Bagobo Myths

  Myths Associated with Natural Phenomena

    Cosmogony
    In the Days of the Mona
    Why the Sky Went Up
    Why the Sky Went Up
    The Sun and the Moon
    Origin of the Stars
    The Fate of the Moon’s Baby
    The Black Men at the Door of the Sun
    Story of the Eclipse

  The “Ulit:”  Adventures of Mythical Bagobo at the Dawn of Tradition

    Lumabat and Mebu’yan
    Story of Lumabat and Wari
    How Man Turned into a Monkey
    The Tuglibung and the Tuglay
    Adventures of the Tuglay
    The Tuglay and the Bia
    The Malaki’s Sister and the Basolo
    The Mona

  Folk-Lore of the Buso

    How to See the Buso
    Buso and the Woman
    The Buso’s Basket
    The Buso-Child
    The Buso-Monkey
    How the Moon Tricks the Buso
    The Buso and the Cat
    How a Dog Scared the Buso
    Story of Duling and the Tagamaling
    The S’iring
    How Iro Met the S’iring

  Animal Stories:  Metamorphosis, Explanatory Tales, Etc.

    The Kingfisher and the Malaki
    The Woman and the Squirrel
    The Cat
    Why the Bagobo Likes the Cat
    How the Lizards got their Markings
    The Monkey and the Tortoise
    The Crow and the Golden Trees

  An Ata Story

    Alelu’k and Alebu’tud

PART I

Philippine Folk-Tales. [1]

By Clara Kern Bayliss.

CHAPTER 1

The Monkey and the Turtle. [2]

One day a Monkey met a Turtle on the road, and asked, “Where are you going?”

“I am going to find something to eat, for I have had no food for three whole days,” said the Turtle.

“I too am hungry,” said the Monkey; “and since we are both hungry, let us go together and hunt food for our stomachs’ sake.”

They soon became good friends and chatted along the way, so that the time passed quickly.  Before they had gone far, the Monkey saw a large bunch of yellow bananas on a tree at a distance.

“Oh, what a good sight that is!” cried he.  “Don’t you see the bananas hanging on that banana-tree? [pointing with his first finger toward the tree].  They are fine!  I can taste them already.”

But the Turtle was short-sighted and could not see them.  By and by they came near the tree, and then he saw them.  The two friends were very glad.  The mere sight of the ripe, yellow fruit seemed to assuage their hunger.

But the Turtle could not climb the tree, so he agreed that the Monkey should go up alone and should throw some of the fruit down to him.  The Monkey was up in a flash; and, seating himself comfortably, he began to eat the finest of the fruit, and forgot to drop any down to the Turtle waiting below.  The Turtle called for some, but the Monkey pretended not to hear.  He ate even the peelings, and refused to drop a bit to his friend, who was patiently begging under the tree.