Dongeng Bahasa Inggris - Si Tupai Pintar

Dongeng Bahasa Inggris tentang Si Tupai Pintar (The Clever Squirrel) Selamat membaca....

ONE DAY a man was walking through a dense forest. In one hand he carried a kris, and in the other a long lance, in case he met any tigers and snakes along the way.

He had reached the edge of the forest and was congratulating himself that he had not had to use either his kris or his lance, when all at once he heard, just above his head, a most frightful noise. He looked up into the branches from where it seemed to come, and he saw an enormous snake that had caught its tail in a split of one branch.

The snake was doing everything it could to free its tail. Suddenly it saw the man and called out to him, "Oh, help me, help me! Make the split in the branch a little wider with your lance, so that I can get my tail out and be on my way/'

"Til gladly do that/' said the man, "if you'll first promise me that you will do me no harm after I have freed you/'

"Well now, why should I do you harm?" asked the snake.
"You have nothing to fear from me/*

So the man made the split in the branch a little wider with his lance and the snake pulled its tail out,

"Reach your lance up to me/ the snake said then, "so that I can crawl along it down to the ground/ This the man did. The snake curled itself around the lance but, instead of creeping along it to the ground, it stopped at the man's shoulder and twined itself fast around his neck.

"Ho, what are you doing?" the man cried out in terror. "Why are you twining yourself around my neck? Why don't you crawl down to the ground?"

"Because I want to slay you/' hissed the snake.

"But you promised that you would do me no harm/ the man said.

"Well, so I did," the snake replied "But when I promised that, I was still in the tree. Now, I am on earth, and on earth good is always repaid with evil."

The man thought frantically of a way to escape. "Very well/' he said, "you may kill me. But first I want to hear the opinion of three others, whom we may meet here in the woods, as to the truth of what you say."
"Good; said the snake. "Let us go."

The first thing they came to was a palm tree. "Ask the palm tree/* ordered the snake.

"Palm tree," the man explained, "just a little while ago I saved the life of this snake, and now it wants to kill me because, it says, here on earth good is always rewarded with evil. Is that true?"

"Certainly it is true," the palm tree said. "Look at me. With my waving fronds I refresh the wanderers who creep to me, tired and worn out; I let them sleep in my shade. And after they are refreshed, they hack me into little pieces with their sharp axes and throw me into the fire."

"Do you hear what the palm tree says?" asked the snake, twisting itself still tighter about the man's throat.

They went a little farther, until they came to a brook. The man told the brook how he had saved the life of the snake and how it wanted to kill him because on earth good is always repaid with evil.

"The snake is right," chattered the brook. "Just look at me. With my water, I revive all who come to me tired and thirsty. And after they have quenched their thirst, they repay me by throwing into my crystal-clear water all kinds of unclean things. You will have to let yourself be throttled by the snake, because here on earth good is always rewarded with evil."

And to the snake, "Go ahead, snake, and throttle the man who saved your life!"

The snake twined itself still tighter around the man's neck, until he almost suffocated. Gasping for breath, he cried, "Don't kill me yet, O snake! Ask a third opinion. Then you may kill me."

"Very well/' said the snake, looking at a little squirrel that sat on one of the branches of a tree.

The man also saw the squirrel. "Let us ask him what he thinks/' he said to the snake.

"Ask him, then/' the snake said, "because I'm in a hurry to throttle you before I take the squirrel as my prey."

"Little squirrel/' the man said, "I saved the life of this snake, and now it wants to kill me because, as it says, here on earth good is always rewarded with evil. Is that true?"

The squirrel looked first at the snake and then at the man.

"Well, that is very difficult to decide. I ought to see first how the whole thing happened. For I really don't know just how you saved the life of the snake. You must show me that first.

Only then can I give you my decision."

"I'll certainly let you see how it went/' said the snake.

They all returned to the tree where the man had first seen the snake, and while it crept up the trunk toward the split branch the man took his lance and struck the snake dead! 

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Dongeng Bahasa Inggris - Dongso dan Sepetak Sawah

Dongeng Bahasa Inggris tentang Dongso dan Sepetak Sawah (The Little Sawah)

A STARVING BOY went wearily from village to village. His name was Dongso and he had been dismissed by a rich widow for whom he had worked, because the harvest had been so poor.

The widow was known throughout the land as the owner of the most fruitful acres, but after Dongso had come the harvest had been so meager that he alone ate more rice than the fields produced. It happened not once, but twice. The widow herself had seen how well Dongso had prepared the sawah and tended the young rice shoots, but when they had grown tall and ready to be harvested, the stalks were empty of kernels and hung limp in the sun.

After the second harvest, the village people began to whisper that the young man might be a bad spirit. Perhaps he had been sent to earth by Allah to punish the widow because she was so stingy and made such meager offerings to the village-spirit and the sawah-spirit.

The widow, of course, heard these whisperings, and in anger she dismissed Dongso, without paying him.

Weak with hunger Dongso came one evening to the outskirts of a village and knocked at the door of the first house he saw. It was a little hut in the midst of a small sawah owned by a poor old woman, Randa Derma. When Dongso knocked, she opened the door to him and he fell across the threshold.

"Please," he said feebly, "give me a handful of rice. I am starving."

"Why do you have to beg?" she asked him. "You look strong and you are young. Why don't you earn your rice? Why don't you work for your food?'*

But she was a goodhearted woman and she pulled her unexpected guest into the room without waiting for his answer. She set rice and coffee in front of him. "Eat and drink, my son/' she said. "And then tell me why you beg rather than
work."

The boy began to eat without a word, trying to make up for the many days he had gone hungry. When at last he was satisfied, he told the old woman his story. "I did my best/' he said. "I worked hard all the time I took care of the widow's sawahs. And truly I could not help it, it was not my fault, that the ears were almost always empty. I think," he said slowly, "it was because she did not make offerings to the protecting spirits and they were punishing her. And how could I force them to make the ears full of grain?"

"No, of course you couldn't/' the old woman agreed. "But if you will stay with me and work my little sawah, I will give you one fifth of the harvest yield. The trouble is, I have no buffalo. But the field isn't very big. . . ."

"It won't matter/' Dongso said. His eyes shone with gratitude for her offer. "I'll do my best for you."

Early the next morning, he started for the sawah, with only a spade. He turned the earth as if he had a fine plow and a strong buffalo working for him. When the time came for the sowing he did that, too, with speed and skill. Now he must wait with patience for the ripening. Then he would be able to harvest full, fine ears of rice! It was almost as if his wishes were coming true, for the rice stalks grew tall and straight, and the ears turned a beautiful golden yellow.

But then the worst happened, the same thing that had happened when he was working in the fields of the rich widow. The fine-looking stalks carried only empty ears, with not a grain of rice in them! He asked himself, in despair, "Can it be that this woman, too, has made no offering to the spirits? Or can it be that I am the one who brings bad luck to people?"

He couldn't bear to tell the old woman what was troubling him. She would find out for herself soon enough, when she went into the field for the harvest.

As the day drew near Dongso grew sadder and sadder. The night before the harvest he couldn't sleep a wink. He lay on his mat, tossing from side to side, thinking of the empty ears of rice in the field and how unhappy the old woman would be. The more he thought about it, the more he felt that he could
not face her disappointment when she opened the ears of rice that had been cut. Very early, long before sunup, he would leave the village; he would steal away as he had come, and beg from door to door till he found work again.

As quietly as a mouse he crept out of the hut next morning and started for the road. But before he left the village for good, he had to look once more at the little sawah where he had labored so long and faithfully. Walking sadly between the tall stalks, he looked again at the golden-yellow, empty ears. Idly he plucked one off and opened it. As he had thought, there were no rice grains in it.

Then his mouth fell open and he looked again, hardly believing what he saw. There were no grains of rice, but there were grains of gold, pure, glittering gold! He was dazed with astonishment. This couldn't be. Maybe in one ear, but surely not Dongso picked another one, and still another one, and yet another one, and each ear was filled with kernels of gold.

He ran back to the little hut, and found the old woman busy with her weaving. She looked up at him in astonishment. "Why are you so happy, Dongso?"

Dongso almost told her. But he wanted her to see the amazing sight herself. He wanted her to find the kernels of gold as he had found them. So he said, "Because today we are going to give a wonderful harvest feast, Randa Derma!"

The old woman's wrinkled face puckered sadly when he said that "No, Dongso/'. she said with a sigh, "I'm sorry, but we can't do that. We can only make a simple meal. I spent the last of my money on offerings to the spirits of the village and of the sawah so that they might bless the har-
vest. . . ."

"And so they have!" he shouted. "Wait till you see how they have blessed the harvest!" He took her by the hand and led her to the sawah. The old woman stumbled in her haste to follow his quick steps as he hurried her to the place where he had made the amazing discovery.

Dongso tore off a stalk and gave it to her. "Look inside, Little Mother/' he urged, and he watched as she opened the ear and found the golden kernels. He laughed when she shrieked with joy. "What did I tell you? What did I tell you?"

But the old woman pulled herself together quickly. "Now Allah be praised/' she said, bowing her head. "My little rice field has brought forth more than a hundred great sawahs could bring forth. Allah be praised!"

She had promised Dongso a fifth of the harvest and she gave him a fifth of the harvest. Now he was rich. He could buy himself a sawah, he could buy buffaloes, as many as he needed, as many as he wanted. But Dongso bought neither a rice field nor buffaloes. He was faithful to the old woman who had befriended him, and he took care of the many spreading sawahs she bought with the same zeal that he had taken care of her tiny sawah. And he did to others who came to help him as she had done to him he gave them one fifth of the
crop of the lush acres.

It has been so from that day to this: One fifth of each sawah's harvest is divided among the helpers. From that day to this, too, there has never been want or poverty in that district. The people of Derma have lived in peace and plenty all these years.

That's what the village was named Derma, after the old woman who had befriended Dongso and who had been so poor that she could not even offer a harvest feast. But the Javanese do not believe the village's well-being came from the fruitfulness of the countryside. They believe the good fortune of the village and its people is due to the lovely temple Dongso built to the memory of his benefactor, after she died, on the very spot where once the little sawah had been. 

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Dongeng Bahasa Inggris - Tisna Wati Ratu Gunung Padi

Dongeng Bahasa Inggris tentang Tisna Wati Sang Ratu di Gunung Padi (The Soul in The Mountain Rice)

TISNA WATI lived with her father, Batara Guru, in the god's heaven. Now Tisna Wati was a most beautiful and charming little goddess, but she wasn't at all happy in the gods 7 heaven.

Sometimes, when she looked down at the earth, far below her, and saw people busy at their various tasks, she would sigh, "Oh, if only I could be an ordinary mortal!" -

And when her father had gone forth to do battle with the giants and the demons of the air, she would mourn because she could not go with him. When he came back, she would be pouting and out of humor.

One day, when she was especially surly, her father lost his temper. "Come here!" he ordered in a stem voice. "Your grumbling and your silly whims annoy me, and nothing would please me better than to send you down to earth to become an ordinary mortal. Alas, I cannot do that because you have drunk of the life-water and are immortal. But I have thought of something else for you. Til choose one of the young gods to be your husband, and he will soon teach you to get over your bad moods!"

"Oh, I already know of someone who could be my husband, Father/' the little goddess cried happily.

"Who can that be?" her father demanded. "Not one of those awful air giants, I hope. Because I absolutely forbid you to marry the son of one of my enemies."

"Oh, no, Father, it's not one of the buatas. And he doesn't live in the air, nor in the gods 7 heaven, either. He lives on the earth. Look down . . . you can see him now. He's that handsome young man who is plowing the rice field that lies on the side of the hill."

"But that's the son of a man!" her father said angrily. "He's an ordinary mortal! You can't marry him; you are the daughter of a god! You shall never marry him. I won't permit it!"

"But I will marry him!" Tisna Wati shrieked, stamping her tiny foot. "I will never marry anyone else. He shall be my husband even if I have to leave this place forever."

"And I say that you shall never marry him!" her father stormed. "I'd rather change you into a rice stalk. And let me tell you that just as soon as possible I will choose a son of one of the gods to be your husband. Do you understand?"

When Tisna Wati saw how angry her father was, she was afraid that her fate would be the same as that of Dewi Sri, the lovely wife of the great god Vishnu, who disobeyed her husband and was killed by him and changed into a rice stalk. It was her deathless spirit that lived in the fields of rice, the sawahs.

But Tisna Wati was not as meek as Dewi Sri. She would never let herself be changed into a rice stalk. And certainly she would never, never marry a son of one of the gods! She had set her heart on the handsome young mortal, plowing his fields on the hillside.

Egrly the next day her father left to seek a husband for her. But just as he was setting out, word came to him that the giants of the air and the evil demons were threatening the gods again, and he would have to go to war against them.

"When I come back, however, bring your husband with me," he said to his daughter.

Tisna Wati said meekly, 'Very well, Father." But as soon as he had left, she leaped on the wings of the wind and was floated down to earth. The wind was kind to her and took her close to the hillside where the young man was plowing his rice field.

Tisna Wati said to herself, "Now I can really see him close/' And she sat down on the slope of the hill to wait for the young man to notice her.

When he turned at the end of a row, he saw her. And he thought she was as beautiful as a vision. He came to her and said, wonderingly, ''What are you looking for, lovely maiden?'

"I'm looking for my husband/ Tisna Wati answered, laughing.

It was such a strange answer that the young man began to laugh, too, and they laughed together. They laughed because they were happy and in love, and the sound of their laughter rose to the heavens. That was their undoing.

For when their voices reached the place where Tisna Wati's father was battling against the giants and the demons, he heard it. He stopped and listened. That was his daughter's voice! And the voice of a strange young man! He bent and looked toward the earth . . . and there he saw his daughter,
sitting beside a handsome young man, and their joyous laughter was louder to him than the noise of battle.

Raving with anger, Batara Guru gave up the battle with his enemies and flew down to earth. When he came to the hillside where his daughter sat beside the young man, he thundered, "Come with me at once! I'm taking you back to
the gods' heaven."

But Tisna Wati had no desire to return to the gods' heaven. She was in love with the young man, and her love was stronger than her father's will.

"No," she said firmly, "I am never going back. I'd rather become an ordinary mortal and stay here on earth with my beloved."

"Then stay you shall!" her father roared angrily. "But not as the daughter of a god, and not as a mortal, either! You shall become a rice stalk and your spirit shall become one with this rice field." Even as he spoke, Tisna Wati changed from a goddess into a slim rice stalk.

When the slender rice stalk bent toward the young man, he stroked it with loving fingers. His plowing was forgotten, everything was forgotten, and in his sorrow he could only gaze at the graceful stalk that had been his beloved Tisna Wati.

When Batara Guru saw this, he was overcome with remorse. "I could have left them together," he said. "Now I cannot change her back . . . she must remain a rice stalk forever, for her spirit is already here in this rice field. But
perhaps I could change him into a rice stalk, too/'

When he had done this, he saw how the two stalks bent toward each other, as if they were telling how much they loved one another. He watched them a while, and shook his great head. "It is well/' he muttered to himself, and flew back to the gods' heaven.

And ever since that day, the story says, the spirit of Tisna Wati has been in the mountain rice, just as the spirit of Dewi Sri is in the sawah rice.

But where the spirit of the handsome young man went, no one knows. 

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Dongeng Bahasa Inggris - Kembang Melati dan Kupu-Kupu Emas

Dongeng Bahasa Inggris tentang Kembang Melati dan Kupu-Kupu Emas (The Golden Butterfly). Selamat membaca...

KEMBANG MELATI, a beautiful young princess, lived with her old nurse and many serving-women in a palace on the bank of a great river.

Rajah Banjir, the monarch of the rains, lived in his rainbow-colored palace on the other bank of the river. He could cause floods to appear at his will, and his tears made brooks and rivers swell. From his windows he could see the little princess weaving her bridal dress, and he could hear her singing a song for luck. But the princess never looked toward his side of the river.

The monarch of the rains kept gazing at her with great sad eyes. Because he was so sad, he wept many tears, and the river swelled and the wind sighed softly through the high trees around the palace. The princess heard the sighing of the wind, and saw the river rising higher and higher. But she did not know that it was her future husband who was weeping and calling to her.

For many days the monarch of the rains yearned for the princess. Finally, to be near her, he changed himself into a golden butterfly and flew back and forth before her window until at last the princess saw him and opened the window so that she could admire his dazzling wings.

^ Then the golden butterfly lighted on Kembang Melati’s little hand, kissed her finger tips, and flew out of the window.

A few days later the butterfly returned and perched on Kembang Melati’s right ear and whispered to her, "Weave your bridal dress quickly, princess, for soon your bridegroom will come."

The princess heard only the word "bridegroom." She asked, 'Where is my bridegroom?" The butterfly did not answer her, for he had flown out of the window.

But someone else had heard her question. That was Nasiman, the wicked son of the princess's old nurse. He went to his mother at once. "Mother," he said, "I was standing outside the princess's window and I heard her ask, 'Where is my bridegroom?' I want you to go to her and tell her that I am her bridegroom."

'That you can never be, son/' the old woman said, "because you are not of noble birth."

"Nevertheless, I wish to marry the princess," he answered.
 
"Go to her, Mother, and tell her that her bridegroom has come”

Nasiman was wicked and cruel, and his mother was afraid of him. So she went to the princess and told her of the bridegroom who had come to claim her hand. Just then the golden butterfly flew back and whispered in the princess's ear, "The real bridegroom has not yet come, princess. The one who is now under your roof is a wicked man. His name is Nasiman, and he is the son of your old nurse, Sarinah. Do not many him. . . . Wait till the true bridegroom comes!"

When the golden butterfly had flown away, the princess said, "I will wait, nurse, till the true bridegroom comes/'

"This is the true bridegroom/' the nurse insisted. She clasped her hands and begged, "Oh, princess, dear princess, marry him at once, for if you do not, we shall both die!”

The princess did not want to die. So finally she said to her nurse, "Tell the bridegroom who has come that I must have seven days to think it over. Tell him to wait on the bank of the river and I will send him my answer there/'

Nasiman found this idea good, and agreed. He took a big basket, filled it with food to last him seven days, and had it carried to a spot on the bank of the river.

On that same day the monarch of the rains called to him a white crow, one of his best and biggest messenger-birds, and gave her a little chest full of costly ornaments and a letter.

"Take these immediately to the Princess Kembang Melati," he ordered, "and make sure that you don't lose anything."

"Don't worry, master," the crow replied. "I myself will take everything to the princess."

The white crow flew off with the little chest bound fast to her back and the letter between 'her claws, and winged her way to the opposite bank of the river. There she saw Nasiman eating the last of a delicious-looking fish. The white crow, who loved fish, flew over swiftly, and cried, "Oh, how good that looks! May I have a little bite?"

"How do you dare ask me that?" Nasiman demanded crossly. "Who are you, and where do you come from, with a letter in your claws and a chest on your back?"

"Well," the crow answered smugly, "I happen to be the messenger of the great magician, the monarch of the rains! And I am to take this letter and this little chest to the Princess Kembang Melati, as my master ordered. What's more, I am to give them to her myself."

"Hmm/' Nasiman said with a false little laugh. "In that case, Til let you eat some of my fish. Put down your letter and take the chest from your back, and fall to!"

The white crow didn't have to be invited twice. She laid the letter and the little chest in the grass, and began to eat greedily of the delicious bit of fish.

Nasiman lost no time. He opened the chest, took out the beautiful golden ornaments and in their place put some "big spiders and some gruesome-looking scorpions. Then he hurried to his mother with the letter. "Mother/ 7 he said, "I can't read, but I imagine that this letter must be full of lovely words. Now I want you to change them, at once, into ugly words. Meanwhile I'll hide these ornaments."

The white crow was so busy eating that she did not notice what was going on. She ate the fish, down to the last scrap. Then she went to get a drink at the spring. The spring murmured to her, "Ah, white crow, why didn't you take the letter and the little chest to the princess as Rajah Banjir said?"

But the white crow didn't hear. She didn't hear the wind, either, sighing to her, "Ah, white crow, something dreadful will happen because of your greediness!"

And something dreadful did happen. When the princess saw the white crow come, bearing the letter and the little chest, she believed that the bird came from her true bridegroom, and in great excitement she decided to read the letter first. As her eyes flew over the words, she could hardly believe what she read: "You are very ugly," the letter said, "and what is in the little chest is foul and old. That goes, too, for your green hair and your blue skin."

She was so angry that she tore the letter into shreds and tossed the little chest, without opening it, through the window. The spiders and the scorpions swarmed over the garden to the great astonishment of the white crow who could not understand how her master could have sent such horrible things to the lovely princess.

But Nasiinan laughed to himself. Now the princess would marry him, he thought

But the princess had no thought of marrying anyone now. She was bitterly grieved by the ugly letter. Weeping, she paced back and forth in her chamber. No one could comfort her, and she cried, "Take away my weaving stool! I will never weave again on my bridal gown!"

Toward evening of that sad day the golden butterfly came back and flew through the open window. He lit on the princess's ear. "Darling princess," he whispered, "why don't you wear the beautiful ornaments that your bridegroom sent you?"

At that the princess hit at him with an angiy hand. The great monarch of the rains thought surely she was only teasing him. He whispered in her ear again: "Beloved little princess, would you like to see your bridegroom tomorrow morning? He will take you to his rainbow-colored palace where the golden rays of the sun are magnified a thousand times into the most wonderful colors, and where you shall see woven cloth so fine, so dazzling, that it is like moonbeams! Come, darling princess, finish weaving your bridal gown, for tomorrow your bridegroom comes!"

The princess grew even angrier. She called her serving women to her and bade them chase the golden butterfly away and never again to let it come inside. When the great magician heard the princess say these words he became so angry that he caused a mighty flood to come over the land that very night. Everything that was not submerged drifted away, torn loose from the land. The palace with Princess Kembang Melati and her nurse and the wicked Nasiman and all the others who lived in it, drifted on the floodwaters.

The palace drifted farther and farther, until it came near the other bank where the palace of the great monarch of the rains stood. The king was in his doorway, watching, but when he saw the princess's palace floating toward him he pretended not to see it. The princess cried piteously for help, but he pretended not to hear.

They were drifting out of sight when the nurse cried out in despair, "It's my fault! I bear the blame! It was I who changed the beautiful words of the letter into ugly ones! And my son, Nasiman, filled the little chest with spiders and scorpions while the white crow was eating the fish 1 /'

When he heard the nurse's confession, the monarch of the rains understood everything. He leaped down and dragged the princess and all the others out of the drifting palace and brought them into his own. Only her old nurse and the nurse's wicked son were not permitted to enter,

"May great waves engulf you!" he thundered. And at his words mighty waves, as high as the heavens, rose in the water and swallowed up the nurse and her son.

The white crow was punished, too, for her greediness. She was changed into a black bird which could never speak again.

All she could say was, "Kaw . . . kaw . . . kaw . . . kr - kr. . . ." It meant "gold . . . gold/' But though the crow searched, she never could find the gold and jewels with which the little chest had been filled.

When the evildoers were punished, the monarch of the rains caused the flood to subside. In a short time, the whole world was dry once more, and when he had accomplished that he turned to the princess and told her that he was the son of a nobleman and that for days and nights he had yearned for her.

Kembang Melati took pity on him. She knew that he was truly her bridegroom from the way he spoke to her. So she married him and lived the rest of her happy life with him in the rainbow-colored palace on the bank of the river.

But, strange to tell, no mortal has ever found the spot where that palace stood.

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Dongeng Bahasa Inggris - Legenda Pasopati

Legenda Pasopati (The Legend of Pasopati) adalah cerita rakyat berbahasa Inggris populer di Indonesia. Sehingga wajar saya memasukannya ke dalam salah satu cerita bahasa inggris pilihan. Selamat membaca...

IN THE DAYS of the Hindus, before Mohammedanism had come to Java, there lived on the island a king whose name was Jamojojo. He was so warlike that he counted his battles by the hundreds. He was always in the forefront, armed with a sort of poniard which had something of the shape of a kris, but which wasn't a kris because that weapon had not yet been devised.

The king had never been wounded; and his people whispered that that was because of his weapon, which he always carried in his right hand. It had been given to him by a tapa, a hermit.

"Take good care of it," the old hermit had said at the time, "for if someone ever takes away your weapon, your power will go with it!"

This was known also to the king of the giants, one of Jamojojo's greatest enemies. One night when the great warrior lay sleeping after a victorious battle, the king of the giants with his courtiers and a number of servants suddenly came upon him. The weapon which the king still held in his hand was taken from him, and he himself was bound and carried to one of the underground caverns in the giant's palace.

Now the king, who had been accustomed to liberty, was extremely unhappy. Separated from his beloved wife, he refused all food and drink which was brought to him, and he seldom slept. But on a certain night, as the moon was show ing through the cracks of the dungeon, he fell into a deep sleep. And in his slumber there appeared an angel who said to him:

"Jamojojo, they have taken away your weapon which the old tapa gave you. But in its place you shall receive another weapon, and in a most unusual manner. . . ."

Just as the king was about to ask, "In what manner?" the angel disappeared. Jamojojo thought long over this amazing dream, until one night something even stranger occurred. This time it was not an angel who appeared to him in his dream, but Durga, the beautiful goddess who had once conquered the buffaloes. Durga said to him:

"Jamojojo, someday you shall have a son who will bring you good fortune. Through him you shall acquire a weapon that is better and more beautiful and shaped differently from the poniard which the king of the giants has taken from you."

The king wanted to question her, but the goddess suddenly disappeared.

Jamojojo did not understand anything of his strange dreams. Night and day he pondered over them, wondering about the new weapon which he was to receive as soon as a son was born to him. Because of all his pondering, and because he did not touch the food and drink set before him, Jamojojo grew thin and ill. And the king of the giants, who was not so wicked after all, promised himself that as soon as he had won a battle over one of his enemies he would give Jamojojo his freedom.

This happened sooner than the king of the giants expected, Jamojojo was released from his prison and was permitted to return to his queen and his kingdom, a free man but on one condition: as ransom he must send to the giant all the weapons in his domain. ''Because/' said the giant, 'you must never fight any wars again. There must be peace in your kingdom from now on."

When Jamojojo heard this condition, he bowed his head before his conqueror and promised that, as soon as he reached his own country, all weapons should be delivered to the king of the giants. This promise cost the warrior a mighty struggle, but he loved his freedom above all.

And so it happened that every one of his subjects, from the lowliest Javanese to the highest noble, "brought his weapons to Jamojojo, and they were delivered by the thousands to the palace of the king of the giants.

The last of his subjects to come before him was an old man, the only Mohammedan in Java, who had come from a land over the sea. His name was Pasopati. He laid his weapon at the king's feet and spoke almost the selfsame words of prophecy that Jamojojo had heard several times during his imprisonment.

"My king," said the old man, "we have all had to deliver our weapons to the king of the giants. But fear not, because soon thou shalt have another weapon, better, more beautiful, and entirely different in shape from all other weapons in existence. It is Allah who has so ordained/'

The king and his courtiers laughed at these words. 'Who is this Allah?" asked Jamojojo. "We do not know him/'

"Perhaps he himself is Allah/' mocked one of the nobles.

"Perhaps he has still another weapon hidden!'

The king had the same thought. "We will not let ourselves be deceived by you!" he cried. "Perhaps you have kept back another weapon that you will want to sell us later! Come, bring it here, or else"

But Pasopati shook his head at this accusation. He said that he did not possess any other weapon, and that Allah was not a person and did not live on the earth, but in the heavens.

No one believed him. People called him a deceiver, and he was thrown into one of the underground dungeons of the palace.

And soon no one thought any more of the poor old man in his dark, damp cell until the day a son was born to the queen. The little prince, who was a wonderfully sturdy and handsome child, brought something very strange into the world with him.

It was a little golden kris which hung at his left side on a golden cord.

While the king, the queen, and all the nobles were lost in amazement over this, they suddenly remembered the prophecy which the king had heard in his dreams. They remembered, too, the last prophecy which had been spoken by Pasopati, who at that very moment was imprisoned in the underground dungeon.

"Take Pasopati out of prison immediately” ordered the king, "and bring him here."

But when the grey-haired old man was brought in and wanted to bow down before his king, he was so weak that he fell to the ground, and his eyes closed. Pasopati felt that Allah was calling him, that he was dying. . . . But still he lifted his eyelids once more and looked toward the little prince who lay beside him on his silken cushion.

"It is Allah's will," he whispered, his voice growing weaker with every word. "He came into the world with the golden weapon, the weapon that Allah bestowed on him. But not for fighting shall this weapon serve. . . ." And then his dimming eyes turned toward the king. "My lord, thou and thy people shall make your weapons like this one, and ye shall carry them as a sign that someday ye shall submit to Allah's will. Because Allah is great and mighty and everlastingly good. Learn to know him!"

Hardly had Pasopati said this, when he closed his eyes forever.

And in his sorrow that he had punished the old man who was without guilt, the king called the weapon which his son had brought into the world, "Pasopati."

And that is what the Javanese call the kris to this day, the kris which is made, so they say, like the one with which the young prince came into the world.

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Dongeng Bahasa Inggris - Nyi Roro Kidul

Cerita Bahasa Inggris Legenda Indonesia, Nyi Roro Kidul. Selamat membaca...

Once upon a time, there was a beautiful princess named Kadita. Because of her beauty she was called Dewi Srengenge which mean The beautiful sun. Her father was King Munding Wangi. Although he had a beautiful daughter he always unhappy because he always expected to have a son. The King decided to merry Dewi Mutiara, and he had a son from her. He was very happy. Dewi Mutiara wanted her son to become a king in the future so she must make sure for it. Dewi mutiara came to the king and asked him to send away his daughter. Of course, the king did not agree. "It is ridiculous, I will not allow any body doing such cruel thing to my daughter", said King Munding Wangi. When she heard the answer, Dewi mutiara smiled and said a sweet thing until the king has not anger anymore. However, she kept her bad intention deep in her heart.

In the morning before the sun raised, Dewi Mutiara sent her maid to call a black magician. She wanted the black magician to curse Kadita, her step daughter. " I want her beautiful body full with scabies and itch. If you succeeded I will reward you with the present you never thought before". The black magician did the queen order, in the night Kadita body has been full with scabies and itch. When She waked up , she found her body was smell stinky and have a ulcer all over her body. The beautiful princess cried and did not know what to do. 

When The King heard he was very sad, he invited many physician to cure her daughter illness. Day by the day nobody could cure her daughter. He realized that her daughter illness it was not a ordinary illness someone must send a curse or magic spell. His problem became more difficult when the Queen Dewi Mutiara forced him to send away her daughter. "Your daughter will bring a bad luck to whole country, said Dewi Mutiara. The king did not want her daughter become a bad rumour in whole country. Finally he must agree to send her only daughter to leave the country.
 

The poor princess went alone, she didn't know to where she should go. She almost could not cry anymore. She had a nobble heart. She did not have any bad feeling with her step mother, instead she always asked the God to accompany her passed her suffer.
 

Almost seven day and seven night she has walked until she came to south ocean. She looked at the ocean. It was so clean and clear, unlike other ocean which have a blue or green colour. She jumped onto the water and swim. Suddenly when the south ocean water touched her skin there was a miracle happened. Her ulcer has gone and there was no sign that she has ever had a scabies or itch. Even more she became more beautiful than before. Not only that she has a power to command whole of the south ocean. Now she became a fairy called Nyi Roro Kidul or The Queen of South Ocean who lived forever.
 

This is the most spectacular legend until now in the modern life even when you read this story, many people from Indonesia or from other country has admitted that they have met the beautiful fairy queen wear a traditional dress of Java. One of the famous beach hotel has made a suit room specially for her.

Written In Indonesia  by : Soemanto, B. 1998. Cerita Rakyat Dari Yogyakara 2, Seri Pendidikan Budaya, PT Grasindo. Translated by Anonym.

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Verb Pattern 2C - VP2C

Pada Verb Pattern 2C (VP2C) ini susunannya sama seperti pada tabel 4 di VP1; bedanya pada Verb Pattern 2C ini menggunakan kata kerja intransitif yang tida berupa BE.

Dalam hal ini, Horby (1975: 25) menjelaskan, "The simplest form of the pattern is seen when the verb is used with an adverb or adverbial particle, as in sentences 1 to 5. The adverb may be followed by a preposition, as in sentences 6 to 10."

"When two or more adverbials occur (e g of time and place), their order has to be chosen. There are some sequences which are more usual than others. Adverbials of place and direction usually precede adverbials of time, as in: We arrived here yesterday."

Jadi, bentuk paling sederhana dari verb pattern 2C bisa dilihat ketika kata kerja digunakan bersama sebuah adverb atau adverbial seperti pada kalimat nomor 1 sampai 5. Kata keterangan (adverb) bisa diikuti preposition (kata sambung) seperti pada kalimat nomor 6 sampai 10.

Ketika dua adverbial ketemu (misalnya, adverb of time dan adverb of place), susunan adverb of place (kata keterangan tempat) biasanya ditempatkan lebih dahulu dari adverb of time (kata keterangan waktu), seperti pada kalimat: We arrived here yesterday.

Untuk lebih jelasnya lihat pada tabel berikut :

Catatan (19):

Harus diingat, ketika subjectnya panjang, susunan kata there di awal kalimat lebih baik digunakan. Bandingkan kalimat di bawah ini :

A feeling of affection grew up between them (Subject pendek)

There grew up between the two men of feeling of warm affection. (subject panjang)

Dalam beberapa kombinasi (kalimat), adverbial particles (kata keterangan yang berbentuk sama seperti kata sambung) bisa diletakkan di awal kalimat, yang memiliki arti sebagai exclamatory sentences atau kalimat perintah non-formal. Contoh:

They went off -----------menjadi-----------Off they went !

She went away----------menjadi-----------Away she went!

Please go in-------------menjadi-----------In you go!

Namun tidak semua kata kerja bisa digunakan dalam susunan kalimat di atas, misalnya saja kalimat, "She locked out" tidak bisa diubah menjadi "Out she locked"

Jadi, kata kerja yang bisa digunakan dalam susunan kalimat inversi di atas adalah kata kerja yang mengindikasikan "gerakan" (movement). Sedang kata kerja "lock" bukanlah verbs of movement hingga tidak bisa dijadikan susunan inversi seperti di atas.

Adverb of place (kata keterangan) here dan there, jika subject kalimat berupa 'Personal Pronoun' , Personal pronoun tersebut harus diletakan sebelum verb (kata kerja), Contoh:

Here they come!

There she goes!

There they go!

Sedang jika subjectnya bukan berupa "Personal Pronoun" maka kata kerja mendahului subject. Contoh :

Here comes the station bus !

Here comes the other member of the party !

Gunakan kata keterangan (adverb) home setelah kata kerja "gerakan" (movement), misalnya go, come, run.

 Contoh :

They went/run all the way home

Sebaliknya, gunakan kata keterangan (adverb) at home jika kata kerja tidak mengindikasikan "gerakan" (movement). Contoh :

I'll stay/remain all the way at home.

Hornby, AS. 1975. Guide to Patterns and Usage in English: 2nd Edition. Oxford University Press.

Dongeng Bahasa Inggris - 7 Gagak (The Seven Ravens)

Dongeng Bahasa Inggris tentang Tujuh Gagak (The Seven Ravens). Selamat membaca...

There was once a man who had seven sons, and still he had no daughter, however much he wished for one.  At length his wife again gave him hope of a child, and when it came into the world it was a girl.  The joy was great, but the child was sickly and small, and had to be privately baptized on account of its weakness.  The father sent one of the boys in haste to the spring to fetch water for the baptism.  The other six went with him, and as each of them wanted to be first to fill it, the jug fell into the well.  There they stood and did not know what to do, and none of them dared to go home.  As they still did not return, the father grew impatient, and said, they have certainly forgotten it while playing some game, the wicked boys.  He became afraid that the girl would have to die without being baptized, and in his anger cried, I wish the boys were all turned into ravens.  Hardly was the word spoken before he heard a whirring of wings over his head, looked up and saw seven coal-black ravens flying away.

The parents could not withdraw the curse, and however sad they were at the loss of their seven sons, they still to some extent comforted themselves with their dear little daughter, who soon grew strong and every day became more beautiful.  For a long time she did not know that she had had brothers, for her parents were careful not to mention them before her, but one day she accidentally heard some people saying of herself, that the girl was certainly beautiful, but that in reality she was to blame for the misfortune which had befallen her seven brothers.  Then she was much troubled, and went to her father and mother and asked if it was true that she had had brothers, and what had become of them.  The parents now dared keep the secret no longer, but said that what had befallen her brothers was the will of heaven, and that her birth had only been the innocent cause.  But the maiden took it to heart daily, and thought she must save her brothers.  She had no rest or peace until she set out secretly, and went forth into the wide world to search for her brothers and set them free, let it cost what it might.  She took nothing with her but a little ring belonging to her parents as a keepsake, a loaf of bread against hunger, a little pitcher of water against thirst, and a little chair as a provision against weariness.

And now she went continually onwards, far, far to the very end of the world.  Then she came to the sun, but it was too hot and terrible, and devoured little children.  Hastily she ran away, and ran to the moon, but it was far too cold, and also awful and malicious, and when it saw the child, it said, I smell, I smell the flesh of men.  At this she ran swiftly away, and came to the stars, which were kind and good to her, and each of them sat on its own particular little chair.  But the morning star arose, and gave her the drumstick of a chicken, and said, if you have not that drumstick you can not open the glass mountain, and in the glass mountain are your brothers.

The maiden took the drumstick, wrapped it carefully in a cloth, and went onwards again until she came to the glass mountain.  The door was shut, and she thought she would take out the drumstick. But when she undid the cloth, it was empty, and she had lost the good star's present.  What was she now to do.  She wished to rescue her brothers, and had no key to the glass mountain.  The good sister took a knife, cut off one of her little fingers, put it in the door, and succeeded in opening it.  When she had gone inside, a little dwarf came to meet her, who said, my child, what are you looking for.  I am looking for my brothers, the seven ravens, she replied.  The dwarf said, the lord ravens are not at home, but if you will wait here until they come, step in.  Thereupon the little dwarf carried the ravens' dinner in, on seven little plates, and in seven little glasses, and the little sister ate a morsel from each plate, and from each little glass she took a sip, but in the last little glass she dropped the ring which she had brought away with her.

Suddenly she heard a whirring of wings and a rushing through the air, and then the little dwarf said, now the lord ravens are flying home.  Then they came, and wanted to eat and drink, and looked for their little plates and glasses.  Then said one after the other, who has eaten something from my plate.  Who has drunk out of my little glass.  It was a human mouth.  And when the seventh came to the bottom of the glass, the ring rolled against his mouth.  Then he looked at it, and saw that it was a ring belonging to his father and mother, and said, God grant that our sister may be here, and then we shall be free.  When the maiden, who was standing behind the door watching, heard that wish, she came forth, and on this all the ravens were restored to their human form again.  And they embraced and kissed each other, and went joyfully home.

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Dongeng Bahasa Inggris - Teka Teki (The Riddle)

Dongeng Bahasa Inggris tentang teka-teki (The Riddle), selamat membaca...

There was once a king's son who was seized with a desire to travel about the world, and took no one with him but a faithful servant. One day he came to a great forest, and when darkness overtook him he could find no shelter, and knew not where to pass the night.

Then he saw a girl who was going towards a small house, and when he came nearer, he saw that the maiden was young and beautiful. He spoke to her, and said, dear child, can I and my servant find shelter for the night in the little house.  Oh, yes, said the girl in a sad voice, that you certainly can, but I do not advise you to venture it.  Do not go in.  Why not, asked the king's son.

The maiden sighed and said, my step-mother practises wicked arts.  She is ill-disposed toward strangers. Then he saw very well that he had come to the house of a witch, but as it was dark, and he could not go farther, and also was not afraid, he entered.  The old woman was sitting in an armchair by the fire, and looked at the stranger with her red eyes.  Good evening, growled she, and pretended to be quite friendly.  Take a seat and rest yourselves.  She fanned the fire on which she was cooking something in a small pot.  The daughter warned the two to be prudent, to eat nothing, and drink nothing, for the old woman brewed evil drinks.  They slept quietly until early morning. 

When they were making ready for their departure, and the king's son was already seated on his horse, the old woman said, stop a moment, I will first hand you a parting draught.  Whilst she fetched it, the king's son rode away, and the servant who had to buckle his saddle tight, was the only one present when the wicked witch came with the drink.  Take that to your master, said she.  But at that instant the glass broke and the poison spirted on the horse, and it was so strong that the animal immediately fell down dead.  The servant ran after his master and told him what had happened, but as he did not want to leave his saddle behind, he ran back to fetch it.  When he came to the dead horse, however, a raven was already sitting on it devouring it.  Who knows whether we shall find anything better to-day, said the servant.

So he killed the raven, and took it with him.  And now they journeyed onwards into the forest the whole day, but could not get out of it.  By nightfall they found an inn and entered it. The servant gave the raven to the innkeeper to prepare for supper.

They had stumbled, however, on a den of murderers, and during the darkness twelve of these came, intending to kill the strangers and rob them.  But before they set about this work, they sat down to supper, and the innkeeper and the witch sat down with them, and together they ate a dish of soup in which was cut up the flesh of the raven.  Hardly had they swallowed a couple of mouthfuls, before they all fell down dead, for the raven had communicated to them the poison from the horse-flesh.  There was no no one else left in the house but the innkeeper's daughter, who was honest, and had taken no part in their godless deeds.  She opened all doors to the stranger and showed him the store of treasures.  But the king's son said she might keep everything, he would have none of it, and rode onwards with his servant.

After they had traveled about for a long time, they came to a town in which was a beautiful but proud princess, who had made it known that whosoever should set her a riddle which she could not guess, that man should be her husband.  But if she guessed it, his head must be cut off.  She had three days to guess it in, but was so clever that she always found the answer to the riddle given her before the appointed time.  Nine suitors had already perished in this manner, when the king's son arrived, and blinded by her great beauty, was willing to stake his life for it.  Then he went to her and laid his riddle before her.  What is this, said he.  One slew none, and yet slew twelve.  She did not know what that was.  She thought and thought, but she could not solve it.  She opened her riddle-books, but it was not in them - in short, her wisdom was at an end.  As she did not know how to help herself, she ordered her maid to creep into the lord's sleeping-chamber, and listen to his dreams, and thought that he would perhaps speak in his sleep and reveal the riddle.  But the clever servant had placed himself in the bed instead of his master, and when the maid came there, he tore off from her the mantle in which she had wrapped herself, and chased her out with rods. 

The second night the king's daughter sent her maid-in-waiting, who was to see if she could succeed better in listening, but the servant took her mantle also away from her, and hunted her out with rods.  Now the master believed himself safe for the third night, and lay down in his own bed.  Then came the princess herself, and she had put on a misty-grey mantle, and she seated herself near him.  And when she thought that he was asleep and dreaming, she spoke to him, and hoped that he would answer in his sleep, as many do, but he was awake, and understood and heard everything quite well.  Then she asked, one slew none, what is that.  He replied, a raven, which ate of a dead and poisoned horse, and died of it.  She inquired further, and yet slew twelve, what is that.  He answered, that means twelve murderers, who ate the raven and died of it.

When she knew the answer to the riddle she wanted to steal away, but he held her mantle so fast that she was forced to leave it behind her.  Next morning, the king's daughter announced that she had guessed the riddle, and sent for the twelve judges and expounded it before them.  But the youth begged for a hearing, and said, she stole into my room in the night and questioned me, otherwise she could not have discovered it.  The judges said, bring us a proof of this.

Then were the three mantles brought thither by the servant, and when the judges saw the misty-grey one which the king's daughter usually wore, they said, let the mantle be embroidered with gold and silver, and then it will be your wedding-mantle.

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Dongeng Bahasa Inggris - Penjahit Kecil Gagah Berani

Dongeng Bahasa Inggris tentang Penjahit Kecil yang gagah berani (The Valiant Little Tailor). Selamat membaca..

One summer's morning a little tailor was sitting on his table by the window, he was in good spirits, and sewed with all his might.  Then came a peasant woman down the street crying, good jams, cheap.  Good jams, cheap.  This rang pleasantly in the tailor's ears, he stretched his delicate head out of the window, and called, come up here, dear woman, here you will get rid of your goods.  

The woman came up the three steps to the tailor with her heavy basket, and he made her unpack all the pots for him.  He inspected each one, lifted it up, put his nose to it, and at length said, the jam seems to me to be good, so weigh me out four ounces, dear woman, and if it is a quarter of a pound that is of no consequence.  The woman who had hoped to find a good sale, gave him what he desired, but went away quite angry and grumbling.  Now, this jam shall be blessed by God, cried the little tailor, and give me health and strength.  So he brought the bread out of the cupboard, cut himself a piece right across the loaf and spread the jam over it.  This won't taste bitter, said he, but I will just finish the jacket before I take a bite.

He laid the bread near him, sewed on, and in his joy, made bigger and bigger stitches.  In the meantime the smell of the sweet jam rose to where the flies were sitting in great numbers, and they were attracted and descended on it in hosts.  HI, who invited you, said the little tailor, and drove the unbidden guests away.  The flies, however, who understood no german, would not be turned away, but came back again in ever-increasing companies.  The little tailor at last lost all patience, and drew a piece of cloth from the hole under his work-table, and saying, wait, and I will give it to you, struck it mercilessly on them. 

When he drew it away and counted, there lay before him no fewer than seven, dead and with legs stretched out.  Are you a fellow of that sort, said he, and could not help admiring his own bravery.  The whole town shall know of this.  And the little tailor hastened to cut himself a girdle, stitched it, and embroidered on it in large letters, seven at one stroke.  What, the town, he continued, the whole world shall hear of it.  And his heart wagged with joy like a lamb's tail.  The tailor put on the girdle, and resolved to go forth into the world, because he thought his workshop was too small for his valor.  

Before he went away, he sought about in the house to see if there was anything which he could take with him, however, he found nothing but an old cheese, and that he put in his pocket.  In front of the door he observed a bird which had caught itself in the thicket.  It had to go into his pocket with the cheese.  Now he took to the road boldly, and as he was light and nimble, he felt no fatigue.  The road led him up a mountain, and when he had reached the highest point of it, there sat a powerful giant looking peacefully about him.  The little tailor went bravely up, spoke to him, and said, good day, comrade, so you are sitting there overlooking the wide-spread world.  I am just on my way thither, and want to try my luck.  Have you any inclination to go with me.  The giant looked contemptuously at the tailor, and said, you ragamuffin.  You miserable creature.

Oh, indeed, answered the little tailor, and unbuttoned his coat, and showed the giant the girdle, there may you read what kind of a man I am.  The giant read, seven at one stroke.  And thought that they had been men whom the tailor had killed, and began to feel a little respect for the tiny fellow.  Nevertheless, he wished to try him first, and took a stone in his hand and squeezed it together so that water dropped out of it.  Do that likewise, said the giant, if you have strength.  Is that all, said the tailor, that is child's play with us, and put his hand into his pocket, brought out the soft cheese, and pressed it until the liquid ran out of it.  Faith, said he, that was a little better, wasn't it.  The giant did not know what to say, and could not believe it of the little man.  Then the giant picked up a stone and threw it so high that the eye could scarcely follow it.  Now, little mite of a man, do that likewise.  Well thrown, said the tailor, but after all the stone came down to earth again, I will throw you one which shall never come back at all.  And he put his hand into his pocket, took out the bird, and threw it into the air.  The bird, delighted with its liberty, rose, flew away and did not come back.  How does that shot please you, comrade, asked the tailor.

Selengkapnya : Download Dongeng Bahasa Inggris - Penjahit Kecil Gagah Berani.

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Verb Pattern 2B - VP2B

Dalam menjelaskan Verb Pattern 2B (VP2B) ini, Horby (1975: 24) mengungkapkan, "In the sentences in this table the verb is used with an adverbial adjunct of distance, duration, weight, price, etc. Before adverbials of distance and duration for may occur, but it is often omitted."

Dari keterangan Hornby tersebut, dapat disimpulkan bahwa kata kerja yang digunakan bersama sebuah kata keterangan tentang 'jarak', 'durasi', 'berat', 'harga' dll. Biasanya sebelum kata keterangan tersebut didahului oleh for, meski umumnya for tersebut dihilangkan.

Jadi perbedaannya dengan VP1A adalah, jika pada VP2A keberadaan adverbial (kata keterangan) tidak diperlukan sekali, sedang pada VP2B, keberadaannya sangat diperlukan, meski sama-sama menggunakan intransitive verbs.

Untuk lebih jelasnya, lihat pada tabel di bawah ini :

Catatan (18)

Pada kalimat, "We weight and measured the box", kata kerja weight dan measure adalah kata kerja transitif. Sedang pada kalimat, "The box weights 1.6 kilos and measures 35 cm x 25 cm", kata kerja weight dan measure adalah intransitive verbs. Jadi kita harus jeli melihat kata kerja mana yang transitif dan mana kata kerja yang intransitif.

Misalnya lagi, Kata kerja 'cost' termasuk transitive verb jika berhubungan dengan penggunaan komersial, seperti pada frasa 'to cost a book', kata kerja 'cost' di sini berarti 'estimasi / menentukan harga produksi buku'   

Kata 'cost', 'take' (bermakna butuh ) dan kata 'last' (bermakna 'terus dapat digunakan'), bisa didahului indirect object seperti pada kalimat nomor 10, 15, 18 dan 19.

Referensi :

Hornby, AS. 1975. Guide to Patterns and Usage in English: 2nd Edition. Oxford University Press.

Dongeng Bahasa Inggris - Tiga Daun Sang Ular

Dongeng Bahasa Inggris tentang Tiga Daun Ular (Three Snake-Leaves). Selamat membaca :

There was once on a time a poor man, who could no longer support his only on.  Then said the son, dear father, things go so badly with us that I am a burden to you.  I would rather go away and see how I can earn my bread.  So the father gave him his blessing, and with great sorrow took leave of him.  At this time the king of a mighty empire was at war and the youth took service with him, and went out to fight.  And when he came before the enemy, there was a battle, and great danger, and it rained shot until his comrades fell on all sides, and when the leader also was killed, those left were about to take flight, but the youth stepped forth, spoke boldly to them, and cried, we will not let our father-land be ruined.  Then the others followed him, and he pressed on and conquered the enemy.  When the king heard that he owed the victory to him alone, he raised him above all the others, gave him great treasures, and made him the first in the kingdom.

The king had a daughter who was very beautiful, but she was also very strange.  She had made a vow to take no one as her lord and husband who did not promise to let himself be buried alive with her if she died first.  If he loves me with all his heart, said she, of what use will life be to him afterwards.  On her side she would do the same, and if he died first, would go down to the grave with him.  This strange oath had up to this time frightened away all wooers, but the youth became so charmed with her beauty that he cared for nothing, but asked her father for her.  But do you know what you must promise, said the king.  I must be buried with her, he replied, if I outlive her, but my love is so great that I do not mind the danger.  Then the king consented, and the wedding was solemnized with great splendor.

They lived now for a while happy and contented with each other, and then it befell that the young queen was attacked by a severe illness, and no physician could save her. And as she lay there dead, the young king remembered what he had been obliged to promise, and was horrified at having to lie down alive in the grave, but there was no escape.  The king had placed sentries at all the gates, and it was not possible to avoid his fate.  As the day came when the corpse was to be buried, he was taken down with it into the royal vault and then the door was shut and bolted.

Near the coffin stood a table on which were four candles, four loaves of bread, and four bottles of wine, and when this provision came to an end, he would have to die of hunger.  And now he sat there full of pain and grief, ate every day only a little piece of bread, drank only a mouthful of wine, and nevertheless saw death daily drawing nearer.  Whilst he thus gazed before him, he saw a snake creep out of a corner of the vault and approach the dead body.

And as he thought it came to gnaw at it, he drew his sword and said, as long as I live, you shall not touch her, and hewed the snake in three pieces.  After a time a second snake crept out of the hole, and when it saw the other lying dead and cut in pieces, it went back, but soon came again with three green leaves in its mouth.  Then it took the three pieces of the snake, laid them together, as they fitted, and placed one of the leaves on each wound.  Immediately the severed parts joined themselves together, the snake moved, and became alive again, and both of them hastened away together.  The leaves were left lying on the ground, and a desire came into the mind of the unhappy man who had been watching all this, to know if the wondrous power of the leaves which had brought the snake to life again, could not likewise be of service to a human being.

So he picked up the leaves and laid one of them on the mouth of his dead wife, and the two others on her eyes.  And hardly had he done this than the blood stirred in her veins, rose into her pale face, and colored it again.  Then she drew breath, opened her eyes, and said, ah, God, where am I.  You are with me, dear wife, he answered, and told her how everything had happened, and how he had brought her back again to life.  Then he gave her some wine and bread, and when she had regained her strength, he raised her up
and they went to the door and knocked, and called so loudly that the sentries heard it, and told the king.  The king came down himself and opened the door, and there he found both strong and well, and rejoiced with them that now all sorrow was over.  The young king, however, took the three snake-leaves with him, gave them to a servant and said, keep them for me carefully, and carry
them constantly about you.  Who knows in what trouble they may yet be of service to us.

But a change had taken place in his wife.  After she had been restored to life, it seemed as if all love for her husband had gone out of her heart.  After some time, when he wanted to make a voyage over the sea, to visit his old father, and they had gone on board a ship, she forgot the great love and fidelity which he had shown her, and which had been the means of rescuing her from death, and conceived a wicked inclination for the skipper.  And once when the young king lay there asleep, she called in the skipper and seized the sleeper by the head, and the skipper took him by the feet, and thus they threw him down into the sea.  When the shameful deed was done, she said, now let us return home, and say that he died on the way.  I will extol and praise you so to my father that he will marry me to you, and make you the heir to his crown.  But the faithful servant who had seen all that they did, unseen by them, unfastened a little boat from the ship, got into it, sailed after his master, and let the traitors go on their way.  He fished up the dead body, and by the help of the three snake-leaves which he carried about with him, and laid on the eyes and mouth, he fortunately brought the young king back to life.

They both rowed with all their strength day and night, and their little boat sailed so swiftly that they reached the old king before the others.  He was astonished when he saw them come alone, and asked what had happened to them.  When he learnt the wickedness of his daughter he said, I cannot believe that she has behaved so ill, but the truth will soon come to light, and bade both go into a secret chamber and keep themselves hidden from everyone.  Soon afterwards the great ship came sailing in, and the godless woman appeared before her father with a troubled countenance.  He said, why do you come back alone.  Where is your husband.  Ah, dear father, she replied, I come home again in great grief.  During the voyage, my husband became suddenly ill and died, and if the good skipper had not given me his help, it would have gone ill with me.  He was present at his death, and can tell you all.  The king said, I will make the dead alive again, and opened the chamber, and bade the two come out.  When the woman saw her husband, she was thunderstruck, and fell on her knees and begged for mercy.

The king said, there is no mercy.  He was ready to die with you and restored you to life again, but you have murdered him in his sleep, and shall receive the reward that you deserve.  Then she was placed with her accomplice in a ship which had been pierced with holes, and sent out to sea, where they soon sank amid the waves.

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