Southern Boy

This is a short bedtime story that my grandmother used to tell me when I was a child to help me sleep, but I later understood it was also for safety’s sake. To proceed, we must be aware of the Arjun Tree (referred to as Maruthamaram in my village) and also the Ringed Parakeet (referred to as Maruthangili).

The story begins… Maruthangili is considered a sign of fortune in my village. The only difference between a common green parakeet and a ringed parakeet is the ring around the neck. Both are just green! Nature is amazing!

In my village, people also believe that the Maruthangili only resides in Maruthamaram. (But I have found that Maruthangili also resides in lairs in the Palmyra tree). The youngsters of the village always like to climb Maruthamaram and insert their hands into the lair of the Maruthangili, just to get its offspring and raise them at home. My grandma is so wise! She didn’t want me to climb Maruthamaram and insert my hands into its holes.

The story goes, once a shepherd boy found a hole in the Maruthamaram from which a Maruthangili flew away. He wanted to climb and get its offspring by inserting his hand. And he did the same.

When he inserted his hand for the first time, he felt a bite resembling an ant. The second time, he felt the same. He thought the offspring bit his hand. But when he got the third bite, he saw bubbles coming out of his mouth and realized that a cobra was residing there.

You know what would have happened next!

Whenever I insert my hand into a hole, searching for crabs or fish, this story comes to my mind.

To be frank, I’ve got two snake bites! Fortunately, nothing happened. It is very usual in villages as we embrace nature and its beloved creatures.