Long, long ago, there were two brothers, Bhinwa and Hinwa. Bhinwa, the eldest, was cunning and always made his brother, Hinwa, do most of the household chores. Hinwa grazed the cattle, tilled the land, and did all the shopping. However, Hinwa got only four dry chapatis to eat after the day’s toil.
One day, after Hinwa forgot to carry his plow to the fields, he had to go back home halfway. To his shock, he found the kitchen stuffed with tasty food items. In the evening, when he returned home, he once again got only four chapatis to eat. Irked, he asked his brother why he got just four chapatis after working hard all day.
‘You get dry bread every day because your fate is fast asleep,’ replied Bhinwa.
Curious, Hinwa decided to travel far away to try and awaken his fate. He was determined to know what made him so unfortunate.
On his way to meet fate, Hinwa happened to cross a big, sprawling tree. Just then, he spotted a huge snake climbing up the tree. The snake was clearly headed toward the eagle’s nest, which was brimming with unguarded chicks. With the parent eagles not around, Hinwa decided to protect the chicks by killing the snake. When the eagles returned to the nest in the evening, they saw the dead snake. They could also see Hinwa taking a nap under the tree. The eagles profusely thanked Hinwa and asked him how they could repay his favor.
‘I’m on my way to meet my fate, who is sleeping so far away that I must traverse the seven seas to get to him.’
The father eagle carried Hinwa on his wings to cross the seven seas. Along the way, Hinwa saw a tree with all its branches and leaves gone dry. The tree requested Hinwa to ask Fate why it didn’t get fresh green leaves every spring.
Hinwa and the father eagle passed over the seven seas and reached the place where Fate lay fast asleep. Hinwa woke him up and asked him why he was so unfortunate. Hearing Hinwa’s plea, Fate agreed to help him.
Next, Hinwa asked about the withering tree. Fate told Hinwa that a huge serpent hid underneath the tree’s roots to guard an enormous treasure. Hinwa killed the serpent and recovered the treasure hidden under the tree’s roots. Relieved, the tree started to blossom again.
Hinwa then tamed a wild horse roaming around the tree and rode it to get back home. On his way home, he heard about a princess who suffered from a terminal illness. Hinwa helped her recover from the illness. Pleased with him, the king gave Hinwa his daughter’s hand.
Hinwa got home with his wife and the treasure. He spent the rest of his life happily with his wife and brother.
Kalai is passionate about reading and reinterpreting folk tales from all over the country. Write to her at kalai.muse@gmail.com to know more about her.
Folk tale adopted and abridged from Internet Archive.