Once upon a time, in the Tanah Karo area, North Sumatra, stood a kingdom led by a wise and wise king. People live in prosperity and prosperity. Their staple food is fruit from wood. They do not know the rice plant as it is today.
The people of Tanah Karo are starving
However, at one point, the area experienced a terrible famine. This is due to the long drought, so the plants that will bear fruit wither. Many people in the Tanah Karo area are experiencing hunger. A child named Beru Dayang cried hunger in her mother's lap. Beru Dayang is an orphan. She only lives with her mother. Beru Dayang cried, saying that she was hungry to her mother.
"Mom... I'm very hungry, I'm hungry ..." sobbed the Beru Dayang on her mother's lap. At that time, Beru Dayang's body was very weak, thin, and pale.
"Be patient, my daughter, hopefully this drought will end and we can eat again as usual," said Beru's mother, wiping her tears.
The Beru Dayang Died of Starvation
Actually, Beru's mother could not endure the sadness because her only child was sick and limp due to hunger. She only hoped that the famine would end soon. However, a very sad thing happened. Beru could not hold back her hunger. Her thin and weak body was unable to survive. Beru finally took her last breath on her mother's lap. The mother, who realized that her child had died of starvation, was immediately shocked and screamed hysterically.
"My daughter, wake up my dear ... don't leave your mother ..." the mother cried with tears in her eyes. Her body immediately went limp, helpless to see the fact that her son was lifeless.
Finally, Beru was buried in the village cemetery. The residents help each other to organize the funeral for the orphan. The mother could not help feeling sad. Day after day passed by the mother with a deep sense of sadness due to being abandoned by the people she loved.
The mother finally decided to end her life. Shee went to a place at the end of the village to end her life. At the end of the village there is a river. With a weak body and enduring hunger, she walked unsteadily in the direction that was aimed. She asked God to take her life immediately.
After arriving at the ravine facing the river, Beru's mother jumped into the river to end her life. Miraculously, her body turned into a fish after reaching the bottom of the river. None of the residents who were struggling with hunger knew that Si Beru's mother had turned into a fish.
The people of Tanah Karo passed day after day with great sorrow. Every day someone died of hunger. The plants that grew there had withered to death from drought. The plant died as if it had been burned. They are always crying and sad because the disaster has not yet disappeared.
Pumpkin Fruit Incarnation of the Dayang Beru
Once upon a time, two hungry children were scavenging the land in search of food. They hope to find something edible. The hunger that they often experience for months means that they have to survive by scavenging the ground to find any food they can eat. One of the children finally found a strange object. It turned out that the object was fruit. The fruit is similar to a pumpkin.
"Do you know what fruit this is?" asked one of the children to his brother.
With astonishment, his brother replied "I don't know, maybe our parents know the name of this fruit."
Finally they came home with a pumpkin-shaped fruit that has not been named. Both their parents also did not know the name of the fruit. The discovery of the fruit, which was not yet known by the residents, has thrown the Tanah Karo area. Until the news of the discovery of the fruit finally reached the king. The king finally came to the house of the parents of the two children to see the fruit that had just been found firsthand. But not long after, a magical voice came from the sky. An invisible voice from the sky stated that the fruit was the incarnation of a little girl named Beru Dayang. The little girl who died because of the famine that ravaged the country.
“Cut the fruit into fine pieces. Then plant the pieces of the fruit. If you take care of that piece of fruit properly, the fruit will undoubtedly transform into a plant that you can eat. Hopefully the crop will eliminate the plague of hunger in this country. Beru Dayang really missed her mother. For that, bring him together with her mother who has transformed into a fish in the river," said the magic voice.
The king finally ordered his people to obey the mysterious voice. Finally, they cut the fruit into fine pieces. They planted the cuttings into the ground. Not long after, it was raining heavily. The parched land turns into wet and fertile soil. Until finally, the pieces of fruit that were planted in the soil grew into plants like grass.
Beru Dayang, The Origin of Rice
The plant finally grows and develops. After two months, the plant flowers and bears fruit. The fruit is like grain in each stalk. After three months, the plant which was originally green has turned yellow and is finally ready to be harvested.
The inhabitants of Tanah Karo and the king rejoiced to harvest the plant. They seemed not to believe that the magic fruit that the two children had just found had turned into an edible plant. The fruit is cut into fine pieces, planted, and after a few months the produce can be taken to eat. They took the pulp of the plant, dried it, and pounded it to separate the skin from the contents. After cooking the contents of the plant, they were surprised because the food was so delicious and tasty.
Finally, the people of Tanah Karo made a plant called Beru Dayang to be used as their staple food. They no longer eat the wood fruit like they used to. The Beru Dayang plant or what is called the rice plant by most of the Indonesian population thrives in Tanah Karo. To bring Beru Dayang together with her mother, the people of Tanah Karo eat rice with fish.
Such is the folklore from Tanah Karo, North Sumatra. They call rice plants Beru Dayang, which is the staple food of the people who inhabit the area. The moral message that we take from this folklore is the importance of mutual cooperation in solving a problem. Because with the mutual help carried out by the community as in the above story, they are finally free from hunger. Hope this folklore is useful.
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