HOW TORTOISE'S SHELL BECAME ROUGH.
Once upon a time, a feast was organized for birds in the sky. Tortoise persuaded birds that he would love to go with them. Birds refused to allow Tortoise go with them because Tortoise is not a bird and he is known to be very greedy and cunning too. After much appeal from Tortoise, Birds agreed to allow him go with them. Birds contributed their feathers together and gave it to Tortoise to enable him fly like them. At the point of departure, Tortoise suggested that each of them be given a name for better identification when they get to the feast. Birds also agreed with Tortoise and Tortoise did the christening. Tortoise gave names to all the Birds and named himself “All of you”.
They {including Tortoise} flew to the sky and they got there safely. At the point when food was to be served, the host brought the food and said “This food is for all of you”.
Hearing this, Tortoise jumped at the food and claimed it was meant for him since he was the only one bearing the name. He ate the food while Birds watched in amazement, anger and annoyance. In the same manner he drank all the wines brought for them. At the end, none of the birds had anything to eat.
In annoyance, Birds agreed to collect their feathers from Tortoise. This sanction was to prevent Tortoise from flying home. They collected their feathers from Tortoise and began to leave one after the other. When the last bird was about to leave tortoise sent a message through the bird to his wife that his wife should gather foams in large number and spread the foams outside so that when he jumped from the sky, the foams will guarantee him safe landing. The last bird agreed to deliver the message. When the last bird got to tortoise’s wife, he distorted the message. He told tortoise’s wife that she should gather hard materials like stones, broken bottles, nails etc and spread them outside for her husband. The wife did as instructed. After this, a signal was sent to tortoise to jump down. Tortoise jumped, landed on the sharp objects, sustained serious injury and had his shell broken in the process. The injury left his shell with scars till today.
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