THE LEGEND OF PONOROGO DANCE

The Legend of Ponorogo Dance
Folklore From East Java

A long time ago, there was a kingdom in Kediri, East Java. The king had a beautiful daughter. Her name was Princess Dewi Sanggalangit. She was not only beautiful, but also had a great personality. She liked tohelp people and she never treated people differently.

Princess Dewi Sanggalangit was single. Although many young men had come to propose her to be their wife, the princess still did not want to get married yet. It made the king restless.

"My daughter, what are you waiting for? You are old enough to get married."

"I know that, Father. And I will pray to gods to give me guidance," said the princess. Princess Dewi Sanggalangit did not want to choose the wrong husband. Therefore, she meditated, asking gods to give her guidance on how to choose the right husband.

While during her meditation, the princess had a vision. It was seen that in her wedding party, people enjoyed watching a dance. It was not a common dance that she had seen before.

The dancers were dancing following harmonious melody from the Gamelan. It is a traditional.music instrument in Java. There were also horses lining up, they were following the bride and the groom. And the most interesting attraction was the performance of a two-headed animal!

The princess told the king about her vision during the meditation. The king then made an announcement. He said that any man could realize his daughter's wish, could marry her.

One by one, they gave up. They said it was very difficult to hold the dance, especially the performance of a two-headed animal. However, there were two men who still wanted to continue. They were King Singabarong from Lodaya Kingdom and King Kelanaswandana from Bandarangin Kingdom.

King Singabarong was a mean king. He would hurt anyone who did not obey him. King Singabarong was very strange. He was a human but he had a lion head. He was a very tall and big man. His head had been hairy just like a lion's head. There were many fleas on his head, therefore he kept a peacock. He always brought his peacock with him. And whenever he felt itchy, he asked his bird to peck and bit the fleas.

Meanwhile, King Kelanaswandana was a handsome man. He was wise and kind to his people. The King had a great supernatural power. He was still single. And he really loved Princess Dewi Sanggalangit. He was sure that he could hold the dance.

Both kings worked very hard. To anticipate his competitor, King Singabarong sent his soldier to spy King Kelanaswandanana:

The report from his soldier shocked King Singabarong. He said that King Kelanaswandana already had 140 twin horses.

King Singabarong was upset! He planned to attack King Kelanaswandana and stole his horses. Soon King Singabarong and his soldiers arrived at the Kingdom of Bandarangin. Finally the two kings were facing each other.

While they were fighting, suddenly King Singabarong felt very itchy in his head. He could not stand it anymore. He asked his peacock to peck his hairy-lion-head. King Kelanaswandana did not waste the great opportunity. With his supernatural power, he Whipped King Singabarong.

Amazingly, King Singabarong changed into a very strange animal. His peacock joined his head. King Singabarong had changed into a two-headed animal! King Kelanaswandana immediately brought the two-headed animal and performed the dance.

Princess Dewi Sanggalangit amazed and as promised she agreed to marry King Kelanaswandana. And she was brought to Wengker in Bandarangin Kingdom. Wengker was the other name of Ponorogo. Since then people named the dance as Ponorogo dance.

The Salty River

The Salty River

Folklore from Central Kalimantan

A long time ago in Sepang Village, Central Kalimantan, lived a widow named Emas. Her husband died when her daughter was a baby. Her daughter’s name was Tumbai. The villagers in Sepang Village were poor.

Though they were poor, the villagers always worked hard. Fortunately there was a well in the village. So they always had enough water to live.

Tumbai was a very good daughter. She was diligent and obedient. She always helped her mother and listened to her mother’s advice. She also liked to help other people. That was why everybody knew her.

Tumbai was not only famous for her kindness, but she was also famous for her beauty. She was very beautiful! Many young men fell in love with her. One by one, they proposed her to be their wife. However, Tumbai always refused the marriage proposal. She was confused. So she prayed to God to give her guidance.

Finally she got the answer. In her dream, an old man asked her to marry a man who could change the well from fresh water into salt water. When she woke up, Tumbai was very confused.
She thought it was diffi cult for a man to change the fresh water into salt water. Fresh water did not have any taste. It was different from sea water which is salty.

When Tumbai told her mother about her dream, her mother was also confused. However, she knew that her daughter was very good and wouldnít lie to her. Her mother had a feeling, probably God was going to help t h e m from poverty.

Her mother then made an announcement that Tumbai would marry a man who could change the fresh water in the well into salt water. Everybody was laughing. They thought Tumbai and her mother were crazy.

But it did not stop those young men to try. They really wanted to marry Tumbai. So they all tried to change the fresh water into salt water. But they all failed.

One day a man came. He lived in the riverside of Barito River. He had supernatural
power.

“Ma’am, I’m here to marry your daughter,” said the man to Emas, Tumbai’s mother.

“Do you know the test?” asked Emas.

“I do. I will change the fresh water into salt water,” said the man.

The man then sat down next to the well. He was meditating and prayed to God. All the villagers were circling the man. They all were curious.

After a while, the man finished meditating. He stood up and asked the villagers to taste the water from the well.

It worked! He succeeded in changing the water. Tumbai was happy. She fi nally found her dream husband.

And her mother was right. After the water was salty, the villagers were not poor anymore. They changed the salty water into salt. They sold it and they had money.

The salty water was flowing from the well to the Kahayan River. Until now people still taste the salty water in Kahayan River. They also think that the legend really happened.

The Legend of Blue Pond

The Legend of Blue Pond
Folklore From Maluku
“Hey look over there! Water is flowing!”

A man pointed out to a direction. He saw something strange. Water was fl owing out of the big stones. The water was flowing into a lower ground. Slowly, the ground was full of water.

The water was clear and it was bluish.

“Look! It is blue! I have never seen bluish water like this,” said another man.

And then, he tried to taste the water, “The water is so fresh. Come on, let’s drink the water.”

Those people were villagers in Lisawa, Halmahera. They never saw water coming out of the stones before. It was very strange for them.

“We have to report this to the head of the village,” suggested one man.

They all agreed. Soon, the head of the village arrived at the pond. He was also surprised. The water was clear and bluish. He also wanted to know how it happened. He then asked all the elderly of the village pray to the gods and goddess.

They all prayed and fi nally they got the answer. The water was fl owing from a girl’s tears. She was crying so badly until the tears was fl ooding the ground.

“Who is she? We need to know who the girl is! Ask all the villagers including their children to gather here,” said the head of the village.

Later, all the villagers gathered in the pond. They all brought their children.

However there were two families who did not bring their children. Those two children were teenagers. The boy was Magohiduruu and the girl was Majojaru.

One woman told the villagers about them. The woman was Majoraru’s mother.

She told them that Magohiduruu and Majojaru were lovers. They planned to get married. A year ago, Magohiduruu left the village to fi nd a better life. He wanted to earn a lot of money before they got married.

A year passed by but Magohiduruu did not come back yet. She fi nally heard that Magohiduruu was dead. Majojaru was very sad. Everyday she was always sat down under a big tree. She spent her time crying. Majojaru was very sad. She did not believe that Magohiduruu had already died. She always cried. Her parents tried to comfort Majojaru, but she never listened to them. And one day Majojaru disappeared. She never returned to her home.

After they heard the story, all the villagers agreed to take care of the pond. And since the water was bluish, they named the pond as the Blue Pond.

ORIGIN OF LOTUS

ORIGIN OF LOTUS
Folklore from West Java

PRABU Ranubahu is the king of Umbul Wening. He had a beautiful doughter, Dewi Anum. Dewi Arum has an unusual habit. She loves to take a bath and swim in the lake. Everytime she takes a bath, she forgets about everything, food, rest, even her duties as a princess.

The king and queen often scold Dewi Arum for her habit. But she never pays attention to them. One day,Umbul Wening is stroke by a plaque. Many of its citizen die. Many physicians try to cure the people ofUmbul Wening but they all fail.

Suddenly a monk comes to see the king and says he has a vision from God. According to the monk, this plaque can be cured using the plants that live in the lake located at the Krendawahanan Forest. But, there is a catch. Those plants must be taken only by Dewi Arum.

So the king orders her daughter to go to Krencawahana Forest to get the plants. Dewi Arum agrees and goes to the forest accompanied by her beloved servants, Nyai Wijen and Nyai Empul.

After a long and tiring journey, they finally arrive at the lake.

Seeing the clear and blue water, Dewi Arum jumps and take a bath in the lake. She forgets about her duty to go and get the cure for her people. Her servants try to remind her about her duties but the princess ignores them.

Back at the kingdom, Prabu Ranubahu in worried about her doughter. So, he goes after her. He is surprised to see her daughter is bathing in the lake and forget about the duties. The king furious.

"Arum?! What are you doing? Our people are dying and here you are having fun bathing in the lake. Since you enjoy beeing in the lake so much, you should become part of the lake!"

Right after the king finishes his sentence, a strange thing happens. Dewi Arum turns into a beautiful red flower. The king is surprised and sad to see what happens to her daughter. So, he picks the flower and goes back to his kingdom.

When the king arrives with the flower, the sickness that has been plaguing the kingdom is gone.

The beautiful flower that was once Dewi Arum is called lotus. It always grows in lakes.

FOLKLORE FROM RIAU

Dayang Kumunah

Folklore from Riau

Once upon a time, lived an old fisherman. His name was Awang Gading and he lived alone. His wife died a long time ago and he did not have any child.

In one morning, Awang Gading was fishing. He hoped he could catch some fish today. Sadly, he was not lucky. It was almost dark but he still did not catch a fish yet. He planned to go home and rowed his sampan to the riverside.

When he reached the riverside, he heard a baby cry. He was surprised. It was almost dark and he did not see anyone there. However, he still tried to find the baby.

Finally he found the baby! It was a baby girl and she was very beautiful. Carefully, Awing held the baby and brought her home.

In the morning, he told the head of the village about the baby.

When the head of the village saw the baby, he said, “You are lucky. The baby is the child of the spirit of the river. Please take care of her.”

Awing Gading was very happy. He named the baby girl Dayang Kumunah. He took care of her with great love. Dayang Kumunah grew as a very beautiful and diligent girl. However, there was
something strange about her. She never laughed. Dayang Kumunah was so famous for her beauty.

One of the young men who fell in love with her was Awangku Usop. He was a handsome and rich man. He proposed Dayang Kumunah to be his wife.

Dayang Kumuna agreed, but he had to promise one thing. He never asked Dayang Kumunah to laugh.

Though he felt very strange, Awangku Usop agreed to promise. Then, they got married. Sadly,
after they got married, Awing Gading died. Dayang Kumunah was very sad. He loved his father very much.

Days passed by, now Dayang Kumunah and Awangku Usop had five children. Awangku Usop actually wanted to know why Dayang Kumunah never laughed.

However, he did not want to break his promise. Their youngest child was still a toddler. He just learned how to walk. One day, the whole family gathered in the house.

They saw the youngest child tried to walk. Everybody was laughing because the child was so funny. Everybody was laughing except Dayang Kumunah.

This time Awangku Usop could not hold it anymore. And he broke his promise, he asked his wife to laugh.

“I have told you not to ask me to laugh, why did you break your promise?” Said Dayang Kumunah.

“I am really curious. We have been married for years but I never see you laugh,” said Awangku Usop.

Then Dayang Kumunah did it, she laughed. And when she laughed people could see her fish gills. Dayang Kumunah was so sad. She ran to the river and swam. Awangku Usop and the children followed her. They saw Dayang Kumunah slowly changed into a fish. Awangku Usop was really sad. He already broke his promise.

“Please take care of our children. I am not a human. I am from the river and I will live here,” said Dayang Kumunah.

She then changed into a fish. People named the fish as Patin Fish.

A Hawaii Legend

Pele's Revenge

retold by

S.E. Schlosser

Ohi'a and Lehua loved each other from the moment they first saw each other at a village dance. Ohi'a was a tall strong man with a handsome face and lithe form. He was something of a trickster and was first in all the sports played by all the young men. Lehua was gentle and sweet and as fragile as a flower. Her beauty was the talk of the island, and her father was quite protective of his only child.

When Lehua saw the handsome, bold Ohi'a speaking with her father beside the bonfire, she blushed crimson, unable to take her eyes from the young man. At the same moment, Ohi'a glanced up from his conversation and his mouth dropped open at the sight of the beautiful maiden. He was not even aware that he had stopped speaking right in the middle of his sentence, so overwhelmed was he by the sight of the fair maiden across the fire from him.

Lehua's father nudged the young man, recalling him to his duties as a guest. Ohi'a stuttered and stammered apologies, trying to continue his conversation while keeping one eye on the fair Lehua. Lehua's father was amused by the young man's obvious infatuation with his daughter. He quite liked this bold trickster, and so he offered to introduce Ohi'a to his daughter. The young man almost fell over in his haste as they walked across the clearing to where Lehua stood with her friends.

From that moment, there was no other woman for Ohi'a but Lehua. He had eyes only for her, and courted her with a passion and zeal that swiftly won her heart. Her father gave his only daughter gladly into the keeping of the strong young man, and the young couple lived quite happily for several months in a new home Ohi'a built for his bride.

Then one day the goddess Pele was walking in the forest near the home of the handsome Ohi'a and spied the young man at work. Pele was smitten by him, and went at once to engage him in conversation. Ohi'a spoke politely to the beautiful woman, but did not respond to her advances, which infuriated Pele. She was determined to have this young man for herself, but before she could renew her efforts, Lehua came to the place her young husband was working to bring him his midday meal.

When he saw his lovely wife, Ohi'a's face lit up with love. He dropped everything at once and went to her side, leaving a fuming Pele to stare in jealous rage at the young couple. Dropping her human disguise, the goddess transformed into a raging column of fire and struck Ohi'a down, transforming him into a twisted ugly tree in revenge for spurning her advances.

Lehua fell to her knees beside the twisted tree that had once been her husband. Tears streaming down her lovely face, she begged Pele to turn him back into a man or else turn her into a tree, as she could not bear to be separated from her beloved. But Pele ignored the girl, taking herself up to the cool heights, her anger satisfied. But the gods saw what Pele had done to the innocent lovers and were angry. As Lehua lay weeping in despair, the gods reached down and transformed the girl into a beautiful red flower, which they placed upon the twisted Ohi'a tree, so that she and her beloved husband would never more be apart.

From that day to this, the Ohi'a tree has blossomed with the beautiful red Lehua flowers. While the flowers remain on the tree, the weather remains sunny and fair. But when a flower is plucked from the tree, then heavy rain falls upon the land like tears, for Lehua still cannot bear to be separated from her beloved husband Ohi'a.

FOLKLORE OF MALUKU

TANJUNG MENANGIS
Folklore from Maluku

THERE was a great kingdom in Halmahera. The people were sad. The king just died. He was a great king. He was kind and very wise. The people loved him very much.

The king had three children, two sons and one daughter. The son were Baginda Arif and Baginda Binaut, while the daughter was Putri baginda Nuri.

The queen talked to commander of the soldiers. They were discussing about the next king. According to the rule, the first child would be the next king. Therefore, they were preparing a ceremony to inaugurateBaginda Arif to be the new king.

Baginda Binaut heard they conversation. Actually, he had an ambition. he also wanted to be the king. He had a plan. Secretly, he talked to the commander and consequently the commander had to send the queen, Baginda Arif and Baginda Nuri to jail.

The commander agreed. He send them to the jail. The queen, the prince and the princess were very sad.Baginda Binaut told the people that his mother, his brother and his sister were drowned in the sea.

"Binaut is really ungrateful. He is really a bad person," said Baginda Arif.

"Be patient, my child. God will help us," said the queen.

Then Baginda Binaut became the new king. Unlike his father, he was very cruel. He asked his people to pay high taxes. The people suffered. They complained but they could not do anything. The soldiers would hurt them.

However, not all the soldiers wanted to follow Baginda Binaut. One of the soldier decided to leave the palace. His name was Bijak. He made his own troops. He knew the queen, the prince and the princess were in jail. He wanted to set them free.

On one night, Bijak and his troops attacked the jail. He wanted to set them free.

On one night, Bijak and his troops attacked the jail. They succeeded! Then he planed to attacked the palace. But the queen did not agree. She did not want to see her own people fighting. The queen then prayed to god.

Not long after that, the mountain erupted. The lava was flowing. It flowed to the palace. The people were running to save their life. Baginda Binaut was also running. Amazingly, wherever he was running, the lava always followed him.

Baginda Binaut was really scared. While he was running, he was thinking of his mother, brother and his sister. He screamed for help.

"Mother, please help me!" He went to the jail but they were not there. He was really panicked because the lava was getting closer to him.

"Help! Help!" screamed Baginda Bimaut but not one helped him.

Finally, Baginda Binaut could not run anymore. He was exhausted and he arrived at the sea. He could not go back to the land because it was full of lava. Then he swam to the sea.

Because he was very tired, he could not swim. He was drowned. Slowly, his body turned into a cave. The people often heard someone crying from the cave, therefore they named it the crying cave or TanjungMenangis. 

FOLKLORE OF BANTEN

Prince Pande Gelang and Princess Cadasari

Folklore From Baten

ONCE upon a time there was a kingdom of Banten. The king had a beautiful daughter. her name was Princess Cadasari. She was very beautiful and kind to people.

However, she was very sad lately. A prince from another kingdom came and planned to marry her. His name was prince Cunihin. People did not like him. he was arrogant and mean to people. He had supernatural power. Prince Cunihin talked to the king about the marriage. The king accepted the proposal. He was afraid that Prince Cunihin would attack the kingdom if the proposal was refused.

The marriage was set. Princess Cadasari was sad. She did not have any choice. She prayed to god. And in one night she had a dream. She was in the park and a handsome man would help her.

On the following day, Princess Cadasari went to the park and waited the handsome man. While she was there suddenly an old man came to her.

"What's the matter Princess? You look very sad," asked the old man.

"I have a great problem. And I'm waiting for someone to help me."

"Maybe I can help you."

The princess was hesitant. In a dream, a handsome man would help her, but then it was an old man who offered to help her. She decided to talk about the problem to him. His name was Pande Gelang. Pandemeans maker and gelang means a bracelet. He made bracelets to make a living.

"Don't worry princess, I can help you. Just tell prince Cunihin to find a big stone and just ask him to make a big hole in the stone. I will put my giant bracelet inside the stone, after that ask him to go through the bracelet. He will lose his supernatural power then"

Princess Cadasari did it. She asked Prince Cunihin to find a big stone. And make a big hole in it. Prince Cunihin did not have any problem to make the hole. And after he did it, he put the stone in the park. It was the place where the wedding party would be held. And secretly, Pande Gelang put the giant bracelet inside the stone.

On the wedding day, people were gathered in the park. Before the ceremony was started, Princess Cadasari asked Prince Cunihin to go through the stone. Although he didnot understand, Prince Cunihin still did the request.

Prince Cunihin was ready to go through the stone and the princess was waiting on the other side. And when he walked through the stone, Princess Cunihin screamed in pain. He was screaming and finally falling down on the ground. And when he got up, he saw Pande Gelang in front of him.

"You did this to me..." said Prince Cunihin.

Amazingly, Prince Cunihin slowly changed into an old man and Pande Gelang changed into a handsome man.

Pande Gelang then explained to princess Cadasari. He was a prince. Previously, Prince Pande Gelang and Prince Cunihin were best friend. They both were students from a great teacher. But after they finished the lesson, Prince Cunihin killed the teacher and stole Prince Pande Gelang's power. He would get his power back if Prince Cunihin would go throuh his bracelet.

Princess Cadasari was very happy. She then remembered her dream. It was true that a handsome man would help her. Since then, Prince Pande Gelang stayed in the palace. He helped the kingdom from bad people. Later Prince Pande Gelang and Princess Cadasari got married. The people were very happy. They were very grateful. They also named the palace as Pande Gelang. It is known now as Pandeglang.

Canadian folklore

Crow Brings the Daylight

An Inuit Myth

retold by

S. E. Schlosser
Story featured in Land of the Midnight Sun, a concert band piece composed by Vince Gassi!

Long, long ago, when the world was still new, the Inuit lived in darkness in their home in the fastness of the north. They had never heard of daylight, and when it was first explained to them by Crow, who traveled back and forth between the northlands and the south, they did not believe him.

Yet many of the younger folk were fascinated by the story of the light that gilded the lands to the south. They made Crow repeat his tales until they knew them by heart.

"Imagine how far and how long we could hunt," they told one another.

"Yes, and see the polar bear before it attacks," others agreed.

Soon the yearning for daylight was so strong that the Inuit people begged Crow to bring it to them. Crow shook his head. "I am too old," he told them. "The daylight is very far away. I can no longer go so far." But the pleadings of the people made him reconsider, and finally he agreed to make the long journey to the south.

Crow flew for many miles through the endless dark of the north. He grew weary many times, and almost turned back. But at last he saw a rim of light at the very edge of horizon and knew that the daylight was close.

Crow strained his wings and flew with all his might. Suddenly, the daylight world burst upon him with all its glory and brilliance. The endless shades of color and the many shapes and forms surrounding him made Crow stare and stare. He flapped down to a tree and rested himself, exhausted by his long journey. Above him, the sky was an endless blue, the clouds fluffy and white. Crow could not get enough of the wonderful scene.

Eventually Crow lowered his gaze and realized that he was near a village that lay beside a wide river. As he watched, a beautiful girl came to the river near the tree in which he perched. She dipped a large bucket into the icy waters of the river and then turned to make her way back to the village. Crow turned himself into a tiny speck of dust and drifted down towards the girl as she passed beneath his tree. He settled into her fur cloak and watched carefully as she returned to the snow lodge of her father, who was the chief of the village people.

It was warm and cozy inside the lodge. Crow looked around him and spotted a box that glowed around the edges. Daylight, he thought. On the floor, a little boy was playing contentedly. The speck of dust that was Crow drifted away from the girl and floated into the ear of the little boy. Immediately the child sat up and rubbed at his ear, which was irritated by the strange speck. He started to cry, and the chief, who was a doting grandfather, came running into the snow lodge to see what was wrong.

"Why are you crying?" the chief asked, kneeling beside the child.

Inside the little boy's ear, Crow whispered: "You want to play with a ball of daylight." The little boy rubbed at his ear and then repeated Crow's words.

The chief sent his daughter to the glowing box in the corner. She brought it to her father, who removed a glowing ball, tied it with a string, and gave it to the little boy. He rubbed his ear thoughtfully before taking the ball. It was full of light and shadow, color and form. The child laughed happily, tugging at the string and watching the ball bounce.

Then Crow scratched the inside of his ear again and the little boy gasped and cried.

"Don't cry, little one," said the doting grandfather anxiously. "Tell me what is wrong."

Inside the boy's ear, Crow whispered: "You want to go outside to play." The boy rubbed at his ear and then repeated Crow's words to his grandfather. Immediately, the chief lifted up the small child and carried him outside, followed by his worried mother.

As soon as they were free of the snow lodge, Crow swooped out of the child's ear and resumed his natural form. He dove toward the little boy's hand and grabbed the string from him. Then he rose up and up into the endless blue sky, the ball of daylight sailing along behind him.

In the far north, the Inuit saw a spark of light coming toward them through the darkness. It grew brighter and brighter, until they could see Crow flapping his wings as he flew toward them. The people gasped and pointed and called in delight.

The Crow dropped the ball, and it shattered upon the ground, releasing the daylight so that it exploded up and out, illuminating every dark place and chasing away every shadow. The sky grew bright and turned blue. The dark mountains took on color and light and form. The snow and ice sparkled so brightly that the Inuit had to shade their eyes.

The people laughed and cried and exclaimed over their good fortune. But Crow told them that the daylight would not last forever. He had only obtained one ball of daylight from the people of the south, and it would need to rest for six months every year to regain its strength. During that six month period, the darkness would return.

The people said: "Half a year of daylight is enough. Before you brought the daylight, we lived our whole life in darkness!" Then they thanked Crow over and over again.

To this day, the Inuit live for half a year in darkness and half a year in daylight. And they are always kind to Crow, for it was he who brought them the light.