The Sha tribe had been hostile with the Nu tribe for many generations, but no one knew how it had come about. There was a river between the two tribes, and sheep grazed on either side of the water. On one side Memetsog, a lovely girl from the Sha tribe, tended her sheep, on the other side Wendampa, a young man from the Nu tribe, brought his animals to the river. The girl and the young man saw each other every day, and it wasn't long before the two fell in love. Then Wendampa sang his love song:

"The water of the river is flowing along,

Let's make tea together

And swap bracelets with each other."

Soon they were leading their animals across the river, grazing them together, drinking tea and exchanging bracelets. Once, however, when Memetsog was washing her hands at home, her mother recognized the strange bracelet and elicited the name of her beloved. Her mother was the leader of the Sha tribe. She called her eldest son to her, gave him poisoned arrows and ordered him to kill Wendampa with them. When he refused, she sent the second eldest son, but he also refused, so she sent the youngest. Frightened, he shot the poisoned arrow at Wendampa. When Memetsog learned that her beloved was dead, she threw herself into the river in despair. But the gods took pity on the two lovers. Memetsog got turned into a tea bush and Wendampa became the salt of the Tibetan plateaus, where the Tibetans have been mining it for centuries to salt their tea. Whenever tea is drunk in Tibet, which is often, the scent of the tea bush unfolds in the salty water of the butter tea and the two lovers come together.

Märchen aus Tibet, aus: D. Jaenike, Pflanzenmärchen aus aller Welt, Mutabor Verlag, englische Fassung Lysander Jaenike © Mutabor Märchenstiftung