Once Upon A Time | Μία Φορά Κι Έναν Καιρό

Lightning, Thunder And Rain

This is the Cambodian myth of how lightning, thunder and rain came into existence.

Lok Ta, a wise monk, had three promising students. Moni Mekhala, the queen of the seas, Ream Eyso, a demon of lambent fire, and Vorrachun, an earthly prince. He wished to bestow a gift upon the most worthy of them, and to figure out who that was, decided to put them to a test.

He asked them each to take an urn and fill it with morning dew. Whoever succeeded would be rewarded. Ream Eyso and Vorrachun rushed into the woods, but Mekhala was more patient, moving at a slow pace. The two other students made their way through the woods, not leaving one leaf unturned. At the break of dawn, each had a full urn, and so they made their way back. Once they arrived before their teacher, they saw Mekhala already there, with a full glass of morning dew. The nymph explained that she had let her veils out all night, and simply wrung them out over the urn.

Lok Ta was impressed by his student's inventiveness, but since all of his students, in one way or another, had completed the task, he decided to give a gift to each of them. With a wave of his staff, he turned Vorrachun's urn into a shimmering dagger. Ream Eyso's urn was replaced by a diamond axe, but the most beautiful gift, he gave to Moni Mekhala. He turned the morning dew she had so cleverly collected into a sparkling crystal sphere, unlike anything they had ever seen.

Satisfied, the three students thanked Lok Ta and went off with their gifts in hand. But soon, Ream Eyso grew envious of Mekhala and her prize, deciding he must have it. With his diamond axe in hand, he took to the skies in pursuit of the goddess.

Vorrachun stood in his way, his conscience telling him to stop the demon. The righteous prince stood his ground firmly, but was quickly struck in the heat of battle. He gracefully descended towards the ground and landed in a field. Ream Eyso, certain he was dead, returned to his menacing pursuit.

He found the goddess resting among the clouds. As soon as she saw him, she took to the skies, hoping to drive him away from her friends. As soon as they were at a safe distance from them, Mekhala came to a halt and turned around to confront her pursuer.

Ream Eyso swung his diamond axe, but before he had the chance to do anything, she threw her sphere into the sky. As it ascended, it released bolts of lightning, blinding the crazed demon. He threw his diamond axe in despair and as it flew, it swiftly cut clouds in half, releasing claps of thunder. Once the two, lightning and thunder, collided, small droplets of water fell from the skies; rain.

Lightning, thunder and rain danced around the land. Some droplets fell on Vorrachun, reviving him. As the prince of the earth rose, his skin was blinding gold, just like a rice field before harvest.

Blind, weaponless and weak, Ream Eyso collapsed. Moni Mekhala found him and wondered what she should do to him. Remembering her wise teacher, she chose compassion. She swiftly healed his wounds and flew off into the skies.

Once he recovered fully, he retrieved his axe and rose once again, going after her. Vorrachun, stronger and fully healed grabbed his magic dagger and took to the skies, in search of Ream Eyso and Moni Mekhala.