23 - Magical Tweetment!
Summary
TLDRIn this episode of 'Stories from India,' host Narad Monei narrates a folktale from Madhya Pradesh about a lazy man, his hardworking wife, and a magical cow that produces gold. The tale unfolds with the man's encounter with the king of the birds, leading to a series of magical gifts, including a bowl that conjures food and a rope that punishes dishonesty. The story highlights the themes of hard work, deception, and the power of redemption, all while exploring Indian mythology and the celebration of Ugadi, the Hindu New Year.
Takeaways
- ๐ต The podcast 'Stories from India' shares myths, legends, and folk tales from India, hosted by Narad Mone, a character with the gift of eternal life and knowledge of the past, present, and future.
- ๐ The folk tale from Madhya Pradesh tells of a magic cow that produces gold and a bowl that can create any food, involving the character Brahma, the Creator, and a lazy man and his hardworking wife.
- ๐ The lazy man, instead of working, finds ways to avoid his responsibilities, leading to humorous situations where he tries to guard grain from birds but ends up sleeping.
- ๐๏ธ The king of the birds, after being caught by the lazy man, offers a magical gift as a way to repay him, which turns out to be a cow that produces gold.
- ๐ The man's daughter, with dishonest intentions, switches the magical cow and the magical bowl with ordinary ones while her father naps, but is eventually caught and forced to return the magical items.
- ๐งโโ๏ธ The character of Brahma is explored, who is known as the Creator and has a unique story of self-creation from an egg amidst water.
- ๐ The episode coincides with the Hindu New Year festival of Ugadi, which is believed to be the anniversary of the day Brahma created the universe.
- ๐ The storytelling style of the podcast is interactive, with the host often speaking directly to the audience and providing commentary on the tales.
- ๐จโ๐ฉโ๐ง The tale reflects on family dynamics, with the farmer's husband learning from his mistakes and the daughter experiencing remorse for her actions.
- ๐ The podcast concludes with a teaser for the next episode, which will delve into events from the Ramayana that impacted Ram's life, featuring a wolf character skilled in tracking stolen cows.
- ๐ถ The podcast is accompanied by music from Purple Planet, adding an auditory layer to the storytelling experience.
Q & A
What is the main theme of the podcast 'Stories from India'?
-The podcast 'Stories from India' focuses on discussing myths, legends, and folk tales from India.
Who is the host of 'Stories from India' and what is unique about this character?
-The host is Narad Mone, a mythological character with the gift of eternal life and knowledge of the past, present, and future. He is also a traveling musician and storyteller.
What is the central folk tale discussed in the provided script?
-The central folk tale is about a magic cow that produces gold every time it defecates and a bowl that can conjure any food when water is poured into it and stirred with a spoon.
What is the occupation of the wife in the folk tale?
-The wife in the folk tale is a hardworking farmer who is responsible for all the labor on the farm.
Why is the husband in the story referred to as 'lazy'?
-The husband is referred to as 'lazy' because he does not contribute to the work on the farm and always finds excuses to avoid helping his wife.
What is the significance of the talking bird in the story?
-The talking bird is the king of the birds and offers the farmer's husband a magical gift as a way to repay him for not selling the birds that had eaten their grain.
What does the farmer's husband receive as a magical gift from the king of the birds?
-The farmer's husband receives a magic cow that can produce gold every time it goes to the bathroom.
Why does the farmer's husband's daughter switch the magic cow with her own?
-The daughter switches the magic cow with her own because she has dishonest intentions and wants to keep the magical cow for herself.
What is the final magical item given to the farmer's husband by the king of the birds?
-The final magical item is a length of rope and a stick, which have the power to punish the daughter for her dishonest actions.
What moral lesson does the story convey about honesty and consequences?
-The story conveys the moral lesson that dishonesty can lead to negative consequences, and it is important to be honest and return what is not rightfully yours.
What is the significance of the number three in the folk tale?
-The number three is significant as it is a recurring theme in many folktales and fairy tales worldwide, often symbolizing completeness or a cycle.
What is the connection between the story and the Hindu New Year festival of Ugadi?
-The connection is that the festival of Ugadi marks the start of the Hindu New Year and is believed to be the anniversary of the day Brahma created the universe, which is a central theme in the story.
Why does the podcast host mention the character Brahma in the context of the story?
-Brahma is mentioned because he is the Creator in Hindu mythology, and the story involves the creation of magical items, tying into the theme of creation.
Outlines
๐ The Lazy Farmer's Magical Cow
In this episode of 'Stories from India', the host, Narad Monei, introduces a folk tale from Madhya Pradesh about a lazy man and his hardworking wife. The man, who avoids work by making excuses, is given the task of guarding their grain from birds. Predictably, he fails, leading his wife to confront him. The next day, he devises a plan to use glue to protect the grain, but this backfires as the birds get stuck. A talking bird, revealed to be the king of the birds, offers a magical cow as a gift in exchange for their freedom. The cow is special because it produces gold every time it defecates. The tale highlights the theme of laziness and the unexpected rewards that can come from dealing with challenges.
๐ฑ The Farmer's Husband's Misadventures
The story continues with the farmer's husband receiving a magical cow from the king of the birds. The cow's unique ability to produce gold dung seems like a solution to their financial problems. However, the man's daughter, from a nearby village, tricks him by swapping the magical cow with her own. When the man returns home, he finds that the cow no longer produces gold. He decides to take advantage of the 30-day technical support offered by the king of the birds. In a twist, the king gives him a magical bowl and spoon that can produce any food by simply stirring water in it. The man is excited about this new gift, hoping it will help with cooking while his wife is in the fields.
๐ฎ The Daughter's Deceit and Redemption
The narrative unfolds as the farmer's husband discovers that his daughter has been dishonest, repeatedly swapping his magical gifts with ordinary items while he naps. Initially, he is given a magical rope and stick by the king of the birds, but the daughter plans to steal them as well. However, the magical items punish her, forcing her to return the stolen gifts. The king of the birds' spy confirms her deceit, and the man finally understands her actions. The daughter, remorseful, returns the magical cow and bowl. The story concludes with the family's reconciliation and the wife's happiness at no longer having to work in the fields, while also highlighting the importance of honesty and the consequences of deceit.
๐ The Celebration of Brahma and the King of Birds
In this segment, the host delves into the background of the characters and the cultural significance of the tale. The story is set in Madhya Pradesh and features the recurring theme of threes, common in many folktales. The host corrects traditional roles by referring to the hardworking woman as 'the farmer' and her husband as 'the farmer's husband.' The daughter's dishonesty is a unique twist in the narrative. The character of the week is Brahma, the Creator, who is humorously described as having created himself. The host also mentions the upcoming Hindu New Year festival, Ugadi, and its connection to Brahma, marking the anniversary of the universe's creation.
๐ฌ Preview of Next Week's Episode
The host teases the next episode, which will explore events from the Ramayana that impacted Ram's life, focusing on Ram's father, Dharat. The episode will discuss the importance of caution when entering a hunting zone and the consequences of making unconditional promises. The character for the next week is a wolf, known for tracking stolen cows and teaching humans about the benefits of cow milk and butter. The host invites listeners to engage with the podcast through comments, reviews, and social media, and thanks them for their support. The music for the podcast is credited to Purple Planet.
Mindmap
Keywords
๐กNarad Mone
๐กFolk Tale
๐กMagic Cow
๐กBowl
๐กBrahma
๐กLazy Man
๐กKing of the Birds
๐กTechnical Support
๐กDaughter's Deceit
๐กMagical Rope and Stick
๐กHindu New Year
Highlights
Introduction to the podcast 'Stories from India' focusing on myths, legends, and folk tales.
Host Narad Monei, a mythological character with eternal life and knowledge, introduces himself as a traveling musician and storyteller.
The podcast features a folk tale from Madhya Pradesh about a magic cow and a magical bowl.
The story begins with a lazy man and his hardworking wife, a farmer, living on a farm.
The lazy man is given the task of guarding their grain from birds but fails due to his laziness.
The wife, frustrated with her husband's laziness, confronts him about the lost grain.
The husband devises a plan to use glue to protect the grain, but this backfires as the birds get stuck.
A talking bird, the king of the birds, offers the husband a magical gift in exchange for their freedom.
The husband is given a magical cow by the king of the birds, which produces gold when it defecates.
The husband's daughter tricks him by switching the magical cow with her own, non-magical cow.
The king of the birds provides a magical bowl that can create any food when water is poured into it.
The daughter again deceives her father by switching the magical bowl with an ordinary one.
The king of the birds gives the husband a magical rope and stick, which punish the daughter for her deceit.
The daughter is forced to return the stolen magical items, leading to a change in her behavior.
The story concludes with the couple living happily with their magical gifts, no longer needing to work in the fields.
The podcast discusses the recurring theme of 'threes' in folktales and its significance.
Introduction of Brahma, the Creator, as a character in the podcast and his self-creation story.
The story of Brahma's creation of the universe from an egg and his role as the Creator.
The festival of Ugadi, celebrated as the Hindu New Year and the anniversary of Brahma's creation of the universe.
Announcement of the next podcast episode focusing on Ram's father, Dharat, and his role in Ram's life.
Transcripts
[Music]
[Applause]
[Music]
[Applause]
hello and welcome to stories from India
a podcast where we talk about myths
Legends and folk tales from
India I am your host narad monei and I'm
a mythological character
myself I have the gift of eternal life
and knowledge of the past the present
and the future by profession I'm a
traveling musician and a Storyteller so
the way I'm doing my job is by
podcast this week we'll do a folk tale
from madhia
Pradesh about a magic cow that makes
gold every time it goes to the
bathroom and a bowl that can make any
food appear
the character this week is someone whom
we've encountered a lot on this podcast
it's my dad Brahma the
Creator Our Story begins on a farm where
a lazy man lived with his
wife and by lazy I mean a real extreme
version of
lazy the man did
nothing his wife was the real farmer
all day long she worked hard in the
fields while her husband
slept he always had a convenient
excuse if it was an ingrowing toenail on
Monday it was a headache on
Tuesday the wife realized after a while
that there was just no way to get work
out of the
sky she resigned to her fate and
continued her 7 days a week routine in
the
fields one day as she she was about to
head out she had some grain spread out
on a mat all prepared to be dried out in
the warm
sunshine her husband was lying on his
bed counting
sheep metaphorically they were no real
sheep on this
Farm as she was about to head out she
saw a flock of birds that were eyeing
all the grain mouths
drooling she knew the moment she exited
the scene the birds would soon be on the
Grain and the sundried grain was meant
for a very important
client the farmer and her husband
literally depended on this income for
their next
meal and yet the fields could not be
left unattended
either she wasn't looking forward to it
but the only way
out was for her to entrust her husband
with the task of minding the grain she
woke her husband up and gave him the all
important
task watch The
Grain sensing the loophole her husband
was thinking about she quickly added and
by watch I really mean mind if you see
any birds scare them away you can do
that much the grain is like 3 ft away
from
you even if you move a little bit the
the birds are going to be scared
away now goodbye she said and left for
the
fields there is a quote often
misattributed to Bill
Gates I will always find a lazy person
to do a difficult job because they'll
find the easiest way to do
it well that didn't really apply to the
farmer's
husband if I see any birds I'm to scare
them away thought the
husband
if if is good he thought and promptly
dropped off to
sleep within 5 minutes of course the
birds had swooped down and began
feasting on the
grain they made quite a racket of course
but the husband was fast asleep
already when his wife the farmer
returned that evening back to her
sleeping husband and the now empty mat
she was obviously very angry and
disappointed there was nothing to be
done
however so she scolded her very
irresponsible
husband the next morning she spread the
grain out
again this time the husband felt a
little
guilty he decided he must do something
about the
birds he was already starting to feel
sleepy then he had a brilliant
idea at least he thought it was a
brilliant
idea he spread lots of glue all over the
grain his mind at rest he dozed off
again when his wife returned yes the
grain was still
there but guess what so were all the
birds they were all stuck to the mat and
making quite a
racket but her husband's snores were
louder than all of the squawking of the
birds she shook her husband awake and he
was about to celebrate but his wife was
glaring at
him oh congratulations she muttered with
clenched teeth fine job how exactly are
we supposed to get the glue off of the
grain
now thinking quickly the man man said
we've caught all the birds we could just
sell them
all the wife replied what is silly hey
wait a minute what if we sold all the
birds we could get a pretty decent
amount for all these
birds thank goodness at least I have
brains in this
family said the husband my point exactly
she said now go get the
net wait we have a net asked the husband
we could have just used it as a tent to
cover the Grain and protect it from the
birds oh well said the wife and went to
grab the
birds but just as she was reaching her
hand towards the largest of the birds it
spoke back to her wait wait don't sell
us let us
go a bird that can talk I really have
been working too long in the sun said
the wife no I heard it too said the
husband all right Bird why should we let
you go he
asked I'm the king of the birds I can be
of use to
you too big I want something specific
replied the
husband okay come see me tomorrow in the
forest nearby and I'll give you a
magical gift said the king of the birds
handing the farmer's husband a gift
card the bird King's words were good
good enough for the husband and he began
to let the birds
go remember redeem this fabulous gift
offer within 7 Days said the king as he
flew
off the wife had no expectation of
anything good coming out of this but
whatever it was too late
now if it had magic Why didn't it free
itself she asked her
husband meanwhile the husband wondered
where did the little credit card sized
bird pull a credit card sized gift card
from the next morning no more grain was
laid out to
dry because when the farmer went to the
fields her husband went to the
forest now it's hard to imagine
navigating a forest and randomly
stumbling on the birds from the day
before but that's exactly what happened
the bird was happy to present the
farmer's husband with a
cow oh thank you said the farmer glad
it's not just magic
beans but what's so magical about a
cow you'll find out soon enough said the
king of the
birds you're so tiny and the cow is so
big how exactly was this cow yours to
begin with he asked
never you mind said the bird and
remember you get 30 days of technical
support with the
cow okay said the man and walked away
with the cow soon after as they were
walking the cow had to go to the
bathroom but suddenly the man noticed
that the cow Tong was incredibly
shiny in fact it was pure
gold oh my this was quite a
cow he had no hesitation in scooping up
the cow dung into a bag he was
carrying the cow made a bit more gold
dung on the way all of which the farmer
happily scooped
up but it was Heavy work carrying all
the heavy
gold he didn't think to let the cow
carry
it he was tired and it had been a whole
2 hours since he had woken up you
couldn't expect him to stay awake could
you he happened to be near his
daughter's
Village so he decided to stop there for
a quick power
nap he met his daughter and showed her
the wonderful
cow the daughter did not have the best
of
intentions while her father slept she
switched his cow for one of of her own
that looked quite
similar the farmer woke up and started
on his way but first he gifted All the
Gold in his bag to his
daughter and no that did not arouse any
guilt in the
girl when he reached home and showed his
wife the cow the wife was a little
disappointed what's magical about it she
asked wait didn't watch he
said just then the cow relieved herself
again what's so magical about the smelly
pile of dung asked the wife as the
husband stared at it
dumbfounded something's gone wrong he
said oh well the king of the birds told
me there's a 30-day technical support
period I'm taking the cow back
there he did
the king of the birds was surprised that
the cow wasn't
functioning he instead gave the farmer's
husband a bowl and a
spoon again the farmer's husband
couldn't see where exactly the tiny
creature had pulled a bowl several times
at
size I have a set at home already he
told the
bird this is different said the bird
king just pour water in it and stir it
with the spoon imagine any food and it
will magically
appear I want to try it thought the
farmer's
husband he poured in water and stirred
it with the spoon wishing for a big
chocolate
cake and
voila there was now a big chocolate cake
in the
bowl this is perfect he thought I can
take care of the cooking at home while
my wife is out in the fields
as he made his way home the same thing
happened as before he decided to take a
powerap at his
daughter's again he showed his daughter
the magic of the
bowl and again she switched it out for
an ordinary Bowl as her father
slept this time though the king of the
birds had sent a spy to follow the
husband home the Spy saw saw the
daughter switch the Bulls he promptly
reported everything back to his
King meanwhile the farmer's husband
reached his home and again the same
thing
happened the farmer was surprised that
her husband was trying to pass off just
plain old tap water as Strawberry
Shortcake the husband returned to the
king of the birds the next day and this
time the king gave him a a length of
rope and a
stick what's so magical about that he
asked you'll see said the
King again he stopped for a PO nap at
his daughter's
home this time though the man couldn't
tell his daughter what the rope and
stick were supposed to
do I'm sure they're magical thought the
daughter I'd better switch them anyway
she
thought and as her father father slept
she was about to grab the
Rope but the moment she touched it the
Rope called itself around her and the
stick began to beat
her she howled with pain and her father
woke up not understanding
anything the stick continued to hit her
and the Rope was so tight around her
that her father couldn't do anything to
help she finally screamed that she would
return her father's
gifts the moment she said that the stick
stopped and the Rope came
loose her father finally understood what
had
happened the daughter was finally
remorseful and did in fact return the
magic cow and the magic
bowl forgiving his daughter as parents
are prone to do and armed with all his
gifts he went
home this time
you bet his wife was
happy she didn't have to work in a field
anymore but they remembered their Friend
the King of the
birds they would lay out a lot of grain
every day never once wondering why a
creature with so much magic at his
command was compelled to eat ordinary
grain off of risky places of human
habitation that's it for now some not on
the show this is a folk tale from the
central Indian state of madhia
Pradesh there are many tales from this
part of the country and we might cover
them in future
episodes there is also the element of
Threes here an often recurring theme in
most folktales and fairy tales all over
the
world The Story begins with a familiar
theme of a supposedly helpless creature
promising to help out someone who's in a
sign ific an position of power over
them there's a similar situation with
the lion and mouse story from isup's
fables and also many European
folktales the characters in this story
are
atypical the wife does all of the hard
work in the original story the man was
called the farmer and his wife was
simply called the farmer's wife but
that's absolute nonsense it's the wife
who did all the work so I've rightfully
designated her the farmer and the man as
the farmer's
husband the daughter is dishonest with
her own father and that's something you
don't see often in these folktales
unless there's also another and an
equally offsetting good
daughter the character this week is
someone whom we have encountered a lot
on this
podcast it's my dad Brahma the
Creator Brahma was created by
himself not for nothing do we call him
the
Creator so you could say that my father
can trace his ancestry all the way back
to
himself The Story Goes that in the
beginning there was only water
everywhere Brahma who somehow
miraculously seems to exist at this
point created an egg in the water and
from this egg emerged
Brahma sounds a little
paradoxical well you're not the first to
think
that it might have a little something to
do with time
travel Brahma took half the egg and made
the Earth out of it and he took the
other half and made the heavens
so if you looked up at the sky and
wondered how the Earth and Sky seem to
be the inside of two halves of a giant
egg your spot
on there are many stories of
Brahma including one which explains why
he has four
heads The Story Goes that once he
created
shatarupa and really really liked
her but instead of you know asking for
her phone number or Instagram handle he
just looked at her from a distance
facing her when she moved
sideways he couldn't be bothered to turn
and look at her
again instead he did what was perfectly
natural for the master of
creation he created himself an extra
head pretty soon as she moved further he
had created two more heads
when she tried to leap over him he even
created a fifth head looking
upwards Shiva the Destroyer had to
intervene and chop off one of the heads
to sort of War Brahma off of you know
staring at shatarupa and making her
uncomfortable another story of Brahma
reads exactly like the Spider-Man into
the spiderverse
movie Brahma travels into another
dimension and meets many other brahmas
from other
universes but we'll Reserve that story
for a future
episode there's a special reason I've
chosen Brahma this
week gyva or ugadi is a festival that
will be celebrated in many parts of the
country this
Wednesday this Festival is the start of
the Hindu New Year it's also believed
that this is the anniversary of the day
that Brahma created the
universe the day he hatched the egg with
himself
inside so happy creation anniversary to
you
all that's it for this week if you have
comments or suggestions please leave a
comment or a review on the site SFI
podcast.com or tweet at SFI podcast you
can also find me on Instagram and
Facebook be sure to subscribe to the
show to get notified automatically of
new
episodes thanks to all you listeners for
your continued
support the music is from purple
planet.com that's
purple-planet.com
given that in the following week There's
the birthday of ram I thought we'd go
back into the
ramayan we won't meet Ram himself but
we'll talk about two events his father
dharat was involved in that had a big
impact on Ram's
Life we'll see why it's a good idea to
wear a protective orange West when
walking into a hunting
Zone we'll also see that if you make
unconditional promises to
someone make sure that their servants
are not
selfish the character next week is a
wolf who is excellent at tracking down
stolen
cows and she also taught humans that
cows can be a good source of milk and
butter I'll see you next
[Music]
week
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