The Nishan Shaman deals with her unexpected acquaintance and comes across the hall of Omosi Mama.

baire de ini eigen weihe be saime seyeme hendume dekdeni baili akv nixan saman sargan si donji mini beye weihun fonde mimbe yadahvn seme yasa gidame fusihvxaha ba umesi labdu kai sini beye mujin i dolo inu getuken i sambi,

baire de [when begging]
ini eigen [her husband]
weihe be [teeth]
saime [grinding]
seyeme [hating]
hendume [said]

dekden-i [rising]
baili akv [merciless]
nixan saman [Nishan Shaman]
sargan [wife]
si [you]
donji [listen]

mini beye [I]
weihun [alive]
fon-de [at time]

mimbe [me]
yadahvn [poor, wretched]
seme [saying]
yasa [eyes]
gidame [shutting]
fusihvxaha [despised]

ba [occasion]
umesi labdu kai [were so many]

sini beye [you]
mujin i dolo [inside of heart]
inu [truly]
getuken i [clearly]
sambi [know]

When she was begging, her husband ground his teeth with hate, and said, “Rising, merciless, Nishan Shaman; wife, you listen!  When I was alive, you called me wretched and shut your eyes, despising me.  So many times!  Clearly you know what is inside your heart.”

ere elei gvnin cihai oho dabala sakda eme be sain ehe erxere erxerakv sini gvnin cihai dabala geli yasa de bisireo enenggi, onggolo, nergin juwe kimun be emu mudan de sinde karulabuki,

ere elei [more than this]
gvnin ciha-i [as one likes] dict. form: gvnin i cihai
oho [were]
dabala [only]

sakda eme be [old mother]
sain [well]
ehe [wrong]
erxere [serve]
erxerakv [do not serve]

sini gvnin cihai [according to your wish]
dabala [only]

geli yasa de [in (both) eyes]
bisireo [is it?]

enenggi [today]
onggolo [before]
nergin [opportunity]
juwe [two]
kimun be [grudges]
emu mudan de [at one time]
sinde [to you]
karulabuki [will be repaid]

“Not only that, you did only as you pleased.  Whether you serve my mother well or not is only according to your whims.  Don’t you see it this way?  Today, before you, I will settle two scores with you at once.”

eici sini beye nimenggi mucen de dosire eici mini beye simbe aname dosimbure be hahilame toktobu serede

eici [either]
sini beye [you]
nimenggi mucen de [to the cauldron of oil]
dosire [get in]

eici [or]
mini beye [I]
simbe [you]
aname [pushing]
dosimbure be [making get in]

hahilame [hurriedly]
toktobu [choose, decide]

serede [said]

“Either you get into this cauldron of oil yourself, or I will throw you in!  Decide, quickly!”

saman dere fularafi jili banjime hvlame hendume haji eigen si donji,
denikun denikun si bucerede
denikun denikun aibe werihe
denikun denikun yadara boigon de
denikun denikun sini sakda eniye be
denikun denikun minde werihe

saman [shaman]
dere [face]
fularafi [having turned red]

jili banjime [lost her temper]
hvlame [said]

haji eigen [beloved husband]
si [you]
donji [listen]

si [you]
bucere-de [when dying]
aibe [what]
werihe [left behind]

yadara boigon de [in poor family/household]
sini sakda eniye be [your old mother]
minde [to me]
werihe [left]

The shaman’s face turned red.  She filled with anger and said, “Listen to me, beloved husband!
Denikun denikun, when you died,
denikun denikun, what did you leave behind?
Denikun denikun, in a poor household,
denikun denikun, your old mother,
denikun denikun, you left to me .”

denikun denikun bi kunduleme ujimbi
denikun denikun faxxame hiyooxulambi
denikun denikun eihen beye
denikun denikun gvnime tuwa
denikun denikun uthai balingga
denikun denikun niyalma inu kai
denikun denikun mangga mujin be
denikun denikun bi tucibufi
denikun denikun simbe majige
denikun denikun amtalambume tuwaki

bi [I]
kunduleme [respecting]
ujimbi [support]

faxxame [troubling]
hiyooxulambi [showing filial piety] from Chinese 孝順 xiào shùn

eihen [husband]
beye [yourself]
gvnime [thinking]
tuwa [watch]

uthai [then]
balingga [merciful] dict. form: bailingga
niyalma [person]
inu kai (is) empathic particles

mangga mujin be [strong will, inspiration, aim]
bi [I]
tucibufi [having shown]

simbe [you]
majige [a little]
amtalambume [put to a test]
tuwaki [will watch]

“Denikun denikun, I support her with respect,
denikun denikun, troubling to be obedient.
Denikun denikun, my husband,
denikun denikun, consider and see,
denikun denikun, therefore merciful,
denikun denikun, a person I am!
Denikun denikun, a strong will,
denikun denikun, I have shown;
Denikun denikun, to you to a little
denikun denikun, test I will put.”

denikun denikun sini kira mangga be
denikun denikun eberebume tuwaki
denikun denikun umesi bade
denikun denikun unggimbi kai
denikun denikun weceku de baime
denikun denikun bujan be xurdere
denikun denikun amba bulehun
denikun denikun hvdun hahi
denikun denikun mini eihen be
denikun denikun xoforome jafafi

sini kira* mangga be [the strength of your corpse]
eberebume [making decline] dict. form: eberembume
tuwaki [will watch]

umesi [very, extreme] distant (?)
ba-de [to place]
unggimbi kai [send]

weceku de [deity]
baime [begging]
bujan be [woods]
xurdere [circling]
amba bulehun [great crane] dict. form: bulehen
hvdun hahi [quick, fast]
mini eihen be [my husband]
xoforome [seizing]
jafafi [having caught]

“Denikun denikun, the strength of your corpse,
denikun denikun,  I will see diminish.
Denikun denikun, to a distant place,
denikun denikun, I will exile you!
Denikun denikun, I will beg the deity
denikun denikun, circling the woods,
denikun denikun, the great crane,
denikun denikun, quickly, urgently,
denikun denikun, my husband,
denikun denikun, it will seize.”

* Probably a misspelling of giran [corpse].

denikun denikun fungtu hoton de
denikun denikun maktafi enteheme
denikun denikun tumen jalan de
denikun denikun niyalmai beyede
denikun denikun banjiburakv obuki
denikun denikun

fungtu hoton de [to Fengdu (city)] from Chinese 鄷都 Fēngdū, hell
maktafi [having thrown]

enteheme [eternally]
tumen jalan de [for ten thousand generations]
niyalma-i beye-de [in a human body]
banjiburakv obuki [will make unable to be reborn]

“Denikun denikun, into Fengdu City
denikun denikun, you will be thrown.  Eternally,
denikun denikun, for ten thousand generations
denikun denikun, in a human body,
denikun denikun, I will make you unable to be reborn!
Denikun denikun!”

hvlara de amba bulehun deyeme genefi

hvlara de [when chanting]

amba bulehun [great crane]
deyeme [flying]
genefi [having come]

While she was chanting, a great crane came flying.

uthai xoforome jafafi deyeme fungtu hoton de maktaha be saman sabufi den jilgan deyangku be hvlame hendume,

uthai [then, immediately]
xoforome [seizing]
jafafi [having caught]

deyeme [flying]
fungtu hoton de [to Fengdu City]
maktaha be [throwing]
saman [shaman]
sabufi [having seen]

den jilgan [high voice]
deyangku be [deyangku]
hvlame [calling]
hendume [said]

Immediately it seized him, and when the shaman saw it fly and throw her husband into Fengdu City, she chanted “deyangku” in a high voice,

deyangku deyangku eigen akv de
deyangku deyangku encehexeme banjiki
deyangku deyangku haha akv de
deyangku deyangku kangtarxame banjiki
deyangku deyangku eniye hvcihin
deyangku deyangku efime banjiki
deyangku deyangku se be amcame
deyangku deyangku sebjeleme banjiki

eigen akv de [when without husband]
encehexeme [capably]
banjiki [will live]

haha akv de [when without man]
kangtarxame [(acting) proudly, with the head high]
banjiki [will live]

eniye [mother]
hvcihin [relative, of the same family, clan] dict. form: hvncihin
efime [playing]
banjiki [will live]

se be [years]
amcame [chasing, catching] “seize the day”?
sebjeleme [being glad]
banjikini [will live]

“Deyangku deyangku, without my husband,
deyangku deyangku, I will live capably!
Deyangku deyangku, without a man,
deyangku deyangku, I will live proudly!
Deyangku deyangku, with the mother relative,
deyangku deyangku, I will live playfully!
Deyangku deyangku, seizing the years,
deyangku deyangku, I will live joyfully!

deyangku deyangku juse akv de
deyangku deyangku julesi ome banjiki
deyangku deyangku hala mukvn akv de
deyangku deyangku hajilame banjiki
deyangku deyangku asigan be amcame
deyangku deyangku antahaxame banjiki
deyangku deyangku

juse akv de [when without children]
julesi ome [forward, ahead]
banjiki [will live]

hala mukvn akv de [when without clan]
hajilame [loving]
banjiki [will live]

asigan be [youth]
amcame [chasing]
antahaxame [being guest]
banjikini [will live]

“Deyangku deyangku, with no children,
deyangku deyangku, I will live on!
Deyangku deyangku, without a clan,
deyangku deyangku, I will live with love!
Deyangku deyangku, chasing youth,
deyangku deyangku, I will live like a guest!
Deyangku deyangku!”

yayame geyeme sergudai fiyanggo i gala be kutuleme edun i adali efime yabume su i adali sujume yabume jihei tuwaci jugvn i dalbade emu taktu be sabubumbi

yayame [mumbling]
geyeme [incantating]

sergudai fiyanggo i [Sergudai Fiyanggo]
gala be [hand]
kutuleme [leading]

edun i adali [like wind]
efime [playing]
yabume [going]

su i adali [like a whirlwind]
sujume [fleeing]
yabume [going]

jihei [coming] descriptive converb, -ha form + instrumental -i
tuwaci [looked]

jugvn i dalba-de [on the wayside]
emu taktu be [a storied building, pavilion]
sabubumbi [saw]

Mumbling this incantation she led Sergudai Fiyanggo by his hand, walking playfully as the wind, then fleeing like a whirlwind.  As they were going, they saw a pavilion by the wayside.

weilehengge umesi horonggo saikan bime, sunja hacin i boconggo tugi borhohobi,

weilehengge [construction, building]
umesi horonggo [very majestic]
saikan [beautiful]
bime [and] lit. being
sunja hacin i boconggo [in five kinds of colours]**
tugi [cloud]
borhohobi [amassed, formed a circle]

Clouds in five colors amassed around this most majestic and beautiful building.
** see second note in part 07.

nixan saman hanci genefi tuwaci dukai jakade juwe aisin uksin saca etuhe enduri selei maitu jafame ilime tuwakiyahabi,

nixan saman [the Nishan Shaman]
hanci [close]
genefi [having come]

tuwaci [looked]

duka-i jaka-de [before the gate]
juwe [two]
aisin uksin saca etuhe [wearing golden armor and helmets]
enduri [spirits]
sele-i maitu [iron maces] cf. langtu [hammer, sledgehammer] from Chinese 榔頭 lángtou
jafame [holding]
ilime [standing]
tuwakiyahabi [guarded]

When the Nishan Shaman came close, she caught sight of two spirits in golden armor and helmets holding iron maces and standing  sentinel at the gate.

nixan saman hanci genefi baime hendume agusa ere aiba bihe, dolo webi getuken alambureo serede

nixan saman [the Nishan Shaman]
hanci [close]
genefi [having come]

baime [asking]
handume [said]

agu-sa [friends]
ere [this]
ai-ba [what place]
bihe [is]

dolo [inside]
webi [who is] normally separated: we bi

getuken [clearly, understandably]
alambureo [please tell]

sere-de [said]

She came closer and asked, “My friends, what place is this? Who is in here? Please, tell me clearly.”

tere enduri alame taktu de bisire abdaha sain de arsubure fulhu saide fusubure, omosi mama tehebi,

tere enduri [these spirits]
alame [spoke]

taktu de [in pavilion]
bisire [being]

abdaha [leaves]
sain de [in good/properly]
arsubure [making sprout]

fulhu [roots] dict. form: fulehe
saide < sain de [in good/ properly]
fusubure [making multiply, spread] dict. form: fusebure

omosi mama [Omosi Mama] goddess of good fortune and fertility, lit. grandmother of descendants
tehebi [lives]

The spirits answered, “Living in this pavilion is Omosi Mama, she who makes the leaves sprout well and the roots spread well.”

nixan saman baime hendume mini jihe ildun de mama de hengkileki sembi, yala ombi ojorakv seme

nixan saman [the Nishan Shaman]
baime [asking]
hendume [said]

mini jihe [my coming]
ildun de [on ocasion/taking adventage of]
mama de [before Mama]
hengkileki [want to kowtow]

sembi [said]

yala [indeed, really]
ombi [may]
ojorakv [may not]
seme [saying]

The Nishan Shaman asked, “I would like to take advantage of my coming here by kowtowing before her; may I or may I not?”

fonjiha de dukai enduri hendume ombi sehede

fonjiha de [when asked]

duka-i enduri [spirits of gate]
hendume [said]

ombi [may]
sehede [said]

At this question the gate-spirits answered “You may!”

nixan saman ilan sefere hooxan, ilan dalhan misun baniha bume dosime genehe,

nixan saman [the Nishan Shaman]
ilan sefere hooxan [three strips of paper]
ilan dalhan misun [three lumps of bean paste]
baniha bume [giving thank]
dosime [entering]
genehe [went]

Giving them three strips of paper and three lumps of bean paste, she thanked them and entered the pavilion.

jai duka de isinafi tuwaci inu juwe uksin saca etuhe enduri tuwakiyahabi,

jai duka de [second gate]
isinafi [having come]

tuwaci [looked]

inu [also]
juwe [two]
aisin uksin saca etuhe [wearing golden armor and helmets]
enduri [spirits]
tuwakiyahabi [guarded]

Having come to the second gate she saw another two spirits in golden armor and helmets standing guard.

nixan saman dosime generede esukiyeme ilibufi aibi niyalma balai ere duka be dosimbi hvdun bedere majige notaxaci uthai tantambi serede

nixan saman [the Nishan Shaman]
dosime [to enter]
genere-de [when went]

esukiyeme [shouting, railing]
ilibufi [having stopped]

ai-bi [where/what is]
niyalma [person]
balai [carelessly, with no reason]
ere duka be [this gate]
dosimbi [enter]

hvdun [quickly]
bedere [go back]

majige [a little]
notaxaci [if rush] This does not occur in any of the dictionaries available to us.  The context suggests it to mean “rush”.  Other translators interpret it as nushumbi or axxambi.

uthai [then]
tantambi [beat]

serede [said]

When the Nishan Shaman went to enter the gate, the two spirits stopped her, railing at her, “What kind of person enters this gate so carelessly?  Go back quickly! If you rush even a little, then we shall beat you!”

nixan saman baime amba enduri ume jili banjire ehe fainggo waka weihun gurun i nixan saman serengge uthai bi inu jugvn ildun de bailingga omosi mama de acafi hengkileki sembi,

nixan saman [the Nishan Shaman]
baime [begged]

amba enduri [great spirits]
ume jili banjire [do not lose temper]
ehe fainggo [evil soul] dict. form: fayangga
waka [am not]

weihun gurun i [of the Country of the Living]
nixan saman [Nishan Shaman]
serengge [called]
uthai [then]
bi [I]
inu [am]

jugvn [way]
ildun de [taking adventage of, on the occasion]
bailingga omosi mama de [before merciful Omosi Mama]
acafi [having visited]

hengkileki [kowtow]

sembi [said]

The Nishan Shaman said, “Great spirits! Do not lose your temper! I am not an evil soul. I am the called the Nishan Shaman from the Country of the Living. I would like to visit and kowtow before the merciful Omosi Mama, since it is on my way.”

juwe enduri hendume tere gese ginggun gvnin oci dosime genefi hvdun tuci seme

juwe enduri [two spirits]
hendume [said]

tere gese [like this]
ginggun gvnin [respectful heart, thoughts]
oci [if is]

dosime [entering]
genefi [having gone]

hvdun [quickly]
tuci [leave]

seme [said]

The two spirits said, “Since your heart is full of respect, enter, but quickly leave.”

alahade nixan saman inu onggolo songkoi baniha basan bufi dosime genehe

alaha-de [when said]
nixan saman [the Nishan Shaman]
inu [too]
onggolo songkoi [as before]
baniha basan [thank-fee]
bufi [having given]

dosime [entering]
genehe [went]

On hearing these words the Nishan Shaman thanked them with the same fee as before and went inside.

On his t-shirt was Manchu script being used in the same way that you might find English or other western script (and maybe even more unintelligibly):

While the Nishan Shaman is leading Sergudai Fiyanggo back to the Land of the Living she encounters someone she had not expected to meet.

nixan saman banina bume hendume monggoldai nakcu si ere gese gvnin tucime fungneci coko indahvn be gemu buhe,

nixan saman [the Nishan Shaman]
banina bume [giving thanks]
hendume [said]

monggoldai nakcu [Monggoldai Nakcu]
si [you]
ere [this]
gese [like]
gvnin [thought]
tucime [come out]
fungneci [if wish]

coko indahvn be [rooster and dog]
gemu [all]
buhe [gave]

The Nishan Shaman thanked him, saying, “Monggoldai Nakcu, if you speak out such wishes, then I will give you both the dog and the rooster.”

coko be axi seme hvla, indahvn be ceo seme hvla serede

coko be [rooster]
axi seme [axi]
hvla [call]

indahvn be [dog]
ceo seme [ceo]
hvla [call]

sere-de [when said]

Call the rooster saying “ah-shee”, and call the dog saying “chey-oh”.

monggoldai baniha bume ambula urgunjefi

monggoldai [Monggoldai]
baniha bume [giving thank]
ambula [very]
urgunjefi [having rejoiced]

Monggoldai was very glad and thanked her.

coko indahvn jergi be gaime yaburede gvnime cendeme hvlame tuwaki seme

coko indahvn jergi be [rooster, dog and other]
gaime [taking]
yabure-de [when going]

gvnime [thought]

cendeme [try]
hvlame [calling]
tuwaki [will see]

seme [said]

When he left, taking the rooster and the dog, he thought, “I will try to call them and see what happens”.

juwe be gemu sindafi, axi axi, ceo ceo seme hvlara jakade coko indahvn gemu amasi marifi aibi seme nixan saman be amcame genehe

juwe be [the two]
gemu [all]
sindafi [having released]

axi axi ceo ceo seme [saying axi axi ceo ceo]
hvlara jaka-de [when called]

coko indahvn [rooster and dog]
gemu [all]
amasi [backward]
marifi [having returned]

aibi seme [where(ever)]*
nixan saman be [the Nishan Shaman]
amcame [running after]
genehe [went]

He released them both, and when he called “ah-shee ah-shee, chey-oh chey-oh”, the rooster and the dog both turned around and ran after the Nishan Shaman.

*Kawachi translates this as “anywhere”; this would be very similar to saying “wherever” in English.  Another possible interpretation would be “saying ‘where?’”.

monggoldai golofi ergen biakv sujume baihanafi, he fa seme fodome baime hendume saman gehe ainu yobodombi, absi sini coko indahvn be mini hvlara sasa amasi forome genehebi, bairengge ume holtoro

monggoldai [Monggoldai]
golofi [having become startled]

ergen [life]
bi [I]
akv [not, lack]

sujume [rushing]
baihanafi [went to search]

he fa seme [gasping, panting] he fa – onomatopoeia showing gasping
fodome [gasping]
baime [begging]
hendume [said]

saman gehe [shaman lady]
ainu [why]
yobodombi [make fun] from yobo [joke, fun]

absi [where to/how]
sini coko indahvn be [your rooster and dog]
mini hvlara sasa [together with my calling]
amasi [backward]
forome [turning]
genehebi [went]

bairengge [please]
ume holtoro [do not deceive]

Startled, Monggoldai said “My life is over!”.  He rushed to look for her.  Gasping and panting he begged her, “Shaman lady, why do you make fun of me?  Why did your rooster and dog turn and go back to you?  Please, do not deceive me.”

ere juwe hacin jaka be gamarakv oci, yargiyan ojorakv, han mimbe wakalahade bi adarame alime mutembi seme

ere juwe hacin jaka be [these two things]
gamarakv oci [not taking]

yargiyan [truly, indeed]
ojorakv [it won't do]

han [khan]
mimbe [me]
wakalaha-de [when accuse, blame]

bi [I]
adarame [how]
alime mutembi [can support]

seme [said]

“I cannot do without these two things.  When the khan blames me, how will I be able to endure it?”

dahin dahvn baire de nixan saman injeme hendume heni yobodome efihengge, ereci amasi saikan i eje, bi sinde alara, coko be gu gu seme hvla, indahvn be eri eri seme hvla sehe

dahin dahvn [time after time, repeatedly]
baire de [when begging]

nixan saman [the Nishan Shaman]
injeme [laughing]
hendume [said]

heni [a little]
yobodome [making fun]
efihengge [played]

ereci [from now]
amasi [henceforth]
saikan i [well]
eje [remember]

bi [I]
sinde [you]
alara [tell]

coko be [rooster]
gu gu seme [gu gu]
hvla [call]

indahvn be [dog]
eri eri seme [eri eri]
hvla [call]

sehe [said]

When he begged her again and again, the Nishan Shaman laughed and said, “I played a little joke on you.  From now on, remember well how to call them, I will tell you, call the rooster saying “gu gu”, and the dog saying “eri eri”.

manggi monggoldai hendume gehe heni tani yobodoho, mini beye nei taran tucikebi, sefi

manggi [after]
monggoldai [Monggoldai]
hendume [said]

gehe [lady]
heni tani [a bit, a little]
yobodoho [made fun]

mini beye [I/my body]
nei taran [heavy sweat]
tucikebi [came out]

sefi [having said]

Then Monggoldai said, “Lady, you made fun of me a little , but I broke out in sweat.”

saman i alaha gisun songkoi hvlara jakade coko indahvn gemu monggoldai beye be xurdeme uju ucihin lasihime dahalame genehe

saman i alaha gisun songkoi [according to words said by the shaman]
hvlara jakade [when calling]

coko indahvn [rooster and dog]
gemu [all]
monggoldai [Monggoldai]
beye be xurdeme [around him]
uju [head]
ucihin [tail] dict. form: uncehen
lasihime [waving]
dahalame [following]
genehe [went]

When he called the rooster and the dog with the words the shaman told him, they both followed him shaking their heads and tails.

tereci nixan saman sergudai gala be jafafi kutuleme jidere de jugvn dalbade ini eihen be ucirafi tuwaci nimenggi mucen be xuxu orho i tuwa sindame fuyebumbi,

tereci [after that]
nixan saman [the Nishan Shaman]
sergudai [Sergudai]
gala be [hand]
jafafi [took]

kutuleme [leading]
jidere de [when going]
jugvn [road]
dalbade [by]
ini eihen be [her husband] can be spelled eigen
ucirafi [met] dict. form: ucarafi

tuwaci [if looked]
nimenggi mucen be [oil cauldron]
xuxu orho i [sorghum]
tuwa [fire]
sindame [placing]
fuyebumbi [made boil]

Then the Nishan Shaman took Sergudai by hand.  As she led him, they met her husband by the path.  He placed a cauldron full of oil over a sorghum fire to bring it to boil.

arbun be tuwaci jili banjihabi,

arbun be tuwaci [situation, form, shape]
tuwaci [when looked]

jili banjihabi [lost temper]

When she saw this, she lost her temper.

sargan be sabure jakade weihe be emgeri katur seme seyeme hendume dekdeni nixan si gvwa niyalma be gemu weijubume mutere anggala ajigen ci gaiha haji halhvn eigen mimbe aitubume gamaci eheo

sargan be [wife]
sabure jakade [when saw]

weihe be [teeth]
emgeri [already]
katur seme [brittlely, crunching] katur - onomatopoeia expressing the sound of eating hard brittle things (e.g. ice)
seyeme [hating]
hendume [said]

dekdeni nixan [rising/floating Nishan]**
si [you]
gvwa niyalma be [other people]
gemu [all]
weijubume mutere anggala [people whom you can revive]

ajigen ci [from/than young]
gaiha [taken]
haji halvhn eigen [most beloved husband] lit. beloved hot husband
mimbe [me]
aitubume [reviving]
gamaci [if took]
eheo [(is) bad?]

When he saw his wife, he gnashed his teeth brittlely, and with hate, he said, ”Rising Nishan!  You can bring all other people back to life.  Wouldn’t you rather take and revive your most beloved husband than this boy?”

**It’s not clear why he calls her this.  It seems that it is some kind of sarcasm.  It could also be translated “floating Nishan”.

bi cohome ubade nimenggi mucen be fuyebufi simbe aliyambi,

bi [I]
cohome [especially, on purpose]
ubade [here]
nimenggi mucen be [cauldron full of oil]
fuyebufi [having made boil]

simbe [for you]
aliyambi [wait]

“I am here waiting for you, boiling this cauldron full of oil purposely!”

si eici aitubure eici aituburakv babe hvdun gisure yargiyan aituburakv oci simbe unggirakv ningge mujanggo, ere mucen uthai sini bakcin oho sehede

si [you]
eici [either]
aitubure [revive]
eici [or]
aituburakv [not revive]
ba-be [matter, situation]
hvdun [quickly]
gisure [speak]

yargiyan [truly]
aituburakv oci [if do not revive]

simbe [you]
unggirakv ningge [who does not send]
mujanggo [truly, indeed] dict. form: mujangga

ere mucen [this cauldron]
uthai [then]
sini bakcin oho [is against you]

sehe-de [when said]

“Will you revive me or not?  Tell me the truth, quickly!  If you do not revive me, then I will not let you go!  This cauldron is prepared for you!”

nixan saman baime hendume
eigen haji, hailambi xulembi
ekxeme donji hailambi xulembi
haha haji hailambi xulembi
hahilame donji hailambi xulembi
nekeliyen xan be hailambi xulembi
neifi donji hailambi xulembi

nixan saman [the Nishan Shaman]
baime [begging]
hendume [spoke]

eigen [husband]
haji [beloved]

hailambi*** [to reject an offering/lament]
xulembi*** [embroider/ levy/twitter]
ekxeme [carefully] lit. being busy, engaged
donji [listen]

haha [man]
haji [beloved]
hahilame [hastening]
donji [listen]

nekeliyen xan be [thin ear]
neifi [having opened]

donji [listen]

The Nishan Shaman chanted,
“Beloved husband, hailambi xulembi!
Listen carefully, hailambi xulembi!
Beloved man, hailambi xulembi!
Hurry up and listen, hailambi xulembi!
Open your thin ear, hailambi xulembi,
and listen to me, hailambi xulembi!

*** hailambi, according to Zakharov, means [the deities reject an offering, which can be recognized when after having poured liquor into ears of the offered swine or sheep the animal's ears do not shudder], xulembi (xeolembi, siolembi) has two meanings – 1. to embroider, from Chinese 绣 xiù, 2. to levy, to collect taxes, from Chinese 收 shōu. Kawachi interprets it this way and he doesn’t translate these words, leaving them in their Manchu form. However, Tulisow (Folklor ludów tunguskich, p.101) suggests that hailambi can be identified with Mongolian qayila- [to lament, to wail], and xulembi with Manchu xulimbi [to twitter, to sing (of birds)], and thus translated as “I am wailing! I am singing!”.

giramin xan be hailambi xulembi
gidafi donjireo hailambi xulembi
sini beye hailambi xulembi
siren sube lakcaha hailambi xulembi
aifini bucefi hailambi xulembi
aikime niyaha hailambi xulembi
giranggi yali hailambi xulembi
gemu hungkenehe hailambi xulembi

giramin xan be [thick ear] dict. form: jiramin
gidafi [having closed]
donjireo [listen]

sini beye [you]
siren [veins]
sube [tendons]
lakcaha [tore]

aifini [already, for a long time]
bucefi [having died]

aikime [driyng up] dict. form: akiyame
niyaha [rotten]

giranggi [bones]
yali [flesh]
gemu [all]
hungkenehe [crumbled] dict. form: honggonoho

Your thick ear, hailambi xulembi,
close and listen, hailambi xulembi!
You, hailambi xulembi,
veins and tendons torn, hailambi xulembi!
Dead for a long time, hailambi xulembi!
Dried up and rotten, hailambi xulembi!
Bones and flesh, hailambi xulembi,
all crumbled, hailambi xulembi!

absi weijubumbi hailambi xulembi
haji eihen hailambi xulembi
gvsime gvnici hailambi xulembi
dulembume unggireo hailambi xulembi
sini eifu de hailambi xulembi
hooxan jiha hailambi xulembi
labdu dejire hailambi xulembi
buda sogi be hailambi xulembi
labdu doboro hailambi xulembi

absi [why]
weijubumbi [revive]

haji eihen [beloved husband]
gvsime [pitying, loving] dict. form: gosime
gvnici [if think]

dulembume [letting go/sending]
unggireo [send]

sini eifu de [at your grave]
hooxan jiha [paper money]
labdu [many, a lot]
deijire [(will) burn]

buda sogi be [porridge and vegetables]
labdu [a lot]
doboro [(will) offer]

“Why should I revive you, hailambi xulembi,
beloved husband, hailambi xulembi!
If you care about me, hailambi xulembi,
please, let me go, hailambi xulembi!
at your grave, hailambi xulembi,
paper money, hailambi xulembi,
a heap I’ll burn, hailambi xulembi!
porridge and vegetables, hailambi xulembi,
a heap I’ll offer, hailambi xulembi!”

sini eniye be hailambi xulembi
erxeme kudulembi hailambi xulembi
erebe gvnici hailambi xulembi
ergen be guwebureo hailambi xulembi
sakda eme be hailambi xulembi
xar seme gvnifi hailambi xulembi
hor seme dulembureo hailambi xulembi
seme

sini eniye be [your mother]
erxeme [serving, taking care of]
kudulembi [(will) respect] dict. form: kundulembi

erebe [this]
gvnici [if think]

ergen be [breath, life]
guwebureo [forgive]

sakda eme be [old mother]
xar seme [sympathetically]
gvnifi [having thought]

hor seme**** [whinnyingly]
dulembureo [let go]

seme [saying]

“Your mother, hailambi xulembi,
I serve and respect, hailambi xulembi!
If you consider this, hailambi xulembi,
you will forgive me, hailambi xulembi!
For your old mother, hailambi xulembi,
have sympathy, hailambi xulembi!
keep whimpering and let me go, hailambi xulembi!”

**** hor seme Norman: [neighing, whinnying], MaChMo: [眼尖鼻作響], Kawachi has a note explaining that in 満和辞典 it is defined as the nasal sound produced by a horse, and according to Zakharov it means “to singger, to burst out laughing (of a man)” or “to neigh (of a horse)”, but since the shaman’s husband has no reason to laugh or snort, we interpret this to be whimpering or sobbing.

Since, in our translation, Pawel and I didn’t want to be influenced by the one other English translation that has been done — that by Stephen Durrant in 1977 — we avoided checking it until a substantial amount of our translation was complete.  That wasn’t so difficult because it is out of print and not so easy to get.  As we passed the halfway mark, we thought it safe to start comparing a little, and Zev Handel has been kind enough to supply us with a copy.

Upon skimming through the book, I came upon a footnote (number 9) on p50, where the first mention of the Nisihai River is:

There are two small tributaries of the Sungari River just south of Kirin that go by this name (Chinese ni-shih-ha-ho 泥石哈河 and ni-shih-ha ho 泥使哈河 respectively).  Cf. Fuchs 1943:122.

(In modern pinyin, those two would be níshíhā hé and níshǐhā hé.)

The Sungari River is now called the Songhua River (松花江), and Kirin is now called Jilin City (吉林市).  The reference at the end of the footnote is given in full in the Bibliography:

Fuchs, Walter. 1943. “Der Jesuiten-Atlas der Kanghsi-Zeit.” Monumenta Serica, vol. 4.  Peking: Fu-jen Universität.

This is an even more difficult item to find a copy of (if anyone has access to it and can scan or photograph the appropriate map and send it to me, I would appreciate it very much, and if the person sending it wouldn’t mind, I’d post the picture or PDF here).

For those who haven’t been following our posts, the Nisihai River is the river that the Nishan Shaman lives on in the story.  The specific post that mentions the river is here.

For months I’d been poring over maps of northeast China (Dongbei) with a big magnifying glass, looking for anything that resembled a name like Nisihai, but without any luck.  Upon seeing the reference in Durrant’s book, which narrowed the area considerably, I looked much more carefully.  Pre-Qing Manchuria was more or less made up of what are now the three provinces of Heilongjiang, Jilin, and Liaoning in Northeast China (map below from WP):

Here’s a closer look at the three provinces (map below from the Shenyang Japanese Consulate):

The green part in the middle is Jilin province, which is divided into nine prefectures (map below from WP):

Number four on the above map is Jilin prefecture (map below from WP, edited by me to show the Songhua River (flowing north), and Jilin City (the red dot)).

Number 7 on the above map is Huadian (桦甸, huàdiàn) county.  Here is a bigger map of Huadian with all but but the very minor place names marked (map below from Baidu (in Chinese).  I added the red rectangle.):

Looking at the names of tributaries to the Songhua River, we strike gold!  Indeed there is one such tributary (I couldn’t find a second) about 100km south of Jilin City.  But what threw me off originally was how the name is changed.  The first syllable is 密 (mì); I had of course been looking for ni.  Blowing up the map (the area of the above-marked red rectangle), we can see the 密什哈河 (mìshīhā hé; Nisihai River) in the lower half, labeled in blue, flowing south by southeast.

But we can’t just be satisfied with that; it has to work with the other geographical information in the story.  In the same part of the story (post 07) Baldu Bayan rides his horse to the Nisihai River from his house in Lolo, and “the galloping didn’t last long” and he arrives at the east bank, which means he was east of the river when he started.  According to this page, a well-conditioned horse can gallop three miles (4.83km) before getting exhausted.  Here’s approximately the same area in a satellite image from Google Earth, with the Nisihai in blue and an approximately three mile wide area to the east of the river outlined in red:

Lolo was the village that Baldu Bayan lived in, so that village would most likely have to have been within the red outline.  There are presently about 17 villages along the red outline, and more that are on the river.  He couldn’t have lived on the Nisihai, and we will see later that some of the 17 villages on the red outline can be eliminated.  There is no village with a name similar to Lolo, but many of the names of the area’s villages are obviously post-WWII (i.e. (民主屯; mínzhǔ tún, Democracyville), (密胜屯; mìshèng tún, Secret Victory-ville)), so it is very likely Lolo’s name was changed.

When Baldu Bayan gets to the river, he crosses it, and then crosses back, so it wouldn’t make sense for the Nisihai to be a large river.  I made a couple road trips to see the area, and took some pictures of the river.  Here is one that shows one of its widest parts (looking north):

A dam has been constructed at the northernmost part of the river, so in the shaman’s time the water would have been a little bit higher, but still definitely shallow enough for a man on horseback to cross.

In the story, there is a village on the west bank.  Presently there is only one village close enough to the west bank to be seen from the river, and that is called (密什哈, mìshīhà, Nisihai).  [The 3M is printed on my car windshield — I took the shot from inside my car.]

When the shaman is in her trance, she says that Sergudai had gone to hunt on Heng Lang Shan Mountain, to the south.  “Shan” (山) means mountain in Chinese, and in the story the Manchu word for mountain, alin, is added after that, suggesting that the Manchus took the name of the mountain from Chinese.  Also, any syllable in Manchu ending in -ng is a Chinese loanword (except for a few Manchu onomatopoeic words).

As it happens, there are a few mountains just south of there, the largest of which is called [横顶山, héngdǐngshān] (looking south):

We don’t know the Chinese character that Lang comes from, but there is another character with a meaning similar to [顶; dǐng, top], and with a similar sound to lang: [梁; liáng, roofbeam].  This minor name change would certainly be logical, akin to the ni->mi change, above.  And the mountain has a ridge running from west to east that is similar to a roofbeam.

These days, you can clearly see the mountain from the river, but in Ming/Qing times, it would have been more heavily wooded.  Now, every bit of farmable land is being used, and there is forest only on mountain slopes that are too steep to farm.

The mountain is about 4km long from west-southeast to east-northeast, and about 2km at its widest part from north-northwest to south-southeast.  Here is an overhead shot from Google Earth:

Here are progressive closeups of the rocky peak which forms the second highest point:

Another important point to call to attention is the fact that the Sungari bends around Hengding Mountain to the south, creating a huge obstacle (though there there are some smaller mountains between it and the river).  Here is Hengding Mountain with the Sungari (Songhua River) curving around it to the south.:

There are more mountains on the other side (further south) of the river, but crossing many servants, including horses and “abundant chariots” over the river would be a huge ordeal requiring large ferries, but the fact that such a significant ordeal is not mentioned in the story supports the idea that Hengding Mountain is the Henglang Shan mentioned in the story.

Establishing Hengding Mountain as Hengding Shan further limits the candidates for Lolo; all of the villages south of the northeast foot of Hengding Mountain, as well as those too close to the mountain, would be eliminated.  [Note: there are two villages with Manchu-ish names between Hengding Mountain and the river: 西靰鞡草沟 (xī wūlā cǎo gōu) and 东靰鞡草沟 (dōng wūlā cǎo gōu).  Ula means river in Manchu, so these would be West River Grass Gully and East River Grass Gully.  I tried to reach them, but they are inaccessible by ordinary car.  One could only reach them on foot, with a motorcycle, or with a vehicle with a high enough clearance (about 0.5m).]

Here are the remaining reasonable candidates for Lolo.  Also 西靰鞡草沟 and 东靰鞡草沟 are marked in red.  Hengding Mountain is marked with a tree.

1. 同兴屯 (tóngxìng tún)
2. 上同兴 (shàngtóngxìng)
3. 中兴屯 (zhōngxìng tún)
4. 岭下屯 (lǐngxià tún)
5. 铅矿屯 (qiānkuàng tún)
6. 向阳屯 (xiàngyáng tún)
7. 桦树林子乡 (huàshù línzi xiāng)
8. 永安屯 (yǒng’ān tún)
9. 富太河 (fùtài hé)

If Nisihai is the village on the west bank of the river that Baldu Bayan visited, then the most likely candidate for Lolo is 桦树林子乡 (huàshù línzi xiāng, Birchwood Village).  Here is the square in the center of the village at present:

One more picture for aesthetic reasons.  Here is a mud house (Manchu houses are traditionally made out of mud) very close to where the shaman’s house might have been.  It is near 密胜屯 (mìshèngtún) which is near the east bank of the Nisihai River, but the shaman’s house would have been right on the bank.

He also runs a very informative website called Fe Doro (The Old Way).

(Hat tip to Kellen.)

The Nishan Shaman rescues Sergudai Fiyanggo and they are on their way back from the Country of the Dead, but Monggoldai Nakcu chases them to strike a bargain.

gvwa juse sabufi gemu golofi sujume boode dosifi han ama de alame ehe oho sergudai ahvn be emu gasha jifi xoforome gamahabi serede

gvwa juse [other children]
sabufi [having seen]

gemu [all]
golofi [having become scared]

sujume [running]
boo-de [home]
dosifi [having entered]

han ama de [to khan-father]
alame [said]

ehe [bad, evil (thing)]
oho [happened]

sergudai ahvn be [Sergudai, elder brother]
emu gasha [a (large) bird]
jifi [having come]

xoforome [seizing]
gamahabi [took]

sere-de [when said]

Seeing this, all the other children became frightened and ran into their house.  They told their father, the khan, “A bad thing happened!  A big bird came and seized our big brother Sergudai, and took him away!”

ilmun han donjifi ambula fancafi hutu be takvrafi monggoldai nakcu be hvlame gajifi beceme hendume sini gajiha sergudai fiyanggo be emu amba gasha xoforome gamaha, erebe，bi bodoci gemu sini arga be boljoci ojorakv，si minde adarame icihiyambi sehede

ilmun han [Ilmun Han]
donjifi [having listened]

ambula [very]
fancafi [having got angry]

hutu be [ghost]
takvrafi [having sent]

monggoldai nakcu be [Monggoldai Nakcu]
hvlame [to call]
gajifi [having brought]

beceme [scolding]
hendume [said]

sini gajiha [brought by you]
sergudai fiyanggo be [Sergudai Fiyanggo]
emu amba gasha [a large bird]
xoforome [seized and]
gamaha [took]

ere-be [this] here be is a topic marker
bi [I]
bodoci [if plan]
gemu sini arga be [all your idea, plan]
boljoci ojorakv [cannot agree]

si [you]
minde [to me]
adarame [how]
icihiyambi [(will) manage/handle]

sehe-de [when said]

Listening to this, Ilmun Han got very angry.  He sent a ghost to bring Monggoldai Nakcu to him and scolded him, saying, “A large bird seized Sergudai Fiyanggo, whom you had brought, and took him away.  If this was your plan, I cannot agree to it.  How will you deal with this matter for me?”

monggoldai elhei gvnici gvwa waka, nixan saman dere seme

monggoldai [Monggoldai]
elhe-i [well]
gvnici [when thought]

gvwa waka [no other/ no one else]
nixan saman [the Nishan Shaman]
dere [most likely]

seme [said]

Monggoldai slowly considered this and then said, “It was likely none other than the Nishan Shaman.”

uthai hendume ejen ume jili banjire bi gvnici gvwa waka weihun gurun de uju tucike, amba gurun de algin algiha nixan saman jifi gamaha dere, bi te uthai amcame genefi tede baime tuwaki, tere saman gvwa de duibuleci ojorakv sefi uthai amcame genehe

uthai [then]
hendume [said]

ejen [Lord]
ume jili banjire [do not be angry]

bi [I]
gvnici [when thought]

gvwa waka [no one else]
weihun gurun de [in the Land of the Living]
uju [first]
tucike [coming from]

amba gurun de [in great country]
algin [fame]
algiha [became famous]
nixan saman [the Nishan Shaman]
jifi [having come]

gamaha [took]
dere [most likely]

bi [I]
te [now]
uthai [immediately]
amcame [to hurry]
genefi [having gone]

tede [there]
baime [to look for]
tuwaki [(will) look]

tere saman [that shaman]
gvwa de [to others]
duibuleci ojorakv [cannot compare]

sefi [said]

uthai [then]
amcame [to pursue]
genehe [went]

Then he said, “My Lord! Do not be angry!  I think it could have been no one else but the famous Nishan Shaman who came from the Land of the Living to this country.  I will immediately go to look for her.  That shaman cannot be compared to any other.”  Then he set off to pursue her.

tereci nixan saman sergudai fiyanggo be bahara jakade ambula urgunjeme gala be jafafi kutuleme amasi marifi

tereci [then]

nixan saman [the Nishan Shaman]
sergudai fiyanggo be [Sergudai Fiyanggo]
bahara jakade [when got]
ambula [very]
urgunjeme [was happy]

gala be [by hand]
jafafi [took]

kutuleme [leading]
amasi [backward]
marifi [having gone back]

When the Nishan Shaman received Sergudai, she rejoiced greatly.  She took him by the hand and led him back.

fe jugvn be jafame yaburede monggoldai amargici amcame hvlame saman gehe majige aliya, muse giyan be majige gisureki, ekisaka gamara doro bio, mini beye utala hvsun fayame arkan seme gajime baha sergudai fiyanggo be si yargiyan i saman de ertufi bai gamaki sembio aise,

fe jugvn be [old way]
jafame [taking]
yabure-de [when going]

monggoldai [Monggoldai]
amargici [from north]
amcame [chasing]
hvlame [shouting]

saman gehe [Shaman lady]

majige [a little]
aliya [wait]

muse [we]
giyan be [principles]
majige [a little]
gisureki [let us speak]

ekisaka [quietly]
gamara [taking]
doro [law, custom]
bio [is there?]

mini beye [I]
utala [so much]
hvsun [power]
fayame [wasting]
arkan seme [scarcely, barely]
gajime [to bring]
baha [got]

sergudai fiyanggo be [Sergudai Fiyanggo]
si [you]
yargiyan i [truly]
saman de [on shaman]
ertufi [having depended]

bai [only]
gamaki sembio [want to take]
aise [probably]

When they were on the way, Monggoldai chased after her from north, shouting, ”Shaman lady! Wait a minute, let us talk a little about principles!  Is there a law that allows you to quietly take him?  I wasted so much power just bringing him here, and you want to use your shaman powers only to take him away?”

meni ilmun han fancafi mimbe wakalahabi, te bi adarame jabumbi, saman gehe elhe i gvnime tuwafi, dade basan geli akv bai gamarangge, elei giyan de acanarakv gese sehede,

meni ilmun han [our Ilmun Han]
fancafi [having got angry]
mimbe [me]
wakalahabi [upbraided]

te [now]
bi [I]
adarame [how]
jabumbi [answer]

saman gehe [shaman lady]
elhe i [peacefully, well]
gvnime [thinking]
tuwafi [having looked]

dade [in the beginning, originally/ in addition]
basan [fee]
geli akv [nothing more]
bai [only]
gamarangge [taking]

elei [more]
giyan de acanarakv [unreasonable] lit. not meeting/fitting the reason
gese [like]
sehede [said]

“Our Ilmun Han got angry and blamed me.  How will I answer him now?  Shaman lady, consider it calmly.  I’m only asking for a fee; is that unreasonable?”

nixan saman hendume monggoldai si ere gese sain angga baici hono sinde basan majige werimbi, si aika suweni han de ertufi etuhuxeme yabuci we sinde gelembio muse emu amba babe acafi, da dube tucibuki sefi

nixan saman [the Nishan Shaman]
hendume [said]

monggoldai [Monggoldai]
si [you]
ere gese [like this]
angga [mouth]
baici [if beg]

hono [still]
sinde [to you]
basan [fee]
majige [a little]
werimbi [leave]

si [you]
aika [if]
suweni han de [on your khan]
ertufi [depend]

etuhuxeme [using force]
yabuci [if act]

we [who]
sinde [you]
gelembio [fears?]

muse [we]
emu amba ba-be [a big matter]
acafi [meet/ come to an agreement]

da dube [beginning and end] lit. root and tip
tucibuki [let's make come out]

sefi [said]

The Nishan Shaman said, “Monggoldai, if you beg me like this, I shall leave you a little fee.  But who is going to fear you if you rely on your khan to act?  Let us come to an agreement and finish this matter.”

ilan dalhan misun, ilan sefere hooxan be buhe manggi monggoldai geli baime hendume sini bure basan jaci komso kai jai majige nonggime bureo sehe

ilan dalhan misun [three lumps of bean paste]
ilan sefere hooxan be [three strips of paper]
buhe [gave]
manggi [after]

monggoldai [Monggoldai]
geli [more]
baime [asking]
hendume [said]

sini bure basan [the fee you gave]
jaci komso [(is) very small]
kai [indeed]

majige [a little]
nonggime [adding]
bureo [give]

sehe [said]

She gave him three lumps of bean paste and three strips of paper, but Monggoldai asked for more, “The fee you gave is very small, indeed.  Please, give me a little more.”

manggi nixan saman geli emu ubu nonggime buhe manggi, geli baime hendume

manggi [after]
nixan saman [the Nishan Shaman]
geli [more]
emu ubu [one portion]
nonggime [adding]
buhe [gave]
manggi [after]

geli [still more]
baime [asking]
hendume [said]

Then the Nishan Shaman gave him one more portion, but he kept on asking for more.

ere majige basan be meni han de burede yargiyan i banjinarakv dade mini weile adarame sume mutembi, bairengge saman gehe sini gajiha coko indahvn be minde werifi mini weile be sume ilmun han de benefi

ere majige basan be [this little repayment]
meni han de [to my khan]
bure-de [when giving]
yargiyan i [truly]
banjirakv [(will) not survive]

dade [in addition (to that)]
mini weile [my punishment]
adarame [how]
sume mutembi [can avoid]

bairengge [please] lit. (my) request
saman gehe [shaman lady]
sini gajiha coko indahvn be [the rooster and dog you brought]
minde [to me]
werifi [having left]

mini weile be [my punishment]
sume [to avoid]
ilmun han de [to Ilmun Han]
benefi [having given (as gift)]

“Truly I will not survive if I give my khan such a small repayment.  How can I avoid a punishment then?  Please, shaman lady, give me the rooster and the dog you brought with you.  I shall give them to Ilmun Han to avoid punishment.”

ini abalara indahvn akv, dobori hvlara coko akv de meni han urgunjefi oci emude saman gehe i baita muyahvn ombi, jaide mini weile be sumbi serede

ini abalara indahvn akv [he has no hunting dog]
dobori hvlara coko akv de [(he) has no rooster crowing at night]

meni han [our khan]
urgunjefi [is glad]

oci [if becomes]

emunde [firstly]
saman gehe i [shaman lady's]
baita [matter]
muyahvn [complete]
ombi [becomes/will be]

jai-de [secondly] from Chinese 再 zài
mini weile be [my punishment]
sumbi [(will) avoid]

serede [said]

“Since our Khan has neither a hunting dog nor a rooster that crows at night, he will be glad.  If this happens, firstly, shaman lady, your matter will be complete, and secondly, I will avoid my punishment.”

nixan saman hendume tere inu juwe ergide tusa yohi ombi, damu sergudai de jalgan be nonggime buci ere indahvn coko be gemu werifi genembi sehede

nixan saman [the Nishan Shaman]
hendume [said]

tere [that]
inu [truly]
juwe ergi-de [for two sides]
tusa [benefit]
yohi [complete]
ombi [will be]

damu [but]
sergudai de [to Sergudai]
jalgan be [life-span]
nonggime [adding]
buci [if give]

ere indahvn coko be [this dog and rooster]
gemu [both]
werifi [having left]

genembi [(will) go]

sehede [said]

The Nishan Shaman said, “That truly will be a benefit for both sides.  But if you add to Sergudai’s life-span, then I will leave both this dog and rooster for you, and go.”

monggoldai hendume saman gehe si uttu gisureci sini derebe tuwame orin se jalgan nonggiha,

monggoldai [Monggoldai]
hendume [said]

saman gehe [shaman lady]
si [you]
uttu [so, like this]
gisureci [if speak]

sini dere-be [your face]*
tuwame [looking]

orin se jalgan [twenty years of life]
nonggiha [gave]

Monggoldai said, “Shaman lady, if you speak like this, then, looking at your face, I will give him twenty years of life more.”

*Other translators equate this to “looking you in the eye”.

saman hendume oforo niyaki olhoro unde de gamaha seme tusa akv,

saman [shaman]
hendume [said]

oforo niyaki [nose pus]
olhoro unde de [when not dried up yet]

gamaha seme [taking]
tusa akv [no benefit]

The shaman said, “There is no benefit in taking him away, when his snot isn’t yet dried up.”

tuttu oci gvsin se jalgan nonggire,

tuttu oci [if so/in that case]

gvsin se jalgan [thirty years of life]
nonggire [(will) add]

“In that case, then I will give him thirty more years of life.”

kemuni gvnin mujilen toktoro undede gamaha seme ai tusa,

kemuni [still]
gvnin [thought, mind]
mujilen [heart, mind]
toktoro unde-de [when not decided yet]

gamaha seme [taking]
ai tusa [what benefit]

“What is the benefit of taking him away, when his mind and heart are still not decided?”

tuttu oci dehi se jalgan nonggire,

tuttu oci [if so]
dehi se jalgan [forty years of life]
nonggire [(will) add]

“Then I will add forty years of life.”

kemuni derengge wesihun alire unde de gamaha seme tusa akv,

kemuni [still]
derengge wesihun [noble and glorious]
alire unde de [when not yet received]

gamaha seme [taking]
tusa akv [no benefit]

“There is no benefit in taking him away, when he has not yet received nobility and glory.”

tuttu oci susai se jalgan nonggire,

tuttu oci [if so]

susai se jalgan [fifty years of life]
nonggire [(will) add]

“Then I will add fifty years of life.”

kemuni sure mergen ojoro unde gamaha seme ai tusa,

kemuni [still]
sure mergen [wise and bright]
ojoro unde [not became yet]

gamaha seme [taking]
ai tusa [what benefit]

“What is the benefit of taking him away, when he is not yet wise and bright?”

tuttu oci ninju se jalgan nonggire,

tuttu oci [if so]

ninju se jalgan [sixty years of life]
nonggire [(will) add]

“Then I will give him sixty years more.”

kemuni niru beri be urebume tacire unde de gamaha seme tusa akv,

kemuni [still]
niru beri be [arrows and bow]
urebume [been made familiar]
tacire unde de [when not learnt yet]

gamaha seme [taking]
tusa akv [no benefit]

“There is no benefit in taking him away, when he still has not gotten used to bow and arrows.”

tuttu oci nadanju se jalgan nonggire,

tuttu oci [if so]

nadanju se jalgan [seventy years of life]
nonggire [(will) add]

“Then I will give him seventy years more.”

kemuni narhvn weile be tacire unde de gamaha seme ai tusa,

kemuni [still]
narhvn weile be [delicate/secret work]
tacire unde de [when not learn yet]

gamaha seme [taking]
ai tusa [what benefit]

“What is the benefit of taking him away, when he has still not learned delicate works?”

tuttu oci jakvnju se jalgan nonggire,

tuttu oci [if so]

jakvnju se jalgan [eighty years of life]
nonggire [(will) add]

“Then I will give him eighty years more.”

kemuni jalan baita be ulhire unde de gamaha seme tusa akv,

kemuni [still]
jalan baita be [affairs of the world]
ulhire unde de [when not understood yet]

gamaha seme [taking]
tusa akv [no benefit]

“There is no benefit in taking him away, when he does not yet understand the affairs of the world.”

tuttu oci, uyunju se jalgan be nonggiha, jai nonggici banjinarakv oho,

tuttu oci [if so]

uyunju se jalgan be [ninety years of life]
nonggiha [add]

jai [more]
nonggici banjirakv oho [cannot add]

“Then I will add ninety years of life.  I cannot add more.”

sergudai ereci amasi ninju aniya nimeku akv, tanggv aniya targa akv,

sergudai [Sergudai]
ereci amasi [from now on]
ninju aniya [sixty years]
nimeku akv [without sickness/pain]

tanggv aniya [hundred years]
targa akv [not thin/ in affluence] dict. form: turga

“From now on, Sergudai will live sixty years without sickness, and a hundred years in affluence.”

ura xurdeme uyun juse ujikini, jalan axxame jakvn jui sabukini,

ura xurdeme [around his buttocks]
uyun juse [nine children]
ujikini [may be born] -kini is another imperative suffix expressing wish or order directed to the third person

jalan [generation, age]
axxame [moving, shaking]
jakvn jui [eight children]
sabukini [may see]

“Encircling his buttocks, may he raise nine children!  The world shaking, may he see eight sons!”

uju funiyehe xartala, angga weihe sortolo, dara musutele, yasa ilhanara tala, bethe bekterere teile, umuhu de siteme, guweye de hamtame banjikini sehede

uju funiyehe [hair (of head)]
xartala [until become white] terminal converb (-tala~tele~tolo suffix, most probably of Mongolian origin) describes an action limiting another action

angga [mouth's]
weihe [teeth]
sortolo [until become yellow]

dara [waist, lower back]
musetele [until bend]

yasa [eyes]
ilhanara tala [until grow dim]

bethe [legs]
bekterere teile [until are frozen in their tracks]

umuhu de [upper surface of the foot] dict. form: umuhun
siteme [urinating]

guweye de [heel (of the foot)] dict. form: guye
hamtame [defecating]

banjikini [may live]

sehede [said]

“May he live until the hair of his head becomes white, until the teeth of his mouth become yellow, until his back bends, until his eyes grow dim, until his legs are frozen in their tracks, and he is urinating on his feet and defecating on his heels!”

jakade monggoldai nakcu injeme tucifi hendume nixan saman getuken i donji bi baldu bayan i haha jui sergudai fiyanggo be gajihangge yargiyan sinde ai dalji bi sini booi ai jaka be hvlhafi gajiha seme mini duka bade ilifi den wakalan jilgan i dangsimbi serede,

jakade [then]
monggoldai nakcu [Monggoldai Nakcu]
injeme [laughing]
tucifi [came out]
hendume [said]

nixan saman [Nishan Shaman]
getuken i [carefully] lit. lucidly
donji [listen]

bi [I]
baldu bayan i [Baldu Bayan's]
haha jui [son]
sergudai fiyanggo be [Sergudai Fiyanggo]
gajihangge [bringing]
yargiyan [(is) true]

sinde [for you]
ai dalji [of what connection (it is)?]

bi [I]
sini boo-i [of your house]
ai jaka be [what]
hvlhafi [having stolen]

gajiha seme [brought]
mini duka ba-de [to my gate]
ilifi [having come]

den wakalan jilgan i [in high, scolding voice]
dangsimbi [reprove]

sere-de [when said]

Then Monggoldai Nakcu came out laughing, and said, “Nishan Shaman, listen carefully!  It is true that I have brought Baldu Bayan’s son, Sergudai Fiyanggo here. But what does that have to do with you?  What things have I stolen from your house, that you come to my gate and reprove me in a high scolding voice?”

nixan saman hendume udu hacin i mini jaka be hvlhafi gajihakv bicibe weri sain banjire jalgan akv niyalma be, sui akv jui be gajici ombio，

nixan saman [the Nishan Shaman]
hendume [said]

udu [although] connects with bicibe
hacin i [kinds]
mini jaka be [my things]
hvlhafi [having stolen]

gajihakv [did not bring]
bicibe [even though] concessive converb form of bimbi

weri sain banjire [other well-living]
jalgan akv niyalma be [person whose life-span/destiny was not finished]
sui akv be [innocent (one)] sui [sin, guilt]
gajici ombio [could bring?]

The Nishan Shaman said, “Although you haven’t stolen anything of mine, how could you take the good life of an innocent person whose destiny was not completed?”

monggoldai nakcu hendume meni ilmun han hese gajihangge，tere jui be gaijfi, cendeme den siltan de aisin jiha lakiyafi jiha sangga be gabtabure jakade ilan da gemu gvwaihabi, amala，geli cendeme lamun buku i baru jafanabure jakade buku be tuhebuhebi，

monggoldai nakcu [Monggoldai Nakcu]
hendume [said]

meni ilmun han [our Ilmun Han's]
hese [will]
gajihangge [(was the act of) bringing]

tere jui be [that boy]
gajifi [having brought]

cendeme [to put (him) to test]
den siltan de [on a high mast]
aisin jiha [golden coin]
lakiyafi [having suspended]

jiha sangga be [at a little hole in the coin]
gabtabure jakade [when shot]

ilan da [three (arrows)] da - counter word for long objects
gemu [all]
gvwaihabi [struck (the target)] dict. form: goihabi

amala [after that]
geli [moreover]
cendeme [to put to test]
lamun buku i baru [with the Blue Wrestler]
jafanabure jakade [when ordered to wrestle] dict. form: jafunubure
buku be [wrestler]
tuhebuhebi [knocked down]

Monggoldai Nakcu said, “It was Ilmun Han’s will to bring him here.  When I brought the boy here, he was put to test by suspending a golden coin on a high mast.  When he shot at the little hole in the coin, all three arrows struck the target.  After that, he was put to another test; when ordered him to wrestle with the Blue Wrestler, he knocked him down.”

geli arsulan buku i baru jafanabuci inu hamirakv meni ilmun han jui obufi jilame ujimbi kai, sinde amasi bure doro bio seme

geli [moreover]
arsulan buku i baru [with the Lion Wrestler] dict. form: arsalan
jafanabuci [when ordered to wrestle]

inu [also]
hamirakv [did not cope]

meni ilmun han [our Ilmun Han]
jui obufi [having fathered] lit. made become a son
jilame [pitying, loving]
ujimbi kai [support]

sinde [to you]
amasi bure [giving back]
doro [law]
bio [is there?]

seme [said]

“Still more, when ordered to wrestle with the Lion Wrestler, he, also, could not cope with him.  Then our Ilmun Han made him a son and supports him with love.  Is there such a law that he must give him back to you?”

emu fiyelen gisun de nixan saman donjifi, ambula jili banjifi monggoldai nakcu i baru hendume tuttu oci sinde heni dalji akv dere， si emu sain niyalma biheni

emu fiyelen gisun de [to (one chapter of) words]
nixan saman [the Nishan Shaman]
donjifi [having listened]

ambula [very]
jili banjifi [having got angry]

monggoldai nakcu i baru [to Monggoldai Nakcu]
hendume [said]

tuttu oci [if it is so]
sinde [to you]
heni [at all]
dalji akv [(there is) no relation]
dere [probably, most likely]

si [you]
emu sain niyalma [a good man]
bihe-ni [are] ni exclamation of wonder

Having listened to these words, the Nishan Shaman flew into rage and said, “If it is so, you likely have nothing to do with it. You are a good man!”*

*This sarcastic remark seems to be intended as a profound insult.

mini ecehen i ilmun han be baihanafi sergudai fiyanggo be bahara baharakv，ujude mini erdemu amba oci, uthai gajimbi, erdemu cingiyan oci uthai wajiha, sinde heni dalji akv sefi

mini ecehen i [with my ability] dict. form: encehen
ilmun han be [Ilmun Han]
baihanafi [after having gone to search for]

sergudai fiyanggo be [Sergudai Fiyanggo]
bahara [find]
baharakv [do no't find]

ujude [first]
mini erdemu [my capabilities]
amba oci [if are great]
uthai [then]
gajimbi [(will) bring]

erdemu [capabilities]
cingiyan oci [if are insufficient]
uthai [then]
wajiha [finished]

sinde [to you]
heni [at all]
dalji akv [(there is) no relation]
sefi [having said]

“With my capabilities, will I find Sergudai Fiyanggo when I go look for Ilmun Han?  If my powers are sufficient, then I will bring him back.  If they are not, then it will be over.  It has nothing at all to do with you!”

han i hoton be baime geneme goidaha akv isinafi tuwaci duka be akdulame yaksihabi，nixan saman dosime muterakv xurdeme tuwafi hoton weilehe ningge akdun beki ofi ambula fancafi yayame deribuhe

han i [(Ilmun) Han's]
hoton be [city]
baime [to look for]
geneme [going]

goidaha akv [before long]
isinafi [having arrived]

tuwaci [if looked]

duka be [gate]
akdulame [to fortify]
yaksihabi [closed]

nixan saman [the Nishan Shaman]
dosime muterakv [could not enter]

xurdeme [around]
tuwafi [having looked]

hoton [city]
weilehe ningge [walls] lit. what was built
akdun beki ofi [were firm, strong]

ambula [very]
fancafi [having got angry]

yayame [incantating]
deribuhe [begun]

She went to look for the city of Ilmun Han and reached it in no time, but the gate was closed for protection.  The Nishan Shaman could not enter.  When she looked around, she saw that the city walls were firm and strong.  She got very angry and began an incantation.

kerani kerani dergi alin de
kerani kerani tomoho
kerani kerani dekdere gasha
kerani kerani cangling alin de
kerani kerani cakvra moo canggisa
kerani kerani mangkan alin de
kerani kerani tomoho mangmoo manggisa
kerani kerani uyun da meihe

kerani kerani
dergi alin de [in east mountains]
tomoho [nesting]
dekdere gasha [soaring bird]

cangling alin de [on Changling mountain]
cakvra moo [sandalwood] dict. form: cakvran, moo from Chinese 木 mù
canggisa [kingfisher] dict. form: cunggai [spotted/crested kingfisher (Ceryle lugubris)]

mangkan alin de [in sand hill (mountain)]
tomoho [nest]
mangmoo [oakwood] dict. form: mangga moo
manggisa [badger] dict. form: manggisu

uyun da meihe* [nine fathom long snake]

“Kerani kerani, in the eastern mountains,
kerani kerani, nesting,
kerani kerani, the soaring bird!
Kerani kerani, On Changling Mountain,
kerani kerani, the sandalwood kingfisher!
Kerani kerani, nesting in the sand hills,
kerani kerani, the oakwood badger!
Kerani kerani, the nine fathom long snake!

kerani kerani jakvn da jabjan
kerani kerani wehe ukdun
kerani kerani sele guwan de
kerani kerani tomoho
kerani kerani taran tasha
kerani kerani onioko lefu
kerani kerani alin be xurdere
kerani kerani aisin inggali

jakvn da jabjan** [eight fathom long python]
wehe ukdun [stone cave]
sele guwan de [in iron shelter] from Chinese 館 guǎn
tomoho [nesting]
taran tasha [(small) tiger] dict. form: targan
onioko [wolverine] dict. form: ongnika
lefu [bear]
alin be xurdere [encirling the mountains]
aisin inggali [golden wagtail]

“Kerani kerani, the eight fathom long python!
Kerani kerani, in a stone cave,
kerani kerani, in an iron shelter,
kerani kerani, nesting,
kerani kerani, the tiger!
Kerani kerani, the wolverine and the bear!
Kerani kerani, encircling the mountains,
kerani kerani, the golden wagtail!

** uyun da meihe, jakvn da jabjan – nine fathom long snake, eight fathom long python. As mentioned in the previous installment, other translators interpret these words as “nine snakes” and “eight pythons”.

kerani kerani mukden be xurdere
kerani kerani menggun inggali
kerani kerani deyere giyahvn
kerani kerani dalaha daimin
kerani kerani alaha daimin
kerani kerani nai jule se
kerani kerani uyun uri
kerani kerani juwan juwe faidan
kerani kerani geren julese

mukden be xurdere [encircling the heights]***
menggun inggali [silver wagtail]

deyere giyahvn [flying hawk]

dalaha daimin [leading eagle] dict. form: damin

alaha daimin [many-coloured eagle] dict. form: alha damin

na-i [of earth]
jule se [vultures] dict. form: yolo

uyun uri [nine columns]****
juwan juwe faidan [twelve rows]
geren julese [a flock of vultures]

“Kerani kerani, encircling the heights,
kerani kerani, the silver wagtail!
Kerani kerani, the flying hawk!
Kerani kerani, the head eagle!
Kerani kerani, the many-colored eagle!
Kerani kerani, the vultures of the earth!
Kerani kerani, nine columns,
kerani kerani, twelve rows,
Kerani kerani, a flock of vultures!

***mukden – Durrant translates this word as sea, Kawachi interprets it as a form of the word mukderhun – desert, and Volkova connects it with the verb mukdembi – rise, go upwards, soar upwards, and translates it as flying high.  Of the three possibilities the third one seems the most reasonable.

****There is no suitable explanation for uri, a round straw container for storing grain.  Kawachi interprets it by association with faidan, row, and for lack of a better explanation, we do the same.

kerani kerani hvdun hahi
kerani kerani deyeme hoton de
kerani kerani dosifi gajireo
kerani kerani waxiha ci
kerani kerani waxihalame
kerani kerani xoforo ci
kerani kerani xoforome gajireo

hvdun hahi [quickly]
deyeme [flying]
hoton de [to city]
dosifi [having entered]

gajireo [bring]

waxiha ci [in claws] dict. form: wasiha
waxihalame [grasping] dict. form: wasihalame
xoforo ci [in talons] lit. in pinch
xoforome [seizing]
gajireo [bring]

“Kerani kerani, quickly,
kerani kerani, to the city flying,
kerani kerani, enter and bring him!
Kerani kerani, in your claws,
kerani kerani, grasp him!
Kerani kerani, in your talons
kerani kerani, seize and bring him!”

kerani kerani aisin hiyanglu de
kerani kerani alamime tebufi gaju
kerani kerani menggun hiyanglu de
kerani kerani ungkufi gaju
kerani kerani meiren i hvsun de
kerani kerani meihereme gajireo
kerani kerani

aisin hiyanglu de [in a golden incense burner] from Chinese 香炉 xiāng​lú
alamime [carrying on back]
tebufi [having placed]
gaju [bring]

menggun hiyanglu de [in silver incense burner]
ungkufi [having turned over] dict. form: ungkefi
gaju [bring]

meiren i [shoulders']
hvsun de [strength, power]
meihereme [carrying on back]
gajireo [bring]

“Kerani kerani, in a golden censer,
kerani kerani, put him, and bring him on your back!
Kerani kerani, in a silver censer,
kerani kerani, turn him over and bring him!
Kerani kerani, with the strength of your shoulders,
kerani kerani, bring him on your back!
Kerani kerani!”

sehe manggi geren weceku se deyeme mukdefi tugi talman gese, sergudai fiyanggo geren juse i emgi aisin menggun gaxiha maktame efime bisire namxan emu amba gasha uthai wasime genefi xoforome jafafi den mukdefi gamaha

sehe [said]
manggi [after]

geren weceku se [all the spirits]
deyeme [flying]
mukdefi [having rose]
tugi talman gese [like clouds and mist]

sergudai fiyanggo [Sergudai Fiyanggo]
geren juse i emgi [with other boys]
aisin menggun gaxiha [golden and silver dice] dict. form: gacuha*****
maktame [throwing]
efime [playing]
bisire namxan [when was] can be spelled namaxan

emu amba gasha [a large bird]
uthai [then]
wasime [descending]
genefi [having come]

xoforome [seizing]
jafafi [having caught]

den [high]
mukdefi [having soared (upward)]

gamaha [took]

When the shaman finished her incantation, all the spirits flew, rising like clouds and mist.  Sergudai Fiyanggo was playing with other boys, throwing golden and silver dice, when suddenly a large bird descended.  It seized him and, soaring upward, took him away.

*****A more modern spelling is galaha.  In Mongolian it is know as shagai.

Next part >>

yabume goidahakv geli fulgiyan birai dalin de isinafi xurdeme tuwaci dokvn doobure jahvdai akv bime emu niyalma helmen be inu saburakv ofi arga akv weceku de baime yayame deribuhe

yabume [going]
goidahakv [didn't last long]

geli [moreover]
fulgiyan bira-i dalin de [to banks of the Red River]
isinafi [having come]

xurdeme [around]
tuwaci [when looked]
dokvn [ford]
doobure jahvdai [ferry-boat]
akv [was not]
bime [being]

emu niyalme [one man]
helmen be [shadow]
inu [really]
saburakv ofi [could not be seen]

weceku de [to the spirit]
baime [beseeching]
yayame [incantating]
deribuhe [begun]

The going didn’t last long, and she came to banks of the Red River.  Looking around, there was neither ford nor ferry-boat.  Not even the a shadow of a person could be seen.  She began her incantation to beseech the spirit.

eikuli yekuli abka be xurdere
eikuli yekuli amba daimin
eikuli yekuli mederi be xurdere
eikuli yekuli menggun inggalii
eikuli yekuli bira cikin be xurdere
eikuli yekuli cecereku meihe
eikuli yekuli jan bira be xurdere
eikuli yekuli jakvn da jabjan
eikuli yekuli

abka be [sky, heaven]
xurdere [circling]
amba daimin [great eagle] dict. form: damin

mederi be [sea]
xurdere [circling]
menggun inggalii [silver wagtail] misspelling of inggali

bira cikin be [river bank]
xurdere [circling]
cecereku meihe [vexing snake] dict. form: cecerxuke, it may be derived from cecerxembi [to exert a great amount of effort, to quiver from exertion]

jan bira be [Jan River]
xurdere [circling]
jakvn da jabjan* [eight fathom long large snake/python]

“Eikuli yekuli, circling the sky,
eikuli yekuli, the great eagle!
Eikuli yekuli, circling the sea,
eikuli yekuli, the silver wagtail!
Eikuli yekuli, circling the river bank,
eikuli yekuli, the vexing snake!
eikuli yekuli, circling the Jan River,
eikuli yekuli, the eight fathom long python!”

*According to MaCMo, one da equals one 庹 tuǒ – the length of two outstretched arms (and it seems to be a loanword), which is, as the Japanese translation says, one fathom, or five Chinese feet.  Other translators (Durrant, Volkova) interpret jakvn da jabjan as “eight pythons”, because the word da can also be a classifier for long objects (like Chinese 枝 zhī), but I found no evidence that it could be applied to animals too.  I decided to translate it as “eight fathom long python” since all the other animals Teteke calls are singular. —PM

eikuli yekuli ajige ejin mini beye
eikuli yekuli ere bira be
eikuli yekuli doombi sembi
eikuli yekuli geren wecense
eikuli yekuli wehiyeme dooburo
eikuli yekuli hvdun hasa
eikuli yekuli erdemu be tacibureo
eikuli yekuli
sefi

ajige ejin [little master] dict. form: ejen
mini beye [I]
ere bira be [this river]
doombi sembi [want to cross] the grammatically correct form should be dooki sembi

geren wecen-se [all deities]
wehiyeme [helping]
dooburo [ferry] misspelling of doobureo

hvdun [quick]
hasa [hurry up]

erdemu be [power]
tacibureo [reveal]

“Eikuli yekuli, I, the little master!
Eikuli yekuli, this river,
eikuli yekuli, want to cross!
Eikuli yekuli, all deities!
eikuli yekuli, help ferry me!
Eikuli yekuli, quickly, hurry up!
Eikuli yekuli, reveal your power!
Eikuli yekuli!”

yemcen be bira muke de maktafi saman i beye ninggude ilifi uthai edun su i gese dartai andande bira be doofi, bira ejin de ilan dalhan misun, ilan sefere hooxan basan werifi uthai jurame yaburengge hahi ofi uju furdan de isinjifi

yemcen be [drum]
bira muke de [onto the river water]
maktafi [having thrown]

saman i beye [shaman herself]
ninggu-de [on top]
ilifi [having stood]

uthai [immediately]
edun su i gese [like a whirlwind]
dartai andande [in a moment]
bira be [river]
doofi [having crossed]

bira ejin de [to the lord of the river]
ilan dalhan misun [three lumps of (fermented) bean paste]
ilan sefere hooxan [three strips of paper]
basan [fee] dict. form: basa
werifi [having left]

uthai [immediately]
jurame [setting out]
yaburengge [journey]
hahi ofi [having become fast]

uju furdan de [to the main gateway]
isinjifi [having reached]

The shaman threw her drum onto the river water and stood on top of it.  Like a whirlwind she crossed the river in a moment.  She left three lumps of the bean paste and three strips of paper as a fee for the lord of the river. Then she immediately set out and quickly reached the main gate.

duleki serede furdan tuwakiyaha seletu senggitu juwa hutu esukiyeme hendume ainaha niyalma gelhun akv ere furdan be dosiki sembi, be ilmun han i hese be alifi ere furdan be tuwakiyambi hvdun turgun be ula serede

duleki serede [when wanted to pass]
furdan [gate]
tuwakiyaha [guarding]
seletu [Iron]
senggitu [Blood]
juwa hutu [two ghosts]
esukiyeme [shrieking]
hendume [said]

ainaha niyalma [what kind of person]
gelhun akv [fearlessly]
furdan be [gate]
dosiki sembi [want to pass]

be [we]
ilmun han i [Ilmun Han's]
hese be [will]
alifi [having fullfilled]

ere furdan be [this gate]
tuwakiyambi [guard]

hvdun [quickly]
turgun be [reason]
ula [convey]

sere-de [when said]

When she wanted to pass, two ghosts guarding the gate, Iron and Blood, shrieking at her, said, “What kind of person fearlessly wants to pass the gate?  We guard this gate, fulfilling Ilmun Han’s will.  Quickly, tell us your reason!”

nixan saman hendume mini beye weihun gurun i nixan saman inu, bucehe gurun de monggoldai nakcu be baihanambi sehede

nixan saman [the Nishan Shaman]
hendume [said]

mini beye [I]
weihun gurun i [from the Country of the Living]
nixan saman inu [am the Nishan Shaman]

bucehe gurun de [to the Country of the Dead]
monggoldai nakcu be [Monggoldai Nakcu]
baihanambi [came to look for]

sehe-de [when said]

The Nishan Shaman said, “I am the Nishan Shaman from the Country of the Living!  I came to the Country of the Dead to look for Monggoldai Nakcu.”

juwe hutu esukiyeme tuttu oci furdan dosire kooli gebu, basan be werifi dosimbumbi sehede

juwe hutu [two ghosts]
esukiyeme [shrieked]

tuttu oci [if so, in this case]
furdan [gate]
dosire kooli [admission custom]
gebu [name]
basan be [fee]
werifi [leave]

dosimbumbi [allow to enter]

sehede [said]

The two ghosts shrieked, “If so, you have to leave your name and a fee according to the admission custom, then you may enter.”

nixan saman gebu afahari ilan dalhan misun, ilan sefere hooxan be bufi teni duleme genehebi, yabume jai furdan de isinafi inu onggolo songkoi gebu, basan jergi werifi duleme yabuhai ilaci furdan i monggoldai nakcu duka bade isinafi

nixan saman [the Nishan Shaman]
gebu afahari [a strip of paper with name written on it]
ilan dalhan misun [three lumps of the bean paste]
ilan sefere hooxan be [three strips of paper]
bufi [gave]

teni [then]
duleme [passing]
genehebi [went]

The Nishan Shaman gave them a strip of paper with her name written on it, three lumps of the bean paste, and three strips of paper.  Then she passed through the gate.

yabume [going]

jai furdan de [two gateways]
isinafi [came]

inu [already]
onggolo songkoi [like before]
gebu [name]
basan [fee]
jergi [other things]
werifi [left]

duleme [passing]
yabuhai [going] descriptive converb

ilaci furdan i [third gate]
monggoldai nakcu [Monggoldai Nakcu]
duka ba-de [at the gate/door]
isinafi [came]

Going on, she came to a second gateway.  As before, she left her name, a fee, and the other things.   Passing through that, she came to the third gateway, the door of Monggoldai Nakcu.

sixa lisihiyame, honggo hoyome hocohon jilgan i hoge yage hvlame

monggoldai nakcu
hoge yage hvdun hahi
hoge yage tucime jidereo
hoge yage ai jalin de
hoge yage sain i banjire
hoge yage jalgan akvngge
hoge yage jafafi gajiha
hoge yage erin unde
hoge yage ergeleme gajiha

sixa [belt with bells]
lisihiyame [shaking] dict. form: lasihime

honggo [small bells] dict. form: honggon
hoyome [jingling] dict. form: hvyame, lit. crying (of birds)

hocohon jilgan i [in beautiful voice] dict. form: hocikon
hoge yage
hvlame [chanted]

monggoldai nakcu [Monggoldai Nakcu]
hvdun hahi [quickly]
tucime [coming forth]
jidereo [come]

ai jalin de [for what reason]
sain i [well]
banjire [living (one)]
jalgan [life span, destiny]
akvngge [not complete] lit. not being
jafafi [having caught]
gajiha [brought]

erin unde [too early] lit. time not yet
ergeleme [to torment]
gajiha [brought]

Shaking the bells on her belt and jingling the smaller bells, she chanted “hoge yage” in a beautiful voice.

“Monggoldai Nakcu!
Hoge yage, quickly,
hoge yage, come out!
Hoge yage, for what reason,
hoge yage, a decent life,
hoge yage, a destiny incomplete,
hoge yage, did you catch and bring,
hoge yage, before his time,
hoge yage, did you bring to torment?

hoge yage amasi buci
hoge yage ambula baniha
hoge yage bai buci
hoge yage baniha bumbi
hoge yage banjire aldasi
hoge yage balai gajiha
hoge yage eitereme gajiha
hoge yage aiseme jabumbio
hoge yage bai gamarakv
hoge yage basan bumbi

amasi buci [if give back]

ambula baniha [very thankful]

bai [only]
buci [if give]

baniha bumbi [(will) thank]

banjire [life]
aldasi [prematurely dead, cut off midway]
balai [blindly, vainly]
gajiha [brought]

eitereme [deceiving]
gajiha [brought]

aiseme [for what] lit. saying ‘what?’
jabumbio [answer]

bai [only]
gamarakv [not hide]

basan [fee]
bumbi [(will) give]

“Hoge yage, if you give him back,
hoge yage, I will be very thankful,
hoge yage, if only you give him,
hoge yage, I would thank you!
Hoge yage, his life was cut short;
hoge yage, brought here in vain!
Hoge yage, you deceived him and brought him;
hoge yage, answer, what for?
Hoge yage, if only you don’t hide him,
hoge yage, I will give you a fee!”

hoge yage holtome gamarakv
hoge yage hvda werimbi
hoge yage minde buci
hoge yage misun bumbi
hoge yage tucibufi buci
hoge yage turgin bumbi
hoge yage doigonde buci
hoge yage dorolombi

holtome [deceiving]
gamarakv [don't hide]

hvda [goods]
werimbi [(will) leave]

minde [to me]
buci [if give]

misun [(fermented) bean paste]
bumbi [(willl) give]

tucibufi [having brought out]
buci [if give]

turgin [repayment] dict. form: turigen
bumbi [(will) give]

doigon-de [beforehand]
buci [if give]

dorolombi [(will) pay (my) respects] dorolombi [to salute, to greet with the hands joined in front of the face, to pay one's respects]

“Hoge yage, if you don’t deceive me hiding him,
hoge yage, I will leave you goods,
hoge yage, if you give him to me,
hoge yage, I will give you bean paste!
Hoge yage, if you bring him out and give him back,
hoge yage, I will give you repayment for this!
Hoge yage, if you give him back quickly,
hoge yage, I will pay my respects to you!”

hoge yage geli burakvci
hoge yage sain ba akv
hoge yage weceku hvsunde
hoge yage deyeme genembi
hoge yage boo de dosime
hoge yage ganame genembi
hoge yage seme

geli [moreover]
burakvci [if don't give]

sain ba akv [it will not be good] lit. the matter won’t be good

weceku [spirits]
hvsun-de [in power]
deyeme [flying]
genembi [(will) come]

boo de [house]
dosime [entering]

ganame [coming to get]
genembi [(will) come]

seme [said]

“Hoge yage, but if you don’t give him back,
hoge yage, it will not be good for you!
Hoge yage, spirits, powerfully,
hoge yage, will come flying,
hoge yage, they will enter your home,
hoge yage, to take him back!
Hoge yage!”

seme nixan saman sixa lasihiyame yekse isihime honggo hoyodome halang sere jilgan be guwebure

nixan saman [the Nishan Shaman]
sixa [belt with bells]
lasihiyame [shaking]

yekse [shaman's cap]
isihime [shaking]

honggo [small bells]
hoyodome [jingling]

halang sere [so called 'halang'] onom. the sound of metal or stone objects banging together, dict. form: kalang
jligan be [voice]
guwebure [made clang] dict. form: guwembure

Having said that, the Nishan Shaman shook her belt with bells, shook her cap, and jingled the small bells.  She made her voice clang, like metal on metal.

Next part >>

But if you look closely at the Manchu on the pictures, some of it is very hard to read, and some of it seems to make no sense at all.  I’ll leave the error-analysis as an exercise for the reader, but suffice it to say that it varies quite a lot in quality; some words are clear and sensible, and some look like someone was just trying to imitate the way Manchu looks in general, without quite knowing what they are doing, like westerners often do with Chinese.

When I was in the little shop buying tasty sausages and local beer, a man came in and started asking me questions (—this is quite normal; since I’m not of Asian extraction, curious villagers often muster their courage and warmly ask me all sorts of questions, ranging from my nationality to my opinions about international politics).  I told him why I stopped here, and he offered to show me around.

I asked him if anyone could read the Manchu words on the signs.

Me: 满族字儿…在牌子上…你说谁也不认识嘛？ (The Manchu letters…on the signs…you say that nobody can read them?)

I phrased it that way because I had asked him previously, but that time I hadn’t had my recorder on.

Him: 当地谁也不认识。 (As far as the locals go, nobody can read them.)

Me: 那，写的是干哈的？(Then, why did they write them there?)

Him: 糊弄人儿的。反正要求，政府要求你满族这牌匾得带满文呢！(To trick people.  Anyway, it’s a requirement; the government requires that if you are Manchu, you have to put Manchu script on your signs.)

Me: 啊，是政府要求。 (Oh, it’s a government requirement.)

Him: 啊，是政府要求。 (Yeah, it’s a government requirement.)

Me: 啊，这儿也，这儿还有呢。 (Ah, here, here are some more.)

Him: 啊，都有呢。这个中的标准就不知道了。 (Yeah, they all have them.  Nobody knows what’s correct.)

[This installment marks an important milestone in our work: the halfway point.  Here the Nisan Shaman comes to her first barrier.  — PM and RA]

nixan saman coko indahvn be kutulefi misun hooxan be meiherefi geren weceku xurdeme dahalafi

nixan saman [the Nisan Shaman]
coko indahvn be [rooster and dog]
kutulefi [having led]

misun hooxan be [bean paste and paper]
meiherefi [put on shoulders]
geren weceku [all spirits]
xurdeme [surrounding]
dahalafi [having followed]

The Nisan Shaman led the rooster and the dog, and put the bean paste and paper on her shoulders.  All the spirits surrounded her and followed her.

bucehe gurun i baru ilmun han be baime genere de gurgu wecen feksime, gasha wecen deyeme, meihe jabjan muyaljime edun su i gese yabume emu birai cikin dalin de isinjifi

bucehe gurun i baru [toward the Land of the Dead]
ilmun han be [Ilmun Han]
baime [to beg]

genere de [while going]
gurgu wecen [beast spirit] wecen means the same as weceku here
feksime [galloping]
gasha wecen [bird spirit]
deyeme [flying]
meihe [snake, serpent]
jabjan [python, large snake]
muyaljime [slithering] dict. form: midaljame

edun su i gese [like whirlwind] edun [wind] su [whirlwind, cyclone] from Chinese 旋風 xuán fēng
yabume [going]
emu bira-i [a river's]
cikin dalin de [to banks]
isinjifi [having come]

They moved toward the Land of the Dead to beg Ilmun Han.  While they were going, beast spirits galloped, bird spirits flew, and snake spirits slithered. Quick as a whirlwind, they came to the banks of a river.

xurdeme tuwaci umai doore bakv bime dokvn weihu geli saburakv

xurdeme [around]
tuwaci [when looked]

umai [not at all]
doore bakv [not a place to cross] doombi [to ferry across, to cross over (a river)] from Chin. 渡 dù, bakv - contraction of ba akv
bime [being]
dokvn [ford, ferry] dict. form: dogon
weihu [boat]
geli [more]
saburakv [could not be seen]

Looking around, there was no place to cross the river.  She could see neither a ford nor a boat.

jing ni facihiyaxame tuwara namxan cargi bakcin dalin de emu niyalma weihu be xurume yabumbi,

jing ni [at that moment]
facihiyaxame [growing anxious]
tuwara namxan [just when watching] can be spelled namaxan
cargi bakcin dalin de [on the other side]
emu niyalma [a man]
weihu be [boat]
xurume [punting]
yabumbi [come]

When she started growing anxious, watching the other side, she saw a man coming across the river, poling a boat.

nixan saman sabufi hvlame hendume,
hobage yebage dogvn dobure
hobage yebage doholo age
hobage yebage donjime gaisu
hobage yebage nekeliyen xan be
hobage yebage neifi donji
hobage yebage giramin xan be
hobage yebage gidafi donjireo

nixan saman [the Nisan Shaman]
sabufi [having seen]
hvlame [shouting]
hendume [said]

hobage yebage
dogvn dobure [ferry steering] dict. form doobure from Chin. 渡 dù
doholo age [lame master]
donjime [listening]
gaisu [take]

nekeliyen xan be [thin ear]
neifi [having opened]
donji [listen]

giramin xan be [thick ear]
gidafi [having pressed]
donjireo [listen]

When she saw him, she shouted,
“Hobage yebage, ferry-steering,
hobage yebage, lame master,
hobage yebage, take a listen!
Hobage yebage, your thin ear,
hobage yebage, open it and listen!
Hobage yebage, your thick ear,
hobage yebage, press it and listen!”

hobage yebage arsun laihi
hobage yebage ejeme donjireo
hobage yebage wecen sain de
hobage yebage wesihun oho
hobage yebage jukten sain de
hobage yebage julesi oho
hobage yebage ejin ilifi
hobage yebage erdemungge oho

arsun laihi [ugly rogue] dict. form: ersun laihvn; can be spelled laihvtu
ejeme [take note]
donjireo [listen]

wecen [rite]
sain [done]*
de [at]
wesihun [great]
oho [became]

jukten [sacrifice, offering]
sain [done]*
de [at]
julesi [forward, in front]**
oho [became]

ejin ilifi [having become master] dict. form: ejen ilifi

erdemungge [powerful, virtuous]
oho [became]

“Hobage yebage, ugly rogue,
hobage yebage, listen and remember!
Hobage yebage, at the completion of the rite,
hobage yebage, I became great!
Hobage yebage, at the completion of the sacrifice,
hobage yebage, I faced forward!
Hobage yebage, I became the master,
hobage yebage, and became powerful!”

*sain here seems to be a complement of result, meaning “finished satisfactorily”. 好 in Chinese can function this way, but it is somewhat rare.

**julesi oho is also a strange construction.  Normally julesi is used with verbs of motion.

hobage yebage amai dacin de
hobage yebage acame genembi
hobage yebage eniyei dancin de
hobage yebage ergeneme yumbi
hobage yebage goro mafa boode
hobage yebage goirame genembi
hobage yebage goro mama bade
hobage yebage maksime yombi

ama-i dacin de [in father's parents' family] dict. form: dancan
acame [to meet]
genembi [go]

eniye-i dancin de [mother's parents' house]
ergeneme [to rest] dict. form: ergendume
yumbi [go] misspelling of yombi

goro mafa [maternal grandfather]
boo-de [in house]
goirame [to entice]
genembi [go]

goro mama [maternal grandmother]
ba-de [at place]
maksime [to dance]
yombi [go]

“Hobage yebage, I am going to meet,
hobage yebage, the father’s family!
Hobage yebage, I am going to rest,
hobage yebage, with the mother’s family!
Hobage yebage, I am going to entice,
hobage yebage, in the grandfather’s house!
Hobage yebage, I am going to dance,
hobage yebage, at the grandmother’s place!”

hobage yebage deheme boode
hobage yebage dekdexeme genembi
hobage yebage ecike i boode
hobage yebage ergen be ganambi
hobage yebage mimbe doobuci
hobage yebage misun bumbi
hobage yebage hvdun doobuci
hobage yebage hooxan bumbi

deheme [aunt (mother's younger sister)]
boo-de [in house]
dekdexeme [to go crazy] dict. form: dekderxeme
genembi [go]

ecike i [uncle's (father's younger brother)]
boo-de [in house]
ergen be [life]
ganambi [go to get]

mimbe [me]
doobuci [if ferry across]

misun [bean paste]
bumbi [give]

hvdun [swiftly]
doobuci [if ferry across]

hooxan [paper]
bumbi [give]

“Hobage yebage, I am going to go crazy,
hobage yebage, in the aunt’s house!
Hobage yebage, I am going to catch a life,
hobage yebage, in the uncle’s house!
Hobage yebage, if you ferry me across the river,
hobage yebage, I will give you bean paste!
Hobage yebage, if you ferry me swiftly,
hobage yebage, I will give you paper!”

hobage yebage bai dooburakv
hobage yebage basan bumbi
hobage yebage unenggi doobuci
hobage yebage ulin bumbi
hobage yebage hahilame doobuci
hobage yebage hatan arki
hobage yebage alibume bumbi
hobage yebage ehe bade
hobage yebage ergen be jolinambi
hobage yebage farhvn bade
hobage yebage fainggo be farganambi
hobage yebage
serede

bai [in vain]
dooburakv [will not ferry]

basan [fee] can be spelled basa
bumbi [give]

unenggi [honestly]
doobuci [if ferry]

ulin [treasures]
bumbi [give]

hahilame [hurrying]
doobuci [if ferry]

hatan arki [fiery liquor]
alibume [offering]
bumbi [give]

ehe ba-de [to evil place]
ergen be [life]
jolinambi [go to redeem]

farhvn ba-de [to dark place]
fainggo be [soul]
farganambi [go to pursue]

sere-de [when said]

Hobage yebage, you will not ferry me in vain,
hobage yebage, I will give you a fee!
Hobage yebage, if you ferry me honestly,
hobage yebage, I will give you treasures!
Hobage yebage, if you ferry me quickly,
hobage yebage, fiery liquors,
hobage yebage, I will offer to you!
Hobage yebage, to the evil place,
hobage yebage, I go to redeem a life!
Hobage yebage, to a dark place,
hobage yebage, I go to pursue a soul!
Hobage yebage!”

doholo laihi donjifi hontoho cuwan be hontoho selbi i selbime bakcin ergi dalin de isinjifi

doholo laihi [lame rogue]
donjifi [having listened]

hontoho cuwan be [half a boat] cuwan from Chin. 船 chuán
hontoho selbi i [with half an oar]
selbime [rowing]
bakcin ergi dalin de [to this bank]
isinjifi [having come]

The lame rogue listened to her and, rowing half a boat with a half an oar, he came to the bank.

nixan saman tuwaci yasa gakta oforo waikv, xan kemteku, uju kalji, bethe doholo gala gaba

nixan saman [the Nisan Shaman]
tuwaci [when looked]

yasa [eye]
gakta [one (was) blind] dict. form: gakda

oforo [nose]
waiku [(was) crooked] dict. form: waiku

xan [ear]
kemteku [(was) torn] probably from kengcembi [to break, to collapse (of soft things)]

uju [head]
kalji [(was) bald] dict. form: kalja

bethe [legs]
doholo [(were) lame]

gala [hand]
gaba [twisted, gnarled] dict. form: gafa

The Nisan Shaman saw that one of his eyes was blind, his nose was crooked, his ears torn, his head bald, his legs lame, and his hands twisted.

hanci jifi hendume saman hehe nio aika gvwa niyalma oho biheci ainaha seme dooburakv bihe,

hanci [near]
jifi [having come]

hendume [said]

saman hehe [shaman woman]
nio interrogative emphatic particle

aika [if]
gvwa niyalma [another person]
oho biheci [if were]

ainaha seme [surely]
dooburakv bihe [would not ferry]

When he came near, he said, “Is that you, shamaness?  If it were another person, I surely would not ferry them.”

gebu algin be donjime takame ofi giyan i ere mudan mergen gebu tucire hesebun giyan ofi, arga akv simbe doobumbi sefi

gebu algin be [fame] lit. name fame
donjime [heard]
takame ofi [having become known]

giyan i [by rights]
ere mudan [this time]
mergen gebu [wise name]
tucire [came, originated]
hesebun [destiny]
giyan [principle]
ofi [having been]

arga akv [can do nothing about it]
simbe [you]
doobumbi [ferry]

sefi [having said]

By rights, this time — it is the will of Heaven from which your wise name comes forth — there is nothing I can do about it.  I will ferry you.”

nixan saman weihu de tafafi doholo laihi xurku i xurume, selbi selbime cargi bakcin de doobuha manggi nixan saman baniha bume ere majige untuhun gvnin ilan dalhan misun, ilan sefere hooxan be gemu bargiyame werireo sefi

nixan saman [the Nisan Shaman]
weihu de [boat]
tafafi [having got on]

doholo laihi [lame ruffian]
xurku i [with punting pole] dict. form xurukv
xurume [punting]
selbi [with oar]
selbime [rowing]
cargi bakcin de [to other bank]
doobuha [ferried]
manggi [after]

nixan saman [the Nisan Shaman]
baniha bume [to thank]

ere majige untuhun gvnin [this little empty thought, token]
ilan dalhan misun [three lumps of bean paste]
ilan sefere hooxan be [three strips of paper]
gemu [all]
bargiyame [receiving]
werireo [retain]

sefi [having said]

The Nisan Shaman got in the boat. The lame ruffian punted with his pole, rowed with his oar, and ferried her to the other bank.  Then the Nisan Shaman thanked him, saying, “Please accept these three lumps of bean paste and three strips of paper as a little token.”

geli fonjime ere dogvn be yaka niyalma dome genehe akv seme fonjihade

geli [also]
fonjime [asked]

ere dogvn be [this ferry]
yaka niyalma [someone, some people]
dome [ferrying] dict. form: doome
genehe akv [did not go]

seme [saying]

fonjiha-de [when asked]

She also asked him, “Haven’t any other people gone by this ferry?”

doholo laihi alame umai gvwa niyalma doho akv damu han i niyaman monggoldai nakcu baldu bayan i haha jui sergudai fiyanggo fainggo be ganame duleke

doholo laihi [lame ruffian]
alame [said]

umai [(not) at all]
gvwa niyalma [other people]
doho akv [did not ferry] dict. form: dooha

damu [but]
han i [lord's]
niyaman [relative]
monggoldai nakcu [Monggoldai Nakcu] Monggoldai [senior of the mother's clan]
baldu bayan i [Baldu Bayan's]
haha jui [son]
sergudai fiyanggo [Sergudai Fiyanggo]
fainggo be [soul]
ganame [bringing]
duleke [passed by]

The lame ruffian said, “No, no other people have gone.  But a relative of the lord, Monggoldai Nakcu, was passing by carrying the soul of Baldu Bayan’s son, Sergudai Fiyanggo.”

nixan saman baniha bume, uthai juraha,

nixan saman [the Nishan Shaman]
baniha bume [to thank]
uthai [then]
juraha [set out] dict. form: juraka

The Nisan Shaman thanked him and set out.

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