The Story of Hungbu and Nolbu Long, long ago, there were two brothers.

The older brother was called Nolbu, and the younger brother was called Hungbu. The older brother, despite being very rich, was an extremely greedy and vindictive man who constantly caused trouble for his neighbours. On the other hand, his brother was poor, but very kind-hearted. Hungbu was a very hard worker, but for some reason he didn't have much luck. His wife and children knew no days but hungry ones. They led a very pitiable life. One day, just after Hungbu had returned from work, a snake appeared and began to attack a swallow's nest. The swallow and almost all her young were eaten alive. Only one young swallow escaped death. Even still, the young swallow had been injured. When it was fleeing, its leg had got caught in a bamboo blind and it had fallen to the ground. Seeing this, Hungbu quickly brought some ointment and rubbed it on the swallow's wounded leg. Then, he carefully wrapped some string around it to give it some support. Next, he carefully placed the young swallow back in the nest. In due course, the day came for the swallows to fly south. The swallow at Hungbu's house, now fully recovered, flew off in fine spirits. In due course, winter passed, spring came, and it was the third day of the third lunar month. The swallow which Hungbu had helped also flew back chirping cheerfully. Hungbu was delighted. Then the swallow dropped a gourd seed on the ground. Thinking that this was strange, Hungbu picked up the seed and planted it in the garden. After a few days, the seed began to sprout. The plant began to grow at a great rate. It pushed forth leaves and flowers, and eventually it bore five large gourds. Realising that they were indeed wondrous gourds, Hungbu consulted with his wife about what they should do. "Those gourds are many times larger than normal ones. Maybe we should cut one open to see if there might be something inside." No sooner had they cut open the gourd when rice began to flow out of the gourd. They filled five huge containers, but there was still lots remaining. They then took another gourd and cut it open. This time, it was gold which flowed out in large quantities. Hungbu and his wife danced with glee. Taking a third gourd, they cut it open. This time a beautiful nymph appeared. Looking at the two remaining gourds, she said, "Come out! Come out red and blue bottles! Come out!" With that, one of the gourds rolled over by itself and split in two. A red bottle appeared from the centre of the gourd and announced, "Here I am!" Then in the same fashion, the other gourd opened and a blue bottle appeared. Then the nymph said, "Now you must build a large mansion here." No sooner had she said this, when out of the blue bottle came a number of carpenters. Then from out of the red bottle came a large quantity of timber. In no time, the carpenters had built a splendid house. Then everyone returned to their places. The nymph disappeared in a puff of white smoke into the blue bottle. After that, Hungbu became a man of wealth. He and his family lived happily and wanted for nothing. However, when his elder brother Nolbu

heard the news, he came immediately to Hungbu's house. He demanded to be told how his younger brother had managed to become so rich in such a short span of time. "Hey, you! How on earth did you do it? It's a miracle. Tell me now how you did it." Hungbu told him all about the injured swallow and what had happened afterwards. Hearing that story, Nolbu went home and decided that he too would gain great wealth. So, he immediately built a swallow's nest and waited for a swallow to come and make its home there. Then it happened that one unfortunate swallow did come and hatched some baby swallows there. In due course, Nolbu threw one of the swallows out of the nest and broke its leg. Then he rubbed some ointment on the injured leg, wrapped it up with string, and placed the bird back in its nest. Winter passed and Nolbu's swallow returned in the spring. The bird dropped a gourd seed in front of the waiting Nolbu. Nolbu immediately planted the seed. Things continued to happen just as Hungbu had described. Then, when the gourds appeared, Nolbu immediately split open one gourd to see what was inside. However, out of the gourd came many little imps wielding sticks. "We must punish you for your greed," they said and beat him mercilessly. Then the imps disappeared. Convinced that the other gourds contained gold, Nolbu struggled and managed to open another gourd. This time a number of debt collectors appeared. "Give us money. Repay your loans or else we will take everything from you." Eventually, they took everything and left. Nolbu, thinking that everything would be all right if he could just open up the other gourds, split open the third gourd. This time a flood of dirty, smelly water poured from the gourd and deluged the house. Nolbu couldn't take it any more and ran to Hungbu's house for help. His compassionate brother took pity on him and welcomed him warmly. The greedy brother reflected on his deeds and was very sorry for everything that he had done that was wrong. From then on, he became a very humble person. Hungbu divided his fortune equally with his brother and both of them lived happily ever after (Choi 1974, 193-7). [1]

THE SPIDER THREAD One day, the Buddha was strolling alone along the edge of a lotus pond in Paradise. The blooming lotus flowers in the pond were each pure white like jewels, and the place was filled with the indescribably wondrous fragrance continually emitted from each flower s golden center. It was just morning in Paradise. After a time, the Buddha paused at the edge of the pond and from between the lotus leaves that covered it saw a glimpse of the state of things below. Now this celestial pond just happened to lie directly over Hell, and peering through that crystal-clear water was like looking through a magnifying glass at the River of Death and the Mountain of Needles and such. The Buddha saw there, in the depths of Hell, a single man writhing along with the other sinners. This man was named Kandata, and he had been a notorious thief who had performed murder and arson and other acts of evil. In his past, however, he had performed just one good deed: one day, when walking through the deep forest, he saw a spider crawling along the road. At first he raised his foot to crush it, but suddenly he changed his mind and stopped, saying, No, small though it may be, a spider, too, has life. It would be a pity to meaninglessly end it, and so did not kill it. Looking down upon the captives in Hell the Buddha recalled this kind act that Kandata had performed, and thought to use his good deed as a way to save him from his fate. Looking aside, there on a jadecolored lotus leaf he saw a single spider, spinning out a web of silver thread. The Buddha carefully took the spider s thread into his hand, and lowered it straight down between the jewel-like white lotuses into the depths of Hell. TWO Kandata was floating and sinking along with the other sinners in the Lake of Blood at the bottom of Hell. It was pitch black no matter which way he looked, and the occasional glimpse of light that he would see in the darkness would turn out to be just the glint of the terrible Mountain of Needles. How lonely he must have felt! All about him was the silence of the grave, the only occasional sound being a faint sigh from one of the damned. Those who were so evil as to be sent to this place were tired by its various torments, and left without even the strength to cry out. Even the great thief Kandata could only squirm like a dying frog as he choked in the Lake of Blood. But one day, raising up his head and glancing at the sky above the lake, in the empty darkness Kandata saw a silver spider s thread being lowered from the ceiling so far, far away. The thread seemed almost afraid to be seen, emitting a frail, constant light as it came down to just above Kandata s head. Seeing this, Kandata couldn t help but clap his hands in joy. If he were to cling to this thread and climb up it, he may be able to climb out of Hell! Perhaps he could even climb all the way to Paradise! Then he would never be chased up the Mountain of Needles, nor drowned in the Lake of Blood again. Thinking so, he firmly grasped the spider s thread with both hands and began to climb the thread, higher and higher. Having once been a great thief, he was used to tasks such as this. But the distance between Hell and Paradise is tens of thousands of miles, and so it would seem that no amount of effort would make this an easy journey. After climbing for some time Kandata tired, and couldn t climb a bit higher. Having no other recourse, he hung there from the thread, resting, and while doing so looked down below. He saw that he had made a good deal of progress. The Lake of Blood that he had been trapped in was now hidden in the dark below, and he had even climbed higher than the dimly glowing Mountain of Needles. If he could keep up this pace, perhaps he could escape from Hell after all. Kandata grasped

the thread with both hands, and laughingly spoke in a voice that he hadn t used in the many years since he had come here, I ve done it! I ve done it! Looking down, however, what did he see but an endless queue of sinners, intently following him up the thread like a line of ants! Seeing this, surprise and fear kept Kandata hanging there for a time with mouth open and eyes blinking like a fool. How could this slender spider s web, which should break even under just his weight, support the weight of all these other people? If the thread were to snap, all of his effort would be wasted and he would fall back into Hell with the others! That just would not do. But even as he thought these thoughts, hundreds more, thousands more of the damned came crawling up from the Lake of Blood, forming a line and scurrying up the thread. If he didn t do something fast, surely the thread would snap in the middle and he would fall back down. Kandata shouted out, Hey! You sinners! This thread is mine! Who said you could climb up it? Get off! Get off! Though the thread had been fine until just then, with these words it snapped with a twang right where Kandata held it. Poor Kandata fell headfirst through the air, spinning like a top, right down through the darkness. The severed end of the silver thread hung there, suspended from heaven, shining with its pale light in that moonless, starless sky. THREE The Buddha stood in Paradise at the edge of the lotus pond, silently watching these events. After Kandata sank like a stone to the bottom of the Lake of Blood, he continued his stroll with a sad face. He must have been surprised that even after such severe punishment Kandata s lack of compassion would lead him right back into Hell. Yet the lotus blossoms in the lotus ponds of Paradise care nothing about such matters. Their jewel-like white flowers waved about the feet of the Buddha, and each flower s golden center continuously filled the place with their indescribably wondrous fragrance. It was almost noon in Paradise.

THE LADY CHANG Chinese Myths and Legends Chang-eur, Seurng m'Ngor, or The Goddess on the Moon Chang-e or The Goddess on/of/in the Moon is a central character of Chinese myths and legends. She is remembered during Mid-Autumn Festival or Moon Festival, where she is the central character even to this day. People give 'mooncakes' in her honour, stare at the Moon in hopes of seeing her, and retell her sad tale of unrequited love. All Chinese peoples know her story... Mid-autumn Day occurs on the 15th day of the eighth lunar month of the Chinese calendar, which is in September or early October in the Gregorian calendar. It is a date that parallels the autumnal equinox of the solar calendar, when the moon is at its fullest and roundest. The Festival can be traced back through literature to the Shang dynasty some 3, 500 years ago. Presumably it predates this by millennia, as certain references in text allude to ancient myths - that are now being proved to be fact! Mid-Autumn Festival is one of the few most important holidays in the Chinese calendar, the others being Chinese New Year and Winter Solstice. Chang'e, Chang-e, Ch'ang-O or Chang-Ngo (Chinese: ; pinyin: Chng'), originally known as Heng'e or Heng-O ( ; Hng', changed according to naming taboo), is the Chinese goddess of the moon. In Mandarin her name sound like 'Chang-eur'; whilst Cantonese speakers know her as 'Seurng m'Ngor' Unlike many lunar deities in other cultures who personify the moon, Chang'e only lives on the moon. As the "woman on the Moon", Chang'e could be considered the Chinese complement to the Western notion of a man in the moon. Chang'e is the subject of several legends in Chinese mythology, most of which incorporate several of the following elements: Houyi the Archer, a benevolent or malevolent emperor, an elixir of life, and of course, the moon. The origin might have been borrowed from Hindu legend Chandra. The mention of Houyi the Archer is significant for students of cross-cultural studies, as he could be synonymous with 'Cupid' of Western orthodoxy. The Myths: Chang'e and Houyi the Archer (Version 1) According to legend, Chang'e and her husband Houyi were immortals living in heaven. One day, the ten sons of the Jade Emperor transformed into ten suns, causing the earth to scorch. Having failed to order his sons to stop ruining the earth, the Jade Emperor summoned Houyi for help. Houyi, using his

legendary archery skills, shot down nine of the sons, but spared one son to be the sun. The Jade Emperor was obviously not pleased with Houyi's solution to save the earth: nine of his sons were dead. As punishment, the Jade Emperor banished Houyi and Chang'e to live as mere mortals on earth. In Chinese mythology, Jade Rabbit lives on the moon where it makes herbal medicine. The rabbit is also mentioned in the novel Journey to the West. According to Korean and Japanese myths, a rabbit lives on the moon making rice cakes (Thuck - the Korean word for rice cakes in general, and mochi, a different type of a rice cake with red bean filling, in the Japanese myth). Seeing that Chang'e felt extremely miserable over her loss of immortality, Houyi decided to journey on a long, perilous quest to find the pill of immortality so that the couple could be immortals again. At the end of his quest he met the Queen Mother of the West who agreed to give him the pill, but warned him that each person would only need half the pill to become immortal. Houyi brought the pill home and stored it in a case. He warned Chang'e not to open the case and then left home for a while. Like Pandora in Greek mythology, Chang'e became too curious: she opened up the case and found the pill just as Houyi was returning home. Nervous that Houyi would catch her discovering the contents of the case, she accidentally swallowed the entire pill. She started to float into the sky because of the overdose. Although Houyi wanted to shoot her in order to prevent her from floating further, he could not bear to aim the arrow at her. Chang'e kept on floating until she landed on the moon. While she became lonely on the moon without her husband, she did have company. A jade rabbit, who manufactured elixirs, also lived on the moon. The mythologies of Japan and Korea also feature references about rabbits living on the moon. Another companion is the woodcutter Wu Gang. The woodcutter offended the gods in his attempt to achieve immortality and was therefore banished on the moon. Wu Gang was allowed to leave the moon if he could cut down a tree that grew there. The problem was that each time he chopped the tree, the tree would instantly grow back, effectively condemning him to live on the moon for eternity. Chang'e and Houyi the Archer (Version 2) Chang'e was a beautiful young girl working in the Jade Emperor's palace in heaven, where immortals, good people and fairies lived. One day, she accidentally broke a precious porcelain jar. Angered, the Jade Emperor banished her to live on earth, where ordinary people lived. She could return to the Heaven, if she contributed a valuable service on earth. Chang'e was transformed into a member of a rich farming family. When she was 18, a young hunter named Houyi from another village spotted her, now a beautiful young woman. They became friends. One day, a strange phenomenon occurred 10 suns arose in the sky instead of one, blazing the earth. Houyi, an expert archer, stepped forward to try to save the earth. He successfully shot down nine of the suns, becoming an instant hero. He eventually became king and married Chang'e.

But Houyi grew to become greedy and selfish. He sought immortality by ordering an elixir be created to prolong his life. The elixir in the form of a single pill was almost ready when Chang'e came upon it. She either accidentally or purposely swallowed the pill. This angered King Houyi, who went after his wife. Trying to flee, she jumped out the window of a chamber at the top of palace - and, instead of falling, she floated into the sky toward the moon. King Houyi tried unsuccessfully to shoot her down with arrows. In contrast to the first version, her companion, a rabbit, does not create elixir of life. Aside from the rabbit, the moon is also inhabited by a woodcutter who tries to cut down the cassia tree, giver of life. But as fast as he cuts into the tree, it heals itself, and he never makes any progress. The Chinese use this image of the cassia tree to explain mortal life on earth - the limbs are constantly being cut away by death, but new buds continually appear. Meanwhile, King Houyi ascended to the sun and built a palace. So Chang'e and Houyi came toO represent the yin and yang, the moon and the sun.

THE STORY OF THE AGED MOTHER A Japanese Folktale Long, long ago there lived at the foot of the mountain a poor farmer and his aged, widowed mother. They owned a bit of land which supplied them with food, and their humble were peaceful and happy. Shinano was governed by a despotic leader who though a warrior, had a great and cowardly shrinking from anything suggestive of failing health and strength. This caused him to send out a cruel proclamation. The entire province was given strict orders to immediately put to death all aged people. Those were barbarous days, and the custom of abandoning old people to die was not common. The poor farmer loved his aged mother with tender reverence, and the order filled his heart with sorrow. But no one ever thought a second time about obeying the mandate of the governor, so with many deep hopeless sighs, the youth prepared for what at that time was considered the kindest mode of death. Just at sundown, when his day's work was ended, he took a quantity of unwhitened rice which is principal food for poor, cooked and dried it, and tying it in a square cloth, swung and bundle around his neck along with a gourd filled with cool, sweet water. Then he lifted his helpless old mother to his back and stated on his painful journey up the mountain. The road was long and steep; the narrowed road was crossed and recrossed by many paths made by the hunters and woodcutters. In some place, they mingled in a confused puzzled, but he gave no heed. One path or another, it mattered not. On he went, climbing blindly upward - ever upward towards the high bare summit of what is know as Obatsuyama, the mountain of the "abandoning of aged". The eyes of the old mother were not so dim but that they noted the reckless hastening from one path to another, and her loving heart grew anxious. Her son did not know the mountain's many paths and his return might be one of danger, so she stretched forth her hand and snapping the twigs from brushes as they passed, she quietly dropped a handful every few steps of the way so that they climbed, the narrow path behind them was dotted at frequently intervals with tiny piles of twigs. At last the summit was reached. Weary and heart sick, the youth gently released his burden and silently prepared a place of comfort as his last duty to the loved one. Gathering fallen pine needle, he made a soft cushion and tenderly lifting his old mother therein, he wrapped her padded coat more closely about the stooping shoulders and with tearful eyes and an aching heart said farewell. The trembling mother's voice was full of unselfish love as she gave her last injunction. "Let not thine eyes be blinded, my son." She said. "The mountain road is full of dangers. LOOK carefully and follow the path which holds the piles of twigs. They will guide you to the familiar way farther down". The son's surprised eyes looked back over the path, then at the poor old, shriveled hands all scratched and soiled by their work of love. His heart smote him and bowing to the grounds, he cried aloud: "oh, Honorable mother, thy kindness thrusts my heart! I will not leave thee. Together we will follow the path of twigs, and together we will die!" Once more he shouldered his burden (how light it seemed no) and hastened down the path, through the shadows and the moonlight, to the little hut in the valley. Beneath the kitchen floor was a walled closet for food, which was covered and hidden from view. There the son his mother, supplying her with everything needful and continually watching and fearing. Time passed, and he was beginning to feel safe when again the governor sent forth heralds bearing an unreasonable order, seemingly as a boast of his power. His demand was that his subject should present him with a rope of ashes. The entire province trembled with dread. The order must be obeyed yet who in all Shinano could make a rope of ashes?

One night, in great distress, the son whispered the news to his hidden mother. "Wait!" she said. "I will think. I will think" On the second day she told him what to do. "Make rope twisted straw," she said. "Then stretch it upon a row of flat stones and burn it there on the windless night." He called the people together and did as she said and when the blaze and died, behold upon the stones with every twist and fiber showing perfectly. Lay a rope of whithead ashes. The governor was pleased at the wit of the youth and praised greatly, but he demanded to know where he had obtained his wisdom. "Alas! Alas!" cried the farmer, "the truth must be told!" and with deep bows he related his story. The governor listened and then meditated in silence. Finally he lifted his head. "Shinano needs more than strength of youth," he said gravely. "Ah, that I should have forgotten the well-know saying, "with the crown of snow, there cometh a wisdom!" That very hour the cruel law was abolished, and custom drifted into as far a past that only legends remains.

The Cricket Boy(A Chinese Tale) A long time ago, cricket fighting caught on in the imperial court, withthe emperor leading the fad. A local magistrate in Huayin, who wanted to winthe favor of the monarch, tried in every way to get him the best fightingcrickets. He had a strategy for doing so: He managed to get a cricket thatwas very good at fighting. He then made his subordinates go to the heads of each village and force them to send in a constant supply of fighting crickets.He would send to the imperial court the crickets that could beat the one hewas keeping. Theoretically, everything should have worked smoothly. However, asthe magistrate was extremely zealous to please the emperor, he meted outharsh punishment on any village heads who failed to accomplish their tasks. The village heads in turn shifted the burden to the poor villagers, who had tosearch for the crickets. If they failed to catch them, they had to purchasethem from someone else, or they had to pay a levy in cash. The small insects suddenly became a rare commodity. Speculatorshoarded good crickets, buying them at a bargain and selling them for anexorbitant price. Many village heads worked hand in hand with thespeculators to make profits. In so doing, they bankrupted many a family.Cheng Ming was one such villager. The head of his village delegatedpart of his duties to him because he found Cheng Ming easy to push around.Cheng Ming did not want to bully his fellow villagers as the village head didhim, so he often had to pay cash out of his own pocket when he failed tocollect any competent crickets. Soon the little proper ties he had weredraining away, and he went into a severe depression. One day, he said to hiswife that he wanted to die. Death is easy, but what will our son do without you? asked his wife,glancing at their only son, sleeping on the kang. Why can t we look for thecrickets ourselves instead of buying them? Perhaps we ll strike some goodluck. Cheng Ming gave up the idea of suicide and went to search forcrickets. Armed with a tiny basket of copper wires for catching crickets and anumber of small bamboo tubes for holding them, he went about the tedioustask. Each day he got up at dawn and did not return until late in the evening.He searched beneath brick debris, dike crevices, and in the weeds andbushes. Days went by, and he caught only a few mediocre crickets that didnot measure up to the magistrate s standards. His worries increased as thedead line drew closer and closer.The day for cricket delivery finally came, but Cheng Ming could notproduce any good ones. He was clubbed a hundred times on the buttocks, aform of corporal punishment in the ancient Chinese judicial system. When hewas released the next day, he could barely walk. The wound on his buttocksconfined him to bed for days and further delayed his search for crickets. Hethought of committing suicide again. His wife did not know what to do. Then they heard about a hunchbacked fortune teller who was visitingthe village. Cheng Ming s wife went to see him. The fortune teller gave her apiece of paper with a picture on it. It was a pavilion with a jiashan (rockgarden) behind it. On the bushes by the jiashan sat a fat male cricket. Besideit, however, lurked a large toad, ready to catch the insect with its long,elastic tongue. When the wife got home, she showed the paper to herhusband. Cheng Ming sprang up and jumped to the floor, forgetting the painin his buttocks. This is the fortune teller s hint at the location where I can find aperfect cricket to accomplish my task! he exclaimed. But we don t have a pavilion in our village, his wife re minded him. Well, take a closer look and think. Doesn t the temple on the east sideof our village have a rock garden? That must be it. So saying, Cheng Minglimped to the temple with the support of a make shift crutch. Sure enough,he saw the cricket, and the toad squatting nearby in the rock garden at theback of the temple. He caught the big, black male cricket just before thetoad got

hold of it. Back home, he carefully placed the cricket in a jar he hadprepared for it and stowed the jar away in a safe place. Everything will beover tomorrow, he gave a sigh of relief and went to tell his best friends inthe village the good news.Cheng Ming s nine-year-old son was very curious. Seeing his father wasgone, he took the jar and wanted to have a peek at the cricket. He wasremoving the lid carefully, when the big cricket jumped out and hoppedaway. Panicked, the boy tried to catch the fleeing cricket with his hands, butin a flurry, he accidentally squashed the insect when he finally got hold of it. Good heavens! What re you going to say to your father when hecomes back? the mother said in distress and dread. Without a word, the boywent out of the room, tears in his eyes.Cheng Ming became distraught when he saw the dead cricket. Hecouldn t believe that all his hopes had been dashed in a second. He lookedaround for his son, vowing to teach the little scoundrel a good lesson. Hesearched inside and outside the house, only to locate him in a well at thecorner of the court yard. When he fished him out, the boy was already dead. The father s fury instantly gave way to sorrow. The grieved parents laid theirson on the kang and lamented over his body the entire night.As Cheng Ming was dressing his son for burial the next morning, he feltthe body still warm. Immediately he put the boy back on the kang, hopingthat he would revive. Gradually the boy came back to life, but to his parents dismay, he was unconscious, as if he were in a trance. The parents grieved again for the loss of their son. Suddenly theyheard a cricket chirping. The couple traced the sound to a small cricket onthe door step. The appearance of the cricket, however, dashed their hopes,for it was very small. Well, it s better than nothing, Cheng Ming thought.He was about to catch it, when it jumped nimbly on to a wall, cheeping athim. He tip toed to ward it, but it showed no sign of fleeing. Instead, whenCheng Ming came a few steps closer, the little cricket jumped onto his chest.

Though small, the cricket looked smart and energetic. Cheng Mingplanned to take it to the village head. Uncertain of its capabilities, ChengMing could not go to sleep. He wanted to put the little cricket to the testbefore sending it to the village head. The next morning, Cheng Ming went to a young man from a rich familyin his neighborhood, having heard him boasting about an invincible cricketthat he wanted to sell for a high price. When the young man showed hiscricket, Cheng Ming hesitated, because his little cricket seemed no match forthis gigantic insect. To fight this monster would be to condemn his dwarf todeath. There s no way my little cricket could survive a confrontation withyour big guy, Cheng Ming said to the young man, holding his jar tight. Theyoung man goaded and taunted him. At last, Cheng Ming decided to take arisk. Well, it won t hurt to give a try. If the little cricket is a good-for-nothing,what s the use of keeping it anyway? he thought.When they put the two crickets together in a jar, Cheng Ming s smallinsect seemed transfixed. No matter how the young man prodded it to fight,it simply would not budge. The young man burst into a guffaw, to the greatembarrassment of Cheng Ming. As the young man spurred the little cricketon, it sud denly seemed to have run out of patience. With great wrath, itcharged the giant opponent head on. The sudden burst of action stunnedboth the young man and Cheng Ming. Before the little creature planted itssmall but sharp teeth into the neck of the big cricket, the terrified young manfished the big insect out of the jar just in time and called off the contest. Thelittle cricket chirped victoriously, and Cheng Ming felt exceedingly happy andproud.Cheng Ming and the young man were commenting on the littlecricket s extraordinary prowess, when a big rooster rushed over to peck atthe little cricket in the jar. The little cricket hopped out of the jar in time tododge the attack. The rooster then went for it a second time, but suddenlybegan to shake its head violently, screaming in agony. This sudden turn of events baffled

Cheng Ming and the onlookers. When they took a closer look,they could not believe their eyes: The little cricket was gnawing on therooster s bloody comb. The story of a cricket fighting a rooster soon spreadthroughout the village and beyond. The next day, Cheng Ming, along with the village head, sent the cricketto the magistrate and asked for a test fight with his master cricket, but themagistrate re fused on the ground that Cheng Ming s cricket was too small. I don t think you have heard its roosterfighting story, Cheng Mingproclaimed with great pride. You can t judge it only by its appearance. Nonsense, how can a cricket fight a rooster? asked the magistrate.He ordered a big rooster brought to his office, thinking that Cheng Mingwould quit telling his tall tales when his cricket became the bird s snack. Thebattle between the little cricket and the rooster ended with the same result: The rooster sped away in great pain, the little cricket chirping triumphantlyon its heels.

The magistrate was first astonished and then pleased, thinking that hefinally had the very insect that could win him the emperor s favor. He had agolden cage manufactured for the little cricket. Placing it cautiously in thecage, he took it to the emperor. The emperor pitted the little cricket against all his veteran combat antcrickets, and it defeated them one by one. What amused the emperor mostwas that the little creature could even dance to the tune of his court music!Extremely pleased with the magic little creature, the emperor rewarded themagistrate liberally and promoted him to a higher position. The magistrate,now a governor, in turn exempted Cheng Ming from his levies in cash as wellas crickets.A year later, Cheng Ming s son came out of his stupor. He sat up andrubbed his eyes, to the great surprise and joy of his parents. The first wordshe uttered to his jubilant parents were, I m so tired and hungry. After a hotmeal, he told them, I dreamed that I had become a cricket, and I fought alot of other crickets. It was such fun! You know what? The greatest fun I hadwas my fight with a couple of roosters!

Ilhus rose to nationwide prominence during the cocoa cycle. In the first decades of the 20th Century, the town experienced dizzying growth that earned it the nickname Queen of the South, attracting workers and adventurers from all over the northeast and even from other regions of the country. Cocoa enriched the landowners, nourished the dreams of the ploughmen and sparked numerous bloody conflicts. In The Golden Harvest, Jorge Amado recounts the saga of the cocoa region and its first barons, men like Horcio da Silveira, Frederico Pinto and Sinh Badar, who became rich and powerful, inspiring many young doctors, urban workers, labourers and traders to emulate their adventures in the cocoa trade. After a period of fighting over the best lands, the gilt-coated fruit became a high-value commodity on the international market, with the exporters at the helm, such as the Americans Karbanks and Schwarz, the German Rauschnings and Brazilians like Carlos Zude, owner of Zude, Irmos & Cia. Little by little, the region s economy descended into unrest as rural workers, landowners and labourers became pawns in a game of risk. The Golden Harvest tells of the cultural effects of the cocoa trade at its financial and industrial height. Like The Violent Land (1943) , the novel recounts the history of Ilhus and environs since the beginning, from the arrival of the first pioneers and the ensuing bloody disputes up to the internationalization that would see the old region of So Jorge dos Ilhus transform into the city of cash and cabarets, business promise and shady deals.

The Golden Harvest is a continuation of Violent Land (1943), considered by many critics to be Jorge Amado s masterpiece. Published in 1944, the novel joins the earlier work as the other half of a diptych on the formation of the cocoa society. In the 1930s, when the novel is set, the local politics and economy are already showing signs of modernity, with respect for the law and the formalization of commercial contracts. While during the early days of the cocoa plantations, partisan and business disputes were resolved with a bullet, they are now discussed in telephone calls and behind closed office doors. Nevertheless, though Ilhus is experiencing galloping urban and social reform, some archaic elements have escaped development and endure alongside modernization: arduous toil, exploitation, greed and violence.