Once upon a time, there was a burly and muscular giant from the island of Socotra. That giant failed to find a bride for him on the island. Thus, he traveled all over the country to find a bride who would accept him as her lawful wedded husband, but all his attempts failed too. All the women to whom he proposed refused to marry him because of his big body and scary shape, which were why any woman refused to marry him.
After he was so desperate to find a bride for him, he returned to the island of Socotra, where he lived and worked in date palm cultivation in some parts of its valleys.
He gradually expanded his business in date palm cultivation until he had taken over territory in those areas. Whenever the islanders tried to plant palm trees, the giant threatened and prevented them from reaching those farmlands, taking advantage of their fear of his strength and big body. His speech and shouts at them were enough to make them throw up their hands in horror and run away.
It was said that the giant’s voice shook the whole island, and on his own, he could forcefully carry the trunk of a palm tree. He ate a full canteen of dates a day. Of the intensity of his love for dates and on the hottest summer days, when he felt very thirsty, he used to mash the dates with water and drink from them until that quenched his thirst.
One day, one of the islanders passed by the palm farms which the giant owned. When he saw the dates and abundant harvests on those palm farms, he asked himself, “Why does this giant have all these lands alone, and in the meantime, he prevents us from planting? There must be a way of eliminating the giant’s being a feudal lord, and only then shall we be able to take back those palm farms from him.”
He went to one of the island’s wise men, named Nabhi. He told him the story of the giant.
“You wait until the arrival of summer, and only then you have to try all your ways and means to follow the giant and watch him very carefully, without his knowledge,” Nabhi told him, adding, “You also have to watch all that he says and does and inform me all upon that.”
The man waited until the arrival of summer and began to watch the giant daily.
The man went back to the wise man, Nabhi, after a week of watching.
“I have done all that you told me. Every morning I used to see him carrying a jar of ghee filled with water on his back from the valley to his grotto,” the man said to the wise man, Nabhi, and added, “When he arrives at his grotto, he eats dates and mashes them with water. After quenching his thirst, he says, “O would that my heart was like my power!”
“You inform me by tomorrow that you get three brave men to assist you. You all carry your weapons and go to face the giant,” Nabhi told him.
“How can we face him while he is a giant and more powerful than us?” the man told him.
“Your being brave is enough to overcome him. You just do what I tell you, and you will be able to finish him!” Nabhi told him.
The next morning, the four men went to face the giant. Once he saw them attacking with weapons, he got scared, his strength dwindled, and he began to flee; however, they easily caught him and finished him. Despite his strength and big body, he was only cowardly and too cowardly; all he could do was shout and threaten. It wasn’t until later that day that the news of the giant’s death spread, and the islanders jumped for joy after taking back their lands, which he had hijacked. After that, they began planting palm trees.
