Moon Woman and the Child

Far away from the lap of earth, there is a very old, wrinkly woman living in the moon. Her name is Buri. She is tall and toothless, feeble and beautiful. In the moon there is no water to drink, no air to breathe in, and no food to eat. But the moon woman doesn't bother about that. She neither feels thirst, nor hunger. Do you know what she does all night? She runs a spinning wheel and weaves fine white clouds that spread quickly on the dark sky. When she runs her spinning wheel, it roars, "GRR....GRR....". Those on the earth think it is the sound of clouds.

On a cold silvery night, a young bride on the earth stares sadly at the moon. She is very unhappy as she doesn’t have a child of her own. Someone told her that the god of dark sky fulfils one’s sincere wishes. She prays to the moon, “I want a baby girl who will be my own. Can you please grant me a boon?” The old Buri sitting near a crater in the moon hears her prayer. She feels pity for the young woman and wants to help her. She keeps aside her spinning wheel and stands up on a stone. With three sharp claps she floats herself in the path of dream. It is connected by a fluid of sleep from the moon to the earth. No man can see that, but it exists during night. In no time Buri reaches the cottage of the young woman. She takes the form of a beautiful baby girl and the young woman becomes her mother. The baby looks at her mother with a divine smile in her face and the new mother takes her closer to her heart. She cuddles the baby and tells her, “You are my little Buri which means an old woman.”

The oldest changes her shape to the newest with a magical touch. Who knows how that happened? Buri, the child of night sky, gets love and care in the house of her mother. Her father comes back home after his day’s work. His glance falls on the baby. “Who is this delightful child?” He asks his wife. The mother strokes her baby’s head and says, “She is our little moon. She came by the divine grace of the moon god who I prayed for a baby." The father utters, "That's implausible, but she is surely a part of the moon. Let me take my child into my arms.”

Every evening when the moon rises, the mother lays her baby in the courtyard. She believes that a piece of moon has brightened her cottage. The baby looks up at the sky and at the shining moon. She remembers who she was and how she made her life in the sky. She raises her small fists, opens her soft fingers and calls the moon, "Come.... Come.... Come!" The moon hears her call broken-hearted.

Finally the moon god gets impatient with the absence of Buri. Without her spinning how will the sky fill with cotton-like clouds? Everyone has a role to play in the universe to make it work. The moon god sends his light messenger Jyotsna to bring back Buri. A beam of light kisses the feet of little Buri and conveys her the god’s message, “This is not your place. Come with me, Buri. Let’s go back to the moon.” But the moon woman doesn’t want to hurt her mortal mother. She replies, "If I leave this place, my mother will be deserted. How can I leave her dying for me?" The beam of light thinks for a while and gives her an idea, “There is a solution. You know the magic of dividing yourself into two. Keep a part of you in this little girl who will make her mother happy. The rest of you will return to the eternal moon and will continue your work.” Buri giggles to show that she agrees with the proposal.

That night the soul of the moon woman goes back to her celestial place. She starts her work from the point where she left it before the sojourn. The sky again stores clouds with her spinning. But a small part of her stays with the little girl Buri. Gradually all baby girls in the earth get a share of the eternal old moon woman. They are born with the spirit and charm of the old Buri. When the moon rises in the night sky, they gape at it in wonder. They remember their old connection with the moon and call it with their open hands.

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(Inspired by Rabindranath Tagore's Shishu Bholanath)

Picture credit: Shutterstock