Narative Text

The Story of Lake Toba

Once upon a time, there was a man who was living in north Sumatra. He lived in a simple hut in a farming field. He did some gardening and fishing for his daily life.

One day, while the man was do fishing, he caught a big golden fish in his trap. It was the biggest catch which he ever had in his life. Surprisingly, this fish turned into a beautiful princess. He felt in love with her and proposed her to be his wife. She said; "Yes, but you have to promise not to tell anyone about the secret that I was once a fish, otherwise there will be a huge disaster". The man made the deal and they got married, lived happily and had a daughter.

Few years later, this daughter would help bringing lunch to her father out in the fields. One day, his daughter was so hungry and she ate his father’s lunch. Unfortunately, he found out and got furious, and shouted; “You damned daughter of a fish”. The daughter ran home and asked her mother. The mother started crying, felt sad that her husband had broken his promise. 

Then she told her daughter to run up the hills because a huge disaster was about to come. When her daughter left, she prayed. Soon there was a big earthquake followed by non-stop pouring rain. The whole area got flooded and became Toba Lake. She turned into a fish again and the man became the island of Samosir.

The Legend Of Lahilote

Long ago there lived a humble young man named Lahilote in a remote village of ancient Gorontalo. One night Lahilote who lived near a water spring which was the upper stream of a river and made a living by collecting rattan in a nearby forest dreamt that was given a piece of such big rattan called "Hutiya Mala". The young man sprang up from his sleep upon the surprising dream.

A few days later on his way to the forest, Laholote chanced to glance down the river and see a group of seven beautiful fairies who were bathing joyfully. The seven beauties left their "selendangs', the magic scarves they used as the wings, on the river-bank. Greeed soon lured Lahilote to steal and hide one of the selendangs. As they were aware of the presence of Laholote, the fairies soon stopped bathing and got out of water and fetched their selendangs. They all flew to the heaven leaving the poor one who cried and sobbed desperately because she could not find her selendang. Lahitole approached and comforted her, then brought her some proposed her to be his wife. The beautiful accepted his proposal and soon they married.

One day Lahilote told his wife that he had got to go to the forest to collect rattan. His wife insisted to accompany him but he did not let her go with him. To keep herself if busy Lahilote's wife wondered over the house and by chance she found her lost selendang kept very carefuly in a bamboo tube. She felt very happy but at the same time very disappointed to know her husband's unfairness. She soon wear the selendang and flew away to the heaven to leave her husband behind.

 Lahilote got home happily because at that time he succeeded in collecting a great deal of rattan. But soon he got very much disappointed

to know that his wife had flown away and the bamboo tube where he had kept the selendang was empty. At that very difficult moment, suddenly came a wise Polahi (a certain tribe living in the forest) man who gave him a piece of magic rattan. He told Lahilote that the rattan could bring him to the heaven. Eventually Lahilote succeeded to fly to the heaven and meet his beloved wife. Lahilote was allowed to stay in the heaven.

After some time, when his wife was looking for lice Lahilote's head, she happened to see some graying hairs among his. Soon she sprang up and got away from her startled husband. She told him that no one with graying hair is allowed to stay in heaven. Upon his questions, she told her husband:"Love fades away when you get a graying because here in heaven you are no more than a shadow as soon as you get a piece of graying hair."

Broken-heartedly, Lahilote got down from the heaven making use of a piece of board. He swore:"From this point of Pohe beach up to the border of the shroud to cover my dead body, my left foot-print will be printed forever."

At the moment we can find a stone in the beach of Pohe, in the Province of Gorontalo with a foot-print stamped on it. The locals believe that it is the foot-print of Lahilote.

The Legend of Nyi Roro Kidul

(The Queen of South Ocean)

Once upon a time, there was a beautiful princess named Kadita. Because of her beauty she was called Dewi Srengenge. It meant the goddess of sun. Her father was King Munding Wangi. Although he had a beautiful daughter, he was unhappy because he always expected to have a son.

The king decided to marry Dewi Mutiara. He had a son from her. Dewi Mutiara wanted her son to become a king in the future. She asked the King to send his daughter away. The king did not agree.

Dewi Mutiara called a black wizard to curse Kadita. She wanted Kadita’s beautiful body full of ulcer. Then, Kadita’s body was full of ulcer. It smelled bad. The beautiful princess cried.

The King was sad. No one could cure his daughter’s illness. The king did not want her daughter to be a rumor so he sent her away.

The poor princess did not know where to go. However, she had a noble heart. She did not have any bad feeling about her step mother. She walked for almost seven days and seven nights. Then, she came to the south Ocean. The ocean was so clean and clear. She jumped into the water and swam.

Suddenly, there was a miracle. The ocean water cured her illness. She became more beautiful than before. She also had a power to command the whole South Ocean. She became a fairy called Nyi Roro Kidul or The Queen of South Ocean.