Brave Bir Bahadur

In a beautiful country far away, there lived a brave warrior named Bir Bahadur. Everyone lovingly knew him as the 'Rice-Bag-Carrying Merchant'. His real name was something else, but the story of how he got this strange name is very interesting.One day, Bir Bahadur left home in search of a new adventure. He was completely fearless and did not like sitting idle. He strapped two swords to his waist, took a bow that was taller than himself in his hand, slung a bag full of arrows over his shoulder, and set off on his journey.He had not gone very far when he reached a long wooden bridge on the edge of a large, blue lake. He was just about to step onto the bridge when he saw a giant, serpent-like monster sleeping right in the middle of the path. Its body was as thick as a large pine tree and it covered the entire bridge. Its huge paws were on one side of the bridge and its tail was on the other. The monster seemed to be fast asleep, and smoke and fire were coming out of its breath.At first, Bir Bahadur felt a little scared upon seeing that terrifying creature. He either had to turn back or move forward by stepping over its body. But he was very brave. He chased away his fear and moved forward fearlessly. Making 'mach-mach' squelching sounds, he moved ahead, sometimes stepping on the monster's body and sometimes between its coils. He didn’t even look back.After walking a few steps forward, he heard someone calling from behind. When he turned around to look, he was astonished! The giant monster was nowhere to be seen. Instead, a strange-looking man was standing there, bowing to him. The man had red hair, a serpent-like crown on his head, and wore green clothes with sea conch patterns. Bir Bahadur immediately understood that he was no ordinary person.Bir Bahadur asked, "Are you the one who called me?"The man replied, "Yes, it is me. I have a big request. Can you help me?"Bir Bahadur said, "If it is a task within my capability, I will certainly do it. But first tell me, who are you?""I am the Serpent King of this lake, and my home is inside the water under this bridge."Bir Bahadur asked, "What help do you need from me then?"The Serpent King pointed toward a high mountain far away and said, "I want you to kill my enemy, that giant centipede. I have been living in this lake with my children and grandchildren for many years. But for some time now, that terrifying centipede has discovered our home. Every night it comes here and takes away a member of my family. I cannot save them at all."The Serpent King added sadly, "For many days, I had been waiting on this bridge in the form of a serpent for a brave man like you. But whoever came, they ran away in fear as soon as they saw me. You are the first person who was not afraid upon seeing me. That is why I believe you are very brave. Please save me from that centipede."Hearing the Serpent King's story, Bir Bahadur felt pity. He immediately promised to help. The Serpent King told him that the centipede came to the lake at a specific time every night. Therefore, until the centipede arrived, Bir Bahadur was taken to the Serpent King's palace beneath the lake. The amazing thing was that even when Bir Bahadur went inside the water, his clothes did not get wet at all.How beautiful that palace made of white marble underwater must have been! He had heard stories of the ocean, but he had never imagined there would be such a beautiful palace in the middle of a lake. There, small golden fish and colorful fish were serving them.A grand feast was organized there for Bir Bahadur. There were delicious foods in utensils that looked like lotus leaves and flowers. After finishing the meal, beautiful fish entertained them by dancing and playing the flute. While having fun, it became midnight. Suddenly, the palace began to shake, as if a large army was approaching near.Bir Bahadur and the Serpent King went to the balcony. He saw two large balls of fire approaching near on the distant mountain. The Serpent King began to tremble with fear and said, "The centipede has come! The centipede has come! Those two balls of fire are its eyes. Now it will eat us!"Bir Bahadur looked carefully. A giant centipede was crawling down the base of the mountain. Its hundreds of legs were burning like small lanterns.Bir Bahadur was not scared at all. Assuring the Serpent King, he said, "Do not fear, I will certainly kill it. Bring my bow and arrow." He loaded an arrow onto his bow, took aim, and shot targeting the centipede's head.The arrow struck the middle of the centipede's head, but to his surprise, the arrow fell to the ground without doing anything to the centipede. Bir Bahadur shot a second arrow, and that too fell to the ground in the same way. The Serpent King started getting even more terrified. Now Bir Bahadur had only one arrow left.The giant centipede had arrived near the lake. Its eyes were blazing like fire. Suddenly, Bir Bahadur remembered an old saying— human spit or saliva is like poison to a centipede. He applied a little spit to the tip of his last arrow, pulled the bow with force, and shot targeting the centipede's head.This time, however, the arrow pierced the centipede's head. The monster began to writhe in pain, and slowly the light of its eyes and legs faded away. Darkness fell all around, loud thunder struck, a storm raged, and it rained. Everyone in the palace hid in fear. But slowly the night passed and the morning sun rose. Now that centipede was dead.Bir Bahadur called the Serpent King outside. The giant centipede was floating dead in the water of the lake. The Serpent King and his family were so happy that they bowed to Bir Bahadur and called him the bravest warrior in the world.Another grand feast took place. When it was time to return home, the Serpent King gave Bir Bahadur five special gifts. Those gifts were: a large copper bell, a bag of rice, a roll of silk cloth, a cooking pot, and another small bell.Bir Bahadur returned to his home with those gifts. His family members were worried that he was lost. But when he returned with the strange gifts, everyone became happy.Those gifts were magical! No matter how much rice was taken out from that rice bag, it would never end. No matter how much that silk cloth was cut, it would never become short. And no matter what was placed inside that cooking pot, delicious food would cook without even lighting a fire.Because of that never-ending bag of rice, Bir Bahadur became very rich and prosperous. From that day on, everyone started calling him 'Rice-Bag-Carrying Bir Bahadur'. And he lived happily ever after.