In a certain kingdom, there lived four friends. Each of them was the son of a powerful man — a prince, a minister’s son, a nobleman’s son, and the son of the chief constable.
They spent their days laughing, playing, and roaming around in merriment. None of them had any interest in studies.
Seeing their sons growing up spoiled and irresponsible, their mothers, in frustration, once served ashes on their plates instead of rice.
Hurt by this, the four friends left their homeland out of sorrow.
But they didn’t leave alone — they took with them four strong and sturdy horses from the royal stables.
Traveling far and wide, they eventually reached a deep, dense forest.
Inside the forest, the four friends wandered here and there in search of food, but there was nothing to be found.
Amidst their search, they stumbled upon the carcass of a dead deer — only the neck and head remained.
Seeing it, the prince said, “Whatever fate has given us, we’ll cook this deer meat and eat it.”
No sooner said than done, they divided the tasks among themselves to prepare the meal.
The prince would go fetch fire, and with that fire, the minister’s son would start the cooking.
The nobleman’s son would look for rice, while the constable’s son would gather all the necessary spices.
When the arrangements were made and the three of them set off in different directions, the minister’s son thought to himself,
“Let me cut the meat and get it ready. Once the others return, we’ll start cooking.”
But the moment he struck the deer with his knife, a terrifying demoness burst out from the carcass and devoured him whole — not even a bone was left behind.
Then, just like before, the deer’s head lay there as if nothing had happened.
One by one, the constable’s son and the nobleman’s son also met the same fate — swallowed by the demon disguised as a deer.
Only the prince remained. From a distance, he had witnessed the entire incident.
Without a moment’s delay, he jumped on his horse and galloped away at full speed until he reached a wood apple tree (bel tree).
There, he cried out, “If you’re a true bel tree, then split open and let me in!”
And the tree did. It split open, and the prince took shelter inside.
Soon after, the tree sealed itself again.
Meanwhile, the prince’s horse, which had been left outside, was quickly found and chewed up — bones and all — by the ravenous demoness.
But do you think the demoness’s hunger was satisfied? Not in the least.
What did she do next? She immediately transformed into a beautiful young woman and sat beneath the bel tree, wailing and sobbing pitifully.
At that very moment, a mighty emperor was passing through the jungle. Back in those days, emperors were fond of hunting — and he had come to this forest for just that reason.
But fate had other plans. Instead of hunting, the emperor himself was about to fall into the demoness’s trap.
Seeing him approach, the demoness — in her enchanting disguise — began crying dramatically and said in a trembling voice,
“Oh merciful emperor! I have no one left in this world. Once, I had a family… but an evil demoness devoured them all. Now only one brother remains — and he’s trapped inside this tree. Please, kind lord, cut open this tree and rescue my brother.”
The emperor’s heart melted at her words and beauty. In a gentle tone, he replied,
“Oh lovely one, why do you worry? I’ll cut this tree down right away and save your brother. But what will you do alone in this forest? Come with me instead — live in my palace and be my queen.”
Hearing all this from inside the bel tree, the prince was terrified.
He realized danger was near — if the emperor cut down the tree, he too would be lost to the demoness like his friends. So, thinking quickly, he whispered to the bel fruit hanging from the very top branch,
“If you are truly a fruit, will you hide me — yes or no?”
No sooner had he spoken than the bel split in two and hid the prince within itself. Then — plop! — the fruit dropped straight into the river below and floated away.
Meanwhile, the emperor chopped down the tree — but the demoness found no one inside.
Her trap had failed.
As the bel fruit floated gently downstream, it was swallowed whole by a giant boal fish. That same fish was later caught by a fisherman from none other than the emperor’s kingdom.
Back at the fisherman’s home, when his wife sat down to clean the catch, she sliced open the fish — and out came a handsome young prince, alive and well!
Startled but kind, the fisherman and his wife listened as the prince recounted everything — from the cursed deer to the devouring demoness, from the bel tree to his escape through the fruit. He didn’t leave out a single detail.
As they listened, a chilling realization dawned on them. They began to piece things together —
Yes! Ever since this new queen arrived, strange things had been happening in the kingdom. Elephants, horses, buffaloes — even people — were vanishing without a trace, day after day.
They all came up with a clever plan — the king must be warned.
But slaying a demoness isn’t so simple. Everyone knows: the life force of such creatures doesn’t dwell in their body. It’s usually hidden far away — in a bee, a bird, or something else entirely. Surely, her soul was safely kept somewhere in her own enchanted realm.
Without capturing that, nothing would work.
So, the prince disguised himself as a foreign traveler and appeared before the king. With a deep bow, he said,
“Your Majesty! I come from the land of Kohkaf — the queen’s homeland. Please let her know that I am here. If she wishes to send any message or news back home, I shall deliver it.”
The queen — the demoness in disguise — was delighted to hear this.
“Oh, wonderful!” she exclaimed. “Please ask the traveler from Kohkaf to collect my favorite bird from my sister. I must send it home.”
Hearing this, the prince immediately understood — Ah! So that’s where her life is hidden — inside the bird!
When the prince arrived at the home of the demoness’s sister, a younger demoness, and asked for the bird, she wasn’t so easily convinced. She gave him a test:
“If my sister truly sent you,
Then prove it — chew this iron stew!
Let’s see how strong your body is,
Or if you’re hiding illness or weakness!”
The prince had come well-prepared, fully aware of the customs and cunning of the rakshasas. He knew all about this iron pulse challenge — it was a traditional test for any newcomer in their realm, meant to measure one’s strength and endurance.
So, anticipating this trial, the prince had brought along some of his own cooked lentils, cleverly disguised. While the younger demoness wasn’t watching too closely, he swiftly discarded the iron-hard pulses and began to eat his own.
Fooled by the trick, the younger demoness suspected nothing.
Satisfied, she handed over the prized bird — the very creature that held the life-force of the demon queen, now living as the king’s wife.
At last, the prince had it.
He now held in his hands the fragile soul of the monster who had devoured his friends and bewitched the king.
Afterward, without wasting any time, the prince went straight to the king and revealed everything. The king, eager for proof, was shown the bird in the cage. One by one, the prince began tearing off the bird’s legs and wings. Meanwhile, the demon queen was in a dreadful state, crawling on the ground and begging for mercy.
By showing this proof, the prince freed his three friends from the demoness’s belly. Following the king’s orders, he then killed the deceitful and wicked demoness. Despite everything, the prince still felt sorrow for his own kingdom. So, he chose to stay in the foreign king’s kingdom, and his three friends — the vizier’s son, the minister’s son, and the kotwal’s son — all found good positions in the king’s court.
They all lived happily and peacefully under the new king’s rule. One day, the king realized that it was time to marry off his adopted son, but he wondered who would find the bride for him.
The king sent out news across the land and abroad, searching for a bride for his son. He even provided a description of the type of bride he desired. The prince showed his friend, the vizier’s son, a whole piece of cloth and said:
“The girl should have this hue of cloth,
With hair as black as the streaks within.”
The vizier’s son immediately set out, carrying the cloth with him, traveling from one kingdom to another. The bride must be as red as the cloth, and her hair must be as black as the dark streaks within the cloth. If the vizier’s son could give his life for his friend, surely he could find a bride for him? After searching many lands and finding no sign of such a girl, he grew sad and sat by an unknown riverbank.
While sitting there, his eyes caught sight of something floating in the river’s waves—a red color. He initially thought it was blood. Curious, he asked the local villagers, “Why is the river water so red?”
The villagers replied:
“Upstream lies a land called Sonapur,
Where lives the girl with the red complexion.
When the red of her body floats down,
It turns the river into a flood of red.”
Hearing this, the vizier’s son didn’t waste any more time. He immediately set off with his friend to Sonapur. There, the prince met the red-complexioned girl. Back at the king’s palace, preparations for the wedding were in full swing. There was excitement everywhere as the king’s new adopted son was about to marry!
The wedding took place splendidly. On the night of the wedding, the vizier’s son, the prince’s trusted friend, was on guard outside the room. The night had grown late, and he sat there, lost in thought, reflecting on old memories. It was then that he heard voices coming from a nearby tree. Two bengma-bengmas were talking. As the saying goes, bengma-bengmas are said to know the future beforehand. Curious, the vizier’s son sat quietly and listened carefully to their conversation.
Bengma: Wow, what a fun day! Today is the prince’s wedding. And the bride, she’s so beautiful—exactly like the red-complexioned girl.
Bengma: What’s so special about it? Today, the prince’s life will end at the hands of a python. That’s what fate has written for him.
Bengmi: Oh no! What can be done then?
Bengma: What can be done? There’s nothing that can prevent it.
Bengmi: But tell me anyway.
Bengma: Well, listen carefully. If a trusted friend waits for the exact time, at 2 a.m., on the broken temple grounds, and when the snake emerges, if he kills it with a single stroke of his sword, and the prince does not see the blood—then he will be saved.
Bengmi: What will happen if the blood is seen?
Bengma: If the blood is seen by the prince, he will die. And if the friend who knows about this tells anyone, he will turn to stone immediately.
Bengmi: Oh, poor thing! How will he escape being turned to stone?
Bengma: That is the great sorrow. The only way to break free from this curse is for the first grandchild’s blood to be smeared on him.
Bengmi: Oh no! Will that child never live again?
Bengma: It will be very hard for him to survive. But there’s one way…
There’s a magical well hidden in the Kohkaf mountains. If you throw three stones into it, one by one, a smoke screen will rise, and from it, a baby bird of the King of Birds will appear. Riding on that bird, one can travel to the land of fairies. If the water from that well is sprinkled on the prince’s grandson, he will surely be saved.
That is the only way.
After hearing this, the Minister’s son trembles with fear. Saving his friend is his responsibility, so despite his fear, he goes to the temple grounds at exactly 2 a.m. When the python strikes, he kills it with one blow. The python was so long that, as he cut it into pieces, its body ends up in the prince’s bridal chamber. The Minister’s son cleans up all the blood, but when he looks up, he sees a drop of blood has splattered onto the bride’s red-complexioned skin. After a few moments of confusion, unable to find a solution, the Minister’s son, in desperation, goes to wipe the blood with his tongue. The prince suddenly wakes up.
Seeing his friend’s actions, the prince scolds him immediately.
“Is it really you, my friend Ujirputra? If you wanted the red-complexioned girl so badly, why didn’t you marry her yourself?”
At these words from his friend, Ujirputra is so embarrassed that he can’t even lift his eyes from the ground. He is then taken to the king’s court. The king has great trust in these four friends and gives Ujirputra the opportunity to explain himself, or else he will be put to death. Left with no other choice, Ujirputra begins to tell the whole story. As he tells the mysterious tale, his body starts turning to stone.
One by one, his body turns to stone until only his neck remains. At that moment, the king’s son, frightened, says,
“Friend, forgive me. I made a great mistake by not trusting you. How can I ever get you back? Please tell me how!”
Afterward, Ujirputra tells the entire conversation he overheard between the two Bengali women. He explains how the king’s grandson’s blood could be used to save him and how the magical water from the Kohkaf city well could bring the child back to life. As he finishes telling the story, Ujirputra turns completely to stone. In the king’s court, there remains only a handsome stone statue. The king’s son would daily look at the statue and shed tears, blaming himself for what had happened.
Time passed, and soon the king’s house was filled with joy as a beautiful grandson was born. Before the child grew up, Ujirputra’s debt was repaid by anointing the stone statue with the blood of the child.
When the prince’s friend returned, he said:
“I shall now go to Kohkaf city,
To find the magical well and bring back its water.”
With these words, he rode off swiftly to Kohkaf, where he collected the magical water and returned. The child revived, and from then on, there were no more problems in the kingdom. The prince’s life with the red-complexioned girl was happy, and his three friends visited occasionally to play with the child. However, none of them ever returned to their original homes, and no news of them was ever found.