Unit 10: Malu Bhalu

Read and Enjoy

High up in an icy lair

Lived a little polar bear

Snow white, snow bright was her man

Malu Bhalu was her name.

Very soon our Malu Bhalu

Learnt the things her parents knew.

Fish to catch, big and small...

Malu was a clever girl.

Malu said to her mother one day:

Ma, I’m going far out to play.

I want to see the things that lie

There beyond the big blue sky.

A little patience, child, said Mum,

In the summer when next it comes.

Summer?... Patience?... What a test!

Malu simply could not rest.

First things first! Malu’s mum

Clasped Malu tight within her arms.

Then she said — her voice was firm

Now my dear you’ll have to swim.

But Ma! said Malu, what do I know?

How will I? I’ve never swum before!

Don’t worry dear, said Malu’s mother,

Do as I do, that’s all, she advised her.

She had no choice, no other way,

Malu had to swim that day.

Tight she gripped her mother’s hand,

Into the water splash! to land.

Brave mother’s brave young daughter!

Doubt and fear she left behind her.

Malu swam with all her might,

It didn't matter wrong or right.

But swimming came so naturally,

Her mother knew this and all could see.

Fearless was Malu, this she knew,

Not just brave, but special too.

Translated from Hindi by SANDHYA RAO

Excerpts from Malu Bhalu by Kamla Bhasin

Reading is Fun

1. Where did the polar bear live with her family?

2. What did Malu learn to do from her parents?

3. Where did Malu want to travel?

4. What was it that Malu’s parents wanted her to learn?

5. Was Malu scared to swim? Did she learn it easily?

6. Read the last two stanzas of the poem. Whom does ‘she’ stand for in both?

7. See the picture shown below and talk about it.

Use a chart

Now write a detailed character sketch of Malu Bhalu.

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Let’s Talk

Read the following passage carefully.

One day Meena plucks a mango and brings it home. Her grandmother gives the larger piece to Raju because he is a boy. Meena protests. After all, she brought the mango and she is the elder of the two. She insists she has a greater right over her share. Her father comes to her help and divides the mango equally.

Now answer the questions.

(i) Who brought the mango home?

(ii) Why did Meena’s grandmother give a larger piece to Raju?

(iii) Who do you think should have got the larger piece?

1. Using the following clues write about yourself in the space below — name, place you live in, physical features, habits, likes and dislikes etc.

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2. What are the things your mother asks you to do?

Let’s Write

3. Malu lived with Malu’s parents in the North Pole.

Malu had great fun with Malu’s seagull friends

One day, Malu’s father told Malu that the hunters had come to trap Malu and Malu’s family. Malu knew how to hide very well. Malu shut Malu’s eyes and curled up like a ball of snow.

The hunters searched for Malu and Malu’s family everywhere but in vain.

We can avoid repeating the names by using certain other words in their place. Study the table below.

Now rewrite the above paragraph using words from the above table.

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Who will be Ningthou?

A king is called a Ningthou and a queen is called a Leima in Manipuri. This is a story from Manipur about what qualities make a good ruler.

Read and Enjoy

Long, long ago, in the land of Kangleipak in Manipur, there lived a and a . They were loved dearly by the people.

The and , on their part, never stopped thinking about their , their people. “Our meeyam should be happy,” they said.

The people were not the only ones who loved their and . The birds and animals too loved them. The Ningthou and always said: “Everybody in Kangleipak should live in peace. Not only the people, but the birds, animals and trees.”

Their beloved king and queen had three sons: Sanajaoba, Sanayaima and Sanatomba.

Twelve years later, a daughter was born. She was named Sanatombi. She was a lovely child, soft and beautiful inside. She was loved by one and all.

The years went by, and the children grew up well. And then one day, the Ningthou called all his ministers and said: “It is now time to decide the , the future king.”

The ministers were shocked. “But O Ningthou, what is there to decide? Sanajaoba, your eldest son, will be our future king.”

“Well,” the Ningthou replied. “That’s how it happened in the old days. The eldest son always became the king. But times have changed. So let us select a king who is most worthy of becoming a king.”

“We will have a contest to select the future king,” the said. And so, in the land of there was a contest, a horse race. Whoever reached the , the banyan tree, first would be declared Tunggi Ningthou.

But then, a strange thing happened. Sanajaoba, Sanayaima and Sanatomba all three of them finished the race together. They were expert riders and all three reached the finish line at the same time!

There was great excitement. “Look at them!” the people shouted. “ Shagol thauba nupa, such fine horsemen!”

But one question remained: Who would be the Tunggi Ningthou.?

The Ningthou.and turned to theirsons. The Ningthou. said, “Sanajaoba, Sanayaima and Sanatomba, you have proved that you are fine horsemen. Do something different each one of you, so that we can decide who will be Tunggi Ningthou.”

Suddenly, Sanajaoba mounted his horse and held his spear straight in front of him. He looked around. There was a hush among people. “What is Sanajaoba, the eldest, going to do? They thought to themselves.

Sanajaoba then looked at the huge khongnang standing majestically in the distance. He pierced the tree and jumped his horse right through it!

“Bravo! Bravo!” The people shouted. “Thouro! Thouro!” And then they fell silent.

Now it was the turn of the second son, Sanayaima. What would he do? Sanayaima too looked at the khongnang as he mounted his horse. Then he too rode towards the tree, harder and harder. The people watched in silence, afraid even to breathe. When he was really close, he urged his horse to jump. Higher and higher the horse rose until horse and rider jumped clear over the huge tree and landed on the other side in a wonderful motion.

The people breathed in relief and said in unison: “Phajei!Phajei! Wonderful! Wonderful!

And now, it was the turn of the youngest son, Sanatomba. He, too, rode his horse towards the and, before anybody knew what was happening, uprooted it. Triumphantly he carried the tree to the and and laid it at their feet!

Shouts of Thouro!Thouro! “Phajei!Phajei!” filled the mountains.

The people grew restless. Why were the Ningthou and the Leima taking so long to make the announcement?

They craned their necks to see what was happening.

The Ningthou and Leima were watching Sanatombi, their five year-old daughter. She looked sad and lonely. She stared at the khongnanh which lay dead by the throne. Birds flapped worriedly around, searching for their homes in the tree. Sanatombi walked up to the khongnang and whispered, “The khongnanh is dead. It was hurt by the spear and now it is dead.”

The people were all attention. The Ningthou stood up. He looked at the three boys. He looked at the little girl. He turned to the people. “If anybody is worthy of becoming the ruler,” he said, “it is little Sanatombi. It was she who

told us to look at the soul of the . Sanatombi feels the pain of others. She feels the pain of the people,

the animals, the birds, the trees.”

”I declare Sanatombi the future Leima of Kangleipak,” the Ningthou said. A silence fell. Everyone turned to look at the little girl, their future queen. There she stood, all of five, like a small , with birds flying all around her. They sat on her shoulders and on her head. She held out her hands full of grain and the birds flapped about her, pecking at the food.

“A is one who doesn’t hurt anybody in the kingdom.”

INDIRA MUKHERJEE

Reading is Fun

1. Name the place in Manipur where the Ningthou and Leima ruled.

2. Why did the people of kangleipak love their king and queen?

3. Why did the want to choose a future king?

4. How did the king want to select their future king?

5. What kind of child was Sanatombi?

6. Have you ever seen an animal or a bird in pain? What did you do?

Let’s Listen and Talk

1. Where is Manipur on the map of India?

2. What language do the people of Manipur speak?

(i) Assamese

(ii) Maithailon

(iii) Mizo

3. Who do you think should have been made the future king?

1. Sanajaoba, the one who jumped through the tree.

2. Sanayaima, the one who jumped over the tree.

3. Sanatomba, the one who uprooted the tree.

Why do you think so?

Who was made the future queen and why?

Word Buliding

1. Say aloud the following names in your mother tongue.

In Manipuri

Ningthou

Leima

Meeuam

Khongnang

2. Write the meanings of the following in English.

Tunggi Ningthou- _____

Thouro! Thouro! - _____

Phajei! Phajei! - _____

Shagol thauba nupa! - _____

Fun with Sound words

Some interesting words sound like the noises for which they stand. You use a different tone of voice when you say these words. The voice becomes louder and more forceful.

For example,

Zoom! went the car.

Bang! went the door.

Pip! pop! flippety flop!

say the following and write what would make these sounds or actions.

Click! _____

Chirp! _____

Whisper! _____

Bravo! _____

Oh! _____

Ah! _____

Hurrah! _____

Alas! _____

Wonderful! _____

Hi! _____

Ho! _____

Hop away! _____

Language Use

1. Read the lesson carefully and put a circle around all the action words with -ed at the end. Then write them in one column and their present form in another. One is done for you.

2. Fill in the correct word in the blanks and complete the story.

In a forest, there _____ (live/lives/lived) a goblin named Cruel. One day, he _____ (meet/met/meets) an old man wandering in the forest. Immediately, Cruel _____ (leap/ leaps/leapt) on to the old man’s shoulders and _____ (order/ orders/ ordered) him, “Let's go. Move fast.” The frightened old man _____ (obey/obeys/ obeyed) the nasty goblin and _____ (walk/ walks/walked) on. As they ______on, (move/moves/moved) he _____ (notice/ notices/ noticed) that the goblin's feet were very tender. The old man _____ (ask/asks/ asked) Cruel, “ Sir, how are your feet so soft and tender?” Cruel _____, (reply/ replies/replied) “ I have taken a vow that I will not touch the ground with my feet, till I wash them.” They soon _____ (come/comes/ came) to a pool. The goblin _____ (instruct/ instructs/ instructed) the old man to wait for him while he ______ (enter/enters/ entered) the pool. The old man ______ (think/ thinks/ thought) to himself, “Now that the goblin has wet his feet, he does not need me. Let me run for

my life or he will surely eat me up.” So he _____ (run/runs/ran) off.

3. Make a list of the action words from this story.

Project Work

1. Sit in groups of five. Now, each student will tell a story. Decide which story was the best and declare a or of the group.

2. Find out stories about other great people’s lives and their childhood and write these in your notebook. Collect at least two such stories and share them with your friends.

You could think of famous

1. scientists

2. religious people

3. freedom fighters

4. brave children

5. astronauts

6. artists

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Notes

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