The Hunter and The Moon
-Performed as a spoken-word story, this tale is about Menphina and a nameless hunter. Â It is often told around Valentione's day or on full-moon nights.
Once, when the world was young,
There was a hunter.
He stood tall and brave
His arm was strong
His aim was true
And his heart was just.
As he stalked his prey
In the darkness of the forest
In the stillness of the night
He came upon the Moon.
Her eyes were light
Her skin was dark
And in her smile was joy
And as she bathed
the curve of her body
Was grace
and beauty
and love.
The hunter was transfixed
His heart stolen away.
The goddess' eyes found him
In the stillness of the night.
And they saw him
And they knew him
And she was his.
"Three tasks must you complete,
Before I will forgive
This grievous crime
Of spying as I bathe."
She spoke as one enraged
but the light in her eyes
Was the light of the stars
And the moon at full
And the hunter knew her love.
The task first givenÂ
was to find the Boar King
To take from him a tusk.
The hunter was a wise man
With no dearth of courage
So he went a-hunting
With his spear and his bow
And his heart brave and true.
They fought
And Struggled
And night turned to day
And day turned to night
And man clashed with beast.
Until at last they met
With a crash so mighty
It felled the trees
And shook the very stones.
In the hunter's hand
Was a tusk, broken at the base
All ivory and gold.
Task the second was to find
A blind seer
With eyes the color of rust.
For many malms and many nights
The hunter sought this man
Here
And there
Over valley
Through dell.
Until he found him
In a shack by the sea
Surrounded by beauty
The hunter had never seen.
All of carven ivory
was the seer's home
Secrets known
And unknown
Seen
And unseen
Were held in the blind man's eyes.
The hunter stood
And with his honest heart he offered all
And the seer smiled
For he saw all that the man
Could not see.
The great tusk was carved
With a thought
And a prayer
And magic unknown.
And the hunter moved on.
The third task was to climb The Mountain
That no other man had climbed.
It reached so high
The clouds looked up
At the summit
And wondered
At the secrets there.
It was the greatest task
The hardest to fulfill
And when the hunter's heart grew heavy
He felt the touch of moonlight
And saw again
The light in her eyes
The curve of her cheek
The dark of her skin.
For love he climbed
For the sight of her
And she watched
Standing
Aloof and shining
With her mantle of stars.
At last he knelt before her.
And he said:
"My lady
My love
Every task have I completed
Every part of me
Do I offer now.
With this carving
With my hands
With my heart."
And she smiled
And it was as the moon
Cleared the clouds
And shone with glory
Upon the man.
"My lord
My love
With your hands and your heart
You have caught me.
And so I will join you
And love you
From now until the stars fall."
The hunter stood-
And she was gone
And the carving in his hands
Was gone
Leaving him with nothing.
He turned, searching,
And her arms wrapped around him
And in her hair was darkness
And in her eyes was light
And the curve of her smile
Was the curve of the moon
And her skin was ivory
Touched with magic
And the breath of life.
The hunter and his bride
Lived lives long and full
And their joy was as the moon
Riding high in the night.
And the goddess blessed them
And they lived
And loved
And laughed
For the rest of their days.
-Performed as a spoken-word story, this tale is about Menphina and a nameless hunter. Â It is often told around Valentione's day or on full-moon nights.
Once, when the world was young,
There was a hunter.
He stood tall and brave
His arm was strong
His aim was true
And his heart was just.
As he stalked his prey
In the darkness of the forest
In the stillness of the night
He came upon the Moon.
Her eyes were light
Her skin was dark
And in her smile was joy
And as she bathed
the curve of her body
Was grace
and beauty
and love.
The hunter was transfixed
His heart stolen away.
The goddess' eyes found him
In the stillness of the night.
And they saw him
And they knew him
And she was his.
"Three tasks must you complete,
Before I will forgive
This grievous crime
Of spying as I bathe."
She spoke as one enraged
but the light in her eyes
Was the light of the stars
And the moon at full
And the hunter knew her love.
The task first givenÂ
was to find the Boar King
To take from him a tusk.
The hunter was a wise man
With no dearth of courage
So he went a-hunting
With his spear and his bow
And his heart brave and true.
They fought
And Struggled
And night turned to day
And day turned to night
And man clashed with beast.
Until at last they met
With a crash so mighty
It felled the trees
And shook the very stones.
In the hunter's hand
Was a tusk, broken at the base
All ivory and gold.
Task the second was to find
A blind seer
With eyes the color of rust.
For many malms and many nights
The hunter sought this man
Here
And there
Over valley
Through dell.
Until he found him
In a shack by the sea
Surrounded by beauty
The hunter had never seen.
All of carven ivory
was the seer's home
Secrets known
And unknown
Seen
And unseen
Were held in the blind man's eyes.
The hunter stood
And with his honest heart he offered all
And the seer smiled
For he saw all that the man
Could not see.
The great tusk was carved
With a thought
And a prayer
And magic unknown.
And the hunter moved on.
The third task was to climb The Mountain
That no other man had climbed.
It reached so high
The clouds looked up
At the summit
And wondered
At the secrets there.
It was the greatest task
The hardest to fulfill
And when the hunter's heart grew heavy
He felt the touch of moonlight
And saw again
The light in her eyes
The curve of her cheek
The dark of her skin.
For love he climbed
For the sight of her
And she watched
Standing
Aloof and shining
With her mantle of stars.
At last he knelt before her.
And he said:
"My lady
My love
Every task have I completed
Every part of me
Do I offer now.
With this carving
With my hands
With my heart."
And she smiled
And it was as the moon
Cleared the clouds
And shone with glory
Upon the man.
"My lord
My love
With your hands and your heart
You have caught me.
And so I will join you
And love you
From now until the stars fall."
The hunter stood-
And she was gone
And the carving in his hands
Was gone
Leaving him with nothing.
He turned, searching,
And her arms wrapped around him
And in her hair was darkness
And in her eyes was light
And the curve of her smile
Was the curve of the moon
And her skin was ivory
Touched with magic
And the breath of life.
The hunter and his bride
Lived lives long and full
And their joy was as the moon
Riding high in the night.
And the goddess blessed them
And they lived
And loved
And laughed
For the rest of their days.
