Fifty-Fifty A Punjabi Folk Tale

There were once two sisters: Tetan Buri, clever sister… Aha! And Boka Buri, foolish sister… Hummmm!

Neither Boka Buri nor Tetan Buri had much money and very few thinigs. One day Tetan Buri came up with a bright new idea

Aha! that they would share their possessions equally – the cow, the blanket and the apple tree.

Tetan Buri had it all worked out

Aha! the front half of the cow with the beautiful eyes will be for Boka while she will take the pooy rear end.

Aha! the strong roots of the apple trees would be Boka Buris and she will be contented with the leaves and branches.

Aha! Boka Buri could keep the blanket all through the day to see the lovely colours and Tetan would have in the dark night

A week went by, then two. Soon it was a month since the new arrangement had been put into practice. And slowly it began to dawn on Boka Buri that something was wrong.

Hummmm! Since she owned the front half of the cow she woke up at the crack of dawn and feed the animal and draw a bucket of water from the well so the cow had fresh, clean water to drink twice a day. But as the rear of the cow belonged to Tetan Buri so it was she who milked it and had a tumbler full of rich, creamy milk every morning. But all Boka Buri had was tea in a glass only slightly larger than a thimble. Hummmm!

Hummmm! As for the blanket it lay on Boka Buri`s bed all day when she was busy working. When night fell, Tetan Buri whipped away the blanket and snuggled under it. Meanwhile Boka Buri had to spend the night curled up into a ball to keep herself warm. Hummmm!

Hummmm! Boka Buri had hoped to eat the apples from her tree. For months she had looked after the tree, removing weeds, tilling the soil and adding manure when it was required. The fruit grew on the branches before his eyes. But when the first apple was ripe Tetan Buri reached out and grabbed it. And popped it into her mouth and ate it. Hummmm!

Boka Buri was most annoyed but she could not do a thing about it. Dejected she went for a long walk. On and on she walked till she came to the forest where she met a wise man with matted hair and holy ash rubbed all over his body. The sadhu looked at Boka Buri and asked why she was unhappy. After listening to the whole story the sadhu said that her sister has been cheating her and she should not allow this. Hummmm!

Boka Buri returned home feeling very bright and cheerful. As soon as the two friends had finished their evening meal Tetan Buri prepared to go to sleep but Aha! Boka Buri picked up the blanket, soaked it in water and handed it over to Tetan Buri.

“Why did you do THAT?” screamed Tetan Buri

“Well … the blanket is mine during daytime so I can do what I like!!” answered Boka Buri.

Tetan Buri was so surprised that her mouth dropped open. She had to grumble herself to sleep and was cold and miserable all night.

The next morning Tetan Buri got up early and hurried out to milk the cow. Tetan Buri placed a pail between her knees and began to milk the cow. When the pail was half full Aha! Boka Buri tickled the cow`s nose with a wisp of straw. Startled, the cow kicked hard, upset the pail and she landed Tetan Buri a good crack on the jaw.

“Why did you do THAT?” screamed Tetan Buri

“Well the front half of the cow is mine so I can do what I like!!” answered Boka Buri.

Tetan Buri could make no reply. That morning she missed her tumbler of milk. All she had was tea in a glass only slightly larger than a thimble.

When the sun rose a little higher, Tetan Buri went and started to pick the apples. Suddenly Aha! Boka Buri appeared with an axe to chop the trees.

“Why are you doing THAT?” screamed Tetan Buri

“Well the trunk of the tree is mine so I can do what I like!!” answered Boka Buri.

At last Tetan Buri realized that she could not cheat her sister any longer and she suggested changing the deal. This time it was Boka Buri who had it all worked out.

• They would use the blanket on alternate nights.
• Both of them will look after the cow and share the milk equally.
• As for the tree, they will take turns looking after that as well.

And when the fruit comes, we`ll share it fifty-fifty. Aha!

Tetan Buri was happy to share things with Boka Buri and the two became good friends once again.

The moral of Fifty-Fifty is that it is immoral to cheat a good human being and more incorrect to deceive a friend. Sharing is good if the distribution is just.

Mostly the Punjabi folktales are set in the countryside and deal with the lives of farmers and small-time businessmen. These Indian folktales are based on either simple, everyday themes like family ties and friendship or else greed and dishonesty. The tales end with justice being delivered and the offender rightly punished. But the person wronged does not always need to settle matters legally. Sometimes she obtains justice through his own efforts. Fifty-Fifty is one of those many tales that illustrates the significance of self- reliance.

Source: http://worldstories.org.uk/stories/the-two-old-women/english/

Source: https://www.indianetzone.com/30/fifty-fifty_indian_folktale.htm