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

CLI. (The House Bonga.)

 

Once upon a time there was a house _bonga_ who lived in the house

of the headman of a certain village; and it was a shocking thief;

it used to steal every kind of grain and food, cooked and uncooked;

out of the houses of the villagers. The villagers knew what was going

on but could never catch it.

 

One evening however the _bonga_ was coming along with a pot of boiled

rice which it had stolen, when one of the villagers suddenly came upon

it face to face; the _bonga_ slunk into the hedge but the villager

saw it clearly and flung his stick at it, whereupon the _bonga_ got

frightened and dropped the pot of rice on the ground so that it was

smashed to pieces and fled. The villager pursued the _bonga_ till he

saw it enter the headman's house. Then he went home, intending the

next morning to show the neighbours the spilt rice lying on the path;

but when the morning came he found that the rice had been removed,

so he kept quiet.

 

At midday he heard the headman's servants complaining that the rice

which had been given them for breakfast was so dirty and muddy that

some of them had not been able to eat it at all; then he asked how

they were usually fed "Capitally," they answered "we get most varied

meals, often with turmeric and pulse or vegetables added to the rice;

but that is only for the morning meal; for supper we get only plain

rice." "Now, I can tell you the reason of that" said the villager,

"there is a greedy _bonga_ in your house who goes stealing food at

night and puts some of what he gets into your pots for your morning

meal." "That's a fine story" said the servants: "No, it's true" said

the villager, and told them how the evening before he had made the

_bonga_ drop the rice and how afterwards it had been scraped up off

the ground; and when they heard this they believed him because they

had found the mud in their food.

 

Some time afterwards the same man saw the _bonga_ again at night

making off with some heads of Indian corn; so he woke up a friend

and they both took sticks and headed off the _bonga_, who threw down

the Indian corn and ran away to the headman's house. Then they woke

up the headman and told him that a thief had run into his house. So

he lit a lamp and went in to look, and they could hear the _bonga_

running about all over the house making a great clatter and trying to

hide itself; but they could not see it. Then they took the headman to

see the Indian corn which the _bonga_ had dropped in its flight. The

next day the villagers met and fined the headman for having the

_bonga_ in his house; and from that time the _bonga_ did not steal

in that village, and whenever the two men who had chased it visited

the headman's house the _bonga_ was heard making a great clatter as

it rushed about trying to hide.

 

CLII. (The Sarsagun Maiden.)

 

There was once a Sarsagun girl who was going to be married; and a

large party of her girl friends went to the jungle to pick leaves

for the wedding. The Sarsagun girl persisted in going with them as

usual though they begged her not to do so. As they picked the leaves

they sang songs and choruses; so they worked and sang till they came

to a tree covered with beautiful flowers; they all longed to adorn

their hair with the flowers but the difficulty was that they had no

comb or looking glass; at last one girl said that a _bonga Kora_

lived close by who could supply them; thereupon there was a great

dispute as to who should go to the _bonga Kora_ and ask for a mirror

and comb; each wanted the other to go; and in the end they made the

Sarsagun girl go. She went to the _bonga Kora_ and called "Bonga Kora

give a me mirror and comb that we may adorn our hair with _Mirjin_

flowers." The Bonga Kora pointed them out to her lying on a shelf

and she took them away.

 

Then they had a gay time adorning their hair; but when they had

finished not one of the girls would consent to take back the mirror

and comb. The Sarsagun maiden urged that as she had brought them it

was only fair that someone else should take them back; but they would

not listen, so in the end she had to take them. The Bonga Kora pointed

to a shelf for her to place them on but when she went to do so and

was well inside his house he closed the door and shut her in. Her

companions waited for her return till they were tired and then went

home and told her mother what had happened. Then her father and brother

went in search of her and coming to the Bonga Kora's home they sang:

 

 

    "Daughter, you combed yourself with a one row comb

    Daughter, you put _mirjin_ flowers in your hair

    Daughter, come hither to us."

 

 

But she only answered from within--

 

 

    "He has shut me in with a stone, father

    He has closed the door upon me, father

    Do you and my mother go home again."

 

 

Then her eldest brother came and sang the same song and received the

same answer; her mothers's brother and father's sister then came and

sang, also in vain; so they all went home.

 

Just then the intended bridegroom with his party arrived at the village

and were welcomed with refreshments and invited to camp under a tree;

but while the bridegroom's party were taking their ease, the bride's

relations were in a great to-do because the bride was missing; and

when the matchmaker came and asked them to get the marriage ceremony

over at once that the bridegroom might return, they had to take

him into the house and tell him what had happened. The matchmaker

went and told the bridegroom, who at once called his men to him and

mounted his horse and rode off in a rage. Now it happened that the

drummers attached to the procession had stopped just in front of the

home of the _Bonga Kora_ and were drumming away there; so when the

bridegroom rode up to them his horse passed over the door of the Bonga

Kora's home and stamped on it so hard that it flew open; standing just

inside was the Sarsagun girl; at once the bridegroom pulled her out,

placed her on his horse and rode off with her to his home.

 

CLIII. (The Schoolboy and the Bonga.)

 

There was once a boy who went every day to school and on his way

home he used always to bathe in a certain tank. Every day he left his

books and slate on the bank while he bathed and no one ever touched

them. But one day while he was in the water a _bonga_ maiden came

out of the tank and took his books and slate with her under the

water. When the boy had finished bathing he searched for them a

long time in vain and then went home crying. When the midday meal

was served he refused to eat anything unless his books were found:

his father and mother promised to find them for him and so he ate a

very little. When the meal was finished his father and mother went

to the bonga maiden and besought her--singing

 

 

    "Give daughter-in-law, give

    Give our boy his pen, give up his pen."

 

 

The _bonga_ maiden sang in answer

 

 

    "Let the owner of the pen

    Come himself and fetch it."

 

 

Then the boy's eldest brother and his wife went and sang

 

 

    "Give, sister-in-law, give,

    Give our brother his pen: give up his pen."

 

 

The _bonga_ maiden sing in answer

 

 

    "Let the owner of the pen

    Come himself and fetch it"

 

 

Then the boy's maternal uncle and his wife went and sang the same

song and received the same answer. So they told the boy that he must

go himself.

 

When he reached the tank the _bonga_ girl came up and held out his

books to him; but when he went to take them she drew back and so she

enticed him into the tank; but when once he was under the water he

found he was in quite a dry and sandy place. There he stayed and was

married to the _bonga_ girl. After he had lived with her a long time

he became homesick and longed to see his father and mother. So he

told his _bonga_ wife that he must go and visit them. "Then do not

take your school books with you," said she; "perhaps you won't come

back." "No, I will surely return," he answered; so she agreed to his

going and said that she would sit on the door step and watch for his

return; and he must promise to be very quick. She tied up some cakes

and dried rice for him and also gave him back his school books.

 

She watched him go to his home and sat and watched for his return but

he never came back. Evening came and night came but he did not return:

then the _bonga_ girl rose and went after him. She went through the

garden and up to her husband's house in a flame of fire: and there

she changed herself into a Karinangin snake and entering the house

climbed on to the bed where the boy lay sleeping and climbed on to

his breast and bit him.

 

 

    "Rise mother, rise mother,

    The Karinangin snake

    Is biting me."

 

 

he called--

 

But no one heard him though he kept on calling: so he died and the

_bonga_ girl went away with his spirit.

CLIV. (The Bonga's Cave.)