Once a time when even humans had large tails of various sizes, shapes and colours. Amidst the humans’ blatant mismanagement of their tails that caused accidents and discomfort, the God Kitunga, or Jagannatha, paid a visit to the Sora tribe amidst the pandemonium. As usual, the marketplace was brimming with people. As the Lord walked around, a passerby stepped on His tail, knocking Him down.

Injured as he was, he even lost two of his teeth. Lord Jagannatha slowly got up as two of His teeth fell out of His mouth. People had started to flock around Him, unable to contain their laughter. The sound of their laughter echoed in the Lord’s ears. It agitated Him so much that He plucked His tail out as He rose to His feet. He took the tail in His hands and dumped it on the ground. Soon, the tails of everyone around Him fell down as well. All the tails slithered away, with the Lord’s tail turning into a palm tree and those of the worldly beings becoming tall grass blades. The Sora tribesmen then began tying those tall grass blades into fat bundles, using them to sweep the floor. Within a few days, the peace that had prevailed before the population explosion was restored. It is for this reason that the elders say that change and evolution are the only constant.

A folk story sourced by Varleen Kaur from Gaatha.com

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