Week 3 Story: The Legend of Saint Martha
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| Martha and the Tarasque |
In the days of old, when monsters and miracles were unwavering, there was much ruin in the world. In order to stop the constant destruction, there were those who served to leave the world much better than they found it. Among those where Martha, a healer and a devout. After the event of her baptism, she set sail across the sea to share the name of the good lord, along with many others. Traveling for many days and many nights, she soon arrived in what we now know as France, settling down in Aix. There, Martha spread the gospel and acted as the local healer, treating the sick and the elderly who lived nearby.
One day, word spread throughout the town of a man-eating beast who lived in the woods nearby, somewhere between Arles and Avignon. Concerned for the townsfolk, Martha traveled along the Rhône and set out for the woods with nothing but holy water and a cross. Sure enough, she discovered a beast hidden deep in the forest, feasting on an unrecognizable man. It was similar to the fabled leviathan, though it’s body was shaped more like that of a lion’s. Unshaken, Martha crouched and snuck up to the creature, casting holy water upon its form and bearing the cross. The creature known as the Tarasque, a dragon variant, was rendered motionless and defenseless against Martha.
Binded with her girdle, the beast begged for Martha to spare its life in the promise that it would never again bring harm to mankind. Martha, patient yet resolute, agreed on the condition that the Tarasque would bend to her will. And so, she led the tamed beast back into the town, where townsfolk could ensure that they were safe. The people revered Martha and recognized her as their patron saint. Soon, she retired to the woods and made a home there. She then constructed a church for the people and lived out the rest of her life as a devout christian, praying daily and nightly, healing those who needed healing. Even after her passing, the people would say that they could see the dragon of Saint Martha guarding the church grounds.
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Author’s Note
In the original story of Saint Martha, there were a lot of details that didn’t receive much attention, which is understandable with it being a semi-historical documentation. With as many people and places mentioned in the legend, I figured it was best to cut them out due to the lack of impact in the original. Reading through the entire story of Saint Martha as well, it seemed that she continued to act as a local healer or nurse. Without the rest of the context, it didn’t make any sense to leave in the part about her saving a drowned man, so I dropped that as well. There were variations of whether or not she spared the Tarasque, so I favored her keeping it around as a sort of pet. After all, would someone as strong-willed as Martha not tame a dragon?
Bibliography: “Saint Martha” from The Golden Legend by Jacobus da Varagine (edited by F. S. Ellis). Web source.
Additional Reading:
https://catholicsaints.info/golden-legend-life-of-saint-martha/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martha
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Hi Natalie! Thanks for your positive comment on my Arachne story! I grew up Catholic, so this mythology is pretty cool to me! I love how you highlighted the bravery of Saint Martha and showed her to be the ultimate badass going up against a legit dragon. She must've been one tough woman. It's very cool that you're a senior and you want to be a writer too! Maybe we can meet up on campus sometime and find out more about what we have in common. :) Cheers, I'll be bookmarking your blog!
ReplyDelete- Cate H.
Hey Natalie,
ReplyDeleteYou came and visited my neck’o’the woods, so of course I had to come visit yours!
I liked the feel of this story; the way you elided some details while focusing on others gave it a real “story told by the fire in a bygone age” feeling. (I, at least, imagined it told by someone rather grumpy but who wants someone else to learn a lesson from or be impressed by the whole thing.) You talked about how you chose which details to include in your author’s note, and I think the choices you made worked well!
Did the dragon remain bound to Martha after she died, and continue to protect the village? Or was the dragon only bound not to harm the villagers? I think it would be interesting to explore that with a story about the dragon and it’s experience, decade after decade, bound reluctantly to this place and its protection. Obviously that’s a completely different story though…
Best,
A.M.
Natalie, I think it was a great idea to cut what you did. Sometimes when there is a lot going on you can miss what is important in a short story. I like that instead of Martha killing the beast she made it her pet! After all, the animal was just hungry. I wonder if anyone was skeptical of Martha because the townspeople did not see her stop the beast? I guess with so many magical things going on they just accepted it.
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