Latest / Sandman Stories Presents / EP 302: Armenia- The Maiden of the Sea; The Golden-Headed Fish (Seklemian)

Transcript

EP 302: Armenia- The Maiden of the Sea; The Golden-Headed Fish (Seklemian) · Sandman Stories Presents

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Welcome back, listeners to Sandman Stories Presents, a
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folklore podcast where I read you to sleep or until the next
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story. I'm your host, Dustin, if you
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want more Sandman, I have extra stories that are too spicy for
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the main feed available on my Patreon.
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You can even join at the free tier and get everything.
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Today we are back in a book of Armenian folk tales written down
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by AG Siclimian. The first story tells a familiar
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tale of the magic fish from the sea taking off its skin, making
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the fishermen happy. We've seen this in Turkish tales
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already, and in the second story we learn about the golden headed
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fish. I'm not going to tell you
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anymore. It's a secret.
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OK, let's begin. The maiden of the Sea.
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There was an old woman and her son who lived on the seacoast.
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She used to cast a loaf of bread into the sea every morning.
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One day she said to her son, My son, I am getting old, and I
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feel that I shall soon die. Listen to my advice, and every
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morning cast a loaf of bread into the sea.
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The old woman died, and the lad continued casting a loaf of
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bread into the sea every morning.
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One evening as he came back home from his work, he was surprised
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to see the house swept and cleaned.
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Another day he put some meat in the cupboard, and in the
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evening, behold, the meat was cooked and the table was ready
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for him. This is repeated several times.
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One day he hid himself under the stairs.
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Soon a splash of water was heard in the sea, and lo, a big fish
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cast itself onto the threshold. At once the skin of the fish
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fell down, and out of it came a maiden as beautiful as the
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shining moon. She swept the house clean and
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finished the kitchen work and was just going out the door when
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the lad grabbed her. Mama, Mama, help me, Exclaimed
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the maiden. Immediately a voice came from
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the sea. Don't be afraid, daughter, that
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is my son-in-law. By the will of God and the
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permission of the mother, the maiden became the bride of the
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lad. At once the priest was called
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and performed the marriage ceremony, and for seven days
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they celebrated the wedding festival.
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One day, as the bride was working with a needle before the
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window, the Prince, who was taking a walk in his seashore
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orchard, saw her and was enchanted by her beauty.
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Finding out that she was a married woman, he decided to
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destroy her husband and decate her in marriage.
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He immediately summoned the lad and said, I want you to make me
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a tent so large that all of my army may be inside of it and yet
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half of it remains empty. I'll give you 3 days time to
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prepare it. If you don't make it ready, by
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that time your head should be cut off and all your property
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confiscated. The lad came home with a sad
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face. What should he say to the Prince
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at the end of the third day? Surely his head would be cut
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off, The bride, seeing him, said.
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How? Now, husband, what is the
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matter? Why are you sad today?
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Nothing, said the lad, sighing. No, your face is changed, said
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the bride. What, pray tell, is the matter?
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The lad told her what the Prince had ordered him to do.
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Don't worry husband, she said and sticking her head out of the
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window towards the sea she cried.
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Mamma, Mamma send us up our small tent please.
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We want to go a camping. The small tent was thrown up
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from the sea. The lad took it to the Prince.
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It took his servants 7 days to pitch it.
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Not only the Prince's army but all his people were accommodated
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in it and yet half of it was still empty.
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This is OK, said the Prince. But you see, there is no
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furniture to put on the ground. I want you to bring me a rug to
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suit the tent exactly. If you don't bring it in three
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days, your head shall be cut off.
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The lad told his wife and she asked her mother to send up the
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small rug, which was taken by the Prince.
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The next day the Prince told the lad to fetch him a cluster of
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grapes so large that all his army might eat and not be able
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to finish it. On the following day that was
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also brought, then the Prince wanted him to bring a three day
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old baby who could walk and talk like grown up people.
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This time the lad was dismayed because it was a sheer
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impossibility and he thought he would surely lose his head this
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time. Don't worry husband, said his
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wife in the evening and turning to the sea, she cried.
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Mama, send up the baby here for a little while, we want to see
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him. The baby was brought up and the
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lad took him to the Prince, still doubting in his mind
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whether the baby could do what the Prince required.
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On the way, the lad's foot slipped and the baby was shaken.
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Keep your eyes on the road, brother-in-law, the baby said.
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Or do you want me to fall down and crush me under you?
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The lad was pleased at the baby's reaction because it
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assured him that his head would not be cut off.
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I'm being presented the Prince. The baby at once walked toward
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him, jumped up into his lap, and boxing the prince's ears, said,
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Aren't you ashamed, Prince, to give so much trouble to my
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brother-in-law, You want to kill him and marry my sister, don't
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you? First shame, Prince, first
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shame. Thereupon, the Prince gave up
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his evil intention, apologized to the lad, and asked for
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forgiveness. So the lad and his bride of the
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sea were left unmolested, and they are still living on the
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border of the sea. Three apples fell from heaven,
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One for me, one for the storyteller, and one for him who
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entertained the company. The end.
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OK, and story #2 the golden headed fish.
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I remember having heard my grandmother tell a story of the
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king who lost his eyesight. I will now repeat it to you.
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All of the doctors and all of the magicians of the realm held
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a consultation, but it didn't do him any good.
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At last the King, hearing that there was a doctor in India 300
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years old, wrote a letter to the King of that country requesting
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him to send the aged Dr. in order that the latter might
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devise some remedy to restore his eyesight.
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The doctor came, and after an examination of the King's eyes,
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he said there is only one remedy, and that is a tincture
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made from the blood of the golden headed fish.
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Send men to the open sea to catch 1.
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I will wait 100 days. If they cannot catch 1 during
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that time, I will depart. The King's only son, taking with
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him 100 men in his many Nets, sailed to the open sea to catch
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the desired fish. They worked hard and caught many
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kinds of fish, but none of them had a golden head. 99 days
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passed by and only one day remained before the expiration
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of the term. They'd given up hope and decided
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to sail back when the Prince said to his men, Cast one last
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net for my luck. They did so and lo, the golden
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headed fish was caught. They were glad to put the
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precious fish in the jug of water in order to keep it alive.
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The jug was put in the prince's cabin and they set sail
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homeward. When the Prince was alone he
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looked at the fish and lo it began to talk to him.
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Prince said the golden headed fish, I'm a Prince myself, spare
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my life and cast me back into the sea.
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Someday you will receive your reward.
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The Prince took pity upon the poor fish and cast him back into
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the sea saying go live. If you a fish do not appreciate
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this mercy, the creator from above will appreciate it.
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The party returned and told what the Prince had done.
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This enraged the king to the verge of madness.
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Alas, he exclaimed, my son desires my speedy death so that
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he may himself be king. Executioners take this unnatural
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son and immediately cut off his head.
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But as the Prince was the only son of the king, with the
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intervention of his mother, they put his clothes on a criminal
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and hanged him instead, and banished the Prince to a distant
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island, where he lived a miserable life.
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As nobody knew who he was, he was considered by the people as
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a vile criminal, and was despised by all and forsaken and
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abandoned. He remained in this wretched
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condition, without friends, without a means of livelihood.
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He felt himself so wretched that he fell into a condition of
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despair, and resolved to put an end to so unbearable a life.
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With this intention he went to a high Cliff on the seashore and
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threw himself into the foaming deep.
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But as soon as he reached the sea low, he found himself in the
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arms of a strange looking Greek, who, after setting him down on
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the beach, fell down and saluted him, saying, Mighty Prince,
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trust me that I may be at your service.
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You may depend on it that I shall please you and serve you
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with all of my might. The humane and brave conduct of
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the stranger, and his kind and courteous words, made such an
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impression on the lad that his despair at once was banished,
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and he repented his attempt to die.
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He accepted the services of the Greek, and they went together to
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the lad's house, where a rich dinner was awaiting them.
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Therefore the Prince found everything necessary abundantly
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prepared, and master and man lived together for a long time.
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During those days the people of the islands suffered from the
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frequent attacks of the large dragon, which devoured all the
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men it met. The people were in such terror
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that no one dared to venture out of their house.
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The Prince of the island sent his armour to kill the dragon,
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but it could not be done. Then he sent out Harold's,
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proclaiming that he would give great wealth to the man who
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killed the dragon. Thereupon the Greek, the
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attendant of the lad, went to the Prince of the island,
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saying, My master will kill the dragon, and desires what you
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intend to give him. The hero who kills the dragon
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said, The Prince shall become my son-in-law by marrying my
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daughter, and I will also bestow upon him whatever presents he
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may desire. Agreed, said the Greek, give my
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master your daughter and marriage and half of your
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wealth. Then he went, and killing the
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dragon himself, brought its ears to the lad, who took them to the
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Prince. He became the son-in-law of the
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Prince by marrying his daughter, and lived in a splendid house,
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which the Prince gave him with half of his wealth.
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As the Prince had no son, the lad succeeded him after his
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death and reigned over the island.
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A son was born to him. One day the Greek said to the
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youth, Abdicate the throne in favor of your son, appoint your
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wife as the Regent, and let us go to the city of the King of
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the West. The young man consented, and
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they started taking with them vast riches.
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As soon as they reached the city of the king of the West, the
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Greek said to the lad, Go ask for the hand of the daughter of
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the king in marriage. The lad went to the king, who
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was pleased with him and said, Prince, I see you are a worthy
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man. Now let me tell you frankly that
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I have given my daughter to 99 Princess in marriage, and every
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single one of them died on the nuptial night.
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I have pity on your youth. The lad, hearing this, was
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afraid, but the Greek insisted, saying, no, take her in
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marriage, do not be afraid. The youth took the maiden in
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marriage. As soon as the wedding ceremony
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was performed, the King's servants began to prepare the
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bridegroom's coffin and his grave also.
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During the nuptial night, however, the Greek hid himself
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in the wardrobe of the bedchamber.
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As soon as the bride and the bridegroom were asleep, he came
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out and stood at the head of the bed holding a dagger in tongs.
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At midnight a Viper came from the bride's mouth to bite the
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bridegroom. The Greek at once took hold of
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the serpent with the tongs, and, cutting it into pieces with the
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dagger, hid in the wardrobe. In the morning the King's men
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came to bury the bridegroom, and lo, he was alive, And they ran
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back to carry the good tidings to the king and to congratulate
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him on the happy event. On the following night there
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came from the bride's mouth another Viper which the Greek
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killed, and after that they lived in peace.
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Now the King of the West also had no son, and after his death
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the lad succeeded him on the throne.
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One day a messenger came to him from the city of the King of the
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East. The youth's fatherland, sent
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from his mother, saying, Your father has died, come and reign
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in his stead. The youth, putting a region in
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his place, took his second wife, accompanied by the Greek, and
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started for his fatherland. He set sail, and on the way he
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stopped on an island, where he also took his first wife on
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board. Then they proceeded to come to
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the Kingdom of the East, the lad's fatherland, where he was
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crown king. Thus the kingdoms of the East
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and the West, with the island between them, were united under
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1 crown and were therefore governed by the same sovereign.
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Soon after the coronation of the king, the Greek asked his master
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to give him leave to go to his own country.
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My friend and benefactor, said the king of the Greek, I owe you
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not only everything I have, but my very life in existence.
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Come and take whatever you please, and then go on your way.
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Whatever we earned, we earned together, replied the Greek.
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So I have a right to half of whatever belongs to you.
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However, I will take nothing from your wealth and property,
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but let us divide your wives between us.
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Well said, answered the king, Take whoever you like the best.
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Not so, said the Greek, lest you should think that I had the
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beautiful 1 and I should think that you had her.
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But we shall divide both ladies into equal parts, half to you
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and half to me. The king at first thought to
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offer opposition, but remembering the many favors he
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had received from the Greek, he thought it would be in gratitude
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on his part not to comply with this one strange demand of his
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tanned friend. Well, I agree to that, he said
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at last. Then they took both women under
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the Sycamore tree on the seashore where the Greek hung
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the daughter of the King on the West head down and lifted his
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big sword as if to cut her in two by a single stroke.
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The woman shrieked at the side of the lifted sword.
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Oh, She exclaimed with all of her might and lo, a serpent's
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nest with a great number of young Vipers fell from her
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stomach. The Greek killed the Vipers
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releasing the woman and gave her to her husband saying, Now go
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and enjoy your wives and rule over your empire in peace.
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There is no more evil left to trouble you.
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In doing all these things, I've done my duty because you have
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saved my life. I am the golden headed fish.
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Farewell this, he said, and dived into the sea, where he
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still lives to this day. The And
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that was quite a couple of stories.
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I've read something very similar in both Turkish and Georgian
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tales. Surprise, surprise.
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One was the frog skin from Georgia and the poor fisherman
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from Turkey. And the second story had the
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servant of the Prince being a Negro.
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And it just was I was like, Oh yeah, by the way, magic Negro
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comes and say, yeah, I didn't want that trope in there, so I
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changed it to a Greek. And back in that time, Greeks
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could be of any color. I mean, they still can to this
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day. But to be Greek back in the
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classics time, listen to the Endless Not podcast.
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They do a great job of talking about nationality way back when
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and I was tempted to name an African country but at least
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give the guy a home. But I figured Greece was close
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enough to Armenia to be foreign without being unknown.
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I have only nine more tales in this book so I should finish by
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20-30 I hope. And the podcast shout out is to
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the Folklore Podcast hosted by Mark Norman.
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This podcast is a must for folklore enthusiasts.
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He is a full on researcher in the UK and a member of the
18:34
Folklore society. He reads tales, talks motifs and
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is just all around super knowledgeable about folklore in
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general. I love listening to the
18:43
extensive back catalog and learning more about folklore
18:46
every day. And if you like his show as much
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as I do, go and give him a like a rating and a review.
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And the listener shout out is to the city of Sendai, the largest
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city in the Miyagi Prefecture in Japan.
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It's located on the island of Honshu, the main Japanese
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island. The city itself was only founded
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in 1600 by the daimyo. Google says the remains of the
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17th century Sendai Castle, built for samurai Lord Date
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Masamune on Aoba Hill, overlook the city and include a Museum of
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historical artifacts. The Sendai Museum focuses on the
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history and culture of Japan's Ito period and displays
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Masamune's samurai armor. And I would love to visit there.
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And so I say to my listener in Sendai, in Japanese, I say
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Arigato Oyasumunasai. Thank you and good night.