Kotharian Lightning

From the folklore of Kashmir

A king had been defeated in battle with a neighbouring king, and was obliged to flee. He hastened as fast as he could to a little obscure village about twelve miles distant from the city. So hurried was his escape, that he forgot to take any money with him. Fortunately, however, the princess had eleven rubies, one of which she gave to the king, as soon as they reached the village for the night, and begged him to go to the bazar and get some food. The king took the ruby, and went to the shop of a certain merchant and asked him to change it for a rupee’s worth of food. Of course the man gladly consented and told the king to go with him to his house, where he would give him the money.

But this merchant was a very wicked man. He might have paid the king there and then; but he wished to take him to his house, because in one of the rooms therein he had prepared a certain trap, whereby he ensnared several people. This trap was such, that whoever sat upon it was precipitated into a great pit, from which they could not escape till they had given and promised whatever the merchant might ask.

When several hours had elapsed, and the king had not returned, the princess took out another ruby, and giving it to her husband, asked him to go and get some food, and see what had become of the king. The prince, also, went to the wicked merchant’s shop, seeing it was the biggest shop in the bazar, and begged him to buy the stone. “Very well,” the merchant replied; “come to my house, and I will pay you. I cannot give you the money here.” So he took the prince to his house, and made him also sit on the trap-door.

It being already dark, and neither king nor prince having returned, the princess took another ruby, and giving it to the queen, begged her to go and get some food. The queen went, and the same thing happened to her as happened to her husband and son.

The princess waited some time for her, and then began to suspect that some harm had befallen the king and queen and prince. Therefore she disguised herself in some of her husband’s clothes and went to the bazar. Like the others, she walked straight to the shop of the big merchant and asked him to change her a ruby. “Very well,” he said; “come to my house.” On reaching the house he told her to enter the room in which was the trap-door, and there wait a few minutes while he went to fetch the money. The princess, however, was too sharp for him. She did not like the appearance of the man, and she thought it was very strange that he did not keep a few rupees regularly with him in the shop. Accordingly she declined to go inside. While she waited she heard sounds of human voices coming through the flooring. On going near she recognized her husband’s voice, and then her father-in-law’s and mother-in-law’s voices. They were calling for help. She was astonished beyond measure. “O thief! Murderer! Where are you?” she shouted.

“What is it?” said the merchant, running towards her.

“What have you done with these people?” she asked. “Let them out of this place, wherever they may be, or I will go at once and complain to the king.”

The merchant was afraid, and therefore set the prisoners free, and gave them back the rubies that he had taken from them. Then the king, queen, and prince left; but the princess (who, as we have said, was disguised as a man) accepted the merchant’s invitation to dinner, and stayed.

The king and his wife and son returned quickly to the place where they had left the princess. “Alas! Alas! Cried the prince, “some misfortune has happened to her. She has been stolen or killed.”

“Not so,” said the king. “Very likely she has gone in search of us, and will soon return.”

However, it was many years before the princess returned to her husband and the king and queen. The following morning she departed, and walked on day after day till she reached another country. Here, disguised as a man, she pretended to be the son of a merchant, and that her name was Ganpat Rai. Attracted by her frank and ready manner, a wealthy merchant of the place gave her employment. This merchant had three wives, but no son. The reason of this was, that the night after any of his wives gave birth to a son a dagin (ogress) appeared and devoured it.

It happened that while Ganpat Rai was in the service of the merchant, a little boy was born to the merchant. “I wish,” he said to Ganpat rai, whom he quickly found he could trust with all his business, “I wish you would stay by the door of the bedroom this night and ward off the dagin. She will certainly come and attempt to seize the child.”

“Very well,” she replied.

At midnight the dagin came, and rushed to burst open the door, when Ganpat Rai prevented her. On this the dagin made a dash at Ganpat Rai, who seized her by the hair and threw her down. “Oh, spare my life, spare my life!” cried the dagin. “I promise you that I will never trouble this house any more. Spare me, and let me go. Here, take this handkerchief as a witness of my promise.”

The princess complied, and the dagin went. The next morning, when the merchant heard what had transpired during the night, he was exceedingly pleased. “You have rendered me such service as I shall never be able to repay,” he said. “You must remain in my house as long as you live. I will give you my sister in marriage.”

Ganpat Rai had not long been married to the merchant’s sister, when the former expressed a wish to see her parents again, and entreated the merchant to allow her to depart with her wife. At first the merchant strongly demurred, but eventually he gave his sanction.

On reaching her own country Ganpat Rai searched far and wife for her husband and the king and queen, and at last found them in a small village begging. They did not recognize her, because she was dressed in man’s clothes. One evening she put on her own clothes, and went to them. She was soon recognized then. “My darling wife!” exclaimed the prince. “My long-lost child!” exclaimed the king and queen, as they rushed forward to embrace her. “Where have you been? What has happened to you? We thought you were stolen or dead, and never expected to see you again.” There was great joy in all their hearts that night. The princess took them all three to the house where she was staying with the merchant’s sister, and introduced them to her. She then told them all that she had experienced since she had left them – how she had served a merchant in a certain country, and how Allah had prospered her, so that she was now married to the sister of that merchant and possessed enormous wealth. Afterwards she discovered her real sex to the merchant’s sister, and begged her not to be angry at this deceit, but to be married to her husband, who was a prince, and come and live together with them.

As soon as these private matters had been arranged, the princess gathered all the disbanded troops of her father-in-law, and, distributing much money amongst them, stirred them up to fight for the recovery of their kingdom and their liberty. A great spirit of enthusiasm was kindled among these soldiers. They were ready to do and dare anything for their king and country.

A battle took place, the citadel was taken, and the foreign king and his army were put to flight.

Sources:

Folk-Tales of Kashmir, J Hinton Knowles, 1893