Once, there were three brothers who lived in a cave with their mother. But they were not happy about it.
The oldest brother asked their mother, “Why must we live in a cave?” “Everyone does!” she told him, “It is because of the Earthquake God. If we built houses, he would come and break them.”
The middle brother asked, “What if we built a house he couldn’t break?” “No one knows how we shall build it,” said the mother.
The youngest brother suggested, “Then we should try and find out.” The brothers agreed that they should build such a house, but they did not know how to build it. So, one after the other, they set off to build houses of their own.
The oldest brother built his house from stone and mortar, and thought, ‘It is as strong as a mountain!’ The middle brother built his house from wood and pegs, and thought, ‘It is as strong as a tree!’ The youngest brother built his house from bamboo and cord, and thought, ‘It is as strong as the grass!’
One day, the Earthquake God came down the mountain. He strode up to the oldest brother’s house of stone. “So!” he said, “You are trying to build a house, aren’t you?” He then stomped his feet and shouted, “O Earth! Wake up, shake up!” The earth shook and the house shook. The walls cracked and the house crumbled. The oldest brother ran to his brother’s house of wood.
But it was not long before the Earthquake God arrived. “Another one!” He stomped his feet again and the earth shook. The walls snapped and the house collapsed.
The two brothers crawled out and ran to their brother’s house of bamboo. But soon the Earthquake God arrived there too.
“Still another!” He laughed and stomped his feet. The earth shook and the house swayed. The cord strained and the bamboo wobbled, but then it sprang back straight. The Earthquake God stomped harder, but nothing he did could break the bamboo house. At last, he stomped back angrily, up the mountain.
The brothers were happy to see him go and asked the youngest brother, “Why did your house not break?”
“You tried to make your houses stronger than the Earthquake God. But I made mine weaker. Whatever bends does not break.”
And that is why, forever after, everyone in that strange land built houses of bamboo only.
