Muzo Emeralds
In Colombia, the Muíscas were the pre-Hispanic society that had more contact with emeralds. They thought, as did different natives from all over the continent, that the world was divided into three: upperworld, underworld, and the middle world, where humans are.
The Legend of Fura and Tena
Next, I will describe a legend that has some real basis, such as the existence of emeralds. A somewhat fantastic story about the origins of humanity was established around these emeralds. Alluding to the creation and existence of Adam and Eve but with an indigenous version.
Very lonely lived an indigenous God whose name was Are, he felt dejected and one day decided to create those who would be his children, because he could not bear the idea of eternal solitude in a dream paradise.
Observing some neglected reeds he took one of these and created a very beautiful figure that he called Fura (woman) and with another bigger reed he created Tena (man).
After their birth, the great God Are threw Fura and Tena into a river for purification and it was there that they came to life. Fura and Tena met from the first moment they were created and they observed each other. And the God Are, upon seeing their masterpiece, felt satisfied and smiled as those characters held hands for the first time.
After this he gave birth to the sun, the moon and the stars with the idea that they would forever enjoy a magnificent place to live. Fura and Tena lived happily for centuries. They dedicated themselves to preparing the world of the Muzos.
Fura was a woman with long jet-colored hair, with small waves covering her breasts. Her large eyes reflected the innocence of her soul. Her body was thin and slightly yellow.
Tena, on the other hand, had a wide back and large shoulders. His long hair was like a braid. And he always held a spear with which he felt protected.
Are gave these characters the virtue of living in eternal youth, with the only condition of always respecting the principle of fidelity, which was very important for its creator. A pact that for no reason should be broken because otherwise it would bring old age, ugliness and unhappiness.
For a long time Fura and Tena lived in a tropical paradise located in the Muzo Mountains region of Colombia.
To tell the truth, their lives were monotonous but their functions were well defined. Fura weaved beautiful blankets that she used as clothes, brushed her long hair almost daily and dedicated herself to the home.
Tena enjoyed hunting animals and cultivating the land to take what was produced and share it with Fura. They both thought that good coexistence was important. They understood and tolerated each other. They came to procreate a son whom they called Itoco.
One day a strident noise awoke Fura who dressed in one of her beautiful clothes and went out to explore. Behind some bushes and near a river another human being kept water in a canteen while he carefully washed his face. It was the first time that the beautiful Fura saw another person and this made her feel excited and curious.
The stranger was much taller than her husband. He wore a different attire, blond beard and short hair.
Zarbi was somewhat surprised when he saw Fura, because for him it was something strange that within this new world he should find someone so particular and above all with charming features. It only took a second for him to engrave the wild beauty of that young woman with long black hair.
Fura, who had the ability to speak any language, began to ask the stranger why he was visiting. He told him his name was Zarbi and he had the mission of finding a magic flower and knowing its healing properties. With a smile he expressed that in a dream he had been destined to find the flower.
He told Fura that it was a flower with quite particular colors and showed him a sketch of this flower.
Meanwhile Tena was shouting Fura's name because he couldn't see her anywhere. So she told Zarbi to meet the next day at the same place at sunset. I will help you find that flower, Fura said sweetly.
Fura started running to meet Tena and noticed something she had never felt before and it was an enormous curiosity for this new being.
The next day Fura went to the nearest river and submerged for a long time while a strange sensation invaded her. On the one hand she felt a strong empathy towards this stranger, but at the same time she experienced a feeling of guilt.
Throughout the day Fura looked at the sun and did not stop thinking about that character with a blonde beard and different clothes.
When Fura met her husband she was very upset that Tena was staring at her, and for some strange reason the beautiful young woman did not want her husband's company.
- You look so beautiful, my dear wife.
- Thank you husband, but I would appreciate it if you would leave me alone.
Tena scratched his head thinking of those words and actually felt his partner was different. He thought she was getting dressed up more carefully than usual.
Fura counted the time and smiled while she was alone. Now her heart was beating fast. So as she walked through the mountains of Muzo she felt infinite joy. Fura shouted to the man as she walked!
- I've been waiting for you, said Zarbi.
- I, too, replied Fura and her smile became inevitable.
Zarbi was happy to be able to talk to someone like Fura, as she taught him about the characteristics of plants, their colors and uses. The flower Zarbi was looking for was unique. Not many have found it, because it is said that it is revealed only to those who have a good heart.
Fura and Zarbi started seeing each other at the same time and in the same place because they believed that if they moved, the mystical flower would never appear.
One day while they were walking, Zarbi took the young woman and hugged her so much that she didn't want to leave. Their minds went to unimaginable places and their hearts became one. From that moment on Fura's love went entirely to Zarbi.
But every story has two parts, and Zarbi had a wife and two daughters from a marriage arranged by his parents. He knew that his wife had a lover and although he was a man of his word he could not resist the jet-haired young woman.
One day when Fura was taking one of her baths she noticed something strange that caught her attention. Her appearance had changed and her long hair now carried white threads.
So she grabbed her hair and hid it under her dress. Now she felt more tired, sometimes her hands and legs hurt, and she had the feeling that something in her body was changing. That same night Tena tried to get close to her but the only thing he received from Fura was rejections.
- You no longer fulfill as a wife, do you no longer love me? Tena said with some bitterness.
- I've never loved you, Fura angrily said while trying to sleep.
- You've changed, you've never been so cruel, Tena said.
- Life itself has shown me that love exists...
And it was with that comment that Tena felt for the first time a warmth inside his chest, as if it was going to explode from an inexplicable rage.
He then decided to follow his wife and find out what had changed her. One day Tena told Fura that he would leave the house and get home late. But he actually hid in the top of a big tree.
Tena fell asleep, but the sound of the birds suddenly woke him up, and it was at that moment that he saw his wife in the arms of a stranger.
Tena thought of defending his own and enlisted his great spear. In this way Fura would be his alone again. There was a confrontation, the first and the most tragic. But in the end, Tena decided to hurt himself because he could not stand Fura's infidelity.
Fura realized her mistake and the remorse made her abandon Zarbi and return to her husband Tena, but it was too late as Tena was already immobile.
She grabbed her husband's lifeless body and held him in her arms for eight days while crying without comfort. Every tear that came out of Fura was transformed into an emerald.
Zarbi asked for forgiveness and pleaded Are to help Fura. But the god Are, disappointed by the infidelity, transformed this couple into two big rocks.
From the bowels of Zarbi, the great god gave rise to a great waterfall that passes exactly in the middle of the two rocks. This is how the mountains Fura and Tena emerged, which are now known by the same names. This is where the largest emerald deposits are found.
Originally Post " Fura y Tena: El Origen de las las Esmeraldas más Bellas del Mundo″
Translated by Oscar Moreno
