddess s dentel not happ wth us. e need to lsten to elekana, and learn rom her stor.”
