Fisherman Who Rose Too High

Once upon a time there was an old fisherman. Every morning he would go down to the river and sit there fishing the whole day long. In the evening he would sell whatever he had caught, buy food for himself and go home. One hot afternoon, a large bird with silvery feathers alighted on a rock near him.

It was Kaha, the heavenly bird. The bird said that he does not need to work that hard. "From now on I'll bring you a big fish every evening. Sell it and live in comfort."

The bird began to drop a large fish at his doorstep every evening. The fisherman had to take it to the market and sell it. As big fish were in great demand, he was soon rolling in money.

He bought a cottage near the sea, with a garden around it and engaged a servant to cook for him. His wife had died some years earlier. Now he decided to marry again and began to look for a suitable woman.

One day he heard that the royal king wanted to catch the Kaha bird and would reward the informer with lots of gold.

The fisherman was tempted by the reward. He told the king that he would get him the bird. In the evening when the bird got the fish, the fisherman invited her to come inside the house and have the feast that he had laid out for her. As soon as the bird landed, the fisherman grabbed her legs. But the bird started flying with all her energy. She rose into the air with the fisherman clinging to her legs. The fisherman knew that he was too high in air to let go. Neither of them were seen again.