An Adaptation of a Talmudic Legend Offered by Rinah and Leon Sheleff of Israel ©2001. Four thousand years ago, two brothers lived near each other on a hill by Jerusalem. They each had their own farm, but they shared a threshing floor. Every year they would bring in the harvest and divide it equally between […]
How God Chose The Site For The Temple of Jerusalem
A Hindu Tale told by D.M. Kartha ©2001. Sent by Cristy West. Once upon a time only a twin brother and sister lived upon the earth. Their names were Yama and Yami and they loved each other dearly. They roamed the earth enjoying its smells and tastes, it sounds and sights, the touches of the
A Cherokee Tale by storyteller Gayle Ross. Retold by Olive Hackett-Shaughnessy. This is what the elders told me when I was a child. In the beginning, everything was water. There was nothing but a great ocean. Then Water Beetle dove to the bottom of the sea and brought up a handful of mud, which grew
Indonesian Legends and Folk Tales. Told by Adele de Leeuw, 1961 Every year Cholera made a visit to the Holy City of Mecca with her companions Death and Fear. One year however, Fear came to the city before Death and Cholera. The old gatekeeper, who did not know Fear, let her enter. When Cholera and
Rewritten from a Georgian Tale by Hugh Lupton. (© Hugh Lupton 2002). Many years ago – and it was neither my time nor your time – there lived a great king. And one night that king dreamed a strange dream. He dreamed that a fox was hanging by its tail from the ceiling above his
Tale from the Iliad, Book 6. Translated by Joan Sutton. We are departing from our usual type of posting with this very special contribution from Joan Sutton. Joan is a Greek scholar who has been studying Homer’s Iliad for the past six years. This story has not been rewritten for oral performance, but is a
adapted by Joan Stockbridge. There was a path that stretched from here to there. On one side of the path, tall mountains loomed. Along the other, the cold sea moaned. Along this path came two fairy women, wrapped tightly in dark cloaks. As they walked along, they saw a bundle in the path. It mewed
From a 19th century literary tale attributed to Chippewa sources, retold by Fran Stallings. When I first heard this story in childhood, there was no music: the chant was just recited. I have added the chant melody and the chordal accompaniment, but I also perform it sometimes without the music, and it still works. A
A Folktale from Russia. Adapted by Elisa Pearmain. Once upon a time there lived a tailor’s son named Joseph. He worked beside his father in his little shop cutting and stitching clothing for the wealthy folks in town. As he grew older, Joseph began to dream of making something special for himself to wear. He
an Inuit (Eskimo) story, Retold by Laura Simms. In the very beginning of time, the Inuit people say, Raven made the world. Raven was both a god and a bird with a man inside. After Raven created everything, he decided to remain on the earth. He loved the people and the animals and he was
