Skip to main content

The poor and god

Gods treated them too bad that his grandpa and his father both lived in poverty till they died.
He, now, also lived in poverty like them though he worked very hard. He was a student who worked hardly in daytime and tried to study in nighttime with hope he could change his fate on a day. But, his fate seemed not to change a little. Therefore, he decided to set off and ask god how to change his fate. According to rumors, God used to land on an island which stood in middle of sea whenever he wanted to avoid problems in heaven. The way leading to the island was very long and dangerous but it didn’t make him give up.
vietnamese fairy tales
He had gone for ten day, walking in daytime and resting in nighttime but food and money he brought also nearly had gone. Therefore, he went in a building and asked the owner to help him. The owner of the building was a landlord who invited in his home and treated him well.
“Where are you going?” asked the landlord as they were in the dinner.
“I am on the way going to the island at the middle of sea where god usually lands on and relax. I want to ask him how to change my fate, getting rid of poverty”, he said honestly.
“Really”, snapped the landlord happily, “I have a daughter but she’s mute. I have asked many doctors to cure her but she is still mute. So, could you ask God how to cure my daughter when you met him”, he added.
The student agreed. The next morning, he set off with some money the landlord gave him. Few days later, the money had gone, he one more time made his way to a house and asked the owner to help him. That time, the owner also treated him a meal. He asked him about the place where he was going. The student honestly told him about his purpose, going to god asking him how to change his fate and how to cure the mute girl. The owner gifted him some money and said:
“If you meet God, please ask him why my orange trees don’t bear though they are very luxuriant”.
The student agreed and set of in the next morning. He kept going till he came to the shore. What front his eyes that time was broad sea but there had no boat crossed. He sat on the shore and wanted. Three days had passed but no boat crossed the place, he started feeling impatient. At last, a giant turtle emerged from water and approached him.
“What are you doing?” asked the turtle.
“I am waiting for a boat which can bring me to the island at middle of sea. I must ask God how to change my fate, how to cure a mute girl and why orange trees don’t bear”, he replied.
“Sit on my back. I will bring you to the island but you have to ask him why I can not rebirth though I have lived for one thousand years”, said the turtle.
He agreed then sat on the turtle’s back. They pushed off. The island emerged more clearly after days. He landed on the island and climbed on the top of the mountain, the place God used land on. He stayed at the place and waited. Three days later, when he just woke up, he saw a light suddenly drop on the top of mountain.     
God appeared on throne, enjoyed sun lights. The student didn’t hesitate, approached God and kneeled.
“What do you want?” said God.
Firstly, he asked God why the turtle couldn’t rebirth.
“Ask it to spit the pearl in mouth out”, said God.
At second, he asked God about orange tress.
“Take jars of gold under their roots, they will bear”, said God.
 At third, he asked God about the mute girl.
“She will speak when she meet a valedictorian”, said God.
When three questions of others had the answers, he was going to ask God about his fate but God shouted in anger:
“I go here to avoid my job and relax but you have destroyed all”.
God mounted on cloud and flew up the sky at one. Thought that his fate was too unlucky, he turned back to the shore of the island. The turtle was waiting for him at there. He mounted on its back and went toward the land.
“How did God say about my problem?” said the turtle.
“Only if spit the pearl in your mouth out, you can rebirth”, he said.
When they came to the land, the turtle spitted the pearl out and gifted him. It said:
“This is magical pearl. If you bring it, you will know everything in the worth”.
The turtle disappeared after that. He found the way to turn back the owner of orange trees. The owner was happy as he met him.
“How did God say about my orange tree?” said the owner.
“Dig up jars of gold under their roots, they will bear”, he said.
Of course, when the owner dug up, he found jars of gold under roots. He happily divided the gold in two and gave the student a half.
The student continued going, he met a crowd on his way. He asked people and they said him that the king was organized a contest to find talents who would help him manage the country. He registered the contest. He used gold to buy books, pens and all necessary things, rented a room to study. The pearl seemed to help him so much that he could remember and understand all things he had read. That contest, he was the person who had highest score. The king was very happy, ordained him to be a mandarin.
Short time later, he went back hometown to hold a ceremony to thank his ancestors. He went crossed the building of the landlord and remembered to the mute girl. He stopped his horse, got down and walked in the building. The landlord immediately wore nice clothes, showed up to receive them. The landlord looked rather surprised as the mandarin he saw was not anyone but the student who had come his home before. He not yet said the landlord the answer, his daughter had appeared and greeted him.
Because the landlord wanted to thank him, he let his daughter to marry with him. At last, though he didn’t have the answer for himself, the student still had a dream-life after he helped others.
THE END        
"Translator: Hung Nguyen"

Book Introductions

1. Complete Collection of Vietnamese Fairy Tales - A Treasury of Legends and Folklore

Discover over 240 enchanting Vietnamese fairy tales, translated into English and beautifully illustrated. This collection is a treasure trove of legends and folklore that reflect Vietnam's rich cultural heritage. Available as an ebook on: Kobo, Apple Books

2. Vietnamese Fairy Tales - Stories in English and Vietnamese

This bilingual collection features 162 Vietnamese fairy tales in both English and Vietnamese, with stunning illustrations. Ideal for language learners and cultural enthusiasts. Available as an ebook on: Kobo, Apple Books

3. The Treasury of Fables

An enchanting collection of timeless fables, written in English and beautifully illustrated. Perfect for all ages, these stories offer valuable moral lessons. Available as an ebook on: Kobo, Apple Books

Read more: 
-----

Essential Reads: Engaging Books You Can't Miss!

Comments

BÀI ĐĂNG ĐƯỢC XEM NHIỀU

List of Vietnamese fairy tales

Vietnamese  fairy tales includes many stories as Tam and Cam; So Dua; Hundred – knot- bamboo tree... which were spread in folk. Each stories has  its own meaning. I think I can not translate exactly each word into english but I will try my best to convey its meaning to you. Hope you like them!

Thuong Luong

Thuong Luong was common name of creatures which are in people’s imagines. They are distant relatives of dragons. While dragons are worshiped as gods, the gods ruled rivers and sea and the gods can make rains, Thuong Luong is not respected as dragons that the creatures are too amorous, combative, wild, and have bad behaviors. All most of them like to harm people.

The Tale of the Hundred - knot Bamboo tree

Once upon a time, there had a boy who was poor, had no field. Therefore, he found the way to work for a landlord. He was healthy, worked hard and great in working so the landlord wanted him to work for him long time without any pay. One day, he called the boy to come. "You are honest and healthy. If you agree to work for me in three years without pay, I will let you marry with my only daughter after that." The boy agreed. He believed completely. He worked very hard, help the landlord turn richer that he could build more houses, buy more fields and cattles. Then, time passed. Three years nearly crossed, the boy always remembered his master's promise while his master, the landlord didn't want to do his promise. He in secret had found another boy for his daughter, a son of another landlord in that area. Therefore, what he need was a reason to refuse the boy. One day, he called the boy to come. "You have worked very hard for three years, waken early, slept late....

Bài 1.6: Động từ “to be”.

Động từ “to be” là một động từ đặc biệt và gần như có nhiều dạng thức nhất trong nhóm động từ. Vì vây, để giải thích rõ ràng ý nghĩa và các sử dụng động từ “to be” là một vấn đề khá phức tạp. Mình sẽ có gắng giải thích một cách dễ hiểu nhất cho các bạn.

Bài 1.5: Cách sử dụng at, on, in cho thời gian, ngày, tháng, năm, mùa.

Chào các bạn! Bởi vì mình có hay dich truyện và một vài thứ linh tinh khác nên thường bắt gặp ngày, tháng năm. Thật ra khôngkhó để sử dụng đúng nhưng mỗi lần cần đến mình lại phải tra lại tra cứu. Điều đó rất mất thời gian nên hôm nay mình viết một bài liên quan đến at, on, in + thời gian để giúp bạn nào chưa biết và giúp chính mình nhớ được cách sử dụng của các giới từ at, on, in và dạng thời gian được theo sau giới từ đó.

The tale of great doctor

Once  upon a time, a doctor lived in a village who was solid expertise that he could find out and cured all diseases. Besides, he was a kind, honest man so people who lived in the village loved and respected him very much. They called him Mr. doctor. vietnamesefairytales.blogspot.com Meanwhile, a woman who lived in the village wanted to kill her husband to live with another man. One day, her husband had flu. The woman thought immediately about buying poison for him. She went to meet the doctor and priced but the doctor, in another hand, didn’t agree though whatever price she gave him. He said he would never used medicine to harm everyone. The woman had never given up, she still gave prices higher and higher that made the doctor saw clearly the woman would never given up until her husband was dead. Therefore, the doctor gave her tonic and said that if her husband drank that medicine he would never woke up. The woman was very happy; she went home and Slow-cooked medi...

The tale of "Banh Chung" and "Banh Day"

Once  upon a time, that had a king who was so old so he wanted to abdicate. He had had few wives who had given bird twelve sons. All of his sons had grown up and also were great people. The King was confused about choosing. “All of them are talent people. It is so difficult that I can choose a person and nobody can be jealous” said the King. vietnamesefairytales.blogspot.com “My Lord the king, we can have a contest” said a servant. “Oh, it is a good idea but what is subject of the contest?” said the king  “Meaning dishes, which we can put on ancestral altar” said the servant. “Great, let’s doing” said the king. The king called his son to come on and said:  “My sons, I don’t have many time and I want one of you to become the king. Now, anybody who can find dishes which not only are delicious but still have great meaning to put on ancestral altar will become the king.” 

My Chau and Trong Thuy

Once upon a time, there had a king, named An Duong Vuong. After many years fighting, he get a large area. The king planed to build a castle but whenever it had been built as tall as a men’s height then it was ruined. The king was unhappy. Therefore, the king had made an altar to pray God for few days until an early morning, a old man from seaside went to talk him God Turtle was going come to help him. The king was very happy and forced soldiers to wait on the seaside. The next day, in the water appeared a big gold turles toward seaside. The soldiers invited God Turtle to set sat on a big gold platter and brought to the king. The God Turtle told the king that the castle couldn’t have finished because of demons. God Turtle helped the king to kill the demons so all demons was killed. Besides, the God Turtle help the king design a castle look like a seashell with many gate levels. Half a month later, the castle had been finished. The king was very pleased but a little worry. He a...

The love story of Chuc and Nguu

Deeply  in forest where rarely people stepped   on there had a pond which were filled by cool clear water. The pond had never dried so that was where fairies used to gather. They often took water from the pond and sometime they waded in it to bath. And while they were bathing they always left their clothes on shore. Though, they had never been discovered by anyone who lived on ground. He, a woodcutter, lived alone in a hut standing by edge of forest. His name was Nguu. Everyday, he went in forest, cut down tree then brought it to market to sell. One day, he went in forest to deeply that he didn’t remember the way to get out the forest. It’s random he headed to the pond at the middle of forest. That time, three fairies were romping in the pond. And of course they were the most beautiful girls Nguu had ever seen so he immediately was enchanted their beauty. Then, he caught a plan that he wanted a fairy to be his wife. He saw sets of white clothes which were left on grass n...