A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.

Overview

A woman driven from home sweeps the ground around a cotton plant, a plantain tree and a tulasi plant, each of which blesses her. On her return the tulasi promises her husband’s affection; the plantain gives a leaf which yields fruit and other food when moved; and the cotton supplies a branch which produces cotton, silk and other fine clothing when shaken.

The three plants are grouped as the distinct donors in this journey, with each gift kept attached to its speaker. The tulasi’s religious significance is not used to invent a named goddess identity absent from Day’s account. Their speech and reward-giving belong to the folktale, rather than to the ordinary biology of those plants.

Speaking cotton, plantain and tulasi plants who reward careSpecific Bengali narrative witness
01

Origins & earliest records

Bengali oral storytelling translated by Lal Behari Day

02

Records & interpretation

Complete relevant tale, attached notes,1883 preface and1912 edition credits directly read.

Selected bibliography

Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.

  1. 01

    Folk-Tales of Bengal

    Lal Behari Day, collector and translator · 1912

    XXII, The Bald Wife, pp.269–274; first edition1883, illustrationsWarwickGoble

Family & connections

A source-supported family tree or inspiration record has not yet been compiled for this profile. Related reading below indicates a connection in subject matter, not a proven lineage or creative influence.

Primary records and illustrations

Direct primary record

Lal Behari Day, Folk-Tales of Bengal (Macmillan,1912; first edition1883)

XXII. XXII, The Bald Wife, pp.269–274

Complete tale and footnotes read, pluspreface andeditionhistory. Bengali oral informants described collectively, individual teller of this tale not identified. Original paraphrase; no source-image verification claimed.

Inspect the digitized plate · Source collection manifest

References

Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.

  1. Historical translated oral narrative and collector notesLal Behari Day, Folk-Tales of Bengal (1912), XXII, The Bald Wife, pp.269–274Research access: 2026-10-05

Image credits

A sourced illustration has not yet been added. This gap is included in the coverage record.

FT·1548 · RESEARCH EDITION 01Back to top ↑