TH E A D V E N TU R E S

OF THE

P A N J A B H E R O

RA J A RA SA LU

BY THE

REV. CHA RLES SWYNNERTON ,

M EMBER OF THE Rowu. A sm—m c A ND FOLK -LORE Soc naruss , A ND our THEA S I A TIC SOC IETY OF BENG A L .

A UTHOR O F

The Afgha n W'

izr,"

Gouglz‘: A ction a t Furle/mbad, é'c .

Such tales their cheer, at wake orgoss ipin g,

When it daaws n ear the W itchin g tim e of n ight—Bla ir.

’! ! it

NEWM A N Co . ,Un i; M DA LHOUSIE S! UA RE.

1 884 .

IN M EMORIA M .

£1. 5.

05. N ovem é. 8 : 1 882.

0 laggard tim e of sadn ess an d ofwaitin g,0 day prolo n ged from lin g'

t in g year to year,How oft I stan d, within m y heart debatin g,W ill sun set shadows n ever m ore appear?

50 lon g‘

I’

ve waited for the restful n ight,Such tears I

’

ve shed for sorrow of the soul,ighin g an d sobb in g in the fevered lightThat, burn in g, beats from out the brazen pole !W ill day en d n everm ore 7 A n d shallthe sunForever s tan d rem orseless in the sky ?

The swoo n in g Hours of Tim e have ceased to run ,A n d m en are wrestlin gwith etern ity.

I lon g for n ight, I lon g for dream y coversW i thin the hills or close upon the deep

I lon g for twilight hours , e n deared to lovers ,A n d 0 I lon g forcoo l oblivious s leep

Som e cavern '

s depths shallbe m y drowsy pillow,

Far from the wilderin g tum ult of the worldThere let m e lis te n to the surgin g b illow,

By win dy curren ts hoarsely swayed an d swirled 1

There, sheltered, on the vein ed shin gle lyin g,Le t m e sleep out the rem n an t of m y days ,

Drugged by sweet s loth, allsorrow pas t, a n d sighin g,Past, all regard for cen sure or for praise

The crysta l wave that shivers at m y feet,The breaker foam i n g in the shadowy wild,W ill sin g for love a lullaby as sweetA s e

’

er allured the fan cy of a child.

Com e then , ye statelyHours of Even -son g,Lead m e fa r hen ce to som e such dim recess,

Then fold m e, wearied out, to slum ber lon g,Fold m e in slum ber an d forgetfuln ess

O laggard tim e of sadn ess an d of grief0 day prolo n ged from tardy year to year,

Whe n will the shadows , lade n with relief,Descen d from starry kin gdom s cold an d clear 1

INTRODUCTION .

ON the sum m it of on e of the peaks of Gan dgarh by the

Upper I n dus stan ds an old fortress which is kn own as Kali l

Kot ; or, theFort of the I n fidels. It is situated m idway

between Pir Than the highest poi n t of the ran ge, an d the

lofty village of Chen ar Kot, ben eath the precipices of

which, over a frien dly gap, run s the rough m oun tai n road

from the broad I n dus Val ley on the west to the beautiful

vale in Hazard on the east, where Haripur, fam ous for its

flowei s an d fruits, reposes am on g the coo l groves.

A t KafirKot, says traditio n , the last stan d was m ade

by the “ in fidel” H in dus of the Chach plai n, when the

coun try succum bed to the exterm in atin g i n roads of bar

barian M uham m adan s from Cen tral A s ia about n in e hun dredyears ago. The wal ls com prise withi n their area the very

sum m it of the hi ll, restin gon the south-eastern side upon theedge of a deep in accessible cl iff which descen ds for hun

dreds of feet in to the peaceful valley ben eath . Over the

ii LVTA’ODUCTlO/V.

verge of the cliff, just without the south-eastern an gle of

the fort, where the wall retires, there exists a fam ous cave

overgrown by a hardy jujube tree, an d so cun n i n gly con

trived by n ature that on ly by acciden t could its ex isten ce ,

be suspected at all. This cave is kn own as Kafir-Kot-ki

Ghar, or the Cave of the Fort of the I n fidels. It run s in a

down ward slopin gdirection about forty feet in to the lim e

ston e rock, an d it en ds in two sm al l n atural cham bers verydifficult of access . When the devotedgarrison foun d their

retreat cut off on allsides, it is said that they threwtheirarm s

i n to the bottom of the cave, an d that then , in the charac ter

of un arm ed suppl ian ts, they cam e forth an d m ade an un

availin g appeal for quarter to their terrible i n vaders .

O n e bright wi n ter’

s day after irspectin gthe oldwalls, an d

c lam beri n gdown i n to the depths of the carewhere ashes an dpotsherds existed in abun dan ce to attest its an c ien t uses

,

I was restin gin the den se shade of the grove ofwel l-grown

San d i/ad which covers the h ill, when I overheard som e of

m yvillage-

guides disputi n gas to whether the Cave of the lnfidels m ight n ot be iden tical wi th the legen dary Cave of

Gan dgarh, som e asserti n g that it was the sam e, an d o thers

m ai n tain i n g the con trary.

Gan dgarri-ki—Ghar,

”said a tal l m oun tai n eerfrom Sirikét

is in PirThan . To this cave RajaRasalu n ever cam e at

all

A s n o o n e has ever been able to fi n d the Cave of

Gan dgarh,”an swered a m an ofGhazi, I do n ot see why

this should n ot be it. ”

IN TRODUCTION . i ii

How could youexpect to fi n d the Cave of Gan dgarh,

en quired the first m an trium phan tly, when Rasalu shut in

the gian t with a great ston e, an d covered the place up P

It was un der these circum stan ces that I first m ade ac

quain tan ce with the hero of the fol lowi n g legen ds, Rajé.Rasalu. A s the sun was rapidly decli n i n g I waited thento hear n o m ore, but havin g en joyed our brief halt, we

allstartedo n our return to Ghazi, I on foot,an d m y l ittle boyof five, well arm ed with a bow an d arrow for i n cautious

tigers, in a sm al l n ative bridal doolie, which was born e on

the shoulders of a couple of stout villagers. Through rough

rocks of schist or lim eston e, an d by m an y a rugged track,our path con ducted us down the steep declivities of

M oun t Gan dgarh, affordin gus n ear at han d beautiful sun

n y views of val ley an d precipice an d lofty Sikh fortress, an dreveal i n g far away the stately I n dus, the spacious PeshawurValley, an d the sti ll m ore distan t hi lls ofKabul an d Bajour,where hum an l ife is cheap, an d where m en go arm ed to the

teeth. H igh over our heads in the pure aether wheeleda go lden -crested eagle, an d in the lower atm osphere floated

kites an d hawks . S om etim es a brace of black partridges,startled by our approach, wen t whirrin g their n oisy wi n gsdown i n to the lower copses, or a pai n ted jay flew by

, or a

pair of doves spotted an d rose-coloured, or som e bluepigeon s lin gered to gaze atus, or a Chatterbox peered fromthe gloom of a thicket, or a flight of excited starlin gsswept through the radian t air. A m on g these wild uplan d

glen s, where hom esteads are few, sol itary an d scattered,

iv IN TRODUCTION .

dwel l too the leopard, the wolf, an d the red an d gray byse

n a, the fox an d the jackal, the pole-cat an d the m un goose,

the grey squirrel an d the‘ fretfulporcupi n e,

’together with

a spec ies ofdeer n am ed here the rdz’

n /z, but lowerdown the

n ral. A t on e tim e we foun d ourselves in a deep, dark

dell,allen closed by prec ipices, a fi t abode for the oracle

of a god, in which flowed from peren n ial spri n gs cold pel

lucidwater, an dwhere flourished an abun dan ce of vege

table life, as the Kam ila’

adorn ed profusely with lovely red

flowers an d berries, the graceful droopi n g creeper aeyrz’

te

n own ed as a rem edy for dyspeps ia, thegrin geyr, the dull red

berries ofwhich are said to be purgative, such specim en s ofacac ia as thep/mld}: orgum acacia, an d the lei/ear or acacia

arabica, an d the bér, which is the jujube-tree, togetherwith

the d/zam an glorious for its gran d fol iage an d fair white

flowers, an d valuable forits fin e elastic woodwhich is highlyprized by the coun try bowyers .

Havi n g din ed that even in gwith our excellen t host, M r.

T. L. Barlow of Ghazi, we drewroun d the blazi n g log-fire,

for the n ight air was bitterly cold, an d spen t the even in glisten in g to on e of m y argum en tative guides, who cam e

in to relate to us allthat he had ever heard of the adven

tures of RajaRasalu.

The legen d then told an d tran slatedw'

véwee was pub

lished by m e in an En gl ish dress in the Folklore journ alof

the m on th of M ay in the presen t year.

I n the followin g A ugust an d Septem ber a secon d an d a

very differen t version of Rasz'

tlu’

s adven tures was publishedby subscription in Bom bay.

IN TRODUCTION .

These two version s, so far as I am aware, are the on ly

two accoun ts of the old Pan jab hero which have as yet

been m ade public .

The fol lowi n g accoun t is a com pilation from three

difleren t versio n s n ow in m y possession . The first version

is that from Ghazi, referred to above. I obtai n ed the

secon d from an old profession al bard n am ed Jam s,who l ives be tween Rawal Pi n di an d M ari, an d who be

lieved him self to be o n e hun dred an d twen ty years of

age. The third version was recited to m e by the bard

Shuruf whose hom e lies m uch n earer to the borders of

Kashm ir.

A ll these three disti n ct version s, whi le con tradictory in

som e po i n ts, serve to supplem en t each other in m an y m ore.

Thus, Jum a’s story of the Gian ts excel led Shuruf’s in gen eral

i n terest an d in dra m atic com pleten ess, but on the other

han d Shuruf possessed treasures which the quaveri n g voice

of J iim asan g n ot of, as the charm i n g legen d of M irshikari

an d the tale 'of the Swan s. From Shuruf too I learn t the

n am es of all the gian ts an d of the gian tess, the n am e of

Rasi lu’s horse

, an d the im portan t tradition that on e of the

gian ts at least, an d probably all of them , possessed on ly

a sin gle eye. To him I am also i n debted for the beauti

fullam en twhich I have ren dered,“Stran ge is Thy n ature always, God m ost dread,

an d which, said he, was sun g by the gian tess Gan dgarri

when Rasalu im prison ed her un der the m oun tain . Thislam en t l have ven tured to put i n to the m outh of the gian t

vi INTRODUCTION .

Thirra, followi n g Jun ia’s version that it was he, an d n ot

Gan dgarri, who was thus im prison ed.

I on ce took Shuruf with m e to Gha’

z i an d co n fron ted

him with som e of the villagers of Gan dgarh, when a very

am usi n gdiscussion was the result. Poor Shuruf, belon gi n gto a low an ddespised class had to speak in very subdued

ton es to the fierce Pathan s with bated breath an d whis

peri n g utteran ce”

-but he bravely held his own . Subse

quen tly on e of the villagers of Sirikot cam e to us privately

an d said,Sz

’

rhib , these bards kn ow n othin g whatever about

the m atter. The whole of these stories of theirs are

i n ven ted out of their own heads . How could Raja Rasaluan d his Ran i have l ived at Kheri-M urti, when we all kn ow

they lived at M ohat, n ot five m iles ofl ? I have seen theplace an d I will show it to you.

Hardly had he gon e out when Shuruf en tered the room

with a m ost profoun d salaam , an d squattin g him self down

an d lean i n g forward as if tim orous lest the very Walls should

overhear him ,be halfwhispered,

Sa’

rb ih, these villagers tel l n othin g but lies, alll ies . How

can they kn ow better than we when our forefathers for

hun dreds of gen eration s have han deddown to us these very

stories just as they are

Hours after, from the servan ts’ quarters in rear, we

con ti n ued to catch stray soun ds of the dispute still ragi n g,as all the even ts of Rasalu

’s career were n arrated an d

can vassed, the oldbard fi n al ly gettin g the best of the argu

vii

m en t by showi n ga bolder fron t, an ddelugin g his vil lage

critics with a torren t of verses, to their am azem en t an d dis

com fiture.

F To the lover of com parative fo lklore, the legen ds of

RajaRasalu, allof them of great an tiquity, should appeal

with con siderable power an d i n teres t. They con tai nechoes of the household tales of m an y lan ds, an d they aren ot destitute of curious rem i n iscen ces of the folk- legen dsof the an cien t Greeks, so fam iliar to us in their m ythology

an d in the pages of their tragic poets. Here an d there

in these old-world fragm en ts, orally preserved as they have

been by a separate an d disti n ct class of m en in hum ble

station , who were, an d are, utterly un lettered, we catch

gl im pses, fai n t, yet ten der, of the Golden A ge dream t of by

the bards ofyore. What could be m ore quai n t an d s im plein its golden lovel in ess than the peaceful picture presen ted

,

to us in the story of Raja Rasaluan d RajaBhoja? It is

as though the warl ike hero had passed out of a world of

battle an d strife in to a region of a n ew an d a happy existen ce, as if he had stepped backward in the m arch ofTim e,an dwas tasti n gof the delights of that blissful era, in depictin gwhich the wild dream y eloquen ce of the K n ight of LaM an cha en chan ted the ears of his gapi n grustic audien ce,for even to him it was n ot given to perceive un ti l the very

last, that, after all, the Golden A ge l ies n ot in the vision arypast, but in the bright un foldin gs of an assured future, in

the hope ful l of im m ortality an d in the glory that shall berevealed,

vi ii I N TRODUCTION

The stories ofRasaluopen with an accoun t of ! ueen Lun aan dPri n ce Ptiran ,Rasalu

’shalf-brother

,which isalm ostexactly

the coun terpart of the tale of Phaedra an d Hippolytus .

The Greek hero loyally refuses to un derstan d the disgrace

fulovertures of his step-m otherPhaedra,he is in con sequen ce

den oun ced by her, an d his father Theseus, a dem i-god in

the to ils of a girl, drives him away to exile an d death.

But Dian a, ever en am oured of chastity, restores the youth

to life, while the con scien ce-stricken Phaedra con fesses

hercrim e . So, too, Piiran is sim ilarly tem pted an d accused,an d s im i larly con dem n ed. For years he lies as a corpse

in a forsaken well, un ti l the prophet Gorakn ath raises him

from the dead, whi le the rem orseful Lun a ackn owledges her

gui lty passion . The parallel is as n early com plete as poss ible.

In the tale of M irshikari,again , we have a charm in g

rem i n iscen ce of som e of the m ost fam ous stories of classi

cal an tiquity. It is the story of Orpheus, of A m phion , of

Pan , in an I n dian dress . The Pan jabi word bin,

”which I

have tran slated “ lute,”m ean s either a stri n ged i n strum en tor

a wi n d i n strum en t.* Shuruf the Bard bel ievedM irshikari’s

to have been the latter— the double pipes. These pipes,frequen tly seen in the Pan jab, are precisely iden tical withthose wh ich were used am o n g the Greeks an d Rom an s .

They are the tibiaepares, or, as Horace n am es them,the

Lydian Pipes .

” They con s ist of two separate flageolets,

the m ale an d the fem ale, the tibia dex tm an d the tibia

sz'

zzisz‘ra , an sweri n g to the differen t ton es of the hum an

The Lodién aPunjabi Diction ary.

INTRODUCTION . ix

voice, an d they are played by the on e perform er at the

sam e tim e. In the Pan jab the upper extrem ities of these

pipes are often , fixed i n to a sm all hol lowgourd, which

an swers the purpose of a receiver, an d which is furn ished

as wel l with a s in gle m outh-piece. It is this in strumen t

which is used by travell in g sn ake-charm ers,an d this too,accordi n g to Shuruf, was the in strum en t possessed by

M irshikari. Thewhole story of the hun ter-kin g, however,is so redolen t of classical tradition al story, that I haveadopted the altern ative m ean in gof bin , an d given M ir

shikari a stri n ged- in strum en t— the lyra, which was real ly

the cithara, ofA pollodorus—usi n g the word “lute”as m ore

gen eric than “ lyre, an d as bei n g equal ly appropriate,accordin g to the beautiful l i n es in Ifem y z'z

'

iz'

“ Orpheus, with his lute, m ade trees,A n d the m oun tain tops that freeze,Bow them sel ves when he did sin g.

”

OfOrpheus we read that his lyre was the gift of the

god A pol lo. I n like m an n er M irshikari derived his alsofrom a god

—from the im m ortal Kwaja. Khizar, the

tutelary deity of the I n dus—a god Whose prototype isun certain , but whose cultus in a rude way sti l l actual ly

survives, who is thoroughly bel ieved in an d even worshippedby the Muham m adan dwellers by the “ Father of Rivers,an dwhose aid is always i n voked when ever the capriciouscurren t threaten s to un derm in e their an cestral fields or

villages.

A IN TROD UCTION .

Then again we pic ture Orpheus, as he is so often pictured

on the dom estic wa lls of Pom pei i, sitti n g i n woodlan d

glades, an d en chan ti n g all n ature with the “

golden ton es”

of his lyre . So too M irshikari, as represen ted in the legen d,is can opied by trees an d seated upon rocks

,ravishin g with

the dulcet m usic of his m agic lute the“ poordappled fools”

with which forest an d woodlan d aboun d.

When we turn to the legen ds of the gian ts we fi n d in

them a version of certai n stories which are diffused un iver

sally. These gian ts are m o n sters, m an -eaters, hum an in

shape, dem on iac in origi n , who are a terror to gods an d

m en . A t last (stil l con fi n i n g ourselves to Greek an alogy)com es the del ivererHercules in the person of Rasalu, who

slays them allbut on e, an dwho buries the survivor un derm oun t Gan dgarh, just as in c lassical m ythology, those Ofthe Gigan tes who escaped the aven gin garm of the destroyerof their race were im prison ed un der E tn a. Or, again ,Rasaluis U lysses who i n vades the gian t dwel lers in m oun

tain caves, an d at whom the on e-eyed A kaldeo hurls an

en orm ous rock, which the hero receives with calm in differ.

en ce on the top of his shield.

This i n troduction would be ren dered tediously lon g, if all

the coi n ciden ces of com m on tradition al lore which the

Rasalu legen ds con tai n were exam i n ed an d com pared in

detai l. In Kag, the raven , we recogn ize the fabled atten

dan t ofthe fatherof the slain ,”the i ll-bodin g

“b irdofFate,"

(Stron g’sFrithiof’s Saga,Notes, I n the “flyin gserpen t

”

or dragon , which is doubtless the cobra, m ay be detected

IN TRODUCTION . x i

that em blem of the creative prin ciple in n ature, or that

m an ifestation of deity, which was everan object of terror

an d worship allthrough the‘

m ysterious past. The m an n er

n wh ich the legen drepresen ts the subtledestroyer hoverin gover the faces of weary sleepers to draw away their

breath is stron gly suggestive of the grim picture in the

Voluspa

Then will com e the dim

A n d flyin gdragon

The fierce serpen t from belowThe m oun tain s of N ida

He floats on his win gs,He hovers over the plain ,N idh

'

oggr, over the dead.

A gain , we have disti n ct referen ces to charm s an d

i n can tation s, to witchcraft an d m agic an d the supern atural

rais in gof storms,to the foun dation sacrifice of hum an blood

an d to the headless warrior, to fables of m on ol iths an d

superstition s of the pri n ts of horse-hoofs in the sol id rocks,

an d to lon g-lastin g periods of tran ce or com a, m an y of

the tradition s thus in dicated bei n g extrem ely Scan din a

vian in sirn ilitude an d character. Passin gby these various

poin ts of an tiquarian i n terest, we m ay con clude this part

of the in troduction with a few words on the subject of

en igm as an d m alediction s .

The riddles or en igm as which occur in som e of these

legen ds m ust strike the i n tell igen t reader as exceedin gly

quain t an d curious. In form an d con ception they are

’Old places revisited, orthe A n tiquarian En thusiast. Vol. ii. , p. 206,

x ii IN TRODUCTION .

precisely like those which have been han ded down to us

from the earliest periods of history. Sam son , in the Book

of Judges, has an adven ture by'

-the way. He ki lls a l ion ,an d when he sees it agai n ,

a swarm of bees has settledin the hollow carcass . So he propoun ds to the en em iesof his coun try a riddle thus

“ Out of the eater cam e forth m eat

Out of the stron gcam e forth sweetn ess .

I n a sim ilarway Rasalu has an adven ture in the forest.

He rem ain s a m ute spectator of allthe :calam ities which

atten d the death of his follower, an dwhen arraign edbefore

his foes, he con fron ts them with the riddle

On e was kil led an d two died,Two were killed an d fourdied

Fourwere kil led an d six died

Fourwere m ale an d two were fem ale.

Ifwe turn to the m yths of classical history, we fi n d

m ysterious son gstress the Sph i n x 75fia ibtodos Kiro v,

“ The Sphin x , subtlest of fien ds,Who m in istered to Thebes heaven ’

s poiso n ed win e,U n n atural love an d m ore un n atural hate”

we fi n d herpuzzl in g the world with that m ost ca'lam itous,

m ost sorrowful en igm a of all “What is thatwhich walks

o n four feet in the m orn i n g, on two feet at n oon , an d on

three feet in the even i n g?”

But there is an other passage in the Greek which also

form s a very n ear approach to the riddles of the legen ds

which we are n ow co n sideri n g . It is ascribed to A lexis

https://www.forgottenbooks.com/join

xiv IN TRODUCTION .

an tiquity, we m ust adm it that the coi n ciden ces thus n oted

are to say the least rem arkable.

The last poi n t to be observed is that which is suggested

by Rasalu’

s curse. Howun iversal is that habit or custom

by which m an kin d, or at least the rel igious races of the

hum an fam ily, an d even the De ity H im self, are represen ted

agai n an d again as cursi n g the i n n ocen t earth, or

the fruits thereof, in con sequen ce of the occurren ce of som e

terrible calam ity, or the perpetratio n of som e devastati n gwickedn ess ! “ Ye M oun tai n s of G i lboa, let there be n o

dewupon youl”is typical of m aledic tion s which frequen tly

occur, n ot o n ly in the i n spired pages of Holy Writ, but

throughout all history. A n d what is true of history is

true also of rom an ce. How the crazy curses of Cassan dra

in the A gam em n on tol l in the ears of the reader ! Yet,

in th is respect [Eschylus was excelled by Sophocles, n or,as it has been truly rem arked, is King Lear itself m ore

horren t with bristl in g curses than the G dzlbus Tyran n us

whigh exhibits the awful spectacle of the blin d old ki n g,pursued by a fate ever terrible an d ever un relen ti n g,utterin gas he goes i n fallible curs i n gs over the heads ofhis

two son s, already so dism ally un fortun ate. I n that won der

ful tragedy there is on e passage which m ay fitly com pare

with a curse in our own Shakespeare’s Richard I], an d

both passages m ay com pare with the curse of Raja RasaluThat from the OZrz

’

zpus run s thus

Ka i. Tafira rois pi; 8pt30'

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pvi'r’ dporov dvrdts yfis dwévar f wd.

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IN TRODUCTION . xv

“ A n d for thosewho fail to obey these direction s, I praythe gods that n either an y seed crop m ay sprin g to them

from their lan d, n or yet chi ldren from their

The curse from Ric/lard I]. is m i lder in character, but

the idea is approxim ately the sam e

! ua rt—Garden er, for tellin gm e this n ews of woe,I would, the plan ts thougraft

’st, m ay n evergrow.

Garden ers—Poor queen , so that thystate m ightbe n o worseI would m y ski l l were subject to thy curse it

How strikin gly alike are these woeful words of the uh

happy Isabella to the curse of Rasa’

lu, when for the last

tim e he looks on the m an goe- trees of the lost, gui lty

queen

O flushed with fruit or bare ofbough,Fruit m ay ye n ever bear againDead is Koklan , her place is void,A n d flam in g red the fires rem ain

But when did this fam ous hero flourish, an d where dip

he l ive P

To the form er questio n n o very decided an swer can be'

given . Rasalu’s n am e is n either in scribed on the glowin gpages of history, n or does it survive on the en durin g m etal

of an cien t coin s. He l ives in the popular m em ory, an d in

the popular m em ory o n ly. These legen ds open an d close

the on e volum e of his l ife, which has escaped the ravages

of tim e an d outlived the rui n of oblivion . The i n tern al

( Edipus Tyran n us . 269—27 1 .

‘l' A ct iii, scen e 4 .

xvi IN TRODUCTION .

eviden ce thus preserved is of two ki n ds—the probable an d

the im probable. We m ust at on ce reject as im probable

such statem en ts as that Rasalu was ever a con vert to

Muham m adan ism , or that in his tim e the Gospel of A rabiahad even been heard of. It was n atural for the n ativePan jabi bards, who in the eleven th cen tury were com pul

v

sorily driven i n to the M usalm an fold, to deck out their old

n ation al hero in the trappin gs of Islam ,if on ly to co n c i liate

theirstern con querors . But the legen ds them selves n u

doubtedly belon gto a period lon g an terior to the age of

Muham m ad, while som e of them , as the legen d of the

Gian ts, m ust be ascribed to the heroic ages of the world,an d to the very dawn of c ivilized political power.

The on e poin tupon which thewho le ofthe differen t autho

rities are agreedis, thatRasalu, a Rajptit prin ce, was the son

an d successorofRajasalivahan orShalivhan,oras the bards

pron oun ce the n am e, Sulwan . Now it is wel l kn own that

salivahan was a very powerful m on arch, an d that his era

began in or about the year of Christ 7 7 . The bel ief that

he attacked an d slew the ren own edVikram ajit is eviden tly

an error, si n ce the latter kin g flourished B. C . S6 . 1LIt

seem s certain , however, that he i n herited or‘

con quered his

ki n gdom of Ujein in the Dakkah , an d that he overran

a con siderable portion of n orthern I n dia, in cludin g the

Pan jab. The legen d represen ts him as reign i n g at Sialkot.

H istory o n the other han d affirm s that his proper ki n g

Elphin ston e’s I n dia, p. 245

t Brigg’

s M ahom edan Power i n In dia, p . lxxv .

IN TRODUCTION . xvii

dom was the Dakkan .

* I s there an y eviden ce in the

legen ds con n ectin gsalivahan of Sialkot with the Dakkan ?

Yes—Rasalu havin g con sol idated his rule at Sialkot on

the death of his father, at on ce set out for the Dakkan ,

where he en coun tered his adven ture with M irshikari. It

seem s eviden t, therefore, that Sélivaihan of history, an d

salivahan , or Sulwan , of legen dary fable, are on e an d the

sam e i n dividual . If we assum e that the year of Christ

7 7 represen ts the birth year of salivahan , we m ay safely

con clude that that sovere ign expiredabout the year 130,

so that Raja Rasalu, the hero of the legen ds, m ay be

asserted, with greater or less probability, to have flourishedin the m iddle, or towards the close, of the secon d cen tury

of our era.

From this eviden ce it would also appear that Rasalu’

s

ki n gdom exten ded from the Dakkan o n the east to the

river I n dus on the west. Though form an yyears of his l ifehe adopted the eccen tric role of a kn ight-erran t, wan deri n gthroughout his dim in ion s, alm ost, if n otwholly, unatten ded.

ben t on slayin g gian ts, deliveri n g captive prin cessesj'

an d achievin gexploits wherever he wen t, it is clear that hisfavourite place ofabode was som ewhere close to the UpperI n dus in the territory of RajaSirikap, whom he had dis

possessed, whose capital was iden tical with the an cien t

Elphin ston e’

5 In dia, p. 245.

1“ In the version which I pub lished i n the Folklorejourn al there i sa story of Rasalu deliverin g a daughterof Sirikap from her captivityin a rock hewn cel l .

xviii IN TRODUCTION .

Tax ila,* an d who had a sum m er residen ce at Sirikot o n

m oun t Gan dgarh, as well as a stron g border castle at Kot

BhitaurTon the I n dus, about six m iles below A tak. The

whole of this coun try aboun dedwith gam e, both large an d

s m all, an d the clim ate, excepti n gdurin g the extrem e heat of

m idsum m er, was perfection . Tradition in the district of

Rawal Pi n di asserts that the hero’s favourite castle stood in

the hi lls ofKheri-m urti, about twen ty m iles below Atak, inwhich case the on ce fam ous Ran ithrod was probably its

s ite. The villagers about Kala-ki~Serai, however, wh ile

believin g that Kheri—m urti was the n am e of the district,all con cur in sayin gthat the fortress lay on ly

“three kos

”

from Atak, which would an swer to the s ite of Kot Bhitaur.

The people of Gan dgarh, o n the other han d, are positive

that the castle where the queen Koklan m et her death, an d

which witn essed the tragic fate of her loverHodi, stood at

the village of M ohat on the I n dus, about six m i les belowTorbe

’

la. I am stron gly i n clin ed to accept as correct the

tradition of the m en of Gan dgarh, especially as On d, the

capital of Raja Hodi,t who had a stron g outpost at A tak,lay o n ly a few m iles distan t on the opposite ban k of the

river, c lose to an an cien t ferry which m ight wel l have beenused by the en am ou

'

red m on arch, the boats in vogue, fromtim e im m em orial, bein glarge dat-bottom edbarges,design ed

Sirikap’

s fort is stil l kn own as Sirikap-ka-kila. It occupies a low

hil l , in the m idst of the m ore an cie n t rem ain s, about half a m ile duen orth of the m odern railway statio n of Kala-ki-Serai .1" Local tradition .

Local traditio n .

I N TRODUC TI ON . xix

for the passage of cattle an d m erchan dize as wel l as of tra

vellers, an d therefore perfec tly, suitable for the con veyan ceofHodi’s horse as wel l as of him self, in accordan ce with the

i n ciden ts described in the legen d.

It should be observed that the rui n ed fortresses at Kalaki-Serai, at Ran ithrod, at K o

’

t Bhitaur, at Hodi’s castle oppo

site A tak, atOn d, an d lastlyat M o'

hat,allexhibit precisely thesam e style of han dsom e m assive solid ston e buildi n g which

characterized in these parts the rriost flourishin gperiod of

Buddhism , bein g exactly s im i lar in thi s respect to the an

c ien t rui n s in the Jalalabad valley, a m in ute description of

which I published in T/ze Tim es of A pri l 1 2th, 1 8 79 .

I n con clus ion it i s fitti n g to add that in this work I have

availed m yself of the ass istan ce of som e n ative Pan jabifrien ds, as wel l as of M r. Barlow, an d that to M r. JohnBurke of Raiwal Pi n di an d M ari I am in debtei for the

photograph, which, at m y request, he took of Shuruf the

Bard, an d which was the origi n al of the fron tispiece.

NA USHERA , PA NJA IN ovem ber 1883.

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THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

the m om e n t of his birth un ti l he had arrived at the

rage of puberty . O n his re lease from duress he was

perm itted to appear at court, an d his father on on e

o ccas ion sen t him to pay his respects to his n ewly

m arried wife, Ran i Lun a, who was about the sam e

age as the youn g pri n ce, an d exceedin gly fair. Puran

a lso was rem arkable for his great beauty, an d Ran i

Lun a, when she saw him,fel l deeply in love with

him . But because he loyal ly refused to l isten to her

im proper advan ces , she procured his disgrace, an d his

deluded an d i n cen sed father con dem n ed him to exi le

an d death . The execution ers to whom he was com

m itted,carried him far away i n to the wi lds, where

they cut off his han ds an d his feet, an d cas t him i n to

a rui n ed we l l, there to lan guish an d die. I n that dis

m alplace he l in gered for man y a year un ti l he was

rescued by the great sa in t GuruGorakhn ath of Tillah,who restored his l im bs to him soun d an d who le as

before, an d showed him ki n dn ess an d protection .

Pri n ce Puran n ow determ i n ed to turn fakir, an d

con ceal i n g his iden t ity, he temporari ly took up hisabode, by his director

’

s advice, in a certai n aban do n ed

garden close to thepalace of his father in S ialkot .‘

The fam e of his san ctity spread far an d wide, un ti l i t

was reported to the Ki n g Sulwan that the very treesof the garden , wh ich hadwithered up to the roots an d

died, were miraculous ly begi n n in g to bud an d to put

RA SA LU’S EA RL Y LIFE . 3

forth leaves. So the ki n g an d his youn ger quee n ,be i n g both desirous of offspri n g, determ i n ed to vis it

h im . A s they approached the spot, Puran sa id to

himse lf Here com es m y father, an d n ot o n ly be,but my stepmother as we l l i f she should chan ce to

recogn ize m e, she wi l l again plot to work m e i l l . ”

But be in g a good m an he con s idered o n ce more,N everm i n d, I trus t in God. Whatever she does she

mus t accoun t forhereafter; an d so, whether they recogn ize m e or n ot, s ti l l out of respect I wil l rise an d do

obeisan ce to them .

”

When the kin g an d his con sort arrived at the place

Prin ce Puran , the fakir, stood up an d bowed him sel f

hum bly with his eyes fix ed on the groun d.

“ A h cried the kin g,“

youhave acted amiss you

are a fakir, an d i t i s I who should have saluted

you.

”

“ 0 kin g, an swered he, on ce I had a religious

in structor, an d, as I remember,his face an d form

were n ot un l ike those of your H ighn ess : this is the

reaso n I rose an d salaam ed at your approach .

”

Then the queen addressed him an d said,

“ I also

have come to see you, for I have n o chi ldren .

”

“ You shal l certain ly co n ceive an d have a son,

repl ied the fakir, but your son ’s mother wil l always

b e cryi n g eve n as the mother of your stepson was

always cryi n g. A n d just as by reason of the fraud

THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU .

con trived by you the son of Ran i Ichran fel l upon

evi l days , so, though as a mighty k in g vowed to

chast ity your so n shal l con quer his foes , yet he

shal l at last perish through the fal sehood an d guile

of a woman .

I n due time the promised son was born in to the

world, an d the kin g n amed him Rasal or Rasalu.

Sorrow an d heavi n ess atten ded his birth, for the con

jun ctio n of his stars presaged a l i fe of s torm an d

strife peri lous to the S tate, an d the astro logers pro

phes ied evi l to the kin g on accoun t of him . Scarce ly

had he open ed his eyes o n the World, therefore, when

he was ban ished to a so l i tary place, an d, like his

half-brother. Puran before him ,he was n ot permitted

to see his father for twelve weary years. A s he

advan ced in growth, however, he en joyed a foretaste

of his future glory in the stories of kin gs an d heroes,which were recited or sun g to him day by day by

bards an d mi n strels , un ti l the very n ame of war an d

the soun d of arm s t in gled in h is ears l ike m usic . A ll

that was suitable to his position an d agreeable to his

desti n y he pract ised an d learn t ; but most of allhe

excel led in magic, in archery, in ridin g, an d in the use

o f the sword an d la n ce, whi le the pleasures of ches s

playi n g an d deer-hun ti n g fi l led up his l ighter hours .

Thus passed the early boyhood of Pri n ce Rasalu,un ti l he was free to approach the capital an d to set

RA SA LU ’S EA RLY LIFE .

foot over his father’s threshold. He was remarkably

stron g an d agile for his years, more like a m an than

a boy ; an d he was ski l led in every gen erous ac

com plishm en t, an d in every warlike ex ercise. Yet

there was then o n e past ime which , beyon d allothers,

he was fon d of in dulgin g in, an d that pastime was

shootin g marbles from the pel let-bow. He used to

watch for the women of the city as they return ed

from the river beari n g o n the ir heads ful l chatties or

p itchers of water,an d shootin g his hard pel lets with

an un erri n g aim from the wal ls of the palace, he

would break the pitchers i n to atoms, an d laugh ga i ly

when he saw the re leased water pourin g down in

floods over their'

shoulders . A t last his victim s made

complain t to the waz ir, an d the wazir compla in ed to

the kin g ; an d as the prin ce had been warn ed aga in

an d agai n ,he proposed his ban ishmen t. But the kin g

an swered, O n e son of mi n e I dismissed to ex i le an d

death before, for which I shall for ever mourn . See,

here is my treasury, take - mo n ey sufficien t for the

purpose, an d let the women of the c ity be provided

with vesse ls of brass.” M oreover he laid his com

mands o n his son that he should cease to mo lest

them .

But i f the women imagin ed that their pitchers of

brass would make the sl ightest differen ce, they were

soon un deceived, forRasélu'

fashio n ed a bow of stee l,

6 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

an d cast him pel lets of iron ; an d so great was his

s tren gth of arm that, with faultless aim,be drove

his bul lets right through the brazen pitchers even

when ful l charged with water. I n dism ay the people

turn ed the ir steps again to the palace, an d in a n swerto

the ir prayers the waz ir o n ce m ore proposed the

ban ishmen t of the pri n ce.

“ N ay,”

an swered the ki n g,“ this is m y o n ly so n ;

he m ust n ot be sen t away . I therefore order that in

every en closure in the city a we l l shal l be sun k, so

that the wom en of each househo ld m ay draw their

abun dan ce of water un disturbed.

”

So, in accordan ce with the ki n g’s directio n s

,n umer

ous wel ls were bui lt throughout the c ity, an d the

i n habitan ts fon dly reckon ed on supplyi n g their n eeds

in freedom an d quiet . But agai n they were dis

appo in ted, for the irrepressible pri n ce ascen ded to

the top of a high tower which com m an ded every

homestead an d wa l led en clo sure withi n the gates,an d from that van tage groun d he con tin ued to dis

charge his m im ic arti l lery at the brazen pitchers to

the despair of the un fortun ate own ers .

Then was the ki n g importun ed for the las t time

e ither to ban ish or to put to death his rebe l l ious

so n ; an d his patien ce bein g at len gth exhausted, hean swered,

“Would to'

God Rasalu had n ever beenborn , or that even n ow he were taken away ! Let

RA SA LU’S EA RLY LIFE .

him leave my coun try, let him go wheresoever he

p leases, but let m e n ever look upo n his face again .

”

A n d to his mother Lun a he said,“ Te l l that so n of

th in e to quit m y kin gdom an d n ever to en ter it m ore.

”

Ful l of distress the queen se n t for Rasalu an d sa id

to him, He n ceforth, m y son , we shal l be as stran gers,for the ki n g has pro n oun ced your doom . You m ust

leave your mother,your hom e

, an d your coun try,an d go i n to exi le .

”

“ But why,”

asked the pri n ce, am I to leave

you, m o ther,an d why m us t I quit the coun try PWhat

crim e have I committed ? Speak to the kin g, m y

father, an d let him declare for what faul t I am

deservi n g of exi le.

”

That n ight the queen en treated the ki n g forher so n

with repeated so l ic itation s an d tears,but he

,whe n

roused, bei n g a m an of im placable tem per, s teadi ly

refused to l is ten to her prayers,sayin g,

“ Rasalu’

s

crime adm its of n o exten uation , he has plun ged the

people i n to dis tress in the matter of water, an d his

exi le is the on ly remedy.

When the pri n ce heard that hi s fate was irrevo

cable, he sought his father’s presen ce an d in so len tly

said to him—“ I wi l l obey you in all thin gs if on

your side you wil l accept my two co n ditio n s . The

first is, that youmake m e a M ussalman an d the

n ext is that youbecome a Mussalman yoursel f.”

8 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

Hearin gthese words the ki n g lost co n tro l of him sel f,an d in a fury he ordered his so n to i n stan tly quit the

pa lace. A t the sam e time he sen t forhis m i n is ters an d

said to them , Setup a figure fashio n ed l ike a m an with

his han dbehi n dhis back, an d let the face of the figure

be blacken ed. By this sym bo l my son wil l un derstan d

that he i s doomed to perpetua l ban ishmen t .”

O n e day,as Rasaluwas return i n g from the chase ,

he caught s ight of the figure stan di n g without his

m other’s palace, an d, turn i ng to his fo l lowers he

said :“This statue is a s ign that I must quit the

kin gdom . Lo, the goodn es s of the kin g m y father !

We are the descen dan ts of the great Kin gVikram ajit

who so ld h imself away in charity three hun dred

t imes ; an d for a m ere trifle my father decrees my

ban ishmen t . N evertheless I wi l l obey.

”

So he gathered together a chosen ban d of val ian t

m en , the flower of the youth of S ialkot, an d armed

them with bows, lan ces an d swords. He a lso pro

vided himsel f with fleet horses an d ample treasure,

an d when all was ready, he moun ted his famous

m are Bhaun ra- Iraki,which was born on the same dayas himsel f, an d, passi n g un der the win dows of his

mother’s palace, he bade her a lon g farewell, an dset out from the city at the head of his fo l lowers, alleagerly ben t on foray an d spo i l .

But the Ran i Lun a, weepi n g an d beati n g her

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CHA PTER II.

RA SALU ’

S FIRST TRIUM PHS .

H is visit to n'

erdt. H is expedition again st

Prin ces of jfiz’

lam . H is adven ture wit/z t/ze herm it

of T271412. The herm it’

s prop/m y .

A VING turn ed his back upon his n ative lan d,RajaRasalu marched towards the kin gdom

of Guj erat . Wherever he en camped on his

route the who le coun try was m ade aware that he

was boun d on an expedition of adven ture, an d that

he would en ro l l all good m en an d true who would

join his stan dard. Thus, by the t im e he arrived at the

capitalb f Gujerat he foun d h imse lf in comman d of

a stron g force of hardy warriors, all eager to do

battle for their youthful leader.

The Ki n g of Gujerat was a Gujar, the head of a

race of Rajputs in al l ian ce with the house of Sialkdt,an d frien dly to RajaSulwan . Heari n gthat a foreign

force had en camped withi n s ight of his wal ls, he wen t

RA SA LU’S FIRS T TRIUM PHS . 1 1

forth to hold a parley with them , an d,

m et Rasalu, he addressed him courteously“Who are youP

What Rzijzi’s son are you,

A n d say what n am e youbearWhere lies your fatherlan d,What city own s youthere

“

2”

A n d to him Rasalumade an swer

Rajah Sulwan ’s son am I

,

Rasaluis m y n am e

Sialkét is m y fatherlan d,M y city is the sam e.

”

Then was Rasalu received an d we lcomed with

befitti n g hon our, an d fest ivities were held to celebrate his arriva l at Gujerat .

“ But,” sa id the Gujar k in g, you are heir to a

kin gdom ; why then do I see youat the head of an

army so far away from your own domi n ion s P”

Near Jhi’

lam ,an swered Rasalu,

“ there i s a terri

tory con tain in g n umbers of gian ts who have been

turn ed in to ston e, but it is he ld by usurpers . Of

that coun try my father claims a fourth share, as

bei n g n ear of kin to the former rajas ; an d, as his

rights are den ied, I am n ow o n m y way to mai n tai n

them, an d to recover my patrim on y .

Then the Gujar ki n g offeredhelp to Rasalu,sayi n g,

Take with you a con ti n gen t of my tr00ps, chosen

marksmen , with arms an d mun it io n s of war, an d go,

12 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

an d prosper agai n st your e n em ies. A n d to his own

m en he said, Go, fight for Raja’

i Rasalu, an d do n ot

return un ti l youare dism issed.

”

When the pri n ce arrived at the lan d. of the Petri

fied On es he at on ce began his warl ike operat ion s ;besiegi n g forts, throwi n g up earthworks

, an d cutti n goff suppl ies. Rasalu

’

s stren gth was that of a gian t

his bow, made out of stee l, could be drawn by n o o n e

but himsel f, an d he had th ree arrows, each of them

weighi n g a hun dred poun ds, which n ever fai led to

hit, an d which he n ever fai led to recover.

A fter a short blockade the pri n cipal fortress was

carried by storm ,an d the city fel l i n to the han ds of

Rasa’

lu. Much spo i l was taken , go ld, an d si lver, an d

precious ston es, an d splen did raimen t, an d man y a

fair damsel, all of which was divided amon g h is

captain s an d m en -of-war.

Then , while the petty prin ces fled away, or e l sesubmitted, an d con sen ted to ackn owledge Rasaluas

lord an d master, the ki n gdom was reduced to order,

laws were en forced, an dun der chosen govern ors pros

perity o n ce more smiled on the lan d.

I t was duri n g his hal t at Jhilam that Raja Rasaluheard of the famous herm it, or sain t, whose abode

was at the vi l lage of Tillah, an d as this man ’s repu

tation for workin g m iracles an d sign s was in everybody’s mouth, be determin ed to pay him a visit. The

RA SA LU’S FIRS T TRI UAIPHS . 13

hermit’

s power was so great, that he kn ew of the

k in g’s approach lo n g before he cam e to the foot of

the hi l l on which he l ived, an d address i n g his di sc i

ples he said, RajaRasalu is at han d with purpose

to put my kn owledge to the test. But, as he i s the

son of a H in du, he ought to have kn own his duty

b etter. However, I wi l l an tic ipate him,an d test him ,

an dwe shallsee whether his own power i s so great

as rumourasserts .

H is pupi ls an swered him , True, 0 master ; they

say his arrow is so stro n g an d swift that it wi ll pierce

a sto n e . Therefore divi n e som ethi n g.

”

The hermit then turn ed him se l f i n to a n immen se

hun gry tiger, an d when the ki n g’

s fo l lowers saw the

wi ld beast prowl i n g roun d about the house, they

were alarmed, an d said See, so great is the power of

this hermit that even the very tigers ackn owledge

his sway. Come, let us return

But RajaRasalu an swered s tern ly, He is a wise

m an who wi l l fi n ish an en terpri se ; the foo l ish are

they who fal ter an d adm i t fa i lure .

”

Then the ki n g chal len ged the tiger, an d said,“ You

are in deed a mighty ful l grown tiger, but I am a

Rajput. Come, let us do battle together

I n reply, the t iger uttered a terrific growl l ike the

roar of a comi n g earthquake, an d crouchi n g down ,

he preparedto spri n g. But Rasalufitted two of his

THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

tremen dous arrows to his bow of steel, when imme

diately the tiger was co n foun ded with fright an d

van ished away.

The kin g n ow wen t forward to the house of this

famous hermit, whom he foun d s ittin g calmly in the

midst of his disciples, an d who at o n ce arose an d

made a respectful sa lutatio n to on e who was more

powerful than h imself.“Pretty hermit th is , cried the ki n g, to stan d

up to m e or to a n y on e

The sain t, feel in g irritated an d ashamed, said,0 Kin g, this hi l l is on ly the abode of poor an chor

ites. I t is n ot Gan dgarh, wh ich is the home of

gian ts. I f youen gaged the fam ous gian ts of Gan dgarh, an d if youslew them , youwould achieve glory

an d ren own ; but there can b e n o ren own an d n o

glory in lordi n g it over herm its .

”

0 Sir,"an swered the Kin g,

“

youtaun t m e. Now,

as I am a descen dan t of the great King Vikram ajit,I vow n ever to abide in my home in peace

,un ti l

I have con quered the gian ts whose praises you

publ ish so loudly.

”

“ A s for m e, said the appeased prophet, I can

on ly pray foryour success in an en terprise so fraught

with hazard an d adven ture. Yet, by my power of

divin ation , I foretel l that youwil l prosper an d over

come them, i f you wil l remember an d do what I

RA SA LU ’S FIRST TRIUIVPH S . 15

b id you"

-First, draw n ot your sword agai n st. the

i n n ocen t an d n ext, n ot your han d to shed the

blood of a woman .

”

that p lace, con ti n ued

CHA PTER I II .

RA SALU’

S RETURN FROM EXILE.

H is vis it to M ecca . H is reception by t/zeHazrat. He

becom es a M u/zam m aa’a iz. N ews from S idlkot. Tbe

fallen walls, a n d the Izzm zcm sacrifice. Z doe’

ra’

s

appealto t/ze Hazrat. I n oas ioiz of Sictlkot. Capture

of the city . Deat/z of S alwa’

n an dRasala’

s succes

szon .

A VING subdued the pri n ces in the borders

ofjhilam an d set up a govern men t of his

own , RajaRasalu again set out to look for

adven tures .

Wan derin g he kn ew n ot whither,he at last came

to a n oble city havi n g wa l ls an d towers, an d go i n gto

thegates he en quired “Who i s the chief of this place“ This,

”

an swered the watchmen,

“ i s the city of

M ecca, an d the chief of M ecca is the Hazrat, A mam

A li Lak.

”

“Now is the fi n ger of God made man ifest, said

Rasalu, an d, ridi n g through the gates, he approached

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18 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

The first,

replied Rasalu,“ is, that of your

goodn ess youwi l l jo i n m e in war again st the kin g of

S ialkot, an d the n ext is , that you wi l l admit m e

with your own han ds to M uhammadan ism .

The Hazrat at o n ce professed his readi n ess to

assist his vi sitor in every way, an d, havin gmade him a

Mussalman , he said, I n a short tim e your father wi l l

be subdued,an d he also wi l l becom e a Mussalm a

’

m.

”

But Rasalu said,“ S ir, Raja Sulwan is a great

kin g, pos sessed of un boun ded power, an d com

man di n g a great arm y, an d do you thi n k so mighty

a pri n ce is to be subdued so eas i ly ? I fear he will

n ever be con quered by you.

“ Do n ot trouble yourse lf, repl ied the Hazrat.

The Ki n g of S ialkot wi l l be con quered far more

easi ly than you im agin e.

”

A s they were thus co n ferri n g together a certain

astro loger arrived at M ecca, an d e n terin g the court he

was greeted by the Hazrat, who said,“What n ews

to-day

Sad n ews, an swered the astro loger. On e of the

wal ls of the fort of S ialkot has fa l len , an d tyran n y

is rife within the city.

“Let us abide in patien ce, said the Hazrat,“an d

let us see what wi l l come to pass n ext.”

So Rasalu took up his abode at M ecca, an d there

he remai n ed, waitin g for a s ign from the Hazrat.

RA SA LU’S RETURN FROM EXILE . 19

A s the wizard had spoken , so had even ts proved.

M an y of the wal ls an d bastio n s of the fort of S ialkot

had crum bled in dust to the groun d, an d the ki n gm ade proclamatio n that the work should be restored,

forthwith. Three times the bui lders es sayed the task,layin g ston e upo n s to n e both n ight an d day, an d

three times the work agai n co l lapsed in hopeless ruin .

Then Raja Sulwan sen t for all the magic ian s of

S ialkot, an d for allhis wiSe m en,an d said to them ,

Why wi l l n ot the wall s stan dP”

an d they an swered,I f the head of your so n Rasalu, or the head of the

so n ofthe wom an Z abéro,be taken off, an d laidben eath

the foun dat ion s, then the wal ls wi l l surely abide.

”

H avi n grece ived theiran swer, the kin gsaid,“Rasalu

is n ot in the realm . Would that he weie But sin ce

that rebe l l ious o n e is absen t, go fi n d the so n of the

old wom an Z abéro, an d bri n g him before m e .

”

A t o n ce some so ldiers were despatched to search

for the lad throughout the city, an d in due time he

was foun d, an d roughly dragged before the kin g.

He was a youth aged about fifteen ,an d Raja Sul

wan observed that on his arm he wore a ga’

n a’

, which

is a n upt ial brace let composed of a betel - n ut, an iro n

ri n g, an d a cowrie, tied with scarlet thread, an d that

h is headwas adorn ed with a sekm’

,or n uptialgarlan d

of flowers .

Why,” said the ki n g, are youthus decked out

20 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

To day, an swered the lad, is my weddi n gday.

”

I t m akes n o differe n ce,cried the kin g.

" A waywith him ,

an d bri n g m e his head without delay l”

Then was the lad seized by the execution ers, an dled

away to b e beheaded. A n d it hen his headwas cut off,

it was la id down before the feet of the ki n g, who

ordered it to b e embedded in the foun dation s of the

n ew wa l ls . The k i n g’

s orders were at on ce carried

out, the head was bui lt i n to the foun dation s, an d the

p eople then com pleted the work,which remai n ed

stan di n g, firm an d so l id as a rock.

But Z abéro, the old wom an , when she witn essed

the m urder of her so n,fe l l to weepi n g an d cryin g,

an d she began to pul l out her hair, an d to throw dus t

o n her head, an d she left the coun try, an d wen t

lam e n ti n g an d com plain i n g towards M ecca. A fter a

lon g an d difficult journ ey she reached the city, an d,

when the Hazrat saw her,he en quired about her

trouble, sayi n g“What evi l has fal len upon you, O

wom a n, that you seem distracted with grief ?

”

M y on ly son,

”

said she,has been cruelly ki l led

by the tyran n y of RajaSulwan .

”

The n said the Hazrat,Have patien ce . A fterseven

days I sha l l m arch,for your sake

, agai n s t S ialkot,an d with RajaRasalu I wi l l wage war o n Sulwan .

O n the seven th day the Hazrat put allhis forces in

m otion , an d jo i n ed by Rasaluhe set out‘

for the k in g

RA SA LU’S RETURN FROM EXILE . 21

dom of S ialkot . A s they marched alo n g Rasalu an d

the old woman Z abéro con ferred together, an d o n e of

them remarked to the other,“ The Hazrat

’

s arm y

is a very sma l l on e. What will he do again st so

great a k i n g as Raja Sulwan I thi n k he wi ll

n ever b e able to co n quer him . Let us therefore

advise him that hi s best plan is to turn back.

N ow the Hazrat divin ed the ir thoughts, an d kn ow

i n ghow they had been con sul ti n g, he sa id to them,

“What are you ta lki n g about ? Do you desire a

more powerful force than this“Yes ,

”an swered they.

“We thi n k i t would be

better.

”

Then said the Hazrat, C lose your eyes, an d they

closed them . A fter two mi n utes,he again said,

Open them aga i n an d look about you.

”

When they had open ed the ir eyes , an dgazedroun d

about on every side, they were as to n ished to see that

allthe trees, the birds, a n d the an im als,ful ly armed

an d arrayed, were marchin galo n gwith them to battle .

A n d the ir m i n ds b e i n g re-assured as to the power

o f the ir leader, they dismissed the ir doubts, an d co n

tin ued the ir march in co n fiden ce an djoy.

A t las t they arrived at the city of S iélkét, an d

en camped without the wal ls . There the Hazrat took

M irza N izam D in ,an d sen t him to Raja Sulwan

with a letter, the purport of which was,“ 0 Rajé,

22 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

come an d take back your so n i n to favour, an d

yourse lf becom e a M ussa lm an .

”

When the ki n g read the letter he tore i t to pieces,an d l i fti n g his sword he sm ote the en troy an d hewed

him i n to pieces . The n , clos i n g the gates of the fort

ress, he man n ed the wa l ls with his archers an d sl i n gers,an d with all his m ighty m en of war, an d began to

fight agai n st the Hazrat, A m am A li Lak. M an y an

assault was repel led successful ly,an d man y a con test

was fought ben eath the crowded towers of S ialkot

between the rival heroes o n both s ides. Seven days‘

the battle raged with un dim in ished fury, but the

besiegin g force fa i led to ga in the s l ightest advan tage,for the wal l s were foun ded in hum an blood.

A t last the Hazrat took his sword, an d shore off

his own head with it. The n l i fti n g aloft the

drippin g skul l, he hurled it with both his han ds

again st the gates of the c ity,which i n stan tly broke

i n to fragmen ts, an d flewwide open . Rushi n gamon ghis fo l lowers with wavin g sword,

the headless warrior

n owled them in a body to the gateway, where for a

who le day he fought with terrific en ergy, an d where

the last desperate struggle was main tain ed over the

dead bodies of thousan ds ,un t i l the troops of Sulwan

were allput to the sword, or m ade captives of war,

an d the city an d fortress had becom e the prize of the

victors.

RA SA LU’S RETURN FROM EXILE . 23

I t is sa id by some that Raja Sulwan was tracked

to his c itade l by his own son , who sa id to him ,

“Either

accept M uhammadan i sm for yoursel f, an dyour ki n gdom ,

or die an d that the old ki n g spurn ed the co n

dition s with scorn ,when he was at on ce cut down .

Others, however, den y th is, an d say that he perished

by som e un kn own han d in the gen eral m assacre . I n

a n y case, the Ki n g of S ialkdt was foun d am on g the

dead, a n d buried as became his ran k, an d he was

succeeded by his so n Rasalu, who ascen ded the thro n e

an d formed a govern men t of his own .

A s for the old wom an Z abéro, she was amply re

com pen sed, for the youn g ki n g co n ferred upon her

in free gift o n e hal f the city, sayi n g to her,“ I can n ot

bri n g back your son to l i fe, for that power is God’

s

a lo n e but I ca n en sure your days from poverty an d

wan t. A ccept this gran t by way of co n so latio n

an d n ow m ay you l ive in plen ty, an d en d your years

in peace !”

A fter this,RajaRasalu, havi n g appo in ted a regen t

to admi n is ter the affa irs of the kin gdom ,determ i n ed

to set out with Bhaun ra Iraki, his horse, an d Shadi,

his parrot,to seek for fresh adven tures an d so

,

leavi n g the home of his fathers on ce more, he wen t

away i n to the wi lds .

CHA PTER IV.

RAJA RA sALU A ND M IRSHIKARI .

Rasdlusets outfor the Dehha n . H is arrivalin thefores t

an d m eeti ng with M z’

rshihdri . M z’

rshihdri becom es

his pupil. Rasa’

lu’

s con dition s . M z’

rshihdri a n d his

queen . He violates his prom ises . The fate of the

Bach an d the Doe. The death of M irshihdri.

Rasalu an d e shiha'

ri’

s wife. He is accused ofm urder, a n d acquitted. The burial an d epitaph ofM irshihdifi .

HEN he had establ ished a n ew govern m en t in

S ialkot, RajaRasaluset out for the Dekhan ,

because he wished to m eet an d to see M ir

shikari, the ren own ed hun ter.

A s he was ridi n g alo n g,his horse sudden ly heard

the sweet strai n s of distan t m us ic proceedi n g from

the depths of the forest. S ir,”

sa id she toher m as

ter,“ what is that sweet soun d wh ich I hear, an d

when ce is it comi n g?”

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26 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

Then asked the M irshikari,“ A re youthe Rasalu

that should com e

“ Yes,

”an swered the ki n g.

A s I have heard about you, said M irshikari,

so n ow have I seen you.

“What have youheard about m e en quiredRasalu.

The rea l Rasalu,”an swered M irshika

’

iri,

“ carries

an arrow weigh i n g o n e hun dred poun ds . By th i s

token I kn owyouare the real Rasalu, an d to-day, bythe grace of God, I have m et you in the forest, whereI had s carcely hope of see i n g you at all.

Then sa id Rasalu “What are you do i n g? Whyare youplayi n g o n this lute ?”

“ It is m y usual custom ,

”an swered M irshikari ;

Every day of m y l i fe I play o n m y lute in order to

n otice the an im a ls,because, when my lute is playi n g, all

the an im als of the forest gatherroun d m e to l isten to

it, an d then ,watch i n g m y chan ce, I choose m y sport,

an d shoot at them , an d k i l l them ,s in ce I can n ot l ive

without flesh- m eat every day. But, O my M aster, as

youhave com e to the green wood at last, I pray that

youwi l l m ake m e your discip le .

”

“ So let it b e,"said Rasalu

,

“ but firs t,if youwil l b e

a follower of m i n e, there are three co n ditio n s which

youwi l l have to accept .

”

“W hatever shal l be '

to ld m e, saidM irshikari,“ that

shal l I observe to do impl icitly.

”

RAJ A RA SA LU A N D M IRSHIKA RI . 27

Then,said Rasalu,

“The firs t con dit ion is this

Let n o o n e kn ow of my com in g here, an d te l l n o o n e

that you have seen m e . The secon d i s this—Youm ay go an d shoot over three s ides of the forest, the

n orth,the east, an d the west, but o n the fourth s ide

yousha l l n ot shoot. A n d the third co n di tion is this

O n the forbidden s ide of the forest there l ive two

deer, a buck an d a doe. On n o accoun t must you

k i l l them .

”

Then M irshikari asked, How shal l I kn ow which

of allthedeer of the fores t the two forbidden o n es

are

To h im Rasalu return ed an swer,

“ On the south

s ide of the forest those two deer l ive, an d to that

s ide a lon e they resort. You wil l n ever meet them ,

an d you wil l n ever see them , un less yougo there.

But i fyoudogo there, an d i f.you shoot them, youwi l l

forfe i t your own l ife .

”

A llthese terms were accepted by M irshikari, an d

Rasalu,havi n g shown h im his own mode ofus in g

weapon s of war, an d of the chase, wen t away from

that place,a n d tarried in an otherpart of the forest.

Then M irshikari, after'

playin g on his lute an d ki l l

in g some deer, return ed to the city, an dwhen he had

eaten his food he wen t to his chamber, an d there he

began to address sweet words to hi s wife. I n the

mids t of their co lloquy he broke the first con dit ion

28 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

imposed upon him by RajaRasalu, for he said to her

To—day I have seen Rasaluin the forest.”

The wom an turn ed roun d an d said, You are

speakin g a jest. What, is Rasalu a madman , to be

wan derin g about in the woods What a wise m an

are you!”

Feel in g ashamed an d abashed o n accoun t of his

wife’s words, he took an oath of God before her, an d

said, I have veri ly seen RajaRasaluto-day with my

own eyes.”

But his wife bel ieved n ot his words, an d she said

to him, Ho ld your ton gue, an d do n ot tease so

much .

”

A fter a short tim e M irshikari ordered his wife to

prepare his breakfast overn ight, because, said he,to-morrow I m ust b e in the forest lo n gbefore dawn .

”

Heari n g this speech his wife thought to herse l f

I t is useless to take so much trouble at so late'

an

hour. Everythin g can b e got ready before he starts

in the morn in g.

”

A t the fixed time o n the m orrow she awoke, an d

havin g bathed, she wen t to the cook-room t o prepare

some food for M irshikari, but she was aston ished at

fi n din g that there was n o meat in the house. Then

said she, M irshikéri wi l l n ot eat an ythin g but meat.I must go i n to the street to the s tal l s of the butchers,an d bri n g two poun ds of goat

’

s flesh.

”

RAjA RA SA LU A ND M IRSHIKA RI . 29

So she wen t to a butcher, an d said, G ive m e two

poun ds of goat'

s flesh, an d to - m orrow I wi l l give

youfour poun ds of ven ison i n s tead of it.“ A t thi s t ime of n ight,

”

an swered the butcher,I

can n ot open my door. What youare, God kn ows,some witch, perhaps, or a gain tess, or, it m ay be, an

evi l spiri t. I am the wife of -Raja M irshikari,”

repl ied the woman .

Then said the butcher,“ I f youare the wife of

M irshikari, bri n g m e the mon ey, an d I wi l l give you

the two poun ds of m eat .”

In the mean time, wh i le his wife was argui n gwith thebutcher, M irshikari woke up,

an d he cal led an d looked,but, in the palace his wife was n owhere to be foun d.

For some time he wa ited, but he wa ited in vain , for shedid n ot return . Then , as i t was growin g late, an d as

he was tired ofwaiti n g, he took up his lute, his quiver,an d his bow, an d, without an y breakfast, he wen t outto his shooti n g. When he arrived at the groun d, he

broke the secon d con dition , forhe chose the side ofthe forest which had been forbidden to him by hismasterRasalu.

Havi n g fixed on a place he sat himsel f down ,tun ed the stri n gs of his lute, an d began to play. The

beautiful strai n s floated on the morn i n g air, an d

pen etrated i n to the depths of the forest, so that, asRaja Rasalu was wan deri n g about

,his horse again

30 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

heard the sweet woodlan d n otes, an d said to the

Ki n g,“ S ir, it is the soun d of the lute we heard in the

woods yes terday.

You are right, an swered Rasalu,“ but m y m an

has n ot fulfi l led my behest, n or has he regarded m y

word, an d n ow we shal l witn ess the turn i n g of his

fate .

”

M ea n wh i le, as M irshikari was playi n g o n his lute,

the two deer, a buck a n d a doe, cam e out of the

forest i n to the Open glade, an d there stood sti l l to

l isten . A s they fe lt them se lves drawn towards the

spot where the lute was playi n g,the doc said to the

buck,

“Let us wait here a n d see . Perhaps it is

RajaM irshikari playi n g o n h is lute . I am afraid,lest

,seei n g us

,he wi l l ki l l us dead, because by

m ean s of his treacherous lute he has already do n e

much to em pty the woods .

”

O n heari n g these un expected words Mirshikari

stopped his m us ic, an d glan ci n g all roun d him he

saw a chichratree, covered with large green leaves .

Then movi n g softly to it, he plucked so m e of the

fo l iage, an d havi n g fasten ed i t allover his body he

m ade h im self leafy an d green l ike the tree, an d

taki n g up his lute be began to play o n it o n ce more,an d, as he played, he s lowly advan ced towards the

buck an d the doc .

RAjA RA SA LU A ND M IRSH IKA RI . 31

When the two deer saw him approachi n g the buck

said to the doe, He is com i n g toward us for some

thi n g, let us go an d meet him .

”

But the doe sa id Do n ot m ove a step further,to which the buck m ade an swer

“ In the forest I was bred,In the forest I was fed,

A n d the forest is m y hom e

Som e little leafy tree,To disco veryouan d m e,

In extrem ity doth roam .

”

Then said the doe to her s im ple husban d

In the forest I was bred,In the forest I was fed,

A n d the forest is m y hom e

Such a th in gcould n ever beFor a little leafy tree ,

O n two little feet to roam .

But the buck, be i n g reso l ved to go forward, said

“ In the forest I was bred,In the forest I was

'

fed,In the forest I ab ide

A n d, if hun ger be his plea,Or, ifforced by fate \

he be,W e m ay ven ture to his s ide.

No, n o, cried the doe,“ be wel l advised

In the forest I was bred,In the forest I was fed,

In the forest I ab ideBy his actin g I can see

He would capture youan d m e,

A n d our flesh he would divide.

32 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

O m y husban d, con ti n ued she ,

“

you should n ot

go n earer.

Sayi n g th is, she stopped, but the wilful buck wen t

n earer an d n earer, l isten i n g to the dulcet m us ic,an d, when M irshikari saw' him we l l with i n fl ight of

his arrow, he took his lute between h is teeth, an d

drawi n g his bow,he shot at him , an d the foo l ish deer,

bei n g pierced by the sharp weapon in the shoulder,fel l to the groun d. Then ran M irshikari swiftly

forward, an ddrawi n ghis kn i fe he prepared to cut the

throat of his quarry accordin g to cus tom .

But allthe tim e RajaRasaluwas watchi n g his pro

ceedin gs , sayi n g to his horse, He has disregarded

m y coun sel look an d youwi l l see the trouble wh ich

shal l shortly fal l upon him .

”

M irshikari n ow l ifted his kn ife to despatch his

victim, when the deer addressed him in reproachful

plain tive words, an d said

“Thoutyran t throwerof the poin ted dart,Thin e edgeless kn ife, 0 lay it by

But take the lute, the lute that piercedm yheart,A n d strike som e chords b efore I die

O tyran t, sweep the trem b l in g strin gs again ,I fain would hear o n e fleetin g dyin g strain

Then sa id M irshikari, H is death has been caused

by m y lute,an d I m ust therefore play for h im

som ethin g m ore. Yet I am in fear lest, as I play, hem ay sudden ly turn his head an d gore m e with his

horn s .

”

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34 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU .

A fter a l ittle wh i le the doe sto le out from the

jun gle to look for her husba n d,an d she foun d him

dead. She also saw M irshikari lyi n g sti l l upon the

groun d. Then thought she to herse lf, The hun ter

k i n g has bee n shooti n g for a lo n g tim e, an d n ow

bei n g t ired he is taki n g his rest .

”

But ven turi n gn earer she espied the dead s n ake cut i n to two pieces

,

an d the kn ife resti n g close by. Then un derstood she

that her husban d had been k i l led by M irsh ikari, that

M irshikari had been k i l led by the s n ake,an d that

the s n ake had been ki l led by the kn i fe .

Havi n g looked upo n th is dism a l spectacle,she said

to herse lf, N ow for m e to l ive lo n ger in the world is

useless,for God kn ows who m ay n ot ki l l m e

, or what

sufferi n gs it m ay n o t b e m y lot to e n dure .

”

A n d she

began to wo n der how she should destroy herself.

A fter thi n ki n g an d co n s ideri n g she said, O m y

husban d’

s horn s,they are sharp as spears I sha l l

put straight his head an d jum p upo n them,a n d the ir

po i n ts wil l pierce through m y body an d ki l l m e .

”

So sayi n g, she set the buck’

s head upright, an dgo i n gto a l ittle distan ce she leaped upo n his sharp taperi n ghorn s which, pe n etrati n g her body

,ripped her open

an d k i l led her. I n her dyin g struggles she gave

prem ature birth to two l ittle kids , a m ale an d a fem ale,

but they,after breathi n g the air for a few short m o

m en ts,expired l ikewise by the s ide of the ir dam .

RAjA RA SA LU A N D i lI IRSHIA’

A RI. 35

A n d all the tim e Raja Rasaluwas gaz i n g at the

scen e, watchi n g every hapless circumstan ce, an d he

n ow said to his horse, Let us see what wi l l come to

pass n ext.”

I n a few m i n utes a jackal came out of the forest,an d fi n din g so ma n y dead bodies lyin g pron e upo n

the groun d, he began to trim his moustachios, an d to

leap an d frisk forjoy, sayi n g to himself,“Godhas give n

m e lots ofgood thi n gs to -day ! I’l l eat my fi l l

,an d s leep,an d eat again . But M irshikari i s a stron g m an an d a

fam ous hun ter, an d i f he wakes up he wil l certai n ly

k i l l m e. So m y best plan wi l l b e to steal h is bow

strin g an d throw it away, because the n ,i f he should

awake, he would n ever without it be able to harm

m e,an d m ean wh i le I should have time to escape .

”

Sayin gthis, the jackal cam e s i len tly towards M irshi

kari, an d taki n gaway his bow an d skippi n g i n to the

jun gle, he en deavoured to break it. But the stri n gwas m ade of twisted stee l wire wh ich proved too tough

forhis teeth. A t last, putt i n gthe side of the bowon his

hin d legs a n d on e en d of it un der his ch i n , he suc

ceeded in sl ippi n g the wire, but the reboun d of the

weapon was so sharp an d so sudde n that it tore him

in two, an d the upper part of his body wen t flyi n gtowards the sky.

When RajaRasalu saw the jacka l ’s fate he laughed,an d said, Letus go an d look at them n ow. Comi n g

36 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

to the spot, he said to his horse,“What shal l we

do What arran gem en t shal l we make for the body

of M irshikari

Lay it o n his own horse, an swered he, an d he

wil l carry it straight to his house.

”

The n Rasalu l ifted the body an dwas go i n g to lay

it on M irshikari'

s horse, but the an im al objected,say

in g, A s he refused to obey your orders, I wi l l

n ever carry him m ore .

A t least,” said Rasalu, guide m e to your m aster

’

s

pa la ce , an d taki n g from the fatal spot M irshikari’s

turban ,his quiver, his bow,

an d hi s lute, he fo l lowed

the dead hun ter’

s horse, wh ich led them on through

the grassy glades an d the leafy al leys of the forest .

A s they en tered the city, RéjaRasélucaught s ight

of a woman stan di n g at the s tal l of a butcher who

was weighi n g out som e m eat, an d he overheard her

sayin g,“Do n ot lon gerdelay. M y husban dM irshikéri

is waiti n g.

”

Then Rasalustopped, an d said to her, O wom an

what are youdo i n g

Youweigh the flesh within the scale,But say forwhom the flesh youweigh

The flesh youweigh wil l n e’er avai l

The m an who looked his last to-day.

”

The woman hearin g these words turn ed an d said,

Who are youthus curs in g m y husban d

RAjA RA SA LU A N D M IRSH IK A RI . 37

I am a ki n g,an swered Rasalu.

A wis e k i n g too ,

”repl ied the wom an

,to curse

a n other m an n eedless ly . It is n o good thi n g which

youdo .

But Rasa’

tlu en quired of her,Would yourecogn ize

your hu-

sb an d’

s th i n gs i f they were show n to you?”

Yes,

”

a n swered she,look i n g up in won der.

The n laid he down before her M irshikari’s turban,

his lute,an d his weapon s, an d sa id “

Exam i n e a n d

see i f these are yourhusban d'

s .

”

A s soo n as she looked upon them she swoo n ed

an d fe l l sen s e less to the groun d.

Whe n she cam e to herse l f she arose, a n d ran to the

pa lace of the k in g who was the overlord of all that

coun try,weepi n g,

a n d beati n g her breast, an d Rasalu

fo l lowed her. There she cried aloud, S ir, this

m an has ki l led m y husba n d M irsh ikari .”

The ki n g,heari n g her distres s ful cries

,ordered a

tria l,an d at the hour appo i n ted on e hun dred m e n

were despatched to bri n g Raja Rasalu to the court .

But Rasalu co l lecti n g them allin o n e place,covered

the who le of them un der the broad expan se of his

sh ie ld,an d the n sen t a m essage to the ki n g, sayi n g,

Com e an d take your m en from un der m y shie ld.

”

When the ki n g un derstood what a wo n derful m aster

of m agic he was, an d howgreat was his m ight to cover

o n e hun dred m en with his shield, he sen t othermessen

38 THE LEGEND OF RA S A LU.

gers, sayi n g to them Do n ot use force with h im .

Bri n g him by s o l icitatio n s an d prayers .

”

A s soo n

as they arrived they requested Rasalu to com e before

the ir lord, hum bly b eesechin g him .

W i l l i n gly,”

an swered he,a n d when he en tered the

ki n g’

s prese n ce, he said,Why do youwan t m e ?

Why have you s la i n M irshikari replied the

ki n g.

Then s a id Raja Rasalu,I a lso wi l l ask you a

riddle, an d if you can an swer it, youwi l l kn ow of the

death of M irshikari

O n e was kil led an d two diedTwo were killed an d four died

Four were kil led an d s ix died

Four were m ales an d two were fem ales .

But the ki n g was un able to guess the an swer.

Therefore said he to his m i n is ters , Go with th is

s tran ger, whoever he is , an d see i f he te l ls the truth.

”

So Rasalu co n ducted them to the forest,where

they cam e an d saw all the s ix bodies lyi n g l ife les s

together o n the groun d. Taki n g up the corpse of

M irshikari they took it i n to the presen ce of the ki n g,who

,havin g heard their ta le, looked upo n it an d said

of Rasalu,“ This m an is te l l i n g the truth .

Then RajaRasalu carried the body of his disciple

M irshikari back i n to the forest,a n d there he la id it

down ,an dhe duga grave for it both lon gan ddeep with

RAjA RA SA LU A ND M IRSHIK A RI. 39

his own han ds, an d buried it un der the shade of the

trees. A n d over the spot he erected an en duri n gtom b, an d proclaim ed to the who le city

,

“Whoso

everwould go hun t i n g, let him first go vis it the tom b

of M irshikari, an d do ho m age at his grave .

Havin g perform ed th is last act of piety to the

rem ai n s of the hun ter-ki n g,he e n graved o n his tomb

the fo l lowi n g epitaph,an d then wen t his way

Kin gDharthali, pri n ce without a peer,Took n ought away for allhis m ight

So th is great world sha l l disappear,A s fades a star-bespan gled n ight. “

It seem s safe to assum e that Raszilu, before leavin g the Dekhan ,revealedhim self to the people as their n ew suzerain , the so n an d hei r of

thedeceased Sulwan .

CHA PTER V.

RA JA RA sALU A ND THE SWA’

N S .

Rasa’

lu arrives at a city . He shoots a n arrow thirty

m iles high. The two crows . Their vis it to the shy ,

a n d return . They shelter i n a swan’

s n est. The

m ale crew’

s deceit. Ra’

jaBhéj’

s judgm en t. Rasa’

lu

a n d the jachal. Rasa’

lu a n d Bhdj'

. The jachal’

s

subtilty. Ra’

ja’

Bho’

j’

s adm iss ion . Recall of the

swa n s a n d the crows . Rasa’

la’

s wisdom .

A SALU ,i n h is wan deri n gs , o n ce cam e to a

certa i n city, o n the gate of wh ich he read an

i n scriptio n setti n g forth that Rasaluof S ialkot, the

so n of Sulwan ,would o n e day appear that he would

shoot an arrow th irty m i les high an d that his reward

should be a turban thirty m i les lon g.

There Rasaludeterm i n ed to tarry ; an d on e day

in the presen ce of the in habitan ts , when feats of

s tre n gth were be in g exhibited, he took o n e of his

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42 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

What can b e do n e n ow ? sa id her com pan ion .

I t is your own fault,why did you n ot obey m e

there an d then

W ith these words they began to descen d, an d worn

out with fatigue, they fel l on to a certa in is lan d i n , the

middle of the sea. Then said the female crow,

Let us go an d look for som e place of shel ter.

Searchi n g here an d there they at last saw a swan

with his mate sitti n g in a n es t in the m iddle of a

tree. The crow approached,an d offered his salaams

to the swan , who said,“What do youwan t, 0 crow ?

”

For the sake of GOD,

”

an swered the crow,

“ be

good en ough to give us a corn er to shel ter in to

save our l ives .

“ A l though between you an d m e, said the swan ,

there is n o relation sh ip, sti l l, com e in an d take rest.”

O n hearin g this , the fem ale swan protested, an d

said,I can n ot a l low him to com e i n to m y house. He

i s a mean fel low, an d our k in speople wil l reproach us .

"

“ He i s askin g for she lter in the n ame of GOD,

’

said her husban d,

“an d I am therefore boun d to

al low him to en ter an d rest.

The crow an d his m ate then crawled i n to the n est,an d the swan offered them to eat whatsoever his

house afforded.

RAJ /I RA SA LU A ND THE S WA N S . 43

The n ext m orn in g, the rai n be i n g over, the

crows s tepped forth, an d the male bird said to the

swan ,

“D ear frien d,again st the wickedyoushould a lways

be o n yourguard.

He who wi l l do evi l shal l suffer evil,”

an swered

the swan“ True

,said the crow, but whether a m an do

evi l o r n ot, he should always keep the base an d the

un worthy at a distan ce .

“What do you m ean by sayi n g this ?”

en quired

the swa n .

Do you n ot kn ow,said the crow,

“ that in a

s in gle n ight you have robbed m e of my swan -wife

whom I have ten derly reared for twe lve years ?

Youhad better give her back to m e.

”

“Is this your return for all my ki n dn ess ? asked

the swa n .

“ I do n ot kn ow the mean i n g of kin dn ess,replied

the i n so len t crow, give m e back m y wife ! Other

wise, you m ust e ither fight with m e, orgo to the ki n g’s

court for judgm en t.

”

I have n o des ire to fight with you, an swered

the swan . Com e, let us go to the ki n g’

s court.

”

A ll the birds at on ce set out an d cam e to the

pa lace ofRajé. Bhoj . When they en tered the court

the ki n g en quired,

44 YHE LEGEIVD OF RA SA LU.

Why have those four birds com e here to—dayBri n g them before m e first .

Then were they m arsha l led by offi cers before the

judgm e n t seat,an d they sa id

,

S ire, we have com e to you for a decision ,con

descen d to lis ten .

”

“ What is it youwan t ? asked the ki n g.

En quire from the crow,

”

said the swan .

N ay, repl ied the crow,I do n ot wish to say

an yth i n g whatever please ask the swan .

”

Then the swan stated his case thus

“ Struck down by storm ,an d rain

,an d driv in g s n ow,

W ith cries for shelter cam e this crafty crow

I n GOD’S great n am e he proffered his request,

W e gave him allwe had—our p lace of rest

But 10 1 when m orn in gdawn ed, good turn ed to i l l,He sat an d m ocked us, an d he m ocks us stil l .”

The n the crow stood forward,an d stated his own

s ide of the questio n thus

O n e day upon the river- S ideI chan ced to take a stro l l,

A n d there I foun d som e creature’s egg

W ithin a san dy hole.

“This egg I carried in m y b il l,A n d cherished it with care ,

I hatched it un dern eath m y breast,Til l all m y breast was bare.

A t last, the youn g on e burst the shell,N o useless cock was he,

Or e lse he m ight have wan dered forth,A n d roam ed the jun gle free.

RAjA RA SA LU A ND THE S WA NS . 45

It was a fem ale, an d I said,I wil l preserve her life,

W hen twe l ve years’ old she’l l doub tless proveA m ost deservin gwife.

’

“ Then cam e th is swan , struck down by rain ,By storm an d drivin g s n ow,

A n d begged m e for the love of GOD

To m itigate his woe.

“ I took him in without a word,But, 10 when m orn in gcam e,

He cotton ed with m y pretty wife,A n d vi lified m y n am e .

”

RajaBhoj,having heard both stories, said to the

swan,

“ This crow appears to m e to be in the right, so

han d him over his wife .

”

The poor swan m ade n o reply, but gave up his wife

at o n ce to the crow,an d then he we n t cryin g an d sob

bi n g to a distan t place, where he l ived in a certai n

so l itary garden .

The trium phan t crow, leadi n gout his prize, thought

to h im sel f,

“A s m y n ew wife i s so han dsome, n o doubt

,i f

I go to m y own house, m y ki n sfo lk wi l l com e an d

s n atch her away from m e. It is better therefore to

take her away with m e to som e distan ce .

It chan ced,however, that the spot which he chose

was the very garden in wh ich the m ale swan was

a lready l ivi n g, an d so it cam e to pass that allthe four

birds o n ce m ore foun d themselves together.

46 THE LEGEND OF RA S A LU.

O n e day it happen ed to Raja Rasalu that in the

course of h is trave ls he rode by that way, a n d that he

said to his horse,To pass the tim e let us look for som e frien d an d

get h im to ta lk .

Just then he saw a jackal,a n d m aki n g for him ,

he

ran him dow n,a n d caught him .

S ir, why have you caught m e said the jackal .

M ere ly to m ake youtalk, an swered Rasalu,“an d

to pass the tim e .

Then the jackal seated o n Rasalu’

s saddle -bow

began to t ickle them with hun dreds of lyi n g stories,

wh ich am used them excess ive ly .

Wh i le thus em ployed they approached the city

of RajaBhoj , when Rasalu to ld the j ackal to b e off.

But,

”

an swered the jackal ,“ it would b e crue l to

leave m e here,s i n ce allthe dogs of the town would set

o n m e an d ki l l m e . Youhad better take m e with you.

Rasalu co n sen ti n g,en tered the city

,an d the

people seei n g him , pa id him sa lutat io n s an d said,

Who are you

I am Rasalu, the son of Sulwe’

m , an swered he .

Heari n g his n am e,all the i n habita n ts cam e an d

surroun ded him,sayi n g Th is day GOD has ful

fi l led our des ires .

The n ce Rasaluwe n t to the court of Raja

for whom he co n ce ived a stro n g feel i n g of frien dsh ip,

RAjA RA SA LU A ND THE S WA NS . 47

an d dism oun ti n g from his horse, he en tered,an d sat

’

down . Then Raja Bhoj cal led for c/wupat an d i n

vited his vis itor to play. Rasalu, who had taken a

fan cy for his amusi n g l ittle frien d the jacka l , caused

him to s it c lose to him wh i ls t he began the gam e.

First RagaBhoj , on his s ide, la id a bet of o n e thou

san d rupees,an d threw the dice

,but his cast bei n g

spo i lt by the jackal fal l i n g vio l en tly agai n st his arm,

Rasalu wo n . Raja Bhoj becam e an gry with the

jackal, but the latter said,Pray, s ir, pardon my offe n ce . I have been awake

the who le n ight, an d, be i n g s leepy, I touched your

side quite by an acciden t .

”

O n ce m ore Raja’

. Bhoj la id an d began to play,

but his cas t of the di ce was agai n balked by the

jacka l fal l i n g as before agai n s t his s ide. The n cried

RajaBhoj“ Is there an y o n e there ? H o ! some on e cut this

jacka l to pieces l”

“ I have been awake the who le n ight, said the

jackal, excusi n g himself agai n ,

“ forgive m e, as I have

n ot com m itted this fault wi l ful ly.

“What is thi s talk‘

about your bein g awake the

who le n ight,”

en quired Rasalu.

“What do youmean

by that

I wi l l te l l the secret, said the jackal,“to Raja

'

t

Bhoj on ly.

48 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

Tel l m e then,0 jacka l

,sa id RajaBhoj

,

“ what

it was youwere up to the who le n ight i’”

“ S ir, repl ied the jackal,“torm en ted with hun ger

I wen t to the river- s ide to look for food. But fi n d

in g n o n e I grew an gry, an d taki n gup a sto n e I threw

it again st a n other ston e, an d from the two ston es

cam e out fire .

"

Havi n g sa id so m uch the jackal cam e to a stop,an d RajaBhoj said, Wel l, what else did youdo ?

S ir,”

said the jackal, I caught the fire in som e

dry fuel, out of which a sm al l c i n der flew an d fe l l

i n to the river,when at o n ce the who le river was in

a blaze. The n I , be i n g afra id of m y l ife o n accoun t

of you, e n deavoured to quen ch the fire with dry

grass, but, though I tried m y best, I am sorry to

say,two - thirds of the river were burn t up, an d on e

third o n ly rem a i n ed.

”

Heari n g this tale, everyo n e began to laugh, an d to

say,

What a fib ! Can water catch fire,an d can dry

grass quen ch it

S irs,”

said the jackal,“ i f water can n ot catch fire

,

how can a crow poss ibly claim ‘

a fem ale swan as his

wife

Hearin g this, RajaRasélu said,“ Jackal

,what in the world are you talkin g

about P”

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CHA PTER Vl.

RAJA RA SALU A ND RAJA BHOJ .

Rasa’

lu prolon gs lzis vis it. H is departure. B/ioj

accompa n ies lein i . T/teir con versation . Tlzeir adven

ture i n the garden of'

Rdn i S ob/za’

n . Tlzey en ca n zp

un der som e m a ngoe- trees . A rrival of Ra

’

ja’

Horn .

H is a/erses . Rasa’

lzz s wisdom . P arti n g of the two

frien ds , Rasa’

lu a n d B/ioj.

HEN Rasalu had spe n t a brief season o f rest

at the court of RajaBhoj , he requested that

ki n g’

s perm iss io n to take his leave . But his

host, un wil l i n g to part with him ,sa id,

A s youhave blessed m y palace with yourpresen ce,so youwi l l co n fer o n m e a sti l l greater favour, i f you

wi l l abide here a l ittle lo n ger, an d m ake m e your

disciple .

I n the sam e spot, an swered Rasalu, m y desti n y

forbids m e to tarry lo n g. N everthe less I wi l l accept

your i n vitat ion an d im part to youwhatever I kn ow

m yse lf.”

RAjA RA SA LU A ND [FA/A BHO]. 51

So he rem a i n ed in that city som e tim e lo n ger,dwe l l i n g in the house of his frien d

,an d teachi n g

him the art of fight i n g an d wrest l i n g.

A t las t Rasalu set out on ce m ore on his travels,an d m an y of the i n habitan ts out of love an d adm it

at io n for h im saw him out of the ir borders ; but

Raja Bhoj a n d his wazir, together with som e few

atten dan ts,accom pa n ied h im severa l days ’

m arches .

A s they journ eyedpleasan tly alo n g,RajaBhoj sa id

to Rasalu,

“

Pray,te l l m e , what in your opi n ion are the five

‘

most cursed th i n gs in the world.

”

Then Rasaluan swered him ,

A thriftles s wife who ruin s house an d hom e

A daughtergrown whose head is b are an d b aldA daughter- in -law of sour forb iddin g faceA crooked ax le to the garden we l lA field that l ies across the vil lage road

A m an m ay search the world where’er b e please,

A n d n ever fi n d m ore cursed thin gs than these.

”

Hearin g this an swer, Raja'

. Bhoj was pleased ex

ceedin gly,an d pra ised Rasalu’

s wisdom . A n d so the

two kin gs , engaged in pleasan t con verse, co n ti n ued

the ir way.

A t last they arrived o n e m orn i n g at a de l ightful

garde n which be lo n ged to the Ran i Sobhan , an d,

e n teri n g therein ,the who le com pan y dism oun ted

,a n d

,

layi n g as ide the ir arm s,they recl i n ed a lon g the m ar

gin of a n atural foun ta i n of coo l de l i c ious water.

52 THE LEGEND OF RA S A LU.

Scarce ly had they take n the ir places ,when they

saw approachi n g them ,from the m idst of the shrubs

an d trees , on e hun dred beautiful dam sels,all arm ed

with drawn swords . Rasaluwith a sm i le then said

to Bhoj ,These fair ladies appear to b e .very . form idable .

Let us am use ourselves a l ittle at the ir expen se.

Havi n gthus spoke n ,he looked at the

‘

girls an d said,

O ladies ,why have you com e out aga in st us with

drawn swords in your han ds P”

VVhosoever,”

a n swered they, trespasses withi n the

boun ds of th is garden an d com es h ither to take water

out of the foun tai n forfe its his ears an d h is han ds,an d

is then expel led with ign om i n y.

”

“ A las,

”said Rasalu, what dire m ishap has

brought us here

Putt i n g o n stern er looks the girls then‘

Sa id,

Have an y of you touched the water of the foun

tain ? I f you have, con fess it, in order that we m ay

cut off your han ds a n d your ears , for such is“

the order

we have received from the who

has bidde n us cut off the ha n ds an d ears of .all.who

dare to dri n k from her foun ta i n .

0 Fair On es ,”

repl ied Rasalu,“ we h ave n ot yet

presum ed to dri n k. But, as we are m erely poorwayfarers, do n ot hi n der us . Suffer us to dri n k

, an d thenlet us depart in peace .

”

n

[BA/A 13.45/1s A N D RAjA BHO]. 53

Who are you?”e n quired the dam sels .

A s for m e,

”

said the k i n g,m en cal l m e Rasalu.

Heari n g his n am e all the girls fluttered together,

a n d began to wh isper am o n g them se lves,

I f he b e the rea l Rasalu,he wi l l catch us an d ki l l

us . W e had better let h im go ,an d seize o n ly the

others .

”

But Rasaludivi n ed the ir thoughts , an d so he said,

I f youlet m e go , 0 beauteous O n es,wi l l you n ot

also release the others, seei n g we are allwayfarerstogether 9

”

Then sa id on e of the m aiden s

W ayfarers n um ber three, they sayThe brook

,the m oon

,the shin in gday

Of allthese three,Pray te l l to m e,

Who is yourfather, an d who is your m other‘

Z”

It is true we are wayfarers , repl ied Rasalu,

but we are n ot so m uch wayfarers as world- tra

vellers .

”

I n deed, said the sam e lady , but

Trav’llers o

’the world are also three

,

A sheep, a wom an,

‘

a bul lock they b eW

'

ith quibb lin gwords n o lon ger play,But te l l m e your n am e without delay.

It is eviden t, said Rasalu,

that we poor fel lows,

wh‘

ether wayfarers or world-trave l lers, shal l have fai n

to im plore your clem en cy .

54 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

We have powerof course, observed the ladies,relen ti n g,

to let youoff. But what an swer shal l we

m ake to our m istress

Go to your hard-hearted mistress,

an swered

Rasalu,

an d tel l her this

Bes ide your sprin g three m en rec l in ed,Your father’s fam ily priests were they

They saw our swords,an d

, vexed in m in d,

They rose at o n ce an d walked awayGod kn ows their route— we greatly fearThey

’ve gon e to Kabul or Kashm ir.

A ccordi n gly, these s im ple damsel s left Rasalu

an d his frie n ds, an d go i n g to the palace they report

ed to the Ran i Sobhan all that had been to ld

them .

A las , said the queen begi n n i n g to grieve, i t is

twe lve lon g years sin ce our fam i ly priests were here

before ! A n d n ow, when they had journ eyed so great

a dis tan ce to vis it m e,m y foo l i shn ess has driven

them away. Who kn ows whether they wi l l everreturn aga i n to m e or n ot 9

”

So speaki n g, the queen began to sob , an d ris in gfrom her seat she prepared to descen d i n to the gar

den with her trai n of be lted m a iden s .

M ean wh i le, however, Rasalua n d h is com pan io n s,

havi n g rested sufficien tly,had reallyleft the foun tain

,

an dgon e on theirway. Towards even i n gthey ha lt

RAjA RA SA LU A ND RAjA 55

ed at a pleasan t spot in the open wildern ess, where

there were som e beauti ful we l l - laden m an goe- trees

,

a n d a fa ir babbl i n g brook. Here they determi n ed

to tarry for the n ight, an d havi n gdism oun ted they

sat down un der the coo l shady boughs .

just then a deer appeared in the dis tan ce, an d

Rasaludrawi n g his bow brought it down , afterwh ich ,

a fire havi n g been ki n dled,the game was dressed an d

served, an d every o n e with glad con te n ted m i n d par

took of the feas t.

N ow it happen ed that about the sam e tim e Raja

Horn of Delhi had been routed in a great battle by

an other Raja, an d that aban do n i n g his capita l he

had fled away with o n ly a few of his atten dan ts .

Com i n g to the man goe—tre es un der which Rasalu

an d his frie n ds were s leepi n g the fugitives there

pitched the ir ten ts, an d, havi n g eaten a frugal supper

they allretired to rest. The n ight was very love ly,

an d RajaHom’

s queen was lyi n g as leep i n her l i t

ter n ext to her husban d’

s ten t, whi le the Raja sat

by her side . A s he was un wi l l i n g or un able to s leep

him se l f, he began to gaze with a certai n ten der

me lan cho ly, n ow at,the s lum beri n g lady, an d n ow

at the shi n i n g moon . W hen som e t im e had thus

e lapsed, he cal led up his wazir, a n d said to him,

I have just m ade s om e verses .

Pray, S ir, te l l them to m e,

” said the wazir.

56 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

Then RajaHorn repeated the fo l lowi n g l i n es

N o water’s l ike the Gan ges, riverdearN o l ight is l ike the m oon

,sere n e ly c lear

N o s leep is l ike the s leep that fo n dly l ies,So calm an d stil l ,upo n a wom an

’s eyes ;

Of every fruit that han gs upon the tree,The luscious m an goe is the fruit for m e.

Bravo ! cried the waz ir, applaudi n g vehemen tly.

Excel le n tly good, S ir, an d right n ob ly expressed

Sudden ly the si len ce was broke n by the deep

vo ice of RajaRasalu, who , with his frien d Bhoj had

n ot been so soun dly as leep, but that he had over

heard every word of th is pretty i n terlude, an dwho

n ow m ischievous ly i n terrupted the co n versation

with hese sarcasti c words

‘ In lon elywoods I walk, Raja,I walk

,a poor rec luse

H owever wise your talk, Raja,Your frien d’

s a learn ed goose.

Who is that cried R'

aja Horn with sudden an

ger. What m ean s th is i n trus io n ou'

ourprivacy

Ho, catch the fel low, an d bri n g him here l”

O n e of the atten dan ts approached Rasalu, an d

said with som e i n solen ce,“ Get up, S ir ; how dare you i n terfere with our

Raja’s talk ?

I f you va lue your l ife, an swered Rasalu, return

to your master-at on ce .

”

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58 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

W i l l in gly, repl ied Rasalu the idea in my

judgmen t should b e rather th is

N o water like the lim pid stream

That ripples idly byN 0 light so glorious as the beamThat sparkles from the eye

Of allthe s leep that m ortals kn ow,The s leep of health’

s the best

Of allthe fruit the gods bestow,A son exceeds the rest.

”

How i s that ? said Raja Horn .

“ Let m e hear

your explan atio n .

“When youwere born i n to the world, an swered

Rasalu,“ who gave you Gan ges water then A n d

when,a thirsty fugit ive, you fled away before your

foes, what good was Gan ges water to youthe n I f

youhad n ot eyes you m ight look for the m oo n l ight

in va in ; i f health forsook you sleep would forsake

you too an d, if youwere to die fruitless, youwould

die a barren stock, with n ever a s on to succeed or to

perpetuatey ou.

”

Havin g heard this an swer, Raja Hom adm irin gRasalu

’

s wisdom prai sed him greatly, an d said to

him,

Sir, youare un doubtedly right, an d I was wron g.

The n ext morn in g Raja Rasalu em braced hi s

frien d RajaBhoj , an d bade him adieu, after which

he con tin ued his journ ey alon e, ever seeki n g for

fresh adven tures .

CHA PTER VI I .

RAJA RA sALU A ND THE GIA NTS OF

GA NDGA RH .

Rasa’

la’

s vis ion . He sets out on the adven ture. The

dispeoplea’city, a n d the old wom a n . The wom an

’

s

distress . The gian ts’

trihute. Rasdlu an d the wo

m an’

s son . Rasa’

luan d Thirra’

. Flight of Thirra

a n dBhiri n . H is en coun ter with the other gia n ts .

H is adven ture with the gia n tess . Fa te of the ch ief,Bdihalbath, an d of Bhian an d Thirra. Thirra s

lam en t. H is imprison m en t un der M oun t Ga n dgarh .

The bellowing of Gan dgarh. Rasa’

la’

s arrows .

AJA RA SALU was o n ce out hun t i n g in the

fores t when overcome with fatigue he lay

down un der a tree an d we n t to sleep . I n his

sleep he had a vis io n,i n which he saw approach i n g

him five ho ly m e n who addressed him ,sayin g,

Get up,Raja, an d root out the race of the gian ts .

D is turbed in m in d,he arose an d i n stan tly s et

o ff on the expedition , havi n g determ i n ed without

de lay to achieve the explo it . M an y a league rode

the hardy k i n g o n his ren own ed war-horse

60 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

Bhaun ra- Iraki, n ow over h i l ls , n ow over moors, an d

n ow through gloom y forests , i n te n t on his arduous

quest. O n e day, in the depths of a lon ely wood, he

reached a large city wh ich was as si len t as the grave.

He en tered the streets,but they were deserted he

gazed in at the open shops, but they were all ten an t

less. A mazed at‘

the so l itude, he stood in an open

space an d surveyed the scen e . Jus t then he caught

sight of som e sm oke i ssuin g from a di stan t corn er,

an d makin g his way to it, he saw there a miserable

old woman kn eadin g an d baki n g quan ti ties of bread

an d prepari n g abun dan ce of sweetm eats, but all the

time she was e itherweepin g or laughi n g. Surprised

at a spectac le so extraordi n ary, Rasalu halted an d

said,“ M other, in this so l itary place, who is to eat all

that food, an d why are youboth weepin g an d laugh

in g

Youare a stran ger an swered the woman ,“ it is

better for you to pursue your way, an d n ot to ques

t ion m e.

”

Nay, said Rasélu, I can n ot bear to see you in

such trouble, an d I would kn ow the cause of it.

”

“The k in g of th is place, sa id the woman , i s

Kashudeo, an d he has ordered that a human bei n g,a buffalo, an d four hun dred poun ds o f bread, shal l be

sen t dai ly to a certain place for the gian ts. O n ce I

RAjA RA SA LU A ND THE GIA N TS OFGA NDGA RH 61

had seven son s,ofwhom s ix have been devoured, an d

to -day i t i s the turn of the seven th, an d to -m orrow it

wi l l be the turn of m yself. This is my trouble a n d

it makes m e cry. But I am laugh i n g because to-day

m y seven th son was to have been married, an d be

cause his bride wi l l have to do without him .

”

W ith these words the woman fel l to cryi n g more

bitterly than ever.

Weep n ot,”sa id RajaRasalu

Goodwife, your tears n o lon ger shed,If Godwil l keep the youn gster’s head,I swear m y own sha l l fa l l in stead.

But the oldwom an had n ot so learn t her lesson s of

l ife, an d replyi n g through hertears,“ A las what m an

was ever kn own to give his head for an other ?”she

wen t o n with her dismal task. But Rasalusa id,

I have come here for n o other reason than to ex

tirpate the kin gdom of the gian ts.”

Who are youthen P en quired the woman ,

“What

is your father’s n am e, an d where is your birthplace

The blessed S ialkot is m y birthplace, replied he,

I am the son of Sulwan , an d my n ame is Rasalu.

Then the wom an began con s ideri n g, an d she

thought to herse lf,“Whether he be the rea l Rasalu

I k n ow n ot ; yet he m ay b e, because it i s written ,‘O n e

Rasalu shal l be born an d he wi l l destroy the ki n gdom of the gian ts .

’

62 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

Then Rasalugaz in groun d en quired, Why is there

n o on e in the city

Here tem ple dom es an d palace towers ,Bazars an d lowly shops aboun d,

But,“

s ilen t as the pass i n ghours,Idly they lift them se l ves aroun d

What luckless hap hath cha n ced the world, that allDeserted are the doors of house an d m art an d hal l ?”

Let n ot this surprise you,”

an swered the woman ,the people have allbee n eaten up by the gian ts .

”

Rasalu n ow dism oun ted from his horse an d havi n gt ied him un der shelterhe stretched himsel f on a smal l

low bedstead an d at on ce fe l l in to a deep s lum ber.

M ean whi le, the youn g lad arrived with the buffalo

which was laden with the bread an d the sweetmeats,an d whe n all was ready he drove it before him

through the em pty s treets an d wen t out i n to the

forest. A fter a t ime the old woman cam e close to

the sleepi n g kin g an d began to cry piteous ly, so that

the kin g s tarted up from his sleep an d e n quired the

reaso n of her distress . She an swered him ,

Thourider of the dark-

grey m are,

Rasalu, b earded, turban ed stran ger,O for som e saviour to repair,A cham pion , to the fie ld of dan ger

I weep because those tyran ts com e to -day,To lead m y on e survivin g son away.

”

Then Rasaluaro se, an d with a word of comfort to

the mother he moun ted an d rode off in pursuit of

her son . Havin g overtaken him,he said,

RA J /lRA SA LU A ND THE GIA N TS OFGA NDGA RH 63

How shallwe kn ow when the gian ts are com in g?

Firs t,”

an swered the boy, there wi l l be a stron g

wi n d with ra i n,an d when that is over the gian ts wil l

com e .

”

Co n ti n ui n g their journ ey they arrived at the ban ks

of a riverwhere the boy ha lted, whi le Rasaludescen d

ed to the stream to bathe . I n h is absen ce o n e of the

gian ts n am ed Thirra cam e down to fetch some water.

So huge of body an d m ighty of l imb was he that

his water- ski n was compo sed of the hides of twen ty

seven buffaloes, all sewn together so as to form on e

vast receptacle, an d he carried a bucket made up of

the h ides of seven buffa loes . When he fi lled his

water- skin, the river abso lute ly groan ed so that Ra

salu, hearin g, gazed at i t in wo n der.

Thirra see i n g the lad an d the buffa lo an d the ful l

load of bread grin n ed with greedy de l ight, sayin g,G lad am I to see allthese good thin gs.

"

The n seiz i n g som e of the loaves, he shuffled i n to

a th icket an d began to m un ch . By an d by Rasalu

return ed, an d the b oy sa id to him,

O n e of the gian ts has a lready come an d has taken

away his to l l of the loaves, an d others wil l soo n com e

an d eat m e togetherwith the buffalo . What i s the use

of your advan cin g further

Who i s he that has taken away the loave s

asked Rasalu.

64 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

He is the water- carrier, an swered the lad. His

n am e i s Th irra, a n d he gen erally'

com es first, an d takes

his bread beforehan d as a tax,wh ich is al lowed him .

”

Where i s he asked Rasalu.

There he is,"sa id the boy,

“ in the thicket, eatin gthe loaves .

Rasalu,sword in han d

,rode i n to the thicket, an d

go i n g up to the gian t he sm ote him an d cut off hi s

right han d, an d recovered the loaves .

Then ,with a bowl wh i ch was so loud an d furious

that it roused his com pan io n s the other gian ts fromtheir s leep or from their labours a n d brought them

out from their den s in the m oun tai n, the gian t cried,

as he gazed at the hero’

s en orm ous quiver an d histhreaten in g aspect,What m an , what dem o n

,are you

I am Rasalu,”a n swered the ki n g.

A n dwhe n he heard the n am e, the disabledmo n ster

fled away, an dreachi n g his hom e,he spoke to his five

brothers, sayin g,“Run , brothers , run

Here com es Rasaluthe cham pion brave,Let us has te an d hide in the m oun tain -caveW hether prophet of God, orBeelzebub,Upon his shoulders he carries a c lub .

”

W ith these words an d with m an y others of l ikeim port he con tin ued his career at his utmost speed

,

an d wen t an d hid himself in the Cave of Gan dgarh.

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66 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

Blessed S ialkot is m y birthplace, Sulwanfather, a n d m y n am e is Rasalu

RajaSulwan ’s son am I

,

Rasaluis m y n am e

Sialkot is m y fatherlan d,M y c ity is the sam e.

”

O n e sn ort of m in e,cried Baikalbhath, wi l l

sweep youaway .

"

A t on ce the m o n ster laidhis forefi n gero n his right

n ostri l an d blewwith his left. I n stan tly there passedover th e lan d a sudden an d a th ick darkn ess,

the atm osphere was fi l led with lurid dust,an d by

m ean s of m agic an d en chan tmen t the wi n ds an d the

clouds rushed up from afar. Then beat the rain for

forty days an d forty n ights, an d the hai lston es sm ote,the thun ders roared,

an d the l ightn i n gs flashed, an d

the very earth was shaken .

N ow keep your feet, good steed, cried Raja

Rasalu an d to the lad he said, Here, boy, grip

wel l my stirrup an d fear them n ot.

A n d wh i le the wi n d swept bywith the force of a

hurrican e, so that the trees were uprooted, the kin gsat firm an d un daun ted in the m ids t of the tem pest,an d n ever fl in ched or cowered a jot .

When the storm had driven by,an d the darkn ess

had sped, Baikalbhath boastful ly cried,Now see if Rasalu i s there

THE GIA N TS OF GA NDGA RIJ . 67

A n d as the l ight dawn ed they saw him in the sam e

spot . Then Baikalbhath, bursti n gwith rage, sn orted

with both his n ostri ls,an d it co n ti n ued rai n in g an d

hai l i n gwith two - fo ld vio len ce, an d the storm raged

furious ly for e ighty days an d eighty n ights, so that

n o s to n e,or tree. or an im a l

,or bird, was left within a

radius of a hun dred m i les . A n dwhen th is was over

Baikalbhath cried o n ce more,

N ow see i f Rasalu i s there

A n d they looked, a n d sti l l they sawthe hero stan d

in g in the sam e pos itio n calm an d un m oved as the

A n ge l of Death . Then fear a n d co n stern atio n fi l led

their hearts , an d they were in a m in d to flee,when

o n e of them said,

But i f youare i n deed Rasaluyouwi l l pierce with

your arrow seve n iro n griddles , for so it is written

in our sacred books .

”

“ Bri n g them forth, said Rasalu.

A n d the gian ts brought out the seven griddles ,each of which

”

we ighed thirty-five to n s, an d,setti n g

them up in a row o n e behin d an other, they chal len ged

Rasalu to pierce them . Drawi n g his b ow,Rasalu

laun ched o n e of his shafts of iro n weighin ga hun dred

poun ds, a n d drove it at the seven griddles, so that

i t pierced them through an d through, an d fixed itself

immoveably in the earth beyon d.

“ Youhave missed cried allthe gian ts in a breath .

68 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

I n ever missed in my life, return ed Rasalu.

Go, look at the griddles an d see.

They wen t to the spot, an d saw the griddles real lypierced, an d the arrow stuck in the groun d beyon d.

Then saidRasalu, Pul l out the arrow l"

They all pul led an d tugged, but n ot on e of them

could stir i t, an d Rasaludrew it forth himse l f.

Of a truth this m an is a gian t,”said on e,

“ let us

try him with some iron gram . If he wil l eat it, we

sha l l kn ow that he com es of the blood of the de

m on s .

Then the gian ts brought ten poun ds of iron gram ,

an d gave it in to his han ds but Rasalu, deftly chan gin g it for the gram wh ich he had in his horse

’s n ose

bag, began to eat before them, an d when he had

fi n ished it, he cried,N ow look out for yourselves

Then chan ti n g a spel l he turn ed Baikalbhath in to

sto n e, an d set off in pursuit of the rest. Drawi n g his

bow he struck first at Tun dia who wen t flyi n g with

the arrow to M aksudabagh, where he fel l an d died.

Then with an other arrow he smote Mun dia an d

A kaldos who, with the arrow, wen t flyin g abroad to

A l ikhan , where they also fel l down , an d there they

died.

*

These gian ts stil l stan d where they fel l—im m en se m on olithicpi l lars of gran ite .

THE GIA N TS OF GA NDGA RH . 69

Havi n g accom pl ished so much of his labour,

Rasaluascen ded Gan dgarh, an d en teri n g the fortressof the gian ts he began to look about him ,

whe n

his glan ce l ighted on Gan dgarri, the female gian t,c lothed in a

‘

rich dress , a n d s itti n g before a huge

fire on which s immered a capacious caldro n of

bo i l in g o il, for she was wa i ti n g an xious ly for the

return of her b rothers, who were to bri n g home a

m an , so that she might bo i l h im an d eat him . A s

soon as she saw Raja Rasalu, she leered at him an d

exclaim ed

A h, frien d, I am charmed to see you. For a lon gtim e have I been waiti n g for you, because I have

wished so much to marry you. But, first of all, i f

youwould do on e thin g, it would be better.“What is i t ?” asked Rasalu.

I t is merely, an swered she,that youwi l l walk

roun d th is caldron three times,after which I wi l l

marry you, for that is the cus tom of our rel igion .

I kn ow n ot how to do this thi n g,” said Rasalu,

youwi l l firs t have to teach m e.

Then the gian tess arose, an d began to caper an d

frisk it roun d the sm okin g caldron , but, when she had

compassed it twice, Rasalu heaved her up as she

passed by him,an d to ssed her over i n to the bo i l i n g

o il. There she was reduced to ashes, an d, when her

skul l spl it with the heat of the fire, so great was the

7 0 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

shock thereof, that it brought o n an earthquake

which lasted for three hours .

A fter this, Rasaluwen t forth, an d foun d the lad

cl i n gi n g tothe stum p of a tree, trembli n g an d quiver

in g in every l im b, n ot kn owi n g, so great was his fear,what had occurred.

“Why are you afraid said Rasalu.

Because,”

an swered he,“the gian ts

'

wil l com e jus t

n ow an d eat m e .

”

Sa id the ki n g, They have all been k i l led, or

n ext to it . Did you n ot fee l the earthquake“ Yes

,

”

replied the lad.

That,

sa id Rasalu,“ was caused by the bursti n g

of Gan dgarri’

s head.

”

Right please‘

dwas the youth to hear the good n ews,

an d forthwith he cam e to his sen ses .

The n said Rasalu,“ Throw off those loaves, load

your buffa lo with spo i l from the fort, an d get away

hom e to your m other.

”

“ There is abun dan ce of treasure in the desertedcity, an swered the lad. I do n ot wish for an y

th in g from the fort.”

So he wen t back to his mother, an d arrived at his

hom e in safety.

Then Rasaluchan tedan otherspel l overBaikalbhath

an d restored him to l ife, when the gian t, see i n g his

en emy so close to him, tore up a pros trate tree, an d

THE GIA N TS OF GA NDGA RH 7 !

advan ced to ki llhim ; but Rasalu’

s horse made a leap

of fifty yards , an d his mas ter was saved. Then the

gian t wen t flyi n g to the tOp of the m oun tai n , an d,

li fti n gup an e n ormous rock, he hurled it at Rasalu,who received it o n his shie ld a n d sustai n ed n o harm .

Never,” said Rasalu to his horse

,

“shal l I be

able to slay Baikalbhath, i f youdo n ot hear m e at a

boun d to the m oun ta i n -top.

A t on ce the horse drew himself together, an d

leaping in to the air, he carried his m as ter to his

adversary’s s ide, when Rasalu smote hard an d

fiercely, so that the gian t’

s leg was cut ofl'

, an d he

fel l an d died. So perished Baikalbhath, the kin g of

the gian ts.“9

Never flaggin gin his labour, Rasalu n ow set out

for Kheri-m i'

i rti to hun t up the gian t Bhiun . There

he discovered that he was hidden in a ho le in the

forest, an d he cried, sayi n g,

A re you there Bhiun ?Yes, an swered he.

Why have youh idden yoursel f? en quiredRasalu.

Because I was afraid of you,” said Bhit

’

i n .

En teri n g the forest, Rasalu chal len ged him, an d

havi n ggathered together vast heaps of dry boughs,

an d havin g thrown them in to the pit, he pi led them

The footprin ts of Bhaun ra-Iraki in the lim eston e rocks are still

poin ted out by the vil lagers .

7 2 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

up, an d set fire to them, a n d thus the gian t Bhiunwas m iserably burn t to powder.

Then ce Rasalu proceeded to search for Thirra,but he was un able to track him . So he sen t forth

Shadi, his parrot, who flew over the h i l ls, an d foun d

him hidden in the Cave of Gan dgarh . Then ,flyin g

back to his m aster, he said,_ The gian t is hidden in

the cave of the m oun tai n .

"

Go in g to the place, Rasalu saw Th irra crouchin gin the gloom of Gan dgarri-ki-ghar, an d he cried

,

A re you i n s ide, Th irra

Yes,

”an swered he .

Why are youhere asked Rasalu.

Because, s ir,” said Th irra,

“

you cut off my han d,an d I was afraid of you, an d I have come in h ither

to hide.

”

Then , as he heard the approachin g footsteps of

the terrible kin g, he ran further in, an d, l i fti n gup his

voice in a lamen t to God, he cried a loud an d said

“ Stran ge is Thy n ature always, God m ost dread,To Thee the poor an d n eedy cry for breadThougivest life where life lived n ot before,A n d those who live Thoubiddest live n o m ore.

M y bark is driftin g o’er the storm y deep,

While allher crew_are wrapt in deadly s leep

A zrael, the A n gel, graspeth th’

guidin g oar,

A n d, through the waves that hoarsely roun d her roar,H is shudderin g freight he hurrieth to the shore.

0 how can I forekn owwhat words of doomA gain st m y soul proclaim beyon dthe shadowy tom b

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74 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

baffled,an d his be l lowi n g fi l ls the vi l lages roun d with

dreadf"

So e n ded Raja Rasalu’

s battle with the fam ous

gian ts of Gan dgarh, an d if youask the peasan ts for

proofs of the story,they wil l show youscattered about

the coun try Rasalu’

s i n vi n cible arrows wh ich sti l l

s tan d where they severa l ly lighted.

‘

j'

Gan dgarh is subjec t to frequen t earthquakes . Even when there isn o perceptib le quakin g, the in tern al roarin gof the earth can be heard,an d this probab ly is the n oise which seem s to proceed from the hil lan d which is ascribed to the im prison ed Thirra. The vil lagers however assert that the bel lowin g of the gian t is quite a disti n ct soun dfrom the roar of an earthquake an d that, as this peculiar bel lowin ghas n ot b een heard for eight years, the gian t Thirra m ust have at lastexpired.

“l' Rasalu’

s arrows often seen,by the writer are gran ite m egalithslike those at M aksudabagh an d A likhan . M ost of them stan d eight

or te n feet out of the groun d.

CH A PTER VI II .

RA SALU ’

S A DVENTURE W ITH TILLIAR,

THE SNA KE,A ND KAG

,THE RA VEN .

Rasa’

lu saves a hedgehog from drown i ng. H e tahes

it with him . He arrives at

’

a deserted palace. The

four watches . The hedgehog falls i n to the pool.

The hin g’

s life is imperilled. The hedgehog’

s con

tes t wi th the raven a n d the s n ahe. H is double vic

tory . Ra'

sa’

lu awa/ees . H is gratitude. The hedge

hog’

s advice. Thefrien ds part.

A JA RA SALU on ce cam e to the ban k of a

river, where he saw a hedgehog be i n g carried

away by the curren t . A ddress i n g the ki n g,

the l ittle creature im plored him to save him fromdeath

,sayi n g,

O rider of the dark-

grey m are,

Rasalub earded, turb an ed stran ger,A drown in ghedgehog craves your care,For God’

s sake save his life from dan ger.

”

You are a hedgehog, an swered Rasalu, an d

I am a m an ; What co n n ectio n there is betwee n you

76 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

an d m e I kn ow n ot. But as you have abjured m e

by the n am e of God, I wi l l take you out of the river.

”

A s he spoke these words he lowered down o n e en d

of his bow to the water,an d by that m ean s saved

the hedgehog from his peri l . The n lan di n g him

safely on the ban k, he bade him go whitherso ever he

pleased. To b e left a lon e, however, was far from the

grateful hedgehog’

s des ire . It is n ot good,sa id he

,

that you should n ow aban don m e in th is place.

To -morrow a n other flood wil l come, an d it wi l l carry

m e away. If you wi l l take m e with you, it m ay

chan ce that I shal l be able to do vou a service i n re

turn for allyour k in dn ess to m e.

”

I do n ot th i n k your ass is tan ce wil l be n eeded,

an swered Rasalu.

But the hedgehog pleaded hard for the favour. I

b eg,”sa id he,

“that as youhave n ow saved m y l i fe,

so youwi l l n ot refuse m y request.”

But where in the World,”said the k i n g, shal l I

put you

Put m e,

return ed the hedgehog, i n to your

horse’

s n ose-b ag.

”

Rasaluthen took up the l ittle beast, an d layi n g

him in the feedi n g-bag, he co n ti n ued his wan deri n gs .

A s he was ridin g alo n g, he observed a s pacious

man s io n ,beautiful ly bui lt an d surroun ded o n alls ides

with garden s, but i t was en tirely deserted. There

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78 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

m o lest wretch ed wayfarers,a n d whosoever ven tures

th is way,whether he b e hun ter, or pri n ce

,or ki n g,

they n ever perm it him to pass the place a l ive .

”

What do they do en quired Rasalu.

K n ee l i n g down before the ki n g as if at his prayers,

the hedgehog m eekly repl ied,

“S ire, trave l lers who

com e to this foun ta i n,be i n g overcom e with fatigue ,

lie down here an d rest. Then th is Ti l l ier,the ser

pe n t,in the m iddle of the n ight, steals out upon them

an d sucks away the ir breath as they lie as leep,after

which he goes away,a n d i n form s his frien d the sea

raven ,who com es in his turn an d pecks out the ir

eyes from the sockets .

“ Is it true ?”

said Rasalu.

Yes , it is quite true”

a n swered the hedgehog.

Then said the ki n g,I can n ot n ow strike m y ten t,

because I have already said that here I wi l l cer

ta in ly rem ai n . But you sha l l all act as I b id you.

”

We await you orders,”

sa id the hedgehogGod is m aster over all

,

”

said Rasalu. He has

power to ki l l an d He has power to save . But o n e

th i n g,in good sooth, youpeople should n ot om it to

do . A ltogether we n um ber four perso n s . Let us

therefore wake an d s leep by turn s,a n d thus let us

pass the four watches of the n ight in safety .

Havi n g so ordai n ed,Rasalu agai n spoke an d

said,“ The first watch of the n ight shal l be taken

A D VEN TURE WITH TILLIA R g. Ir'

A G. 7 9

by m e,the secon d by Bhaun ra- Iraki m y horse, the

th ird by Shadi m y parro t, an d the fourth by the

hedgehog.

Thus sayi n g, Rasaluordered every on e to s leep,an d began his watch . When his turn was up he

roused his horse,an d him se l f lay dow n to rest . When

the hors e’

s watch was over,he woke the parrot

,an d

wen t to his bed. When the parro t’s watch was over

he woke the hedgehog, an d retired h im sel f to s leep .

The hedgehoggot up, an d began to walk to an d fro,

i n ten t upon his duty . But the co ld was so bitter that

he foun d it i n to lerable, an d so he wen t n ear to the

fire to warm h im se lf. There, however, the warm th

m ade him s leepy, an d he began to doze. Then

thought he to himself,I must n ot s leep, 0 n o

, I must n ot s leep,lest by

evi l chan ce that wretched s n ake should com e an d ki l l

m y mas ter I had better go an d s it by the poo l of

the foun tai n .

So to the foun tai n he wen t, but un happi ly the

darkn ess was so den se that he could n ot disti n guish

the ban k, a n d dow n he s l ipped i n to the water,n or

was he able to get out agai n , though he s truggledhard an d tried his utmos t .

W hi le the hedgehog was thus e n deavouri n g to

regai n the ban k, the serpen t, havi n g watched his

opportun ity gl ided softly to the s ide of RajaRasalu,

80 THE LEGEND OF RA S A LU.

an d drew away h is breath . He then sto le back, an d

to ld his frie n d Kag, sayi n g,

I have do n e m y duty . N owgo youan d perform

yours .

”

These dreadful words were over-heard by the

hedgehog, who in an agon y excla im ed, O God, what

has happen ed ? A llth is trouble has been caused by

my foo l ishn ess .

The n exerti n g him sel f o n ce m ore he sprangout ofthe water with allhis m ight an d m a i n

,a n d th is tim e

fortun e favoured him . C lam beri n g up the ban k, he '

ran swiftly from that spot an d approached the s ide

of the ki n g, where he began to watch in the greates t

si len ce, even stoppi n g his very breath. I n a few

m i n utes the raven hopped up, a n d perched h imsel f

o n Raja Rasalu’

s breas t. Jus t as he was about to

strike h is powerful beak i n to the ki n g’

s eyes, the

hedgehog havi n gquietly risen , caught him by the leg,an d began to crun ch it i n to pieces wi th his sharp l ittle

teeth . Then jum p in g n im bly from h is leg he seized

o n his n eck, an d began to crun ch that too . The

raven fi n din g him sel f clutched, uttered pierci n g n otes

of distress, a n d cried out m ost lam en tably. A t last

his frien d Tilliar heard him,an d drew n ear to observe.

“Who is that, said he, molesti n g my brother

Kag?”

The hedgehogmade n o reply .

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82 THE LEGEND OF Ii’A S/ ILU.

-cries . Therefore first let him go, an d then I wi l l

com e a n d restore to your frie n d his breath.

”

The hedgehog, perce ivin g his craft, an swered,“ I

can n ot perm it this raven to escape out of m y power,

but I wil l take care that he shal l n ot be torm en ted

an y m ore .

Very wel l repl ied the sn ake.

The hedgehog then s n apped off the raven ’

s head,

an d layin ghim o n o n e s ide he criedwith a loud vo ice,

N ow cal l your frien d, an d see i f he wil l give you

an an swer.

”

The s n ake cal led to Kag,his frien d agai n an d agai n ,

but n ot a wordwas spoken ora soun duttered in reply.

A h,

”said the hedgehog,

“ your frien d was in

great distress, but the m om e n t I let him go he was

overtake n by a soun d del ic ious sleep. Do n ot there

fore torm en t him an y more.

”

The s n ake l isten ed an d l isten ed, but as the cries were

n ot repeated, he thought to h im sel f, He has certain

ly let m y frien d go .

”He therefore approached the

pulseless body of Raja Rasalu, an d restored to the

ki n g the breath of l ife.

A s he was return i n ghom e to his den, the hedgehog,

who had crept away i n to the darkn ess to waylay

him ,sudden ly spran g out from his am bush

,an d

se ized him by the head, wh ich he began to crun ch as

he had crun ched the raven ’

s n eck

A DVEN TURE WI TH TILLIA R Gr” KA G. 83

O un worthy on e, cried hi s wretched victim,

“ do

n ot break your vow !”

I am a wi ld beas t,

retorted the hedgehog.

What have I to do with faith or with vows P M y

duty is to slay my en emy.

”

Then said the sn ake

In form er ages, write the sages,Sn akes an d hedgehogs were akin

Then cease your strife an d spare m y life,So God

’s approva l youwil l win .

”

But the hedgehog an swered

In form er ages, write the sages,Sn akes an d hedgehogs burn ed in hate

O foo l ish o n e, yourwork is do n e,Your own ’

s the axe that cuts your fate

W ith these words the hedgehog crushed his en emyi n to pieces, an d when he had laid his body close to

the pil low of Raja'

t Rasalu, he curled himsel f up an d

fel l asleep .

That day Rasalu s lept lo n g an d soun dly, an d he .

was late in ris i n g. When he awoke he began to

sco ld an d abuse every on e about him,sayin g, Why

did you n ot ca l l m e earl ier

S ire,”

sa id the hedgehog in his humble accen ts,

look about you what see you close to your bed“

I see,”

said Rasalu, gaz i n g towards his restin gplace, I see a dead raven an d a dead sn ake crushedto pieces.”

84 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

Then un derstood he allthe im portan ce of the ser

vice which had been ren dered to him , an d he was glad

an d said to the hedgehogO hedgehog, this favour wh ich youhave don e to

m e i s past recom pen se, si n ce youhave saved my life !

But youwil l be rewarded of God.

The parrot an d the horse a lso commen ded him

highly, sayin g, 0 frien d, you have saved our

master’s l i fe . M ay God preserve you in happin ess !”

S ire, said the hedgehogto Rasalu. I have merely

return ed the favour which you did to m e. A n d n ow,

i f youwil l a l low m e, I wi l l go m y way.

”

Very reluctan tly Rs’

tja Rasalu con sen ted to part

with him,but at last, leavi n g him at that very spot,

he moun ted an d rode off. Hardly had he turn ed

his back when the hedgehog looked after him an d

said,“Where are yougo i n g to n owP

”

I am goi n g,”

an swered the k i n g, to see Raja

S irikap.

”

O S ire, sa id the hedgehog, be warn ed by m e !

Go n ot to RajaS irikap, for he is a magician , an d

he wil l surely brin g you in to trouble .

”

“

Nevertheless, to RajaSirikap I shal l go, repl ied

Rasélu.

If you are real ly determi n ed to go, said the

hedgehog, take advice an d act as I bid you.

Lyin gon the road hal f-way to S irikap’

s capital you

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CHA PTER

RAJA RA sALU A ND RA JA S IRIK A P.

Rasa'

lua n d S irisz'

th. S irisuh wahes a n d speahs . H is

warn i n gs a n d his coun sel. Rasdlu con tin ues his

journ ey . Theweaver a n d his cat. The two village

hoys . The old soldier a n d the goat. Rasa’

lu’

s arri

val at S iri/co’

t. S irihap’

s m agi c storm s . Rasa'

lu

a n d the cas tle-

gong. Rasa’

luan d P rin cess jhudha’

l.

M eeting of the K in gs . Their en igm as . Theirplay .

Rasdlu’

s losses . Rasa’

la’

s cat an d S irihap’

s rats.

S irihap’

s fi n al defeat. H is fl ight a n d re-copture

The birth of the Prin cess K ohla’

n . The m agician s .

The en d of S iril‘

ap . Rasa’

la’

s departure with

A VING departed then ce , Raja Rasalu jour

n eyed o n towards S irikot, the Fort of Skul ls .

A t the close of the day he hal ted, an d havi n gpitched his ten t a n d eaten his supper, he walkedforth to look for the body of S irisfik, the brother of

RajaSirikap,who, as his n ame im pl ies, was surn amed

RAjA RA SA LU A N D RAjA SIR/KA I) . 87

The Beheader.’ He foun d the corpse lyi n g stiff

an d co ld on the groun d, an d turn i n g to his parrot, he

said,This m an i s dead. Who n ow wil l advise us about

RajaSirikap“ Offer up your prayers to God, an swered the

parrot,“an d I thi n k the body wil l s it up,

because it

is n ot real ly dead but it l ies here un der the spe l l

of S irikap’

s magic.

The n Rasalu, when he had first washed his face,his han ds, an d his feet, stood an d prayed in these

words

God,within the fores t lon elyN ight hath fal len o

’er the dead

Gran t him l ife a m om e n t on ly,Light with in his eyelids shed

Then this corpse that l ieth pron ely,Fourwords to speak wi ll lift his head.

The ki n g’s prayer was heard an d God gran ted

S irisuk his l ife, for at on ce the dead m an awoke

an d rais i n g himsel f he began to speak.

“ Who has

dis turbed m e saidhe.

Here youhave been lyi n g as leep for twelve years,a n swered Rasalu,

“What ki n d of sleep is this

Who are you asked Sirisuk.

I am Rasalu,”an swered the ki n g.

A re youthe real Rasaluoran other said S irisuk.

W here are yougo i n g

88 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

I journ ey towards the cas tle of‘

your e lder brother

S irikap, to wage battle with h im ,

”

sa id Rasalu.

Then S irisfik began to laugh.

What are you laughi n g at ? e n quired Rasalu.

I am his own bro ther,”

replied S irisuk,“an d yet

he ki l led m e without p ity. Do you th i n k he wil l

spare you ? Bes ides , you have n ot eve n an arm y,whi le his arm y is n um erous . How do you i n ten d

to cope wi th him ?”

“A ss isted by your advice, an swered Rasalu

,I

trust I shal l b e ful ly able to fight an d to subdue him .

Then said S irisuk,Whe n youbegi n to draw n ear

the city,he wil l raise his m agica l s torm an d blow you

away to som e other coun try. A n d i f you evade

that,he wil l bury you un der a storm of m agical

s n ow. A n d i f youes cape that, then ,when you strike

the gon g which han gs before the cas tle-

gate, an d

whe n the n o ise of the go n g shal l soun d i n your cars,

youwil l lose your sen ses , an d becom in g crazed you

wil l be driven out of the place. A n d i f peradven

ture youavo id that peri l, then ,when you pass un der

the‘

swin g of his daughter Jhudhalwho swi n gs in the

porch of the palace, which is fifty yards high, you

wi l l begi n to rage with fren zy an d you wil l becom e

the sport of the i n m ates,because the effect of that

swi n g is'

that whosoever passes be n eath it goes ravi n gm ad. A n d i f by good fortun e an d the favour of God

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90 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

Havi n g s tarted afresh,he cam e to a vi l lage where

a cat was busyass isti n g an old weaver in his work.

“ 0 weaver, said Rasélu, “ have you n o s on , n or

an y servan t, that th is wretched cat is helpi n gyou

I am a poor m an,

an swered the weaver,“an d

n o other creature in the house have I , excepti n gmy cat.

”

Rasélu,offerin g the m an twen ty rupees, bought

the cat an d took her with him , a n d as they wen t

alo n g she sucked at the ribs of S irisfik.

Rasalu came n ext to a certain place where he

saw two boys playi n g together. O n e of them made

a sm al l poo l of water, an d ca l led it the river'

Ravi,’

an d the other m ade a s im i lar poo l an d cal led

it the river ‘Chen a.

’ Just then up came a third

boy who stooped down an d dran k up the water out

of both the poo l s .

Resumin g his journ ey, Rasalu n ext saw an old

so ldier washi n g clothes o n the ban k of a river.

He was a discharged pen s io n er who had don e good

service, an dwho had rece ived as his reward the gran t

of a horse an d s ixty vil lages . H is vouchers orpen

s io n -papers were t ied up in his turban , which was

lyi n g at some distan ce from him upon thegroun d.

When his back was turn ed a stray goat cam e by

an d ate up both his turban an d his vouchers , an d

on discoveri n g his loss the poor soldier, who was o n

RA/A RA SA LU A ND RAjA SIRIK A P, 9 !

his way to c laim his recompen se, began to lamen t

most b itterly.

Havi n g observed these thi n gs, Rasalu con ti n ued

his march, an d at last approachi n g the city of S irikot,

the capital of Raja Sirikap, he pitched withi n a mile

of the fortress , a n d there he tarried.

When the ki n g of that place heard of the arrival of

this redoubtable cham pion,he rai sed his m agic s torm s

in which m an y trees an d houses were swept away .

The n ext m orn in ghe en quired ofhis daughter, sayi n g,

“ See i f that m an is sti l l there l”

The girl looked out of the wi n dow an d sa id,

H e an d his horse are there st i l l .”

Then S irikap proc laim ed in the city—“ To- n ight

there wi l l be a heavy fal l of s n ow. Take care of

yourse lves . A s the even i n g approached the s n ow

began to com e down ,an d it co n ti n ued fal l i n galln ight,

un ti l every place in the c ity was buried man y a yard

deep . When m orn i n gbroke the ki n gaga in addressed

his daughter, sayi n g,

See i f the m an is sti l l there

S ir,”

an swered she looki n g out, he is stan di n gthere sti l l, a n d the s n ow has n ot touched him .

When the storm was over RajaRasalu en tered the

c ity, an d, go i n g to the castle gate, he took up the

mal let, an d sm ote the go n g such a terrific blow that

mal let an d gon g were both smashed i n to pieces .

92 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LL’.

Then said he to his horse, If I ven ture to pass

be n eath the lady’

s swin g m y sen ses wil l leave m e.

Sit firm ly in your seat,

”

an swered the horse Iwil l reach her at a sin gle boun d, an d the momen t I

reach herdo you sever the swi n gwith your sword.

”

W ith these words the horse leaped i n to the air an d

carried her rider to the lofty archway, when Rasalu

with o n e stroke cut through the si lke n cord of the

Prin cess Jhudhal’

s swi n g,an d down fe l l the witch to

the groun d. A larmed an d i n dign an t, she wen t run

n i n g in to her father, cryi n g out an d sayi n g

Som e on e has com e to -day, 0 kin g,W ho ki l ls an d kil ls throughout the town ;

He sm ote m y ropes , an d spoi lt m y swin g,A n d I, Jhudhal, cam e tum b li n gdown ;

The m al let flew in fragm en ts eight,In fragm en ts n in e down fel l the gon g;

O flee, m y S ire, an d b afl‘le fate,

Your fin al hour you’l l scarce pro lon g l”Daughter, sa id Raja S irikap, do n ot distress

yoursel f, an d do n ot fear. Soon I sha l l ki l l him,an d

youwi l l see h is head upo n the bloody wal ls which I

have bui lt of the heads of others.”

A s he spoke Rasaluh im sel f en tered the palace, an d

S irikap rose an d offered him a couch covered with a

green cloth which had been woven by m ean s ofmagic

an d charms,an d upon that he i n vited h im to rest.

But Rasalu rejected his offers . I ask you

n ot fpr co loured couches,” said he. G ive m e a

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94 THE LEGEN D OF RA SA LU.

Rasalu chal len ged his adversary to divi n e the

an swer, but S irikap exercised his powers in vain . A t

last he was compelled to give it up, an d Rasalu said

it) him ,

“Youhave n ot dis covered the an swer :gran t

m e therefore the white-covered couch,

”

an d without

an otherword Sirikap gave i t to him . But the queen,

who had been watchi n g an d l isten i n g, began to trem ble

with fear, un ti l her husban d wen t up to her an d

cheered her, sayi n g,Do n ot grieve—I sha l l cut off this fe l low’

s head

in a m in ute an d sen d it over to you, because man y

others have come in l ike m an n er, but n on e have es

caped m y han ds at last.”

Then said Sirikap to Rasalu,“Wherefore have you

com e to m e

It is reported, an swered he, that you are a

tyran t, an d that you have s laughtered thousan ds of

i n n ocen t m en . Therefore have I come to yourcastle, to chal len ge you to arm s .

”

Be it so, repl ied S irikap . Everythi n g shal l ofcourse be ordered as you desire.

”Then sa id he

aga i n , For youan d m e to fight together in public

would b e an ythi n g but credi table. Far better i s i t

that you should come an d play chaupat with m e,

an d that the con queror should cut off the loser’s

head.

RAjA RA SA LU A ND RA/A SIRIK A P . 95

To this propo sal Raja Rasalu wi l l i n gly agreed,

so the chaupat was brought, the lam p was l ighted, a n d

the two ki n gs sat dow n to play .

A s the gam e began , S irikap chan ted for luck say

i n g

Ben eath this lam p’s un certain ray

Two kin gs co n te n d in riva l playO chan geful Gam e

,chan ge thoufor m e,

What S irikap wil ls the sam e should be 1”

Heari n g th is charm , Rasalu observed,“ That

which youhave n ow repeated is esse n tia l ly wro n g,

s i n ce in your verse you have n ot m e n tio n ed the

sacred n am e of God. What you should have said

was th is

Ben eath this lam p’s un certain ray

Two kin gs co n ten d in riva l play0 chan geful Gam e, chan ge thoufor m e

,

What God decrees the sam e shal l be .

”

W ith these words the gam e began . Raja S irikaprepeati n g i n can tation s over his dice threw them

,an d

Rasa’ lu lost S ialkot. Then Rasalu waxed wrath,

a n d in his an gerhe wagered allhis serva n ts , h is goods ,

an d his who le ki n gdom ,allof which were a lso won

by S irikap. The third tim e he staked his m are

Bhaun ra- Iraki an d his parrot Shadi, which were

a lso Won by S irikap : the fourth tim e he lost his

arms ; a n d the fifth an d las t time he lo st his own l ife .

96 THE LEGEND OF RA S A LU.

Then S irikap spran g to his feet, a n ddrawi n g his

sword he prepared to cut off his rival ’s head. But

Rasalu sa id,“ It i s true I have lost m y head

,a n d you have a

right to act as you please . N everthe less, I would

look towards my own ki n gdom o n ce m ore . Suffer

m e therefore to asce n d for that purpose to the roof

of your palace .

”

S irikap co n sen ti n g, Rasalu wen t up to the palace

roof, an d began to gaze towards S ialkot, an d as he

gazed in sorrow he sm o te his han ds upon his thighs

an d uttered a sigh . N ow the cat was con cealed in

his clothi n g, an d when Rasalusm ote himsel f she cried

out, upon which the ki n g rem em bered her,an d re

joiced.

“ 0 you luckless l ittle beast, said he,“

youhave

n ot yet do n e m e a service at all,but n ow let m e try

m y fortun e on ce m ore.

”

Co m i n g down i n to the palace,he said to Sirikap,

By whom were you created

By Him who created you, an swered he.

If you real ly be l ieve th is ,”

said Rasalu,

“ permit

m e to try o n e m ore gam e in H is n am e .

"

Certai n ly,”

an swered S irikap, an d the two ki n gs

agai n sat down to play.

The n Rasalu excla im i n g,“ I n the n am e of God,

threw the dice,an d wo n back S ial kot . I n the secon d

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98 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

The n ext m om en t the fourth game can i o to an en d'

an d Rasaluwas aga i n the victor. Drawi n g his sword

he approached S irikap to sm ite off his head, buthis oppo n en t besought him sayin g,

‘fYoubegged m y

permiss ion to look towards your coun try an d I gaveit. Youwil l al low m e the n

,for the sake ofGod, to go

an d see my fam i ly, but first I would ven ture a game

in the n ame of God as youdid.

”

Rasalu accepted.

his offer,an d the game was on cem ore resum ed, but again S irikap los t. Then said he,“ I would n ow

,i fyouwil l perm it m e,go an d b id adieu

to m y fam i ly, after which I wi l l shortly return .

Rasalu agreed, an d the defeated ki n g go in g to

his wife an d daughters sa id to them,

“ Put on your

jewels, attire yourse lves roya l ly,an d presen ti n gyour

selves before Rasalu en deavour to subdue him with

your beauty.

”

50 his wife an d daughters appare l led them selves

in the ir best an d adorn ed them se lves with rich orn a

men ts an d bright jewels , a n d go in g to RajaRaséluthey began to parade the ir charm s . But he heededthem n ot, n e ither did he look at them atten tively,but he asked of them

,Where is S irikap

“ I n fear of his l ife, an swered they,

“ he has fled

away.

”

It does n ot matter, sa id Rasalu.

“Whereverhe

goes I wil l search forhim an d fi n d him out.”

RAjA RA SA LU A ND RA IA S IR/N A P . 99

Go in g to the coun ci l of min isters he en quired

where the ir master gen eral ly sat. Some sa id, He

m ay be in his chamber of mirrors .

”

Others said,He m ay be in his subterra n ean dwe l l in g. But the

rest sa id,“ He is a kin g,

an d he m ust have gon e

whithersoever it pleased h im .

”

Then Rasalu began to search the court an d the

palace . From chamber to cham ber he passed ; in

some places he foun d m iserable captives, in others

the bodies of dead m en a n d wom e n,an d in others

prec ious sto n es a n d valuable orn am en ts,but n owhere

could he discover S irikap. Leavin g the palace he

wen t to the stables, an d, as he looked an d looked in

every corn er, his eye rested o n a m an ger fi l led with

l itter which seem ed to be a l ive .

“ What is the matter,”

sa id he,

“ with this horse

l itter that it swe l ls an d si n ks an d swe l ls agai n

Go in g up to the m an ger, he tossed out the l itter,

an d there, crouch i n g m iserably ben eath it,was foun d

RajaS irikap.

A h,” said Rasalu, doubtless youare some mean

fe l low,s in ce you have hidden yourse l f in th is fi lthy

place .

”

A n d he caught him by the n eck an d dragged

him a lo n g to the chamber in which they had played,

excla im i n g as he wen t. 0 villa i n ,hun dreds of heads

you have smitten off in your time with your own

100 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

han d, an d all for pastim e, yet you n ever grieved or

shed a tear. A n d n ow when the sam e fate is to be

your own you s n eak away an d bury yourself in

horse-dun g1”

N ow an even t had occurred in the pa lace of which

Rasalu was n ot aware . O n e of the favourite W ives

had given birth to a daughter, an d the m agic ian s an d

wizards had m et S irikap an d had to ld h im,sayi n g,

“ S ire, we have sought for the i n terpretation of th is

m ystery why rui n should have fa l len o n your house,

an d we divi n e that ca lam ity has been brought by

your i n fan t daughter whose desti n y has crossed your

own . She has com e in an evi l hour. Let her n ow

be sacrificed,an d let her head b e thrown i n to the

river an d your crown an d head wil l b e secure.

”

A n d

S irikap had an swered,“ I f m y l i fe depen d o n her, go,

cut ‘

off her head,an d m i n e m ay haply yet b e pre

served.

”

So a s lave -

girl was despatched to bri n g the

i n fan t to the m agician s . A n d as she carried it alo n gfrom the apartm en ts of its m other

,she cried, whi le

she caressed it,

O ,what a pretty chi ld, I should l ike to save it.

It was just at this m om en t as she crossed the courtthat RajaRasaluappeared from the s table draggin gS irikap,

an d he thus overheard her rem ark.

Where are you takin g that chi ld said he .

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102 THE LEGEN D OF RA SA LU .

excuse h im se lf n o t to m ake the l i n es . But Rasalu

caught him by the back of the n eck,an d ho ldi n g his

n os e to the griddle, he m arked it with l i n es un ti l his

n os e was burn t down to the bridge, after which he

loosed h im an d let him go . The n S irikap, see i n gh im se l f in such a state of sham e an d disgrace, ran

away i n to the wild woodlan ds,an d n ever return ed

an y m ore.

A fter this RajaRasalu, havi n g establ isheda govern

m en t of his own,m oun ted his charger, an d at the head

o f som e chose n fo l lowers,whos e la n ce -heads glearn ed in

the sun l ight, an dwhose accoutrem en ts clashed m erri ly,he rode proudly away . W ith h im in a m agn ifice n t

l itter,accom pan ied by her an c ien t n urse, trave l led the

i n fan t daughter of S irikap, whose n am e was Koka l,or

Koklan ,the sweet- coo i n g Dove . She it was who in

after years , when she grew to wom an’

s estate, becam e

h is beauti ful, but i l l- fated co n sort.

CHA PTER X.

TH E TREA SON or ! UEEN KOKLAN .

Rasa’

lu settles at Kheri -m zirfi . Childhood of K ola/(i n .

Dea th of the n urse. Rasa’

lu’

s pursuits . Ra'

uz

K ola/( i n accompa n ies Rasa’

lu to the chase. Their

adven tures . H ira’

H arautheBlue Due/e,his disgrace

a n d his revenge. Bold- head a n d On e-eye. Ra’

ya

Hodi com es to Kheri - m urti . H is am ourwithK ohla’

u.

Theparrot a n d the m i n a . H odi quits the palace i n

alarm . The discon solate queen . Hodi’

s adven ture

with the washerm a n a n d his wife. H is arrival at

A ttah.

RA VELLING then ce for twelve days Rasalu

arrived at the hil ls of Kheri- m urti n ear Bur

han ,where he saw upo n the

‘

height a beauti ful

man 51o n surroun ded by a fair garden ,which looked'

l ike the dwe l l i n g- place of a ki n g.

“ Th is , sa id Rasalu,“ is an abode worthy of l ivi n g

in , an d here I reso lve to rem ai n .

”

104 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

Sir, sa id his m are to h im ,

“this is a palace which

looks to m e l ike the house of a gia n t . I t is n ot wise

to take up your quarters here.

”

Let us abide,

”

an swered Rasalu,

“at least for a

n ight. If we are m o lested we can then aban do n it,

but i f n ot,I m ean to occupy it

,because it is a place

after m y own heart, an d I have n o desire to leave

it.”

So there they s lept in security,an d n o m an , or

dem on ,or an y other creature

,i n truded upon them for

twelve years, an d Rasalu sa id,

“ Here there is n o o n e

to cause us alarm . A n d in that lofty stro n gho ld he

dwelt, havi n g stren gthen ed it we l l with wa l ls an d

bastio n s all roun d, an d havi n g cut out a fl ight of

steps,e ighty- s ix in n um ber

,from the garden ben eath

to the pa lace above .

When the chi ld Koklan was growi n gup, he orderedthat the old custom of his people should be disregarded

,an d that the l ittle pri n ces s should be

,n ot reared on

vegetable food, but n ourished with flesh-m eat every

day. Her education was i n trusted to the an cien tn urse who had accompan ied her from S irikot, an d

who was qui te devoted to her. N o other wom an but

herself was al lowed to atte n dher, an d n o otherwom an

but herse l f was perm itted to en ter the wal ls of the fortress . When with i n creas i n gyears she becam e i l l, an d

was l ikely to die,the ki n g said to her,

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106 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

So passed the l ives of k in g an d pri n cess, un ti l the

old n urse died, an d the l ittle girl had grown i n to a

wom an,a n d had becom e Rasalu

’

s ! uee n . They were

very happy together, for the ki n g was always what

M ahum m adan s in the Pan jab n am e a“

good”

m an,

wh ich m ean s that he was fa ithful to the o n e lady of his

cho ice, an d that he n ever des ired the com pan ion ship

of an o ther. N ay, further, Rasalu was m ore,for

havi n g been vowed to chas tity from the m om e n t of

his birth, he ever guarded we l l that on e pri n ciple,upo n the preservation of which the who le of his

won derful stren gth depe n ded.

O n e even i n g, when he was in a m erry m ood,an

odd fan cy cam e i n to the ki n g’

s m i n d, wh ich was, that

his youn g wife should accom pan y him to the chase.

Said she to him,

I have eaten so m uch ve n iso n in m y l i fe, that i f

I did go with you all the deer of the forest would

fo l low m e .

”

But the proposal del ighted her, an d her happy

youthful spirits becam e exh i larated at the prospect

of l iberty, an d of leavi n g the castle, i f on ly for a day,to vis it the wild trackless woodlan d.

But,

said she “ how do youki l l the deer ?”

Whe n I shoot m y arrow at the deer,

"an swered

the ki n g,“an d when the deer fee ls him se lf woun ded,

he run s back, an d fa l ls dead before m y horse’

s feet.”

THE TREA S ON OF QUEEN KOKLA N . 107

The queen was surprised to hear te ll of this, an d

she said,

How can it be I should like so m uch to see it .

A n d so you shal l,

”

said he,

“ for to-m orrow,

Sweetheart, youan d I wi l l go hun ti n g together.

I n the morn i n g they set out un atten ded, the queen

ridi n g on a pi l l io n beh in d her husban d, an d they

cam e to the wooded h i l locks an d grassy ravi n es ,where the deer loved to wan der. Soo n the kin gloosed an arrow from the stri n g, which woun ded a

doe, but the an im al i n stead of approachi n g them ran

forwardhal f—a—m i le, when shewas overtaken an d s lai n .

Then said the queen,

“ Youhave n ot spoken the truth, S ir.

Why so asked Rasalu.

I f youhad had n o horse with you, replied the

queen , you could n ot have caught this deer at all.

The reaso n is th is , said Rasalu, you have beens itti n g behi n d m e the who le day touchin g m y body,an d from co n tact with youo n e- th ird of m y force has

left m e.

”

Then said the queen,with a m ock i n g laugh, I

kn ow n ot whether I am wife or daughter, but i f a

mere touch has cost you o n e- third of your stren gth,how wil l it fare with youfordescen da n ts ? But n ow

al low m e, an d I wi l l catch allthese an imals al ive with

my han ds .”

108 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

So the queen dism oun ted, an d sat hersel f down

am on g the rocks an d the th ickets,an d she loosen ed

her beauti ful raven hair, gaz in g allthe tim e with ful l

eyes at the deer. But when these gen tle creatures

sawher, an d when they scen ted in the breeze the

sweet fragran ce of her flowi n g tresses, they allcam e

run n i n g towards her. A n d she said to Rasalu,“Com e n ow

,Raja, an d catch an y on e of them you

please .

”

“ I wil l catch n o n e of them , an swered the ki n gwarm ly, n either are they worth the ki l l in g, for they

are your lovers .”

Just then there approached her a great bluebuck, by n ame H ira Haran

,who was the . m on arch

of them all. En chan ted with her dazz l i n g beauty,he wa lked up to her with s tately steps, an d m ade

an obeisa n ce by stoopi n g down his n oble head at the

Ran i’s feet.

Ki n gRasalu, who had been fi l led with am azem en t

at the power of his wife’

s beauty, n o soon er saw the

ki n g of the deer at her feet than his jealous soul b ecam e black with resen tm en t.

“N ever have I p erm itted a si n gle creature of the

male sex to approach her,

”

sa id he to himse l f, an d

n ow the kin g of the deer is la n guishi n g at her feet !”

H is pass ion ate n ature was n ot proof aga i n st thean ger with which such a spectacle i n spired him

,so

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1 10 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

I n dus a certai n ki n g n am ed Hodi had bui l t a border

fortress on the top of a cl i ff wh ich rises from the

very m argi n of the river. Th is Chiefta in was n oted

for his love of i n trigue, as wel l as for his pas s ion for

the pleasures of the chase . Ca l l i n g these circum

stan ces to min d the Blue Buck said,

“ N ow,I wi l l betake m e to the palace of Rajé

Hodi,an d I wi llgraze in his garden , an d when the

hue-a n d- cry i s set up, a n d he begi n s to fo l low m e ,

I wi l l run to the castle of RajaRasélu.

So he made his way to Raja Hodi’s, fo l lowed by

all his frien ds, an d en teri n g the ki n g’s garden he

utterly destroyed i t. These thi n gs the garde n ers

reported to their m aster,who, when he heard of

the havoc which had been m ade,issued a n otice,

sayi n g,

Whosoever shal l ki l l HfraHaran , the Blue Buck,

I wi l l give him rich prese n ts , a horse to ride o n,an d

jewels to wear, an d I wi l l m ake him the com m an der

of m y arm y .

”

This n otice was publ ished over all that coun try,an d it so happen ed that the n ews of it reached the

ears of two shepherd—boys n am ed Bald-head an d

O n e- eye, who said to each other,

“ Let us go an d fi n d this l a Haran , the Blue

Buck.

”

THE TREA SON OF QUEEN K OKLA N . 1 1 1

They searched an d searched un ti l they foun d him ,

when Ba ld-head wen t privately to Raja Hodi an d

said to him ,

“ If you wil l com e with m e I wi l l show you the

Blue Buck.

”

Then the ki n g loaded him with presen ts an d

accom pan ied him to the place .

M ean wh i le,however, O n e - eye who harboured a

grudge aga i n st Ba ld- head,had hun ted away the buck

from that ravi n e i n to an other. A n d when RajaHodi

cam e an d could n ot fi n d an yth i n g,he sa id,

“ Where is the Blue Buck ?”

The n spoke O n e-eye an d sa id,

“ Th is boy is s i l ly,a n d kn ows n othi n g whatever

about him . He has bee n dece ivi n g you but i f youwi l l take away his presen ts an dgive them to m e, I wi l l

show you the Blue Buck .

So the ki n g tran sferred the presen ts from Bald

head to O n e-eye, who took him to the ravi n e an d

po i n ted out to him the gam e he was in search of.

A s soo n as H ira Haran perceived RajaHodi, h e

ran del iberate ly in fron t of him, a n d led his pursuer

in the directio n of Kheri -m i'

i rti,allthe tim e fe ign i n g

a lam en ess in order to en tice him on m ore an d m ore

with the hope of even tual capture .

“ S ir,”sa id the waz ir,

“do n ot pursue this deer

,

there i s some magic about him .

1 12 THE LEGEND OF RA S A LU.

Ki n g Hodi, however, refused to hear the vo ice of

h is waz ir,an d

,gal lopi n g his horse, he wen t straight for

his quarry, leavi n ghis atte n dan ts to sh ift for them

selves. A fter an excitin g run the Blue Buck spran gthe river close to the pa lace of Ran i Koklan , an d the

n oble horse of RajaHodi,roused by the chase, es

sayed an d perform ed the sam e leap . But the deer

the n disappeared i n to a cave a n d hid himse l f, an d

when the ki n g arrived at the spot he was n owhereto be seen .

50 Hodi drew re i n ,an d fi n di n g him sel f in the

mids t of a garden of m an goes , he s tretched forth his

han d to pluck som e of the fruit . But as he did so

on e of the sen tin e l -m i n as excla im ed,

“ Do n ot break the bra n ches,an d do n ot eat the

man goes. Th is garde n belon gs to on e who wil l

pun ish i n truders .

RajaHodi then obs erved that the trees grew be

n eath a fortress, but he could perceive n o m ean s of

approach . Looki n gup,he sawthe plumage of the

parrots gleami n g from the eaves, an d Ran i Koklén

pacin g the roof in her royal array. Then said he to

to the min a

The parrots perch them selves aloft,They dwel l within the eavesBut 0 that splen did lus tre, 5-tA n d bright as go lden leaves

Say, M in a, say, what beauty pas ses there,Perchan ce som e m an , or is it m aiden fair

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1 14 THE LEGEND OF RA S A LU.

The ki n g an swered her;

RajaBhatti’s son am I,

Hodi is the n am e I b ear,Udbc is m y fatherlan d,A ttak is m y c ity there .

Then thought Hodi to himsel f, Who is this woman

in the midst of the wi ldern ess ? I s she a witch or

som e goddess ? I m ust fin d out. So he said,“ Who is your father, an d who is your husban d?

\Vhere can the foo l ish o n e have gon e who has left you

alo n e in your lofty palace ?

I am the daughter of Kin g S irikap, an d the wife

of Rasalu, an swered the queen Koklan Leavi n gm e a lo n e in my lofty palace, my husban d i s far away

chas i n g the wi ld deer.

“f'

he n Hodi heard the n ame of Ra'salu he beganto quake with fear, an d would fa i n have turn ed back.

But love stro n ger than fear urged him o n, an d he

said to the queen ,

Do you kn ow m e, who I am ?

Yes, an swered she, I kn owyouwe ll, an d I have

been wait i n g foryou.

”

The n said Hodi“ Run n in g an d walkin g in breathless haste,From scen es afar I hied m e

,

Yet here the go lden tim e I waste,For 1 kn ow

’

n o path to guide m e

O Ram , say, where l ies your pa lace road,

Where are the steps that lead to your abode ?”

THE TREA S ON OF QUEEN K OK'

LA N . 1 x5

A n d to him the quee n m ade an swer“ Ben eath the m an goes set your steed,Your quiver to the pom m el tie

The s teps that to the castle lead,A m o n g the m an goe

-trees they lie ;Ful l e ighty- s iv, n or less n or m ore

,

W il l brin g youto m y palace door.

Raja Hodi looked for the steps,a n d fi n di n g them

he began to ascen d. But whe n he ga i n ed the vesti

bule of the palace, on e of the m in as on guard stopped

h im,sayin g

Where have you lost your deer,A n d where did your cattle go ?

Som e traitor led youhereTo playRasalu

’s foe .

”

A n d turn i n g to her com pan io n , a parrot, she said,

The duty which is im posed o n us both by our

dear m aster is to watch over the safety of the queen,

an d we shal l be fa lse to our salt i f we do n ot reportto him the m iscon duct of this stra n ger.

”

By th is tim e Ran i Koklan was growi n g impatien t,an d she was sayi n g to hersel f,Why does he tarry, why l i n ger the s teps of m y

Raja

So she passed out of her cham ber to en quire,an d

,

see i n g that her favourite m i n a was the cause of the

de lay, she began to reprove her. But the mi n a re

pl ied,

What are you do i n g, adm itti n g a stran ge

m an to these wa l ls ? If the ki n g hear of this

1 16 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

wickedn ess , he wi l l strike you dead where you

s ta n d.

The queen started an d flushed with rage, but,

restrai n in g herse l f, she led H odi to the wel l which

RajaRasalu had hew n out of the rock, an d wh ich

was furn ished with wheels an d ropes an d pitchers

for drawi n gup water i n to the trough. There they

sat, an d she gave him food an d drin k, an d they

en tertain ed on e an other with del ic ious words .

Then Koklan led the way to the vestibule of the

k i n g’s cham ber, but, as she gain ed the door-way,

the min a agai n spoke an d said,Hear, O parrot, this is n o lo n ger a home for

us , for this fe l low is n e ither a ki n sm an n or a co n

n ection . Sure ly such presumptio n n ever was seen,

that a wretched crow should peck at the clusteri n g

grapes

The queen i n s tan tly turn ed upon the mi n a, but

the parrot, an xious to al lay her an ger, said to his

com pan io n ,0 yousen seless on e ! What harm is don e i f the

m an m erely eats an d dri n ks an d goes away ? Whatis Raja Rasalu to us ? Does n ot the queen our

m is tress ten d us an d feed us with her own han ds .

She does i n deed, an swered the m i n a . S ti l l she

has dishon oured her n am e, an d do n e what she should

n ot have don e . A n d we are the serva n ts of the Raja.

”

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1 18 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU .

N ow,allthis tim e the parrot was m editati n g an es

cape from the closed cham ber, but he foun d n o m ean s

o f egres s . A t last he perceived a sm a l l aperture,

a n d, flutteri n g through it, he flew o n to the battle

m en ts .

Up a n d away l” cried the a larm ed queen to

Hodi away,as youhope to save your l ife ! The

n ews has gon e to Rasalu“

A las !” sa id Hodi with a deep breath . But O

Ran i,

” co n ti n ued he,

“ i f you wi l l coax the parrot

to return,I th i n k he wil l n o t disregard you, but

com e back to your hous e, a n d the n we shal l have

n o room for a larm an d n o cause for sorrow .

”

So the queen looked out at a casem en t, an d cried

through the latti ce in caress i n g ton es

Rice with m y n ails have I c lean ed foryouever,Boiled it in n ew m ilk an d chided you n everCom e to m e

,Pretty, return to m e

,Dear

,

Youare m y Ran jha, an d I am your Hir l”

But the parrot was deaf to her bla n dishm en ts, an d,spreadin g his bright wi n gs , he an swered her

You’ve kil led m y pretty m in a dead,

A llwidowed n ow am I

If e’er by parrots I was b red,

A way to the ki n g l’llfly.

”

W ith these words the bird m oun ted,a n d flew far

away, a n d he bega n to search for RajaRasaluam o n g

,These were two devoted lovers .

THE TREA S ON OF QUEEN K OK LA N . 1 19

forests an d h i l ls an d deserts , but un able to fi n d him

he fi n a l ly stopped exhausted in o n e place .

M ean wh i le, Hodi was in a fright, for, whe n he saw

the tel l - tale parrot o n the wi n g, fear se ized upon him,

an d, cari n gon ly for his own safety,he hasten ed out of

the doors of the pa lace . But the queen threw her arm s

about h im an d cl ipped him ,an d wept piteous ly

,a n d

Hodi to soothe her wiped away her tears with his

ha n ds , an d the black sta i n from her eyes disco loured

his fi n gers . Im patie n t to b e gon e, he tore h im se lf

away from her, an d then for his cowardice she regard

ed him with scorn,an d sa id

,

Youare leavin g m e to bear the brun t of it all. I

took you for a swan ,but

,lo

, youare a veritable cran e !

Had I kn own you, you should n ot have com e n igh

m y door.

"

Vexed by her taun ts Hodi an swered her,

I have eaten of de l i cate fare, an d m y leavi n gs re

m a i n the beauti ful cloth has becom e worn an d old

fit coveri n g for beggars .

”

W ith these words be rushed from the place, an d

m ade hi s escape. Com i n g to the river- ban k, he wen t

dow n to dri n k water, for he was thirsty, an d there,

when he had put down his han ds towards the water,he saw on his fi n gers the black stai n of the collyrium ,

an d he drew them back, sayi n g,

1 20 THE LEGEND OF RA S A LU .

Th is is the o n ly token o f m y love wh ich I possess,a n d I m ust n o t lose it.

Thus speaki n g to h im se lf, he s tooped down on his

kn ees,a n d dran k l ike a goat .

Hard by, there was an old washerm an,who observ

i n g his action said to his wife,

“Who is that m an

dri n ki n g water l ike a beast P”

“Whether youkn ow him or n ot,

an swered she,I

k n ow him we l l .”

Te l l m e, then ,

who he is,

said her husban d.

He is RajaHodi ,”

said the wom an

0 foo l, return ed the washerm a n,

did you ever

s ee a Rajadri n ki n gwater l ike that a"

I am afraid,repl ied she,

“to tel l youthe reason

o f it, lest, if I did, you should ki l l m e .

What a stran ge thi n g to say,said he ; as if I

should ki l l you for te l l i n g m e a good secret !“ Take an o ath said his wife .

I take an oath of the God who created m e,

an

swered he,“that I wil l n ot harm you, i f youwil l tell

m e why the Raja is dri n ki n g water l ike that .

The n his wi fe repl ied to him thus

Last n ight, som e wayward wife, or daughter,En rocked him in her soft em braces

So, ox—l ike

,stoops the kin g forwater,

For love to save lo ve’s piteous traces

She wept to part, be wiped her tears away,The sab le stain s his fi n gero tips beray.

"

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122 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

U se n ot the blis teri n g herb as a tooth- brush, an d

eat n ot the flesh of s n akes . Cares s n ot an other’s so n,

for he wil l cover you with spittle . Churn n ot

a n other’

s curds , for their tas te is as water,n e ither

covet an other’

s b ed,s i n ce it n ever can be yours .

Therefore clean se your han ds, wash away the stain

an d com e dri n k han dfuls of water.

”

Raja H odi,perce ivi n g that she was a witch

,took

the wom an’

s advice, a n d wash i n g his han ds he dran k

h is fi l l . Then approach i n g the washerm an he sa id,

O washerm an,th is wom an is n ot fitted foryou,

because she is wise, wh i le you are a foo l . You had

better take a thousan d go ld pieces , an d han d her

over to m e . I wi l l cherish her l ike on e of m y

chi ldren , an d with m y m on ey you can marry an other.

“ Your pardon , S ir,”

said the washerm an,

“this

plan wi l l n ever do .

So RajaHodi left them ,an d pass i n g on he arrived

at his own palace . There,choos i n g a so l itary cham

b er, in wh ich stood an old couch,he laid him self

down ,an d began , with tears, to rem em ber an d to

lam en t for the Ran i Koklan .

CHA PTER X I .

THE‘FA TE OF RA N I KOKLAN .

fugitive parrot resum es li z'

s seare/z. H e fi izds

leis m as ter i n H azdrd, a n d belm ys t/ze queen . Ra

sa’

lua n d leis horse. H is arrivalliam e. H e despatc/zes

S/m’

di to Ra’

jo’

Hodi . T/ze s tratagem . H odi com es

to K/zeri - m zirti . Tlie duel. H odi’

s deal/i . Rasdlu

a n d Kokli n . T/ze eviden ces of guilt. T/ze gradual

ly unfoldi ng m tas trop/te. Tbe en d of Ra’

n i Kolfldiz.

H ILE allthese disgraceful do i n gs were go i n gon at the palace of RajaRasalu

,the quee n ’

s

parrot,havi n g recovered from h is fatigue

resum ed his search,an d at last

,com i n g to Jhuln a

Kan gan in Hazara,he n ot iced som e sm oke ris i n g up

to the sk ies . So he fl ew towards it,an d there he

s aw his dear m aster’

s horse tied to a tree, an d Shadi

the parrot s itti n g o n the pom m e l of the saddle,wh i le

un der the coo l shade of the droopin g fol iage the ki n glay s leepi n g.

Said he to Shadi, Wake up vour Rajal”

124 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

I have n o authority to do so, an swered Shadi,wake him yourself, s i n ce youare the Ran i’s m es

sen ger.

Then the weary bird,dippi n g h is wi n gs in the

flowin g stream ,fluttered them over Rasalu’

s face, an d

the drops fe l l upo n him l ike soft rai n ,a n d he awoke

,

an d seei n g his wife’s favourite sittin g above him o n

the tree, he said, Why have you left the house

a lo n e P"

Weepi n g, the bird m ade an swer

The Ran i kil led m y m in a-b irdie,Co ld it lies upon the floor,

A n d m y reproaches, un avail in g,O n ly vexed her m ore an d m ore

A rise, arise, O s leepin gRaja,Thieves have forced your palace door 1

Hearin g these sorrowful t idin gs the k in g said

My m in as n um ber eighty-s ix,M y peacocks te l l fourscore

Wel l guarded thus, what thievish tricksCould force m y palace door i”

I f, an swered the parrot, the house—ho lder him

self rob the house, an d fix it on others, or i f the fen ce

eat up the barley- crop, what can the guards do P”

Then Rasalu arose, an d sa id to his horse,

“Now be

wary an d true, 0 Bhaun ra Iraki, an d take m e to my

house in a m om en t.

I wi ll do so,

”

an swered the horse, but n ever

sm ite m e with your heels .

”

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126 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

with this token of love as a s ign for him to come an d

bear her away.

"

I go at on ce, S ir, an swered the parrot, an d

takin gwirrg he flew towards A ttak, an d reachin gthe

palace he perched h im se lf in o n e of the win dows.There he was seen by certain of the servan ts, who

said to each other, See this parrot— it i s tame—itlooks l ike som eo n e

’

s pet

Overheari n g the ir words Shadi an swered them,

Youare right, I am .

Whose parrot are you en quired o n e .

I belon g to the Ran i Koklan,

”

replied he,

“an d

if youwi l l go a n d tel l your Raja that I am here, he

wil l reward you.

”

The servan ts wen t to the Raja an d said to him ,

There is a parrot s itti n g in o n e of the win dows,who

says that he has a m essage for you from the Ran i

Koklan .

”

RajaHodi, heari n g the n am e of Koklan spran g to

his feet, an d cam e out i n s tan t ly,a n d, approachin g the

parrot, he said, O fa ithful bird,what message have

youbrought for m e

I n stead of an swerin g, Shadi bega n to shed tears.

Why are youcryi n g asked the k in g.

Doubtless,”

replied the parrot,

“

you are an

ho n ourable m an, to form a frien dship, an d then to go

away an d dis card i t utterly

THE FA TE OF RA N] K OKLA’

N . 127

What do you m ean by that ? said Hodi .

Th is morn i n g,”

an swered the parrot,“the Ran i,

on accoun t of your absen ce, was go i n g to k i l l her

sel f. I,see i n g the dagger in her ha n d, im plored her,

sayi n g, O wa it ti l l I return Then she gave m e

her ri n g, an d bade m e for dear l i fe go quickly, an d

she is waiti n gfor m e . But i f you do n ot go to her

at o n ce,she wil l destroy herself.”

Hodi taki n g the love- token said, But where i s

your m aster Rasalu

God kn ows ,"an swered Shadi . I have searched

for him everywhere, but I was un able to fi n d him . I

th i n k som e dem on s orgian ts must have ki l led him

an d eaten him .

”

RajaHodi then cal led for his horse, an d m oun ted,

a n d rode away on the spot . A n d when they s ighted

the towers of Kheri - m urti, the parrot addressed himan d said, Let m e fly in advan ce of you to i n form

the queen of your arriva l .”

“ Pray do so,

”

an swered Hodi . A n d the parro t

flew to the m an goe-trees an d said to h is m aster,

Yo_ur riva l is com i n g. M ake ready to m eet‘ him

Then Rasalu, hearin g the lon ged-for t idin gs, spran gin to his saddle, an d awa ited his foem an in patien ce .

When Raja Hodi drew n igh, the kin g advan ced

to meet him , an d said to him,

“ Good morrow, S ir ;

wi l l youwalk up P

128 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

Hodi , seei n ghim ,becam e as m ot ion less as a picture,

an d began to m ake hun dreds of excuses, sayi n g,

“ I

have com e here by m istake. I did n ot kn ow whose

palace th is m ight b e, an d I was com i n g to en quire.

I hope youwil l excuse m e .

N ay, said Rasalu,“your desti n y has brought you

here . It is better to betake you to yourarm s, an d to

use them first on m e .

S ir,

a n swered Hodi,“ I am n ot your e n em y . I

was un aware whose fortress this m ight b e, so I was

com i n g to en quire about it. I do n ot th i n k there is

an y harm in en quiri n g !”

Let this s en se less talk go, said Rasalu,“an d use

your weapon s first ! Otherwise youwil l say Rasalu

sm ote m e treacherous ly.

’

Hodi, fi n din g there was n o escape from him, took

an arrow from his quiver, an d, putti n g it to his b ow, he

cried,

“ Now look out,m y po iso n ed arrow is com in g!

"

an d shot at Rasalu.

But Rasaluben t from his horse,an d avo ided the

bo lt wh ich, strikin gagain s t the castle-wal ls, broke the

ston es i n to sh ivers . Then said the i n jured kin g,

0 little, l ittle, b en ds the bow-strin g tight,But gran dly ben ds the how that b en ds to m ight

The wise m an ben ds to shun the b arbed b olt,Who n ever ben ds at allis worse than dolt."

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130 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

Then the ki n g wen t forward sword in han d, an d,

di smoun ti n g, he sm ote off the tra itor’s head.

A s the head ro l led as ide from the bleedi n g trun k

the l ips of the dead parted a n d the quiverin g ton gue

uttered the words Rasalu, give m e to dri n k

A n d Rasalu,as in a dream ,

l i fted his adversary’s

empty quiver from which the arrows had sl ipped, an d,fi l l i n git with water from a poo l, he he ld it to the open

mouth, an d Hodi dran k, an d when he had drun k he

cried,0 birds, wheel i n gabove m e an d cleavi n gthe sweet

airwith your motion less pi n ion s , go to the queen ,my Loved O n e, tel l her that Hodi is dead, an d that

he has taken water from the han ds of Rasalu

There was a sen se of savage exul tation at the

heart o f RajaRasalu as he fiercely reflected,“ To

day I have brought m y wife n o ven ison . Yet she

shal l have ven ison dai n tier than ever she tasted

before.

”

The headless corpse lay at his feet . S trippin g it

of its rich clothi n g,a n d cutti n g open the body, he

tore out the heart, an d took i t with him i n to the

castle, ro l l i n g as ide the po n derous gate, an d closi n gi t again with a gian t

’

s stren gth .

Havi n g made his preparatio n s, he wen t to the

apartmen ts of the queen , a n d foun d her still asleep.

Get up,” cried he,

“the hour i s late.

”

THE FA TE OF RA N] KOKLA N . 131

Risi n g from her couch, she looked at him in amaze

men t, for her co n scien ce sm ote her an d she said to

herse l f, Does he suspect an ythi n gTurn i n g from the thresho ld an d ’ lookin g i n to the

court, he n ot iced that water had been recen tly drawn

i n the suspen ded pitchers of the wel l by mean s of the

heavy treadle, which was too difficult for the slen der

stren gth of his wife to move. There too stood his

favourite hookah c lose to the platform which was b e

fouled with spittle. Regardi n g his Ran i with a

sorrowful air, he said,

Who has sm oked m y hookah, Ran i,Who his spittle here did throw ;Who the water lifted, Ran i,Wet

’s the trough with overflow?”

Then the queen hasten ed to an swerher lord,“ I have sm oked your hookah, Raja,

I the spittle here bestrowed;I the pitchers lifted, Raja,A n d the wateroverflowed.

But in her min d she sa id Has the parrot betrayedm e.

”

Then the ki n g looked about him, an d observed

that both the favourite birds ’ cages were empty .

A h said he, I hear n ot the vo ice of your parrot,

an d the min a greets n ot her master. Where are

your frien ds“ The voice of the parrot is s ti l l

, an swered she,

an d the mi n a greets n ot herm aster,because they are

132 THE LEGEND OF RA S A LU.

rovi n g abroad. I let out m y frien ds for a fl ight, an d

they flew to the m an goe—trees .

But her m in d m isgave her,a n d she thought to

herse lf, Now the truth m us t com e out.

"

Then the ki n g wen t to the wa l ls , an d cried, M ia

m ittu! M iam ittu an d the parrot heard,a n d replied

from the m an goe- trees .

Here I am ,

"sa id he

,

“ but m y body shakes withfear. I dare n ot en ter the palace .

”

He held out his han d an d the parrot flew o n to it.

A n d the ki n g said,

“Youan d the m i n a-birdwere left by

m e to guard a n d protect the ! uee n . M y co n fiden ce

has been abused. A ll th is evi l has been go i n g o n,

an d youdid n ot te l l m e .

I could tel l you the who le truth, an swered the

parrot,“ but these days are n ot the days for truth

O n e of us to ld the truth, an d n ow his head l ies here,

a n d his body there .

”

When the ki n g saw the m in a-bird all ruffled an d

headless , he picked up the body, a n d took it to the

! ueen .

Lo ok ! I left the m i n a who le an d we l l—what

work is th is P

He was ki l led by the parrot, an swered she,

ask him —he dares n ot den y it. A n d as she

spoke the words she threw at the bird a threaten in glook .

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134 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

Then the ki n g,restra i n in g his rage a n d grief, cried,

E n ough ! Go, Ran i, a n d see to the ven ison wh i ch is

prepari n g in the cook- house,an d bake m e m y bread.

”

A n d he wen t out, an d sat dow n,sul len a n d m oody

,

by the wel l .

When the queen appeared with the sm ok i n gflesh an d the cakes of bread,

she la id them down on

the m aso n ry,an d the ki n g looked at her a n d said

,

“ Com e,let us eat together on ce m ore.

”

Like a wom an,quite forgetful of her faults, she

accepted his appare n t ki n dn ess,an d her spirits rose ;

but m en are differen t,they n urse the ir thoughts

an d keep the ir suspic io n s warm .

Then the k i n g put som e of the bread to his l ips,

an d said,To -day m y bread is taste less .

”

A h !”

sa id the queen , What food, dear Heart,

have you brought m e here ? M eth i n ks n o ven iso n

was ever so dai n ty an d sweet as th is .

”

Push i n g his bread away from him, an d ris in gup

o n the platform ,the kin gdarkly repl ied,

“What food is this so dain ty sweet ?A l ive he lan guished at your feetN ow

,dead an d gon e, he pleases stil l

Youeat his flesh—n ay, eat your fillBut 0 m ay she whose heart is pro ved un true,A scen d the fun eral pile, an d perish too

The b it dropped from the un happy queen ’

s mouth

as she said to herself,“ A h, I am betrayed

,I am be

trayed he kn ows all allis over ! ”

THE FA TE OF RA N] K OKLA N . 135

Then she an swered her lord with somethi n g of

pride an d defian ce,“ I sit m e down , an d 0 youflout m e sore,

I get m e up, an d stil l you m ock m e m ore

S i n ce then m y sufferin g gaze n or help n or hope can spy,W ith h im for whom youtaun t m e

,Raja

,wi l l I die

S ayi n g this,she spran g to her feet

,an d rushed

wildly up the battlem en ts,

~when ce she beheld lyi n gfar be n eath her the headless body of her param our.

Then with a cry she threw herself over but before

her body had reached the rocks below,her breath

had go n e out of her,an d ! ueen Koklan ,

the false,the beauti ful, was dead.

CHA PTER X II .

THE DEA TH OF RA SALU .

Rasa’

ln recovers the bodies . He carries them down

to the river. H is adven ture with the washerm a n

a n d his wife . The washerm an’

s s tory . The hing

befrien ds the washerm an , H is grief a n d his fa il

i ng powers . The wise wom en of A ttah. Ra’

ja’

H odi’

s brothers . The i n vas ion of Kheri - m zirti .

The washerin a n’

s m essage an d theprophecy . S iege ofKheri -m zirti . Rasa

’

la’

s curse. The battle. Rasa’

la’

s

death . L’

en voy .

HEN Raja Rasalu had witn es sed the bloody

a n d p itiful fate of h is con sort, he hasten ed

in his am azem en t to the gate of the fortres s,

an d,pass in g swiftly out

,he descen ded the rocky

steps,an d there

,stretched by the very corse of

Raja Hodi, whose charger was sti l l cham pi n g his

b it un der the m an goe- trees, he foun d the shattered

rem ai n s of the luckless Koklan . S tran ge an d wan

was the proud sm i le wh ich sti l l l i n gered o n her

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138 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

sayi n g to her husban d“ It is n ot yet m orn i n g. To

pass the tim e tel l m e a s tory.

”

What is the use a n swered the husban d.

We have to get through the world som ehow. Part

of our l ife is over, an d part o n ly rem a i n s . We have

n o tim e to waste over stories .

”

But,‘

repl ied she,

“ i t is n ot yet dayl ight, so te l l

m e som ethi n g.

”

Then sa id the washerm an ,

“ Shal l I. te l l youa true

story,or som e other on e ?

”

“ A true story, an swered she .

So the m an began ,

Hear m e, O wi fe. N ot lon g ago ,

before I m ar

ried you,I had an other wi fe . She used to say her

prayers five tim es in the day,an d I thought her a

treasure . Yet,every n ight she absen ted herself from

m y house for at least an hour, un ti l I began to won

der what was her m otive . A t last I determ i n ed to

fi n d out . The n ext tim e she we n t away I fo l lowed

her, because , I sa id,

‘

Perhaps she goes out to her

prayers , but I should l ike to see for m yse lf. ’ I foun d

she vis ited the grave of a fakir, an d that she prayed

to him that 1 m ight becom e bl i n d. When I heard

th is, I could n ot he lp feel in g Before m y face she

respects m e, but how fa lse she is behi n d m y back .

To-m orrow I wi l l be beforehan d with her at the

shri n e, an d she shal l have an an swer.

’

THE DEA TH OF RA SA LU. I39

The n ext n ight I hid m yself in the shri n e, an d

when m y wife cam e an d prayed as usual I an swered

her, O wom an , for a lon g tim e youhave prayed to

m e, th is tim e your prayer is a n swered. Go hom e

,an d

feed yourhusban dwith sweet puddi n g in the m orn in g,an d with roast fowl in the even i n g,

a n d in a week he

wi l l b e bli n d.

’

I the n got away hom e as fast as I could run , an d

when m y wife return ed I asked her, Where have

you bee n

I have been in the vi l lage givi n g out the clothes,a n swered she .

“ The n ext morn i n g m y wife sa id to m e, Husban d,

see,I have here som e butterm i lk an d o il

,let m e wash

your head.

’

“ I accordi n gly un dressed. But when my wife saw

my body, she cried,

‘ Why,husban d, how thi n you

have becom e you are allski n an d bo n e . I m ust feed

you up .

’

To this I an swered Good.

’

50 m y wife

wen t an d m ade m e sweet puddi n g, wh ich I e n joyed.

A n d in the even i n g she gave m e roast fowl, wh ich

I en joyed too .

“ A fter three or four days I said to her,

‘W ife,I

don’

t kn owwhat has happe n ed, m y eyes are getti n gquite dim . Though she affected to con so le m e I could

eas i ly perceive that she was glad. A fter the s even th

day I sa id to her ‘W i fe, I am sto n e bl i n d,I can ’

t

140 THE LEGEND OF RA S A LU.

see a th i n g.

’

She,heari n g this , set up a hypocritica l

howl , an d, go i n g out,she vis ited this sai n t an d that

,

a n d offered up c oun terfeit prayers for m y recovery.

I n ow took to a stick an d acted the bl i n d m an

to the l i fe . But o n e day m y wife sa id to herself,Th is m ay b e alla dece it I m us t put his bl i n dn ess

to the test.’

So she said to m e,

‘ I am go i n g out

a-vis itin g i f I put s om e barley to dry, wil l you take

care of it ?’

How can I repl ied I .

‘ S ti l l, i f you wil l put it

on som e m atti n g with i n m y reach so that I can feel it

from tim e to tim e,I wi l l try.

’

Th is th e n she did, a n d I sat by it with m y stick

i n m y han d. I n a short tim e I saw m y wife slyly

creepi n g towards the gra i n , an d whe n she got n ear

she felt it. Lifti n g m y stick, I gave her such a

vio le n t blow o n the head that she fel l a lm ost sen se less,

cryi n g out,

‘A h

, you have ki l led m e

‘W ife, wife,’ protested I ,

‘how could I te l l it was

youP Did I n o t say I was bl i n d I thought there

was a bul lock or a goat here .

’

“ Th is quite con vi n ced m y wife that I m ust be

en tirely bl in d, an d she co n ti n ued to feed m e as be

fore .

“ N ow,the truth was that she was i n trigui n g with

an other m an , whom she used to vis it,though at

great risk, when ever she foun d the opportun ity .

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142 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

A fter I had go n e two or three m i les,the m an

i n s ide the m at began to struggle an d shake.

“ ‘ Shake away,’

sa id I,

‘

you wi l l have reason to

shake soo n . You thi n k I am bl i n d,but I am n ot.

’

I n ow approached a vi l lage, an d the firs t th i n gI obs erved was a wom an baki n g s om e bread of fi n e

flour. Whe n the cake was ready she took it i n s ide

to the corn -b in,where her loverwas h idi n g, an d she

gave it to him . Then she cam e out an d began

bak i n g bread of coarse barley—m ea l . Prete n di n gto b e a fakir I wen t up to her an d said,

‘

M o ther,

m ake m e som e Wheaten bread with a l ittle butter.

She an swered,

‘W here am I to get Wheaten flour?

Do you n ot see how poor I am

Nay,but bake m e som e ,

’

repl ied I .

A s we were disput i n g her husban d cam e up an d

said,Don

’

t quarrel, wom an,with fakirs .

’

“ ‘ I am n ot quarre l l i n g,

’

said she,

‘

but this m an

is beggi n g for fi n e bread an d butter. Didyou ever

get such a luxury ? ’

“ Whe n the husba n d heard th is he was an gry with

m e,an d s aid,

‘ I f a barley- cake wi l l suit youtake it.

But if n ot, bego n e Then said I , po i n ti n g to the door,They who s it in corn -bi n s eat fi n e bread, but

beggars m us tn’

t b e choosers .

’

VVhat’

s thi s about corn -bi n s,

’ cried he. This

m us t be looked i n to .

’

THE D EA TH OF RA S A LU. 143

So he wen t in to the corn -b in an d there he foun d

his wi fe’

s lover,squatti n g am o n g the grai n ,

an d eati n gfi n e bread an d butter. You are a n ho n est m an

,0

fakir ’

he cried out to m e .

But he was in such a rage that he drew his kn ife

a n d would m os t certai n ly have cut the fe l low’

s throat

i f I had n ot caught him by the arm an d checked

h im, an d brought him out of the place .

‘Look here,

’

said I , ope n i n g m y m at,an d releas i n g

m y priso n er,‘here is a n o ther of them . Your fate is

n ot differen t from m i n e,n or m i n e from o ther m en

’

s .

Therefore do n o t ki l l , but let us both agree to m ake

the best of a bad job,becaus e

, yousee,i f RajaRasalu

in h is pa lace, great a n d m ighty as he is

,has the sam e

m is fortun e as we,an d yet bears it patie n tly, who are

we that we should com pla i n ?’

Whe n the washerm an had en ded,Raja Rasalu

who had overheard every word,cam e forward an d

said,

“ I am Raja Rasalu,the ki n g of all th is realm .

A sk m e for lan d a n d yousha l l have it,or i f, youwan t

m on ey,take it

,but te l l m e how kn ew you people that

such wickedn ess was be i n g do n e in m y house ?”

“A n d are you n ot aware, a n swered the m an

,that

wom en are by n ature witches an d soothsayers ? They

kn ow or they fin d out everythi n g, an d they have been

talki n g of the do i n gs at Kheri -murti fordays .

”

144 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

Then the kin g took them both to the castle a n d

gave them m on ey, an d to the husban d he said,You

are a white-bearded m a n,old an d ven erable . Your

years e n title you to respect . Therefore com e an d see

m e ofte n,an d let us con verse together.

”A n d he

sen t them away .

He h im self after th is grew careless an d morose,

a n d he ceased to vis it the fie ld so often , his l ife

be i n g weary, an d his heart broken , th in ki n g of

his dead wife, of her black i n gratitude an d of her

dism al fate. Frequen tly the old washerm an vis ited

h im an d brought him in n ews from without,a n d

h is favourite parrot strove to con so le him . But his

ki n gdom was n eglected, his co n quests forgotten ,

m an y of his fo l lowers deserted his service, his guards

of parrots, peacocks, a n d m i n as m ostly aba n do n ed

the place, an d in his vast lon e ly fortress he l ived l ike

a recluse.

M ean whi le, there were wis e wome n at the town of

Ri jaHodi who had guessed or divi n ed the s ecret

of Kheri-m i’

i rti. O n e day the Raja’

s brothers were

ridi n g past the comm o n wel l whe n the wom en were

drawi n gwater for the ir househo lds, an d they over

heard o n e of them sayi n g,

M en recko n the ir darl i n g vices more than l ife.

What is that you say,cried o n e of the Prin ces

re i n i n gup.

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146 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

s tories an d good sen se. A bout this time he wen t upto the palace as usual, an d rece ived his custom ary

wel come. Said the ki n g to him,

“What n ews

to-day P”

The washerman an swered tim orously,

“A mo n g the

women of the vi l lage there is a stran ge rumour, but

it m ay n ot be true.

”

“Let m e have i t, sa id the k i n g.

I overheard them ta lkin g amon g themselves, an d

they were sayin g that as RzijaRasaluhad cut off the

head of RéjéHodi,so his own head would be a l so

cut off in a fewdays .

”

When the ki n gun derstood this, he was greatly put

out,an d ris i n gan d pacin g the floor he said, Have

youreal ly heard this ?”

“ Yes, an swered the washerm an ,“the women have

it so,but I kn ow n oth i n g about it.”

I have seen the day when I could laugh my foes

to s corn ,

” said the kin g“an d sti l l I have troops

,if I

can o n ly assemble them in time.

”

Then he summon ed his warder, an d bade him call

out all h is fo l lowers in the castle. But, when they

were drawn up, there were n ot a dozen m en left tom an the wal ls.

W i n n in gor losi n ga battle i s in the han ds ofGod,sa id he to the old washerm an . But what i s on e todo with ahan dful of m en l ike th is

THE DEA TH OF RA S A LU. 147

Vigorous ly, however, the old warrior prepared for

a s iege . Somethi n g of his form er spiri t return ed

upon him as he directed on e of his m en to ga l lop .

out i n to the coun try to order his ten an ts to gather

the ir vassals an d to bri n g in suppl ies for the de

fen ce of his cas tle at Kheri- m t'

i rti, an d as he ass isted

with his own han ds to repair the broken battlem en ts

an d to close up the breaches . Hardly had he com

pleted his task, when the hosti le force appeared in

s ight. They were led by the b rothers of RéjéHodi,

an d were ful ly arm ed with every implem e n t of war.

They swam the river or crossed it o n i n flated skin s

an d l ike bees they swarm ed up the h i l l,an d sat

down ben eath the wa l ls of Kheri -m t’

i rti. Then passedmutua l defian ces betwee n the oppos i n g leaders, an dthe s iege began in form . But RajaRasalu, _

though

t e- i n forced by fresh suppl ies of m en,soon began tb

perce ive that the s truggle was a hopeless on e, an dthat the en d could n ot be far off. Reso lvi n g, therefore, n ot to be caught l ike a rat withi n his wal ls , butto sel l his l i fe as dearly as poss ible

, he ordered his

troops to prepare for a sal ly . That n ight he pi ledup faggots in the cham bers of Ran i Koklan , an d

set the palace o n fire, an d, when the flames leaped

up i n to the darkn ess of the midn ight sky, the

bes iegers saw them,an d wo n dered what the un won ted

beaco n might porten d.

148 THE LEGEND OF RA SA LU.

The n ext m orn i n g he led his fo l lowers down therocky steps , an d

, as he passed through the ! ueen’

s

garde n , he looked at the man goe-trees, an d said,

O,flushedwith fruit

,or bare of bough,

Fruit m ay ye n ever form again ,Dead is Koklan , her place is void,A n d flam in g red the fires rem ain !”

Then with a rush he descen ded to the plai n s, an dm et his en emies han d to han d. There the battleraged with fury on both s ides for several days an d

n ights . Ki n g Rasalu fought l ike a l ion , an d m an y

an adversary wen t down ben eath his mighty arm ,

n ever to rise agai n . A t last his m en were forced

to give way all a lon g the l i n e, an d the ki n g h im sel f,

wearied out with the lo n g struggle, covered with

woun ds, an d hemm ed in by

,

i n creas i n g n um bers,Was

slain by an arrow n i n e yards lo n g, wh ich en tered his

n eck. When the fight was over, his e n em ies sm ote

off his head, an d carried it back with them in

triumph to the castle of RajaHodi .

A n d thus, accordi n g to some of the story-tel lers of

the Upper Pan jab, perished the hero Rzija Rasalu,havi n g outl ived the fame an d glory of his great

ex ploitsfi‘

Som e say Rasélun ever died, that he crossed over or descen dedin tothe river I n dus to lan ds un kn own , an d that, like K in gA rthur, he wil lon e dayreturn agai n .

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L’EN VOY. 149

For everm ore,within the bower’s recesses

,

N o bulbul sits an d s in gs m elodious loreN 0 verdan t A pri l leaf the garden b lesses,

For everm ore

A m on arch, robed in m ight an dwrapt in splen dour,Reign s n ot for aye from soun din g shore to shoreA n d love, her dear delights m ust allsurren der,

For everm ore.

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152 LEGENDS OF THE PA NjA B.

n ights, when icy wi n ds are blowi n g,an d when the

youn g m en gather roun d the blaz i n g fire to hear

of the fan tastic deeds of gian ts an d fa iries, an d theadve n tures of an imal s an d m en

,or when the vi l lage

guest, i f n ot too t ired to s it up, al tern ates the reci ta l

of fictitious won ders by n ews from the great world, or

com m an ds the atten tion of auditors as s imple as him

sel f by circum stan tia l accoun ts of m ost disastrous

chan ces, of m ovi n g acciden ts of his own by flooda n d fel l . I t was at the l ittle vi l lage of Ghéz i o n the

river I n dus,thirty m iles abo ve A ttak, that man y of

these stories were to ld to the com pi ler, a n d tran sla

ted to him vivd voce from the Pan jéb i by his hospitable host a n d attached frien d, Thom as Lam bert

Barlow, Esq . There, with in s ight an d heari n g of the

m ajestic river of hi story an d rom an ce, in a district

exclus ively pastoral, clo se to the fabled m oun tain of

Gan dghar, in the m idst of m an y a rui n ed temple an d

fortres s of an earl ier race a n d a form er faith, o n

groun d h istorica l an d even classical, though n ow so

obscure an d un kn own , these i n teresti n gglean i n gs of

old-world fo lklore were carefully gathered an d stored.

Exactly oppos ite l ies a l i n e of rocky h i l l s overlook

in g the rush in g waters of the river. O n this spo t

stood an an cien t city of fabulous stren gth a n d vas t

exten t,the hom e of four H i n dubrothers , allof them

ki n gs . Each of the low peaks of which there are

SHORT HOUSEHOLD TA LES . 153

severa l , is crow n ed by a tower,a palace, or a tem ple,

wh i le traces of co n n ec ti n gwall s an d rui n ed dwe l l i n gs

traverse the groun d o n alls ides to the very edge of

the cl iff. This city accordin g to traditio n was so vas t

that on e of i ts gates was c lose to H i'

rn'd

,an equal ly

a n cien t s ite, which stan ds on the sam e ban k about

twe n ty mi les to the south . What was the n am e of

this o n ce m ighty capita l ? Possib ly it m ay survive

am o n g the popular n am es of the peaks an d ravin es

o n wh ich it was bui l t, as Géllah Piht’

ir, Gharri dbd.Lar, Parri dhaKéttha

’

t, Gadh i dha K i tthz't, Gén garian hdha Kass i, Bhorudha

’

t Kattha. H t'

m d has been iden

tified as the spo t where S ikan der Badsha'

h”

cro ss ed

over with his co n queri n g arm y of Greeks , an d um

doubtedly it possessed a n im portan t ferry from the

very earl ies t ages .

A few miles to the n orth of Ghaz i where the h i lls

begi n to close in ,we can alm os t see the co l lectio n of

ham lets kn own as Torbela, the i n habitan ts o f wh ich

are addicted to the curious vice of eati n g clay ,as

people in other parts are given to the con sum ptio n

of opium . Opposite Torb ela stan ds the warl ike in

depen den t vi l lage of Kabbal. I t is here, between

these two rival vi l lages n ot m ore than twe lve m i les

fromGhaz i , that the I n dus breaks through the gorge

of the res tra i n i n g peaks o n e ither side, the last spurs

of the H imélayas, form i n g the territory, in part ihrp

1 54 LEGENDS OF THE PA N/A B.

depen den t, but partly un der our dom in io n ,which

the in habitan ts cal l Yakis tan . How beautiful is the

View m iles a n dmiles up the riverw ith the desce n di n glin es of the precipitous m oun tai n s , on e b eh i n d the

other, recedi n gever more an d more i n to blue haze,un ti l crown ed by the dista n t sn ows A s o n e s its in

the warm win ter sun , am on g the river boulders at

Gha’

tz i,where the go ld-washers are busy at work, an d

as on e’

s gaze is directed n orthward, past the bare

tawn y h i l ls i n to the rem ote distan ce, on e th i n ks howall

th is lan d was on ce in the han ds of a dyn asty ofGreeks,of he lm ed M en an der, or l ightn i n g-wieldi n g A n tial

kidas,whose co i n s attest the exce l len cy of the arts

in these rem ote places when un der theiraccom pl ished

sway, but of whose i n fluen ce every l ivin g trace seems

to have disappeared, un less , i n the class i ca l des ign s

of the vi l lage basket-work, or in the graceful devices

in red a n d green on the coun try n am bda’

rs of felt,o n e m ay be perm itted to detect a rem n an t, however

sl ight, of Grecian taste an d western refi n emen t .

Passi n g o n to a succeedi n g era, on e rem em bers the

local traditio n of kin g Rasalu, who , from those very

heights to the left, hurled at his rival on the eastern

ban k a m ighty defian ce in the shape of a huge mass

of green sto n e weighin g a m aun d an d a half. Five

kos it hurtled through the air,an d it s ti l l reposes

on the spo t where it fe l l . C lose to that spot, at the

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STORY I .

THE WEAVER A ND THE PROPHECY.

VILLA GE weaver wen t out to cut firewood.

C l im bi n g a tree he stood upo n on e of the

br a n ches,which he began to hew off close to the trun k.

M y frien d,said a traveller pass i n g be low, you are

stan di n g o n the very l im b wh ich you are cutti n g off ;

I n a few m i n utes you an d it wil l both fal l to the

groun d.

”

The weaver un co n cern edly co n ti n ued his

task an d soo n both the bran ch an d h im sel f fel l to

the foo t of the tree as the trave l ler had foreto ld.

Lim pin g after him the weaver cried, S ir, youare

God, you are God

,S ir

, you are God—what you

prophes ied has com e to pass .

”

Tut, m a n , tut,

”

a n swered the travel ler, I am n ot God.

”

N ay, but

SHORT HOUSEHOLD TA LES . 157

you are, repl ied the weaver, an d n ow,

pray,O pray

,

te ll m e when I am to die To b e rid of his im por

tun ity, the travel ler a n swered,

“Youwi l l die o n the

day o n wh ich your m outh bleeds,

”

an d he pursued

his way.

Som e days had e lapsed whe n the weaver happen ed

to b e m ak i n g som e scarlet cloth, an d as he had

frequen tly to separate the threads wi th his m outh,a

piece of the co loured fibre by chan ce stuck in o n e o f

h is fron t teeth . Catch ing s ight of this in a glass , an d

i n sta n t ly co n cludi n g that it was blood,an d that his

las t hour was at han d,he e n tered his hut

,an d said,

“ W i fe ,wife, I

’

m s ick in a few m om en ts I shal l b e

dead let m e lie dow n , an d go, dig m y grave I”

So he

lay down o n his b ed, an d turn i n g his face to the wal l,clo sed his eyes , an d bega n de l iberately to die . A n d

in deed,such is the power of the im agi n ation am on g

these people, that he would have died without doubt,i f a custom er had

“

n ot ca l led for his clothes . He,see

in g the m an’

s co n dition an d heari n g of the prophecy,

asked to exam i n e his m outh . A h,”

sa id he, what

an idiot are you Ca l l you this blood an d taki n g

out the thread he he ld it before the weaver’s eyes .

The weaver. as a m an reprieved from death, was over

joyed,an d spri n gi n g to his feet he resum ed his work,

havi n g been rescued, as he im agi n ed, from the very

bri n k of the grave .

[58 LEGENDS OF THE PA NjA B.

STORY I I .

THE THREE WEA VERS.

HERE were three weavers,allbrothers , who l ived

in the sam e vi l lage . O n e day the e ldest said to the

o thers I am go i n g to buy a m i l ch buffa lo .

”

So he

we n t to a farm er,paid for the bu-ffalo ,

an d took it hom e.

The seco n d brotherwas quite touc hed by the s ight

o f it. He viewed its head,its horn s

,an d its teats ,

an d then said,

“ O brother, a l low m e to b e a partn er

in this beauti ful buffa lo Said the e lder,

“ I have

paid for th is beautiful buffalo twe n ty- two rupees . I f

youwish to be a partn er in her, youhad better go to

the farm er, an d pay him twe n ty-two rupees too, an d

then we shal l have equa l shares in her.

”

Shortly after the th ird brother cam e i n an d said,“O

brother, youhave a l lowed our brother to be a partn erwith you in th is buffalo, wo n

’

t youlet m e take a share

too W i l l in gly, an swered the other, but firs t

you m ust go to the farm er an d pay him twen ty-two

rupees as we have don e.

”

So the th ird brother did so,

while the farm er chuckled, sayi n g,“This is a fi n e thi n g

getti n g allthis m on ey for m y ski n n y oldbuffalo l”

The three brothers n ow agreed that each on e of

them should have a day’

s m i lk from the buffalo in

turn , an d that each should brin g his own pot. The

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160 LEGENDS OF THE PA N/A B.

STORY I II .

THE WEAVER A ND THE WA TER -M ELON .

NGE upo n a tim e a poor coun try weaver vis ited a

town ,where he saw a quan tity of water- m e lo n s

pi led up o n e above the other in fro n t of a ban ia 5 shop

Eggs of o ther birds there are,he sa id

,a n d I have

see n them but what bird’

s eggs are these eggs ?

These m ust b e m are’

s eggs So he asked the ban ia,“A re these eggs m are

’

s eggs P The ban ia i n stan tly

cocked h is ears, a n d perce ivi n g that he was a s im

pleto n , an swered,

“ Yes , these bird'

s eggs are m are’

s

eggs .

” What is the price P" O n e hun dred rupees

a - piece, sa id the ban ia . The s im ple weaver took out

h is bag of m on ey a n d coun ti n g out the price,bought

o n e of the m elo n s a n d carried it o ff. A s he wen t

a lon g the road,he began to say to h im se l f

,W hen

I get hom e I wi l l put th is egg in a warm corn er of

m y house , an d by- a n d- bye a foa l wi l l be born

,a n d

when the foal is b ig en ough, I shallm oun t it an d

ride it to the house of m y father- in - law. W on’

t

he b e asto n ished 1” A s the day was un usua l ly ho -t

he s topped at a poo l of water to bathe. But firstof all he depos i ted the m e lo n m ost careful ly i n them iddle of a low bush, an d the n he proceeded to undress him se l f. H is garm en ts were n ot hal f laid as ide

,

SHORT HOUSEHOLD TA LES . 161

whe n out from the bush spran g a hare,an d the

weaver, s n atchi n g up part of his clo th in g whi le the

rest hun g about his legs in disorder, m ade desperate

efforts to chase an d overtake the hare, cryi n gout,“A h

there goes the foa l, wo ,

old boy,wo

,wo But he

ran in va i n , for the hare eas i ly escaped, an d was soon

out of s ight.

The poor weaver reco n ci led him se lf to his loss as

best he could, Kism et cried he “ A n d as for the

egg,it is of course "

of n o use n ow an d n ot worth

return i n g for, s i n ce the foal has left it"So he m ade

h is way hom e an d sa id to his wife 0 wife, I have

had a great loss th is day Why,

”

said she,

what have youdon e I paid on e hun dred rupees

for a mare’

s egg,but whi le I stopped on the road

to bathe, the foal jum ped out a n d ran away .

”H is

wi fe repl ied,“ A h, what a pity ! i f you had o n ly

brought the foal here, I would have got on his

b ack an d ridden h im to my father’

s house 1”

Hear

in gthis

,

“

the weaver fe l l i n to a rage, an d, pul l i n g a

st ick out of his loom began to be labour his wife,

cryi n g,“W hat, you would break the back of a

youn g foal P A h ! you s lut, let m e break yours .

”

A fter this he wen t out, an d began to lam e n t his

loss to his frien ds an d n e ighbours , warn in g them

all,“ I f an y of you should see a stray foal , don

’

t

forget to let m e kn ow .

” To the vi l lage herdsmen

U

162 LEGENDS OF THE P A N/A B.

especial ly he re lated his wo n derful story, how the foal

cam e out of the egg, an d ran away, an d would

perhaps be foun d graz i n g on the com m o n lan ds some

where. O n e or two of the farm ers, however, to

whom the tale was repeated, said,“What is this

n o n sen se P M ares n ever have eggs. Where did you

put th is egg of yours I put m y egg in a bush,”

said the weaver, “n ear the tan k o n the way to the

town . The farm ers sa id,“ Come an d show us l

”

A ll right,”

assen ted the weaver,“ com e alo n g.

When they arrived at the spot the me lo n was foun d

un touched in the m iddle of the bush Here it is,

cried the weaver,“ here

’

s m y m are’

s egg. This is

the thin g out of wh ich m y foa l jum ped. The

farm ers turn ed the m e lon over an d over, an d sa id,“ But what part of th is egg did the foal jum p out .

of So the weaver took the me lo n an d began to

exam i n e it. Out of this ,” cried on e of the farmers

,

s n atchin g back the m e lo n ,

“n o foa l ever jum ped.

You are a s im pleton an d you have been cheated.

We’l l show youwhat the foals are. So he smashed

the m e lo n o n a ston e, an d givin g the seeds to the

weaver, said, Here are foals en ough for you, whi lethe farmers them selves, amid much laughter, sat down

an d ate up the fruit.

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164 LEGENDS OF THE PA N/A B.

Stop, stop th is hubbub, good people, an d let us fi n d

out what is the m atter. A ddress i n gh im se lf to an

old wom an,he said “ What is all th is disturban ce in

the vi l lage for I don’

t kn ow,

”

an swered she,

when I cam e here, I foun d th is weaver-girl cryi n gabout som eth i n g.

”

The n the weaver-

girl on bein g

question ed, sa id, I was weepi n g because I could n ot

help thi n ki n g that i f I m arried in this vi l lage an d had

a so n , an d i f m y so n were to s icken an d die,allm y

aun ts , m y s isters, an d m y frien ds would com e roun d

m e an d bewai l him . The thought of this made m e

cry.

"O n heari n g her an swer, the head m an an d his

fo l lowers began to laugh,an d the crowd dispersed.

STORY V.

THE Two WEA VERs A ND THE GRA SSHOPPERS.

WO weavers took gun s an d wen t out for a day’

s

sport. A s thev passed through the fields,o n e

o f them espied an im m en se grasshopper sitti n g on a

m adar plan t, which, as they approached, flew on to

the shoulder of his com pan ion See, see, there he

is !”

cried he, an d, level l i n g his piece, he shot his

frien d through the heart.

SHORT HOUSEHOLD TA LES . 165

STORY VI .

THE OLD W EAVER A ND THE CA M EL’

s

FOOT-PRINTS .

ONE n ight a cam e l trespass in g in a weaver’s field

left there the m arks of his feet. I n the m orn i n gthe ow n erbrought to the spot the o ldest weaver in the

v il lage, expecti n g that he would be able to explai n

what man n er of an im a l had trodden down his corn .

The old m an o n see i n g the foot-pri n ts both laughed

an d cried. Sa id the people O father, you both

laugh an d cry. What does th is m ean“ I cry,

sa id he,“ because I th i n k to m ysel f,

‘ What wi l l these

poor ch i ldren do for som e o n e to explai n these thi n gs

to them when I am dead,

’

an d I laugh, because, as

for these foot -prin ts , I kn ow n ot what they are

STORY VI I .

GRiBA ,THE WEA VER.

AT the vi l lage of Bhuran l ived an old weaver n am ed

Griba, who, for a won der, was shrewd en ough .

It happen ed that Hab ib Khan ,the lam bardar, laid a

tax o n the weavers’ houses at the rate of two rupees

166 LEGENDS OF THE PA NjA B.

for every door-way. When Griba heard of th is , he

tore down his door, an d layi n g i t o n his shoulders

carried it off to the Khan ’

s .

“ Here, Khan ,

"said he

with a profoun d salaam ,

“ I have heard you wan t

door-ways, so I have brought you m i n e. I a lso hear

you wan t the side-wal ls, a n d I am n owgo i n g to fetch

them too . Heari n g this,the Khan laughed an d

said,“O Griba, the weaver, take back yourdoor, your

tax is pa id.

STORY VI I I .

THE SILVERSM ITH A ND HIS M OTHER’

S

BA NGLE.

SILVERSM ITHS as a clas s bear a bad reputat ion

for mixi n gup an un due quan tity of al loy in the

s i lver of their custom ers . There was o n ce a s i lver

sm ith,who , in amomen t ofdis i n terestedn ess, prom ised

his m other that he would give her a ban gle wh ich

should con tai n n othi n g but pure s i lver. “

Youare m y

m other,

” said he, an d I as your so n who owe you

s o m uch can n ot do less . So he cast a ban gle for

his m other out of un m ixed s i lver, an d when it was

fi n ished,he stored it up for her an d wen t to bed.

But he was quite un able to get a wi n k of s leep.

He turn ed from side to side, an d moan ed an d- fretted

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168 LEGENDS OF THE P A N/A B.

Frien d, youm ay buzz, or, frie n d, youm ay squeal,

but in the m easure youcam e,a n d in the m easure you’l l

go . Sayi n g which,he clapt the who le han dful

,

plum s an d beetle together, i n to his mouth, an d de

voured them .

STORY X .

THE PA THAN A ND THE A ss.

A PA THAN was o n e day s itti n g in a ferry-boat

wh ichwas m oored to the ban k of the I n dus . His

tulwar orsword lay by his s ide . Prese n tly down came

a coun trym an drivi n g a do n key an d requesti n g to be

ferried across the river. The don key,however, havi n g

com e to the boat refused to.

en ter,utterly regardles s

of e n treaties, threats , an d blows . Sudde n ly the Pa

than spran g from his seat,seized his tulwar

, an d at a

blow sm ote off the don key’

s head To a Pathan ,

”

cried he,“th is Stubborn pride is perm iss ible but to a

jackass—n ever'

The people of Ban eyr, though n oted for the ir bra

very, are co n s idered by the ir. n e ighbours as the m o st

s tupid of m an ki n d,n ot eve n excepti n g weavers .

This fact is i l lustrated by the fo l lowi n g an ecdotes

SH ORT H OUSEHOLD TA LES . 169

STORY XI .

THE BA NEVR M A N A ND THE M ILL.

A BA NEYRI cam e dow n to the I n dus where he saw

a water-m i l l at work . Said he to h im sel f,“People

say that God is kn ow n by H is wo n derful ways . N ow

here i s a wo n derful thi n gwith won derful ways , though

i t has n e ither han ds n or feet. I t must be God. So

he we n t forward an d kissed the wa l ls , but he merely

cut his face with the s harp ston es.

STORY XI I .

THE Two S IM PLE BA NEYRIS.

ONE Banéyri asked an other, If the I n dus were

set o n fire where would the fishes go ?“They

would get o n the trees,”

said the other. Then said

the first,

“ A re fishes l ike buffaloes to cl imb up

trees

This tale was n ot a m ere in ven tion of the story-tel ler. It is fre

quen tly told in ridicule of the den se stupidi ty of the Ban eyris.

V

1 70 LEGENDS OF THE PA NjA B.

STORY XI I I .

THE W IDOW OF BA NER.

THERE was a widow of Ban érwho had two son s .

They had cut the harvest of their l ittle an cestral

fie ld, an d their two bul locks were treadi n g out the

grai n , when sudden ly the sky becam e overcast, an d a

storm of rain swept by. The poor s i l ly wom an i n stan t

ly caught a certain familiar i n sect, a frien d to m an,

an d, run n in g a n eedle an d thread through it,hun g

it up to a n eighbourin g ber tree, as a charm to

drive away the un welcom e shower. A t the sam e tim e

she addressed God in the fo l lowi n g words O God,

m y boys are but chi ldren , an d in this th i n g are

i n n ocen t . But thouart a white—bearded m an . D ids t

thou n ot see that th is rain was n ot wan ted for thrash

in g out m y wheat P”

STORY XIV.

THE BA NEVR M A N A ND THE BOA T.

A COUNTRYM A N who had spen t the whole of his

l i fe in the fastn esses of Ban éyr, an d had n everseen the I n dus, determin ed to perform a journ ey.

Descen di n g to the Yusafzai plai n s he made his way

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1 72 LEGENDS OF THE PA N/A B.

STORY XVI .

THE BA NEVRI A ND H IS POOR KINSM A N .

POOR m an of Ban éyri, un able to support himsel fin his n ative moun tai n s , set out forH i n dustan to

seek his fortun e, an d there rose to the ran k of‘

Nawab.

O n e of his poorrelation s, heari n gof his good fortun e,determ i n ed to vis it him . So he wen t to the bazar,an d

,with a few an n as bought o n e poun d of sugar as

a n eighbourly presen t for his former acquain tan ce.

A fter a lon g journ ey he arrived at the palace, an d

foun d the Nawab in the m idst of his fin e frien ds. But

though he wi n ked an d n odded an d beckon ed to him

to step aside for a frien dly greet i n g, an d to receive

his poun d of sugar, his efforts to en gage the great

man ’s atten tion were quite un successful . A t las t, per

ceivin g that his un we lcom e vis itorwas about to open

his mouth, the Nawab sa id to o n e of his atten dan ts,Con duct this poor stran ger to my store-room

where my bags of sugar are laid up, an d there lethim sit down an d eat his fi l l . The n he caused

a letter to be written to his n ative vi llage, stern ly

forbiddin g an y m ore of his poor i l l -clad ki n smen

to trouble h im with their objectio n able presen ce.

SHORT H OUSEHOLD TA LES . l73

STORY XVI I .

THE P.H ILOSOPH IC BA NEVRI .

BA NEYRI said to his wife on e n ight, M an is

but a bird without wi n gs !”

How i s that asked the wom an .

Do you n ot see an swered he, yesterday you

were squattin g o n this side of the oven ,a n d I was

crouchin g on the other. A n d this i s the state ofm an ;

o n e day,perched here, an other day perched there,

a lways o n the hop, n ever abidi n g in the on e place.

Truly,m an i s on ly a bird without win gs !

”

STORY XVI I I .

THE BA NEVRI A ND H IS M OTHER .

ONE of these eccen tric Ban éyris we n t out cours in go n the h i l l s, an d he took his motherwith him to

ass i st him in the sport. The woman had charge of

the boun d, but i n stead of s imply ho ldin g the short

leash in her han d, she tied i t in a fast kn ot roun d her

wri st. When the game was put up the dog made a

sudden boun d, by reason of wh ich the un fortun ate

woman was jerked forward over the an ima l’

s head,

1 74 LEGENDS OF THE PA N/A B.

a n d,as she cam e in to vio len t con tact with a sharp

rock, she was un luck i ly ki l led. The dutiful so n,

with m in gled feel i n gs of adm iratio n an d sorrow,

carried his m other hom e an d buried her, a n d n ever

afterwards did he cease to ho n ourher, sayi n g to his

frien ds ,“ M y poor m other was such an exce l len t

courser that she outstripped the very dogs, an d left

them miles behi n d.

”

STORY XIX.

THE M A N A ND THE BEA R.

ONE day, when the riverwas in flood

,a certai n dark

objectwas seen floati n gdown the stream . There

upon a poor m an,m istaki n g it for a log of wood,

plun ged i n to the water, an d swimm i n g with Vigorouss trokes seized it with both his ha n ds . When too

late he discovered that he was clasped in the shaggy

em brace of a bear. Ho cried his frien ds from the

shore when they saw him drifti n g,“ let the loggo ! let

the loggo“ Just what I am tryi n g to do ,

”

an swer

ed the un happy m an ,

“ but the logwo n’

t let m e go l”*

Logs ofdeodarare frequen tly floated down the I n dus from the

H im alayas . Durin gfloods m an y of these logs are washed away from

the “tim ber-

yards”far up in the m oun tain s . For every log re

covered the vil lagers alon g the ban ks receive a reward of four an n as

from the own ers . Each logbears its own er’

s m ark.

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1 76 LEGENDS OF THE PA N/A B.

STORY XXI I .

THE TW0 M ISERS .

ONCE upo n a tim e two m isers hob n obbed together

to eat the ir food. O n e of them had a sm al l vesse l

of ghee i n to wh ich he spari n gly an d grudgi n gly dip

ped his m orse ls of bread. The other m iser, observi n gthis , protested vehem en tly agai n st such was teful ex

travaga n ce .

“ Why waste so m uch ghee ?”said he ;

“an d why do you risk the waste of so much m ore

seei n g that your bread m ight s l ip from your fi n gers,an d becom e total ly im m ersed ? Thi n k better of it,

an d im itate m e. I take m y vessel of ghee, an d han git just out of reach to a n ai l in the wal l . Then

I po i n t at the ghee m y scraps of bread,on e by on e

as I eat, an d I assure you I n ot on ly en joy m y ghee

just as we l l, but I m ake n o waste.

”ale

This an ecdote is an in stan ce of the truth of the sayin g of Solom on There is n o n ew thin gun der the sun . M an y readers wil l berem in ded of the Irish dish Potatoes an d poin t,

”con sistin g of a large

supply ofpotatoes an d ofa very lim ited supply of m eat, baco n , or evenfish. The potatoes are eaten

,but the m ore so lid fare is m erely poin ted

at. The fo l lowin gpassage from Carlyle’

s Coun t C agliostro”refers

to this sin gular custom A n d so the catastrophe en ds by bathin g our

poorhalf-deadRecipien daryfirst in b lood, then , after som e gen uflex ion s,i n water; an d servin g him a repast com posedof roots,

’—we grieve to

say, m erepotatoes—an d—poz’

n t 1”

SHORT HOUSEHOLD TA LES . 17 7

STORY XXI I I .

THE ELEPHA NT A ND HIS K EEPER .

‘

HERE was an elephan t which was accustomed to

suffer most cruel treatmen t at the han ds of h is

keeper, an d the keeper,kn owi n gthe sagacity of these

an imal s, an d bei n g in fear ofhis l i fe, used to s leep som e

little di stan ce from the tree to which the elephan t was

t ied. O n e n ight the elephan t, taki n gup a lon g, loose

bran ch, chewed the en d of it in order to separate the

fibres, an d, havi n g twisted them in the lon ghair of the

s leepi n g m an , he dragged him within reach an d

trampled him to death .

STORY XXIV.

THE GA RDENER’

S WIFE,THE PoTTER

’

s W IFE, A ND

THE CA M EL.

GA RDENER’

S wife an da potter’s wife on ce hired

a cam e l to carry the ir goods to market. O n e s ide

of the beast was we l l lade n with vegetables , an d the

other with pottery. A s they wen t alo n g the road,

the camelkept stretchi n gback his lon g n eck to pi lfer

the vegetables . Upon observin g this, the potter’

s

This an ecdote, told by a Panjab i, probab ly belon gs to H in

178 LEGENDS OF THE PA N/A B.

wife began laughi n g, an d jestedher frien d on her i l l

luck. S i ster,"said she, at the en d of the journ ey

there wi l l n ot b e a si n gle vegetable left you’l l have

n othin gwhatever to sel l It is true youare luckier

than I am ,a n swered the garden er

’

s wife, but

rem ember the first to win are the last to lose When

they arrived at the market-place, the cam e l-m an

ordered his an im a l to kn ee l down,but the weight on

o n e s ide was so m uch greater, by th is time, than the

we ight o n the other, that the cam e l gave a lurch as he

got on his forekn ees , an d crushed the pottery between

himself an d the earth, so that most of i t was sm ashed,a n dwhat was n ot sm ashedwas cracked. So it en ded

that the garden er’

s wife had som ethi n gat least to sel l,but the po tter

’

s wife had n oth i n g.

STORY XXV.

THE M ULE A ND THE TRA VELLER.

A CERTA IN m ule, havi n ga great opi n io n of him

se lf, began brayi n g preten tious ly, so that every

o n e stopped to say Who is that A travel ler, pass in gby at that mom en t, said to him

, 0 S ir, pray tel l m e

what was the n am e of your mother M y mother’s

n ame was M are,”

an swered the mule proudly.

“ A n d

what was yourfather’s n am e ?” con ti n ued the travel ler.

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180 LEGENDS OF THE PA N/A B.

m ade a spri n g at his teacher, i n te n di n gto tearhim an d

eat him . I n stan tly the cat ran n im bly up a tree

whither the tigerwas un able to fo l low . Com e down ! ”

cried the tiger,“ com e down ,

i n stan tly ! N o, n o 1”

replied the cat. How fortun ate for m e that I did

n ot teach youm ore Otherwise youwould have been

able to pursue m e even here .

”

STORY XXVI I I .

THE TIGER A ND THE HA RE.

N a certai n fores t there o n ce l ived a fierce tiger

which was in the habit of hun ti n g down the rest

o f the an im als for m ere sport,whether hun ger im pell

ed h im thereto or n ot. A llthe an im als therefore

m et together by com m on con sen t to con s ider their

grievan ces . Let us agree,” said the jackal

,that

o n e of us shal l be chosen by lot day by day to devote

h im sel f to the t iger.

”

A ll right, assen ted the

others “ but first let us see the tiger, an d let us

offer him a petitio n .

”

So they allm arched togetherto the tiger’

s den , an d

humbly besought him to cease from i n discrim i n ate

s laughter, an d to be satisfied with the an imal which

should vo lun tari ly com e to him every day. Do n ot

hun t us down ,

” sa id they, for o n e of us wi l l always

SITORT HOUSEHOLD TA LES . 181

com e to be devoured by you, an d this plan wil l save

youtrouble as we l l .”

No , n o !”said the tiger, I sha l l

use my claws an d m y teeth an d so eat m y food.

But,” said the an im als

, God has said that we

ought to l ive in hope .

”True,

”an swered the t iger,

“ but He has al so bidden every on e to earn his own

bread.

A t last,after much argumen t, the tiger suffered

h imse l f to be persuaded an d made a so lemn prom ise

to rem ain at home in hi s den . Every day an an imal,

wh i ch was chosen by lot, wen t to the den to be eaten .

But whe n the hare’s turn cam e

,she flatly said, I shall

n ot go . I sha l l l ive my l ife.

”In va i n the other an im als

tried to persuade or to coerce her. Twelve o’

clock.

the tiger’s usual feedi n g t ime, came an d wen t, then

cam e o n e, two, an d three . A t last the bare sudden ly

started up, an d exclaim in g Now I ’m off she set out

for the den . A s she approached, she sawthe famish

ed t iger teari n gup the earth in fury, an d heard him

b e l lowi n g—“Who i s this ridiculous l ittle hare, to dare

to keep m e wait i n g But I have an excuse,”

pro

tes ted the hare.

“What excuse deman ded the tiger.

“To-day,

” said the hare,“ it was n ot my turn to com e

but my brother’s . I am thin r but my brother is plum p

a n d fat. M ybrother had started for your de n ,

but o n

the way he fel l in with an o ther t iger which wan ted to

eat him ,an d in fact he caught _

him an dwas carryi n g

182 LEGENDS OF THE PA N/A B.

him off, when I cam e up an d sa id to him,

‘ This

coun try is n ot yours but an other tiger’

s,

’

to which the

Stran ge tiger an swered,‘ Go youat on ce an d ca l l that

tiger out, an d then he an d I wi l l have a fight.’

So here

I am ,s ir

,sen t to de l iver the cha l len ge . Come an d

ki l l the vi l la i n for us

Ful l of rage an d jea lousy the t iger said to the hare,Lead on

,an d the pair started forth to seek

the rival tiger: A s they we n t a lo n g, the hare sud

de n ly began to look a larm ed, an d to shri n k back

an d m ade as though she would have h idden herself

i n a bush.

“ What is the m atter?”

asked the tiger.

“Why are youreturn i n g I am afraid, an swered

she,“ because the other tiger

’

s de n is just in fron t of

us “Where, where ?”

sa id the tiger, peeri n g for

wardwith searchi n g eyes . I see n o den .

" It is

there,”repl ied the hare

,

“ don’

t you see it n ow ?”

“ I see n o den whatever, Said the tiger.

“Is there

n o way to persuade you to com e forward an d show

m e the place Pi’

Yes,

”

said the hare,

“ i f you wil l

i ,

0

please carry m e un der yourarm .

"

So the tiger l ifted the hare un der his arm , an d.

guided by her direction s , he un expectedly foun d him

self close to a large wel l .“ This is the de n of the

other tiger, whispered the hare. Look in an dyou

wi l l see him . Go i n g to the bri n k an d look i n g down ,

the tiger saw at the bottom the reflect-ion of himsel f

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184 LEGENDS OF THE PA N/A B.

O n ly, first of all,i f an ythi n g should happen to you

when I am away,how sha l l I k n ow it P” Said the

cock,

“ Whe n ever you hear m e crow several tim es,then hasten back to m e .

”

So for som e tim e they

l ived happi ly,the dog bri n gi n g in suppl ies every day,

wh i le at n ight he s lept be n eath the tree o n wh ich the

cock sat safely at roost.

On e day, in the abse n ce of the dog, a jacka l cam e

to the tree an d looki n g up,sa id

,

“ O un cle, whypray

,are youperched s o h igh P Com e down an d let

us say our prayers together !“M ost wil l i n gly,

”

an swered the cock, but first let m e cry the bhan gh"

for allgood M usalm a n s to com e an d jo i n us. So

the cock crew m ost lusti ly three or four t im es,un ti l

the dog in the vi l lage heard him ,an d sa id,

“A h !

som ethi n g is about to happen to m y frien d—I m ust

get back.

”He at o n ce started for the jun gle, but the

jacka l, when he perce ived his approach, bega n to

s n eak off. Then cried the cock, 0 good n ephew ,

don’

t go away,stop at a n y rate for prayers . See, here

’

s

a pious n eighbour com i n g to jo i n us ! “ A las !

frien d, I would stop with pleasure,”

repl ied the

jackal, but it just occurs to m y m i n d that I quite

forgo t to perform my ablution s . Farewel l l ” A n d

quicken i n g his pace, he disappeared.

The Musalm an cry to prayers is cal led the BRANCH . So also isthe crow of a cock.

SHORT HOUSEHOLD TA LES . 185

STORY XXX.

THE JA CKA L A ND THE VOICE OF FA M E.

JA CKA L prowl in g roun d a vi l lage o n e even in gwas spied by som e of the vi l lage dogs which

i n s tan t ly gave the alarm . A t the sam e time som e

wayfarers began to po i n t at:him an d cry, See, there

he goes there he goes This always strikes m e as a

m ost remarkable thin g,”sa id the jackal, as he cleared

off “ I haven ’t a s i n gle acqua i n tan ce out of my own

s et in the world, an d yet, wherever I go, everyon e

seems to kn ow m e How i n con ven ien t is fam e

STORY XXXI .

THE PA IN TED JA CKA L.

A PROWLING jacka l o n ce fe ll i n to a large vesse l

ful l of dye. When he return ed home, allhis

asto n ished frien ds said, What has befa l len you He

answeredwith a curl of his ta i l,

“Was there ever an y

th i n gin the world so fin e as I am Look at m e Let

n o on e everpresume to callm e‘ jackal

’

agai n .

” What

then are you to be cal ledP”asked they. Peacock

X

186 LEGENDS OF THE PA N/A B.

you wil l hen ceforth ca l l m e‘ peacock repl ied the

jackal,strutti n gup an d down in allthe glory of sky

blue.

-But, sa idhis frien ds

,

“a peacock can spread his

tai l m agn ificen tly. Can youspreadyour ta i l P “W e l l,

n o I can n ot quite do that,

”

repl ied the jacka l . " A n d a

peacock,” con tin ued they,

“can m ake a fi n e m e lodious

cry. Can you m ake a fi n e m elodious cry P” “ It

m ust b e adm itted,”

said the prete n der,

that I can n ot

do that either.

“Then,

”

retorted they, it is quite eviden t that i f

you are n ot a jacka l, n e ither are you a peacock.

”

A n d they drove him out of the ir co m pan y .

STORY XXXI I .

THE JA CKA L A ND THE EWE-SHEEP.

NGE upo n a tim e a certain jackal m ade a dash at aewe- sheep, hopi n gto catch her. The sheep rush

ed i n to a half-dry tan k where she stuck in the m ud.

The jackal attem pti n g to fo l low her stuck in the m ud

too . Then saidthe jackal, O aun t, th is is a bad busin ess ! O n ephew

, an swered she,

“ it is by n o m ean s

so bad as it wil l be soon,when m y m aster ap

pears .

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188 LEGENDS OF THE PA N/A B.

STORY XXXIV.

THE FA LSE W ITNESS .

A CA RA VA N of m erchan ts came an d pitched for

the n ight at a certai n spo t on the way down to

H i n dustan . I n the m orn i n gitwas foun d that the backofo n e of the cam els was so sore that it was con s idered

expedien t n ot to load him aga i n , but to turn him

loose i n to the wildern ess . So they left him beh i n d.

The cam el, after graz i n g about the who le day, be

cam e exceedi n gly th irsty, an d m eeti n g a jackal, he

said to him ,U n cle, un cle, I am very thirsty ! Can you

Show m e s om e water “ I can Show youwater,”sa id

the jacka l,“ but i f I do, you m ust agree to give m e

a good feed of m eat from your sore back.

“ I do

agree, said the cam el ,“ but first show m e the water.

”

So he fo l lowed his sm al l frien d, un ti l they cam e to a

run n i n g stream , where he dran k such quan ti ties of

water that the jackal thought he would n ever stop .

He then with som e po l iten ess i n vited the jacka l to his

repast. “ Com e,un cle, youcan n ow have your supper

off m y back.

” “ N ay,

”

said the jacka l,

“our agree

men t was that I should feed n ot off your back, but

o ff your to n gue,* dear n ephew. Th is you disti n ctly

prom ised,if I would take youto water.

“ Very wel l,“ Sore back in Pan jabi bein g clzz

’

glz, an d “ton gue jib, there

was sufficien t sim ilarity of soun d to suggest prevarication .

SHORT HOUSEHOLD TA LES . 189

repl ied the camel, produce a witn ess to prove your

words, an d youcan have i t s o.

”

A witn ess I have,an d wi l l bri n g him presen tly,

”

repl ied the jackal . So

he wen t,to the wo l f, an d statin g the case, persuaded

him to witn es s fa lse ly.

“ You see, wo lf, if I eat the

ton gue the camelwi l l certa i n ly die, an d then we shal l

both have a gran d feed,to which we can in vite all our

frien ds.” The two return ed to the cam e l, an d the

jacka l appeal i n g to the wo l f, asked,

“ Did n ot I en

gage to show the cam e l to water o n con dit ion that

he wouldgive m e his ton gue“ Of course, youdid,

”

said the wo l f con fide n t ly,“an d the cam el agreed.

“Be i t so“

said the cam e],

“as you both del ight

in l ies an d have n o con scien ce, com e an d eat some of

my ton gue, an d he lowered his head withi n reach of

the jackal . But the latter said to the wo l f,“ Frien d,

yousee what a dim i n utive an im al I am . I am too weak

to drag out that en orm ous ton gue. Do you seize i t

an d ho ld i t for m e.

”

Then the wo lf ven tured his

head in to the cam e l ’s m outh to pul l forward the

to n gue, but the cam e l in stan tly closed his powerful

jaws, an d crushin g the skul l of his en emy, he shook

him to death . M ean while, the jackal dan ced an d

skipped with glee, cryin gout,“Beho ld the fate of the

false witn ess beho ld the fate of the false witn ess l

”*

This story is in ten ded as a satire o n the practice which prevails sowidely am on g the n atives of all parts of In dia of gettin g up falsecases an d procurin gfalse witn ess m courts of law.

190 LEGENDS OF THE PA N/A B.

STORY XXXV.

THE FOUR A SSOCIATES.

ONCE upon a tim e a crow

,a jackal

,a hyen a, a n d

a cam el swore a frie n dsh ip, an d agreed to seek

the ir food in common . Said the cam el to the crow,

Frien d,you can fly. Go forth an d recon n o itre the

coun try forus .

”So the crow flew away from tree to tree

un t i l he cam e to a fi n e fie ld of m usk-melo n s, an d then

he return ed a n d reported the fact to h is com pan ion s .

You,”sa id he to the cam e l

,

“can eat the leaves ,

but the fruit must b e the share of the jackal, thehyen a, an d myself. Whe n it was n ight all fourvis ited the field, an d bega n to make a hearty supper.

Sudden ly the own er woke up an d rushed to the

res cue. The crow,the jacka l

, an d the hyen a eas i ly

escaped, but the cam e l was caught an d driven out

with cruel blows . Overtak in g his com rades,he sa id

,

Pretty partn ers youare,to leave your frien d in the

lurch Said the jackal, We were surprised

, but

cheer up, to- n ight we’l l stan d by you, an d won

’t a l low

youto be thrashed agai n .

”

The n ext day the own er, as a precaution,covered

his fie ldwith n ets an d n ooses .

A t m idn ight, the four frien ds return ed again , an d

began devourin g as before . The crow, the jackal

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192 LEGENDS OF THE PA N/A B.

Som e tim e afterwards the cam e l said,“ Jacka l

I ’m go i n g out for a walk . I f you wi l l get o n my

back I wi l l give you a ride,an d you can see the

world. The jacka l agreed, an d stoopi n g down ,

the came l a l lowed him to m oun t on his back

A s they were go i n g alon g they cam e to a vi l lage,whereupon all the dogs rushed out a n d began bark

in g furious ly at the jacka l whom they eyed o n the

cam el ’s back. The n said the cam e l to the jacka l,“ Jacka l I feel a stron g in cl i n atio n to ro l l . “ For

Heaven s sake,don

’

t,

” pleaded the jackal ,“ I shal l

b e worried.

“ Ro l l I m ust,

repl ied the cam e l, an d

he ro l led, wh i le the vi l lage dogs fe l l o n the jackal

before he could escape, an d tore him to pieces . Then

the camel return ed an d reported the tra itor’s death to

his frien ds, who mighti ly approved the deed.

STORY XXXVI .

THE CROW A ND ITS YOUNG.

N old m other- crow was on ce en gaged in givin gsoun d advice to her n ewly-fledged youn g o n es .

Rem em ber,

”

said she,“ your pri n cipa l en em y will

be m an . When ever you detect a m an in the act of

even stoopin g towards the groun d as i f for a ston e,

SHORT HOUSEHOLD TA LES . 193

at o n ce take wi n g an d fly . Very good, an swered

o n e of her precoc ious youn gsters,“ but what i f the

m a n happe n s to have a ston e a lready in his han d ?

Ca n youadvise us as to how we shal l proceed then ?”

STORY XXXVI I .

THE FROG A ND THE FA RRIER.

AFA RRIER was o n ce e n gaged in shoei n g a fin e

A rab horse at the door of his sm ithy. Just then

a frog came hoppi n g up,an d

,thrusti n g out on e of

h is feet with a co n sequen tia l air, he cried, Ho,

farrier Shoe m e,too ! shoe m e

,too

STORY XXXVI I I .

THE FROG A ND THE BUFFA LO .

ONE day,after ra in ,

a frogwas s itti n g in the deep

foot- prin t of a bul lock by the road- s ide, when a

bufl'

alo approached. To him the frog cried out with

a look of disdai n ,

“ 0 you great-bel l ied, lon g-t itted,

beast, here'

s a houri s it ti n g in the way. Take care

where you tread !”

194 LEGENDS OF THE PA N/A B.

Pooh, pooh an swered the buffalo,

“ how could

you expect m e to see a little s n ub - n osed urchi n l ike

you, squattin g in that bit of a ho le

STORY XXXIX .

THE FROG A ND K A SHM IR .

CERTA IN frog,afterseveralin effectual attempts,

man aged to cl im b to the top of a clod of earth

close to the puddle in which he was spaw n ed. A h

cried he, castin g on e eye at som e cattle wh ich were

graz i n g n ear,“ what a gran d s ight have I l I see

Kashmir ! I see Kashm ir

STORY XL.

THE CA M EL A ND THE RA T.

CERTA IN cam el,hav in g s trayed from his own er

,

was walkin g in un frequen tedways with his n ose

strin g trai l in g upon the groun d. A s he wen t slowly

a lon g, a rat picked up the en d of the strin g in his

mouth, an d trotted o n in fro n t of the huge an imal,thin kin gallthe tim e to him se lf

,What stren gth I must

have to be leadi n g a camel A fter a l ittle time they

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196 LEGENDS OF THE PA N/A B.

cal led at the house he foun d that he was abse n t.

Where has he gon e e n quiredhe of his wife . N ow,

the sai n t’s wife was a hard wom an,bitter an d pee

vish in speech, an d, i n stead of an swerin g the question

she began to abuse her husban d with un m easured

vio len ce,so that, hearin g her words , the pi lgrim los t

allfaith in the ho l i n es s of the perso n he had trave l

led so far to see . A s he left the house he sa id to

som e of the n e ighbours .

“ This sa i n t of yours

where is he P” They an swered,

“

He has gon e to the

h i l ls to gather sticks .

“Though I n o lo n ger be l ievein him

,said the pi lgrim to him se lf, I wi l l at least

look upon his face before I return .

”

So he set out forthwith for the jun gle, but he had n ot

proceeded far when he m et the ho ly m an face to face .

H is wood was born e before him by a tiger, an d in hishan d

, in stead of a whip,he carried a s n ake . The n

the pi lgrim fel l at his feet, a n d sa id,

“A t the reproach

fulwords of your wife m y fa ith decreased, but I n owperce ive that veri ly you are a sai n t i n deed. Pray

forgive m e 1”

“

He who wi l l exercise i n vi n cible patien ce,

an

swered the sai n t,“especial ly with a shrew of wife

,

shal l com m an d the very t igers an d they wil l obeyhim

,for patien ce is rewarded of God. But a sco ld

i n g wife can n o m an tame, yea, she is past eve n

prayi n g for.

"

SHORT HOUSEHOLD TA LES . 197

STORY XLI I .

THE THIEF A ND THE POOR M A N .

THIEF broke i n to a house in the hope of fi n di n gsomethin g worth s tea l ing, but, un fortun ately for

him , the house was the hom e of a m a n who was m iser

ably poor. When the thief en tered, the own er was

lyin g awake, sadly won deri n g where in the world his

n ext m eal was to come from . He n e ither m oved n or

spoke, but quietly looked on while the thief was fee l

in g a lon g the bare wal ls, an d rumm agi n g his slen der

property, tryin g hard to discover s omethi n g to carry

away. A t las t the fel low was leavi n g the room

empty-han ded, when the poor m an grin n ed aloud

with m ocki n g laughter. Turn i n g roun d in a rage,

the startled thief exclaim ed,What ! you are laugh

in g, are you? A n d do you cal l yourself the own er

of a house P”

STORY XLI I I .

THE K ING A ND HIS DA UGHTERS.

THERE was o n ce a kin gwho had several daughters .To the first he said,

“ Howdo youlove m e P”

I

love you as sugar," said she. To the n ex t he said,

198 LEGENDS OF THE PA N/A B.

A n d how do you love m e P” I love youas ho n ey,

said she . To the third he said,“ A n d howdo you

love m e i’” “ I love youas sherbet, said she. To the

last an d youn gest he said A n d how do you love

m e I love you as salt, said she.

On heari n g the an swer of his youn ges t daughter

the kin g frown ed, an d, as she pers isted in repeatin g it,he drove her out i n to the forest. There, when wan

derin g sadly alo n g,she heard the tram pin g of a horse ,

an d she hid herse l f in a ho l low tree . But the flutter

i n g of her dress betrayed her to the rider, who was a

pri n ce, an d who i n stan tly fel l in love with h er, an d

m arried her.

Some tim e after, the kin g, her father, who did n ot

kn ow what had becom e of her, paid her husban d a

visit. When he sat down to m eat, the pri n cess took

care that all the dishes presen ted to him should b e

m ade-up sweets ,which he e i therpassed by altogether,or merely tasted. He was very hun gry, an d was

lo n gin g sore ly for som eth i n g which he could eat,

when the prin cess sen t him a dish of comm o n spi n ach

season ed with salt, such as the farm ers eat, an d the

ki n g sign ified his pleasure by eati n g it with rel ish .

Then the prin cess threw off her vei l, an d, reveal

in g herself to her father, said, O my father,I love

youas salt . M y love m ay be hom ely, but i t i s true,

gen ui n e, an d lasti n g, an d I en treat your forgiven ess .”

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zoo LEGENDS OF THE PA N/A B.

The n ext m orn i n g the wom an took som e gra i n to

the house of a n e ighbour in order to have it groun d

i n to flour. I n her absen ce the barber e n tered,an d

said to the husban d, How is it you are s itti n g here

allalon e The farm er an swered n ever a word. The

barber then shaved his head, but sti l l he did n ot

speak then he shaved off ha l f his beard an d hal f his

m oustache, but even then the m an refra i n edfrom utter

in g a syl lable . Then the barber covered him allover

with a h ideous coati n g of lam pblack,but the sto l id far

m er rem ai n ed as dum b as a m ute .

“ The m an is b e

witched cried the barber,an d he has ti ly quitted

the house .

He had hardly gon e when the wife return ed from

the m i l l . She,seei n g her husban d in such a ghastly

plight, began to trem ble, an d excla im ed A h

wretch, what have you been do i n g“Youhave spoken the first word,

”

said the farmer,so begon e, wom an ,

an d Shut the door.

”

STORY XLV .

THE TRAVELLER A ND H IS CA M EL.

NGE upon a t im e a trave l ler,com in g alo n g the

desert road with his laden cam el,stopped to res t

durin g the n oo n - t ide heat un der a shady tree. There

SHORT HOUSEHOLD TA LES . 20 1

he fel l as leep . When he awoke he looked at the

came l, an d, fi n di n g to his sorrow that the faithful

com pan ion of all his journ eys was dead, he thus

apos trophized him

Where is the spirit fled, ah, where,The l ife that cheered the weary ways ?Could’

st thoun ot wait on e hour, n or spare

For m e,thy Frien d, o n e partin ggaze

mfi fm re a fi t firw a' m q :

W fi m m ffi fi wr‘

fl fi w m m fi

Literal ly Where is the spirit fledwhich bore the loadP Whenleavin g, it saw n ot m e its wel l-kn own frien d 1”

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H IS EA RLY LIFE

M an gal var i n ibbia,

Jamm iachhan chhan var,

A krarajé. jam m ia,

Nam rakhia'

. Rasal.

On Tuesday he en tered the wom b,He was born on Saturday

The m ighty ki n gwas born ,The n am e given him was Rasal .

Thora, thora tun dissen , sun RajeaRasaltia,Te bauhti disdi dh iir

A n dar kappiakatian lohe chhin n ian , sun Rajeé,Jhulkapiya. tan diir3

jin an de bete chakari m usafari,U n an dian m awan j iwan ktir.

A PPENDIX. 205

Little, l ittle see I of you, Hear, RajaRasalu

A n d m uch see I of dustIn wardly I am out an d piercedwith kn ives of iron

Hear,

I am as burn i n gfuel thrown in to the oven

Whose son s are in service or travel lin g,Their m others

’ l ives are vai n .

3.

K ehre Raje da tun betraKya tum ara n am

K ehri tum ari n agri,K ehré. tum aragam P

What Ra'ja’s son are youP

What is your n am e

Where is your coun try ?

Where is yourtown

4 .

RajaSulwan dam ain

Rasalum era’

. n am ,

SialkOt ham ari n agri,

Wob i ham ara'

. gam ,

Raja Sulwan’s son am I.

Rasalu is m y n am e

Sialkét is m y coun try,The sam e is m y town .

206 A PPENDIX .

RA SALU AND M I’

RSHIKARI.

M ain ban jam ian ban palian ,Ban ham araghar vas

Brikh jo ban n arutthra

Ayabam are pets.

I was born in the forest, I was reared in the forest,The forest is m y hom e

A tree, which is offen ded with the forest,Has com e to us.

6.

M ain ban jam ian ban pal ianBan m eragharvas

A isazulam n adekhea

Ke pairin turan palas.

I was born in the forest, I was reared in the forest,The forest is m y hom e ;

Such tyran n y I have n ot seen ,

That upon feet a tree shouldwalk.

7 .

M ai n ban jam ian ban pallanBan m eragharvas

Hai n awisht kabhukha

Tab ayaham are pas.

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208 A PPENDIX .

H atti te gosbat tulan die,Tun kain de karan tula?

Jis karan trilaon die,O velragaiyaviha.

O thouat the stall havi n gm eat weighed out,

Forwhose sake are youhavi n git weighed

Forwhose sake youare havin g it weighed,

That tim e is passed.

1k m aran dian do m oe

Do m aran dian char

Char m aran dian chhe m oe,

Char purakh do n ar.

O n e bein gkilled, two died,Two bei n gkilled, four died,

Four bei n gki lled, six died,Four m ales, two fem ales.

Charla RajaDharthaliKujh n akhariasath,

Eh jagaiwen chhapsi,

Jin n tarian khilli rat.

RajaDharthali. This is an other n am e for RajaBhartili, or

Bhartari , the fam ous ki n g who abdicated his kin gdom an d becam e a

fakir, a disciple ofGuruGorakhn ath .

A PPENDIX 209

RajaDharthali died,Noth i n g took he with him

Thus this world will disappear

Like a star-bloom i n g n ight.

STORY OF THE SN A KE A ND RAVEN .

N i le ghore walleaRasalua,Mun h dahri s ir pagg

Nadi rohren dajhaia

Nam Rab de kadh.

Of the grey horse the own er, Rasa’

lu,

O n your face a beard, o n your head a turban ,

O n the river floats ahedgehog,

I n God’s n am e take him out

Sappan te jha'

ia'

m dhuro n -durai san gM era]1 chhorde tun khair Khuda thin m an g.

Sn akes an d hedgehogs from the first were related

M yl ife vouchsafe an d ask a blessi n g from God.

Sappan te jhaian duron 'dtirai wair

Gafal koharam aria tudh apo apn e pair.

210 A PPENDIX.

Sn akes an d hedgehogs from the firstwere at

en m ityO foolish on e, youhave struck the axe upon your

own foot.

RA SALU A ND SIRIKA P.

I 6.

Blaban wich ai ratri,M oe kuran ge pas

Je m oe kuran ge Rabba]1 pamTan batan karie char.

I n the desert has com e n ight, n ear the deadbody ;

If to the dead body Godwil l gran t l ife,Then fourwords we shall speak.

I 7 .

Is n agri ik m an is a'

ya’t

Oh m ar karen dam ar

U s patulan ‘

l' kattia

’

m,

M ain gir pari Jhudhal,A tth tote hoi m un gal i,Te n aun tote gharial

Nas tun m ere babla',

Tere m arn di aie war.

Kuran gg is a skeleton . It also m ean s a deer. NearRawalPin di too there is a sm al l river so n am ed.

1' Patulan does n ot m ean the ropes , but the bar or plan k on whichthe swin ger sits . A youth after b etrothal always supplies his fian céean d her frien ds with b oth ropes an d patulag o n feastdays. The patul<

i

is gen erallygaily pai n ted. It is also n am ed b in da, an d, if n ot pain ted,an da.

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A PPENDIX.

Dhal ve passiadhalwez'

m,

Is bassan t”r di 10 ;

S iran gharrz'

m dian baj ian , 1“Jo Sirikap kare so ho.

Turn , 0 gam e chan geable,I n the l ight of th is lam p ;

Heads an d houses are at stake,

What Sirikap does, so should

2 1 .

Dhal ve passia dhalwean

Is bassan t di lo

Siran gharra’

uz dian ban d/z,

Jo A llah kare so ho .

Turn , 0 gam e chan geable,I n the light of th is lam p

Heads an d houses are at stake,

What God does, so let it be.

THE STORY OF ! UEEN KOKLA N .

2 2 .

Raje Bhatti (la m ain betrei,Hodi m era n am

Udhe ham ari n agri,A tak ham aragam .

Cf. basan tar, fire.

'l' Otherwise—Sirdharég diégbajiég—a proverb—Heads an d bodies

are at stake.

A PPENDIX. 2 13

RajaBhatti’s son am I,

Hodi is m y n am e ;

Udhe is m y coun try,A tak is m y town .

23

Tun kehre raje di betrlK ehre raje di n ar

Tain un uche m ehlin chhor ke

K iddhargiagawar

What Téja’s daughterare you,

What raja’s wifeLeavin gyou in high palaces P

Whither has gon e the boor?

24.

Raje Sirikap di m ain betri,Raje Rasalti di m ain n ar

M aim i n uche m ehlin chhor ke

Raja. hun gia i sakar.

RajaSirikap’s daughter am I,

RajaRasaiu’s wife am I,

Leavi n gm e in high palaces,The raja'. has jus t go n e hun tin g.

25.

Dur thi n ayan m ain chalke dhauke,M ainun khabar n aran i ka

'

Daskidhron laghdian paurian ,

Te kidhron m ehl darah

2 14 A PPENDIX.

From afar I have com e walki n gan d run n in g,0 queen , I kn ow n ot an ythin g

Say to which side go the steps,

A n dwhich side is the palace road

26.

Ti’

ln dur thi n ayahai n chalke dhauke, sun

Taim i n khabar n aka,Sajeon laghah paurlan , sun Rajea,Te khabbeon m eh l darah

Je tun bhukha ishaq da’

t, sun Rajea,

M ehlan te charh a.

From afar youhave com e walki n gan d run n in g,Hear O Raja,

Youkn ow n ot an ythi n gO n the right go the steps, hear ! O Raja,A n d on the left is the palace-road

If youare hun gry of love, b ear ! 0 Raja,Up to the palace com e.

Sun ve totea

Is n agri n avassie,Ie duron n assie,Nakoi bhai n avir,

A isazulam n adekhed,

Jo kuttakhave khir.

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2 16 A PPENDIX.

Sari ghari kam agre,Phal gharia

’

. loharDhan nulathi jeth hardiKan di jin ki n ar.

Chhik chh ik lawan chhikie,

M at m an darahe azar.

The arrow is m ade by the fletcher,

The blade is m ade by the sm ith,The bow,

relaxed sin ce M ay an d Jun e,Whose horn - (tips)are hooked,

Is pulled as to the stri n gagain an d agai n ,So that n o heart-troub le m ay rem ain .

31 .

Naun han n alchawalm ain chhillén ,Dudh pakawan khir

Mura tun m eri sejte

Tii n Ran jham ain Hir.

With m y n ails I husk rice for you,M ilk an d rice I cook ;

Return you to m y couch,Youare Ran jha, I am Hir.

32 .

Pan i chariachul teBaithe m al-m al n aha,

A san pan dhian m i n pan dh

Tun take ser bika.

A PPENDIX. 217

Water has been put on the fire-place,Sit down an d rubbi n gbathe yourself ;

Us travel lers put on the road,You for two pice the seer have sold yourself.

33~

M ai n - tan han s* karke m a’

n ia,

Tti n n ikliabaglakha’

s 3

]e m ai n jan abagla’mL

Taim in m til n a bheran pas .

I thought youwere l ike a swan ,

Youhave turn ed out a very cran eIf I had kn own youwere a cran e,You n ever had touched m e.

M ain to khadi khan d-khir,

Riha’

. n im an aphogPiapuran akapra,Te m an gtian san dal-jog !

I have eaten of dai n ty food[sugar-rice-an d-m i lk]There rem ai n s m y poor refuse

The cloth has becom e old,

A n d fi t for beggar-folk.

*Han s, n ot real ly a swan , but a large white fabulous b ird, whichl ives o n the shores of lakes an d seas . His b eak is thick, an d so hoo k

ed that he is able to pick up on ly pearls, on e at a tim e, which he fi n ds

in abun dan ce, (flam in go ?)TBagla, a 101127: cran e from bagga, whi te . The Punjabis have a

proverb—Bharon baglé, an d‘

aroukau, Outwardly a bagla, I n wardly acrow.

2 18 A PPE

35

Rajapain i pive bai l van gNiln abhere ha'th,

K isse san wari n e m am a

Te ptirn ia'

sari rat.

U s chhitia is ptin jhia,Tab kaj la in ke bath.

The ki n gdri n ks water like a bullock,Lest he should touch the black on his han ds,

Som e beauty has en joyed h im ,

A n d passed the whole n ight

She wept, he wiped [her tears]Then the lam p-black [stai n ed]his ban ds.

36 .

A kk’

rur'

t kije dan d-m alla,Te sapp n it khaiye m as,

Puttar paraiz'

i n a chahie,

Te n a'

t lalz'

tn bharie vat.

Dahin an bagan a n zi balorie,

Usdapan i j iha suad,Sejparn i n am an ic,Oh kadi- n ahon di tip,

Hath m arori kaj la Slit-pé,Te buk-bhar1 piwen ab .

Chli itia—wept, from chhitn z’

r to spri n kle, to wet.1' The n am e of a very acrid plan t.

1:Buk-bhar—a doub le han dful, the han ds bein glaid together.

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220 A PPENDIX.

Eight ospreys, n i n e water-fowls,A n d five peacocks have been station ed

There bei n g so m an y guards

Whither cam e the thieves to

Je gharan aghar m are,

Je pal iara* jaun chare,

Te rti kh'

hakyakare.

If the householder rob the house,A n d face to face fix it [on others]

It the fen ce eat the barley-crop,What then can the guards do ?

Pet n a taror i addian ,|Te tan n z

'

t kam chi la

J i n n a n agar-ballian

"r tarorlan te. khadian ,

Oh sir desan cha.

M y side gore n ot with your heels,A n d m ybody touch n otwith yourwhip ;

Those who break an d eat po ison ous creepers,They wi ll give up their heads .

A pparen tly al lied to pal luta, a border.

13211is a creepin g plan t also vaz‘l. In the Chach plai n the word

allz'

. Nagar-bal is a creeperun derwhich sn akes lurk .

A PPENDIX. 22,

4 1

M ehl m erakain latorra,

M ehlin hoiapair asar.

Kaun baitham ere palan ggh te

Ke dhil l i hoi n awar

Kis m ari m eri sharak,K is taroria lalan da

'

. hair,

Who broke i n to m y palace,In the palace are foot-m arks .

Who sat upon m y bed,

Si n ce the n awar i is loose.

Who ki lled m y m i n a,Who broke your n ecklace of rubies ?

4 2 .

Sharak totalar m oe,

Is tote taroriz'

t m era lalan dé. ha'

r;

M ai n khaui khake bhajjgai,

M ehlin ho iapair asar

M ain ap baithi han palan ggh te,

Tan dh ill i hoi n awar.

The m i n a, fighti n g the parrot, died,

That parrot broke m y n ecklet of rubies

I bein gfrighten ed ran away,

M y foot-m arks cam e in the palace,

I have sat upo n your bed,

SO the n awar 1 is loose.

Sl’.arak, a m I n a, is the localpron un c iation ofSérak

Nawér. the broad cotton tape stretched from Side to side an d

from en d to en d of a b ed to support the m attress .

“

222 A PPENDIX.

Thor—i , thorai ghan n iwen

Te bauhti n iwen'

kam an ,

Murakh n am da’

. kya n iwen ,N iun dusugharsujan .

Little, l ittle ben ds the stri n g,A n d greatly ben ds the bow;

What sen seless foo l would ben d?

The shrewd an d wise m an ben ds.

44

Thorathora'

t tun dissen , sun Rasaltia,Te bauhti disdi dhur

A n darkappiakatian lohe chhin m an , sun

Jhulkapiyatan n tir.

[For tran slation see

Nair n a'

. kijeladli lat-bawan ri,*

Jo has has kare pan jas,Jion de ttin m aujan , m an ian ,Hun m oean -dakhz

’

tdam as.

Lat m ean s a curl . There is a sect of beggars distin guished bytheircurls . Bawan ri m ean s a sen seless on e. Lat-bawan rf, then , a

curled foo l, a person reckless of appearan ces .

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[J A PPENDIX.

RA sALuA ND THE SWA NS.

48.

Eh m ariajham bar jhaikkh dei aiban

Kauwam an gan laggajé.A sa

'

m jaghatan dittié,Is paiizi ném khuda

’

t.

Eh gun kittiafz m aim’

m aug'm hora

Fajre jhagra’rbaitha 151.

This crow struck by rain -storm an d stron gsn ow

Began to ask a place of us.

We then gave him a place,A s he used the n am e of God.

This ki n dn ess doi n g I received evil,I n the m orn in ghe began a quarrel.

49 .

Ek din n addi de dhae

M ain phirdafikarda sail-safa, TRet phalorde an da m illié,M ain am id chin yjuché,

Dhar si n e heth m ain pallié,M erasin ahoa

’

, khuar,

Je n ikal parda. n ar han sala’

,

M ain kardai ban dkhallas,

Jham bar is (irivhzg rain . Jhakkh is stron gwin d. A iban sn oworm ore properlyhail.1‘ Sail -safé,=Saun terin gabout forpleasure.

A PPENDIX. 225

Ek n ikal parri han sm’

,

M ain kiti ghar di n ar,Ek ban s m aria jham bar jhakkSeithon m an gan laggaja,

A san jaghan tan dittia,I n paia. n am Khuda,

Han s zat apn i pachhan keFajre jhagrabaitha151.

On e day o n the ban ks of a riverI was takin ga walk,

Turn in gup the san d I foun d an egg,

A n d took it in m y bill,Keepin g it un der m ybreast I hatched it,A n d m y breast becam e ruin ed.

If it had com e out a m ale swan ,I would have given him liberty.

It cam e out a fem ale swan ,I m ade herm y house

-wife.

This swan struck by rai n -storm an d stron gsn owBegan to ask shelter from us

,

We then gave him a place,A s he used the n am e of God,

The swan , fin di n gher his caste-fellow,I n the m orn i n gbegan a quarrel .

50.

HorRaje m urgaian , sun Rajei ,Tun Rajashahba

’

iz

Adl i n iaun tun karefl , sun Rajea,Teri um arhove daraz.

226 A PPENDIX.

Otherkin gs are water-fowl, hear, O Raja ,Youare the kin g-falcon

True judgm en t youdo, hear, O Raja,M ayyour life be lon g.

RAJA RASALU A ND RAJA BHO].

5r.

Dhi gan j i n tih lokobari,Harat m in din gi lath

M an di n arghar chickwm,

Jhuggéchaur—chopat,Rah wich tabdi rai n gri,Pan je paian bhatth.

A daughter bald, a daughter-in—law hum p-backed,

To the well-wheel a crooked axle,A worthless wife expelled the house

So that the house is com pletely destroyed,

In the road a sown -field,

These five thin gs are m ost cursed.

Rah m usafar trai wal,

Chan , din , darya

I n m en kaun tum arabap hai,

Aurkaun tum ari m a.

Fit on ly for the oven orkil n .

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228 A PPE/VDIX .

55

Gan gajehajaln ahi n ,Te chan n e jehi jot,

A m be jehaphal n ahi nTe n ari jehi sot.

Like the Gan ges there is n o waterA n d l ike the m oon is n o light,

Like the m an goe there is n o fruit,A n d n o sleep like a wom an ’s .

56.

Har jan gal wich m ain phiran sun

Ajaz phirérz fakir,Tun n ahin bhullia, sun Rajei ,Teraakloubhullzi wazir.

In every jun gle I walk, hear, O Raja,I walk, apoor fakir,

Youhave n ot m istaken , bear, 0 Raja,Yourwazir is without wit.

S7~

Kachchhe jeha’

. jal n ahirz, sun Rajea,Te akhirz jehijot,

Puttran jehaphaln ahin , sun Rajei ,Te sukhejehi sot,

A PPENDIX. 229

Like thewaterin yourflask there is n o water,b earO Raja,

Like ( the light of the eyes there is n o l ight,Like son s there is n o fruit,Like (the sleep of)con ten tm en t there is n o sleep.

RAJA RA SALU A ND THE GIA NTS.

58.

M aim in Rajakarkar n zi m ario, bhalle m an so,M ain fakir, kadar A l lah,

Tun sakki bhain i n n an di, bhalle m an so,Tun i n ah n llfl samjha.

[fellows,Thi n kin gm e a raja do n ot kil l m e, m y goodA fakiram I, esteem ed of God,

Youare own sister to them,0 good fellows,

Do youi n struct them .

59

M ehri bhalli tan sam l i

Kapar bhallzi safed,M achhi bhal li so chhoppali,

Ghora bhallai kom ed.

Nagri bhalli so chhattri,

Rajabhal la. sochet,O n arm tirakh jan ie,Jo n ar m in den da bhetJ

‘

Kachchhe is literal ly the arm -

pit, the flask orwater-bottle bein gcarried b she herds un der the arm .

Nevg’

r‘

corr

lim it a secret, say the Pan jabis, to awom an or a barber,

for n either can keep it.

230 A PPENDIX.

A wom an dark'

ot body is good,White cloth is good,

Scaly fish are good,

A bay-coloured horse is good,

A coun try of warriors is good,A n active ki n g is good,

That m an as a fool should be held,Who com m its a secret to his wife.

60 .

Sar te kapardhon dia

Jam adhoti te pagg,Naun varghatol i

*m ain bhari,

Tun bat n apuchhi thag

O at the tan k washi n gclothes,Havin ga coat, a loin -cloth, an d a turban ,

N i n e tim es m y pitcher I filled,Youasked m e n ot a word, voudeceiver.

6 1 .

Des bagan abhon opari,Tudh bagan i dhi,

Tere karan m ain m aria”,

M erakain dharawe ji.

Gharoli, a kin d of pitcher. The Pan jabis have a n uptial son gcal led the Gharoli son g. A t weddin gs the youn g girls of the vil lagebrin gup.a gharoli ofwater from the wel l, an d, sayin gthe gharoli son g,throwit over the bridegroom .

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232 A PPENDIX.

Stran ge is Thy n ature,Thouart the great cherisher of the poor,

To n on -existen ce Thougivest existen ce,A n d existen ce Thoum akest n ought.

M yboat is drifti n gon the storm y river,Noddin g (with sleep)are the sai lors.

A zrai l the A n gel

The wel l-packed boat-load is passin gover,What kn ow I what is written

(Again st m e)i n thepresen ce of theGodoftruth ?

64 .

Dushm an m am ate zer karn a,

Eh bhallian dakam ,

M alm i n m an thin diir kar,Mujh wich had n acham .

A foe to strike an d to subdue him ,

This is thework of m ighty m en,

M e from your m i n d dism iss,I have n orbon e n or skin .

A zra'

til, the an gel of death, who bears awaydyin g.

A PPENDIX. 233

THEPUNJABI VERSES WHICH OCCUR IN JUMA’S

VERSION OFRA SALU .

I .

U jarkhere bi vasanM oia n a j ive ko

M oe kuran ge Rabba ji pawai

Galla'm bi karie do .

A deserte'

d house m ay agai n be in habited,A m ari o n ce dead l ives n ot again

O God, if the dead body rise again ,I will speak two words with him .

2 .

Bhatth* thuhadi n an kari

A r bhatth odi choha'

t,

U che n akke charke

Tuk khasan dan dan gha.

Cursedbe your service,

Curse be your m easure ofgrai n

O n h igh peak cl im bi n g,

N ibblin g I will eat grass with m y teeth.

3.

Dum kan n m era tun kattea

A te m aim i n laiz’

i ullan g

Tad harn i dajaeaTere m ehlan lan wan chor.

Bhatth, a kiln an d so tit on ly for the kil n oven .

234 A PPENDIX.

M y tai l an dm y ears youhave cut,A n d do n e m e a dishon our

If ever I was born from adeer

To your place I will brin g thieves .

4

Tote ben dhe upar m aria”

A r ben dhe chhajjan vichkér

Kehi p'

hirn i upar son e di jhalkar

Eh m ard hai ke n arP

The parrots sit o n the houses

A n d they sit on the eaves.

What is that golden lustre walkin gon the house

Is it a m an or a wom an

Eh hai raje di n ar,

Oh hun giahai sh ikar.

She is the wife of the ki n g,Who is just n owgon e out hun ti n g.

6 .

M ehlan heth bhawan dea

Shadh hain ke chor

O,walki n g about ben eath the palace,A re youa true m an or th ief?

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236 A PPENDIX.

Where have you lost your deer

A n d where have you lost your cattle ?

By los in gyourroad, youhave becom e

RajaRasalu’s thief.

Sairak m eri tiin méri, ujarA te m aim ia

’

. kito i ujar;Tad tote da jaea,Raje kolJan

-

wan ghari n al.

Youhave killed m y m in a,A n d m ade m e wretched

If ever I was born of a parrot,I wi ll go to the ki n g im m ediately.

Sarak m eri ran i n e m ari

Te m aim in kito be-

ghor

Urh khalo raja sutteaTere m ehle

’

m lagge chor.

The queen has ki lled m y m in a,A n d m e she n eglected

A rise, O sleepin gkin g,Thieves have forcedyourpalace.

f”Ghari, an in terval of tim e. There are two an d-a-half Ghan ’

s'

an hour.

A PPENDIX. 23,

Chhe-te-ass i m eri sarkan

A te assi m ere m or

ltn e rakhe ho n dian

K ikar lagge chor

M y eighty- six m i n as

A n d eighty parrots are there

There bei n g so m an y guards,

Howbroke in the th ieves

r3.

Nam ari n tan kam ch i

A te n am arin addi pet 5Tad ghore da jaea

Le challa’

n m ehlan heth.

N either strike m e with whip,N or strike heel o n m y flan k

If I was born of a horse,

I wi l l take youben eath your palace.

1 4 .

Ben dhian desen tan am ehn a

A ruthdian desen gal

Jen dha tan am ehn é, rajea,

Vesan usde n ail .

When I sit down yougive m e taun ts,

A n d when I stan d yougive m e abuse

Whose reproach (I bear), 0 Raja’ ,I will go with him .

238 A PPENDIX.

Jiun de m aujan m an ia”

M oea’

m dakhadam as.

When he was alive youen joyed him ,

When he was dead you ate his flesh.

RA SALU A ND THE GIA NTS .

1 6.

T1171 han ju n adalka’

,

Je Rab rakhe t'

erabachra,M ai n sir desa

’

m cha.

Do n ot shed tears,

If God keep your son ,

M y head wil l I give.

U chche m an dal dissan m aria”

Dis san hat—pattan bazar,Sab dardissan sakhn e

Kyavarti san sar.

H igh dom es an d palaces are seen ,

There are seen shops an d bazars,That every door is seen vacan t

What has happen ed to the world i‘

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240 A PPENDIX

PA NJABI VERSES WH ICH OCCUR

‘ GHAZ I’ VERSION OF RA SALU .

r.

K ai n m era bukkapiv1a ?Kai n satthe khan garP

Kain m eri khii i geria,

Ie s i n n i pai n isar

Who sm oked m y hookah P

Who sp‘

at out his phlegmWho turn ed m y well,Si n ce the chan n el iswet

Jiuan de m aujan m am a,

M un ian dakhada m as,

Bhatth un an dajivia’

t,

Ji n abigan i as .

When he was al ive, yOu en joyedWhen he was dead, you ate his

Cursed b e their life,Whose hope IS In others.

3.

U thian den am en araija,

The ben dhaden agal

Jiuan di den a badian ,

fi rst m arn un an de n ail.

A PPENDIX 24 !

When I get up, yougive m e taun ts, Raja,A n dwhen I sit down , yougive m e abuse

Forwhom yougive m e reproach,M y death will be with him .

L’ENVOY.

Sada n a baigin bulbul bo le,Sada n abag bahararz,

Sada n arajkhushi de hon de,

Sada n am aj l is yaran .

The bulbul s in gs n ot always in the garden ,The garden is n ot always bloom in g,Ki n gdom s are n ot always ruled in happin ess,Frien ds are n ot always together.

242 A PPENDIX .

A DDITIONA L NOTES.

RAJA VIKRA M AJ IT, OR BIKRA M AJ IT, a greatH in duwarrior, sain t, an d legislator. H is origin al capital was Ujainin the Dakkan , but he exten ded his arm s as farwest as

Kabul. (Wilson’s A ria n a A n tigua H is era, sti ll oh

served by the H i n dus , begin s B. C . 56. A ccordin g to

Briggs he was attacked an d s lain by RajaShalivhan .

RAJA SHA LIVHAN , or SA LIVAHANA, the Sulwan of the

Pan jabi bards.—Elphin ston e is of Opin io n that the exploit

above m en tion ed could n ot have been perform ed by

Salivahan , whose era on ly begi n s A . D. 7 7 . Be this as it

m ay, his kin gdom was also the Dakkan ; he was probably a

n ear con n ection of Vikram ajit, an d his em pire, accordin gto tradition , com prised the Upper Pan jab, his capital citybein g Sialkot.

GURU GORA KHNATH, the great sain t of Tillah, foun ded

a sect in the Pan jab about A . D. 1400 . He m ain tain ed

the equaliz in geffects of religious pen an ces, but chose Siva

as the m an ifestatio n of Deity. (Cun n i n gham’s H istory of

the Sikhs, p. That in the legen ds Rasalu is said to

have been con tem poran eous with him ,shows how the bards

have loved to gather roun d the m em ory of their favourite

hero the popular stories of widely differen t tim es, a process

which is n ot without its an alogue elsewhere.

HA ZRAT A M AM ALi Litre—Hazrat is a title of

distin ction , m ea n i n g‘H igh n ess.

’A m ara Ali, i . e. , the

Patriarch Ali, is the n am e of the fam ous son -in -law of the

prophet Muham m ad. Lak appears to be an addition al title,possibly a corruption of the Persian A l—lzaqq, ‘The True.

’

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244 A PPENDIX.

hastily m oun ted his m are, which, guided by her m atern al

in stin cts, carried him safely out of the labyrin th.

But the superstition is n ot so m uch Greek or Muham

m adan as H i n duin origi n . The villagers believe that theirriver-god keeps state ben eath the deep blue waters of the

I n dus, where his atten dan ts labourwith s'pade an d m attock

in divertin gthe rushi n gwaters n owin o n e direc tion an d n ow

in an other. He is propitiated by l ittle rafts bearin g sm al learthen clu

'

m gs or lam ps which the credulous coun try-fo lk

light up an d laun ch at n ight upo n the bosom of the stream ,

to be carried whithersoever Father I n dus, of wh ich KwajaKhizaris really the person ification , m ay be pleased to direct. .

BHA UNRA~IRAKi. - Bhaun ra is the n am e of the largeblack bee said to be en am oured of the lotus. Iraki is

the term which disti n guished a fam ous breed of horses

from Cen tral A sia, probably Parthia. Irak-A rabi is strictlythe coun try lyi n gbetween the Tigris an d Euphrates.

BA IKA LBATTH.— A ccordin g to the bard Jum a, it was he

who was the chief of the gian ts . Sharaf n am ed this gian tBhagarbhatth.

RAJA SiRtKA P.—Ghulam , an i n telligen t villager ofKun dt,

in M oun t Gan dgarh, about five m iles from Sirikot, in form ed

m e thatRajaSirikapwas a son of the fam ous RajaBhakhiri,

a brother of Raja Dharthili, -an d that he used to l ive in San

got-thi-Ghari, or the Fort of San got, half a m ile from Sirikot

itself on the top of the ridge of Gan dgarh, an d that he built

Sirikot of m en’s skulls, as the n am e accordi n g to him really

im plies, though he adm its that it m ay also m ean the chief

A PPEN DIX. 24;

fort.* He also stated that the prin cipal gian t had on ly

o n e eye.

RA JA HODI.—A ccordin g to the sam e authority, reptesen ti n gprobably the opi n io n of m an y others in the locality,Raja Hodi’s capital was O n d, o n the western ban k of the

In dus, an d the place of his death M ohat, as referred to

in the I n troduction . But Hodi also had a seat at A tak,

an d his territory was n am ed apparen tly from associationwith him self—Udhe- n agri, of Udi—n agri, an d in this con n ec

tidn it should be observed that the n am e Udi, or ! odi asit is spelt in the m aps, sti ll survives in m ore than on e spotin the n eighbourhood of A tak o n the eastern side of the

I n dus iBut Hodi appears to have been som ethi n gm ore than a

m ere petty Chieftain , forwe fi n dhis m em ory largelypreservedas farwest

‘

as Jalalabad in A fghan istan . When en cam ped at

that place duri n gSir S. Brown’s occupation of the val ley, I

learn t from certain of the coun try-folkthat he was on e of three

brothers, allson s of Raja A frassa, eviden tly the A frasia'b ofh istory (Brigg

’s M alzom ea'an Power in In dia

, p. lxx). He is

there cal led H tidi or Udi, an d his brothers are n am ed

A ian posh an d Daran ta, allthree of them bei n g com m em ora

ted, irr ( 1) Heidi , five m i les south of Jalalabad, which is

n am edas Hodi’s capital, his sum m er palace con s istin g of

vast hal ls excavated in the co n glom erate of the adjoin in gThere is a

“ Sirkapvké-kot un der the hil l, two an d a halfm iles from Shin kiari, in Ha i t i , where coin s are foun d.

+ It is, however, im portan t to rem em b er that therewas an cien tlyadistrict in these parts n am ed Udian a, so that Udi Rina

”m ay be m erely

the kin gof Udi. (Travels of Hwen Thsan g, an d otherauthorities .)

246 A PPENDIX.

hills, in (2) the A ian posh Tope, o n an em in en ce less than a

m ile to the south of Jalalabad, an d (3) in the charm in gspot Darah ta, about five m iles west of Jala

’ labad, fam ous for

its gran d caves an d beautiful topes . A frassa’

s ki n gdom , say

the people, exten ded from Jam rti d to Kabul,an d it was

k n own as Bakta Lan d from the n am e of the Wazir of a

precedi n g“ Gian t ki n g, the great Naushirwan of Persia,

(who flourished from A . I) . 53I to A . D. s7 p,l an d who first

built the fortress of Jam rtid,or rather

, perhaps, the tope

thereof, the existi n grem ai n s of the an c ien t m aso n ry exhi

biti n g all the charac teristics of the Buddhist style .

These m eagre traditio n s are preserved by the villagersof Haida, who also state that the three brothers were slainby “ A m iham za, that is

,the Im am A li Ham za

, the so n

in -law of M uham m ad, that m an y of the Buddhist topes

were built by Raja Udi, that A ian posh wore, as his n am e

im plies, a coat of iron , an d that Barauta’

. ruled at Barabat.

I n the Peshawur Val ley the followi n g tradition survives

respec tin gRajaHodi an d his brethren“ A t the tim e of the settlem en t of the Pathan races in

the Peshawur Valley, a fort had been built at Ran igat

by a H in duqueen , two Of whose brothers also lived at

Charsadda an d Peshawur, whi le Udi Raja l ived in his fort,

overlooki n gKhairabad opposite A ttock.

_

I t was arran ged

that when dan ger threaten ed an y on e of them , he or she

should light a fire, when the sm oke curli n gup to the sky

wouldbrin g the others to the rescue. The Hashtn aggar raja,to test his relatio n s, lit a fire ; they, seei n gsm oke, wen t to his

assistan ce, on ly to fi n d it was a false alarm . Som e tim e

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248 A PPENDIX.

for accordin g to him the quee n , though bruised an d

broken , sti ll survived, an d her husban d threwher in to a

sack an d her lover i n to an other, an d laid them on Hodi'

s

horse, sayin g Go ! tell RajaBhatti that his son is com in ghom e to him m arried,

”- an d so started the horse for A tak.

O n the way th ither he was stoppedb y a scaven gerwho oh

servi n gKoklan’

s beauty, an d perceivi n g that she was n ot

quite dead, took her an d cured her of her woun ds, after

which he m arried her. She bore her scaven ger husban dfour son s, Tehti , K eh ti , K rehti, an d Sehu, an d from these

fourdescen d fourclan s or tribes sti l l dwell in gi n the hi lls of

Hazara. A n d, say the people, you can eas ily see theirdescen dan ts are of a roya l race, because they display

certain royal charac teristics, as i n n ate arrogan ce an d pride,while at the sam e tim e they possess qualities of a m ore

ign oble sort, as m ean n ess an d greed, bein g proofs sti ll

existi n gof their exalted an d of their villai n ous origin .

THE GA M E OF CHA UPA T.—A gam e of very high an tiquity

in I n dia. A s in chess, of which it m ay have been theorigin , it is played on squares, but the m en ,which are sixteenin n um ber, in sets of four, each set distinguished by its owncolour, are allpawn s, an d the board, which is usual ly com

posedof em bro idered c loth, is n ot square, buti n the form of

a cross . On e RajaNall is tradition ally said to have been thei n ven tor of it. It is still in great favour allover the Pan jab.

The gam e played by Raja Rasalu an d Raja Sirikaphas m an y poin ts in com m on with the fam ous gam blin gm atchbetween Duryodhan a an dYudishthira in the ven erable epic

of the M ahabharata, B. C. 1500 . (See Talboys Wheeler’s

A PPENDIX. 249

Tales from I n dza n H istory,p. 1 1 ; an d Dr. Hun ter

’s T/ze

I n dian E mpire, p.

The fol lowi n g rude cut is from a m iserably defectivechap-book vers ion of Raja' Rasalu published in Pan jabiat Lahore. It represen ts the two kin gs at the m om en t

when Rasaluis fi n ally victorious . The action of the co n

ten ders, the calm atti tude of the queen , the woful co n cern

of the pri n cess, the com placen cy of the black whiskered

cat as she m um bles the un resistin g rat, the atten tive com

posure of the spectators dragged in by the head, an d the

graphic del i n eation of the fatal gam e, are allwo n derful lyrealistic, whi le the m ethod of represen ti n g the crowded

even ts of the episode in a sin gle scen e,after the m an n er of

the rude artists of A n glo-Saxon an d m ediaeval tim es, is wel l

calculated to arrest the stray fan cy an d to arouse the

i n terest of the bucolic Pan jabi .

250 A PPENDIX.

to press have seen

of Captai n R. C .

Tem ple, an d fi n d thatGen era l A bbott was the first writer to

pub l ish i n En glish a story of Rasalu. H is versio n is to be

1 854, pp. 1 23—163.

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NEW M A NL I M ITE D ,

0 A L C U T T A

PUBLISHERS .

IM PERIA L INDIA .

INDEX GEOGRAPHICUS INDICUSBE I NG A LIST ALPHABET ICALLY ARRANGED, OF THE PRINC I PAL PLA CES I N HERIM PERIAL MAJESTY’S INDIA N EM PI RE, ACCOM PANIED BY NOTES AND STATEMENTS,STAT IST ICAL

,POLIT ICAL

,AND DESCRIPTIVE, OF THE SEVERA L PROV I NCES

AND ADM I N ISTRAT IONS OF THE EM P IRE, THE NAT IVE STATES, INDEPENDENT AND FEUDATORY, ATTACHED TO AND IN POLITICAL RELAT ION SH IP W ITH EACH, AND OTHER INFORMAT ION RELAT I NG

TO I NDIA AN D THE EAST.Bv J . FREDERICK BA NESS, F. S . SC . (Lan dau)

With eight co loured M aps .

N am es spelt in accordan cewit]: the recen t authorised Ort/zography .

I n o n e V o lum e , Sup e r- ro y a l 8 v o . , h a lf-b oun d R o a n .

Tw e lv e R up e e s .

M r. Ban ess ha s produced o n e of the m ost com plete works of its kin d that we

have see n . A s a com pen dium of In dian geography an d statis tics it stan ds without

rival, an d these words m ust be taken in the irwidest sen se to con vey a correct idea

of the in form ation it con ta in s . Whether a a com pan ion to such volum in ous worksas those of Dr. Hun ter, or as a substitute for them ,

it will prove equally valuable,a n d n o In dian ofii ce or study should be without it.

The accuracy of the work, as faras we have been ab le to test it, is beyon dpraise,

d the typography is beautifully n eat a n d clear.

”—Calcutta Re view

W . NEWM A N Co. , LD. , Pub l ishers, Calcutta .

On the whole, whetherwe regard the com pleten ess of this work, its wide usefuln ess , or its han din ess ,we can n ot but co m e to the co n clusion that it is likely to fi n dits wayto the desk of every m an who wishes for in form ation about In dia. To our

thin kin g, it supersedes every work o f the kin d yet brought out.”- ln dz

'

an Daily

The work is a m arvel at on ce of com prehen s ive n ess an d com pression . So far

from its bein g a m ere list of n am es , there is hardly an y subject, geographical, statistical, political, ethn ical or social, con n ec ted with our I n dian Em pire, in respect of

which it will n ot be foun d a m in e of in form a tion .

A fter an exam in ation of the book, we believe we ca n safely say that there is n ofac t of im portan ce which can fairly be held to be in cluded in the above com prehen

s ive title which the s tude n t ca n n ot fi n d in a m om en t, as soon a he has un ders tood

the plan of the work. Every I n dian official, every I n dian publicist, every perso n

who desires to kn ow I n dia, an d to have at han d a ready m ean s of verifyin g, correctin g, or com pletin g his kn owledge, should haste n to provide him selfwithM r. Ban ess

I n dex .

’ —S ta term a n .

M r. I . F. Ban ess , of the Survey Departm en t, has put together, in

m oderately sm all volum e , an en orm ous am oun t of in form ation about the geography

of In dia. It is to all in ten ts an d purposes an I n dia Gazetteer an d A tlas ; an dwillprove useful, if n ot a n eces s ity, to people who kn ow very little ofIn dia—such as n ewcom ers an d Secretaries of State as well as to those who are better in form ed

Pion eer.

The work, the first ofits kin d ever published, willbe foun d of the greatest use

to I n dian oflicials, an d in deed to allwho m ake the I n dian em pire a subject of S‘Udyc

Cfo ilan d [Military Gazette.

The book willhe foun d of the greatest use to offic ials a n d n on -offi cials who wish

to obtain accurate in form atio n about I n dia . M ay be said to con tain n early everythin g that is required to be kn own about I n dia, an d the m atter is well arran ged.

w _ 3a ngalore Sfiecta tor.

A s a han dy book of re feren ce, both here an d in In dia, this in dex , the first of itskin d relatin g to m odern I n dian geography, will be foun d of m uch practical conven ien ce, com pressin g as it does in a s i n gle han dy vclum e the chief geographical,

political, an d statis tical poin ts of our vast I n dian Em pire, fer which search has

hitherto had to be m ade in the old ge n eral gazetteer of Thorn ton, or the m ore

m odern separate official works of a sim ilar n ature referrin g to som e of the provin cesThe lon g list of closely prin ted n am es in doub le colum n at the en d of book, each

with brief referen ce to its distric t an d provin ce, is itself prac tically a m odern

gazetteerof I n dia.

"- Proceeding s of the RoyalGeograpfigm lSociety .

W . NEWM A N Co . , LD . , Pub l ishers, Calcutta.

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THE. IND IA N

A M ATEUR GA RDENER .

Practical H in ts on the Cultivation of Garden Flowersan d im ported Vegetable Seeds, adapted for the Plain s ofBen gal, the North-West Provin ces, an d H ill Station s.

From n otes com piled durin g eighteen years‘experien ce

of Garden i n g in In dia.

Bv LANDOLICUS. I llustrated, cloth. Rs 5.

THE IND IA N

A M ATEUR RO S E GA RDENER .

PRA CTICAL DIRECTIONS FOR THE CULTIVA TIONA ND PROPOGATION OF ROSES,

IN THE PLA INS A ND H ILL STATIONS OF INDIA .

BY LA NDOLICUS,

A utlzor of The I n dian A m ateur Garden er.

I l lustrated with Four Plates an d Twen ty-n in eW oodcuts .

C loth. Rs 3.

DA INTY D ISHES

INDIAN TA BLES .

A com plete M an ual of Cookery for the A n glo-I n dianH ousehold. Secon dEdition . Rs 6.

W. NEWM A N Co LD. , Pub lishers, Calcutta.

NEWM A N ’

S

TA RGET REG ISTER.

WITH A FEW PRA CTICA L H INTS FOR

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COM PILED BY A N OLD VOLUNTEER .

Pocket Book, 5% by 4 i n cites .

New edition . R I .

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HOW TO SHOOT STRA IGHT.

With Diagram s . By I. H . WEBSTER. Rs 2 .

THE STA FF OFFICER’

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FIELD MEMORANDUM AND NOTE BOOK.

Size 7 x in dies .

IN LIM P LEATHER WITH TWO POCKETS,

Bemcil, Carbon Paper an d Elastic Ban d. Rs 3.

THE RECON NO ITERER’

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GU IDE A ND FIELD BOOK .

A DA PTED FOR INDIA .

BY M . J . K ING-HA RM A N, M ajor,Ben gal Staff Corps .

PocketBook form , 7 by 5 in ches, lim p leather. Rs

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M IXED PICKLES

JOTTINGS FROM A SURVEYOR’S FIELD-BOOK IN

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BY THE PILGRIM .

I n Crown 8v0, illustrated boards . Rs 2 .

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DA ILY THOUGHTS .

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COM PILED BY M RS . H . J . REYNOLDS .

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E S S A Y S

ON THE

HINDU FA M ILY IN BENGA L.

BULLORA M M ULLICK,B

.A . ,

judge of the Court of Sm all Cam e; for M e Suburbs of Calcutta .

I n stiff hoards, Rs 2 in c loth, gilt lettered, RS 3.

A set of Sketches which wil l be recogn ised as an im portan t con

tribution , first to the cause Of social an d dom estic reform , an d in ci

den tal ly to the series of pictures of a very n otab le race pain ted by

them selves . M an y of these have been for a lon g tim e before the

pub lic . The n ew book, while it touches o n the historical, legal , an d

philosophical poin ts em braced in SirJ . B. Phear’s treatise on the

Vil lage, is of a m ore detailed, hom ely, an d fam iliar type treatin g first

Of the fam ily system in In dia, its origin an d history, an d then givin g a

chapter of detailed description to each of its m ost im portan t m em bers .

"

Civilan d M ilitary Gazette.

We m ay-

con gratulate the author on the production of a volum e

at on ce useful an d en tertain in g. By describ in g the H in du fam ily lifeim partial ly, he has prob ab ly don e som ethin g to hasten its decay.

”

The book b efore us'

em bodies the author’

s views on the workin gof thejoin t fam ily system in Ben gal , m atured as they are byhis own

readin g as also his exten sive kn owledge glean ed through m an y years

experien ce Of Law. It is written in a fam iliar, pleasan t style, with n o

preten sion s to profoun dn ess, or origin al thought, but givi n g a pleasan tsketch of the fam ilysystem as it strikes an Observer at the first view.

—Liberal.

W . NEWM A N dt Co. , LD. , Pub lishers, Calcutta.