The Naked Queen and the One-Eyed Heron / कन्हा बगुला आ नांगइट रानी

Documented by Coralynn V. Davis and Carlos Gomez
Transcription by Nidhi Anand and Translation by Neeraj Kumar

Teller: Sagar Devi
Location: Narayan Patti
Date: 9/15/16

September 15, 2016: Session 6
Maithili Folklore 16_09_15_6

View the transcription in Maithili.

एकटा राजा रहैथ, आ रानी रहैथ l रानी गेली नहाय लै नदी किनार में l नदी किनार में गेली त ओ बेलंगे लंगे नहेली जे हम रानी छी त अपन नंगटे नहैब l

Once upon a time, there was a king and a queen. The queen went to bathe at the riverside. She started bathing naked, reasoning, “Since I am a queen, I can bathe naked if I want.”

ओइ ठाम बगुला सब चारौर करैत रहैयl एकटा कन्हा बगुला रहय, ओकरा अचरज लागि गेलय कि जे इ रानी छथि, आ कहय छथिन जे हम नंगटे नहैबl

Some herons were making a ruckus over there. One of the herons, a cross-eyed, was astonished to see that, “She is the queen, and yet she professes that she will bathe naked!”

त कि त ओ बगुला के हँसी लागि गेलय, त रानी के बड़ दिक्कत भ गेलन, आइन लागि गेलनl त ओ रानी अपन एली आ घर में धुक धुक क पड़ि रहली l

And at this the heron couldn’t resist laughing. The queen saw this and took it as an offence. So she returned home and threw herself down on her bed in anger. 

त राजा एलन त पुछलखिन, किय घर में पड़ि रहलऊं? आ त बगुला हमरा देख क से हंसि देलक l

जते बगुला छै से सब के मारि दियउ l 

When the king arrived and saw her like that, he asked, “Why are you lying like this in your room?” The queen replied, “A heron laughed at me. Go kill all the herons there.” 

कहलकय ठीक छै l त पठउलक सिपाही के राजा जो बगुला के बजा ला सबटा के l सिपाही गेलl

He replied, “OK.” He ordered a soldier, “Go and summon the herons to the courtyard.” The soldier departed.

त कन्हा बगुला रहै अंतर्यामी, त बगुला सब के कहलकय कि हरे धुर ,कन्हि पोठी कि खाइ छै, चल नकटा झील में रोहू बुआरि नइ पूछय छै क्यो, त चल ओते खइहैं, छोड़ इ देसरा केl 

The cross-eyed heron was omniscient. He told the other herons, “Hey, why the hell have you been eating these measly kanhi-pothi fish. Let’s go to Nakta Lake. Rohu and buari fish are abundant there, so let us eat there exclusively, and forget about the local ones here.”

ओ त बुझि गेलय राजा के सिपाही एतय, बोलाहट हेतय ड्योढ़ी पर l बस सबटा बगुला उड़ क चलि गेल नकटा झीलl सिपाही सब एलय l एकोटा बगुले नइ l तब पता लगलै त चल गेल नकटा झील l

Actually he knew that a soldier would come and all of them would be called to the king’s courtyard. So, he instructed all other herons there to fly down to Nakta Lake. So, when the soldiers reached their old location, none were to be found. Then the soldiers came to know that all the herons had left for Nakta Lake.

नकटा झील गेलय त बगुला के कहलकय, “रे बगुला सब, राजा के बोलाहट छउ, से चलही l” कहलकय, “ठीक छै, अहाँ चलु हम आबइ छी l” 

When they found the herons at Nakta Lake, they told them, “Hey, herons! The king has ordered all of you to come see him.” The herons replied, “OK, you go ahead and we’ll follow.” 

सिपाही आयल, आ बगुला सब सबटा को को क क सबटा खसल राजा के ड्योढ़ी पर l त राजा पूछलकय बगुला के जे तू सब देसरा छोड़ि क कता चलि जाइ छैl कहलकय जे, नइ बुझलियय राजा, हमरा सब के जाति नामा में बड़का मीटिंग छलय यै, त वैहे फैसला में हम सब छलिययl 

The soldiers returned. And the herons followed swiftly, squcking, to the king’s courtyard. Then the king asked them, “Hey, where do you all go, leaving behind the local fish!” They replied, “Didn’t you know, my lord, a grand meeting had been called for the community of our kind, so we were there when the decision was made.”

त कि छलय मीटिंग? मीटिंग यै छलय राजा, जे मर्द स बेसी मौगी छलय, बुझलियय जनाब, हमरा सब के मीटिंग में यै फैसला छलय कि मर्द स बेसी मौगी छलयl कहलकय राजा कि, जो, तोहर फैसला भ गेलउ l

The king asked, “What was the meeting for?” The herons replied, “The decision was only this, that ‘There were more women than men’. You got it, my lord?” The king replied, “OK, you may go. My judgement concerning you has been made.”

बगुला सब चलि गेल l फेर रानी के दुख छुटबे नइ करे l फेर ओ प्रात भेने बगुला के बजेलक सिपाही स, से जो सबटा बगुला के बजा ला l 

The herons left. But the queen’s anguish didn’t leave her. The king ordered the soldiers once again the next morning, “Ask all the herons to appear.”

त फेर गेल सिपाही ओ नकटा झील बगुला सब के बजबय लै, त कहलकय, “रे बगुला सब फेर राजा स बोलाहट छउ, से चलही l”कहलकय, “ठीक छै, जाऊ हम आबइ छी l”

The soldiers went to Nakta Lake again to call them, saying, “Hey herons, again there is a call from the king, so let’s go.” The herons replied, “OK, fine. You go ahead and we will arrive shortly.”

सिपाही आयल, आ बगुला सब फेर पाछु स आयल, सबटा खसल ह हा क राजा के ड्योढ़ी पर l फेर राजा पूछलकय, जे तू सब कता चलि जाइ छै अपन देसरा छोड़ क ? त नइ बुझलियय सरकार, हमरा सब के जाति नामा में बड़ भारी के पंचयती छै l 

The soldiers returned, and the herons followed. All of them came running to the king’s courtyard. The king asked once again, “Where do you guys go, leaving behind the local fish?” The herons replied, “Didn’t you know, my lord, a very important meeting had been called for the community of our kind.”

त कि पंचयती छउ? त मुंह स बेसी गाइंरे छै l

बुझलियय राजा, मुंह स बेसी गाइंर छै l

The king asked, “What was the meeting for?” The herons replied, “There are more bums than mouths.” (an old proverb that is told to somebody when their words have no value.) The herons repeated, “You got it, my lord? There are more bums than mouths.”

राजा बुझि गेलयl एकरा त हम दू दिन बजा लेलीयय, कालि कहलीयय जे भ गेलउ पंचयती तोहर, से मौगी बात हम पतिएलौ, त हम मौगी भ गेलऊँl आ कालि कहि देलियय एकरा जे जो तोहर फैसला भ गेल छउ, आइ एकरा फेर बजेलीयय त मुंह भ गेल हमर गाइंर, त ताएं तू जो, भ गेलउ फैसलाl

The king well understood the point. He told himself, “I called for these herons on two different days. Yesterday I told them that I had made a decision about their fate. By saying that, I first denigrated myself to the status of a woman, as I had believed a woman’s words. Now as I have called them again today, despite telling them yesterday that a decision about their fate had already been taken, my mouth was downgraded to an ass.” So the king told them, “Go. My judgement of you is completed..”

खिस्सो भ गेल खत्म l

The story is over and done.