Manu Legend

 

Manu Legend

    

On the way to Myanmar with Girl Dawa and Agudengba, Agudengba told Girl Dawa a story about the great flood and the Himalayas. This story is actually a myth about the origin of mankind.

Agudenba said:

It is said that the ancestor of mankind is Manu. One morning when Manu was scooping water, a magical fish jumped into his hand. The magical fish raised its head and said to him:

"There will be a great flood soon, and all living things will die. You can raise me and let me save you."

According to the words of the divine fish, Manu built a pond to raise this fish. After the divine fish gradually grew up, he put it into the sea. At this time, the divine fish told him that there would be a great flood that year, and told him to prepare a boat and never leave it. After saying this, the divine fish went away with the wave.

Soon, as predicted by the divine fish, a great flood occurred. Manu took a boat, got close to the divine fish, and tied a large rope to its beard. The divine fish dragged the boat and swam toward the mountains in the north, the Himalayas. As the divine fish was being dragged, the water seemed to be gradually decreasing; however, the water submerged all living creatures, and now Manu could be said to be living alone in the world.

Manu continued to practice asceticism, hoping to have descendants, and offered various offerings in the water to worship.

A year later, a fish fairy appeared in the water. The two gods Midela and Poana asked the fish fairy: "Who are you?"

The fish fairy replied: "I am Manu's daughter."

The gods commanded her: "Be ours!"

The fish fairy replied: "I belong to the one who gave birth to me."

With that said, he ran towards Manu. Manu asked her: "Who are you?"

The Fish Fairy replied: "I was born from the sacred fish you offered in the water, and I am also your daughter. Please use me during sacrifices, so that you can have descendants and countless livestock."

Manu was longing to have descendants, so he continued to practice hard with the Fish Fairy. With the help of the Fish Fairy, he finally gave birth to descendants as he wished, and these descendants will be human beings in the future.

After Agudengba finished telling this story, he said to the Dawa girl: There are many legends about the origin of human beings, but this legend mainly educates future generations to be kind and know how to repay kindness, so Agudengba sang an ancient song. Western folk song "Repaying Favor":

 

In our lives,

There will always be difficulties,

Like the beauty of mountains and rivers,

There are also floods,

How to avoid disasters,

It’s all about doing good to save yourself.

              

To help in times of trouble,

When you save others,

There are people who will save you,

When you meet a kind person,

No matter how big or small the favor is,

All are important assets.

 

When you meet a kind person,

Thank you not verbally,

We should repay with actions,

Wealth brings sincerity,

If you are poor, send help;

This is the best reward.

 

Know how to help each other,

To have deep feelings,

We help others,

It is also to help yourself,

Give kindness without expecting anything in return;

Kindness will always save you.