Considered by some as the second national tree, the coconut tree is as versatile and useful as the Narra tree. From roots to leaves, the coconut is valuable. But how did it come into being? The coconut tree has lots of myths about it, and here is one.
According to this myth, once there was a kingdom in Mindanao known as Bangonansa Pulangui (“kingdom by the river”), which was ruled by a just and kind sultan. The myth says the kingdom was known for Putri Timbang-Namat, the sultan’s only daughter. She was a most beautiful and charming woman. Her name meant “lady grace.”
Putri’s admirers came from the seven seas, but she did not care for any of them. According to the myth, the kind sultan was touched by their persistence. One day, he tried to ask his daughter to choose from among them the man she would marry, the myth adds.
”I need a son to succeed me when I die,” the father said, “and I wish that before I die, I would see you married,” he added. The myth says the king thought of a contest for the princess’ hand. A tournament was held to determine who among the suitors was worthy of the princess’ love, the myth says.
In the palace garden, meanwhile, the myth says the princess met a young and handsome gardener, Wata-Mama. The myth says Wata-Mama decided to reveal his past to her. According to the myth he was of royal descent but had been lost when he was three. His father was killed by his greedy uncle. The myth says that the princess said, “We love each other, that’s all that matters. ”
The myth says a general was very jealous of Wata. So, that night, in the dark corner of the palace, he and his aides waited for the young lovers. The myth says the general suddenly emerged, struck Wata-Mama and beheaded him. The princess, fearless, picked up Wata’s head.
After Wata’s head was buried, the myth says, early one morning, while the princess was watching the spot, she saw a tiny plant growing from the ground. Suddenly, the myth says, it grew into a tree and reached the height of the window where the princess was sitting at. It produced a round fruit the size of a man’s head.
Love’s passion and jealousy’s wretchedness can suddenly change lives disastrously. This myth on the coconut teaches that love is best kept going on its natural course.
Related topics:
The Myth on the Camachile Tree
Nature is generous with its benefits to mankind, but abuse of it also incurred an undesirable result. A myth on the camachile tree tells us how the beauty of nature can also be abused unknowingly by its admirers, to the...
The Philippine Myth on Maria and the Crab
A mother’s undying and boundless love for her child---this is a favorite theme of countless Filipino stories and TV soap operas. Filipino families being closely-knitted together, a Philippine myth on Maria and the Crab would be a best selling hit....
The Myth of the Guava Fruit
A Philippine myth on the guava fruit talks about a typical rustic boy who pitied the needy. The myth reminds us that kindness can melt even the most bitter things, and that courage to face danger to help people is...
The Myth on Why Fireflies Have Lights
Be careful what we love looking at or we might be entranced to wish to be like it in some way. A myth on how fireflies came to have lights in them says that too much fascination with a star...
The Myth about the Lanzones Fruit
A lot of people are afraid of new and untried things. They would rather not have anything to do with them. But there are people who are lured by strange things, but often end up harmed. A few learn the...
The Myth about Water in Coconuts
A popular folk myth about coconuts is about the selfishness of a native boy from somewhere in southern Luzon. The popular folk myth goes that the boy, hoarding a precious commodity in time of drought was condemned violently by the...
The Myth on the Undying Love of Sampaguita
True love knows no boundaries. It transcends not only one's station in life, but also life itself, as a myth on Sampaguita shows. Not even tyrrants can stop true love, the myth declares....
The Myth about Dama de Noche
Dama de Noche is a famous flower plant that emits a strong, sweet fragrance at night. A Philippine myth on it says it started with a young beautiful woman who was fond of fragrances till the day she died. The...
Myth: A Bird with a Reddish Spot on Its Chest
Justice may be blind, but it always makes crime pay. A local myth on why some birds have reddish spots on their chests tells of an almost perfect crime that was condemned and convicted by an unlikely witness. Crime, says...
Sierra Madre Myth and an Eternal Promise
A mother's love for her kids is a favorite story theme in the country. Family ties are strong in the Philippines, vowing to stay together in perpetuity, as a Sierra Madre myth shows. The myth illustrates how Filipina mothers are...
thanks