Week 13 Reading Diary: Khasi Folktales

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Khasi Folktales

• Hunting the Stag Lapalang
• There was once a studly stag who was well-known throughout the land. He was beautiful, but one day he was hunted down. When his mom found out she rushed around the countryside looking for her dead son. Her cries were the saddest, loudest cries of all time and they were so full of anguish and misery that the Khasis were impressed. They decided to mourn their dead like she mourned hers. 
• The Goddesses Ka Ngot and Ka Iam
• Twin sisters climb a mountain where they decided to race each other across the woody plains of Sylhet. Ka Ngot was timid, but Ka Iam was fearless. She boasted and teased her sister before the race, then the sisters transformed into two rivers and started their race. 
• Ka Ngot searched for smooth, easy places and moved slowly through long circuits. When she reached the end, she turned to look for her sister and the Khasis living on the hill-tops began calling her a silver necklace (which that part of the river is still called today).
• Ka Iam rushed straight for the end, but found that her chosen path was very difficult to travel. As a result, she lost to her sister which was humiliating because of all the crap-talking she did before ht race. Hoping to conceal her defeat from the rest of the world, she divided herself into 5 streams and entered the plains that way to join her sister. 
• Ever since, Ka Ngot has been seen as the better of the twins and is usually given sacrifices before people cross her. 
• U Biskurom
• U Biskurom was a heavenly being sent to  Earth to teach men how to make and use tools. He taught them the value of metals and how to make tools from smelted iron. They were slow learners but U Biskurom was patient. The men saw that he was much better and faster than they were at finishing his work so they demanded that he do impossible work and when he failed they would become angry and abusive. One day they made a clay person and told U Biskurom to make it come to life, but when he told them he did not know how, they beat him and threatened to throw him in prison if he did not bring it to life. U Biskurom said that if they wanted him to do it, they had to let him go back to heaven to learn how. Mankind let him go and strung him up on a kite to get him to heaven. If the gods wouldn't let him return to earth, he could write his knowledge and send it along the string. The gods did not want him going back to the abusive human A-holes so U Biskurom wrote on the kite and sent it down, but no human could decipher it. The humans were angry so they sent a huge shout to heaven. U Biskurom laughed and made some blood rain down from heaven. The humans thought he was killed by their shout.
• Because of their rudeness, lack of gratitude, and pride mankind has remained very ignorant and it takes a lot of work to gain knowledge. 
• The Stag and the Snail
• A stag is talking about how fast it is and a snail gets pissed.  Speed isn't the only important virtue of an animal! She made fun of them, pointing out how sweaty  they were and how cool and dry her skin was. The other animals were mad and saw themselves as superior so the snail challenged the stag to a long race. He accepted and the snail went home to ask her family to help her. They decided to hide along the path of the race and they dispersed. The next day the animals all gathered and laughed at the idea of the snail winning. The snail took off her shell and got ready to race. As soon as the signal was given, she ran into the grass and was no longer visible while the stag skipped towards the mountains. After a while the stag looked back and stopped, figuring the snail would have given up, and called out for him. From near his feet, he heard, "I am here, I am here" and there was the snail! This set the stag racing again and again he stopped and called for the snail who answered from right under his nose. When he reached the end, he was panting and laid down to rest because he was too weak to continue. The snail won and the stag was so upset that he fell to the ground and spit out his gallbladder. The stag still has no gallbladder as a constant reminder of his failure. 
• The Leap of Ka Likai
• This was the story of a waterfall. There was a woman named Ka Likai who who was married and had a baby, but her husband died. She couldn't support herself and her baby so she married again but the new husband was a selfish and brutal man. He was jealous of ho much attention Ka gave to the child and when he found out she married him to be able to support the child, he grew to hate her. He quit working, forcing Ka to work and while she was gone he would bully and abuse the child. One day while Ka was gone for a long time, the husband killed the child and planned to do worse to his wife when she returned. He chopped up the child and cooked it  before serving her to the mom. After dinner, the mom reached into a basket looking for betel and found one of her murdered daughter's hands. She freaked and asked what happened. The man told her everything and she was so distraught that she threw herself over the edge of the waterfall. Every since, it has been called the Leap of Ka Likai and it is said you can hear her anguished moans  and wives contemplating remarrying are discouraged and told to remember Ka Likai. 
• What caused the Shadows on the Moon
• Family of deities: a mother and her 4 children (3 daughters, 1 son)- Water, Fire, Sun, and Moon
• The youngest, Moon & Sun, were equal to each other but more beautiful and than the elders.
• When the moon grew up he developed wayward tendencies: he came and went as he pleased without talking to his mother and he was falling in with the wrong crowd. Sometimes he'd be gone for days at a time with no one knowing where he is. He gave over to pleasures and "wild pursuits" and one day he and his friends went to the nether regions and spent lots of time with goblins. After a while, he went home and when he got home he was dazzled by his sister Sun because he'd gotten so used to seeing only ugly companions. His sister tried to greet him, but he ran past and demanded that his mom give him his sister's hand in marriage. He was dismissed by his mother and when Sun found out what he'd done she stomped up to him, grabbed a pan of hot ash, and threw it in his face. The ashes scarred him, creating the shadows on the moon. 
• What makes the Lightning
• Long ago, when animals and men mingled: men had great festivals all the time and animals used to attend them. A huge feast was planned by the animals and the thunder god. At the feast, the lynx arrived with a glorious silver sword. The thunder god asked to borrow it and when he did he wielded it wildly and pounded his drum violently. It was so loud and bright that the animals were scared and they fled to the jungle to hide. In the confusion, the thunder god leapt into the sky, taking the sword with him. He is seen today dancing with the sword and hitting his drum. People call these thunder and lightning. 
• How the Tiger got his Strength
• In the beginning, all of the animals were created and sent to live in the jungle. However, they kept getting in each other's way and squabbling. So, the gods came together to decide which animals would get which qualities that way they could live in harmony. After this all of the humans and animals were summoned to receive their gifts. 
• Man was given beauty and wisdom and the tiger received craftiness and the ability to walk silently. 
• When the man returned home his mother sent him back to the gods to ask for physical strength so that man would truly be superior to animals. The man went back but it was late and he was told to return the next day and they would give him strength. 
• When the man was talking to the gods, a tiger happened to stroll upon their gathering and overheard them discussing the gift of strength. He was determined to have it for himself so the next morning before the gods had convened, the tiger went to their home and sent a messenger to receive the gift. The gods bestowed the gift of strength 12X more than what he had before because they thought they were giving it to men. 
• Later that day the man set out to meet with the gods, but on the way the tiger challenged him to a fight and boasted about receiving the "12 strengths." The tiger leapt at the man, but he dodged and ran towards the home of the gods. He told them what happened, and the gods were angry but they did not know how to take back the gift.
• They felt bad for the man so they gave him a bow and arrow and taught him how to shoot and kill the tiger. Thus, the tiger was given strength and the man was given skill.