Shut up! How come you said that? You are very clear about the fact that I have no son. But you said that my son is Manas. If Qalmaq tribesmen know what you said, my life will be lost at once,” Jakip yelled out in anguish. Adelbek had no choice but to ride back on his horse.
What the widow’s son and the old people had described puzzled Jakip. He did not know whether he should trust them or not.
“Oh, Allah! You are so miserly,
You bestow offspring on the forest,
You bestow descendants on the huge mountains,
Only I, a lonely oldy,
can not get your blessing. Why?
Everyone despises me for my lack of offspring.
And will this be the permanent fate that I should suffer?
If my wife remains to live in solitude without any change in the forest,
I might not rid myself of the embarrassment resulting from others’ ridicule.”
“It’s too late for me to send my wife back home right now. I will do that tomorrow,” Jakip said to himself on the way home. While lying on his bed, Jakip was haunted by the remarks of the old person and the widow’s son from time to time. What they said got him to be on edge. “The old person is cautious and is bound to keep the secret for me. But I am not sure if the widow’s son will keep the secret for me or not. As soon as he lets the cat out of the bag, the Qalmaq clan members will kill me by sucking up every single drop of my blood. So, I should manage to prevent the widow’s son from leaking the secret,” Jakip said to himself.
Jakip sent someone fetching an untamed horse at once. He asked the widow’s son to mount onto the horseback which was covered with a loose saddle. The widow’s son had hardly sat on the saddle when Jakip unleashed the rein of the boisterous horse. The horse kept leaping up and down while galloping through the meandering path in the woods. The widow’s son lost control of the boisterous horse and was flung onto the ground violently eventually. The poor guy died of the wounds caused by his fall from horseback. As the night fell, Jakip sneaked into his home.
Jakip did not leak any information about the victim even to his wife. Instead, he took the place of the widow’s son following the death of the poor
Invasion of Kyrgyz Nationality’s Territories by Alooke and Manas’
9
Birth at a Time of Danger and Adversity
teenager. Every a couple of days, he took the responsibility of sending his wife the food and yoghurt which were wrapped up in a piece of sheepskin. With tears bathing her cheeks, Chiyirdi had such a hard time in the woods that each day seemed like a year. On one day, leading a solitary life in the woods took her back to her wedding. Such a sweet memory enabled her to regain the initial shyness and joy that only a pure bride could own. Moreover, she felt as if her blood had been boiling all over with the sexual ardor before her body turned out to be limp and fell asleep. After waking up on the following day, she became much keener to wait for the arrival of her husband than ever. “Will Jakip come pretty soon?” she said to herself.
The couple dated with each other near the sweet spring after Chiyirdi moved to the inconspicuous land tucked away in the dense forest. On one day, Chiyirdi was in such a good mood all of a sudden that she felt as fit as a fiddle after waking up. The sense of ebullience that could not be expounded easily seemed to fill her mind, replacing the previous fits of anger and frustration. She used the limpid spring water to wash her hair, awaiting the arrival of Jakip whole-heartedly. As a matter of fact, Jakip had already made it to where his wife stayed. Instead of saying hello to his wife, Jakip stood behind a tree and carefully observed his wife’s behaviors. He caught sight of the delight and shyness which once existed in the eyes of his wife. Jakip’s pleasant countenance substituted for the past look of indifference. He walked towards his wife in a gentle way, holding the woman in his arms tightly. After hearing about what was going on in his wife’s dream, Jakip drove the black bull carrying his wife back home as soon as possible. Chiyirdi became pregnant and looked more charming than before.
Jakip’s kind-hearted wife was extremely grieved by the death of the widow’s son. Jakip asked his housemaid named Bakdowlet to fetch Markdoom at once. Having imparted the tragic news to the widow, Jakip kept on consoling her in a gentle voice. “Given the fact that Allah puts everything under control, there is difficulty in pointing out the persons who can shake off the shackles of the death. I asked him to chase the camels straying away from home. However, I was unable to expect that he would die from the injuries caused by a boisterous horse,” Jakip said. The widow abandoned herself to grief with which she was so overwhelmed that she could hardly wish to live. She wept
Legend of Manas
all day long, pronouncing a curse on the world for its injustice. She cried in a loud voice that even woke up Adelbek who fell asleep at home. Thus, he left for the village surrounded by the pasture land in attempt to give her a few words of comfort.
Adelbek thought that Markdoom’s cries would alert the Qalmaq clans’ leaders sooner or later inevitably. At that moment, Chiyirdi’s child would lose his life. An idea occurred to him: “What if Jakip ties the knot with the wretched widow with the help of me?” Then, he walked towards Jakip who was cursed with the bad luck. He said:
“My dear Jakip, just listen to me please,
I would like to tell you the truth.
If you present the livestock to her,
She will be cheated for a short while,
If you bestow wealth on her,
What you do will be nothing but a stalling tactics.
As the livestock and wealth run out,
The helpless widow, Markdoom,
Will pester you for the time being,
For the sake of her deceased son.
She turned 30 just now,
And she is the gorgeous woman with a spellbinding appearance,
In addition, she is readily showing love for men.
Your herds of cattle and sheep scatter across the grassland,
Just like a great deal of forage grass blanketing the ground.
Your wealth is piled up mountain high,
So that you won’t run out of it for your lifetime.