_Verses_.--In the original these are--
_Saukan rangan men charhî,
Main bhî rangan men parî,_
My co-wife got dyed,
I too fell into the vat.
_Verses_.--In the original--
_Ik sarî, ik balî;
Ik hinak mode charhî,_
One is vexed and one grieved;
And one is carried laughing on the shoulder.
The allusion here is to a common tale. The story goes that a man who
had two wives wanted to cross a river. Both wives wanted to go across
first with him, so in the end, leaving the elder to walk, he took the
younger on his shoulder, who mocked the elder with the words--
_Ik sarî, dûî balî;
Dûî jâî mûnde charhî._
First she was vexed, next she grieved;
While the other went across on the shoulder.
Hence the sting of the old sparrow's taunt.
_Verses_.--In the original--
_Ik chamkhat hûî;
Chirî rangan charhî;
Chirâ bedan karî;
Pîpal patte jharî;
Mahîn sing jharî;
Naîn bahí khârî;
Koïl hûî kânî;
Bhagtû diwanî;
Bandî padnî;
Rânî nâchnî;
Putr dholkî bajânî;
Râjâ sargî bajânî;_
One hen painted,
And the other was dyed,
And the cock loved her,
So the _pîpal_ shed its leaves,
And the buffalo her horns,
So the river became salt,
And the cuckoo lost an eye,
So Bhagtû went mad,
And the maid took to swearing,
So the Queen took to dancing,
And the Prince took to drumming,
And the King took to thrumming.