Men Sugih and Men Tiwas: A Fairy Tale that Teaches Simplicity

In an ancient Balinese village, there lived two women with very different fates, Mén Sugih and Mén Tiwas. Mén Tiwas, a poor woman with two children, survived by selling firewood at the market. The money from selling firewood was only enough to buy a small amount of rice. If no one bought her firewood, Mén Tiwas and her children would face starvation because they had no other means of income. Unlike Mén Tiwas, Mén Sugih was a wealthy woman who lived in luxury. Despite her abundant riches, Mén Sugih was known for being arrogant and often looked down on the poor.

Illustration of Men Tiwas Visiting Men Tiwas' House (Source: Personal Collection)

One day, Mén Sugih visited Mén Tiwas' house and saw her children starving, having not eaten since the morning. With a sneer, Mén Sugih asked, "Mén Tiwas, why are your children starving? Why don’t you cook?" Mén Tiwas replied sadly, "What can I cook, Mén Sugih? The rice is gone, and my firewood didn’t sell. Do you want to buy my firewood?" Mén Sugih replied harshly, "I don’t want to buy firewood; it would just fill up my storage. But if you want to pick lice from my hair, I’ll give you a bit of rice." Out of desperation, Mén Tiwas agreed and began picking lice from Mén Sugih’s hair.

When she finished, Mén Sugih gave her a handful of rice as payment. However, a little while later, Mén Sugih found more lice in her hair. Furious, she went back to Mén Tiwas and said, "Mén Tiwas, what’s the matter with you? There are still lice in my hair! Return the rice I gave you!" Mén Tiwas quietly responded, "The rice has already been cooked, Mén Sugih." Mén Sugih then said, "If that's the case, return the cooked rice!" Without any mercy, Mén Sugih took back the rice that Mén Tiwas had been cooking, even taking the pot. Afterward, she took the rice back to feed her pigs. Mén Tiwas and her children could only look on sadly, unable to do anything.

Illustration of Men Tiwas Going to the Forest with Her Children (Source: Personal Collection)

The next day, Mén Tiwas and her children went to the forest to gather firewood. Armed with only an old, rusty machete, they began chopping wood. Suddenly, a white deer appeared and approached them. The deer said, "Put your hand in my rear." At first, Mén Tiwas hesitated, but since the deer kept insisting, she finally complied. When she put her hand in, gold and jewelry came out of the deer’s body. "Put it in deeper!" said the deer. When Mén Tiwas did it again, more gold and jewelry came out. Then, the deer disappeared. Mén Tiwas and her children were overjoyed and returned home with great wealth.

Illustration of Men Tiwas Meeting Kijang Sakti (Source: Personal Collection)

Upon arriving home, they cooked rice and ate with joy. The next day, Mén Sugih’s child passed by Mén Tiwas’ house and saw smoke rising from her kitchen. The child immediately told her mother, "Mother, mother, it’s so strange, Mén Tiwas is cooking now!" said Mén Sugih’s child. Mén Sugih didn’t believe it and decided to see for herself. When she arrived, she was shocked to see Mén Tiwas' children wearing gold jewelry. Angrily, she asked, "Where did you get all this? Did you steal it?" Mén Tiwas' children replied, "No, we found it in the forest with our mother." Mén Tiwas then came out and explained how she had met a white deer in the forest that had given her gold and jewelry. Hearing this, Mén Sugih became very envious and hurried home to tell her husband.

“Husband, husband, do you know that Mén Tiwas found fortune in the forest yesterday? While she was gathering firewood, she met a white deer. The deer told Mén Tiwas to put her hand in its rear. When she did, the deer released gold from its rear. Tomorrow, I want to go to the forest with our child, who knows, maybe we’ll also get lucky like Mén Tiwas.” Her husband replied, "My wife, if you want to go, go ahead, but be careful. Are you sure you will find the same fortune? Maybe it was just a coincidence. Besides, look at what we already have; do you really need to seek something uncertain?" However, Mén Sugih was determined and planned to go to the forest.

Illustration of Men Sugih Meeting Kijang Sakti (Source: Personal Collection)

The next morning, she set off with her children, bringing an old machete, following Mén Tiwas' path. Once in the forest, Mén Sugih started gathering firewood. As her machete hit the wood, suddenly a white deer appeared. The deer told Mén Sugih to put her hand in its rear. "Put your hand in my rear!" said the deer. Mén Sugih quickly did so. However, as soon as her hand was inside, her hand got stuck in the deer’s rear and could not be removed. Mén Sugih screamed for help, writhing in pain under a tree. Her children were terrified and too afraid to help. In the end, they ran home to ask their father for help. "Help, help, please help us," cried the children when they arrived home. After a while, Mén Sugih’s husband found her in agony, with her body covered in bruises and wounds. With her husband's help, she was eventually freed from the deer’s grasp, and they returned home together. All the way back, Mén Sugih groaned in pain, regretting her unfortunate fate.