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| A. O. Vasiliyev |
“Abai Geser Bogdo khan”. S. P. Baldaev’s fund.
It was written down in 1916 from epic-teller A. O. Vasiliyev by folklore expert S. P. Baldaev. The volume is 405 pages of typescript, the numbers of the lines are lacking.
This variant was written presents the first part of the epopee of Geser, the history of the events taking place in the skies that precede the epical events and Gesers feats on the earth. It consists of 11 chapters (“branches”) that consecutively reveal the contents of the epic and make up a unique compositional unit.
The plot line
I. Introduction. In a brief poetical introduction it is said that coming is the story of “the thirteen wars of Abai Geser Bogdo-khan” sing glory to the most interesting of “the doings of the twenty three khans”.
II. The preamble. It narrates of the primordial far-off times when there were neither thousand celestial burkhans (deities) nor the sun, nor the moon, nor the stars. Instead of the sky there was mist haze, the earth was covered with water and the Great mother-the goddess (Эхэ ехэ бурхан) was all alone in the whole world.
III. The Great mother – the goddess. The Great mother – the goddess creates the earth, water and all the matter in the world. The duck created by her broings up from the bottomof the sea a piece of clay from which then the earth is formed up. The goddess puts the earth on back a turtle and as a result there appear the mountains and then there appear the valleys, rivers and lakes; born are the animals, birds and fish. The goddess rises up onto the sky and creates the sun and the moon.
IV. Manzan Gurme-the grandma. Manzan Gurme-the grandma inhabiting the eighth sky has nine sons and nine daughters. She teaches her sons to make bows, to shoot and she teaches her daughters to cut and sow. Having gathered at the Great mother-the goddess’s place Manzan-Gurme the grandma and the mythical forfathers Ekhe Yuren and Esege Malan-baabai talk of non-obediance and impudence of the sons Atai Ulan and Khan Khormusta.
V. Mayas Khara-grandmother. Mayas Khara-grandmother lives on the seventh sky. She has thirteen sons and seven daughters. The elder son Asarangui Khara is known as a strongman, the second – Atai Ulan is a good shot, strong man and wisecracker, the third son Gujir Boma - shaman. The sons are busy with hunting and cattle-breeding, obey Asarangui-tengri and the daughters have a lot of maids. Mayas khara-grandma has now grandchildren and great grandchildren but her children do not treat each other friendly. The elder sons plan to have a big nadan (a festivity with games) and having obtained their mother’s consent they send a herald the western tengris with the invitation for the nadan.
VI. The games and outdoor festivities on the skies. Coming for the nadan at the time appointed are the western tengris headed by Manzan Gurme. Competing on the first day of the nadan are the strong men, on the second day – the archers, on the third day there are the horse race, on the fourth day singers and story-tellers compete, on the fifth day – the wise men, on the sixth, the last day there is a common merrymaking. The epic-teller creates a nice picture of the traditional nadan or yokhor. Winning in all the competitions are the western deities.
VII. Khan Khormusta and Atai Ulan. Born on the western side of the sky are the fifty five tengis. The head over them is Khan Khormusta. He has three sons: Khabatai Khasar-mergen, Erkhe Beligte-bator (future Geser) and Erkhe Manzan khubun.
Born in the western part of the sky are the forty four tengris. The elder over them is Atai Ulan. He has the three sons: Khara Gerelte-mergen, Shara Gerelte-mergen and Boro Gerelte-mergen.
Atai Ulan challenge Khan Khormusta to a fight and at the council of the western tengris the decision is made to take a dare.
Occupying the middle position in the skies is Segen Sebdes-tengri. He does not interfere in the affairs of the western and eastern skies, he lives hunting elks, Manchurian deer and otter. He has the only daughter – Seseg Nogon, a skilful needlewoman and a beauty at that. Proposing to her are Khabatai Khasar-megen, Khan Khormusta’s son and Khara Gerelte-mergen, Atai-Ulan’s son. Having won at the competition of the bride-grooms Khabatai Khasar marries Seseg Nogon. Khara Gereltei accuses Segen Sebdeg-tengri, the bride’s father of this failure , and the eastern tengris make up a decision to get hold of his possessions.
VIII. Khan-Khormusta’s battle with Atai Ulan. The episode begins with a brief introduction (9 poetical lines), then repeated is the general introduction to the uliger with some insignificant variability.
Given then is a new variant of the preceding episode. Atai Ulan demands that Segen Sebdeg-tengri should give the beauty Seseg Nogon as his son’s wife having reminded to him of their former agreement. Segen Sebdeg confirms his agreement. It is because of this that a quarrel between Atai Ulan and Khan Khormusta flames up. In the single combat the head of the western celestials cuts with his sable Atai Ulan in two and throws him onto the earth. In the battle the western tengris win the victory.
From Atai Ulan’s body thrown upon the earth there spread about the various diseases. Mayas Khara grandmother descends upon the earth and from the various parts of Atai Ulan she creates the mighty monsters: from the chest – Gal Durme-khan; from the hip – Lobsogoldoi mangadkhai, from his neck vertebrae – Sherem Minata devil, from his internal organs – Mitagar Khara Mila, from the liver – Ganga Bured-khan, from his right hand – Abarga Sesen mangadkhai, from his left hand – Asurai Shara mangadkhai, from the right leg – Khitad Gumen khan, from his left leg – the forty-eyed Gume, from the kidneys – Edir sagan modon tree and spotted deer Taril Eren. His lungs turn into Black Guma Mitan having a thousand white eyes. After that Mayas Khara again rises to the Sky. The monsters begin to do away with all the living on the earth.
IX. The battle between the western and the eastern tengris. The thirteen monsters – the transformations of Atai Ulan on the earth (Arkhan Khara Shudker devil, Loir Khara Lobsogoldoi, Gal Durme-khan, Ganga Bured-khan, Sherem Khara Minata, Abarga Sesen-mangadkhai, Khitad Gumen-khan, Mitagar Khara Mila, fifteen-headed Asurai mangadkhai, ninety-nine-five-headed Yonkhoboi mangadkhai, Edir tree sagan modon, spotted deer Taril Eren, one hundred eight-headed Zuudag Shara) cause great misfortunes.
After Atai Ulan’s death the head of the eastern tengris is now Buker Boma tengri. The Asarangui tengris enthrone their representative with whom Atai Ulan’s sons fight. In the battle Atai Ulan’s sons die and thrown on the earth where they settle on the Zulkhe river. Mayas Khara grandmother pacifies the conflicting deities. The Asarangui tenris make their Bulin Khara-tengri as head of eastern forty four tengris.
X. Khabatai Khasar mergen’s marriage. After a short introduction devoted to the traditional account of the time and place of the actions (25 verses) it is narrated of the life of Segen Sebdeg-tengri who is rich, independent and has numerous descendants. He is married to Seskhel Sender-khatan, Seseg nogon’s daughter. Many bridegrooms come for the nadan to ask as wife Segen Sebdeg’s daughter as wife. Khabatai Khasar , Khan Khormusta’ son obtains consent of the parents. Khan Khormusta comes with the gifts to arrange the son’s marriage. During the marriage celebration Segen Sebdeg tengris’ strong men compete with the bridegroom who wins in the end. After the marriage feast Khabatai Khasar-mergen together with his wife comes back home.
XI. Geser’s descent onto the earthand his first victories. The people on the earth because of the evil caused by the monsters greatly suffer, get sick and die. Esege malan-babai magically become aware of this all and he calls a council of the deities. Having accused Khan Khormusta in all the misfortunes the deities tell him go down on the earth to save all the living. Khan Khormusta addresses his sons. It is Erkhe Beligte (Geser), the middle son who agrees to descent to save all those on the earth, but he asks for a horse, arms. A magic stone, his three sisters and the magic noose.
Erkhe Beligte descends on the earth having straddle a black cloud. Having felt thirsty he pinks the earth with his spear. The water from the spring covers the whole earth and Erkhe Beligte plugs the holes.
The bator reaches the lands of Lobsogoldoi Khara mangadkhai. He turns into a bee and penetrates to Sherem Minata’s palace, where he overhears the talk of his wives of the unconquerable Geser. He gets into the palaces of Ganga Bured-khan, Gal Durme-khan and the three sharablin khans. The bogatyr starts the battle with Donyol Shara mangadkhai and having cut him in two with his sable burns hi remains in the fire. Then he does away with the evil spirits (ada and anakhai) having turned them into the water devils.
XII. Geser’s birth on the Earth. The episode begins with some opening words and the introduction (50 verse lines). The introduction (as in the preceding episodes) again brings the readers to the story of the “beginning of the time” when life was just originating on the earth.
Living on the earth are the childless old man Sengel and old woman Sengelen. They live in misery and often have nothing to eat. Once an old woman when gathering the roots of plants became pregnant in a magic way and gave a birth to the three children. The two daughters rose immediately to the sky whereas the son appeared to be an ugly child and sloven. At the name-giving ritual an old man gives him the name of Nykhata Sura (snotnose Sura). The child gives much trouble to his parents.
XIII. The first victories of the bogatyr baby and his marriage to Ana Gokhon. His enemies – monsters, sholmuses, devils learn of his birth. The baby kills a pretended shaman who was sent to him by the monsters. He learns to shoot a bow. Then turning into a lama he drives the sholmoses into the sea and gets them drowned. On his way home Nyukhata Sura meets Manzan Khitad-khan’s daughter, asks her in marriage and arranges a wedding party. Together with his wife he comes back home.
XIV. The matchmaking and marriage of Geser to Zhargalan. Nyukhata Sura goes to ask in marriage to Erzhen Bayan khan’s daughter by name of Zhargalan. Having won all the rivals during the bridegrooms contest he gets Zhargalan as his wife and together with her he comes back home to his first wife.
Both the wives are surprised at the unusual behavior of their husband – his nightly disappearance from home. Having caught at the braid of his coat’s edge they rise on the Sumeru mountain following him and see that their husband takes part in the council of the deities.
The gods deprive Geser of the right to ascend on the sky because of the violation of the prohibition to bring his earthlywives oto the sky. Having obtained from the tengris of a magic horse, clothes and arms he returns onto the earth in the appearance of bogatyr Abai Geser Bogdo-khan.
XV. Geser’s marriage to Alma Mergen. When hunting Abai Geser meets Alma Mergen who was the daughter of Ukha Lobson-khan disguised as a young man. She caught the beasts that he was about to catch. Pursuing her Geser finds himself in the bottom of the sea in the realm of the Master of the waters Ukha Lobson.
XVI. Turning of Geser into a donkey and his being saved by his sister. Having come home Geser learns that his countryside was plundered by the three Sharyn khans.
Ana Gokhon, the bogatyr’s first wife, gives birth to a son. An old man gives him the name of Khuren Zurkhen. The Sharyn khans make an attempt to plunder the bogatyr’s property and take away his three wives. Ana Gokhon asks the deities for help. From the sky the bogatyr’s three sisters come to help, they take up the struggle, the enemies draw back. The youngest sister and the bogatyr’s wives set out to search for Geser. When the sister finds him, he was turned into a donkey in the arable land of Lobsogoldoi mangadkhai, the burkhans put down onto the earth his elder sister. She sets the brother free and restores his former look.
XVII. Geser’s meeting the monster Arkhan Khara Shudkher. Bogatyr Erkhe Beligte comes across Arkhan khara monster that attempts at swallowing the magic Kherdic (Garudi) bird. The bogatyr shoots at the monster but his arrows do not harm him. Then Geser decides to do away with the monster later.
XVIII. The epilogue. Given shortly after a brief introduction (9 lines) are the events occurring in the Sky. Khormusta-khan cuts Atai Ulan in two parts and throws his body on the earth. The body falls into the sea and the head flies after it to get connected with the body. Khukhedei-mergen watches lest the parts of the body should get connected and Atai Ulan should get revived. Atai Ulan’s head turns into the monster Arkhan Khara Shudker and the body to the invincible Sherem Khara Minata devil that inhabits according to the ancient ideas in the space between life and death.
