The Cats of Bast  

Back to South American Imports

Once upon a time in ancient Egypt there was a handsome young man by the name of Abu who was traveling by boat along the Nile to Bubastis for the festival in honor of the Egyptian cat god, Bast. As he traveled along the river he past along side a boat containing the most beautiful girl in the world. He fell in love with her at first sight and became determined to marry her.

As the two young people gazed upon one another, there came a cry from one of the other boats. "Look, a young kitten is in the water! Someone please help it, or else it will drown!" Abu without thinking dove into the water and saved the kitten’s life. However when he looked around, the young beautiful girl that he had fallen in love with was not to be seen. He comforted himself with the thought that he would find her at the festival.

When he arrived at the festival it was so crowded with people, the young man despaired of finding the girl who had captured his heart. He did not give up hope however, but looked everywhere that he could to try and find her. When the sun had begun to set he still had not seen any sign of her. With his heart heavy, he went to the temple of Bast to rest awhile. While he was at the temple, he prayed to Bast to help him find the sweet girl that he had lost his heart to.

A strange thing happened as he finished his prayers. A handsome yellow cat that was similar in likeness to the statue of Bast appeared. The cat meowed, and walked out of the temple. Abu followed the mysterious cat. Finally, after a long walk they came to a house. Abu, a little scared, knocked upon the door. The girl that he had been long looking for answered the door. To say which of the two were more surprised would be hard. It was not long after that the two of them were happily married. You can be sure that they always were kind to their many cat pets too!