MINGRELIAN TALES [23]
I
THE THREE PRECEPTS
There was, there was, there was, there was, and nothing there
was. [24] In a certain country, a certain realm, a certain region,
a certain village, there was an orphan so poor, so poor, that 'tween
heaven and earth nought could be found that was his. Being in such
a plight to-day, to-morrow, the day after to-morrow, this week,
next week, this month, next month, sad and thoughtful he became;
he thought, he thought, he thought, and at last made up his mind:
'I will arise and try my luck,' quoth he. He rose betimes in the
morning, called on the name of God, turned himself to the right hand,
[25] and set forth from the house.
He went, he went, he went, beyond the sky, across the earth, across
the forest, across the field, across the plain, over the mountains,
he went as far as he could, and when he looked he saw a man of graceful
mien coming towards him. The youth quickened his step and they met. 'I
wish thee victory, good youth!' [26] said the stranger, 'whither goest
thou?' 'May God send thee victory, my master,' answered the young man,
'I go to seek a livelihood.' 'Be my servant for three years, and I
shall teach thee three things that will afterwards be helpful,' said
this clever man to the youth. The youth agreed, and went away with him.
At the end of a year's service, the clever man said to the youth:
'Whatever thou seest outside thy yard, throw it into the yard.' When
the second year had passed, he again spoke to the youth, and said:
'Lend nothing to anybody unless thou art much pressed to do so.' The
third year came to an end, and it was time for the young man to
depart; the clever man called him and said: 'Tell not thy secret
to a woman.' Then he bade him farewell, blessed him, and sent him
home. The youth set out: he went, he went, he went by day, he went
by night, over land, over water, and when he reached home he began
to establish himself, he made a fence round his yard and, as he had
been instructed, threw into the yard all he found outside the yard.
One morning he went out and found on the road a red snake; he
remembered the instruction of the clever man and threw the snake
into the yard. A week later, the young man noticed that on the place
where he had thrown the snake, it had laid a multitude of precious
stones. [27] It is no wonder that the youth was greatly pleased at
this. He gathered up the snake and the precious stones in the skirt
of his garment, and put the snake in a nest in his own house. Every
day the snake laid him a precious stone. The youth became wealthy: he
built himself a fine house, took a wife, and lived like a lord. Still
the snake went on laying precious stones, the youth became richer
and richer, and gave himself up to gladness. One day his wife said to
him: 'Young man! who has made thee so fabulously rich, for thou wast
formerly poorer than any one on earth.' 'Who? God gave me wealth,'
said the husband, following the clever man's advice, not revealing
his secret. But the woman gave him no peace; day and night she always
asked the same thing: 'How didst thou become wealthy?--thou must tell
me, thou must.' The youth had no way of escape, she wearied him out,
and at last made him tell her all about the snake. Since there was
nothing else to be done, the young man took his wife and showed her
the snake that laid precious stones. After this, it happened that the
snake ceased to lay precious stones; the young man's wealth began to
diminish, and nothing was added to it.
When he was in this state, a certain man came and asked him for the
loan of a knife. Of course, being utterly cast down with grief and
sorrow, he remembered not the words the clever man had spoken to him,
and lent the knife. May it happen to thine enemy as it happened to
him! It happened that this wretched man was a thief. When he had got
the knife he went and broke into a house to steal; there he thrust
the knife into the belly of a sleeping man, slew him, and left the
knife in the dead man's body, then pillaged the house. Afterwards an
enquiry was made into the matter. They found the knife in the man who
had been killed and robbed, and it turned out to be the knife of the
young man. Of course he was taken and bound, all his goods were seized,
and he was treated as a thief ought to be treated. Thus did it happen
to the wretched youth who disobeyed the instructions of the clever man.
Yester eve I was there,
This evening I am here....
Three apples, [28] three pomegranates,
May God send thee,
Ripe in thy hands.
The tale, the tale is ended....
Thou hast eaten maize-bread with ashes, [29]
Thou hast drunk bad, stale wine,
And eaten a rotten walnut. [30]
II
KAZHA-NDII
There was once a king who had three sons and three daughters. When
the day of his death was come, he called all his children, and said
to his sons: 'Hearken to my will, and see that ye fulfil it. When I
die, let each of you watch my tomb for one week, give these maidens
to the suitors who ask for their hands.' After he had said farewell,
the king died.
He was buried, and on the first night the eldest brother went to
guard the grave. But in a short time something began to approach
with a mighty noise, and when it came near, it was so strong that it
drove the prince out of the enclosure. From a distance, the prince
saw how the being that had come with noise went to the king's grave,
dug up the corpse, and wept over it till morning; when morning came,
it buried the corpse in the earth again, and went away. When the prince
reached home, he was ashamed to say anything about what had happened.
At that time, both the elder brothers set out for the chase; the
youngest brother was left at home, he heard a voice and looked
round. It turned out to be a suitor for the hand of his sister. He
took and gave him the eldest sister. Soon after, he again heard
a voice. The prince looked round--another suitor had come. The
absence of his brothers somewhat disturbed him, but, according to
his father's will, he married his second sister also. A little later,
a third voice was heard, and to him he gave his third sister.
In the evening, when the two elder brothers came home, they did not
see their sisters; they asked the youngest, and he told them what
had happened. They were not pleased, and sent him out to feed the
sheep. That night the middle brother went to guard the king's grave;
the same thing happened to him as to his elder brother, but he too was
silent on the subject. When he reached home, the youngest brother began
to entreat his elder brothers, saying: 'Be just, let me also watch my
father's grave.' But they were angry, and answered: 'Get thee gone,
how couldst thou guard the grave when we are not able to do it!' But
afterwards they said one to the other: 'Let us allow him to go.'
So the youth went, came to the tomb of his father, lighted a
candle, and, as soon as he sat down, an uproar began, but he was
not affrighted. At the approach of the monster an earthquake began,
but the youth was not afraid, he swung his sword round his head,
and cleft the monster in twain, but the monster's blood put out the
candle. Looking round, the youth saw, some way off, the blaze of a
fire. He arose and went thither. On his way he said to the cock: 'Crow
not, so that dawn break not till I come back again, or I shall slay
thee.' When he came near, he met with a vast river like a sea. When
he had swum over and reached the other side, the youth saw that the
fire was burning among the demis, [31] who were sitting round it--so he
stopped and bethought himself seriously; but, at last, he took a leap,
jumped into the middle of them, seized a burning brand, and ran away.
The burning cinders and ashes were showered over the demis, but they
did not see the youth. The youth went back, but as he crossed the
river the burning log went out. He was angry at this, but what could
he do? He went back again, and when he threw himself upon the fire the
demis caught him, and asked what he wanted. He told them. The demis
said to him: 'In yonder castle there dwell three maidens unseen by the
sun, [32] thou must bring them to us or we will not let thee go.' The
youth asked them: 'Is there a ladder up to the castle?' They answered:
'Yes.' 'Then let us go,' said he.
He took all the demis with him, and said: 'I shall climb up first,
then you must come one by one.' They agreed. The youth went up, one
demi came after him. As soon as the first demi reached the top, the
youth brandished his sword, slew him, and laid down his body. When
the second came up, he did likewise unto him. Thus he slew them all,
one by one, and left their bodies there.
Then he went in, saluted the maidens, and gave each of them a ring--to
the youngest for himself, to the others for his brothers. The youth
went out, thrust his sword into a stone, and left it there, took fire
with him, and went back. When he had crossed the river, he cried to
the cock: 'Now crow!' Then he went to his father's grave. Till dawn
he stayed there, and then he went home.
The beautiful maidens told the king what had happened. The king
ordered all his subjects to be summoned, and asked: 'Who is able to
draw this sword out of the stone?' But nobody could draw it out. Then
the king made a proclamation: 'To him that can draw out this sword I
will give my daughter.' The princes, as soon as they heard of this,
decided to go thither. When they were making ready for the journey,
the youngest asked his brothers to take him too. At last they consented
to take him. When they arrived, they found a great uproar: people
from all parts of the world were, in turn, laying hold of the sword,
but could not draw it out. Last of all, the youngest brother came up,
pulled out his sword, put it in the scabbard, and said to the king:
'All three daughters are ours now, for I have two brothers.' He
called his brothers, and they took the three maidens to wife. Great
merry-making began.
The king gave to the wife of the youngest prince a flying carpet,
which carried away any one who sat on it. The princess sat on it, and
followed her suite. The groomsmen and youths set out with them. When
they had gone half way, a monster swooped down on the princess and
carried her off. A sad uproar began, but what was to be done? The
young prince said to his brothers: 'Farewell! I must perish with her,'
and went away.
He went, he went, he went, he went as far as he could, and in a field
he found a spring, beside which he lay down. There came a boy with a
water jug. The prince asked: 'Whose village is this?' The boy replied:
'Here dwell three brother demis, all married to daughters of one king.'
When the youth heard this he was glad, for it turned out that his
sisters dwelt here. When he came near, the sisters went out to meet
him. It is easy to imagine how glad they were to see him. When it
was dark, the three demis returned. One of the sisters went out
to meet them, and said: 'My brother is come.' The demis answered:
'If the elder brothers are come, we can make roast meat of them, if
it be the youngest, we shall know how to do him honour.' The demis
went in, and kissed the youth for joy at meeting him.
As they were all sitting round the hearth, the demis began to sigh
deeply. The youth asked them: 'Why do you sigh?' 'Why?--we are sorry
for that poor damsel! Kazha-Ndii-Kerkun (i.e. the swift, flint-like
demi) was carrying through the air a golden-haired woman; we pursued,
but only succeeded in pulling off a lock of the woman's hair.' They
showed the hair to the youth. As soon as he saw it he fainted, crying:
'Ah! woe is me! woe is me!' The demis asked him what was wrong. He
told them all. As soon as day dawned, the youth arose, and made ready
to depart. The demis were very sorry at this, but what could they
do? They gave him a horse and a little dog.
The youth set out, and came to the house of Kazha-Ndii; but Kazha-Ndii
was not at home. He dismounted, and went in to the princess; when
they saw each other, their joy was so great that they fell to the
ground. The princess said to him: 'O youth, why hast thou sought thy
doom? Against Kazha-Ndii thou canst do nothing.' But the young man
would not hearken, and lifted her on to his horse.
As soon as they reached the gate, it creaked so loudly that a star
fell from heaven. The door cried: 'Kazha-Ndii-Kerkun, where art
thou? they have carried off thy wife.' Kazha-Ndii heard this, and
pursued them. When he was overtaking them, Kazha-Ndii's horse neighed
so loudly that it stopped the princess's horse. The princess said
to him: 'O youth, did I not tell thee how it would be? Save thyself
at least.' Then Kazha-Ndii rode up, cut the youth into pieces, and
carried his wife back. The little dog came up, gathered the scattered
fragments of the young man's body, put them in a bag, tied it to the
saddle, mounted the horse, and took the body to the demis.
When the demis saw it they wept greatly, but their youngest brother
blew the soul back into the pieces, and raised the youth to life. The
prince arose, and again made ready to depart; the youngest demi said
to him: 'Here is my three-legged horse, [33] take him with thee; if
he do not help thee there is no help to hope for.' The youth mounted
the horse, came again to his princess, took her and put her on the
horse. When he was riding out of the gate it creaked more loudly than
before. Kazha-Ndii heard it and pursued them. As he was overtaking
them, Kazha-Ndii's horse neighed, and the youth's horse slackened its
speed. The young prince said to his horse: 'Why doest thou this?' 'What
can I do? If I had a fourth leg I might be victorious.' When Kazha-Ndii
came near, the three-legged horse neighed so loudly that it stopped
Kazha-Ndii's horse. Then the youth came up to him, brandished his
sword, cut Kazha-Ndii into halves, put the princess on his horse,
and they rode merrily away. They visited the demis and then went home.
III
THE STORY OF GERIA, THE POOR MAN'S SON
There was once a poor married man who had only one son; but this son
was very handsome and strong, and his name was Geria. [34] Once the
youth went out to hunt, and when he was coming home in the evening
he met a woman with a jar going to the spring for water; he aimed an
arrow at her, and broke the jar. The woman turned to him and said:
'If thou art so warlike, instead of breaking my pot why dost thou not
go and fetch the only sister of the twelve demis that dwell beyond
the twelve mountains?' When he heard this, the youth's heart began
to beat wildly for eagerness to see the maiden.
He went home and said to his parents: 'Get ready food to last me a
year, and if I do not come back in that time set out to seek for
me.' His parents would not consent, but said: 'We have no child
but thee, wilt thou go away from us and perish?' They wept with one
accord, but Geria heeded them not. So they got him provisions. They
bade him farewell with sobs. Such wailing was there that the parting
was known throughout the country side, yea, even to sun and moon,
to heaven and earth, to the sea and the sands thereof. At last they
blessed their son and let him go. He took with him a little dog,
whose name was Mathicochi. [35] When they took leave one of another,
they embraced, they kissed, and the youth sped on his way.
He went, he went, he went, he went as much as he could--week and week,
week and fortnight, a year and three months, [36]--he went over six
mountains. When he had crossed these six mountains everything round
about him began to reel: trees and stones fell down and clattered
into the valleys, but Geria was not hurt by them. Then, from beneath,
there came to him a voice, saying: 'What kind of man art thou to
stand thus against me. Who can resist me but Geria, the poor man's
son.' ''Tis I--Geria, the poor man's son.'
When she heard this, the Rokapi [37] went out to meet him, bowed
herself, did great honour to him, and said: 'Whither wilt thou go?' The
youth told her all. The Rokapi was moved with sorrow. Geria asked her:
'Why dost thou grieve?'--'For that I have seen many go thither, but
I have seen none come back.' But Geria heeded her not, and went on
his way.
He went, he went, he went more than he could, and when he had crossed
the other six mountains a still greater earthquake began. It turned
out that this region belonged to the eldest sister of the Rokapis; but
Geria showed no sign of fear. The Rokapi cried to him: 'What manner of
man art thou to resist my witchcraft? Art thou Geria, the poor man's
son?' He cried out to her: 'I am he.' The Rokapi at once went out to
meet him, bowed herself, treated him with respect, and asked him:
'Whither art thou going?' Geria told her his plan, and this Rokapi
too was distressed. Geria asked her why she grieved. She answered:
'Because I have seen many on their way thither, but I have never
seen one come back; albeit, I will do thee one service, I give thee
my three-legged horse.' She called the horse, and said to him: 'As
long as Geria lives serve him faithfully.' Geria bade her farewell,
mounted the horse, and rode away with his little dog Mathicochi.
He rode out into a great meadow, and came near the abode of the
demis. When he looked upon the mead his heart was glad, and his eyes
filled with tears, he bethought him of his home and its beautiful
fields, he uttered a blessing to God the merciful. Then he urged his
horse onward, at such speed that clouds of dust rose behind him. The
youth said to himself: 'Lo, I am now in the unknown land!' Up he rode
to the demis' gate, leaped from his horse, and tied it there.
He walked away a little, and then cried: 'Methinks I have not fastened
my horse securely!' Back he went, tore up an oak by the roots, planted
it with its branches downwards in the earth, and firmly tied his horse
to it. Then the horse said: 'If thou hadst not done this I should
have fled home, but now do as I tell thee, and all will be well. The
demis are indoors; go to the meadow, there thou wilt find a kettle,
overturn it. Then betake thyself to the damsel, and get her to plight
her troth to thee.'
Geria went, kicked the kettle, turned it over three times, and left
it upside down, then he went to the maiden, broke all the locks, and
came to the room where she was. She was astonished, but the youth's
bravery pleased her, and, to make a long story short, she promised
to marry him. The youth went out merrily to the place where he had
left his horse. There he quietly spent the night, and next morning the
horse said: 'The demis have now gone out to the meadow; when they saw
the kettle turned over they marvelled, for it usually takes all the
twelve demis to turn over that kettle, and they said one to another:
"Whatever we are commanded by him that turned over the kettle that
must we do,"--now it is time for thee to go thither.' Geria went to
the meadow.
As soon as the demis saw him, they all arose hastily, went to meet him,
bowed themselves, and said: 'What dost thou ask of us?' He answered:
'You must give me your sister to wife.' The demis said: 'We give her to
thee, but the Black King will not let thee take her.' Geria answered:
'I fear no man,' so (not to lengthen unduly a long story) they made
ready a banquet.
While the feast was still going on, in the morning, Geria looked out
of the door, and saw a host of men in black apparel, who had been sent
by the Black King. Geria mounted his horse, dashed into the midst
and defeated them all; three only did he save alive, as messengers,
and sent them to say to the Black King: ''Tis I that have done this,
Geria, the poor man's son.'
The King was very wroth, and sent almost all his army against him. When
Geria saw them, he bethought himself a little, but the horse said to
him: 'Youth! this is nothing, look for still worse.' Geria struck
the horse with his whip, attacked the host, and slew all but one;
him he sent to bear the news. Upon this, the king went out of himself
with rage: he summoned his devoted and loyal slave to whom he was
wont to apply in all his difficulties, by name Qvamuritz Khami; [38]
to him he committed all that was left of the army, and sent him out.
Geria arose and saw a sight, such a sight as I wish thine enemy
may see. It pleased him not to see Qvamuritz Khami; but what could
be done? The horse said to him: 'Youth! yonder is he of whom I
spake.' Geria crossed himself, gave thanks to God, bade his wife
farewell, for he thought to die, and went out. First of all he slew
the army, and then he began a single combat with Qvamuritz Khami.
Mounted they fought with maces, but the battle was not to the strong,
for Qvamuritz Khami's soul was safe in other hands--how could he
be killed? Qvamuritz Khami cried: 'O young man! thus shouldst thou
shoot!' and slew him. When Geria was dead, the victor slaughtered
all the demis, took Geria's wife, put her on her husband's horse,
and carried her off to his master.
But she said to the king: 'I am the widow of such a man that I will
not belong to a man like thee; either do battle with me, and let
the conqueror have his will, or give me leave to wear mourning for
three months.' The king feared to fight with her, for she was of the
demi race, so he gave her a respite of three months. When Geria was
killed, his head rolled one way and his body another; his faithful
dog Mathicochi went and put the two pieces together, and lay down to
guard them.
While all these things had been happening, a year had passed, and
when Geria's parents saw that he did not return, they set out to seek
him. When they came to a narrow road, they saw that several snakes had
met and were fighting, and all fell dead; then two great snakes crawled
out, threw themselves into the river, swam out again and began to crawl
over the dead snakes in various directions. They were all restored to
life. Geria's parents wondered at the sight, and said one to the other:
'Let us take a little of this water.' They took a thimblefull of it.
When they approached, the little dog, Mathicochi, saw them, and ran
to meet them; sadly he took them to the dead body. When the unhappy
parents saw Geria dead, they both fell to the ground and sobbed
bitterly; then they remembered that the mother of the unfortunate
youth had the wonderful water with her. As soon as they sprinkled
Geria with it he came to life, and said: 'Woe is me! what a long time
I have slept!' When he saw his parents, he was glad, but, remembering
all that had befallen him, he again grew sad, and bade his parents
farewell once more. They wept much, but, putting their trust in God,
armed themselves with patience.
Geria set out for the land of the Black King, and when he came near,
went into a great forest; as he entered, he heard a very great
noise. He stopped, and there, on the road, he saw some one coming
along, destroying all the forest as he went, tree fell on tree;
he looked steadily, and saw a great boar rushing straight towards
him; he threw himself on it, lifted it, and cast it three shoulders'
lengths [39] away from him; but they wrestled again, they wrestled,
they wrestled, three whole days they wrestled. At last the youth was
victorious, and tore the wild boar into halves. From the lacerated
boar there leaped out a wild goat. When the youth killed the wild goat,
there fell from it a little box; when he broke the box, three swallows
flew from it,--two of them he killed, the third he caught and kept.
At that time Qvamuritz Khami fell ill, the agony of death came upon
him, for it turned out that this swallow was his soul. Geria killed
the swallow, and Qvamuritz Khami died. [40]
After this, Geria went into the king's palace, and slew all therein
excepting his wife. Her he took to his parents, whose patience and
grief were exchanged for great joy. They all went home together.
IV
THE PRINCE WHO BEFRIENDED THE BEASTS
There was a king, and he had three sons. Once he fell ill, and became
blind in both eyes. He sent his sons for a surgeon. All the surgeons
agreed that there was a fish of a rare kind by the help of which the
king might be cured. [41] They made a sketch of the fish, and left
it with the sick monarch.
The king commanded his eldest son to go and catch that fish in the
sea. A hundred men with their nets were lost in the sea, but nought
could they find like the fish they sought. The eldest son came home
to his father and said: 'I have found nothing.' This displeased the
king, but what could he do? Then the second son set out, taking with
him a hundred men also, but all his men were lost too, and he brought
back nothing.
After this, the youngest brother went. He had recourse to cunning;
he took with him a hundred kilas [42] of flour and one man. He came to
the sea, and every day he strewed flour in the water, near the shore,
until all the flour was used up; the fishes grew fat on the flour,
and said: 'Let us do a service to this youth since he has enabled
us to grow fat'; so, as soon as the youth threw a net into the sea,
he at once drew out the rare fish he sought. He wrapped it up in the
skirt of his robe, and went his way.
As he rode along, some distance from his companion, he heard a voice
that said: 'O youth, I am dying!' But on looking round he saw no man,
and continued his journey. After a short time, he again heard the same
words. He looked round more carefully, but saw nothing. Then he glanced
at the skirt of his robe, and saw that the fish had its mouth open,
and was dying. The youth said to it: 'What dost thou want?' The fish
answered: 'It will be better for thee if thou wilt let me go, some
day I shall be of use to thee.' The youth took it and threw it into
the water, saying to his comrade: 'I hope thou wilt not betray me.'
When he reached home, he told his father that he had been
unsuccessful. Some time passed. Once the prince quarrelled with his
comrade, and the latter ran off and told the king how his son had
deceived him. When the king heard this, he ordered his son to be
taken away and killed. He was taken out, but when they were about
to kill him, the youth entreated them, saying: 'What doth it profit
you if you slay me? If you let me go, 'twill be a good deed, and
I shall flee to foreign lands.' The executioners took pity on him,
and set him free; he thanked them, and departed.
He went, he went, he went, he went farther than anybody ever went--he
came to a great forest. As he went through the forest, he saw a deer
running, in a great state of alarm. The youth stopped, and fixed his
gaze on it; then the deer came up and fell on its face before him. The
youth asked: 'What ails thee?' 'The prince pursues me, and on thee
depends my safety.' The youth took the deer with him and went on. A
huntsman met him, and asked: 'Whither art thou leading the deer?' The
youth replied: 'One king has sent it as a gift to another king, and,
lo! I am taking it.' The youth thus saved the deer from death, and
the deer said: 'A time will come when I shall save thy life.'
The youth went on his way: he went, he went, he went, so far he went,
good sir, that the 'three day colt' (of fable) could not go so far. He
looked, and, lo! a frightened eagle perched on his shoulder, and said:
'Youth, on thee depends my safety!' The youth protected it also from
its pursuer. Then the eagle said to him: 'Some day I shall do thee
a service.'
The youth went on: he went through the forest, he went, he went,
he went, he went farther than he could, he went a week, two weeks,
a year and three months. Then he heard some fearful rumbling,
roaring, thunder and lightning--something was coming through the
forest, breaking down all the trees. A great jackal appeared, and
ran up to the youth, saying: 'If thou wilt thou canst protect me;
the prince is pursuing me with all his army.' The youth saved the
jackal, as he had saved the other animals. Then the jackal said:
'Some day I shall help thee.'
The youth went on his way, and, when he was out of the wood, came to
a town. In this town he found a castle of crystal, in the courtyard of
which he saw a great number of young men, some dying and some dead. He
asked the meaning of this, and was told: 'The king of this land has a
daughter, a maiden queen; she has made a proclamation that she will
wed him that can hide himself from her; but no man can hide himself
from her, and all these men has she slain, for he that cannot hide
himself from her is cast down from the top of the castle.'
When the youth heard this, he at once arose, and went to the
maiden. They bowed themselves each to the other. The maiden asked him:
'Wherefore art thou come hither?' The youth answered: 'I come for
that which others have come for.' She immediately called her viziers
together, and they wrote out the usual contract.
The youth went out from the castle, came to the seashore, sat down,
and was soon buried in thought. Just then, something made a great
splash in the sea, came and swallowed the youth, carried him into
the Red Sea, there they were hidden in the depths of the sea, near
the shore. The youth remained there all that night.
When the maiden arose next morning she brought her mirror and looked
in it, but she found nothing in the sky, she looked on the dry land,
and found nothing there, she looked at the sea--and then she saw
the youth in the belly of the fish, which was hiding in the deep
waters. After a short time, the fish threw up the youth on the place
where it had found him. He went merrily to the maiden. She asked:
'Well, then, didst thou hide thyself?' 'Yes, I hid myself.' But the
maiden told him where he had been, and how he got there, and added:
'This time I forgive thee, for the cleverness thou hast shown.'
The youth set out again, and sat down in a field. Then something fell
upon him, and took him up into the air, lifted him up into the sky,
and covered him with its wing. When the maiden arose next morning,
she looked in her mirror, she gazed at the mountain, she gazed at the
earth, but she found nothing, she looked at the sky, and there she saw
how the eagle was covering the youth. The eagle carried the youth down,
and put him on the ground. He was joyful, thinking that the maiden
could not have seen him; but when he came to her she told him all.
Then he fell into deep melancholy, but the maiden, being struck with
wonder at his cunning in hiding himself, told him that she again
forgave him. He went out again, and, as he was walking in the field,
the deer came to him and said: 'Mount on my back.' He mounted, and the
deer carried him away, away, away over all the mountains that were
there, and put him in a lair. When the maiden arose next morning,
she found him, and when he came back to her she said: 'Young man,
it seems that thou hast many friends, but thou canst not hide thyself
from me; yet this day also I forgive thee.' The youth went sadly away;
he had lost confidence.
When he sat down in the field, an earthquake began, the town shook,
lightning flashed, thunder rolled, and when a thunderbolt had fallen,
there leapt out from it his friend the gigantic jackal, and said
to him: 'Fear not, O youth!' The jackal had recourse to its wonted
cunning, it began to scrape at the earth: it dug, it dug, it dug,
and burrowed right up to the place where the maiden dwelt, and then
it said to the youth: 'Stay thou here, she will look at the sky,
the mountain, the sea, and when she cannot find thee she will break
her mirror; when thou hearest this, then strike thy head through the
ground and come out.'
This advice, of course, pleased the youth. When the maiden arose in
the morning, she looked at the sea, she found him not, she looked
at the mountain, she looked at the sky, and still she could not see
him, so she broke her mirror. Then the youth pushed his head through
the floor, bowed, and said to the maiden: 'Thou art mine and I am
thine!' They summoned the viziers, sent the news to the king, and a
great feast began.
V
THE CUNNING OLD MAN AND THE DEMI
There was once an old man. He might have worked but he was lazy. His
children went out to the fields, but this old man sat by the fire,
and if they did not show him great respect, he kept them out of the
house. His daughters-in-law quarrelled with him, and ended by turning
him out of the house. He begged of his eldest daughter-in-law, saying:
'Give me a jar of flour, an egg, [43] and an awl, then I shall go
away.' She gave him these things.
The old man went on day and night, and came to the bank of a stream;
he looked over, and saw on the other side a demi, to whom he cried:
'Carry me across this river.' The demi answered: 'I shall not carry
thee, but thou shalt carry me across, or I shall turn thee into
dust.' The demi seized a stone, struck it on the rocky bank, and
turned the great stone into powder. The old man also took his jar of
flour, struck it on the rock, and dust arose. The demi was astonished,
and said: 'How has he turned this stone into powder?' The demi took
another stone, squeezed it in his hand, and said: 'I shall crush thee
like this stone.' Then the old man took out the egg, squeezed it, and
when the moisture began to ooze out, the demi was alarmed: he came over
the stream, took the old man on his shoulder, and carried him across.
In the middle of the stream, the demi said to the old man: 'How light
thou art!' The old man answered: 'I am holding on to the sky with
one hand, if I let go, thou wouldst fall under my weight.' The demi
said: 'Just leave go for a moment.' The old man took out the awl,
and stuck it in the demi's neck. The demi cried: 'Lay hold of the
sky again!' The old man put the awl in his pocket.
When they had reached the other side, the demi said to the old man:
'I shall drive in game, and thou canst meet it here.' So the demi
went and drove in the game. The old man was afraid of wild beasts,
and hid himself in the forest, where he found a dead red-breast. [44]
When the demi returned, he asked: 'What hast thou done with the
game?' The old man replied: 'Thou didst not drive the game properly,
or how could any beast that walks on earth escape from me, that could
catch this bird on the wing?'
The demi went and killed two deer, two wild goats, two boars, two
hares; some he boiled, some he roasted, he made ready two measures
(kilas of 36 to 40 pounds) of millet, two cocas (a coca=25 bottles)
of wine, and said: 'Let us sit down and eat.' The old man said:
'Make me a bridge over this river, there will I sup.' The demi built
him a little bridge, on which he seated himself. The demi gave him
one deer, one wild goat, one boar, one hare, one kila of millet,
one coca of wine, and then sat down near him in the field. The demi
ate, but the old man threw the food into the river. The demi thought
the old man was eating everything, and was afraid, thinking: 'It
would seem that he can eat more than I can.' Lower down the stream,
wolves caught and ate the meat the old man threw away. The old man
asked for another deer. The demi brought it, and the old man threw
it in the water. The demi did not know this. The old man said:
'I have had a snack this evening.'
Next day, the demi invited the old man to his house. They went
there. The demi went out alone to hunt. He met a wolf and a jackal,
and said to them: 'Come and hunt with me. To my house there has
come a guest who can eat ten deer and wild goats; yesterday evening
we had two deer, but they were a mere snack to him.' The wolf and
the jackal said to the demi: 'Thy guest did not eat one of them,
he threw everything into the river, we caught it and ate it, the
old man ate nothing.' The demi said to the wolf and the jackal:
'Then let us go and expose this old man's fraud.'
There went with the demi nine wolves and jackals, to give evidence
against the old man. The old man looked out, and saw the demi coming
along in front, with the wolves and jackals behind him. The old
man cried to the demi: 'Dost thou not owe me more than ten wolves
and jackals?' The wolves and jackals exchanged glances, and said:
'It would seem that this demi has betrayed us.' They threw themselves
on the demi and turned him into dust. [45]
VI
SANARTIA
There was once a king who reached old age without having a son. When
he was very old, his wife at last bore him a son. The child was called
Sanartia (i.e. desired, longed for); he grew up, and became very good
and very clever, so that he understood everything that took place
among earthly beings, wherever they were; but he did not obey his
mother. She therefore hated him, and said to the king, her husband:
'Since this boy will not obey his mother in anything, take him and
throw him into the great deep sea.'
The king was much distressed, but he did as his wife asked. The
youth guessed what his parents were talking about, but he showed no
resistance. After this, his father said: 'Let us go and look at the
town.' Then the youth said: 'Papa, give me a little money.' His father
gave him money, and they went to see the town. When they arrived,
the boy bought a little axe, knives, needle, thread, flint and tinder.
When they were on their way home, they came near the sea; the boy
pulled up an oak tree, and carried it on his shoulder. The father
was the first to see the sea, and when they were on the shore he
said to his son: 'Come hither, and see what a big fish I shall show
thee.' When the son came up to look, his father cast him into the
great sea, together with the tree he carried. A fish swallowed the
youth; his father turned and went home.
In the sea, the youth kindled a fire in the fish's belly, cut caviar
out of it, roasted and ate it. On the caviar from this fish the youth
lived thirty years, in the belly of that fish. Then, his firewood,
flint and tinder being well-nigh exhausted, he made a very big
fire. When the fish felt the heat, it leaped up and fell on the dry
land. The youth said: 'I will cut open the fish's belly, and see--if
it is in the water, I shall sew it up again, if it is ashore, I shall
make a hole and get out.' He cut a little, and saw that it was on
land. Then he cut a large opening, came out of the fish, made a fire,
cut flesh from the fish, roasted it, and ate it.
Just then, there passed a prince, on his way to marry a maiden, and
he saw the other prince coming out of the fish. The prince who was
going to seek his bride, sent a man to the youth to ask him to make
way, for he was sitting in the road, and there was no other road for
horsemen. But Sanartia would not move. Then the prince himself rode up,
and asked: 'Who art thou?' Sanartia told him the name of the king,
his father. Then the prince invited him, saying: 'I go to marry a
wife; ride with me.' Sanartia agreed, and they went together to the
appointed place.
When they came near, they sent on a man to the king, who was master
of the country, asking him to give his daughter in marriage to the
prince. The king agreed, and sent to say: 'If the prince succeeds
in performing two exploits, I shall fulfil his wish; but to do these
deeds is both hard and perilous: the princess throws a great lump of
lead as far as a gun will carry a bullet, the suitor must throw it
back again to the place where the princess is standing.' The suitor
for the maiden's hand sent and said: 'I will do this.'
He went and stood in the place the maiden pointed out to him. She
threw a piece of lead which fell at the place where the prince stood;
he was not only unable to throw the lead, but could not even lift
it from the ground; then his comrade, the other prince, Sanartia,
took up the lead and threw it for him. The piece of lead went much
farther than the maiden had thrown it.
This exploit having been performed, the prince had another to do:
mistaking Sanartia for the suitor, they took him to a wilderness where
there was a castle, and in it dwelt Ocho-Kochi. [46] They opened the
door of the castle, and let in the prince, saying: 'This Ocho-Kochi
will kill the young man.' He spent that night in the castle.
When he was preparing to sleep, Ocho-Kochi came to him and wished
to kill him, but Sanartia was very strong, he seized Ocho-Kochi,
threw him on the ground, and beat him with all his might. When he
had thrashed him soundly, he said to him: 'Go and stand at the gate
as watchman.' So he went and watched till dawn.
In the morning, the king, the maiden's father, sent his vizier,
saying: 'Find out what the prince and Ocho-Kochi are doing.' When
the vizier came to the door, Ocho-Kochi called out from the inside:
'Master sleeps, wake him not, or he will beat me.' The vizier made no
reply to Ocho-Kochi, but went back and told the king what he had heard.
The king was amazed, he set out for the castle, and said to
Ocho-Kochi: 'Open the door to me.' But Ocho-Kochi replied: 'Master
will kill me.' Just then, Sanartia awoke, and said to Ocho-Kochi:
'Open the door for him.' He immediately opened the door, and let in
the king. Then the king and Sanartia went away together. The king
wished to marry him to his daughter, but Sanartia went away secretly;
he dressed the prince, his companion, in his clothes, and sent him
in his place to the king; as soon as he arrived he was wedded to the
princess. Afterwards Sanartia visited him as a friend.
If they had known that Sanartia had performed these exploits they would
not have given the princess to the other prince. But a handmaiden at
the court found out the secret somehow, that Sanartia had done the
deeds, and the princess's husband had done nothing. One evening the
handmaiden told the princess how Sanartia had cheated her and married
her to another man; she was angry, and that same night, after Sanartia
had lain down to sleep, she went and cut off his leg at the knee.
Sanartia did not die of the wound, but went away to another land,
and became friendly with a one-handed man, and they lived together
in the house of the latter. Afterwards they built a house in common,
and moved into it. Sanartia took a maiden, and kept her with him
as nurse. [47] The two friends went out to hunt, and stayed in the
forest all night. At home there was nobody but the maiden.
Meantime there came a demi, who sucked the maiden's breast and then
went away. When Sanartia and his friend came home, the girl told
them what had happened. Sanartia left his friend and the girl at
home, and said to them: 'If the demi comes, take him and keep him
till I come back.' The demi came, but the man was afraid to lay hold
of him; and the demi went away again. As soon as Sanartia came in,
he asked his friend and his nurse: 'What did you do?' They answered:
'The demi came, but we could not take him, and he went away again.'
Next day Sanartia stayed at home, and sent his friend to hunt. The
demi came that night also, but as soon as Sanartia saw him he met
him at the door, and when the demi came in, Sanartia seized him and
threw him to the ground, then he told the nurse to bring a rope, with
which he bound him tightly. He took out his dagger, and was about to
cut him in pieces, but the demi entreated him, saying: 'Slay me not,
and I will heal thee of all infirmities.' Sanartia hearkened to the
demi's prayers, and said: 'If thou wilt restore my leg which was cut
off I will let thee go, otherwise I slay thee.'
The demi pledged his word to heal him, and led him to a great river,
saying: 'Put thy leg therein and it will be sound.' But Sanartia did
not yet believe the demi, so he ordered him to bring a dry stick,
and said: 'Put this stick in the water, and if it becomes green and
bears leaves then will I put in my leg, otherwise I will not.' The
stick was put in the water, but it came out as dry as before.
Then Sanartia was angry, and wished to kill the demi, but again he
entreated, saying: 'There is still another healing stream.' So he
took him to the other stream, and as soon as Sanartia put in his leg
it was made whole and sound like the other leg. After this, he did
not kill the demi, but let him go free; he made the demi heal his
one-handed friend, whom he wedded to his nurse. He left them there,
and set out for his father's house.
But when he reached it, nobody knew him. Next day he secretly mounted
his father's horse, and went to the place where he had married the
prince to the princess. On the road he saw a swineherd; when he
approached, he recognised in him his old friend the prince. When he
questioned him, the swineherd replied: 'As soon as thou hadst gone
hence they made me a swineherd.' Sanartia drew out his sword, gave it
to him, and said: 'Kill all the swine but three, and wound those three;
then drive the three home, I shall be there, ready to punish anybody
who is angry with thee.' The swineherd did as Sanartia told him,
and in the evening drove the three swine into the king's courtyard.
Sanartia came to the palace earlier, but they did not recognise
him. When the swineherd drove in his swine, his wife was about to
beat him, saying: 'Why hast thou lost the swine.' But at that moment
Sanartia appeared before the princess, was angry with her, and said:
'If thou wert a good woman thou wouldst not make thy husband feed
swine.'... They knew at once that it was Sanartia, and were much
amazed, saying: 'His leg was cut off at the knee, how has he replaced
his leg?' Sanartia ordered them to bring the princess's husband: he
made her wash him well with her own hands, bring clothes, and dress
him in noble apparel. When Sanartia was leaving for home, he called
the princess and her parents, and said to them: 'If you do not treat
the prince as becomes his rank, I shall come at once, and it will
fare ill with you.' He took leave of them all and went home.
VII
THE SHEPHERD JUDGE
In a certain land, there was once a king who had four viziers to
judge the people. Once these judges uttered a remarkable sentence. At
that time there came to the king a certain shepherd, who spoke in
a manner that pleased the king, so he commanded the viziers: 'Show
this shepherd the sentence you pronounced.' When the shepherd had
examined the decree of the viziers, it did not please him; he took
it and altered it from beginning to end.
When the king saw this, he said to the shepherd: 'Since thou art so
skilled in judging, be thou a judge.' The shepherd refused, and said:
'As long as I have eyes I cannot judge, if you put out both my eyes
then I will be a judge.' Finally he persuaded them to put out his
eyes. They built him a great, fine house, they gave him scribes,
furnished him with everything befitting his office, and made the
shepherd supreme judge.
He began to do justice in such an upright manner that people flocked
to him from every side. Everybody went to him for justice: great and
small, master and servant, old and young, clergy and laity, friend
and enemy--in a word, all who had suits with anybody came to him,
every one praised and blessed his decisions.
Once there came to him a man and a woman. The man said to the judge: 'I
came to this woman's house on a mule; a calf accompanied my mule. When
I tied up the mule, the calf began to suck its breast. The woman,
seeing this, ran out, seized the calf, and began to grumble at me,
saying it was her calf, and asking how it came to be with my mule. I
withstood her with all my might, but it was of no avail. She wished
to drag away the calf, but I would not allow it, I would not give
up my property to her; we quarrelled, and now we have come before
thee--in God's name judge between us!' Thus he spoke in person to the
judge, but secretly he sent him a large bribe and a message, saying:
'Take this money, and put me not to shame before this woman.'
But the judge would not tamper with the scales of justice, and sent
to tell the man: 'How can I take the calf from the woman by force,
if justice do not demand it?' The judge asked the woman: 'What sayest
thou?' The woman replied: 'My lord, this man rode up to my house
on a mule; I had nothing in the world but one calf and its mother,
which I loved; my calf went up to this man's mule, caressed it,
and took hold of it with its snout, as if it were going to suck its
breast. The man, seeing this, thought: 'I shall certainly take away
this calf with me.' He dragged it home, but, of course, I could not
allow this--all extol thine equity, I too am come to thy door, and
trust thou wilt not suffer me to be trampled down by injustice.'
When the judge had heard both sides, he pronounced the following
decision: 'Since a mule never bore offspring and never will, it is
still less possible that a mule should bring forth a calf. Let the
calf therefore be taken from the man, and given to the woman who owns
the cow, the mother of the calf.' This judgment pleased everybody
in the highest degree. And God was merciful to this good judge:
by means of the kerchief of that woman his eyes were made whole,
and he saw. After this he saw with both eyes, but till the day of
his death he judged uprightly; when he died he went to heaven.
VIII
THE PRIEST'S YOUNGEST SON
There was once a priest who had three sons. On the day of his death,
the priest said to his sons: 'When I die, let each of you read the
psalter over me for one night.' But the elder sons did not do as
their father had bidden them, only the youngest read the psalter over
him. That night his father appeared, and gave him a horse. Next night
he again read the psalter over his father in his brothers' place. His
father again appeared, and gave him another horse, which he resolved
to give to his younger brother. On the third night he again read the
psalter. His father brought him a third horse, gave the young man
his blessing, and departed.
At that time, a princess was to be married to any man whose horse
could jump up to the castle, so that its rider could kiss that
maiden-queen. Many princes came to woo, but none of their horses could
leap up to the castle. Then the priest's youngest son mounted the horse
his father had given him, and rode up to the royal palace; he struck
the horse with his switch, and made it jump, but it could only go one
third of the way up to the castle. Next day he mounted another horse,
and made it jump, it went two thirds of the height of the castle. The
third day he came on the third horse, and made it jump; it jumped
right up to the top of the castle; the youth kissed the princess,
and they married him to her. After this the priest's son went home.
At this time the queen, his mother-in-law, fell ill; she sent for her
son-in-law, and said to him: 'Between the white sea and the black
sea there feeds a doe, they tell me that its milk will do me good;
if thou canst get it for me I shall recover, if not, I must die.' Then
the youth mounted his horse and went forth. He rode between the seas,
milked the doe, brought its milk to his mother-in-law, gave it to
her to drink, and healed her.
MINGRELIAN PROVERBS
1. Turn to the right, or turn to the left,
'Twill all be one in the end. [48]
2. The rat that came from outside,
Drove out the house-born rat.
3. Fight for the outlying village,
If thou wantest the one nearer home.
4. Wish thy neighbour to have an ox,
And God will send it to thee.
5. The wolf was abused as wolfish,
While the jackal ate up the flock.
6. The hen scratched and scratched till she dug up a knife,
With which her own throat was afterwards cut.
7. The road runs where an old road ran,
The river flows in the bed of a former river.
8. 'Give me room to stand,' quoth the bull, 'and I
Shall make myself enough room to lie.'
9. If the bear overcome thee--then call him Papa. [49]
10. The dog took fright at a wolf,
And barked all the year round at a stump.
11. Who ever heard of a fish being prized
As long as it stayed in the stream?
12. They shot at the ripe--but the green fruit fell.
13. Leave a good deed on a stone by the way,
Thou'lt find it again after many a day (i.e. Cast thy bread on the
waters).
14. I say it--but whether it happen or no
'Tis nothing to do with me.
15. Eat and drink up whatever is thine,
But cross thyself over all that's mine.
16. Who slew me?--My brother.
Who brought me back to life?--My brother.
17. The well-doer receives not good in return.
18. The truthful man is always duped.
19. My father I love, my mother I love--
But myself I prefer before all.
20. A heart-kiss is better than a lip-kiss.
21. If thou hast not eaten pepper, why does thy mouth burn?
22. A disease that one sees, will not kill;
'Tis hidden sores do the most ill.
23. Our granny has no teeth, so she
Likes not others' teeth to see.
24. He has forgotten the soul of his father, so he swears by the soul
of his grandsire.
25. Gold is good, but if thou have it not, of what use is it to thee?
26. Better is copper of thine own than gold that is another's.
27. Of what use is light to him that is blind?
28. If thou art brave, do not bewail
The bluntness of thy sword.