The Legend of Bidadari Lake (Angel Lake)

There was time when the lake became such a magical place. The purity of the water was never touched by human contamination. The lake was surrounded by shade trees and that made the air was very refreshing. That magical place was very attractive for angels. They usually came down to earth and bathed in the lake and felt the fresh water. The lake then became their playground. One day the angels were bathing in the lake. They were very comfort with the surrounding and didn’t realize that there were human eyes watching. These eyes were fascinated with the beauty of the angels. Those eyes were belonged to Awang Sukma. Awang Sukma was young man who lived near the lake. He liked to collect birds when the tangerine trees were flowering. He rubbed sap in laths of bamboos. Those laths were called pulut. The pulut were put in the branched of flowers. When a bird came to the flower, the wings would stick to the pulut and the bird couldn’t get off. And because what he did, Awang Sukma was known as Datu Pulut. Awang Sukma liked to play seruling when he was waiting the birds. His playing was well-known so he also was called Datu Suling.

That day, Awang Sukma was doing his day work. He was sitting under a tree waiting for the birds. The breezy of wind was so cozy and made him sleep. He woke up by surprise when he heard sounds of people. He looked for the sounds and he found beautiful girls were bathing in the lake. Awang Sukma stood still in his place, behind big tree. Then he saw shawls were hung on a branch of tree near him. “I’ve never seen such beautiful shawls.” Awang Sukma touched a shawl with his hand. “It’s very soft too. They must be angels that villagers talked about.” Awang Sukma took that shawl and put it under his shirt.

The girls finished their bath and prepared to leave the lake. They wore their clothes on and their slaves. Suddenly one of them screamed “I can’t find my shawl. Where is it?”

“Where were you put it?” asked the other girl.

“I put here, next to my cloth” the girl said. She looked panic.

“Ok. Don’t panic. We’ll look for it.” Her friends tried to comfort her.

Awing Sukma was still standing in silence behind the big tree watching the girls looking the shawl that he took.

“We’ve looked everywhere and we can’t find it. Maybe a dear took it” one of them said.

“We have to go. It’s getting dark.”

“No, don’t leave me here.” the girl started to cry.

“But we can’t stay. I’m sorry, my sister. May gods protect you tonight.” they hold their sister. The other girls then tied their shawls in their waist and hold the tips. Then slowly they started to fly. Awang Sukma was surprise to see them flying.
After everybody left, Awang Sukma went out from his hiding and walked to the girl that left behind. “Are you, ok?” he asked softly.

“No, I’m not ok. I’m alone here. I’m lost. I can’t go home” the girl was crying.

“Don’t worry. You can stay with me.” Awang Sukma said gently, gave his charm to her”I’m a nice person. I won’t do harm to you.”

The girl then stayed with Awang Sukma. Time passed by, Awang Sukma and the angel girl had married. For these years, Awang Sukma still didn’t tell her about the shawl. He still hid the shawl in the rice barn.

But you can’t hide a bad secret forever. It will show up and eat you someday.
And that day came for Awang Sukma was when a black chicken entered his barn and made it messy. The wife took broom to scare the chicken and got rid of it. Suddenly her eyes saw something shiny in the rice. She approached it and was very surprise when she saw something that very familiar for her long time ago.

Awang Sukma entered the barn and was shock when he saw his wife was standing there holding a shawl that he hid all this time.

“It was you?” his wife asked him. She could not believe that her own husband who took her shawl. “How could you do this?” she was very disappointed with Awang Sukma.
“I’m sorry. I just… I don’t want you leave me.” Awang Sukma tried to give explanation and hoped his wife would forgive him.

“I have to go. I can’t stay here. I don’t belong here.” His wife tied the shawl to her waist and flew. She left Awang Sukma cried alone.

Since then Awang Sukma swore that he or his progeny would never keep black chicken. It was a bad luck for him. The lake that was used to bathe for angels was called Bidadari Lake or in English -Angel Lake. You can find the lake at Pematang Gadung Village, South Kalimantan.

You know, Arya Menak had the same story with Awang Sukma. They both married with beautiful angel and they also had the same destiny, being left alone when their wife found their shawl.

So let me give you advices about how to win a girl heart:

Rule number one: do not peep when they were taking a bath at the lake. That’s not polite. Just wait till they finish and then introduce your self.

Rule number two: do not steal her cloth, make her cry and then you show up as her knight, pretending like you can save her from her pain. That’s not a gentleman at all. Being her knight is good but never be the person who also gives that pain.

Rule number three: do not blame your mistake to a chicken. It’s already its nature to eat rice. You have to responsible for your own behavior. In this story, the girl left because she was disappointed to her husband for hiding her shawl not because black chicken was a sign for a bad luck.

Rule number four: if the start is good, the end will good. If the start is bad, the end will bad. You can not hide ‘dead fish forever’, sweetheart. The smell will go around someday.