Ravi and Meera lived in a small village along the Periyar River, amidst the lush forests of Melaleuca and coconut groves of Kerala, South India. They had been married for more than ten years but still had no good news, even though they had visited many doctors, traditional healers and famous temples to pray for a child. Everyone in the village knew about their situation, some sympathized, some whispered behind their backs.

One hot and humid afternoon in the month of Bhadrapada, while Meera was watering vegetables in the small garden behind her house, a strange sound startled her. The bushes shook, and among the leaves, a green snake with a long wound on its body was writhing. Its eyes shone with a pleading look.

Meera cried out, calling Ravi to run out. At first, he was afraid and wanted to chase it away, but when he saw the snake’s strange weakness and calmness, he stopped.

– It’s in pain too, Meera. Let’s save it and release it back into the wild.

They carefully washed the wound with warm water, and applied crushed neem leaves. The snake did not resist, only panting in gratitude. Three days passed, and it recovered, its body smooth and shiny, its eyes sparkling as if containing an ancient secret. On the fourth night, they released it back into the old coconut forest, next to the small stream. Meera silently prayed for a miracle to come to her.

Strange signs in the village

The next morning, the village began to stir. Some families discovered that the ancestral altars were disturbed, the incense bowls were tilted, and some objects were moved. Behind a household’s house, on the soft ground, there were long skid marks, shaped like a giant animal crawling across.

The old man Narayan, who had been a shaman in the village for many years, looked at the traces and exclaimed:

– Snake marks… but not ordinary snakes. This… looks like the marks of naga, the legendary snake god.

The villagers shivered. That night, Ravi and Meera heard a light, strange knock on the door. They opened it, saw no one, only a basket of chicken eggs covered with green banana leaves, on top was a branch of fragrant Champaka flowers, a flower that did not grow in their village.

The mystery begins

From that night, Meera began to show signs of pregnancy. Every morning, her belly grew bigger, the doctors in the village were amazed: the fetus developed unusually healthy. The villagers called it “late blessing, precious as the snake god bestowed”.

But Ravi was even more surprised. Every night he dreamed of the snake from the past appearing in the form of a tall person, wearing traditional Kerala clothes made of green silk, eyes bright as jade, voice even:

– The favor has been repaid. But the great favor is that in the future… we must preserve the green forests and mountains.

Every night, in the dream, the snake led them through the deep forest, through ancient caves, to clear streams, showing them precious medicinal plants and endangered animals. Ravi and Meera gradually realized that this was not just a dream, but a mission.

Traditional Kerala Rituals

When Meera was seven months pregnant, the village held a “Naga Puja” ceremony at the stream where they had released the snake. The old priests recited ancient mantras, placed Champaka flowers, incense, and spring water in copper bowls. People prayed to protect the fetus and the mountains and forests around the village.

During the ritual night, Meera saw the old snake appear in the firelight, its body turned into a green light, its sparkling eyes looking straight at her. A feeling of peace filled her, as if all the surrounding energy was blessing her.

The Child’s Miraculous Future

At birth, the child had a small snake-shaped mark on his wrist, his eyes sparkling, as if he could see through the heart. The villagers believed that this was a “divine snake of blessing”, who would be attached to the mountains and forests, preserve nature, and pass on compassion. Ravi and Meera were determined to raise their child with a love of nature, tradition and gratitude, teaching him to understand the story of the miracle they had witnessed.

For everyone, the story of Ravi, Meera, the snake and the child became a living legend of the Kerala village, reminding that nature and humanity are always linked, and gratitude must be repaid with actions, not just words.