The Lake of Mura

This is a folk tale of ancient times. There was a dense forest in a country.
A woodcutter lived in a village near the forest with his mother. He was known
by the name of Kushimura of Kushi in short. He used to go to the forest daily to
cut wood and then made toys out of them. Thereafter, he sold the toys in the
market.

He was a great devotee of the god and used to go to his temple daily. One
day, the god appeared before him and said, "Oh son! I am pleased with
you. Ask for anything and I am pleased with you. Ask for anything and I will
grant it to you."

Kushi bowed to the god and said, "Oh god! I do not want anything for
myself, but I do want a lake for the villagers that would help them to earn a
living." The god said, "All right! As you like," and disappeared.
Next day when Kushi went to the forest, he was happy to see a beautiful
lake there. But when he was going to sell the toys, he saw a boatman with his
boat in the lake. The boatman said to him, "The god has sent me to help you. Sit
in the boat. I will take you across the lake." Kushi sat in the boat and crossed the
lake. This way, he began to cross the lake every day.

One day while he was returning from the market, he heard a cry, "Help!
Help!" He ran towards the voice. He saw a boy and a girl running towards him.
They said to him, "Please help us! Two hunters are following us. They want to
kill us." Kushi assured them and look to a nearby cave. "Stay here. Do not be
afraid. I will bring food for you," Kushi said.

Kushi came back his home and asked his mother to pack one box of rice
and some extra soup along with his lunch every day.

Now Kushi used to take lunch for the boy and the girl living in the cave.
After a few days, his mother became curious to know the secret of the extra
lunch. She wanted to know to whom her son was feeding daily? At last, she
began to ask her son about the secret repeatedly. Her son Kushi got irritated and
said, "I will tell you the secret but do not disclose it to anyone."

After getting her assurance, he narrated the whole incident and the place
where the girl and the boy were living.

The next day his mother went to the forest and was surprised to see the
lake there. She also saw the boatman with his boat in the lake. She asked the
boatman, "How did a lake, a boat and a boatman appear here? From where did a
boy and a girl come to live in the cave?"

She pressed the boatman to tell the things clearly. Although the boatman
was afraid of telling the secret, yet he told it to Kushis mother. "The god was
pleased with Kushi and gifted him with this lake and asked me to work as a
boatman. The girl and the boy are sister and brother and have been sent to test
Kushi. The lake will dry the day when the sister and brother will not get food. "

But Kushis mother could not believe it. She mixed pebbles in the rice for
the children. Both of them fell ill. Kushi prepared a medicine out of herbs and
shrubs and gave it to them. They recovered from illness. When he was
returning home, he saw that the water level of the lake had reduced. He could
not understand the reason.
 Next day when he was going to work, he heard the sound of pebbles in
the lunch box of the children. He threw the food aside and went to work. Both
sister and brother remained hungry.

In the evening, he saw the water level of the lake receded. Kushi became
sad. He prepared food himself and served it to the children. The level of the lake
again rose.

One day, the hunters came and asked Kushis mother the address of the
sister and brother. According to the condition, she did not tell the address, but
she waved her hand towards the cave. As soon as she waved her hand, she
became a statue. The lake also dried and a deodar tree appeared in the dry lake.

When Kushi returned from the market, he was very sad to see the dry
lake. He did not go to his home. Instead he prayed to the god and wept bitterly.
The god was kind enough and blessed him. The lake was filled again by the
drops of his tears