The Battle with Abarga Sesen Mangadhai The Seventh Branch

One day when Abai Geser had gone out hunting,
His uncle Hara Zutan came to visit his nephew’s wife.
Tumen Jargalan welcomed Hara Zutan nicely,
Bringing a golden table she served delicious food,
Bringing a silver table she honored him with beautiful food.
Pouring out liquor and wine she got him drunk,
Drinking arza and horza he became very drunk.
Malicious Hara Zutan Noyon was very satisfied,
He had nothing to complain about.
Becoming drunk he began acting disgracefully,
He grabbed his nephew’s wife,
Speaking jealous and hateful words:
“I have been thinking about you for a long time.
Abai Geser should give you to me!”
Speaking these offensive words,
He pestered and insulted her…
Abai Geser’s wife Tumen Jargalan said:
“Uncle, this is wrong, you are drunk.”
She spread out bedding thick bedding for him to lie on,
She put a big soft pillow under his head,
Lying under an otter fur blanket he snored,
Lying under a mink fur blanket he was puffing as he slept.

On the following morning Hara Zutan Noyon arose,
He washed his face and hands,
He straightened out his hair and clothing,
He began to talk again.
Geser’s wife Tumen Jargalan said:
“Our uncle is hung over,”
She poured out another cup of liquor,
She got him drunk once more.

When Hara Zutan drank he forgot himself,
When he smoked he became confused,
He began nagging at Tumen Jargalan once more.
He said similar words to the day before:
“I was the first to go court Tumen Jargalan,
who is as beautiful as the round red sun.
Because Abai Geser won the prizes
I went home empty-handed…
When my nephew Abai Geser went out hunting
He said for me to eat here,
He commanded me to be more friendly with you,”
When he said these things
Tumen Jargalan said:
“Our uncle is drunk and being stupid,”
She laid out bedding for him to lie on,
She put a thick pillow under his head,
Under an otter fur blanket he lay snoring,
Under a mink fur blanket he puffed as he slept.

Malevolent Hara Zutan Noyon arose on the following morning,
He washed his face and hands,
He straightened out his hair and clothing,
He once again started talking.
Geser’s wife Tumen Jargalan said:
“Our uncle is hung over,”
Pouring out arza and horza
She got him drunk once more.
When malevolent Hara Zutan drank he forgot himself,
When he smoked he became confused.
He began carping at Tumen Jargalan once again:
“My lady Tumen Jargalan,
Who is as beautiful as the round red sun,
We are required to turn back
The destiny and fortune given to us.
When Geser rode out to the hunt
We sacrificed an ox and he said
That I can take what is mine,”
When he said these crazy things
Tumen Jargalan said:
“Our uncle is drunk and talking crazy,”
She spread out bedding for him to lie on,
She lay out a thick pillow for his head,
He lay snoring under an otter fur blanket,
He slept puffing under a mink fur blanket.

Malevolent Hara Zutan Noyon arose on the fourth morning,
He washed his face and hands,
He straightened out his hair and clothes,
He started talking once more.
Tumen Jargalan said:
“Our uncle is hung over,”
And honored him with more liquor,
Getting him drunk again.
When malevolent Hara Zutan drank he forgot himself,
When he smoked he became confused.
He began bothering Tumen Jargalan once more:
“When Geser rode out to the hunt,
We sacrificed a stallion,
He told me to be joined with you!”
He grabbed his nephew’s wife and started harassing her…
When this happened
Geser’s wife Tumen Jargalan
Had no more patience for his behavior.
The good thoughts she had about him were broken:
“The day before yesterday I thought
You were speaking the words of a drunken man,
Yesterday when you spoke
I thought they were the ramblings of an old man.
Today on the fourth day I know you are speaking your true thoughts.”
She screamed calling for Buidan Ulaan Baatar.

He who turns around life,
The white oldest son of
Buuluur Sagaan Tenger,
Buidan Ulaan Baatar,
Came rushing in at once.
Tumen Jargalan said:
“Malevolent Hara Zutan lies there drunk and crazy.
Put him on his horse and send him away!”

The white oldest son of
Buuluur Sagaan Tenger,
Buidan Ulaan Baatar,
Guessing what had happened,
Understanding what Tumen Jargalan wanted,
Understanding why she wanted it,
Took a black handled whip with eighteen tails,
Brandishing it in his right hand he entered the house…
When Buidan Ulaan Baatar came in,
Hara Zutan lay there drunk, red, and crazy,
Having become completely senseless
He sat chattering and talking aimlessly.

Buidan Ulaan Baatar became very angry,
His mouth gaped in fury.
He grabbed the old man’s white hair,
Wrapping it around his hand.
He pulled him off the bedding,
Dragging him out the door.
When they had come outside
He struck him with the whip so hard
That the flesh of the back went through to the chest,
The flesh on his chest went through to his back.
Hara Zutan Noyon baaed like a kid goat,
He cried out like a fawn.
He struck him very hard,
He hurt him very severely.
Having done this
He put him on the back of his grey stallion and sent him away.
As he rode back to his home,
His life was hanging by a string.
With every step of his horse
Hara Zutan cried ow! ow! in pain,
In his dark gloomy chest
He thought dark thoughts,
In his black heart
He spoke of hatred and revenge.
Walking toward home,
Galloping toward his lands,
Thus he departed…

When malevolent Hara Zutan Noyon
Came back to his home,
He thought dark thoughts,
He vowed evil things.
Taking from his thoughts of the day,
He roamed in the dreams of the night…
On the following morning
He sacrificed a sheep,
Filling a stomach and bladder with blood.
Packing the containers of blood
Onto his handsome grey stallion,
He rode to the very beginning of the east,
To a wrong-looking land,
To a meager country,
To a place withered and dried by grief,
To a place of marshy rivers,
To a place of slippery slopes,
To the land of demons and evil spirits,
To a scorching hot land,
To a dark and sunless land,
To a dry land devoid of plants,
He went to do a ritual to the nine black demons,
The masters of the hell of evil spirits,
Who thrive on jealousy and hatred.

Riding with all his might,
Going as fast as he could,
Even if his destination was far he rode on,
Even if the river was wide he sprung across.
He came to the mouth of the hell of the evil spirits,
Tying the reins of his steed to his saddle horn.

This having happened,
He lit a great fire,
Roasting meat on nine spits,
Letting the smoke rise as greeting to the nine demons.
He spread out his saddle blanket on the ground,
He bowed and prostrated himself in worship.
For the duration of three days
He kneeled in worship of the nine demons,
His hope beginning to fade,
Hara Zutan began to shout and wail,
Blunted by exhaustion he complained:
“Has the hell of evil spirits come to misfortune,
Has the time come for the nine demons to die?”
He sat swearing and cursing,
While he was complaining
A shrieking and howling came from the depths of hell,
The nine demons came rushing out.
When this happened
They circled around looking at and menacing Hara Zutan,
Squeezing him around his chest
So that his heart was coming out his mouth.
Ready to snatch away the life of
Malevolent Hara Zutan they said:
“We take the blood of animals that are killed,
We take the words of a man about to die!”
They looked at the man who was now scarcely alive.
The nine demons said to him:
“Are you going to say anything?”
Malevolent Hara Zutan Noyon
Told the nine demons of what offended and troubled him:
“I have sacrificed a wether and done as ceremony
So you will bring bad things to my nephew,
So that he will have to banish his wife!”
He gave the nine spits of meat to the nine demons,
The nine black demons gobbled up the meat.

The demons then asked him:
“In what way do you want to bring hurt,
In what way do you want to bring misfortune?”
Malevolent Hara Zutan Noyon replied:
“Every day I suffer evil and hatred from Abai Geser,
Every night I am hurt and offended by Tumen Jargalan.
Show me how I can make Abai Geser
Give up his wife to Abarga Sesen Mangadhai!
Show me the way to be rid of them!
If there is no way to do this,
There is no way to get even for their wrongs to me!”
Malevolent Hara Zutan spoke and worshipped,
He cried as he prostrated himself before them.

The nine demons from the depths of hell
Saved the meat from the inside of the sheep’s hide.
They showed Hara Zutan Noyon
The way to do his evil deed:
“To do a spell on your nephew’s wife
You must make her eat the meat we saved,
Then sneak into her house at night
With the two containers of blood.
When Tumen Jargalan is sleeping
Put the stomach full of blood in her right boot!”
The nine demons spat into the stomach full of blood
And stepped on it nine times:
“You then put the bladder full of blood
And put it in the left pocket of her dress!”
They then told him:
“In the dark of night,
In the darkness of the fox,
Open the corral and let a hundred calves loose so that they nurse their mothers.
When you have done this
Go to Tumen Jargalan’s house and start shouting.
If Tumen Jargalan does not wake up,
Let another hundred calves loose so that two hundred are nursing.
Go to her house and shout that two hundred calves are nursing.
If Tumen Jargalan still does not get up,
Let another hundred calves loose to that three hundred calves are nursing.
Go and shout again that three hundred calves are nursing.
When Tumen Jargalan gets up,
She will put on her boots,
Spilling the blood from the stomach.
When she puts on her deel
The blood in the bladder will burst out.
A fog will form over the eternal lake,
Clouds of dust will swirl out of the Muren River,
That evil demon Abai Geser,
Having inhaled the fog and dust,
Will become sick as if he will die,
This having happened,
All cures having failed,
He will have to send Tumen Jargalan away.”
Thus were the instructions of the nine demons.

Malevolent Hara Zutan Noyon,
Having received instructions from the nine demons,
Rode his handsome grey stallion toward home.
Riding over the peaks of mountains,
Gashing the slopes as he rode,
Trotting the entire day through the forest,
Galloping through the entire night,
He came to the gate of his home,
Tying his horse at the hitching post,
He came quickly into his house.
His wife greeted him,
His hostile sister in law mocked him:
“What kind of evil thing are you plotting,
What kind of sin are you planning to commit?”
When she attacked and harassed him
Malevolent Hara Zutan turned around and went back outside.
He trotted swiftly toward the head of the Hatan River,
To visit the household of Tumen Jargalan.

He gave Tumen Jargalan the demons’ meat to eat,
Talking and muttering with her
He held the blood hidden inside his fist,
Following the instructions of the nine demons,
He listened to all that she had to say.
She thanked him for his help,
Giving him gifts of gold and silk,
Trusting him she sent him home,
Where he lay down in bed without closing his eyes…

Abai Geser’s wife Tumen Jargalan,
When it had become evening,
Was overcome by sleep.
When this had happened
Hara Zutan did as was commanded:
Leaving a stomach full of blood in her right boot,
Leaving a bladder full of blood in her left pocket.
This having happened,
In the darkest part of the night before the dawn,
In the darkness of the fox,
A hundred calves were let loose to nurse their mothers.
Hara Zutan stood outside her house shouting
That a hundred calves had gotten loose.
She said to herself:
“A hundred calves will not hurt anything,”
And went back to sleep.
When two hundred calves were loose and nursing,
Hara Zutan stood outside her house shouting
That two hundred calves had gotten loose.
She said to herself:
“Two hundred calves will not hurt anything,”
And went back to sleep.
When three hundred calves were loose and nursing,
Hara Zutan stood out and shouted
That three hundred calves were with their mothers!
When Geser’s wife Tumen Jargalan heard this:
“If three hundred cows are nursing their calves
There will not be enough milk to feed
The warriors for one day.
When men sleep in late
They can stay lying on their felt mats,
When women sleep in late
They have to go out and get the milk,
So is the saying of the elders.”
She got up quickly and started dressing,
Throwing on the deel lying by her pillow,
Pulling on her boots,
The stomach full of blood was broken,
Tumen Jargalan was very embarrassed,
The stomach burst and blood spilled out,
She was repulsed and disgusted,
The blood spilled and gushed
In front of her and behind her,
Spattering the gulamta with blood,
The fire in the gulamta went out.
When Tumen Jargalan jumped back,
The bladder of blood burst,
Running out until the gulamta overflowed with blood,
It streamed out from the gulamta and flowed outside like a creek.

When the stream of blood burst outside,
A woeful fog starting billowing up,
It flowed down to the shore of the eternal yellow lake,
It reached the shore of the Muren River.
It descended upon the eternal yellow lake as a fog,
It swirled about the Muren River as clouds of dust…
Abai Geser, who had been sleeping at the house
Of his wife Alma Mergen,
Arose before sunrise to look at the full moon,
He opened the smoke hole to look at the sky.
The dawn sky in the east was like night,
The night sky was like night’s shadow.
Fog had descended on the eternal yellow lake,
Dust swirled over the Muren River.
When Geser had inhaled the dust and fog
He became ill as if he were going to die…

Malevolent Hara Zutan Noyon,
Who had taken evil revenge,
Slept with a peaceful mind.
Abai Geser had great sickness and pain,
He was very worried and disturbed.
Taking a iron ring he wound it around his head.
This having happened he went quickly
To the house of his wife Tumen Jargalan,
He instructed Tumen Jargalan:
“Go out quickly to the thirteen elders of the land,
They should know what the cause of this is.”
She make quick preparations,
She made wise preparations,
She went out to meet the greatest of the elders…

Tumen Jargalan went quickly up
To meet the eldest of the thirteen.
When she arrived she opened the book of fate with her thumb,
She leafed through the great old book with her fingers,
Opening the book she read of what was in the high heavens,
Reading it she spoke of what was happening on the earth,
When she was looking and reading
She sat and read this passage aloud:
“If Abai Geser does not give his wife
Tumen Jargalan to Abarga Sesen Mangadhai
He will certainly die…”

When she had read this
Tumen Jargalan looked down crying,
Looking upward she was crestfallen.
She came back down from the sky,
Returning to her house.
She went in quickly to Abai Geser,
Telling him of the destiny written
In the great yellow book of fate.
She explained everything to him,
She recounted all that happened.
When Abai Geser had heard this
He felt sorry for Tumen Jargalan
He pitied her very much, saying:
“I would rather die than have the reputation of
Giving the woman who has been with me since childhood
To Abarga Sesen Mangadhai,
I would rather be conquered by this illness!”
He spoke these words as he lay in his bed.
After this had happened,
That evening Tumen Jargalan called three men,
The following evening they had called seventy men.
All of the families were offended and aggrieved,
The people were all troubled and angry.
Tumen Jargalan felt very sorry for Geser,
She pitied him very much, saying:
“Wherever I may go,
I will be going under the sun!”
Thus she went making preparations,
She came making preparations for her journey.

She had decided without approval from Abai Geser,
She made very thorough preparations
Gathering things for a difficult journey.
She said that the earth has ears,
That the heaven has eyes,
On the day she was to leave
The people gathered around her
To watch her departure.
Tumen Jargalan said:
“A man does what he intends,
A woman cuts out cloth,”
Being ready for the long road,
She went forth on her journey.
When she had done this
Blind people followed her with their guides,
Lame people followed on their stretchers,
A great multitude followed her,
Tugging on the skirts of her deel.
When Tumen Jargalan saw this,
She looked down and cried,
She looked up and was very moved.
This having happened
She yanked off the three-strand necklace
That hung around her lovely neck,
She shook it over the heads of the crowd,
Scattering its precious beads among them.
They became distracted and forgot about her
As they tried to gather up the pearls and coral.
When they were doing this,
Tumen Jargalan turned into a yellow fox
With a body thirty ells long,
Quickly running away to a place
Thirty haraa distant.

When she had done this,
Tumen Jargalan returned to her true body,
Her round face showing once more,
Returning to her original form,
Her red face showed once more.
She traveled on from there by foot,
Traveling as best as she could,
Going as quickly as she could.
She passed beyond the border
Of her own nurturing homeland,
Coming to a foreign land
That was cold for mankind.
She became very exhausted,
Her body was as if it were melting,
Her body was wasted by hunger,
She was full of fear and worry.
Her belly and ribs became so thin
That sunlight could pass through it,
Her chest and shoulders were so thin
That moonlight could pass through it.
Worrying and suffering,
She was melting away.
Her bones and body became weak,
Her flesh was being burned up:
“Oh my hero who loved me since your youth,
My brave Abai Geser,
May you recover without being confused,
May you become well without misunderstanding,
May you come after me and bring me back,
May you defeat your enemy and return me home…”
Tears streamed from her right eye,
Flowing into Lake Baikal,
Tears streamed from her left eye,
Becoming a source of the Lena River.

This having happened,
Grandmother Manzan Gurme Toodei
Of the silver cup,
Yanked off the silver necklace
That hung around her neck, saying:
“Go to the shore of the black lake,
To the beginning of the Hatan River,
To the waters that I drink,
To my homeland,
Going without delay
Enter into the bottom
Of my thirteen chests,”
Saying this she flung it toward the world below.

Tumen Jargalan traveled on further,
Forgetting her hunger and exhaustion,
Eating the winds as her food
She entered into a strange land.
When she entered she looked back:
The world looked wide and flat,
The Hatan River flowed clear and blue,
The noise of the people could be heard,
The horses and cattle were lowing.
Turning her sight back again
To the land of the evil spirits
Everything was dark and shadowy,
Plants lay dried up and dead.

The heart of poor Tumen Jargalan
Turned dark within her chest,
Her eight short ribs
Shrunk in on themselves.
Looking down she cried,
Looking up she was sad,
She thought the thoughts of a wolf,
She made her heart hard as stone…

She went on from there,
Entering the land of the evil spirits.
Following one path
She came to a valley.
When she entered the valley
It was full of sleeping magpies,
Each with a body as big as a cow.
When Tumen Jargalan approached them
The giant magpies made as if they wanted to eat her.
Tumen Jargalan saw no way to get across–
Looking up the cliffs were so high an eagle could not pass,
Looking down there was no path to go across.
When she was despairing
A naked little red boy came,
Riding a spotted magpie,
Leading a brownish magpie,
Landing at her side
He greeted her the greeting of the khan,
Saying to her:
“My lady, what valley are you from,
Where have you come from,
Where are you going to?”
When she was asked this
Tumen Jargalan replied:
“I come from the Hatan Valley,
Where it is too narrow.
I come to the broad
Kingdom of the mangadhai.
I have shunned and left Abai Geser,
I have come looking for Abarga Sesen Mangadhai.”
The little red naked boy said:
“You have good thoughts,
You have a beautiful face,
You have come at the right time.”
He mounted her on the magpie he was leading,
Flying her to the far side of the magpies’ valley.

When Geser’s wife Tumen Jargalan
Had traveled on further
She came to yet another valley.
When she came into this valley
It was full of sleeping black ravens.
When Tumen Jargalan passed them,
The black ravens circled around her
Cawing and croaking.
When Tumen Jargalan tried to find a way across,
She looked up and the cliffs were too high for an eagle to pass,
She looked down and there was no path across.
When this had happened,
A little red naked boy came,
Riding a white raven,
Leading a black raven,
He landed at her side.
Greeting her with the greetings of the khan
He said to Tumen Jargalan:
“My lady, what valley are you from,
Where did you come from,
Where are you going to?”
Tumen Jargalan replied to him:
“I come from the Hatan Valley,
Where it is too narrow.
I come to the broad
Kingdom of the mangadhai.
I have shunned and left Abai Geser,
I have come looking for Abarga Sesen Mangadhai.”
The little red naked boy said:
“You have good thoughts,
You have a beautiful face,
You have come at the right time.”
He mounted her on the raven he was leading
And flew her to the far side of the ravens’ valley.

Geser’s wife Tumen Jargalan
Traveled further on from there,
Coming to a third valley.
When she entered that valley
It was full of sleeping blue wolves.
When Tumen Jargalan passed the wolves
They clustered around her as if to eat her
Licking her with their tongues.
When Tumen Jargalan looked up the cliffs were so high not an eagle could pass,
When she looked down there was no path across.
When this had happened,
A little naked red boy came from among the wolves,
Riding one wolf and leading another,
He rode up to Tumen Jargalan’s side.
He greeted her with the greeting of the khan, saying:
“My lady, where did you come from,
Where are you going?”
Tumen Jargalan replied, saying:
“I come from the Hatan Valley,
Where it is too narrow.
I come to the broad
Kingdom of the mangadhai.
I have shunned and left Abai Geser,
I have come looking for Abarga Sesen Mangadhai.”
The little red naked boy said:
“You have good thoughts,
You have a beautiful face,
My lord the khan has nothing to worry about,
You have come at the right time.”
He mounted her on the blue wolf he was leading,
Taking her across to the far side of the wolves’ valley.

Abai Geser’s wife Tumen Jargalan
Traveled further in the land of the evil spirits,
Reaching the very beginning of the east,
A wrong-looking land,
A meager country,
A place withered and dried by grief,
Having three marshy streams,
A land of slippery slopes,
A dwelling place of demons and evil spirits,
A scorching hot land,
A dark and sunless country,
A place dry and devoid of plants.

When she had arrived
Abarga Sesen Mangadhai knew very well,
He understood what was happening.
He the took his pus-white horse,
Putting on its saddle blanket,
Binding on his rawhide saddle,
And galloped out to meet Tumen Jargalan.
He found her out on the white steppe,
Coming from their two directions
They met by a grove of five pine trees…

Abarga Sesen Mangadhai
Gave her the greetings of a khan,
Greeted her as a queen:
“You a woman with good thoughts,
You are a woman with a beautiful face!”
He was very excited,
He was very happy,
He hugged Tumen Jargalan almost bending her in half,
He hugged her so hard as to twist her out of shape,
Kissing and stroking her red right cheek,
Kissing and licking her left red cheek.
When this had happened
He took her by the right hand,
Leading her to his palace,
Taking her by the left hand
He dragged her back to his home…

When this had happened,
Abai Geser became better day by day,
Returning to his original condition,
Recovering more night by night
He became as he was before,
He became stronger than before,
He was greater than before.

This having happened Geser said:
“Who gives birth to a son who steals and plunders?
Who gives birth to a son who allows himself to be stolen from and plundered?!”
He started preparing Beligen the bay horse,
The steed mighty in body.
Leading him over gravel to strengthen his black hooves,
Leading him over ice to strengthen his round hooves,
He tied him in an airy place so he would eat air,
He tied him in a windy place so he would eat wind,
He fed him with black hay,
He watered him with black water.
He tied him in the flatlands
So he would have the power of the falcon,
He tied him in the mountains
So he would have the power of the hawk.
This horse with the mighty body,
With cunning in his bones,
Beligen the bay horse,
Had been conditioned for the journey.

This having happened
Geser said that he would arrange
The lovely trappings of his horse,
He laid the silk-edge saddle blanket on his back,
He laid on the chased silver saddle,
He adjusted the girth of ten straps,
He tightened the girth of twenty straps,
He lay the silver crupper over his side,
He lay the silver breast straps over his shoulders.
He hung the black-handled quirt from the saddle,
Tying the lovely reins to the saddle horn.
This having happened
Geser tied his steed at the silver hitching post.

Abai Geser then said:
“Now that my horse is ready,
It is time to prepare myself.”
He pulled on his black pants
Sewn from the skins of seventy deer,
He pulled on his black fishskin boots,
He put on the fine silk deel
He always wore to battle,
Fastening its seventy brass buttons
From the bottom to the top
With the strength of his thumbs.
He wound a silver sash around his waist,
He girded on his hard silvery steel sword,
Hanging it on his left side,
He hung hard steel armor over his back,
He hung beaten iron armor over his chest,
He hung a silver bowcase on his right side,
He hung a silver decorated quiver on his left side,
He put his heroic silver bow of seventy laminations in its case,
He put seventy five arrows in his quiver,
He put ninety five arrows in his quiver,
So that they would be of help in the cold of winter,
So that they would be like a shadow in the heat of summer.
He put a steel helmet white as a star onto his head,
He glittered like the sun,
He rustled like a tree in full leaf.

He dressed turning around before a mirror
The size of a saddle blanket,
Dusting of lint and dirt,
He dressed turning around before a mirror
The size of a door,
Knocking off dust and trash from his clothing.
He was armored to be invincible to bladed weapons,
He was armored to he impenetrable to pointed weapons.
He melted spider oil in his mouth
So that he would not be hungry for ten years,
He anointed his nose with worm oil
So that he would not be hungry for twenty years.
Having completed preparing his body,
It had become time to ride.
His uncle benevolent Sargal Noyon said:
“Go where you intend to go,
Return with fortunate news,
Go find what you seek,
Return with news of success!
When you go where you intend to go,
Go with fortune and destiny,
May fortune and destiny bring success
And follow you on your way!”
Thus he gave his blessing.

Abai Geser opened the massive pearly door in a beautiful way,
He stepped across the massive granite threshold in a pure way.
Going down the silver steps
On which a mare and her foal could run,
He did not stumble;
Going down the silver walkway
On which a mare and her colt could run,
He made no mistake.
Coming to his steed Beligen the bay horse,
Pulling the red rope loose from the post,
Holding his quirt in his right hand,
Holding his reins in his left hand,
Putting his foot in a massive silver stirrup,
He swung into his chased silver saddle.

Pulling on the right rein of Beligen the bay horse
Geser turned his steed in the direction of the sun,
Having done this,
A cloud of dust could be seen at the base of the serge,
The red tassels of his hat could be seen beyond the mountain,
As he sped off toward the east!

This having happened
Abai Geser thought a thought in his great chest,
He spoke words within his black heart.
He saw who brought death and disorder,
He saw who suppressed him with illness,
He saw who made him lose Tumen Jargalan to the mangadhai,
He saw and understood everything well.
He turned his horse toward the home of Hara Zutan,
Flying as swiftly as an arrow from the bow,
Flying with the noise of a thrown rock.
He entered the gate of Hara Zutan’s house,
He tied his horse at the silver hitching post.
When he had done this he called:
“Uncle are you home?”
He shouted and asked.
Malevolent Hara Zutan Noyon,
Hearing the calls of his nephew,
Was greatly afraid,
He was greatly embarrassed.
Not being able to find a hole to crawl into
He crept underneath the cupboard,
Quiet like something neither living nor dead.

This having happened
Geser’s aunt hinted to him:
“He is in the middle of the cupboard,
Hiding among the plated and cups,”
When Hara Zutan heard this
He slid out from under the cupboard,
Running outside he slapped his wife,
Then went and hid under the bed.
Abai Geser sought another hint,
Again shouting and asking,
“Uncle, where have you gone to?”

Geser’s aunt again hinted to him:
“He is in the middle of the bed,
He has vanished in the bed without a trace.”
When she had said this
Hara Zutan crawled out from under the bed,
Running out from there he slapped her again.
He crawled into the mouth of a large sack.
Hara Zutan’s wife, being tired of being hit,
Her anger reaching the boiling point,
Tied up the bag so he could not get out.

Abai Geser asked once more:
“Uncle, where have you gone to?”
This time he was joking as he asked.
His aunt called out to him:
“He has gone inside a bag,
This time he cannot get out.”
She called and gestured to him.
Tying the reins of his horse to the saddle horn
He came inside the house.

He brought the sack containing Hara Zutan
To the right side of the gulamta.
He jumped up and down on it and sat on it.
Hara Zutan’s lungs and heart
Were ready to come out of his mouth.
His wife laughed slapping her knee,
But she was also afraid.
She brought him a golden table and served him delicious food,
She brought him a silver table and honored him with beautiful food.

Abai Geser and his aunt,
Remembering things from the earliest times,
Talked in a friendly way,
Reminding each other of the past,
They talked in a meaningful way.
They talked until foam could form on liquor,
They talked until plants could grow on a black rock.

This having happened Geser said:
“The dried goods in my aunt’s sack
Are even now so lumpy,
Why are they still so hard?”
He took out a yellow steel knife
And poked it into his uncle’s fat buttocks.
Malevolent Hara Zutan Noyon
Cried out in pain and writhed in his sack.

Abai Geser winked at his aunt,
Jumped up and opened the mouth of the bag:
“Uncle, what did you say?…
Has your mind grown dull,
Have your reins grown thin?
Why do you crawl into a bag
And lie in there hiding?”
He spoke pretending he was surprised.

Malevolent Hara Zutan Noyon
Was very greatly embarrassed,
His face turned red to the roots of his hair.
He stared down at his chest, trembling,
Thinking about how to get away.
Abai Geser stood before the door,
Not letting Hara Zutan go outside.
He said to his uncle:
“My wife Tumen Jargalan
Has been forced to go to the demons’ country.
Your nephew goes after her,
Ride with me on the journey.”
When malevolent Hara Zutan Noyon heard these words
He consented without wanting to go,
He went outside, saying
“You are indifferent to fear and life.”
He went to get his handsome grey stallion.
Abai Geser said to him:
“Quickly put on the clothing
That you wear on the road to battle,
Gird on the weapons
When you go to war and battle!”
He spoke challengingly and strongly,
Malevolent Hara Zutan Noyon
Made quick preparations,
He made wise preparations,
Gathering up his weapons,
Putting on his armor.

This having happened,
The two of them left together,
Riding their horses swiftly
In the direction of the east,
To the land of the evil spirits.

They rode with all their might,
Going as fast as they could,
When they approached their campsite,
When they neared where they would sleep,
Abai Geser took a piece of a magpie carcass,
Turning it into a haunch of venison,
He threw it onto the road ahead of Hara Zutan.
When Hara Zutan Noyon saw the venison
He quickly snatched it up for himself,
Saying to his nephew:
“My nephew Abai Geser,
How bad your eyesight is,
Approaching our campsite,
Coming to where we will sleep,
Your lucky uncle has found this nice piece of venison!”
Abai Geser pretended he was jealous, saying:
“Uncle, what keen eyesight you have,
Won’t you share this with your nephew?”
Hara Zutan acted disappointed, saying:
“Do not take away from what your uncle has found.”
He did not want to listen to Geser.
They went on further,
One following the other.

This having happened
Abai Geser shot a stag and doe with one arrow,
Loading the two deer on his saddle straps.
They reached a site to camp for the night,
The found where they would be sleeping,
They took the saddles off their two horses.

This having happened
They kindled a campfire as big as a small hill,
Hara Zutan Noyon spitted his venison on two sticks,
Geser spitted the two deer on his steel spear,
Leaving them by the fire to roast.
They sat up and talked for a while,
Then the two of them went to sleep.
When it had become morning
Hara Zutan’s lovely haunch of venison,
Having shrunk into a magpie carcass,
Lay charred on the ground by its spits.
Geser’s two deer had roasted perfectly,
Looking ready to eat.
Like the proverb that says
That a person who eats what he finds
Will walk about shaking,
Malevolent Hara Zutan Noyon,
His belly sunken in,
So thin he could count his ribs,
Disappeared and came leading his horse.
Abai Geser washed his face and hands,
Straightened out his hair and clothes,
And began to eat the two deer.
While he sat and ate
Malevolent Hara Zutan Noyon
Came to stand beside his nephew,
When he arrived Geser ate as if
He would burst his stomach,
Cutting, biting, and gulping.
Abai Geser tried to provoke him:
“Uncle, uncle what happened to you!
Going hungry and skinny on the road
Is bad for your fortunes!”
Finishing the rest of the venison by himself,
He gathered up the bones and scraps
And left them out on a field.
This having happened they rode again all day,
When they approached their next campsite,
When they were coming to where they would sleep,
Abai Geser took a piece of a raven carcass,
Turning it into a haunch of moose meat,
He threw it in his uncle’s path.
When malevolent Hara Zutan saw the moose meat
He quickly snatched it up for himself, saying:
“My nephew, what is the matter with your eyesight,
Your uncle has found another piece of meat!”
They were coming close to a place to camp,
They were approaching a place to sleep,
Malevolent Hara Zutan Noyon said:
“Let us tie our horses to a tree,
Let us prepare ourselves to sleep.”
Abai Geser pretended to be jealous and said:
“Uncle, uncle you are very lucky,
Give me a little from what you have to eat.”
Hara Zutan Noyon was greedy of his moose meat:
“Why do you think you should share
The meat found by an old man?”
He did not want to listen to Geser.
This having happened
Geser shot a stag and doe with one arrow
From the distance of three haraa.
When they reached the place they would camp,
When they arrive at the place where they would sleep,
They tied their horses to a tree,
And kindled a campfire.
This having happened
Malevolent Hara Zutan Noyon
Spitted his moose meat on two spits,
Setting them by the fire to roast,
Geser spitted the two deer on his spear,
Also leaving them by the fire to roast.
Having done this
They sat up and talked for a while,
Then the two of them went to sleep.
After they had slept,
When they arose in the morning,
The haunch of moose meat had shrunk into a piece of raven meat,
Lying charred and dried between the two spits.
Abai Geser’s stag and doe,
Roasting by the edge of the fire,
Were cooking and oozing with juice.
Malevolent Hara Zutan Noyon was very surprised,
He was most astonished,
He felt hateful and vengeful toward his nephew Geser!…
His belly felt shrunken and empty,
He could count his ribs,
Staggering away hungry and famished
He went to fetch his horse.
Abai Geser washed his face and hands,
He straightened up his hair and clothes,
He began to eat the meat off the two deer.
Malevolent Hara Zutan Noyon,
Circled around him watching,
Like a hungry dog,
Pacing like a wild animal.
When he came back to Geser
He was eating as if his stomach would burst,
Abai Geser once more tried to provoke him:
“Uncle, uncle what is the matter!
Aren’t you full from the moose meat,
Did you not eat all of it?
When you go on a long journey
Hungry and thin
It is bad for your fortunes,
It will be a loss of your strength!”
After he had said this
He finished off the two deer himself,
He gathered up the bones and scraps,
Leaving them out on a field.

This having happened
The two of them rode onward,
Going on a very long journey.
Abai Geser turned a black rock the size of a foal
Into Tumen Jargalan’s jeweled necklace,
Throwing it in Hara Zutan’s path.
When malevolent Hara Zutan Noyon
Spotted the necklace on the road
He quickly snatched it up.
When malevolent Hara Zutan Noyon
Had found Tumen Jargalan’s necklace
He shouted and motioned for Geser to come:
“My nephew, how bad your eyesight is!
I have found Tumen Jargalan’s jeweled necklace
Lying here on the road!”
Thus he spoke and rejoiced.
Abai Geser flattered malevolent Hara Zutan,
Praising him greatly he said:
“My uncle, what sharp eyesight you have,
We have now found which way to go!
Now that we have found a clue,
We know which road to travel.
You have shown the way,
You know the way of the journey.
Go back home now,
Go to your native land.
I will go on from here alone,
I will find the means to get there.
If the necklace you have is on your chest
It will show the way for the journey,
But I will tie it on your back,
So that you will travel with peace of mind.”
Geser tied the necklace onto Hara Zutan’s back
With a white rope a thousand ells long,
He spoke to the black rock, saying:
“When he is on the road toward home,
Return to your original form,
Become a big black rock
And weigh down on his back!”
Having spoken these words to the rock
That appeared to be his wife’s necklace,
He sent his uncle Hara Zutan back to his home.

When malevolent Hara Zutan Noyon
Heard that he would be going home
He liked what he heard,
He heard it very gladly.
He rejoiced very much,
He was most excited.
Exchanging his farewells with his nephew
The two of them rode their separate ways,
Malevolent Hara Zutan Noyon
Pulled the left rein of his handsome grey stallion,
He flicked his black handled quirt on his right side.
As the horse walked in the direction of home,
As they galloped toward their native land,
Hara Zutan came to realize he was a fool,
Hatred and gall began to boil,
Being unable to cut himself loose,
The desire for revenge became red hot.
Tumen Jargalan’s jeweled necklace
Became a big black boulder,
Pressing on his back
It wore through the back of his deel,
Coming in contact with his skin
It chafed against his body.
Malevolent Hara Zutan Noyon
Trotted along stooped over,
Poked by his saddle horn,
If he leaned back
He was almost pulled out of the saddle.
His strength finally was broken off,
His abilities were depleted,
Out on the white steppe
On a path by a white birch,
He fell off his horse,
His life hanging by a string
He lay with his mouth and nose buried in the mud.

This having happened,
Geser’s subjects gathered together,
They found malevolent Hara Zutan Noyon barely alive,
Cutting and stripping away the white rope
They carried away the black rock the size of a foal,
Leaving it out on the steppe.
They lay Hara Zutan on the back of his grey stallion,
Sending him on the way home.

After Abai Geser had sent Hara Zutan
Back toward his home,
He rode his steed mighty in body,
With wisdom in his bones,
Beligen the bay horse,
Geser pulling his right rein,
Sped eastward toward the land of the evil spirits.
This horse with the body thirty ells long,
Teeth three spans long,
A tail thirty spans long,
With three armfuls of hair in his mane,
With hooves that would not slip,
With a back that could not be broken,
With hair that never falls out,
The tail of Beligen the bay horse
Lashed on his flanks,
His mane of three armfuls of hair
Scattered over his back,
His four black hooves
Struck sparks and kicked up dust,
His forty white teeth
Ate up mist and dust,
When he traveled at a gentle pace
He left hoofprints the size of cups,
When he galloped swiftly
He left a trail like a trench.
The earth swayed and moved from his hoofbeats,
The ground rocked and shook from his steps,
The mountains were trembling and shaking,
Gravel and rocks cracked and crumbled.
Abai Geser had the mind of a wolf,
He made his heart like stone.
In the places where white snow covered the road
And the magpie cried to mark the months of winter,
He pushed his foxfur hat down on his head,
He inhaled snow through his mouth and nose as he rode,
He tucked in the skirts of his deel as he trotted along;
In the places where the road became muddy,
And the thrush sang to mark the months of summer,
He opened the breast flap of his deel,
Sweat trickled into his mouth and nose as he rode,
He left his clothes unbuttoned as he trotted along.
Traveling with all his might,
Going as swiftly as he could,
He passed the border of his nurturing homeland,
Entering into a cold and strange country.
When he entered into the land of the evil spirits
He came to the valley of the magpies.
When he entered the valley
Magpies the size of cattle were lying about sleeping.
Geser rode among the giant magpies,
Slashing and cutting them with his sword.
When he had traveled on further,
He came to the valley of the ravens.
When he entered the valley
Black ravens were lying about sleeping.
Geser trotted among the black ravens,
Slashing and cutting them with his sword.
When he had traveled on further,
He came to the valley of the wolves.
When he came into the valley
It was full of sleeping hungry blue wolves.
Geser trotted among the blue wolves,
Slashing and cutting them with his sword.
When he had traveled on further
He raised his black handled whip
With the eighteen tails,
Striking him on the right side,
Beligen the bay horse,
Taking power from the heavens
Stood straight and tall,
Taking power from the earth
He stood fine and proudly.
Abai Geser approached the home
Of Abarga Sesen Mangadhai.
He pulled the reins of Beligen the bay horse,
Bringing him to a halt.
Having done this,
Geser gathered thirteen magicks on his palms,
He allowed twenty three magicks to dance on his fingers,
The horse with the mighty body,
With wisdom in his bones,
Beligen the bay horse,
Was turned into a flint,
Geser put him into his pocket.
He took his red zadai stone
Between his forty white teeth,
He spit toward the heavens:
He brought down heat hot enough to boil horse shit,
He made it hot enough to dry out trees to the core!..

This having happened
Geser turned himself into two naked boys,
Carrying bows made from twigs of a bush,
Carrying little arrows made from willow twigs,
They played at shooting on the shore of the yellow lake.
When this was happening
Abarga Sesen Mangadhai said:
“Never anytime in the past,
Never anytime in the future
Has it ever been so terribly hot,
Has it ever been so scorching hot,
I have never heard of weather like this,
I have never seen weather like this…”
Saying this he decided to swim in the yellow lake,
He walked down to the beach.

When Abarga Sesen Mangadhai
Saw the two naked boys playing on the beach
He called them to him.
Putting a round piece of horse dung on his head
He spoke playfully to them:
“My boys, my boys, young heroes,
Win yourselves names as archers!
You both one at a time
Try to shoot the horse chip off my head,
Let us see who can hit the target!”
When he had said this
One of the two naked boys said:
“My arrows do not shoot straight,
My bow is crooked.
If my arrow goes into your eye
It will do great damage.”
When the boy objected to his idea
Abarga Sesen snorted:
“If you two little monsters
Shoot me in my eye,
May you be eaten up by a swarm of lice!”
Once he had said this
The two naked boys agreed to shoot.
Abarga Sesen pointed to the two boys,
“You shoot first, then you shoot.”
The first boy prepared his little stick bow,
He spoke magic words on the head of his little twig arrow,
So that fire blazed on the shaft,
He spoke words of power on its fletching
So that flames danced on it:
“If you are destined to kill
Abarga Sesen Mangadhai,
Pierce the iris of his right eye!
If you are fated to kill
Abarga Sesen Mangadhai,
Strike him without erring,
Going on to the white steppe
Like a great explosion,
Striking and breaking him off
With a great noise!”
He pulled back the string with all his might,
Pulling it back strong and tight,
Pulling it back very well,
The arrow loosed with great force!
Whistling the song of the arrowhead,
Singing the song of the arrow,
The great black arrow
That Geser always shot first
Bored through the iris and pierced his right eye.
Abarga Sesen Mangadhai was greatly embarrassed,
The arrow continued to bore deeper into his eye.
He shouted “May you boys bleed to death!”
The two naked boys disappeared.
Staggering senselessly in pain
He went back to his house naked,
With blood flowing from his right eye
He ran into his house.
He shouted to Tumen Jargalan,
“Come quickly!”
He fell down on his bed,
Crying, moaning, and yelling.
When Tumen Jargalan
Came quickly to him,
He was yelling mindlessly in pain,
Blood flowing from his eye:
“Some dog shot an arrow into my right eye,
Pull it out gently and throw it away,”
He lay there begging her to do it.
When Tumen Jargalan began to pull it out
She recognized the point of the great black arrow
That Geser would always shoot first.
When she recognized the arrow
She became very excited,
She was very happy, saying:
“Oh damn! I cannot pull it out,
Grit your teeth and ignore it.”
When she said this,
Abarga Sesen Mangadhai,
His strength beginning to fail begged:
“Help me!”
Geser’s wife Tumen Jargalan said:
“To remove this arrow
It is impossible to pull it out.
If I hit it with a hammer, I can knock it through to the other side
And remove it from the back of your head.”
Abarga Sesen Mangadhai
Being unable to tolerate the pain,
Wanting very much to be cured,
Did not argue with the use of the hammer.
This having happened Tumen Jargalan said:
“I will put three iron bands around your head.
When I hit the arrow with the hammer,
It will come out through the back side.
When I am hitting it with the hammer
Will you be able to stand the pain?
You will probably tear me apart
Then run away and disappear.
If I am going to treat you like this
I need to tie you up with a rope
A thousand ells long.”
Abarga Sesen Mangadhai
Being unable to argue with her
Got a rope for her out of a black chest.
Tumen Jargalan tied up the demon of magical power,
Abarga Sesen Mangadhai, with a rope a thousand ells long,
Tying him spread out with strong knots.
When she had done this
She raised Abarga Sesen’s iron hammer,
Speaking these words to Geser’s arrow:
“Go through and break the neck bones
Of Abarga Sesen Mangadhai!”
She beat on the arrow with all her strength,
Abarga Sesen Mangadhai,
Unable to endure the agony,
Kicked and snapped the white silk rope!..

This having happened,
Abai Geser came to the house of Abarga Sesen,
He was looking for the hiding place
Of Abarga Sesen’s amin and hulde.
When he came to the house of Abarga Sesen
He was greeted by Tumen Jargalan.
Geser said to her:
“Stick a large needle
Into the vocal cords
Of Abarga Sesen’s three headed son.
When Abarga Sesen is asking for him
Say that he is afraid of Abai Geser.
Say that he wants his father Abarga Sesen
To be joined with his amin and hulde
To test his strength against Abai Geser,
Say that he lies crying and asking for this.”
Tumen Jargalan went quickly back into the house,
She drove a needle into the throat
Of Abarga Sesen’s three headed son,
So that he cried without resting.
Abarga Sesen Mangadhai asked:
“Why is my son crying and moaning,
Was he frightened by something bad?”
He asked Tumen Jargalan as he lay on his bed,
Tumen Jargalan replied to him:
“He says that he is afraid of Abai Geser,
He says his father should be re-united
With his amin and hulde.
He asks that you tell him where they are
So he will be able to help his father.”
Abarga Sesen Mangadhai thought stupid thoughts,
Thinking them in his pinched chest…
He opened his great book of fate with his thumb,
He leafed through the old book with his fingers,
When he sat and read aloud:
“Abai Geser is very far away!
My amin and hulde and not so far away!
Geser’s thirty three warriors,
His three hundred leaders of his army,
His three thousand soldiers,
When they travel such a long journey,
Are blocked by the valley full of magpies,
They are blocked by the valley of ravens,
Beyond that they must cross the valley of wolves!”
He finished reading and lay down.
When this had happened,
Geser had been hiding in a corner of the room.
He said to his wife Tumen Jargalan:
“Stick a needle into the boy’s throat again to make him cry.”
Tumen Jargalan drove a needle into his throat,
Making him cry even louder than before.
Abarga Sesen’s son cried so hard
That it roused his father from his suffering:
“What is the matter with my son
That he continues to cry so much?
Did my round headed monster
Get bruised by the saddle horn?”
Thus he asked as he lay on his bed.
Abai Geser said to Tumen Jargalan:
“Say ‘My father Abarga Sesen
You have hidden your amin and hulde,
If you hide it from your only born son
I will run away!”
Abarga Sesen Mangadhai became very angry,
His mouth gaping in his fury,
“What kind of presumptuous son do I have
That demands I re-unite my amin and hulde?
My amin and hulde are hidden in a stallion’s head,”
He said lying and deceiving.
Abai Geser went out and split open the stallion’s head,
He did not find the souls of Abarga Sesen Mangadhai.
He had Tumen Jargalan make the boy cry again,
Abarga Sesen could not bear to hear the cries:
“What is the matter with the little devil,
That he continues crying until now?”
Tumen Jargalan answered:
“He says that his father told him evil lies
Saying that his amin and hulde were in the horse’s head.”
She pressured him to tell the truth.
Abarga Sesen Mangadhai said:
“My amin and hulde are in an ox’s head.”
Once again he twisted the truth.
Abai Geser went out and split open the ox’s head,
The mangadhai’s souls could not be found.
He had Tumen Jargalan make the boy cry again.
Abarga Sesen was unable to tolerate this,
The three headed baby cried constantly,
Making a loud noise all day,
Sobbing and whining all night.
This having happened
Abarga Sesen’s resistance ended:
“This is like the scabies, like a burr,
I just cannot get rid of this!
My amin and hulde
Are at the very beginning of the east,
In a distant eastern land,
In my demonic older sister’s house
They are hidden inside a great black stone box.
In the black stone box there is a black iron box,
In the black iron box there is a white silver box,
In the white silver box there is a yellow gold box,
In the yellow gold box there are
Twelve wasps and twelve quails.”
Finally he had told the truth.

After Abarga Sesen had told the truth
Abai Geser went and struck of the three heads of his demonic son.
After he had done this,
Geser tucked the front part of his deel above his waist,
He tucked the back part of his deel above his buttocks,
He then set off far the distant eastern lands.
This having happened,
Abarga Sesen thought dark thoughts,
He vowed evil things to himself,
He looked for Geser’s fresh trail,
He looked for his old trail.

Abai Geser knew this very well,
He understood this very well,
He turned himself into Abarga Sesen’s three headed son,
He walked along the mountainside,
He ran leaving a trail through the gravel,
Abarga Sesen saw him from behind and cried,
“Ai, galda edi,
My bad little boy,
You are running away to my sister…”
Believing this Abarga Sesen went back home,
He went back to lie on his bed.
This having happened
Geser returned to his true appearance,
His round face was showing once more;
Geser returned to his original appearance,
His red face was showing once more.

Like the saying that tells
That a man does what he intends
The blue wolf will bite,
Geser did not sleep at night,
Forgetting the need to rest,
Not drinking in the heat of the day,
Ignoring the need for food,
He traveled with all his night,
He went as swiftly as he could.
He reached the far eastern lands,
The country wrong in appearance.
Geser gathered thirteen magicks on his palms,
He allowed twenty three magicks to dance on his fingers.

When he had done this he shifted his shape,
Becoming Abarga Sesen’s three headed son.
When he had done this
He stood before the door of his “aunt’s” house.
Intending to be let in he waited by the door.
Abai Geser knocked loudly on the great iron door,
Almost breaking it down.
Abarga Sesen’s demonic older sister said:
“Whose son are you,
From what are you born?”
She shouted loudly from inside the door.
Abai Geser answered:
“You nephew has come
For a visit with his aunt.”
He spoke loudly but affectionately,
Begging her to let him in.
“You are not my nephew coming to visit,
You are Abai Geser disguising himself with magic!”
The older sister replied without opening the door.
Abai Geser was unable to get her to let him in,
He waited outside her door for nine days without success.
Finally the demonic older sister decided to test him:
She opened the iron door merely a crack,
Showing him her right breast,
Demanding of him:
“If you are truly my nephew,
Suck from my breast!”
Saying this she was testing him,
If Abai Geser would drink her milk
He would have fallen forward on his face,
He would have become as if he were dead.
Knowing this Geser made a cut in his ribs,
Inserting a pipe to drain away the milk as he swallowed it.
When he had done this he suckled the demon woman’s breast.
When he had nursed from the right breast
Of the sister of Abarga Sesen Mangadhai,
She believed he was her nephew and let him in.
She honored her “nephew” with food.
Abai Geser knew that if he ate and drank
From the demons’ food and liquor,
He would fall on his back ready for the aranga,
He would fall on his face and die.
Therefore before he began to eat and drink
He made a hole in the wall of the ger,
He inserted another drain tube into his ribs,
Putting the other end through the wall
So that the poisonous food would go outside.
When he ate the best of the food,
When he drank her strong drink,
It emptied into a ditch outside the wall,
Flowing like a small creek.
This having happened,
After the red sun had set,
When it had become evening,
When sleep overcame the living things of the world,
Abarga Sesen Mangadhai’s demonic sister
Prepared a soft bed as big as a hill,
Covered with a great soft blanket,
After she had slipped into it she said:
“My nephew, come sleep with the aunt you are visiting,
Suck my breast and you can fall asleep in my arms.”
She threw her long black breast onto her shoulder,
Saying affectionately to her “nephew”:
“If you strengthen yourself with my milk,
You will have the strength to kill Abai Geser!”
Thus she spoke as she lay there.
Abai Geser drank mightily from her soft breast,
The milk flowing out into the ditch like a stream.
The demonic older sister,
Who had not slept for nine days,
Was soon overcome by sleep.
When the demon woman had fallen into a deep slumber
Abai Geser took on his true form,
His round face was showing again,
He returned to his original form,
His red face was showing again.
When this had happened
He put his magic sandalwood staff on her head,
So that she would sleep for a thousand ages,
So that she would not arise for ten thousand ages,
He made magic with his red zadai stone:
“May you be confused for a thousand years,
May you sleep for a thousand ages,
Overcome by sleep and slumber
May you lie here to dry out and die!”
With this spell he was able to leave her behind.
Taking an iron hammer he broke open
The demon woman’s black stone box,
There was a black iron box inside,
When he broke open the black iron box,
There was a white silver box inside;
When he broke open the white silver box,
There was a yellow gold box inside;
When he broke open the yellow gold box,
There were twelve wasps and twelve quails inside.
He was unable to catch them
And they flew up through the air, escaping outside.

This having happened
Geser gathered thirteen magicks on his palms,
He let twenty three magicks dance on his fingers:
He brought together the chill of four winters,
A cold descended that would make a ram’s horns break off.
When this had happened
He gathered up the sun’s heat on his palms,
He let the moon’s light shine from his fingers.
When he had done this,
The twelve wasps and twelve quails
That contained the souls of Abarga Sesen
Were unable to resist,
They gathered on his palms,
They hid themselves in his fingers.
When the twelve wasps and twelve quails
That contained the souls of Abarga Sesen
Came and sat shivering on his hands
He killed them all except for three of each,
He put the remaining wasps and quails
Inside the breast flap of his deel.

This having happened,
Geser returned to the home of Abarga Sesen,
He went swiftly on his return trip,
When he had arrived,
Abarga Sesen Mangadhai was helpless with pain,
Crying and moaning inside and outside,
He wandered about crying and suffering…
He had wrapped a young white birch around his head,
He had lost the ability to distinguish black and white.
When this was happening
Geser had returned to the house of Abarga Sesen.
He shouted at the mangadhai
With the voices of a thousand stags,
He yelled at his enemy
With the voices of ten thousand stags.
When Abarga Sesen heard Geser’s voice
He said to Geser: “Come in!”
When Abai Geser came in to him
Abarga Sesen said to him: “Hey!
Your flesh will be like a chewed up cud,
Your bones will be like cartilage,
What a pity you have come here,
I am defeating you on a day when I am hungry!”
Thus he spoke complaining.
When Abai Geser heard these words
He became very angry,
His mouth gaped in fury,
He stood over Abarga Sesen and challenged him:
“Get up you evil demon!
You who are greedy for other people’s treasure,
You who are not satisfied with what you have,
You are trash and an enemy of the people.”
These words were enough to make him get up.

Abarga Sesen swore and cursed,
Grabbing Abai Geser by the front of his deel.
When the two of them started wrestling
They knocked down the wall in the corner,
They went outside fighting as they went.
Two beings of great strength,
Two beings of magical power,
Were as equally matched as the two sides of a camel,
They were as equally matched as the two sides of a horse.
Where they fought trying to kill each other
They wore out a hole as if it were pawed by cattle,
Where they pushed and jostled each other
They made a hole as if it were kicked out by camels.
When they jumped and kicked to the south
They gouged the southern mountain,
When the jumped and pushed to the north
They overturned the northern mountain.
They tore the meat off each other’s backs with their fingers,
They bit the meat off each other’s chests with their teeth.
Ravens came from the south to get their evening meal,
Magpies came from the north to get their food for the night.
When this had happened
Abarga Sesen had knocked Geser down
And was shoving his face in the mud.

When Abarga Sesen had Geser down on the ground
And was bending him again and again,
Geser took out the remaining wasps and quails
That contained the amin and hulde of Abarga Sesen.
He crushed the three wasps,
He killed the three quails.
When the souls of Abarga Sesen were extinguished
Abarga Sesen turned into blue stone,
Falling over with a ringing noise,
Turning into solid black rock,
He toppled with a noise like thunder.
Abai Geser then said:
“I have defeated my enemy and won a mighty name,
I have overcome and grabbed the colt by the tail!”
Since the mangadhai has turned to stone
He was unable to burn and obliterate him,
He was too hard to pound into pieces.
He took his hard silvery steel sword
And cut the petrified body in half,
He was able to cut the two pieces once more,
But he could not cut it any further.
He was able to conceal the four pieces,
He uprooted the red southern mountain,
Placing it over the two pieces of the upper body,
He pulled out the yellow northern mountain,
Placing it over the two pieces of the lower body.
He spoke these words of power:
“May you lie here for all time,
For a thousand ages,
May you be trodden by the black hooves
Of the travelers on the road,
May you be trodden down
By the soles of men’s boots!”

This having happened,
Abai Geser said:
“Good times have returned,
A good order has been restored!”
He went to greet Tumen Jargalan
From which he had been separated,
Greeting her with the greetings of a khan,
Greeting her as his queen,
He tied his horse to the silver hitching post
And went inside the house.
Abai Geser’s wife Tumen Jargalan
Brought a golden table and served delicious food,
She brought a silver table and served beautiful food.
For the length of nine days they celebrated and talked,
On the tenth day they began to sober up.

This having happened Geser was ready to return,
He started preparing for going home.
Tumen Jargalan’s love turned into jealousy,
Unwilling to live with Geser’s other two wives
She prepared enchanted food for him,
Making him ignorant and confused,
She made him stay in the demon’s kingdom.
Abai Geser became crazy and stupid,
He went out to watch Abarga Sesen’s seven red steers…

This having happened
Abai Geser’s three pretty sisters
Opened the door of the sky and looked at the world below.
When they looked at the shores of the black lake,
When they looked at the valley of the Hatan River,
They could not see their brother Abai Geser.
The three sisters began looking for their brother,
When they came to the beginning of the east,
The ugly wrong-looking country,
To the land of demons and evil spirits,
They found him watching cattle.
Abai Geser’s three pretty sisters
Made quick preparations,
They made wise preparations,
They turned themselves into three ongoli birds,
And flew to the land of the demons…

Three little songbirds
Found Geser outside the house of Abarga Sesen.
Abai Geser was watching Abarga Sesen’s
Herd of seventy red steers,
He had become a complete idiot,
Going about knowing nothing about himself.
The three little birds circled close around him,
Fluttering and beating him with their wings,
When Geser tried to catch them
They flew away and disappeared.
When the three birds has hidden themselves
They became his three pretty sisters,
Taking on their true appearance,
They slapped Abai Geser on the right cheek,
Making him vomit up a black substance,
They slapped him on the left cheek,
Making him throw up a shiny black substance.

This having happened,
Abai Geser returned to his senses,
His round face showing once more,
Once more knowing who he was,
His red face shone once more.
The three pretty sisters,
Going back to the form in which they came,
Once more becoming three ongoli birds,
Flew up into the sky and disappeared…

Abai Geser was very angry
With his wife Tumen Jargalan,
His mouth gaped in fury.
He went into the house to find Tumen Jargalan,
And beat her in his anger!..
This having happened
Tumen Jargalan made quick preparations,
She made wise preparations,
They prepared their horses for the long journey,
She prepared food and drink for the trip,
This having happened
Abai Geser and Tumen Jargalan rode toward home,
They galloped back to their homeland!

When Abai Geser came to the valley of the Muren River,
To the shores of the eternal lake,
To the valley of the Hatan River,
To the shores of the black lake,
When they returned to the water they drank,
When they returned to the land where they were born,
He promised to himself to go to his wife Alma Mergen.
Following the course of the Hatan River
He rode to visit the home of Alma Mergen.
When this was happening
Alma Mergen had heard
The reason why Geser was detained
In the land of the mangadhai,
How when after he defeated Abarga Sesen
Tumen Jargalan had made him stay;
When she heard this she was very angry,
Her mouth gaped in anger,
When she had heard that Geser had arrived,
She was overcome by jealousy,
Vowing that she would divorce him.
In her quick anger her heart lost love for Abai Geser,
When her husband came to her gate
He was greeted by his seven year old daughter.
He asked his little girl:
“Is your mother home?
Why is she angry with me?”
When he had asked her this she replied:
“My mother is alone at home,
Having a fight with a tall dark warrior.”
When he had heard this
Geser said to himself
That Alma Mergen planned to divorce him,
He knew this very well,
He understood what was happening.
He told his little seven year old daughter:
“If your mother asks about me
Tell her I went off to the east.”
When he had said this
He turned around toward the west,
In the blinking of an eye
He had gone off and hidden himself.
When Alma Mergen knew that Geser had gone away
She came out from her house,
Asking her seven year old daughter:
“Where did your father Abai Geser go to?”
When her mother asked her this
The seven year old little girl
Pointed her finger eastward.
When Alma Mergen looked toward the east
She could not find any sign of her husband.
When she looked toward the west
She saw one of the tassels on his hat
Appearing beyond the three hills
Behind which he was hiding.
Alma Mergen shot an arrow
At the red tassel of Geser’s hat,
When she missed she was very angry,
Her mouth gaped in anger:
“Since my arrow missed Abai Geser,
Who has a body as big as a house,
From this time onward,
Two times becoming as one,
Women with their hair in braids
Will not carry bow and quiver!”
She broke and threw away her bow,
Scolding her little seven year old girl,
For learning to lie while just a baby,
She pulled her apart, killing her!..