The First Banana | The Pinya | The Legend of Rice

 

The First Banana

            A long time ago, there lived a beautiful young lady whom everybody loved.  She never loved or liked a person she knew, until she met a very handsome stranger.  He came out of nowhere gracing the land with his divine magnificence.  The young lady and young stranger became close and the young man talked about his magical land.  He said he came from a Utopian city where fairness and goodness ruled over the land.  He even said that the beautiful lady reminded him of his homeland.  His stories were so farfetched that the woman started to believe that he was not from this world.  The lady could not hold it any longer and finally asked him “What are you?”

            With that question, his smile became gloomy and sad.  He told her that he could not stay any longer, and would have to leave soon.  The woman, who was shocked, asked him why he needed to leave.  With sadness in his voice, the young man finally confessed that he was an elf-prince who came to earth to study its beautiful creatures.  These creatures were so beautiful to him that he fell in love with one of them.  When the young elf prince told his father about his findings and his feelings, his father would let him stay if that lover would not ask any question about him.

            The young lady was devastated and she regretted ever questioning him.  She was too in love to let him go.  She begged him to stay, blaming herself for everything.  The young prince comforted her and told her that it wasn’t her fault.  He tempted her by describing his homeland to be the most magical place anywhere.  The young prince had to leave, but the lady held on to his hands.  He explained to her that if he does not go back, the king’s guards would come and drag him back.  He started to fade, while the young lady cried.  She still kept hold of his hands and that was the only thing that did not disappear. 

Afraid that the guards will come back for it, the young lady buried the young elf prince’s hands at the exact spot that the he stood on last.  Every day, she would weep at the burial site of her lover’s hands until one day, she found a small sprout.  It grew into a tree, and it grew fruits that resembled his fingers.  She tasted one of it and it was mildly sweet.  She saved the seeds and planted them around her village.  Soon, people found the fruit very delectable and passed it around to their neighboring villages.  This was the only remembrance of the young prince, and the young lady was happy that the world could also taste his sweetness.  This is how the world got its first Bananas.

 

Retrieved from: http://www.veranda.com.ph/arcega/folklore/legend11.html

 

 

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07/27/2002 04:32:50 PM