The Crying Stone
The Crying Stone
A Folktale from West Kalimantan
A Folktale from West Kalimantan
In a small village, a girl lives with her mother. The girl is very beautiful. Everyday she puts make-up and wears her best clothes. She doesn't like to help her mother work in a field. The girl is very lazy.
One day, the mother asks the girl to accompany her to go to the market to buy some food. At first the girl refuses, but the mother persuades her by saying they are going to buy new clothes. The girl finally agrees. But she asks her mother to walk behind her. She doesn't want to walk side by side with her mother.
Although her mother is very sad, she agrees to walk behind her daughter.
On the way to the market, everybody admires the girl's beauty. They are also curious. Behind the beautiful girl, there is an old woman with a simple dress. The girl and her mother look very different!
"Hello, pretty lady. Who is the woman behind you?" asks them. “She is my servant,” answers the girl.
The mother is very sad, but she doesn't say anything.
The girl and the mother meet other people. Again they ask who the woman behind the beautiful girl. Again the girl answers that her mother is her servant. She always says that her mother is her servant every time they meet people.
At last, the mother cannot hold the pain anymore. She prays to God to punish her daughter. God answers her prayer. Slowly, the girl's leg turns into stone. The process continues to the upper part of the girl's body. The girl is very panicky.
"Mother, please forgive me!" she cries and ask her mother to forgive her.
But it's too late. Her whole body finally becomes a big stone. Until now people still can see tears falling down the stone. People then call it the crying stone or batu menangis. ***
