The Elephant and the Bees

Once a forest fire raged through the forest.
The elephants were terrified.
They did not know which way to go to escape.

Just then a cloud of bees buzzed over their heads.
“Oh Bees! Bees!
Help us escape!
You can fly high in the air and see where the flames are coming.
Tell us which way to go!”

“Bzzzz Bzzzz sure. We’ll help you.”

The bees flew high into the air.
They looked to the east.
FIRE!
They looked to the west.
FIRE!
They looked to the south.
FIRE!
They looked to the north.
Ohhhh. There was a river.
The elephants could be safe there.

“Come on elephants.
We will lead you to safety.
Follow us!”

And they led the way.
“Bzzzzzzzzz”
Up the hill.
“Bzzzzzzzz”
Down the hill.
“Bzzzzzzz”
Right over the river!

“Wade on in elephants!
You will be safe here!”

The elephants waded into the deep water until only the tips of their little noses were showing.
In those days the elephants had short, short noses....like a pig!

Just then the flames came over the hilltop and the smoke began to billow down the hill.

“Oh, HELP! HELP!” buzzed the bees.
“This smoke will kill US!
We saved YOU, elephants.
Now you must save US.
Open your mouths!
Open your mouths and let us come inside so we will be safe from the smoke!”

“What?
Open our mouths?”
But the elephants had to repay the bees.
So they opened their mouths wide.
“Bzzzzzzz.....”
The bees all went inside the elephant’s heads.
The elephants closed their mouths.
Now their heads sounded like “bzzzzzzzzzzz.....” inside!

But they kept their mouths shut to save the bees.
The flames roared down the hill.
When they came to the river the flames JUMPED the river
and roared up the other hill and away.

When the smoke had cleared away the elephants opened their mouths.
“Okay bees! You can come out now.”

“Bzzzzzzz.....never mind.....we LIKE it in here.” Said the bees.
“It is nice and warm and moist and dark.
We are going to stay here and make our honey!”

The elephant’s heads were going “Bzzzzzzzz.....”
They thought they would go crazy!

“Oh my goodness. We HAVE to get those bees out.
What will we do?”

“I know! We can WASH them out!”

“Good idea!”

The elephants each took a BIG mouthful of water and BLEW it out their NOSES!
“Prae Praen!
Prae Praen!
Prae Praen!”

It didn’t work.

“Try harder, elephants!”

“Prae Praen!
Prae Praen!
Prae Praen!”

“It isn’t working!
Blow HARDER!

“Prae Praen!
Prae Praen!
Prae Praen!”

“STOP STOP!
Look what is happening to our NOSES!”

Everytime the elephants blew...their noses got a little longer!
Now they were almost touching the ground!

“This isn’t working.
We have to think of something else.

The bees were afraid of smoke.
Maybe we could SMOKE them out.

The elephants built a little smokey fire.
They all leaned over it and each took a deep breath....and HELD it.

It worked!
Those bees couldn’t stand that smoke.
They flew right out of the elephant’s long noses.
But the bees had really liked living inside the elephant’s heads.
So to this day they make their homes inside hollow trees in the forest.
They look for a dark hole shaped just like the inside of an elephant’s head.
They are called Phung Phrong.

And the elephants...
sometimes they feel as if those bees are STILL crawling around inside their heads.
When that happens they just suck up lots of water and squirt it out their noses to WASH OUT ALL THE
BEES!

So if you see an elephant squirting water around, tell him “Don’t worry, Mr. Elephant.
The bees are all gone.
The bees are all gone.”
•••••
Notes on tale: This story is retold from The Elephants and the Bees in Thai Tales: Folktales of Thailand by Supaporn Vathanaprida, edited by Margaret Read MacDonald (Libraries Unlimited, 1994). The story was shaped by the Mahasarakham Storytelling Troupe through repeated tandem tellings, and especially by Prasong Saihong and Dr. Wajuppa Tossa.
•••••
Contributed by
Margaret Read MacDonald

[ Retold from Thai Tales by Supaporn Vathanaprida, Ed. by Margaret Read MacDonald (Libraries Unlimited, 1994). New telling copyright Wajuppa Tossa and Margaret Read MacDonald.]

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If It Belongs to Us, It Will Come To Us

There once was an old man and an old woman.
They worked very hard. Still they were very poor.

Now there was a large termite mound in their rice field.
One day the old man decided to remove it.
As the old man was digging away at the mound, his hoe struck something hard.
He dug the object out and discovered a large jar!
It was very heavy.
Then he opened the jar....it was filled with gold!

“Wife! Come quickly and look!
Someone has hidden a jar of gold in our rice field!”

The wife hurried over to help clear the dirt from the jar.
Sure enough...it was filled to the brim with gold.

“Old man, find something to carry this home!”

But the old man shook his head.
“Dear Old Woman, I do not think that is a good idea.
This gold does not belong to us.
We should leave it where we found it.”

The old woman argued.
But the old man insisted, saying
“If it belongs to us, it will come to us.
We cannot take what is not ours.”

Back in the village, the old woman told her neighbors about the gold.
They just laughed. But they told the silly story to others.
Some passing buffalo traders heard about this.
They found the termite mound in the field and dug around.
Sure enough...there was a large jar.
They dug it out.
They opened it.
“AAACK!” Inside lay coiled a huge poisonous snake!
It’s body filled the jar!

“That old couple were telling lies.
We should teach them a lesson!”

They hoisted the heavy jar onto their wagon and carried it back into the village.
They unloaded the jar at the door of the old couple’s home and opened it....so that the snake inside would be sure to crawl into their house.

Then they left.

The next morning the old woman got up before dawn as usual to prepare their breakfast. She stumbled over the jar as she tried to go outside.
She gave a cry of fright and her husband jumped up to see what was wrong.

There was the huge jar, lying on it’s side at their door.

And spilling from the jar, into the house was...a treasure hoard of gold!

“This is the jar from our field!
It has come to US!
Husband, does this mean that we can keep it now?”

“Yes,” her husband agreed. “ The gold came here.
So it must be ours.
It is not necessary to take things which are not yours.
If they are meant for you, they will arrive.
This thing that I said is true: “If it belongs to us. It will come to us.”
•••••
Contributed by
Margaret Read MacDonald

[Retold by Margaret Read MacDonald from Thai Tales: Folktales of Thailand by Supaporn Vathanaprida (Libraries Unlimited, 1994).]

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The Freedom Bird

Once a long time ago there was a hunter walking through the woods. Far off in the forest he heard the faint sound of a bird singing a very strange song:

"Nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah."

(audience repeats nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah)

The hunter walked and walked until at last he came to a tree with a beautiful golden bird sitting in the top.

He said, "Why does such a beautiful bird like you have such an ugly song?"

The bird looked down at the hunter and sang:

"Nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah."

(audience repeats: nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah)

The hunter said, "If you don't stop singing, I'm going to shoot you with my bow and arrow!"

The bird just looked down and sang again in a mocking voice:

"Nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah."

(audience repeats: nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah)

The hunter put an arrow in his bow and shot.....and he missed. The golden bird sang again:

"Nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah."

(audience repeats: nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah.)

The hunter put another arrow in his bow and shot again. The arrow went right through the bird's heart. As the bird began to fall, the hunter rushed under the tree and caught it in his sack. He pulled the sack tight and started to walk home. But from down inside the bag, he heard the muffled singing of the bird:

(Storyteller keeps mouth closed and hums)

"Nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah."

(audience mimics and repeats: nah, nah, nah, nah,nah,nah,nah).

The hunter took the bird home, pulled it out of the sack, put it on the chopping block and plucked all the feathers from it. When he turned around to get a knife to cut the bird up, he heard over on the chopping block:

(Teller and audience fold their arms and shiver when they sing this line.)

"Brr, brr, brr, brr, brr, brr, brr."

(audience repeats: brr, brr, brr, brr, brr, brr, brr)

The hunter took the knife and cut the bird up into a hundred small pieces, and then scraped them into a large pot full of water and put it on the stove to boil. When the water began to boil, he heard from down inside the pot, the bird singing:

(Teller and audience make a gurgling type sound when they sing the song.)

"Gurgh, Gurgh, Gurgh, Gurgh, Gurgh, Gurgh, Gurgh."

(audience repeats: Gurgh, Gurgh, Gurgh, Gurgh, Gurgh, Gurgh, Gurgh)

Now the hunter was starting to get mad. He took the pot outside and put it on the ground and found himself a shovel and started to dig a deep, deep hole. When the hole was way over his head, he climbed out and poured all the parts of the bird into the hole and covered it with dirt. And as he turned to go back into the house, he heard from deep down in the ground the bird singing:

(Teller and audience sing song with hand over mouth to give muffled sound).

"Nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah."

(audience repeats: nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah)

Now the hunter was furious. He grabbed his shovel and dug up every piece of the bird and put them in a little wooden box, and tied a large rock across the box with some rope. He went down to the river and threw the box as far as he could out into the water. It splashed and went straight to the bottom. He stood on the bank waiting to hear the sound of the bird. He heard nothing, so he went home. At the bottom of the river, the water loosened the rope around the box. The rock fell off and the box floated to the top of the water. It drifted along the river for three days. On the third day, the box floated by some children who were playing on the banks of the river. They saw this beautiful wooden box passing by and they wanted to know what was in it. They waded into the water and brought the box to shore.

When they opened it, out flew a hundred golden birds all singing in a full voice:

"Nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah."

(audience repeats: nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah)

About a year later, the very same hunter was walking through the woods. And far off in the distance, he heard the strange sound of the bird singing. He walked and walked until at last he came to the same tree where he had first seen the strange bird. But this time when he looked up in the tree, instead of seeing one bird, he saw a hundred golden birds. He raised his hands and hollered out, "I know who you are now. You're the Freedom Bird, for you cannot be killed."

And all the birds looked down and sang to him at the same time:

"Nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah."

(audience repeats: nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah, nah)

Telling tips: This story is easy to tell and always works. Although the tale is aimed at children, adults respond to the powerful ending. I usually start out by reminding the audience of our own cultural taunting song. Then I demonstrate how the Thai people sing their tune and get the audience to singalong. You could then mention where you got the story and then launch into it.

Throughout the story when the bird sings his song I usually sing the tune first and then motion to the audience to sing it again with me. Some of the singing has a gesture with it, such as shivering or covering your mouth. The audience will quickly catch on and follow your lead.

Classical composer Carl Orff has arranged a version of this story for the Orff insturments. He added the clap at the end of the tune which I have included in my version as it rounds out the melodic timing and brings the audience together. •••••
Contributed by David Holt

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The Singing Ape of Thailand

Long ago when the stars were young and the gods shared their magic with mortal men, a young prince named Chantakorop was sent to study under a hermit in the jungle. Only hermits knew the magic of the gods. Life would have been tiresome and boring for the prince had it not been for the hermit’s daughter, Mora,1 who entertained him with her graceful dancing and brought him bananas, phutsa1 (a type of fruit), and slices of durian melon.

When Chantakorop’s studies were complete, he left to return to his palace and claim the throne. Before he set out on his journey, the hermit presented him with a clay urn. "Within this urn is a gift I hope you will treasure forever. It contains your heart’s greatest desire," said the hermit, "However, you may not open the urn until you reach your father’s palace. If you open it before you have reached the safety of your own kingdom, great misfortune will befall upon you." The prince vowed to obey the hermit’s words, and gratefully took the gift and held his high while the hermit bowed (according to Thai tradition, a prince’s head never bends lower than that of a common man). "Sawasdee (goodbye)," said the hermit, "Do not forget what I have told you; you have been forewarned."

Chantakorop bid his instructor farewell, and embarked on his voyage through the jungle. With each passing day the urn inexplicably grew heavier, and with each step the prince’s curiosity grew as well. Finally, he could wait no longer. He impatiently removed the lid from the urn, and, much to his surprise, Mora, the hermit’s lovely daughter, magically appeared before him.

Chantakorop and Mora were hastily married in the nearest village. Eager to present his bride to his father, the prince anxiously continued his journey toward the royal palace with his new wife. When they were near the outskirts of the kingdom, Chantakorop suddenly remembered the warning the hermit had given him when they had parted, and he realized he had broken his promise to the man. At that moment, a bandit appeared from the shadows and challenged the prince to a fight. Whoever emerged victorious would have Mora as his prize. They fought valiantly, but the prince soon grew weary. The bandit then immediately swung a powerful blow that sent the prince staggering to the ground. Chantakorop’s sword fell beyond his reach. "Mora!" he called, "Quickly, if you cherish my life, bring me my sword!"

Mora reached for the sword, but was momentarily distracted by the sight of the bold bandit and left the sword where it lay. The bandit then seized the weapon for himself and killed the prince in an instant. Shocked by the result of her inaction, Mora bent over the body of her beloved prince and cried, "Pua, pua, pua (husband, husband, husband)."

The bandit took the heartbroken woman away. Mora went willingly, but all she could do the entire time was sadly call out, "Pua, pua, pua." As sunset approached, the gods looked down from the heavens, and the hermit suddenly appeared before his daughter and the bandit. Ashamed at her betrayal, he turned her into a gibbon. From that day on, she has roamed the forest in search of her fallen husband, and the melancholy sound of the gibbon crying, "Pua, pua, pua" is her eternal song of remorse.

In reality, the song of the gibbon is described by scientific rather than colorful cultural explanations. A gibbon’s voice can be heard from up to a mile away, even against the panorama of background noises of the rainforest. According to Jeremy and Patricia Raemakers, the gibbons’ songs are "similar in character and purpose to those of birds."2 Many birds share the same monogamous social system, which consists of a "male-female pair and their dependent young." Songbirds sing to attract a mate, to reinforce the pair-bond if already mated, and to warn of other birds of the same sex. Gibbon songs seem to fit a similar pattern.
•••••
[Cultural vs. BiologicalExplanations for the Song of the Lar Gibbon
L. Hasadsri, Anthropology
In traditional Thai folklore, gibbons are thought to be the reincarnation of disappointed lovers. The source of their mournful songs is believed to be the spirit of a grieving princess calling out to her lost husband in a hopeless yet never-ending search for him. What originally fueled this famous belief is the fact that lar gibbons (Hylobates lar), inhabitants of the rain forests found throughout Thailand, can often be heard singing, from the treetops, "Pua, pua, pua," or a similar sounding series of whoops and wails. Pua is the Thai word (albeit somewhat vulgar) for husband. Thai legend has it that this is how the gibbon came to be.]

References:
1. Toth, Marian. Tales from Thailand: Folklore, Culture, and History. 1971. Charles E. Tuttle Co. Tokyo, Japan. pp. 97-105
2 Raemakers, Jeremy and Patricia. The Singing Ape: A Journey Into the Jungles of Thailand. 1990. The Anarm Printing Group Co. Bangkok. Thailand. p. xiii - xviii
3 Richard, Alison. Primates in Nature. 1985. W.H. Freeman and Company. New York. P. 332-333, 354.
4 Carpenter, C. Ray. A Field Study in Siam of the Behavior and Social Relations of the Gibbon.1941. The John Hopkins Press. Baltimore, Maryland. p. 55

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The Star Stories of Thailand

There was a very poor old couple who lived in a forest. All they had was a little brown rice and a hen and seven chicks. One evening a monk camped near their hut. The old folks were worried, because it was the custom that they should offer the monk some food in the morning (the monks did not eat after noon.) By placing some food in the begging bowls which the monks carried around, people acquired merits which would benefit them in future lives. And so this couple wanted to give the monk the very best food that they had, but they were very poor. In the end they decided that they only thing they could offer him was their hen. The hen overheard this, and was very sad. She took her chicks aside and told them that they must look after themselves from now on. Very early the next morning, the old man killed the hen and began to roast her to give to the monk. The chicks were so overcome with grief that they threw themselves onto the fire so that they might always be with their mother. The seven chicks were reborn as stars in the sky, and they are called Dao Look Kai.

Another constellation story from Thailand is about the stars which we call the Big Dipper. This time of year the Big Dipper is low in the northern sky but still easy to spot. According to the people of Thailand, we are looking at a crocodile. This comes from a story about a very wealthy old man who hid all his money buried in the ground in front of his house. After he died, he came to his wife in her dreamworld and told her where the money was and to give a sizable amount to the temple. While his wife was digging up the money, a lot of people said they saw a giant crocodile circling the house, as if to protect the property. As the boat, with the wife and money proceeded to the temple to present the gift, the crocodile was said to lead the procession. People said that the rich husband had been reborn as that crocodile. And to reward him for his generosity, he was reborn as a constellation of a crocodile in the sky! He is called Dao Ja Ra Kae. When people see him they are reminded to do good in this life and they will be rewarded.

The third story from Thailand is about the brightest star in our night sky, Sirius. This bright star has long been referred to as the dog star, and in Thailand it is the sleeping dog star, Dao Mah Lap. Some elder Thai folks say that it is also called Dao Jone , the robber star and that children born at the time this star rises will likely become a member of a robber gang! They say that when this star is in the night sky, dogs fall fast asleep and are not easily wakened, making the life of the robber much easier. In October, Sirius does not rise until very late at night, around 3am but if you are up then, it is such a bright star it is very easy to see even close to the horizon. If you are up that late and see Dao Mah Lap, you might also try waking up your dog!
•••••
Copyright © 1999 Kathy Miles and Charles F. Peters II

[All too often when we think of mythology, we think of the Greek and Roman myths we hear about in school. And indeed, in astronomy, most of the constellations are named after such myths. But people from every culture have looked to the sky and it's nice to hear about what other people thought about then they looked up at the night sky. This week, we will visit Thailand. Three of their best star stories are about constellations which are visible in our night skies now. They are the Pleiades, Sirius and Ursa Major.

Rising in the east this time of year is a small compact group of stars called the Pleiades. They are so compact that you could cover the area of sky they reside in with your outstretched fist. The Pleiades are known as the seven sisters by many cultures. The japanese word for Pleiades is Suburu, and if you look at the emblem on a Suburu vehicle, you will indeed see the seven stars. In Thailand the Pleiades are seen as the Seven Chucks. The really strange thing is that only 6 stars can be seen with the naked eye, yet nearly every culture tells stories of 7 stars! The story of the seven chicks is told like this.]

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