Folklore of the Santal Parganas, Cecil Henry Bompas [sad books to read .TXT] 📗

from the prince: he produced a cat and said that

the person towards whom the cat jumped should have all the wealth. So

they all sat round the Raja and the Princess had her mouse hidden

under her shawl and every now and then she kept uncovering its head

and covering it up again. The cat soon caught sight of the mouse and,

when the Raja let it go, it jumped straight to the Princess in hopes

of catching the mouse. The Raja at once adjudged all the merchandise

to her, and she loaded it on the horses and elephants and took it

home accompanied by her husband's retainers.

 

A few days afterwards her husband came home, having got tired of

working as a servant, and, putting a bold face on it, he went up to

her and said that now he was going to beat her; all the retainers who

had accompanied him when he set out to trade and also the servant whom

the princess had sent with him were present. Then, before them all,

the princess took up the old loin cloth and asked him if he knew to

whom it had belonged; at this reminder of his poverty the prince was

dumb with shame. "Ask your retainers" continued the princess "to whom

all the merchandise with which you set out now rightfully belongs,

ask them whether it is yours or mine, and then say whether you will

beat me."

 

The prince had no answer to give her and after this lesson gave up

all idea of beating his bride.

XXIX. (Sahde Goala.)

 

Once a marriage was arranged between Sahde Goala and Princess Chandaini

and on the wedding day when it began to get dusk Sahde Goala ordered

the sun to stand still. "How," said he, "can the people see the

wedding of a mighty man like myself in the dark?" So at his behest

the sun delayed its setting for an hour, and the great crowd which

had assembled saw all the grand ceremonies.

 

The next day Sahde and his bride set off home and it took them three

days to reach the place where he lived. Before they left they had

invited the princess's father to come and see them; accordingly a day

or two later he set out, but it took him three months to accomplish the

distance which Sahde Goala had traversed in three days. When the old

Raja reached his son-in-law's house they welcomed him and washed his

feet and offered him refreshments; and when he had eaten, he asked his

son-in-law to take him out for a stroll. So they went out, Sahde Goala

in front and the old Raja following behind him and as they walked Sahde

Goala struck his foot against a stone, and the stone was shattered to

pieces. When the Raja saw this proof of his son-in-law's superhuman

strength, he became alarmed for his daughter's safety. If Sahde ever

lost his temper with her he might clearly smash her to atoms, so he

made up his mind that he could not leave her in such keeping. When

he told his daughter what he had seen she was as frightened as her

father and begged him to take her home, so they agreed to escape

together some time when Sahde Goala was out of the way.

 

One morning Sahde Goala went out to watch his men working in the

fields and the old Raja and his daughter seized this opportunity to

escape. Sahde Goala had a sister named Lorokini and she ran to the

field to tell her brother that his wife was running away. "Let her go"

said Sahde Goala. The old Raja travelled faster than his daughter and

left her behind and as she travelled along alone Sahde Goala made a

flooded river flow across her path. It was quite unfordable so the

Princess stood on the bank and sang:--

 

 

    "My mother gave me birth,

    My father gave me in marriage:

    If the water upstream would stand still

    And the water downstream would flow away

    Then I could go and live in my own home."

 

 

But no such thing happened and she had to go back to her husband's

house.

 

When she arrived her mother-in-law gave her a large basket of cooked

rice and a pot of relish and told her to take them to the labourers

in the field. Her mother-in-law helped her to lift the basket on to

her head and she set off. When she reached the field she called to

her sister-in-law:--

 

 

    "Come Lorokini,

    Lift down from my head

    The basket of rice

    And the pot of relish."

 

 

But Lorokini was angry with her for trying to run

away and refused to help, singing:--

 

 

    "I will not come

    I will not lift down the basket:

    Prop it against a _murup_ tree:

    I will not lift it down."

 

 

Then Chandaini Rani propped it against the trunk of a _murup_ tree,

and so set it on the ground.

 

Then she sang to her husband:--

 

 

    "Here, husband, is the lota of water:

    Here, husband, is the tooth stick;

    Come, and wash your hands:

    If you are angry with me

    Take me back to my father and mother."

 

 

But Sahde Goala was ploughing at the head of his men and paid no

attention to her: then she sang again:--

 

 

    "Seven hundred labourers

    And twenty hundred women labourers,

    You are causing to die of thirst."

 

 

But still Sahde Goala paid no attention. Then Chandaini Rani got

angry and by leaning the basket against the _murup_ tree managed to

get it on to her head again and carried it home, and from that time

murup trees grow slanting. Directly she had taken the rice and relish

to the house she set off again to run away to her mother. As before

Sahde Goala caused a flooded river to flow across her path and as

before she sang:--

 

 

    "My mother gave me birth,

    My father gave me in marriage:

    If the water upstream would stand still

    And the water downstream would flow away

    Then I could go and live in my own home,"

 

 

And this time the water did stand still and the water below all

flowed away and she crossed over. As she crossed she said "If I am

really chaste no one will be able to touch me." And as she reached

the opposite bank she saw a young man sitting waiting for her; his

name was Bosomunda, he had been sitting waiting for her on the bank

for days without moving. When he saw Chandaini Rani mount the bank

he rose and said "Come: I have been waiting for you, you are to be

my mistress." "Fie, fie!" answered she "Am I to belong to any Dome or

Hari?" Bosomunda swore that she should be his. "If so, then follow a

little behind me so as not to tread on my shadow." So they went on, the

Rani in front and Bosomunda behind. Presently they came to a tamarind

tree on which grew two enormous fruits; the Rani pointed to them saying

"If I am to belong to you, you must pick me those fruits." So Bosomunda

began to climb the tree, and as he climbed she prayed that the tree

might grow and touch the sky; and in fact as fast as Bosomunda climbed

so the tree grew and he got no nearer to the fruit.

 

Then the Chandaini Rani picked up the weapons which he had laid

on the ground and threw them away one to the north and one to the

south, one to the east and one to the west, and ran off as fast as

she could. Bosomunda at first did not see her because his eyes were

fixed on the tamarind fruit, but after she had gone a long way he

caught sight of her and came down as fast as he could and, gathering

up his weapons, went in pursuit. But Chandaini Rani had got a long

start, and as she hurried along she passed a thorn tree standing by

the side of the road and she called to it "Thorn tree, Bosomunda is

coming after me, do your best to detain him for a little." As she

spoke it seemed as if a weight descended on the tree and swayed it

to and fro so that its branches swept the ground, and it answered her

"I will do like this to him." Then she went on and met a goat on the

road, and she asked it to do its best to delay Bosomunda, and the

goat pawed the ground and dug its horns into the earth and said that

it would do the same to Bosomunda. Then she went on and met a ram and

made the same request; the ram charged a tree and butted it right over

and promised to treat Bosomunda in the same way. Afterwards she came

to a bull and the bull drove its horns into a bank and brought down

a quantity of earth and said that that was the way he would treat

Bosomunda. Next she came to a buffalo and the buffalo charged a bank

of earth to show what he would do to Bosomunda. Then she came to an

elephant and the elephant trampled a clod of earth to dust and said

that he would treat Bosomunda so. Then she went on and saw a paddy

bird feeding by the roadside and she asked it to do its best to delay

Bosomunda; the paddy bird drove its bill into the earth and said that

it would treat Bosomunda in the same way.

 

Meanwhile Bosomunda was in hot pursuit. When he came to the thorn

tree, the tree swayed its branches and caught him with its thorns,

but he cut down the tree and freed himself; he went on a little way

and met the goat which ran at him with its horns, but Bosomunda sang:--

 

 

    "Do not fight with me, goat,

    I will cut off your legs and cut off your head

    And take them to the shrine of Mahadeo."

 

 

So saying, he killed the goat and cut off its head and tied it to

his waist and went on. Next the ram charged him but he sang:

 

 

    "Do not fight with me, Ram,

    I will cut off your legs and cut off your head

    And take them to the shrine of Mahadeo."

 

 

So saying he killed the Ram and took its head. Then in succession he

was attacked by the bull and the buffalo and the elephant, but he

killed them all and cut off their heads. Then he came to the paddy

bird, which pretended to be busily engaged in picking up insects

and gradually worked its way nearer and nearer. Bosomunda let it get

quite close and then suddenly seized it and gave its neck a pull which

lengthened it out considerably; "Thank you" said the paddy bird, as

he put it down "now I shall be able to catch all the fish in a pool

without moving." Thereupon Bosomunda caught it again and gave its neck

a jerk and that is why paddy birds have necks shaped like a letter S.

 

Bosomunda continued his pursuit and caught up Chandaini Rani just

as she was entering her father's house; he seized her by her hair

and managed to cut off the edge of her cloth and pull off one of her

golden anklets, and then had to let her go.

 

He took up his abode at the _ghat_ of a tank and began to kill every

one who came down to the water. The citizens complained to the Raja

of the destruction he was causing and the Raja ordered some valiant

man to be searched for, fit to do battle with the murderer; so they

sent for a Birbanta (giant) and the Raja promised to give him half his

kingdom and his daughter in marriage if he could slay Bosomunda. So

the Birbanta made ready for the fight and advanced brandishing his

weapons against Bosomunda.