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Bibi - A folk story

Location: B.Dharavandhoo and Ha.Kelaa, Maldives

Time: Unknown

People involved: Unknown

Information: Received from locals


Bibi was a woman who is known for her bravery and love for her children.

She was a young lady when she married to a person from Ha.Kelaa and got her first child. The marriage didn't last longer and she moved to B.Dharavandhoo once they got divorced. She married a local of the island and settled on the south west side of the island. Years passed and she became a mother of 40 children. Some say that not all of those children were hers.

One day, during the salah time of hukuru namaz, an old man named Eydhafushi Bodu Mohamedbe visited bibi. He asked her about the 40 fosha (clothes) she hanged to dry and who they belonged to. He also inquired about the children and asked if they were healthy and if anyone passed away.

Few days after the strange encounter, her children started getting sick one after the other. And some even passed away. During this time, Bibi was informed that her first son at Kelaa was sick and in critical condition. She decided to bring her child to the island she was living and asked for help from several people. However, nobody agreed to help her, so she started her journey to Kelaa herself. She traveled to a nearby island named 'Dhafanu' to see whether she could get any volunteers to help her. Sadly, nobody volunteered. Then she traveled to Kihaadhoo and luckily she got 2 volunteers to help her with her voyage.

She reached Kelaa and was finally able to get to her child. She started her journey back to Dharavandhoo with her son and the volunteers. By the time they reached shaviyani atoll, her son died. They didn't even reach half way through their journey. Few days later, the body rotted and an awful smell came. She stops at a nearby island and take Dhon kashikeyo (ripe fruit of screw pine tree) to neutralize the bad smell. After days of travel she reaches to Dharavandhoo and buried her son.

While she was away, more of her children passed away. Eventually, all of them passed away. The tombstones of her children was said to be found for many years and a ziyaarai (a tomb) was made for her at the island. It was later demolished and the area was used for other purposes.


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