In the village of Kalitala, the goddess Bon Bibi, also called Bondevi, Bandurga, and Byaghradevi, is worshipped by both Hindu and Muslim residents of the Sundarbans. Honey collectors and woodcutters pray to her for protection against tigers before entering the forest.

 

The legend of Bon Bibi is alive in the collective psyche of the community.  According to the legend, the forest was once ruled by a powerful spirit, Dokkhin Rai, the King of the South. Everyone lived in fear of him, worried they might become his prey. One day, Bon Bibi, the Mistress of the Forest, and her brother, Shah Jongoli, arrived. Dokkhin Rai disliked their presence and sent ghosts and spirits to scare them away, but all were defeated.

 

Confident in his strength, Dokkhin Rai decided to fight them himself. But Bon Bibi and Shah Jongoli stood strong and defeated him. Bon Bibi then drew a boundary between the forest and human land. Dokkhin Rai was confined to the southern forest and was forbidden from crossing into human territory. This brought peace to the Sundarbans.

 

In a nearby village lived two brothers, Dhona and Mona. Dhona was greedy and wanted more wealth, while Mona was happy with what he had. Dhona planned to gather honey, wax, and timber from the forest. Mona refused to join him but helped find sailors for Dhona’s seven boats. He found six, so Dhona asked their poor cousin, Dukhey, to join. Dukhey, hoping to support his mother, agreed despite her warnings about Dhona’s cruelty. She told him to pray to Bon Bibi and Shah Jongoli for protection.

 

The journey began, and after crossing many rivers, Dhona and his crew entered the forest, leaving Dukhey on the boat. They unknowingly crossed into Dokkhin Rai’s territory. Angry, Dokkhin Rai created fake honeycombs to trick the sailors, but they were empty.

 

Dokkhin Rai demanded Dukhey’s life in exchange for the forest’s resources. Dhona begged him to take someone else, but Dokkhin Rai refused. Dhona abandoned Dukhey at Kedokhali as a sacrifice and left. Terrified, Dukhey prayed to Bon Bibi for help. She and Shah Jongoli arrived to save him. Shah Jongoli captured Dokkhin Rai and brought him to Bon Bibi. Dokkhin Rai begged for forgiveness and promised to serve her. Bon Bibi forgave him but forbade him from harming humans again.

 

Meanwhile, Dhona returned to his village with the wealth. People praised him, but Dukhey’s mother confronted him. Dhona lied, saying a tiger had taken Dukhey. The mother cried, embarrassing Dhona. To silence her, he offered her wealth, but she only wanted her son. Her cries reached Bon Bibi, who sent Dukhey back to his mother with wealth from Dokkhin Rai. Dukhey returned on Bon Bibi’s crocodile, found his weak mother, and woke her. They embraced with joy.

 

Dhona kept his promise and married Dukhey. With Bon Bibi’s blessings, Dukhey lived happily and always honored her.

 

Reference:

 

(Ghosh and Toor 2021, 6 to 36)

Biswas, Sneha, and Sunil Nautiyal. 2020. Livelihood and Social Capital in Vulnerable Ecosystems: A Case Study from Indian Sundarbans. https://www.isec.ac.in/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/WP-496-Sneha_Biswas-and-Sunil-Nautiyal-Final.pdf.

Dewan, Camelia. 2021. Misreading The Bengal Delta. https://library.oapen.org/viewer/web/viewer.html?file=/bitstream/handle/20.500.12657/50931/9780295749624.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y.

Ghosh, Amitav, and Salman Toor. 2021. Jungle Nama: A Story of the Sundarban. Noida, Uttar Pradesh: Fourth Estate India.

Nishat, Bushra, AJM Z. Rahman, and Sakib Mahmud,. 2019. “Landscape Narrative of the Sundarban: Towards Collaborative Management by Bangladesh and India.”