Black Horse

Raja Rasalu and the Giants

In short: A mother in Nila is preparing bread for the giants when she meets Rasalu. He decides to go in place of her surviving son.

Raja Rasalu and the Giants · Facing the giants FAIRY TALE ATLAS · № 84 Raja Rasalu and the Giants A mother in Nila is preparing bread for the giants when she meets Rasalu. Origin Punjabi oral tradition. The Gandgarh hills in this episode are in present-day Pakistan. Atlas record 1894 First appearance Exact date unknown SIGNATURE MOTIF Facing the giants Reach¹ 1/10 Suggested age² 8+ Member rating No votes yet 1 records · 1 countries or regions blackhorsestories.com

¹ Based on the number of Atlas countries, capped at 10. ² Editorial suggestion for reading this page. Discover Black Horse’s question

Origin and tradition

Punjabi oral tradition. The Gandgarh hills in this episode are in present-day Pakistan.

In Steel’s text the giants demand a young man, a buffalo and a basket of bread each day. Rasalu takes the bread and the buffalo and goes to face them. Near the end of the episode, seven giants line up iron baking plates to shield themselves. Bread first gives the reader a way into one family’s fears, then shapes the giants’ defence.

Dated records and sources

  1. 1894 · Attock area, Pakistan
    Flora Annie Steel · Tales of the Punjab · Published collection

Country pages

Origin
Black Horse. Raja Rasalu and the Giants. https://blackhorsestories.com/en/atlas-tale-raja-rasalu/