7. Creation of the their some earth. God said he would make part of the crab's body hard, and he made its back hard, as it still remains. The crab then dived to the bottom of the sea, where it found Kenchna, the earth-worm. It caught hold of Kenchna by the neck with its claws and the mark thus made is still to be seen on the earth-worm's neck. Then the earth-worm brought up earth out of its mouth and the crab brought this to God, and God scattered it over the sea and patches of land appeared. God then walked over the earth and a boil came on his hand, and out of it Mahādeo and Pārvati were born. 1 From Mahadeo's urine numerous vegetables began to Gonds and spring up. Parvati ate of these and became pregnant and gave birth to eighteen threshing-floors of Brahman gods and twelve threshing-floors of Gond gods. All the Gonds were scattered over the jungle. They behaved like Gonds and not like good Hindus, with lamentable results, as follows: 2 imprisonment by Mahādeo. Hither and thither all the Gonds were scattered in the jungle. Even trees had their Gonds. How did the Gonds conduct themselves? If they saw a jackal they killed And ate it; no distinction was observed; they respected not antelope, They made no distinction in eating a sow, a quail, a pigeon, A lizard, a frog, a beetle, a cow, a calf, a he- and she-buffalo, So began the Gonds to do. They devoured raw and ripe things; They did not wash their faces properly, even on dunghills they would fall down and remain. Such were the Gonds born in the beginning. A smell was spread over the jungle When the Gonds were thus disorderly behaved; they became disagreeable to Mahadeva, Who said: "The caste of the Gonds is very bad; I will not preserve them; they will ruin my hill Dhawalgiri." Mahadeo then determined to get rid of the Gonds. With this view he invited them all to a meeting. 1 Deo-khulla or threshing-floor of the gods. See section on Religion. II THE BIRTH AND HISTORY OF LINGO 51 down Mahādeo made a squirrel from the rubbings of his body and let it loose in the middle of the Gonds. All the Gonds at once got up and began to chase it, hoping for a meal. They seized sticks and stones and clods of earth, and their unkempt hair flew in the wind. The squirrel dodged about and ran away, and finally, directed by Mahadeo, ran into a large cave with all the Gonds after it. Mahadeo then rolled a large stone to the mouth of the cave and shut up all the Gonds in it. Only four remained outside, and they fled away to Kachikopa Lohāgarh, or the Iron Cave in the Red Hill, and lived there. Meanwhile Parvati perceived that the smell of the Gonds, which had pleased her, had vanished from Dhawalgiri. She desired it to be restored and commenced a devotion. For six months she fasted and practised austerities. Bhagwan (God) was swinging in a swing. He was disturbed by Pārvati's devotion. He sent Nārāyan (the sun) to see who was fasting. Nārāyan came and found Parvati and asked her what she wanted. She said that she missed her Gonds and wanted them back. Nārāyan told Bhagwan, who promised that they should be given back. history of The yellow flowers of the tree Pahindi were growing 8. The on Dhawalgiri. Bhagwan sent thunder and lightning, and birth and the flower conceived. First fell from it a heap of turmeric Lingo. or saffron. In the morning the sun came out, the flower burst open, and Lingo was born. Lingo was a perfect child. He had a diamond on his navel and a sandalwood mark on his forehead. He fell from the flower into the heap of turmeric. He played in the turmeric and slept in a swing. He became nine years old. He said there was no one there like him, and he would go where he could find his fellows. He climbed a needle-like hill,1 and from afar off he saw Kachikopa Lohagarh and the four Gonds. He came to them. They saw he was like them, and asked him to be their brother. They ate only animals. Lingo asked them to find for him an animal without a liver, and they searched all through the forest and could not. Then Lingo told them to cut down trees and make a field. They tried to cut down the anjan 2 trees, but their hands were blistered 1 Dhupgarh in Pachmarhi might be indicated, which has a steep summit. 2 Terminalia arjuna. Lingo had been asleep. He and they could not go on. woke up and saw they had only cut down one or two trees. He took the axe and cut down many trees, and fenced a field and made a gate to it. Black soil appeared. It began to rain, and rained without ceasing for three days. All the rivers and streams were filled. The field became green with rice, and it grew up. There were sixteen score of nilgai or blue-bull. They had two leaders, an old bull and his nephew. The young bull saw the rice of Lingo's field and wished to eat it. The uncle told him not to eat of the field of Lingo or all the nilgai would be killed. But the young bull did not heed, and took off all the nilgai to eat the rice. When they got to the field they could find no entrance, so they jumped the fence, which was five cubits high. They ate all the rice from off the field and ran away. The young bull told them as they ran to put their feet on leaves and stones and boughs and grass, and not on the ground, so that they might not be tracked. Lingo woke up and went to see his field, and found all the rice eaten. He knew the nilgai had done it, and showed the brothers how to track them by the few marks which they had by accident made on the ground. They did so, and surrounded the nilgai and killed them all with their bows and arrows except the old uncle, from whom Lingo's arrow rebounded harmlessly on account of his innocence, and one young doe. From these two the nilgai race was preserved. Then Lingo told the Gonds to make fire and roast the deer as follows: He said, I will show you something; see if anywhere in your But the matches did not ignite. As they were doing this, a watch of the night passed. They threw down the matches, and said to Lingo, Thou art a Saint; Show us where our fire is, and why it does not come out. Lingo said: Three koss (six miles) hence is Rikad Gawādi the giant. There is fire in his field; where smoke shall appear, go there, Come not back without bringing fire. Thus said Lingo. They said, We have never seen the place, where shall we go? Ye have never seen where this fire is? Lingo said; I will discharge an arrow thither. Go in the direction of the arrow; there you will get fire. He applied the arrow, and having pulled the bow, he discharged one: It crashed on, breaking twigs and making its passage clear. II THE BIRTH AND HISTORY OF LINGO 53 Having cut through the high grass, it made its way and reached the old man's place (above mentioned). The arrow dropped close to the fire of the old man, who had daughters. The arrow was near the door. As soon as they saw it, the daughters came and took it up, And kept it. They asked their father: When will you give us in marriage? Thus said the seven sisters, the daughters of the old man. I will marry you as I think best for you; Remain as you are. So said the old man, the Rikad Gawādi. Lingo said, Hear, O brethren ! Go there, and you will see fire; I shot an arrow, it made its way. Each said to the other, I will not go; but (at last) the youngest went. He descried the fire, and went to it; then beheld he an old man looking like the trunk of a tree. He saw from afar the old man's field, around which a hedge was made. The old man kept only one way to it, and fastened a screen to the entrance, and had a fire in the centre of the field. He placed logs of the Mahua and Anjun and Sāj trees on the fire, The fire blazed up, and warmed by the heat of it, in deep sleep lay the Rikad Gawādi. Thus the old man like a giant did appear. beheld him, he shivered; When the young Gond His heart leaped; and he was much afraid in his mind, and said : man. That spark was as large as a pot; the giant was blistered; he awoke alarmed. And said: I am hungry, and I cannot get food to eat anywhere; I feel a desire for flesh; Like a tender cucumber hast thou come to me. the Gond, Who began to fly. The old man followed him. away the brand which he had stolen. So said the old man to The Gond then threw He ran onward, and was not caught. Then the old man, being tired, turned back. Thence he returned to his field, and came near the fire and sat, and said, What nonsense is this? A tender prey had come within my reach; I said I will cut it up as soon as I can, but it escaped from my hand! Let it go; it will come again, then I will catch it. It has gone now. Then what happened? the Gond returned and came to his brethren. And said to them: Hear, O brethren, I went for fire, as you sent me, to that field; I beheld an old man like a giant. With hands stretched out and feet lifted up. I ran. I thus survived with difficulty. The brethren said to Lingo, We will not go. Lingo said, Sit ye here. O brethren, what sort of a person is this giant? I will go and see him. So saying, Lingo went away and reached a river. He thence arose and went onward. gourds. As he looked, he saw in front three Then he saw a bamboo stick, which he took up. When the river was flooded It washed away a gourd tree, and its seed fell, and each stem produced bottle-gourds. He inserted a bamboo stick in the hollow of the gourd and made a guitar. He plucked two hairs from his head and strung it. He held a bow and fixed eleven keys to that one stick, and played on it. Lingo was much pleased in his mind. Holding it in his hand, he walked in the direction of the old man's field. He approached the fire where Rikad Gawādi was sleeping. The giant seemed like a log lying close to the fire; his teeth were hideously visible; His mouth was gaping. Lingo looked at the old man while sleeping. His eyes were shut. Lingo said, This is not a good time to carry off the old man while he is asleep. In front he looked, and turned round and saw a tree Of the pipal sort standing erect; he beheld its branches with wonder, and looked for a fit place to mount upon. It appeared a very good tree; so he climbed it, and ascended to the top And held it; he gave a stroke, and it sounded well; from it he drew one hundred tunes. It sounded well, as if he was singing with his voice. Thus (as it were) a song was heard. Trees and hills were silent at its sound. The music loudly entered into The old man's ears; he rose in haste, and sat up quickly; lifted up his eyes, And desired to hear (more). He looked hither and thither, but could not make out whence the sound came. The old man said: Whence has a creature come here to-day to sing like the maina bird? He saw a tree, but nothing appeared to him as he looked underneath it. Sometimes sitting, and sometimes standing, jumping, and rolling, he began to dance. The music sounded as the day dawned. the morning and began to look out. His old woman came out in She heard in the direction of the field a melodious music playing. When she arrived near the edge of her field, she heard music in her ears. That old woman called her husband to her. |
