Kabanata Kabanata 16 · The Son of Seven Queens

. The Son of Seven Queens

Once upon a time there lived a King who had seven Queens, but no

children. This was a great grief to him, especially when he remembered

that on his death there would be no heir to inherit the kingdom.

Now it happened one day that a poor old fakir came to the King, and

said, "Your prayers are heard, your desire shall be accomplished, and

one of your seven Queens shall bear a son."

The King's delight at this promise knew no bounds, and he gave orders

for appropriate festivities to be prepared against the coming event

throughout the length and breadth of the land.

Meanwhile the seven Queens lived luxuriously in a splendid palace,

attended by hundreds of female slaves, and fed to their hearts'

content on sweetmeats and confectionery.

Now the King was very fond of hunting, and one day, before he started,

the seven Queens sent him a message saying, "May it please our dearest

lord not to hunt towards the north to-day, for we have dreamt bad

dreams, and fear lest evil should befall you."

[Illustration:]

The King, to allay their anxiety, promised regard for their wishes,

and set out towards the south; but as luck would have it, although he

hunted diligently, he found no game. Nor had he more success to the

east or west, so that, being a keen sportsman, and determined not to

go home empty-handed, he forgot all about his promise, and turned to

the north. Here also he was at first unsuccessful, but just as he had

made up his mind to give up for that day, a white hind with golden

horns and silver hoofs flashed past him into a thicket. So quickly did

it pass that he scarcely saw it; nevertheless a burning desire to

capture and possess the beautiful strange creature filled his breast.

He instantly ordered his attendants to form a ring round the thicket,

and so encircle the hind; then, gradually narrowing the circle, he

pressed forward till he could distinctly see the white hind panting in

the midst. Nearer and nearer he advanced, till, just as he thought to

lay hold of the beautiful strange creature, it gave one mighty bound,

leapt clean over the King's head, and fled towards the mountains.

Forgetful of all else, the King, setting spurs to his horse, followed

at full speed. On, on he galloped, leaving his retinue far behind,

keeping the white hind in view, never drawing bridle, until, finding

himself in a narrow ravine with no outlet, he reined in his steed.

Before him stood a miserable hovel, into which, being tired after his

long, unsuccessful chase, he entered to ask for a drink of water. An

old woman, seated in the hut at a spinning-wheel, answered his request

by calling to her daughter, and immediately from an inner room came a

maiden so lovely and charming, so white-skinned and golden-haired,

that the King was transfixed by astonishment at seeing so beautiful a

sight in the wretched hovel.

She held the vessel of water to the King's lips, and as he drank he

looked into her eyes, and then it became clear to him that the girl

was no other than the white hind with the golden horns and silver feet

he had chased so far.

Her beauty bewitched him, so he fell on his knees, begging her to

return with him as his bride; but she only laughed, saying seven

Queens were quite enough even for a King to manage. However, when he

would take no refusal, but implored her to have pity on him, promising

her everything she could desire, she replied, "Give me the eyes of

your seven Queens, and then perhaps I may believe you mean what you

say."

The King was so carried away by the glamour of the white hind's

magical beauty, that he went home at once, had the eyes of his seven

Queens taken out, and, after throwing the poor blind creatures into a

noisome dungeon whence they could not escape, set off once more for

the hovel in the ravine, bearing with him his horrible offering. But

the white hind only laughed cruelly when she saw the fourteen eyes,

and threading them as a necklace, flung it round her mother's neck,

saying, "Wear that, little mother, as a keepsake, whilst I am away in

the King's palace."

Then she went back with the bewitched monarch, as his bride, and he

gave her the seven Queens' rich clothes and jewels to wear, the seven

Queens' palace to live in, and the seven Queens' slaves to wait upon

her; so that she really had everything even a witch could desire.

Now, very soon after the seven wretched hapless Queens had their eyes

torn out, and were cast into prison, a baby was born to the youngest

of the Queens. It was a handsome boy, but the other Queens were very

jealous that the youngest amongst them should be so fortunate. But

though at first they disliked the handsome little boy, he soon proved

so useful to them, that ere long they all looked on him as their son.

Almost as soon as he could walk about he began scraping at the mud

wall of their dungeon, and in an incredibly short space of time had

made a hole big enough for him to crawl through. Through this he

disappeared, returning in an hour or so laden with sweetmeats, which

he divided equally amongst the seven blind Queens.

As he grew older he enlarged the hole, and slipped out two or three

times every day to play with the little nobles in the town. No one

knew who the tiny boy was, but everybody liked him, and he was so full

of funny tricks and antics, so merry and bright, that he was sure to

be rewarded by some girdle-cakes, a handful of parched grain, or some

sweetmeats. All these things he brought home to his seven mothers, as

he loved to call the seven blind Queens, who by his help lived on in

their dungeon when all the world thought they had starved to death

ages before.

At last, when he was quite a big lad, he one day took his bow and

arrow, and went out to seek for game. Coming by chance past the palace

where the white hind lived in wicked splendour and magnificence, he

saw some pigeons fluttering round the white marble turrets, and,

taking good aim, shot one dead. It came tumbling past the very window

where the white Queen was sitting; she rose to see what was the

matter, and looked out. At the first glance of the handsome young lad

standing there bow in hand, she knew by witchcraft that it was the

King's son.

She nearly died of envy and spite, determining to destroy the lad

without delay; therefore, sending a servant to bring him to her

presence, she asked him if he would sell her the pigeon he had just

shot.

"No," replied the sturdy lad, "the pigeon is for my seven blind

mothers, who live in the noisome dungeon, and who would die if I did

not bring them food."

"Poor souls!" cried the cunning white witch; "would you not like to

bring them their eyes again? Give me the pigeon, my dear, and I

faithfully promise to show you where to find them."

Hearing this, the lad was delighted beyond measure, and gave up the

pigeon at once. Whereupon the white Queen told him to seek her mother

without delay, and ask for the eyes which she wore as a necklace.

"She will not fail to give them," said the cruel Queen, "if you show

her this token on which I have written what I want done."

So saying, she gave the lad a piece of broken potsherd, with these

words inscribed on it--"Kill the bearer at once, and sprinkle his

blood like water!"

Now, as the son of seven Queens could not read, he took the fatal

message cheerfully, and set off to find the white Queen's mother.

Whilst he was journeying he passed through a town, where every one of

the inhabitants looked so sad, that he could not help asking what was

the matter. They told him it was because the King's only daughter

refused to marry; so when her father died there would be no heir to

the throne. They greatly feared she must be out of her mind, for

though every good-looking young man in the kingdom had been shown to

her, she declared she would only marry one who was the son of seven

mothers, and who ever heard of such a thing? The King, in despair, had

ordered every man who entered the city gates to be led before the

Princess; so, much to the lad's impatience, for he was in an immense

hurry to find his mothers' eyes, he was dragged into the

presence-chamber.

No sooner did the Princess catch sight of him than she blushed, and,

turning to the King, said, "Dear father, this is my choice!"

Never were such rejoicings as these few words produced.

[Illustration: THE SON OF SEVEN MOTHERS]

The inhabitants nearly went wild with joy, but the son of seven

Queens said he would not marry the Princess unless they first let him

recover his mothers' eyes. When the beautiful bride heard his story,

she asked to see the potsherd, for she was very learned and clever.

Seeing the treacherous words, she said nothing, but taking another

similar-shaped bit of potsherd, she wrote on it these words--"Take

care of this lad, giving him all he desires," and returned it to the

son of seven Queens, who, none the wiser, set off on his quest.

Ere long he arrived at the hovel in the ravine where the white witch's

mother, a hideous old creature, grumbled dreadfully on reading the

message, especially when the lad asked for the necklace of eyes.

Nevertheless she took it off, and gave it him, saying, "There are only

thirteen of 'em now, for I lost one last week."

The lad, however, was only too glad to get any at all, so he hurried

home as fast as he could to his seven mothers, and gave two eyes

apiece to the six elder Queens; but to the youngest he gave one,

saying, "Dearest little mother!--I will be your other eye always!"

After this he set off to marry the Princess, as he had promised, but

when passing by the white Queen's palace he saw some pigeons on the

roof. Drawing his bow, he shot one, and it came fluttering past the

window. The white hind looked out, and lo! there was the King's son

alive and well.

She cried with hatred and disgust, but sending for the lad, asked him

how he had returned so soon, and when she heard how he had brought

home the thirteen eyes, and given them to the seven blind Queens, she

could hardly restrain her rage. Nevertheless she pretended to be

charmed with his success, and told him that if he would give her this

pigeon also, she would reward him with the Jogi's wonderful cow, whose

milk flows all day long, and makes a pond as big as a kingdom. The

lad, nothing loth, gave her the pigeon; whereupon, as before, she bade

him go ask her mother for the cow, and gave him a potsherd whereon was

written--"Kill this lad without fail, and sprinkle his blood like

water!"

But on the way the son of seven Queens looked in on the Princess, just

to tell her how he came to be delayed, and she, after reading the

message on the potsherd, gave him another in its stead; so that when

the lad reached the old hag's hut and asked her for the Jogi's cow,

she could not refuse, but told the boy how to find it; and bidding him

of all things not to be afraid of the eighteen thousand demons who

kept watch and ward over the treasure, told him to be off before she

became too angry at her daughter's foolishness in thus giving away so

many good things.

Then the lad did as he had been told bravely. He journeyed on and on

till he came to a milk-white pond, guarded by the eighteen thousand

demons. They were really frightful to behold, but, plucking up

courage, he whistled a tune as he walked through them, looking neither

to the right nor the left. By-and-by he came upon the Jogi's cow,

tall, white, and beautiful, while the Jogi himself, who was king of

all the demons, sat milking her day and night, and the milk streamed

from her udder, filling the milk-white tank.

The Jogi, seeing the lad, called out fiercely, "What do you want

here?"

Then the lad answered, according to the old hag's bidding, "I want

your skin, for King Indra is making a new kettle-drum, and says your

skin is nice and tough."

Upon this the Jogi began to shiver and shake (for no Jinn or Jogi

dares disobey King Indra's command), and, falling at the lad's feet,

cried, "If you will spare me I will give you anything I possess, even

my beautiful white cow!"

To this the son of seven Queens, after a little pretended hesitation,

agreed, saying that after all it would not be difficult to find a nice

tough skin like the Jogi's elsewhere; so, driving the wonderful cow

before him, he set off homewards. The seven Queens were delighted to

possess so marvellous an animal, and though they toiled from morning

till night making curds and whey, besides selling milk to the

confectioners, they could not use half the cow gave, and became richer

and richer day by day.

Seeing them so comfortably off, the son of seven Queens started with a

light heart to marry the Princess; but when passing the white hind's

palace he could not resist sending a bolt at some pigeons which were

cooing on the parapet. One fell dead just beneath the window where the

white Queen was sitting. Looking out, she saw the lad hale and hearty

standing before her, and grew whiter than ever with rage and spite.

She sent for him to ask how he had returned so soon, and when she

heard how kindly her mother had received him, she very nearly had a

fit; however, she dissembled her feelings as well as she could, and,

smiling sweetly, said she was glad to have been able to fulfil her

promise, and that if he would give her this third pigeon, she would do

yet more for him than she had done before, by giving him the

million-fold rice, which ripens in one night.

The lad was of course delighted at the very idea, and, giving up the

pigeon, set off on his quest, armed as before with a potsherd, on

which was written, "Do not fail this time. Kill the lad, and sprinkle

his blood like water!"

But when he looked in on his Princess, just to prevent her becoming

anxious about him, she asked to see the potsherd as usual, and

substituted another, on which was written, "Yet again give this lad

all he requires, for his blood shall be as your blood!"

Now when the old hag saw this, and heard how the lad wanted the

million-fold rice which ripens in a single night, she fell into the

most furious rage, but being terribly afraid of her daughter, she

controlled herself, and bade the boy go and find the field guarded by

eighteen millions of demons, warning him on no account to look back

after having plucked the tallest spike of rice, which grew in the

centre.

So the son of seven Queens set off, and soon came to the field where,

guarded by eighteen millions of demons, the million-fold rice grew. He

walked on bravely, looking neither to the right or left, till he

reached the centre and plucked the tallest ear, but as he turned

homewards a thousand sweet voices rose behind him, crying in tenderest

accents, "Pluck me too! oh, please pluck me too!" He looked back, and

lo! there was nothing left of him but a little heap of ashes!

Now as time passed by and the lad did not return, the old hag grew

uneasy, remembering the message "his blood shall be as your blood"; so

she set off to see what had happened.

Soon she came to the heap of ashes, and knowing by her arts what it

was, she took a little water, and kneading the ashes into a paste,

formed it into the likeness of a man; then, putting a drop of blood

from her little finger into its mouth, she blew on it, and instantly

the son of seven Queens started up as well as ever.

"Don't you disobey orders again!" grumbled the old hag, "or next time

I'll leave you alone. Now be off, before I repent of my kindness!"

[Illustration:]

So the son of seven Queens returned joyfully to his seven mothers,

who, by the aid of the million-fold rice, soon became the richest

people in the kingdom. Then they celebrated their son's marriage to

the clever Princess with all imaginable pomp; but the bride was so

clever, she would not rest until she had made known her husband to his

father, and punished the wicked white witch. So she made her husband

build a palace exactly like the one in which the seven Queens had

lived, and in which the white witch now dwelt in splendour. Then, when

all was prepared, she bade her husband give a grand feast to the King.

Now the King had heard much of the mysterious son of seven Queens, and

his marvellous wealth, so he gladly accepted the invitation; but what

was his astonishment when on entering the palace he found it was a

facsimile of his own in every particular! And when his host, richly

attired, led him straight to the private hall, where on royal thrones

sat the seven Queens, dressed as he had last seen them, he was

speechless with surprise, until the Princess, coming forward, threw

herself at his feet, and told him the whole story. Then the King awoke

from his enchantment, and his anger rose against the wicked white hind

who had bewitched him so long, until he could not contain himself. So

she was put to death, and her grave ploughed over, and after that the

seven Queens returned to their own splendid palace, and everybody

lived happily.