Maca

玛咖

In the Genesis of Dongba scripture, human beings are said to be punished by Nature with deluge swallowing almost everything on earth. Only one man, for the mercy of god, is survived. Being forlorn, he enquires the god of Dongba what should he do to reproduce and is indicated to marry the goddess. Before descending to earth, the couple ties the knot in front of the god and is endowed scores of corps as wedding gift. There are, however, two things that are disallowed to carry with, one of which is “Root of Heaven” and in Naxi Dialect named “Maca”, a kind of plant intended for god. Although aware of the warning given by god, the goddess steals the plant and brings it to earth for it has an anti-aging effect. When the god of Dongba discovers it several years later, he is black as thunder. To penalize her misconduct, he casts a spell on the plant, which translates it into turnip, a common plant stripped of the magical effect.