A Legend of Santhal Pargana
translated by Cecil Henry Bompas
Once upon a time a woman was found to be with child by her own
brother, so the two had to fly the country. In their flight they came
to the Mustard Tank and Flower Lake, on the banks of which they
prepared to cook their food. They boiled water and cooked rice in it;
and then they boiled water to cook pulse to eat with the rice. But when
the water was ready they found that they had forgotten to bring any
pulse. While they were wondering what they could get to eat with their
rice they saw a man of the fisher caste (Keot) coming along with his
net on his shoulder. Then the woman sang—
“The son of a Keot is standing on the bank of the
tank:
The fish are jumping: the son of a Keot is catching the
fish.”
So the Keot caught them some fish, which they ate with their
rice.
Then they went on and by the side of the road they saw a date palm
the juice of which had been tapped; and they wished to drink the juice
but they found that they had brought no drinking vessel with them. The
woman looked about and saw near by a fan palm tree and she
sang—
“The peepul’s leaves go flicker,
flicker:
The banyan’s leaves are thick and fleshy:
Of the fan palm’s leaf, brother, make a cup.
And we will drink the juice of the date
palm.”
So her brother made a drinking vessel of a palm leaf and they drank
the date juice and went on their way. At nightfall they
rested at the foot of a Bael tree and fell into a drunken sleep from
the date juice they had drunk.
As the woman lay senseless her child was born to her and no sooner
was the child born than a bael fruit fell on to its head and split it
into four pieces which flew apart and became four hills. From falling
on the new-born child the bael fruit has ever since had a sticky juice
and the tree is covered with thorns which are the hair of the child. In
the morning the man and woman went on and came to a forest of
Tarop trees and the woman wiped her bloody hands on the
Tarop trees and so the Tarop tree ever since exudes a red
juice like blood.
Next morning they went on and came to a spring and drank of its
water and afterwards the woman bathed in it and the blood stained water
flowed over all the country and so we see stagnant water covered with a
red scum. Going on from there they reached a low lying flat and halted;
almost at once they saw a thunder storm coming up from the South and
West; and the woman sang—
“A storm as black as the so fruit,
brother,
Is coming, full of danger for us:
Come let us flee to the homestead of the liquor
seller.”
But the brother answered—
“The liquor seller’s house is an evil
house:
You only wish to go there for mischief.”
So they stayed where they were and the lightning came and slew them
both. |