Myth-Folklore 2019

One beautiful summer day, a rich merchant decided to take a trip across a nearby lake, hoping to enjoy the gorgeous beach on the other side. Upon reaching the edge of the lake, he spotted three men in tattered clothing hanging out by the only boat in sight. He approached them and inquired whether he would be able to pay them to take him across the lake and then back again in a few hours, to which all three of the men readily agreed, none of them being in a position to pass up a chance to earn a few coins. So the four men set off, the rich merchant trying desperately to protect his fine clothing from the dirty bottom of the boat and wishing that he had gone ahead and bought the fine vessel his wife had pointed out to him the week before. Halfway across the lake, the men heard a giant tearing sound and bubbling as water began to fill the small boat--they had hit a mostly sunken rock and were sinking quickly. All four men panicked as none knew how to swim, and the rich merchant's ro...

For this week's readings, I chose Tibetan Folktales as seen in Tibetan Folk Tales by A. L. Shelton with illustrations by Mildred Bryant (1925). My favorite story out of those listed for Part B was How the Raven Saved the Hunter . I found it incredibly touching and sad how the hunter tried to kill the very thing that was trying to save him. How the Raven Saved the Hunter: A hunter is thirsty and makes a cup from a leaf. He attempts to drink water from a local stream but a raven flies down and knocks the cup out of his hands. This happens three times before the hunter decides to kill the raven. He shoots it down, killing it, and then decides to explore the source of the water. He finds that the water is coming out of the gaping mouth of a huge snake and that tons of animals have died from drinking the water, their bones accumulating on the side of the stream. The hunter then regrets killing the raven that was only trying to save him. In my retelling, the story will be told fro...

For this week's readings, I chose Tibetan Folktales as seen in Tibetan Folk Tales by A. L. Shelton with illustrations by Mildred Bryant (1925). My favorite story out of those listed for Part A was The Ingratitude of Man because I think it teaches a very important lesson--sometimes those we don't think can help us are actually the most willing to help whereas those we believe could help us a lot are the most unwilling to help. Oftentimes the most wealthy and fortunate people are the most ungrateful and the most selfish. The Ingratitude of Man: A man, a rat, a crow, and a snake are all walking together at night when all of a sudden they fall into a pit. They cannot get out and believe that they will starve, though why the crow cannot just fly out of the pit, I do not know. Anyway, a man hears their screams for help and saves them, expecting that he will be repaid in the future by the man but not by the animals. The crow is the first to repay the kind man, giving him jewelry...