The Goddess and the Ogre

The Goddess and the Ogre, a Cambodian legend

Once upon a time in the land of Cambodia, there lived a hermit. People rarely saw him, for he lived in solitude at the top of a mountain. Still, people always talk, and so word spread that the hermit possessed magical powers.

Many wanted to learn the hermit's secrets, and among those longing to learn was the lovely goddess of water, Moni Mekhala. Nimble and brave, she could swim through water and air, but she wished to know still more. And so she swam through the air to the hermit's home and asked him to be her teacher.The hermit agreed.

Soon the ogre known as Ream Eyso, a terrible giant who frightened all who saw him, decided that he, too, wished to possess magical powers. And so Ream Eyso climbed the mountain and knocked on the hermit's door with his enormous clawlike hands. When the hermit answered, he asked to become a student. The hermit agreed.

The hermit did not care if one was a goddess and another was an ogre. He wanted to spread knowledge to all who wanted to learn.

The lessons began. Ream Eyso and Moni Mekhala were attentive students. As time passed, they learned a great deal of magic from their teacher. As their lessons came to an end, the hermit decided he would offer his students a test.

He called them to his side and offered each an empty glass. "Take this glass," he said, "and return to me tomorrow. Your glass must be filled to the very top with dew. The first who returns with a full glass will win a prize."

So Moni Mekhala and Ream Eyso departed, glasses in hand. When the ogre arrived home, he got into bed and smiled to himself. He would wake before the world stirred, and in this way, he was certain, he would be the first to collect a glass full of dew. He fell asleep filled with confidence.

The goddess had a different idea. When she had reached the bottom of the mountain, she laid a large cloth upon the meadow. Then she lay down beside the cloth to sleep.

The next day, before sunrise, Ream Eyso made his way into a grove of trees, and there he began to pluck leaves. These he pinched and squeezed, watching as the dew collected in his empty glass, drip by drip.

When Moni Mekhala awoke, she reached for the cloth beside her. It was soaked with morning dew. She rolled it into a ball and squeezed it over the glass. In a matter of moments, her glass was full.

She hurried to the hermit's hut, taking care not to spill the dew. "You have won," the hermit told her as he took the glass from her. Then he handed her the prize he had promised. It was a beautiful glass ball, studded with jewels. "Guard this wisely," the hermit said, "for it is a powerful tool."

Overjoyed, she thanked the hermit for all he had taught her, and then she departed, her precious gift in hand.

Soon afterward the ogre arrived at the hermit's hut and happily handed over his glass. "I have won!" he cried.

But the hermit shook his head. "The goddess was here before you. Ream Eyso was furious. "I must win a prize!" he roared."

So you shall," said the hermit, and he handed Ream Eyso a gleaming axe made of solid gold. But when Ream Eyso learned of the magical ball, he stormed out of the hermit's hut without a word of gratitude. Determined to have that magical ball, he immediately set off for the heavens, where he knew he would find Moni Mekhala.

When he saw her among the other gods, he smiled tenderly. "Ah," he said, softening his usually harsh and raspy voice, "it is the beautiful and talented goddess. I wanted to congratulate you, so I have come to do just that. May I see your prize?"

But Moni Mekhala did not trust the ogre. He had never before been charming. Keeping her distance, she lifted the ball above her head. "This is my prize," she said.

"Goddess," he teased, "you have not the skill to use such a gift."

The goddess laughed. "You squeeze dew from leaves, and you question my skill?"

Infuriated with her taunting, the ogre rushed toward her. "Give me that ball." He raised his axe above his head. "Give it to me or I will destroy you."

Moni Mekhala rushed away, but the ogre chased after her. As he ran, he flung taunts, threats and curses at her -- and then he threw his axe with all his strength.

It whirled across the empty air. The goddess picked up speed, and so the axe narrowly missed her. When it landed, the heavens shook with the thundering sound.

Moni Mekhala angrily tossed her ball above her head. When she did, it radiated a streak so bright, it blinded the ogre, and Moni Mekhala flew into the clouds.

Ream Eyso howled and rubbed his eyes, but by the time he could see again, Moni Mekhala was far away, lost in the clouds. "I will find you," he cried. "I will chase you forever and ever," and with that he too raced into the clouds.

Rain began to fall. This, the people of Cambodia say, was the origin of thunder and lightning.

Every year, as the people pray for the rains to return to nurture their land after the dry season, they listen for the thunder of Ream Eyso's axe and look for the radiance of Moni Mekhala's magical ball, and they tell again the story of the never-ending chase in the sky.