the General and the Mermaid
by Amy Copeland
This
is a very unique tale that is popular in Indian culture. This
story has a lot of
Indian names, so pay close attention. It’s easy to get some of
them mixed up. It is cool because it provides a glimpse into the
lives of mermaids in a different part of the world. I hope
you enjoy it; I know that I do.
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A long time ago in India, there were two feuding kingdoms. Ayudhya was a beautiful, friendly kingdom situated on the mainland. It was ruled over by the honest king Tosarot. Lanka, on the other hand, was an evil kingdom positioned on an island. It was ruled by the demonic king Ravana. King Tosarot had a son named Rama who was married to a lovely princess, Sita. One day, King Ravana heard about Sita’s unsurpassed beauty, so he stole her and brought her to his kingdom in Lanka. Prince Rama was very distressed. He immediately set out on a journey to get her back. Traveling with him was his faithful comrade General Hanuman and his army.
When they reached the sea, there was no way to get across to the island, so they began building a bridge. However, King Ravana had a daughter who was a mermaid, Sovann Macha. He ordered her to assemble the fish together to ruin the bridge construction attempt. General Hanuman and his men began hauling large boulders into the water, which would serve as the foundation for the bridge. But whenever they turned around to get another boulder, the boulder that they had previously positioned was back on the beach. Thus their countless efforts were futile.
Sovann Macha hid behind some rocks snickering, not far off shore. “What dreadfully stupid men,” she thought. “Do they really think that they, mere humans, can outsmart me or my powerful father?!” The soldiers began to steal glances over their shoulders, and soon they spied hundreds of fish, large and small, swimming with the boulders upon their backs. The fish operated with impressive cooperation, passing the boulders swiftly towards the shore. Several of the men rushed into the sea, slicing at the fish with their swords, but the fish easily evaded the attacks and darted about unharmed.
General Hanuman was a very intelligent man. He pondered the dismal situation and decided that someone must be in charge of the fish. If their leader was captured, then the fish would fall into chaos and surrender. So, he bellowed, “Who here is in command? If you are not a coward, then show yourself.” Sovann Macha boldly emerged from behind the rocks. Playfully she wiggled her tail at Hanuman just above the waves, as though to challenge him to come chase her. Stripping off his coat and kicking off his boots, he dove into the water. He was an excellent swimmer, but he was no match for a mermaid. She taunted him, swimming just out of his reach, occasionally splashing water in his face with her tail. They swam about in circles for hours. Hanuman’s strength was draining, but he refused to accept defeat.
As he treaded along in the water behind her, he could not help but notice her long, black hair swirling in the water around her beautiful face. He had never seen such a cute, dainty nose, such luscious, red lips, or such large, captivating, brown eyes. He also noted how her sleek golden tail shone brightly in the sun. “How strange,” he thought, “that I should feel this strong stirring within my heart for my adversary.” Despite herself, Sovann Macha could not help admiring his incredible strength and determination. She had never seen such valor or spirit in a man before.
So, without entirely understanding why she felt inclined to do so, she pretended to tire and she let herself be caught. But instead of binding her, like Hanuman would normally do to a prisoner, he instead pulled her close to him and gently kissed her. In that instant, they fell madly in love with one another. Sovann Macha commanded her fish to assist the soldiers in building the bridge. Prince Rama was able to continue on his quest to save Princess Sita. However, Hanuman stayed behind with his beloved Sovann Macha and they had a baby boy together.
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Author's note: This story is based on a popular Indian tale. In the book the Ramayana, the sub-story involving the mermaid is only about a paragraph long. I used the original story as an outline and then filled in many details. The primary change that I made was depicting Hanuman as a human. In the original story, Hanuman was a monkey. I decided make this change because I am trying to make mermaids and their stories seem believable. In the image, you can see that Hanuman is an unusual creature with a monkey’s tail. I used this traditional image despite my changes to the story, because the mermaid is wearing a beautiful Indian headdress that reflects her culture. I chose to include this story because I want to show how diverse mermaid stories are across the world.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
A long time ago in India, there were two feuding kingdoms. Ayudhya was a beautiful, friendly kingdom situated on the mainland. It was ruled over by the honest king Tosarot. Lanka, on the other hand, was an evil kingdom positioned on an island. It was ruled by the demonic king Ravana. King Tosarot had a son named Rama who was married to a lovely princess, Sita. One day, King Ravana heard about Sita’s unsurpassed beauty, so he stole her and brought her to his kingdom in Lanka. Prince Rama was very distressed. He immediately set out on a journey to get her back. Traveling with him was his faithful comrade General Hanuman and his army.
When they reached the sea, there was no way to get across to the island, so they began building a bridge. However, King Ravana had a daughter who was a mermaid, Sovann Macha. He ordered her to assemble the fish together to ruin the bridge construction attempt. General Hanuman and his men began hauling large boulders into the water, which would serve as the foundation for the bridge. But whenever they turned around to get another boulder, the boulder that they had previously positioned was back on the beach. Thus their countless efforts were futile.
Sovann Macha hid behind some rocks snickering, not far off shore. “What dreadfully stupid men,” she thought. “Do they really think that they, mere humans, can outsmart me or my powerful father?!” The soldiers began to steal glances over their shoulders, and soon they spied hundreds of fish, large and small, swimming with the boulders upon their backs. The fish operated with impressive cooperation, passing the boulders swiftly towards the shore. Several of the men rushed into the sea, slicing at the fish with their swords, but the fish easily evaded the attacks and darted about unharmed.
General Hanuman was a very intelligent man. He pondered the dismal situation and decided that someone must be in charge of the fish. If their leader was captured, then the fish would fall into chaos and surrender. So, he bellowed, “Who here is in command? If you are not a coward, then show yourself.” Sovann Macha boldly emerged from behind the rocks. Playfully she wiggled her tail at Hanuman just above the waves, as though to challenge him to come chase her. Stripping off his coat and kicking off his boots, he dove into the water. He was an excellent swimmer, but he was no match for a mermaid. She taunted him, swimming just out of his reach, occasionally splashing water in his face with her tail. They swam about in circles for hours. Hanuman’s strength was draining, but he refused to accept defeat.
As he treaded along in the water behind her, he could not help but notice her long, black hair swirling in the water around her beautiful face. He had never seen such a cute, dainty nose, such luscious, red lips, or such large, captivating, brown eyes. He also noted how her sleek golden tail shone brightly in the sun. “How strange,” he thought, “that I should feel this strong stirring within my heart for my adversary.” Despite herself, Sovann Macha could not help admiring his incredible strength and determination. She had never seen such valor or spirit in a man before.
So, without entirely understanding why she felt inclined to do so, she pretended to tire and she let herself be caught. But instead of binding her, like Hanuman would normally do to a prisoner, he instead pulled her close to him and gently kissed her. In that instant, they fell madly in love with one another. Sovann Macha commanded her fish to assist the soldiers in building the bridge. Prince Rama was able to continue on his quest to save Princess Sita. However, Hanuman stayed behind with his beloved Sovann Macha and they had a baby boy together.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
Author's note: This story is based on a popular Indian tale. In the book the Ramayana, the sub-story involving the mermaid is only about a paragraph long. I used the original story as an outline and then filled in many details. The primary change that I made was depicting Hanuman as a human. In the original story, Hanuman was a monkey. I decided make this change because I am trying to make mermaids and their stories seem believable. In the image, you can see that Hanuman is an unusual creature with a monkey’s tail. I used this traditional image despite my changes to the story, because the mermaid is wearing a beautiful Indian headdress that reflects her culture. I chose to include this story because I want to show how diverse mermaid stories are across the world.
Bibliography Story Title: The Way to Lanka Book Title: Ramayana Author: Tue Kell Nielsen Year Published: 2000 Story Link Image Information: "Hanuman charms Ravana's mermaid duaghter" Thai Ramayana mural Image Link |
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