The Tale of the

Faithful Wife
(Maguindanao Literature)

Once there lived in the Sultanate of

Bandiarmasir an aged man who had an
only son. They lived comfortably together
until the time came for the boy to marry.
He loved a girl from the same town before
he could make any arrangements. His
father fell ill and was soon near death. He
called his son and said: My son, never
marry a balo (widow) but a raga (young
lady).After his father died, the son made
up his mind to find the meaning of his
fathers advice and forthwith married
Raga. But he married two other women as
well, a balo and bituan em (divorced). As
all three lived harmoniously
One day, a new sultan ascended the
throne as the old one had died. This new
sultan turned loose his magnificent
rooster and then, proclaimed that
whoever touched it would be killed. When
the son heard of this decree, he was very
glad because now he had a way of testing
his fathers advice. He caught the royal
rooster and brought it home. Then he

called his three wives, showed them the

rooster and said, Kill the rooster and
cook it for my dinner. The three women
turned pale when they realized the
meaning of what he said. The balo and
the bituan immediately refused and
hurriedly left the house not wanting to be
implicated in the crime.