The Papoo Fish is a cherished folktale from the Limbu community that tells a story rich in tradition, family, and the intrinsic connection between humans and nature. In this tale, two grandsons, Papohang and Changwahang, plot to get rid of their grandmothers by throwing them into the river Tamor. Papohang's grandmother pleads for help, but ultimately, Papohang throws an artificial grandmother made of banana tree stems into the river, while the real grandmother is thrown by Changwahang downstream in secret.
Papohang's grandmother, struggling in the river, is carried far downstream. When Papohang later returns home, he realizes he was tricked by Changwahang, who had thrown a fake grandmother that floated easily on the water. One night, Papohang dreams that his grandmother reveals she was carried by the river to the Koshi River, where she has been reborn as the Papoo fish, known in Limbu as "Limbuni boju machha." She tells him that she carries the ancient spirit of their ancestors and asks his clan to recognize her as Papogna, the ancestral fish.
She warns Papohang that no descendant of his should ever eat the Papoo fish, as doing so would make her unhappy and bring curses upon them — possibly leading to having disabled children or no children at all. To this day, the Limbu community honors this belief and refrains from eating the Papoo fish, regarding it as their grandmother reincarnate and a sacred symbol of their lineage.
Symbolically, the river in this story represents death, where the grandmother was abandoned and left to perish, but through her transformation into the Papoo fish, the tale conveys that the human spirit can take the form of animals, embodying ancestral essence and spiritual continuity. The fish’s distinctive silver braided back is said to represent the grandmother’s long gray braided hair.
The story of the Papoo fish encapsulates the Limbu people's belief in reincarnation, respect for ancestors, and the deep relationship between humans and nature. It serves as a cautionary tale promoting respect towards elders and the natural world, while reinforcing the value of ancestral spirits living on in various forms in nature.
This folktale continues to be a vital component of the Limbu oral tradition, passing from one generation to the next, and reminding the community of their cultural roots, values, and the importance of harmony with nature through vivid storytelling.