Timun Mas

Last updated

Timun Mas or Timun Emas (English: "The Golden Cucumber") is a Javanese folktale telling the story of a brave girl that tries to escape and survive from an evil green giant that tried to catch and eat her. [1]

Contents

Summary

Once upon a time in Java, there was a poor widow named Mbok Srini that lived alone in her humble house on the edge of the jungle. She felt so lonely and prayed to the gods to bless her with a child. One night in her dream, she envisioned something wrapped under a tree in the jungle. She took this dream as an omen, an answer to her prayer. She later went to the jungle to search for something wrapped inside a cloth under a tree, she expected to find a baby to take care of. Finally, she discovered the object wrapped inside a cloth under the tree exactly like her vision in her dream. When she unwrapped it, there was no baby inside the wrapped cloth but only a seed of cucumber. Suddenly she heard monstrous laughter; a green-skinned giant named Buta Ijo (in Javanese, means "Green Giant") appeared behind her. The green giant told her to plant the cucumber seed and that she will have a child. She must nurture the child, however when the child had grown up, Mbok Srini must give the child back to Buta Ijo. The giant wished to eat the child. Eager to have a child, Mbok Srini agreed with Buta Ijo's deal. [2]

Mbok Srini returned to her home and planted the cucumber seed in an orchard behind her house. Later, a magical golden cucumber grew from its seed, and when Mbok Srini took the cucumber and opened it, a beautiful baby girl appeared inside it. Thus, she named the baby girl Timun Mas which means "golden cucumber". Year after year, Timun Mas grew to become a beautiful girl. She is a loving, kind, and diligent child always willing to help and take care of an aging Mbok Srini. Just a week before Timun Mas' 17th birthday, Buta Ijo appeared in front of Mbok Srini's house and reminded her about her promise, and announces that within one week he will return to collect Timun Mas. Mbok Srini is so sad and fearful of the horrible fate that awaits her beloved child. Mbok Srini heard that there is a powerful rishi that resides in a mountain nearby. She hastily went to the mountain to seek help from a wise old hermit residing on said mountain. After hearing her story, the old hermit gave her four small bags of cloth with something inside it. The four objects inside the bags are cucumber seeds, needles, salts, and terasi (shrimp paste). The hermit told Mbok Srini to give these objects to Timun Mas and tell her to throw them when she is being chased by the giant. Mbok Srini returned home and told Timun Mas what to do if the green giant chased her.

A week before Timun Mas' 17th birthday, Buta Ijo appeared at Mbok Srini's house to take Timun Mas as promised: he will eat the girl. Mbok Srini ordered Timun Mas to run for her life. Timun Mas was really scared and terrified and ran as fast as she can to try to escape the giant. The giant was furious and destroyed Mbok Srini's house while chasing Timun Mas. Finally, Buta Ijo caught up to the fleeing Timun Mas. In distress, Timun Mas opened one of her four cloth bags spreading cucumber seeds behind her. Suddenly a large cucumber vine appeared and strangled the giant's body, trapping him so that he can’t move. This gave Timun Mas time to escape further. However, the powerful giant finally managed to break free and continued his chase. Timun Mas opened her second bag and spread needles behind her. Suddenly the needles transformed into a bamboo forest with sharp tips that wounded the giant badly. The giant was badly wounded and stuck with sharp bamboo, however, he managed to get through the sharp bamboo forest and caught up to the running Timun Mas again. She opened her third bag and spread salts behind her back. Suddenly a sea appeared behind her drowning the evil giant. However, the giant managed to swim through the sea and continued to chase her. Timun Mas, once again, almost got caught and opened her last bag. She threw the terasi behind her and continued to run desperately. Suddenly the terasi shrimp paste transformed into a sea of boiling volcanic mud. Buta Ijo was stuck inside the boiling hot mud, drowned, and died. Timun Mas finally survived and return to her mother Mbok Srini, and they lived happily ever after.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Diaper</span> Undergarment for incontinence containment

A diaper or a nappy is a type of underwear that allows the wearer to urinate or defecate without using a toilet, by absorbing or containing waste products to prevent soiling of outer clothing or the external environment. When diapers become wet or soiled, they require changing, generally by a second person such as a parent or caregiver. Failure to change a diaper on a sufficiently regular basis can result in skin problems around the area covered by the diaper.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peranakan cuisine</span> Cuisine of the Straits Chinese people

Peranakan cuisine or Nyonya cuisine comes from the Peranakans, descendants of early Chinese migrants who settled in Penang, Malacca, Singapore and Indonesia, inter-marrying with local Malays. In Baba Malay, a female Peranakan is known as a nonya, and a male Peranakan is known as a baba. The cuisine combines Chinese, Malay, Javanese, South Indian, and other influences.

<i>Genius Party</i> 2007 anthology of short animated films

Genius Party are two anthology films made up of 12 short animated films from Studio 4°C. It was envisioned to form a single release.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black Bull of Norroway</span> Scottish fairy tale

The Black Bull of Norroway is a fairy tale from Scotland. A similar story titled The Red Bull of Norroway first appeared in print in Popular Rhymes of Scotland by Robert Chambers in 1842. A version titled The Black Bull of Norroway in the 1870 edition of Popular Rhymes of Scotland was reprinted in an Anglicised version by Joseph Jacobs in his 1894 book More English Fairy Tales.

Big Bird in Japan is a television special by the Children's Television Workshop, that aired on NHK in late fall of 1988, and on PBS on January 16, 1989. It is the sequel to Big Bird in China which was also based on the popular television series Sesame Street. It depicts Big Bird and Barkley visiting some Japanese guests, counting to 3 in Japanese and teaching Japanese words. This television special was filmed in Kyoto and Tokyo in 1988. The program was also produced with the help of NHK.

The Three Daughters of King O'Hara is an Irish fairy tale collected by Jeremiah Curtin in Myths and Folk-lore of Ireland. Reidar Th. Christiansen identified its origin as Co. Kerry.

<i>Sukob</i> 2006 Filipino film

Sukob is a 2006 Filipino horror film directed by Chito S. Roño and starring Kris Aquino and Claudine Barretto. Sukob was considered as the highest-grossing Filipino film of all-time earning ₱203 million, until 2009 when it was surpassed by the romance film You Changed My Life. The film's premise is based on a Filipino superstition sukob in which one should not get married within the same year an immediate relative dies or marries.

Beauty and Pock Face is a Chinese fairy tale collected by Wolfram Eberhard in Chinese Fairy Tales and Folk Tales.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Reby Sky</span> American professional wrestler

Rebecca Victoria Hardy is an American professional wrestler and model. She is best known for her recurring appearances with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling from 2014 to 2017.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Panji tales</span> Cycle of Javanese stories

The Panji tales are a cycle of Javanese stories, centred around the legendary prince of the same name from East Java, Indonesia. Along with the Ramayana and Mahabharata, the tales are the basis of various poems and a genre of wayang known in East Java as wayang gedhog. Panji tales have been the inspiration of Indonesian traditional dances, most notably the topeng (mask) dances of Cirebon and Malang, as well as gambuh dance-drama in Bali. Especially in the environs of Kediri, the suggested homeland of the tales of Panji, local stories grew and were connected with the obscure legendary figure of Totok Kerot. Panji tales have spread from East Java (Indonesia) to be a fertile source for literature and drama throughout Indochina Peninsula and Malay World as well.

Sangkuriang is a legend among Sundanese people in Indonesia. The legend tells about the creation of Lake Bandung, Mount Tangkuban Parahu, Mount Burangrang and Mount Bukit Tunggul. The legend of Sangkuriang tells the story of a young man who falls in love with his own mother, which is somewhat comparable to the Greek tragedy Oedipus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Woodson</span> Fictional character from Doctors

Dr George Woodson is a fictional character from the BBC soap opera Doctors, portrayed by Stirling Gallacher. She first appeared during the episode broadcast on 7 January 2003, and departed on 27 March 2009. Shortly after her introduction to the soap, husband Ronnie Woodson followed, and together, the pair have a daughter, Bracken. After six years on Doctors, Gallacher announced her departure from the series and George left alongside Ronnie and Bracken as part of a storyline that sees the family move to China.

<i>Copperhead</i> (2008 film) 2008 TV film

Copperhead is a 2008 American Western horror film directed by Todor Chapkanov. It stars Brad Johnson, Keith Stone, Brad Greenquist, Wendy Carter, Gabriel Womack, and Billy Drago. The film aired on the Sci Fi Channel on June 28, 2008, and the sister company from Universal Pictures.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Midwifery in Maya society</span>

Midwifery is a women's profession that assists women from pregnancy to newborn care. In some traditional Maya communities, a goddess of midwifery is invoked, and midwives are generally believed to be assigned their profession through signs and visions. In pre-Spanish Yucatan, the aged midwife goddess was called Ixchel.

Naloni Mitoni is a Javanese prenatal ceremony held during the seventh month of a woman's first pregnancy. The mother-to-be is wrapped in seven layers of batik and doused with water, to wish her good tidings. Food served in the occasion are:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Murder of Jon-Niece Jones</span> Murder of young American girl

Jon-Niece Jones was a nine-year-old American girl whose unidentified skeletal remains were found near the gated forest of New Jersey's Six Flags Great Adventure theme park, by a hunter in search of deer. The case was showcased by America's Most Wanted in 2009 in hopes of generating leads for the unsolved case. Jones was identified in October 2012. Her mother, Elisha, died three months after Jon-Niece was murdered; Jon-Niece's aunt, her aunt's boyfriend, and an uncle were charged with concealing evidence of the child's death, believed to have been the result of abuse by her mother.

<i>XX</i> (film) 2017 American film

XX is a 2017 American anthology horror film directed by Jovanka Vuckovic, Annie Clark, Roxanne Benjamin and Karyn Kusama. It stars Natalie Brown, Melanie Lynskey, Breeda Wool and Christina Kirk. It had its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival on January 22, 2017, and was released in a limited release and through video on demand by Magnet Releasing on February 17, 2017.

Khastakhumār and Bībīnagār or Xasteh Xomār is an Afghan folktale. Both titles refer to tales related to the international cycle of the Animal as Bridegroom or The Search for the Lost Husband: a human maiden is married to an enchanted prince in snake form, loses him, and has to search for him.

The King of the Snakes is a Chinese folktale published by John Macgowan in 1910. It tells the story of a woman who marries a snake spirit, but her sister conspires to take her place and kills her. The woman goes through a cycle of transformations, regains human form and takes revenge on her sister.

Yasmin and the Serpent Prince is a Persian folktale published in 1974 by author Forough Hekmat. It is related to the international cycle of the Animal as Bridegroom or The Search for the Lost Husband, in that a human princess marries a supernatural husband or man in animal form, loses him and has to seek him out.

References

  1. Samsuni. "Timun Mas". Cerita Rakyat Nusantara. Retrieved 8 May 2012.
  2. "Legenda Timun Mas dan Raksasa". ilmusaku.com (in Indonesian). Retrieved 2021-04-03.