Long ages ago there dwelt in the neighbourhood of a city in the north
part of India called Taban-Minggan (1) a man and his wife who had
no children, and nine cows (2) for all possessions. As the man was
very fond of meat he used to kill all the calves as soon as they were
born that he might eat them, but the wife cared only for butter. One
day when there were no more calves the man took it into his head to
slaughter one of the cows; "What does it signify," said he to himself,
"whether there are nine or eight?" So he killed one of the cows and ate
it. When the meat of this cow was all at an end, he said to himself,
"What does it matter whether there are eight cows or seven?" And with
that he slaughtered another cow and ate it. When the meat of this cow
had come to an end, he said within himself again, "What does it matter
whether there are seven cows or six?" and with that he slaughtered
another cow and ate it. This he continued doing till there was one
only cow left. At last, when the wife saw that there was but one only
cow left, she could refrain herself no longer. Determined to save this
only cow from being slaughtered, she never let it out of her sight,
but wherever she went led it after her by a string.
One day, however, when the man had been drinking well of rice-brandy,
and was sound asleep, the wife having to go out to fetch water,
she thought it would be safe to leave the cow behind this once; but
scarcely was she gone out when the man woke up, and, seeing the cow
left alone behind, slaughtered it to eat.
When the woman came back and found the last remaining cow was killed,
she lifted up her voice and wept, saying, "What is there now left to
me wherewithal to support life, seeing that the last and only cow that
remained to us is killed." As she said these words, she turned her in
anger and went away, and as she went the man cut off one of the teats
of the cow and threw it after her. The woman picked up the teat and
took it along with her; but she went along still crying till she came
to a cave in a mountain side, where she took shelter. There she cast
herself down on the ground, addressing herself in earnest prayer to
the Three Precious Treasures (3) and the Ruler of Heaven and Earth,
saying, "Now that my old man has brought me to the last extremity,
depriving me of all that I had to support life, grant now, ye Three
Precious Treasures, and thou Ruler of Heaven and Earth, that I may
have in some way that which is needful to support life!" Thus she
prayed. Also, she flung from her the teat of the cow which she had
in her hand, and behold! it clove to the side of the cave, and when
she would have removed it, it would no more be removed, but milk ran
therefrom as from the living cow. And the milk thereof was good for
making butter, which her soul loved.
Thus she lived in the cave, and was provided with all she desired to
support life. One day it befell that the memory of her husband coming
over her, she said within herself, "Perhaps, now that the last cow
is slaughtered and eaten, my old man may be suffering hunger; who
knows!" Thus musing, she filled a sheep's paunch (4) with butter, and
went her way to the place where her husband lived, and having climbed
on to the roof, she looked down upon him through the smoke-hole (5).
He sat there in his usual place, but nothing was set before him to eat
saving only a pan of ashes, which he was dividing with a spoon, saying
the while, "This is my portion for to-day;" and "That much I reserve
for the portion of to-morrow." Seeing this, the wife threw her paunch
of butter hastily through the roof, and then went back to her cave.
Then thought the husband within himself, "Who is there in heaven
or earth who would have brought me this butter-paunch but my very
wife? who surely has said within herself, 'Perhaps, now that the last
cow is slaughtered, my old man is suffering hunger.'" And as every
night she thus supplied him with a butter-paunch, he got up at last
and followed her by the track of her feet on the snow till he came to
the cave where she dwelt. Nevertheless, seeing the teat cleaving to
the side of the cave, he could not resist cutting it off to eat the
meat thereof. Then he took to him all the store of butter the woman
had laid up and returned home; but the wife, finding her place of
refuge was known to him, and that he had taken all her store, left
the cave and wandered on farther.
Presently she came to a vast meadow well watered by streams, and herds
of hinds grazing amid the grass; nor did they flee at her approach,
so that she could milk them at will, and once more she could make
butter as much as ever she would.
One day it befell that, the memory of her husband coming over her,
she said within herself, "Perhaps, now that he will have exhausted
all the store of cow-milk-butter, my old man may be suffering hunger;
who knows!" So she took a sheep's paunch of the butter made of hind's
milk and went to the place where her husband lived. As she looked down
upon him through the smoke-hole in the roof, she found him once more
engaged sparingly dividing his portions of ashes. So she threw the
butter-paunch to him through the smoke-hole and went her way. When
she had done this several days, her husband rose and followed her by
her track on the snow till he came to where the herd of hinds were
grazing. But when he saw so many hinds, he could not resist satisfying
his love of meat; only when he had slaughtered many of the hinds,
these said one to another, "If we remain here, of a surety we shall
all be put to death;" therefore they arose in the night and betook them
afar, far off, whither neither the man nor his wife could follow them.
When the wife found her place of refuge was known to her husband,
and that he had dispersed her herd of hinds, she left the grassy
meadow and wandered on farther.
Presently, a storm coming on, she took shelter in a hole in a rock
where straw was littered down; so she laid herself to sleep amid the
straw. But the hole was the den of a company of lions, tigers, and
bears, and all manner of wild beasts; but they had a hare for watchman
at the opening of the hole. At night, therefore, they all came home
and laid down, but they perceived not the woman in the straw; only
in the night, the woman happening to move, a straw tickled the nose
of the hare. Then said the hare to a tiger who lay near him, "What
was that?" But the tiger said, "We will examine into the matter when
the morning light breaks." When the morning light broke, therefore,
they turned up all the straw and found the woman lying. When the
tiger and the other beasts saw the woman lying in their straw, they
were exceeding wroth, and would have torn her in pieces. But the hare
said, "What good will it do you to tear the woman in pieces? Women are
faithful and vigilant animals; give her now to me, and I will make her
help me watch the cave." So they gave her to the hare, and the hare
bade her keep strict watch over the cave, and by no means let any one
of any sort enter it; and he treated her well and gave her plenty of
game to eat, which the wild beasts brought home to their lair.
Thus she lived in the den of the wild beasts and did the bidding
of the hare. One day, however, it befell that, the memory of her
husband coming over her, she said within herself, "Perhaps, now that
the hinds are all dispersed, my old man may be suffering hunger;
who knows!" So she took with her a good provision of game, of which
the wild beasts brought in abundance, and went to the place where
her husband lived. He sat as before, dividing his portions of ashes;
so she threw the game she had brought down through the smoke-hole.
When she had thus provisioned him many days, he said within himself,
"Who is there in heaven or earth who should thus provide for me,
but only my loving wife?" So the next night he rose up and tracked
her by the snow till he came to the den of the wild beasts.
When the wife saw him, she cried, "Wherefore camest thou hither? This
is even a wild beasts' lair. Behold, seeing thee they will tear thee
in pieces!" But the man would not listen to her word, answering, "If
they have not torn thee in pieces, neither will they tear me." Then,
when she found that he would not escape, she took him and hid him in
the straw. At night, when the wild beasts came home, the hare said
to the tiger, "Of a certainty I perceive the scent of some creature
which was not here before;" and the tiger answered, "When morning
breaks we will examine into the matter." Accordingly, when morning
broke they looked over the place, and there in the straw they found
the woman's husband. When they saw the man they were all exceedingly
wroth, nor could the hare by any means restrain them that they should
not tear them both in pieces. "For," said they, "if of one comes two,
of two will come four, and of four will come sixteen, and in the
end we shall be outnumbered and destroyed, and our place taken from
us." So they tore them both in pieces, both the wife and her husband.
"That woman fell a sacrifice to her devotion to her husband, who
deserved it not at her hand!" exclaimed the Khan.
And as he let these words escape him, the Siddhî-kür replied,
"Forgetting his health, the Well-and-wise-walking Khan hath opened
his lips." And with the cry, "To escape out of this world is good!" he
sped him through the air, swift out of sight.