INDONESIAN FOLKLORE" The Legend of Toba Lake"

 INDONESIAN FOLKLORE" The Legend of Toba Lake"

 

Long time ago, in the north Sumatra, lived a young man named Toba. He had two abilities in terms of fishing and farming. When fishing, Toba was very good and did not need a long time to get the fish.

In the afternoon, he went fishing to a river. Within seconds after he threw the hook into the river, he got a big fish. He immediately went home and he ate it for dinner. He moved the fish from the creel to the tub filled in the water. He wanted the fish stay fresh when he wanted to cook it. So, the taste was very good.

He decided to start cooking. He prepared seasoning and firewood. Unfortunately, the firewood in the house was out and he immediately looked for firewood in the jungle.

A few hours later, he went home and carrying firewood to cook the fish. However, when he got home, he was surprised it. Suddenly, the fish was lost. He even found pieces of gold, and a beautiful girl who was sitting in his house. Toba was falling in with love with her. The beautiful girl told to Toba that she was a fish. She agreed to his request, but he should not bring up the past of that beautiful girl. Toba approved it and they were married. They became a happy family and got a boy named Samosir.

Samosir is a child who was very active, intelligent, but spoiled. One morning, her mother asked Samosir to deliver the food. This food is for his father’s breakfast. On the way he was hungry and ate father’s breakfast. After that, he went to the field and his father was getting mad of him because his father did not get his breakfast. His father screamed and called Samosir as “a child of fish”. Samosir was so upset and asked her mother about the truth. He was crying and complaining to his mother and make her mother so furious.

Her mother was so angry with Toba.  Although Toba had begged so much, his wife would not forgive him and went with his son to the river. The mother and his son turned into a fish again. Immediately, the rain came in a very heavy and flushed Toba to sink. Heavy rains formed a lake. We are called as Toba Lake.

 

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