The Story of The Stupid Crocodile

The Story of The Stupid Crocodile
A Folklore from South Sulawesi, Indonesia

Once upon a time, It was very hot day. A crocodile was lying on the ground. He wanted to go to the river and enjoyed the water. However, he was too weak to go there. He was waiting for an animal to help him. His wish came true. A buffalo was passing by. He asked the buffalo to helped him.

"I want to go to the river. But I am too weak. May I jump on your back and take me to the river?" asked the crocodile.

"Certainly, Mr Crocodile. I'm glad to help you," said the Buffalo.

Soon the crocodile was on top of the buffalo's back. And when they arrived at the river side, the buffalo asked the crocodile to get off.

"Not now, there is not much water here. Please go farther," said the crocodile.

The buffalo continued walking. They were almost at the middle of the river. The water was on the neck of the buffalo. The crocodile get off from the buffalo's back. Instead of saying thank you, the crocodile bit the buffalo's leg.

"Hey what are you doing?" asked the buffalo.

"I'm so hungry. You have to be my lunch!" said the crocodile.

"But it is not fair! I already helped you!"

"I don't care!" said the crocodile.

A mouse deer saw their argument. He was standing at the river side. He wanted to know what happened.

"Hey, what are you arguing about?" asked the mouse deer.

"I already helped Mr. Crocodile, but now he wants to eat me."

The mouse deer knew that the crocodile was a mean animal. He wanted to help the buffalo.

"What? I cannot hear you. Both of you are too far from me. Come closer to the ground.

Slowly, the buffalo moved his body. The crocodile was still biting his leg. And when they were on the ground, the mouse deer whispered to the buffalo's ear.

"Kick the crocodile now and run. The crocodile cannot move fast to the ground."

The buffalo immediately kicked the crocodile with his other leg. The crocodile was in pain. He opened his mouth. The buffalo was free. Soon the buffalo and the mouse deer ran fast to save their lives.

"Wait for my revenge mouse deer. I will eat you alive!" the crocodile was angry.

Several days later, the crocodile met the mouse deer.

"Aha! I will eat you now!"

"No, wait! Do you know what I'm doing here?" asked the mouse deer. He continued, "Do you see that big and shining rope over there? Well, it's not a rope. It's a magic belt. The god of the jungle asked me to guard it."

"Really? What kind of magic does this belt have?" asked the crocodile.

"Anyone who wears the belt will have great power," explained the mouse deer.

The crocodile wanted to have great power. However, he did not know that the belt was actually a big snake. And the snake was sleeping.

The crocodile asked the mouse deer to go away. And when the mouse deer left. The crocodile lifted the belt and put it around his body.

The snake was angry! He squeezed the crocodile! The crocodile was in great pain. He asked for help but no one helped him. Slowly, the crocodile died.

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Fable: A Lesson for the Tiger

Fable: A Lesson for the Tiger
A Folklore from Central Java, Indonesia

A Long time ago, all animals had a king. Their king was the tiger. All animals were afraid of him. The tiger was the strongest among them. He was also very mean. He would hit any animals when they disobeyed him.

One day they wanted to give the tiger a lesson.

"Listen friends, we need to find a way. The tiger is also cruel especially to weak animals like me," said the rabbit.

"I have an idea," said the mouse deer. "He is not clever as he looks. I think I can trick him," said the mouse deer.

"How will you trick him?" asked the rabbit.

"It's easy. You meet the tiger and tell him that I challenge him to fight."

"What? Are you kidding? You cannot win!" said the rabbit.

"Don't worry. I'm not really challenging him to fight. It's all part of the plan."

The mouse deer continued.

"You just tell him that I challenge him to fight under that big tree," the mouse deer pointed to a big tree near them.

Later the rabbit met the tiger and he told the tiger about the challenge.

"What!? Is it true?! OK, tell the mouse deer I accept his challenge. I will beat him so easily," said the tiger. He was so arrogant.

The tiger went to the big tree. He saw the mouse deer staring at the branches of the tree.

"Hey mouse deer! I heard you challenge me to fight. Come here, let's fight now!" screamed the tiger.

However, the mouse deer did not move at all. He kept on staring on the branches of the tree.

"Mouse deer! Are you deaf?" the tiger was really angry.

"Shh... Be quiet," said the mouse deer.

"What? You asked me to be quiet." The tiger really don't understand.

"Yes. Do you see that big round thing in that branch? last night I had a dream. An owl told me that the big round thing above us can give me power."

He continued. "The problem is I cannot jump or climb to grab that thing."

"Really? Are you sure?" asked the tiger. "Well, I am the king and I deserve that power. So I want you to get out of here otherwise I will hit you," said the tiger.

The mouse deer pretended to be scared. He immediately ran away. Meanwhile, the tiger climbed the tree. He was trying to grab the round thing in the branch of the tree.

The tiger did not know that the round thing was actually the beehive! And when he was finally able to grab the beehive, he fell down to the ground.

All the bees were angry. They all attacked and stung the tiger. The bees were angry because the tiger had already destroyed their home.

The tiger was in a great pain. He could not fight the bees. he asked for help, unfortunately, the animals did not want to help him.

The tiger finally went to the river. He swam and he survived. He realized the mistake. Since then he changed, he became a wise king.

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My Nest Is Better Than Yours

My Nest Is Better Than Yours
A Folklore from Riau, Indonesia

Long time ago, a quail and a weaver bird were best friends. Although they were very much different, they always helped each other. They always looked for food together. They met in the morning and looked for food until in the afternoon. At night they separated and went home to their own nest.

It was raining. The quail and the weaver bird were under a big tree. While they were waiting for the rain stop, they were talking about their nests.

"My nest is great. It is very clean and strong. I made it by arranging the old leaves and the twigs. I'm really comfortable living in my nest," said the weaver bird.

"Well, my nest is great. It is also very strong. And I don't have to be bothered making it. I just need to find a big broken tree and I can live there," said the quail.

"But compared to your nest, my nest is better," said the weaver bird.

"I don't think so. My nest is better than yours," said the quail.

They kept arguing. Each of them said to have a better nest. What started as a little argument then turned to almost a fight. To prove whose nest was better, they agreed to stay in their nests.

"Let's stay in my nest tonight. Tomorrow we will stay in your nest," said the weaver bird.

"I agree!" said the quail.

It was a late in the afternoon. The were going to the weaver bird's nest.

The nest was at branch of a tree. It was high. The weaver bird did not have any problem reaching the nest. He was flying and in just a minute he arrived at his nest. Meanwhile the quail had problem arriving at the nest. He could not fly well. Instead, he tried to climb the tree. Finally he succeeded. He arrived at the weaver bird's nest.

The weaver bird and the quail shared the nest. They started to sleep. Suddenly, the rain fell down heavily. The wind was blowing strongly. The branches of the tree were moving back and forth. The The quail was terrified. He was afraid he would fall down.

"Do something! The branch is swinging. I don't want to fall down."

"Don't worry. We are not going to fall down," said the weaver bird calmly.

The weaver bird continued to sleep. However, the quail could not sleep at all. He regretted his decision to spend the night at his friend's nest.

In the morning, they looked for food as usual. And in the afternoon they went to the quail's nest. And when they arrived, the weaver bird was surprised.

"You live here? Under the big broken tree?" asked the weaver bird.

"Yes. And you don't have to worry with the wind. The tree is lying on the ground, so it won't swing."

Later, they started to sleep. Then rain was falling down heavily. Unfortunately, water was slowly approaching the nest. And they were finally wet.

"I'm so cold," said the weaver bird.

"Don't worry, you will dry soon. Let's continue sleeping," said the quail.

In the morning, the weaver bird complained about the quail's nest. The quail also complained about the weaver bird's nest. Then they realized that their life were different. Since then, they never said to have the better nest.

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The Story of The King of the River

The Story of The King of the River
A Folktale from Maluku, Indonesia

Once upon a time, a frog, a turtle, a snail, and all other animals were getting together in a river. Suddenly,

“The snake is coming!” screamed a fish to his friends.

A frog, a turtle, a snail, and all other animals were surprised. They were immediately hiding. They were afraid of the snake. They were worried the snake will harm them.

“Hey! Where is everybody!” said the snake.

He was looking around for all the animals.

“I’m hungry. Give me some food. Come on, get out now!”

The snake went here and there. Finally he found them.

“Ha…ha…ha…What are you doing here? Why are you hiding? Are you afraid of me? You should be afraid of me. I’m the biggest animal in this river. I’m your king.”

“You are not our king. There is no king here. Everybody is equal,” said the turtle.

“Let’s prove it! Who wants to fight me? I can beat you easily. With my big body, I can twist you easily. Ha…ha…ha! Now, give me some food!”

The animals were afraid. They did not have any courage to fight the snake. They then prepared some food for him. After the sake finished eating and leaves them, they had a meeting.

“We can’t be like this all the time. I want to live peacefully,” said the frog.

“I have and idea. Let’s go to the alligator’s house. Talk to him about our problem. We ask him to help us,” said the fish.

All the animals agreed with his idea. Finally, the alligator met the snake.

“I heard what you do to the animals in the animals in this river. You have to stop your bad behavior,” said the alligator.

“I’m not afraid of you. I will twist your body.” The snake and the alligator than were fighting.

The alligator used his tail to hit the snake. He did that several times.

“Mercy me, mercy me!” the snake screamed in pain.

“Are you still the king in this river? Are you going to harm the animals again?”

“No. I’m not the king and I promise I will be good to them,” said the snake.

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Siranggir the Cow

Siranggir the Cow

A Folklore from North Sumatra, Indonesia

Once upon a time, there was a cow named Siranggir. She had some children. Everyday they went to a field to eat some grass with their owner, Aji Tonggal. He was a young man and he loved his cows very much. He even could talk with them.

Aji Tonggal and his parents build a new house. The people had a tradition. Before a family stayed in their new house, they had to sacrifice a cow. So, the father asked Aji Tonggal to sacrifice the biggest cow they had. And it was Siranggir, the mother cow.

Siranggir was very sad. But Aji Tonggal had to listen and obey his parents. So, he went to Siranggir and explained what happened. Siranggir knew about the tradition, and she also knew that sooner or later she would also be sacrificed.

"Don't worry, Aji Tonggal. I'm ready to be sacrificed. Please promise that you will always take care of my kids after I have gone. And I have a request. Give me time to talk to my children. I want to say good bye to them," said Siranggir.

All the children were very sad. They did not want to lose their mother. They understood about the tradition after their mother explained it to them.

Then, it was time for the ceremony. Aji Tonggal did not have the heart to kill his beloved cow. He asked somebody else to do that. After Siranggir was killed, Aji Tonggal's parents shared the meat to the neighbours. The family still kept Siranggir's head. The head was hung in the kitchen.

Several days after the ceremony, a strange thing happened to the family. Every morning, the family went to the field and when they arrived home in the afternoon, they always had food in the kitchen. The food was enough for the whole of family.

Aji Tonggal was really curious. One day, he went home earlier. He saw a beautiful girl was cooking in the kitchen. Slowly he walked towards the girl, and grabbed her hand.

"Please let me go. I will explain everything. I am Siranggir. Even though I'm dead, I still want to dedicate my life to you. That's why I transformed my life into a girl," said the girl.

Aji Tonggal was surprised. He then looked for Siranggir's head in the kitchen. But he could not find it. Then he believed that Siranggir's head had already transformed into a young girl.

Aji Tonggal then fell in love with the girl. After that, he talked to his parents. He wanted to marry the girl. The parents agreed. Once again the family had a ceremony. This time, it was ceremony for their marriage.

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The Stupid Dog

The Stupid Dog
Folklore from Central Sulawesi

Deer have horns, right? But long time ago, deer did not have horns. Instead, dogs had horns. How did the deer get the horns? Here is the story.

It was a very hot day. A couple of deer went to a river to drink. They were husband and wife. After arrived in the lake, they immediately drank some water. Suddenly, the wife saw an animal coming.

“My husband, who is he? Wow! He is very handsome with his horns,” said the female deer.

“Oh, that’s my friend. He is a dog. By the way, did you say he is more handsome than me?” asked the male deer. He was jealous.

“Of course not, you are still more handsome than he is. But I have to admit that his horns are beautiful. If you have those horns, I think you will look very attractive.”

“Ok, then, I have an idea how to take the horns from the dog. Just wait here.”

“Hi, how are you?” asked the male deer to the dog.

“I’m just fine,” answered the dog. “How about you?”

“Not really good. You see my wife over there? He thinks that I cannot run fast like other male deer. Do you mind if we have a running match? I really want to practice,” said the male deer.

“Don’t worry, my friend. Let’s have the running match now.” After that, the running match began. The male deer won. Then, he tried to cheer the dog up.

“Well, don’t be sad. You cannot run fast because you have your horns on your head. What if you let me wear the horns,” asked the male deer.

“OK, but please wear the horns carefully. I don’t want them to be broken.”

“Don’t worry. I will be very careful,” replied the male deer. And then he immediately put the horns on his head.

“Wow? my wife is right. I really look great with these horns,” said the male deer to himself. Then, they started the running match again. The male deer ran as fast as he could. He ran very fast and did not stop. He was trying to steal the dog’s horns.

“Hey come back! Bring back my horns!” the dog was very angry. Until now, dogs always try to catch deer. The dogs want to get their horns back.

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The Deer and the Sea Snail

THe Story of The Deer and the Sea Snail
A Folklore from Maluku, Indonesia

A long time ago in a jungle in Aru Islands, Maluku, lived a group of deer. They were very proud of their ability in running very fast. They always stayed in different places. They challenged other animals in a running match. If the deer won the match, they took over the place and stayed there.

Not far from the jungle, there was a beautiful beach. A group of sea snail lived there. The deer heard about the beautiful beach and planned to live there. They had a plan to challenge snails in a running match.

They were very sure to win the match. Sea snails were slow in walking. “

What’s the rule?” asked the leader of the sea snails after he heard about the challenge.

“Do you see all the capes there? There are twelve capes, from here until there,” the deer leader pointed the capes.

The distance between one cape to another was very far.

“We run from the first cape until the twelfth cape. If my runner arrives first at the twelfth cape, we’re the winner. And we stay here!”

The sea snails then had a meeting. They set a strategy to win the match.

“My plan is to put the twelve of us in every cape. If their runner arrives in every cape, you shout. So, the deer will never rest and gets very tired,” said the leader.

And the day of the match finally arrived. All animals watched this unique match, the deer versus the sea snail. The runners were standing side by side.

Then, the deer ran very fast. In just a second, he already left the sea snail. After a few hours of running, he arrived at the first cape.

He shouted, “Hey? Where are you?”

“I’m here,” said the sea snail.

He was another sea snail that was hiding in the first cape. The deer was surprised. He cancelled his plan to get some rest.

He continued running. In every cape, there was always a sea snail. And the deer always cancelled his plan to get some rest.

Finally, the deer almost reached the twelfth cape but he was exhausted. He was really tired. And he gave up. He did not have any more strength to run. He fell down on the ground.

“Hooray!” said all the sea snails.

The deer were so embarrassed. They were just tricked by the clever sea snails. So the deer came back to the jungle and never returned to the beach.

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