Monday 3 August 2020

The Snake Ndaung and Si Bungsu

It is said that a long time ago there lived a mother and her three children at the foot of a mountain in Bengkulu Province. Their lives are very poor. They only rely on the livelihood of a narrow plantation area.

Once upon a time the mother experienced severe pain. This made her three children very sad. Smart people in the village suggested that the mother be treated by special leaves. The leaves are only at the top of the mountain.
The Snake Ndaung and Si Bungsu

The leaves must be boiled by a magic ember which is only found in a cave on the top of a mountain. Unfortunately, in the cave there lived a powerful snake named the snake N'daung. According to the ancestors of the village, the N'daung snake will eat anyone who is on the top of the mountain. The mother's children did not dare go to the top of the mountain to get the magic embers except the youngest child. The youngest is willing to go to the top of the mountain to treat his mother.

"I will go to the top of the mountain to get a magic ember to treat our mother's illness." said the youngest.

"But on the top of the mountain lives a snake N'daung Sakti sister, you will even be eaten by him." said the youngest brother.

"Then what else can we do to treat mother? I am willing to do anything for our mother." said the youngest.

"Be careful, boy, the N'daung snake will eat anyone who is on the top of the mountain. We can only pray for you." said the smart person in the village.

Si Bungsu (the youngest) Meets the Snake Ndaung

The youngest immediately went to get the magic embers in the cave on the mountain peak. Arriving at the top of the mountain, a terrible atmosphere began to appear. In that place grows large trees very scary. Suddenly the sound of a snake is very terrible. The youngest is scared to death. The youngest tried to hide behind the trees. Before he could hide, the snake Ndaung was right in front of him. The snake looked at him with a sharp gaze. His tongue sticks out.

"You brave son of man came to the top of the mountain. I will eat you now." said the snake N'daung, his voice hissing horribly.

"Please, O magic snake. My mother is seriously ill. I came here to ask for a magical ember to treat my mother." the girl knelt while crying in front of the magic snake.

"So you risked coming here just to treat your mother?" asked the N'daung snake.

"Right, O snake, for the love of my mother, I beg of us to help us." beg the youngest.

"Alright, I'm willing to give you magic embers, but the condition is that you must want to be my wife." said the snake N'daung.

The youngest nodded in agreement. He is willing to do anything for the health of his mother. Snake N'daung then gives magic embers to the youngest.

"Thank you, magic snake. I will go home for a while to give magic embers to my family. I will return to fulfill my promise." said the youngest.

The youngest then returned delivering magic embers to his family. Then he immediately returned to the top of the mountain to marry the snake N'daung. But a strange thing happened. After the snake N'daung married the youngest girl, suddenly the snake turned into a handsome, well-built young man shining again. It turns out that the N'daung snake is actually Prince Abdul Rahman Alamsyah. The prince was hit by a curse.

While at the foot of the mountain, the two youngest siblings felt suspicious why the youngest went back to the top of the mountain after delivering coals. They both then followed to the top of the mountain because they wanted to know what was happening.

"Our brother has not returned after delivering magic embers. Let's go to the top of the mountain to find out what happened to him." said the youngest brother.

Si Bungsu (the youngest) Married to Prince Abdul Rahman

How surprised they were when they reached the top of the mountain to see the middle sister together with a very handsome man. They were so jealous of seeing his younger brother that there arose an evil intention to slander his sister. They entered the cave then burned snakeskin. The goal is that the handsome young man thinks that the youngest is the culprit. They hope the prince then chases the youngest. But the opposite happened, Prince Abdul Rahman Alamsyah was happy because with the snake skin burning, the curse was gone forever. Finally, the handsome Prince can live happily ever after with the youngest.

The story of the Snake Ndaung comes from the Bengkulu area. The legend of Snake Ndaung tells of a prince who was condemned to be a snake. But finally the prince managed to remove the curse after marrying a girl. The girl was originally going to ask for help to cure her mother who was sick. Ndaung's birthday agreed to help him as long as the girl wanted to be eligible to become his wife.

More Folklore on Bengkulu:

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