The original uploader was Geoethno at German Wikipedia.(Original text: Amsterdam, Buffa) [Public domain] Petrifaction myths and legends appear in human cultures all around the world. Very often they carry a warning or are the result of a punishment. In many cases they can be either inspired by a geological feature such as a rock formation or the name given to the feature is inspired by folklore. Presented next is a retelling of a folktale from Sumatra, Indonesia that carries an important warning about how grown up children should respect their mother.
Malin Kundang
The story begins in a poor fishing village on the coast of Sumatra where a poor widow struggled to bring up her young son whom she had named Malin Kundang. They existed on a meager living scraped from fishing. Nevertheless the mother loved her son very much and worked hard to give him the best that she could. Thanks to her hard work, love and dedication Malin grew into a healthy and clever boy who was always willing to help his mother to earn some money. However, no matter how hard they worked they could not escape poverty. One day Malin had an idea and went to his mother and said, “Mother, if I stay here I will never have a life. I don’t want to spend all my life in poverty and I want to be a rich and successful man. What would you say if I told you I wanted to leave the village and sail away to find my fortune?”
Although his mother was devastated at the thought of her only son leaving her alone she swallowed her bitter tears and told him, “My son, If that us your heart’s desire I cannot stop you. Although it breaks my heart that you are leaving I will pray that you find happiness and your heart’s desire, but promise me that when you have found every thing that you dream of you will not forget me and come home again to your mother who will be waiting patiently for your return.”
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Malin Kundang
The story begins in a poor fishing village on the coast of Sumatra where a poor widow struggled to bring up her young son whom she had named Malin Kundang. They existed on a meager living scraped from fishing. Nevertheless the mother loved her son very much and worked hard to give him the best that she could. Thanks to her hard work, love and dedication Malin grew into a healthy and clever boy who was always willing to help his mother to earn some money. However, no matter how hard they worked they could not escape poverty. One day Malin had an idea and went to his mother and said, “Mother, if I stay here I will never have a life. I don’t want to spend all my life in poverty and I want to be a rich and successful man. What would you say if I told you I wanted to leave the village and sail away to find my fortune?”
Although his mother was devastated at the thought of her only son leaving her alone she swallowed her bitter tears and told him, “My son, If that us your heart’s desire I cannot stop you. Although it breaks my heart that you are leaving I will pray that you find happiness and your heart’s desire, but promise me that when you have found every thing that you dream of you will not forget me and come home again to your mother who will be waiting patiently for your return.”
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