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Tales Of The Punjab

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Then the king called his queen, and gave the jewel into her custody,
with many instructions for its safe keeping, for, said he, there was
not its like in the whole world. The queen, determined to be careful,
wrapped it in cotton-wool, and put it away in an empty chest, locking
the chest with double locks.

So there the ruby snake-stone lay for twelve long years. At the end
of that time the king sent for his queen, and said,' Bring me the
ruby; I wish to satisfy myself that it is safe,'

The queen took her keys, and going to her room, opened the chest, and,
lo! the ruby was gone, and in its place was a handsome stripling! She
shut down the box again in a great hurry, and thought and thought what
she had better do to break the news to the king.

Now as she thought, the king became impatient, and sent a servant to
ask what the delay was. Then the queen bade the servant carry the box
to the audience chamber, and going thither with her keys, she unlocked
the chest before the king.

Out stepped the handsome stripling, to everybody's astonishment.

'Who are you?' quoth the king, 'and where is my jewel?'

'I am Ruby Prince' returned the boy; 'more than that you cannot know.'

Then the king was angry, and drove him from the palace, but, being a
just man, he first gave the boy a horse and arms, so that he might
fight his way in the world.

Now, as Prince Ruby journeyed on his steed, he came to the outskirts
of the town, and saw an old woman making bread, and as she mixed the
flour she laughed, and as she kneaded it she cried.

'Why do you laugh and cry, mother?' quoth Prince Ruby.

'Because my son must die to-day.' returned the woman.' There is an
ogre in this town, which every day eats a young man. It is my son's
turn to provide the dinner, and that is why I weep.'

Then Prince Ruby laughed at her fears, and said he would kill the ogre
and set the town free; only the old woman must let him sleep a while
in her house, and promise to wake him when the time came to go forth
and meet the ogre.

'What good will that do to me?' quoth the old woman; 'you will only be
killed, and then my son will have to go to-morrow. Sleep on,
stranger, if you will, but I will not wake you!'

Then Prince Ruby laughed again. 'It is of no use, mother!' he said,
'fight the ogre I will; and as you will not wake me I must even go to
the place of meeting and sleep there.'

So he rode off on his steed beyond the gates of the city, and, tying
his horse to a tree he lay down to sleep peacefully. By and by the
ogre came for its dinner, but hearing no noise, and seeing no one, it
thought the townspeople had failed in their bargain, and prepared to
revenge itself. But Ruby Prince jumped up, refreshed by slumber, and
falling on the ogre, cut off its head and hands in a trice. These he
stuck on the gate of the town, and returning to the old woman's house,
told her he had killed the ogre, and lay down to sleep again.

Now when the townspeople saw the ogre's head and hands peering over
the city gate, they thought the dreadful creature had come to revenge
itself for some slight. Therefore they ran to the king in a great
fright, and he, thinking the old woman, whose son was to have formed
the ogre's dinner, must have played some trick, went with his officers
to the place where she lived, and found her laughing and singing.

'Why do you laugh?' he asked sternly.

'I laugh because the ogre is killed!' she replied, 'and because the
prince who killed it is sleeping in my house.'

Great was the astonishment at these words, yet, sure enough, when they
came to examine more closely, they saw that the ogre's head and hands
were those of a dead thing.

Then the king said, 'Show me this valiant prince who sleeps so
soundly.'

And when he saw the handsome young stripling, he recognised him as the
lad whom he had driven from the palace. Then he turned to his prime
minister, and said, 'What reward should this youth have?'

And the prime minister answered at once, 'Your daughter in marriage,
and half your kingdom, is not too high a reward for the service he has
rendered!'

So Ruby Prince was married in great state to the king's fair daughter,
and half the kingdom was given him to rule.

But the young bride, much as she loved her gallant husband, was vexed
because she knew not who he was, and because the other women in the
palace twitted her with having married a stranger, a man come from
No-man's-land, whom none called brother.

So, day after day, she would ask her husband to tell her who he was
and whence he came, and every day Ruby Prince would reply, 'Dear
heart, ask me anything but that; for that you must not know!'

Yet still the princess begged, and prayed, and wept, and coaxed, until
one day, when they were standing by the river side, she whispered, 'If
you love me, tell me of what race you are!'

Now Ruby Prince's foot touched the water as he replied, 'Dear heart,
anything but that; for that you must not know!'

Still the princess, imagining she saw signs of yielding in his face,
said again, 'If you love me, tell me of what race you are!'

Then Ruby Prince stood knee-deep in the water, and his face was sad as
he replied, 'Dear heart, anything but that; for that you must not
know!'

Once again the wilful bride put her question, and Ruby Prince was
waist-deep in the stream.

'Dear heart, anything but that!'

'Tell me! tell me!' cried the princess, and, lo! as she spoke, a
jewelled snake with a golden crown and ruby star reared itself from
the water, and with a sorrowful look towards her, disappeared beneath
the wave.

Then the princess went home and wept bitterly, cursing her own
curiosity, which had driven away her handsome, gallant young husband.
She offered a reward of a bushel of gold to any one who would bring
her any information about him; yet day after day passed, and still no
news came, so that the princess grew pale with weeping salt tears. At
last a dancing-woman, one of those who attend the women's festivals,
came to the princess, and said, 'Last night I saw a strange thing.
When I was out gathering sticks, I lay down to rest under a tree, and
fell asleep. When I awoke it was light, neither daylight nor
moonlight; and while I wondered, a sweeper came out from a snake-hole
at the foot of the tree, and swept the ground with his broom; then
followed a water-carrier, who sprinkled the ground with water; and
after that two carpet-bearers, who spread costly rugs, and then
disappeared. Even as I wondered what these preparations meant, a
noise of music fell upon my ear, and from the snake-hole came forth a
goodly procession of young men, glittering with jewels, and one in the
midst, who seemed to be the king. Then, while the musicians played,
one by one the young men rose and danced before the king. But one,
who wore a red star on his forehead, danced but ill, and looked pale
and wan. That is all I have to say.'

So the next night the princess went with the dancing-girl to the tree,
where, hiding themselves behind the trunk, they waited to see what
might happen.

Sure enough, after a while it became light that was neither sunlight
nor moonlight; then the sweeper came forth and swept the ground, the
water-carrier sprinkled it, the carpet-bearers placed the rugs, and
last of all, to the sound of music the glittering procession swept
out. How the princess's heart beat when, in the young prince with the
red star, she recognised her dearest husband; and how it ached when
she saw how pale he was, and how little he seemed to care to dance.

Then, when all had performed before the king, the light went out, and
the princess crept home. Every night she would go to the tree and
watch; but all day she would weep, because she seemed no nearer
getting back her lover.

At last, one day, the dancing-girl said to her, 'O princess, I have
hit upon a plan. The Snake-king is passionately fond of dancing, and
yet it is only men who dance before him. Now, if a woman were to do
so, who knows but he might be so pleased that he would grant her
anything she asked? Let me try!'

'Nay,' replied the princess, 'I will learn of you and try myself.'

So the princess learnt to dance, and in an incredibly short time she
far surpassed her teacher. Never before or since was such a graceful,
charming, elegant dancer seen. Everything about her was perfection.
Then she dressed herself in finest muslins and silver brocades, with
diamonds on her veil, till she shone and sparkled like a star.

With beating heart she hid behind the tree and waited. The sweeper,
the water-carrier, the carpet-bearers, came forth in turn, and then
the glittering procession. Ruby Prince looked paler and sadder than
ever, and when his turn came to dance, he hesitated, as if sick at
heart; but from behind the tree stepped a veiled woman, clad in white,
with jewels flashing, and danced before the king. Never was there
such a dance!--everybody held their breath till it was done, and then
the king cried aloud, 'O unknown dancer, ask what you will, and it
shall be yours!'

'Give me the man for whom I danced!' replied the princess.

The Snake-king looked very fierce, and his eyes glittered, as he said,
'You have asked something you had no right to ask, and I should kill
you were it not for my promise. Take him, and begone!'

Quick as thought, the princess seized Ruby Prince by the hand, dragged
him beyond the circle, and fled.

After that they lived very happily, and though the women still taunted
her, the princess held her tongue, and never again asked her husband
of what race he came.

[Illustration: The snake king]




NOTES TO TALES



SIR BUZZ

_Sir Buzz_.--In the vernacular Mîyân Bhûngâ, which is Pânjabî for
Sir Beetle or Sir Bee. The word is clearly connected with the common
Aryan roots _frem_, _bhran_, _bhah_, _bhin_, to
buzz as a bee or beetle.

_Tigress_.--Not otherwise described by the narrators than as a
_bhût_, which is usually a malignant ghost, but here she is rather
a benevolent fairy.

_Span_.--The word in the vernacular was _hâth_, the arm
below the elbow, or conventionally half-a-yard, or 18 inches.

_Hundredweight_.--The word here is _man_, an Indian weight
of about 80 Ibs.

_Princess Blossom_.--Bâdshâhzâdi Phûlî, Princess Flower, or
Phûlâzâdî, Born-of-a-flower.

_One-eyed Chief Constable_.--_Kotwál_ is the word used in
the original; he is a very familiar figure in all oriental tales of
Musalmân origin, and must have been one in actual mediaeval oriental
life, as he was the chief police (if such a term can be used with
propriety) officer in all cities. The expression 'one-eyed' is
introduced to show his evil nature, according to the well-known saying
and universal belief--

_Kânâ, kâchrâ, hoch-gardanâ: yeh tînon kamsât!
Jablag has apnâ chale, to koî na pûchhe but. _

Wall-eyed, blear-eyed, wry-necked: these three are evil.
While his own resources last none asketh them for help.

_Vampire_.-The word used was the Arabic _ghûl_ (in English
usually ghowl or ghoul), the vampire, man-devouring demon, which
corresponds to the _bhût_ and _pret_, the malignant ghosts
of the Hindus. It may be noted here that the Persian _ghol_ is
the _loup-garou_ of Europe, the man-devouring demon of the woods.

_King Indar or Indra_--Was originally the beneficent god of
heaven, giver of rain, _etc_., but in the later Hindu mythology
he took only second rank as ruler of the celestial beings who form the
Court of Indra (_Indar kâ akhârâ_ or _Indrâsan Sabhâ_),
synonymous with gaiety of life and licentiousness.



THE RAT'S WEDDING

_Pipkin_--_Gharâ_, the common round earthen pot of India,
known to Anglo-Indians as 'chatty' (_châtî_).

_Quarts of milk_--The vernacular word was _ser_, a weight of
2 lbs.; natives always measure liquids by weight, not by capacity.

_Wild plum-tree_--_Ber_, several trees go by this name, but
the species usually meant are (1) the _Zizyphus jujuba_, which is
generally a garden tree bearing large plum-like fruit: this is the
_Pomum adami_ of Marco Polo; (2) the _Zizyphus nummularia_,
often confounded with the camel-thorn, a valuable bush used for
hedges, bearing a small edible fruit. The former is probably meant
here.--See Stewart's _Punjab Plants_, pp. 43-44.

_Millet_--_Pennisetum italicum_, a very small grain.

_Green plums I sell_, _etc_.--The words are--

_Gaderî gader! gaderî gader!
Râjâ dî betî chûhâ le giâ gher._

Green fruit! green fruit!
The rat has encompassed the Râjâ's daughter.

_Stool_--Pîrhî, a small, low, square stool with a straight
upright back, used by native women.

_Stewpan-lid_--_Sarposh_, usually the iron or copper cover
used to cover _degchîs_ or cooking-pots.



THE FAITHFUL PRINCE

_Bahrâmgor_--This tale is a variant in a way of a popular story
published in the Panjâb in various forms in the vernacular, under the
title of the _Story of Bahrâmgor and the Fairy Hasan Bâno_. The
person meant is no doubt Bahrâmgor, the Sassanian King of Persia,
known to the Greeks as Varanes V., who reigned 420-438 A.D. The
modern stories, highly coloured with local folklore, represent the
well-known tale in India--through the Persian--of _Bahrâmgor and
Dilârâm_. Bahrâmgor was said to have been killed while hunting the
wild ass (_gor_), by jumping into a pool after it, when both
quarry and huntsman disappeared for ever. He is said to be the father
of Persian poetry.

_Demons: Demonsland_.--The words used are _deo_ or _dev_
and _deostân_; here the _deo_ is a malicious spirit by
nature.

_Jasdrûl_.--It is difficult to say who this can be, unless the
name be a corruption of Jasrat Râî, through Râwal (_rûl_) = Râo
= Râî; thus Jasrat Râî = Jasrat Râwal = Jasad Rawal = Jasadrûl. If
this be the case, it stands for Dasaratha, the father of Râma Chandra,
and so vicariously a great personage in Hindu story. It is obvious
that in giving names to demons or fairies the name of any legendary
or fabulous personage of fame will be brought under contribution.

_Shâhpasand_.--This is obviously a fancy name, like its prototype
Dilaram (Heart's Ease), and means King's Delight. The variant Hasan
Bano means the Lady of Beauty. In the Pushto version of probably the
original story the name is Gulandama = Rosa, a variant probably of the
Flower Princess. See Plowden's _Translation of the Kalid-i-Afghâní_,
p. 209 ff.

_Chief Constable_.--See note to Sir Buzz, _ante_.

_Emerald Mountain_.--Koh-i-Zamurrad in the original. The whole
story of Bahrâmgor is mixed up with the 'King of China,' and so it is
possible that the legendary fame of the celebrated Green Mount in the
Winter Palace at Pekin is referred to here (see Yule's _Marco Polo_,
vol. i. pp. 326-327 and 330). It is much more probable, however, that
the legends which are echoed here are local variants or memories of
the tale of the Old Man of the Mountain and the Assassins, so famous
in many a story in Europe and Asia in the Middle Ages, _e.g. The
Romans of Bauduin de Sebourg_, where the lovely Ivorine is the
heroine of the Red Mountain, and which has a general family likeness
to this tale worth observing (see on this point generally Yule's
_Marco Polo_, vol. i. pp. cxliv-cli and 132-140, and the notes to
_Ind. Ant._ vol. xi. p. 285 ff.; which last, though treated as
superseded here, may serve to throw light on the subject). It is
evident that we are here treading on very interesting ground, alive
with many memories of the East, which it would be well worth while to
investigate.

_Nûnak Chand_.--Judging by the analogy of the name Nânaksâ (_sic_)
in _Indian Fairy Tales_, pp. 114 ff. and 276, where Nânaksâ,
obviously Nânak Shâh or Bâbâ Nânak, the founder of the Sikh religion,
_ob_. 1538 A.D., is turned into a wonder-working _faqîr_ of the
ordinary sort, it is a fair guess to say that this name is meant for him
too.

_Safed_.--On the whole it is worth while hazarding that this name
is a corruption, or rather, an adaptation to a common word--_safed_,
white--of the name Saifur for the demon in the older legends of
Bahrâmgor. If so, it occurs there in connection with the universal
oriental name Faghfûr, for the Emperor of China. Yule, _Marco Polo_,
vol. ii. p. 110, points out that Faghfûr = Baghbûr = Bagh Pûr, a Persian
translation of the Chinese title Tien-tse, Son of Heaven, just as the
name or title Shâh Pûr = the Son of the King. Perhaps this Saifûr in the
same way = Shâh Pûr. But see note in _Ind. Ant._ vol. xi. p. 288.

_Antimony_.--Black sulphuret of antimony, used for pencilling the
eyes and beautifying them. There are two preparations for darkening the
eyes--_surma_ and _kâjal_. _Kâjal_ is fine lamp-black, but
the difference between its use and that of _surma_ is that the former
is used for making a blot to avoid the evil eye (_na*ar_) and the
latter merely as a beautifier.

_Yech-cap_.--For a detailed account of the _yech_ or _yâch_
of Kashmîr see _Ind. Ant._ vol. xi. pp. 260-261 and footnotes.
Shortly, it is a humorous though powerful sprite in the shape of an
animal smaller than a cat, of a dark colour, with a white cap on its
head. The feet are so small as to be almost invisible. When in this
shape it has a peculiar cry--_chot, chot, chû-û-ot, chot_. All this
probably refers to some night animal of the squirrel (? civet cat) tribe.
It can assume any shape, and, if its white cap can be got possession of,
it becomes the servant of the possessor. The cap renders the human wearer
invisible. Mythologically speaking, the _yech_ is the descendant of
the classical Hindu _yaksha_, usually described as an inoffensive,
harmless sprite, but also as a malignant imp.

_The farther you climb the higher it grows_.--This is evidently
borrowed from the common phenomenon of ridge beyond ridge, each in turn
deceiving the climber into the belief that he has reached the top.



THE BEAR'S BAD BARGAIN

_Khichrî_.--A dish of rice and pulse (_dâl_).

_The weights the bear carries._--These are palpable
exaggerations; thus in India the regulation camel-load is under 3
cwts., but they will carry up to 5 cwts. A strong hill-man in the
Himâlayas will carry 1/2 cwt., and on occasion almost a whole cwt. up
the hill.



PRINCE LIONHEART

_Lionheart_.--The full vernacular title of this Prince was Sherdil
Shahryâr Shahrâbâd, Lionheart, the Friend and Restorer of the City.
All these names are common titles of oriental monarchs.

_Knifegrinder_, _Blacksmith_, _Carpenter_.--In the
vernacular _sânwâlâ_, _lohár_, _tarkhân_. The first in
the East, like his brother in the West, is an itinerant journeyman, who
wanders about with a wheel for grinding.

_Demon_.--Here _bhût_, a malignant ghost or vampire, but as
his doings in the tale correspond more to those of a _deo_, demon,
than of a _bhût_, the word has been translated by 'demon.'

_Pîpal_.--Constantly occurring in folk-tales, is the _Ficus
religiosa_ of botanists, and a large fig-tree much valued for its
shade. It is sacred to Hindus, and never cut by them. One reason
perhaps may be that its shade is very valuable and its wood valueless.
Its leaves are used in divination to find out witches, thieves, liars,
_etc_., and it is the chosen haunt of ghosts and hobgoblins of all
sorts--hence its frequent appearance in folk-lore.

_Mannikin_.--The word used was the ordinary expression _maddhrâ_,
Panjâbî for a dwarf or pigmy.

_Ghost_.--_Churel_, properly the ghost of a woman who dies in
childbirth. The belief in these malignant spirits is universal, and a
source of much terror to natives by night. Their personal appearance is
fairly described in the text: very ugly and black, breastless,
protruding in stomach and navel, and feet turned back. This last is the
real test of a _churel_, even in her beautiful transformation. A
detailed account of the _churel_ and beliefs in her and the methods
of exorcism will be found in the _Calcutta Review_, No. cliii. p.
180 ff.

_Jinn_.--A Muhammadan spirit, properly neither man, angel, nor
devil, but superhuman. According to correct Muhammadan tradition, there
are five classes of _Jinns_ worth noting here for information--Jânn,
Jinn, Shaitân, 'Ifrît, and Mârid. They are all mentioned in Musalmân
folk-tales, and but seldom distinguished in annotations. In genuine
Indian folk-tales, however, the character ascribed to the Jinn, as here,
has been borrowed from the Rakshasa, which is Hindu in origin, and an
ogre in every sense of the European word.

_Smell of a man_.--The expression used is always in the vernacular
_mânushgandh_, _i.e._ man-smell. The direct Sanskrit descent
of the compound is worthy of remark.

_Starling_.--_Mainâ_: the _Gracula religiosa_, a talking
bird, much valued, and held sacred. It very frequently appears in folk-
tales, like the parrot, probably from being so often domesticated by
people of means and position for its talking qualities.

_Cup_.--_Donâ_, a cup made of leaves, used by the very poor as
a receptacle for food.

_Wise woman_.--_Kutnî_ and _paphe-kutnî_ were the words
used, of which perhaps 'wise woman' is the best rendering. _Kutnî_
is always a term of abuse and reproach, and is used in the sense of witch
or wise woman, but the bearers do not seem to possess, as a rule, any
supernatural powers. Hag, harridan, or any similar term will usually
correctly render the word.

_Flying palanquin_.--The words used for this were indifferently
_dolâ_, a bridal palanquin, and _burj_, a common word for a
balloon.



THE LAMBIKIN

_Lambikin_.--The words used were Panjâbî, _lelâ_, _lerâ_,
_lekrâ_, and _lelkarâ_, a small or young lamb.

_Lambikin's Songs_.--Of the first the words were Panjâbî--

_Nânî kol jâwângû:
Motâ tâjâ âwângâ
Pher tûn main nûn khâwângâ._

Of the second song--

_Wan piâ lelkarâ: wan pî tû.
Chal dhamkiriâ! Dham! Kâ! Dhû!_

These the rhymes render exactly. The words _dham_, _kâ_,
_dhû_ are pronounced sharply, so as to imitate the beats on a
drum.

_Drumikin_.--The _dhamkîriâ_ or _dhamkirî_ in Panjâbî is
a small drum made by stretching leather across a wide-mouthed earthen cup
(_piyâlâ_). The Jatts make it of a piece of hollow wood, 6 inches
by 3 inches, with its ends covered with leather.



BOPOLUCHI

_Bopolûchî_.--Means Trickster.

_Uncle: uncle-in-law_.--The words used were _mâmû_, mother's
brother, and _patiauhrâ_, husband's (or father-in-law's) younger
brother.

_Pedlar_.--_Wanjârâ_ or _banjârâ_ (from _wanaj_ or
_banaj_, a bargain), a class of wandering pedlars who sell spices,
_etc_.

_Robber_.--The word used was _thag_, _lit._ a deceiver.
The _Thags_ are a class but too well known in India as those who
make their living by deceiving and strangling travellers. Meadows
Taylor's somewhat sensational book, _The Confessions of a Thug_, has
made their doings familiar enough, too, in England. In the Indian Penal
Code a _thag_ is defined as a person habitually associated with
others for the purpose of committing robbery or child-stealing by means
of murder.

_Crow's, etc., verses,_.--The original words were--

_Bopo Lûchi!
Aqlon ghuthî,
Thag nâl thagî gai._

Bopo Lûchi!
You have lost your wits,
And have been deceived by a _thag_.

_Bridal scarlet_.--Every Panjâbî bride, however poor, wears a
dress of scarlet and gold for six months, and if rich, for two years.



PRINCESS AUBERGINE

_Princess Aubergine,_--The vernacular name for the story is
_Baingan Bâdshâhzâdî._ The Baingan, baigan, begun, or bhântâ is
the _Solanum melongena,_ _i.e_. the egg-plant, or
_aubergine._ Europeans in India know it by the name of
_brinjâl;_ it is a very common and popular vegetable in the
rains.

_Exchanging veils,_--To exchange veils among women, and to
exchange turbans among men, is a common way of swearing friendship
among Panjâbîs. The women also drink milk out of the same cup on such
occasions.

_Nine-lakh necklace_,--The introduction of the _Nau-lakkhâ
hâr,_ or nine-_lâkh_ necklace, is a favourite incident in
Indian folk-tales. _Nau-lakkhâ_ means worth nine lâkhs, or nine
hundred thousand rupees. Frequently magic powers are ascribed to this
necklace, but the term _nau-lakkhâ_ has come also to be often
used conventionally for 'very valuable,' and so is applied to gardens,
palaces, _etc_. Probably all rich Rajas have a hankering to
really possess such a necklace, and the last Mahârâjâ of Patiâlâ,
about fifteen years ago, bought a real one of huge diamonds, including
the Sansy, for Rupees 900,000. It is on show always at the palace in
the fort at Patiâlâ.



VALIANT VICKY

_Valiant Vicky, the Brave Weaver,_--In the original the title is
'Fatteh Khân, the valiant weaver.' Victor Prince is a very fair
translation of the name Fatteh Khân. The original says his nickname
or familiar name was Fattû, which would answer exactly to Vicky for
Victor. Fattû is a familiar (diminutive form) of the full name Fatteh
Khân. See _Proper Names of Panjâbîs, passim,_ for the
explanation of this.



THE SON OF SEVEN MOTHERS

For a long and interesting variant of this tale see _Indian
Antiquary,_ vol. x. p. 151 ff.

_Fakîr,_--Properly _faqîr_, is a Muhammadan devotee, but in
modern India the term is used for any kind of holy man, whatever be
his religion. For instance, the 'Salvation Army' were styled at
Lahore, at a meeting of natives, by a Sikh gentleman of standing, as
_Vilâyatî_ _fuqrâ_, European _faqîrs_. The power of
granting children to barren women is ascribed in story to all saints
and holy personages of fame.

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