“Abai Geser khan”. The inventory No. 1684.
Written down from story-teller N. T. Ivanov by folklore expert S. P. Baldaev in 1940-1941 in the settlement of Ust-Orda, the Irkutsk region. The volume – 2633 lines, 102 pages of penscript in a notebook.
The plot line
I. Introduction. Descried are “the former wonderful times” when the Milk sea was just a spring, the Sumeru mountain was just a hillock. Narrated briefly it is of the time when before the tengris were divided to the western and eastern ones Segen Sebdeg tengri’s wife gave birth to the daughter Seseg Nogon by name. She grows a beauty and a skilled tailor. The tengris get together for a nadan-festival where they take part in all the games and contests.
II. Khan Khurmas’s battle with Atai Ukan on the sky. It is that between Khan Khurmas and Atai Ulan a quarrel flares up because of the beauty Seseg Nogon. Each of them asks her as his son’s wife. In a single combat Khan Khurmas defeats Atai Ulan and throws his body over on the earth. Formed from the parts of his body are the devils and Arkhan Shudkher monster who wants to swallow the sun and the moon. It is from the diseases spreading on the earth that the people are dying out.
III. Geser’s descent on the Earth and his second birth. The elder deity Esege Malan-tengri calls a council at which the decision is taken to put down onto the earth Khan Khormusta so that he might stop the death of all living upon the earth because of the diseases and the monsters-mangadkhais that steadily grow in number. His younger son lying in the cradle expresses his willingness to get down onto the earth. The child asks the deities to give him all the necessary things.
Sharkhan-shamaness completes a service and invokes the deities to help save the life on the Earth. Manzan Gurme-grandma advises that Khan Khurmas should fulfil the order of the tengries and send down from the sky the younger son.
A childless old woman Senkhir Sagan gathering the wild grasses and roots finds a black cradle with a child. The foundling causes great troubles to the old men: he is restless, constantly cries and defecates. The old men make attempts at getting rid of him (leave in stone cave, then put in a bear’s den) but the child each time comes home quite safe and sound. The old men guess that the child is sent to them by the tengris and put down from the skies.
IV. The first victories of the child Geser. The foundling by the name of Nyukhata enters into the struggle and wins the victory over the black iron mosquito and a huge snake Abarga that was sent to him by Gal Dulme-khan. The old men abandon the baby at Saral Sagan-noyon's door. Together with his son Saril Baran-khubun Nyukhata pastures bull-calves. On Nyukhata's advice the boys eat the bull-calves.
V. Geser’s matchmaking and his marriage to Ana Mergen and Tumen Jargalan. Nyukhata takes part in the bridegrooms’ contests, wins victory over all the rivals and gets married to Ana Mergen. He takes her home.
Having come to Khitad Nomon-khan nyukhata wins in the marriage contests and takes his daughter Tumen Zhargalan as wife.
The two wives are surprised at the strange conduct of their husband who disappears at night and watch him. Having risen onto the Segte Sumer mountain Nyukhata appeals to the celestial deities and asks them for a prophetic horse and bogatyr’s armour. But due to the presence of the earthly wives he loses his bogatyr strength and cannot defeat Gal Dulme-khan in a single combat. The hero returns home in the form of the small boy – Snot nose.
VI. Geser marries Alma Mertgen. When hunting Geser meets a smart and quick horseman and pursues him till the very sea, following him he goes down to the sea bottom. The horseman appears to be Alma Mergen, the daughter of Ukha Lobson-khan, the lord of the underwater kingdom. Geser gets married to her. The wife gives him magic beverage; having had it Geser loses his bogatyr strength. The bogatyr’s elder sister looks for him and restores his former look. Coming home Geser finds his house destroyed and devastated by Loyir Shara Lobsogoldoi mangadkhai.
VII. Geser’s saving his wives. The bogatyr sets out for a battle. He comes across a hexadactylic Zhorgodoi Mergen, he fraternizes with him, having turned into a child. Zhorgodoi Mergen adopts him. The boy is brought up by Zhorgodoi Mergen’s two wives (those are Geser’s two wives seized by Zhorgodoi Mergen). When Geser grows up a little and gathers strength, he breaks the armour of the foster father and then kills him in a single combat. He burns down the two babies that fell out of her belly. Having liberated his wives the bogatyr comes back home. He puts his uncle Khara-Zutan who betrayed him to death.
VIII. Geser’s battle with Loyir Lobsogoldoi-mangadkhai. Geser sets out for a battle with Loyir Lobsogoldoi-mangadkhai who abducted his first wife – Ana Mergen. On his way he swims across the sea, crosses the border between the earth and the sky and prevents a big flood. Then he defeats in a single combat the monsters Taril Erean and Dayidyn Erean.
Having turned into a boy Geser pastures bull-calves of Loyir Lobsogoldoi mangadkhai. A mangadkhai-woman treats him to poisoned meat and turns him to a donkey.
Khan Khurmas fits out Geser’s three sisters to look for the bogatur who got lost. The elder sister deceives the mangadkhai-woman and her nine sons. Having liberated Geser she brings back his former bogatyr look. There starts the main fight between Geser and Loyir Lobsogoldoi-mangadkhai. Coming to help the bogatyr are his three sisters who obtained the look of the three iron bators. The tengries – Geser’s protectors strike Loyir Lobsogoldoi, his sons and bators with thunder.
IX. The epilogue. Having defeated the enemy the bogatyr returns home. He leaves his herds and flocks on the Altai and Khukhei. Geser lives happily surrounded with his relatives and his dependent people.
