The Epic of "Manas": The Meeting of Manas with Koshoy and Bakay

The Meeting of Manas with Koshoy and Bakay

The celebrations had just ended,
Akbalta called Manas.
— When we, leaving our homeland,
Departed with the whole world to Altai,
Several clans of Kyrgyz
Were left there among the enemies.
To those who could not escape then,
A bitter fate was bestowed.
One, remaining far away,
Fights with Khan Alooke
The ruler of the Katagan clan,
The mighty elder Koshoy-khan.
In the valley of the Big Kemin rivers
Another clan remained,
Which is ruled by Khan Urby.
When Alooke arrived,
He destroyed all the bridges in Kemin,
Did not let the enemies into the double river —
And thus managed to save the people.
Go back to your homeland, Manas,
Find out for sure, maybe someone
Is still left in Ala-Too.
When, having left a foreign land,
We return home,
What forces can we unite,
Strengthen the people with unity,
Restore former power,
Protect our native land
And live peacefully and calmly again! —
Such advice was given by the elder.
Manas-khan agreed with him.
And he, with his warrior retinue,
Set off on a distant journey
Through mountain paths and steppes,
Valleys, pastures, and meadows.
Having driven and exhausted their horses,
They traveled for forty-five nights and days.
They met people along the way,
Nations, villages, cities,
Lakes, rivers, and seas.
And, finally, they arrived
At the valleys of the snowy Ala-Too.
And they were all struck
By the grandeur of their native land.
And, having crossed the pass in the morning,
They came to the Karkyra valley,
Where the grass is taller than the head,
Where wild gardens bloom,
With every leaf like a sheep's skin.
A creeping worm, the size of a middle finger,
And the stem of the baltyrkan grass
Thicker than a calf's leg.
On the slopes of the mountains graze
Herds of unafraid beasts.
Mouflons, elks, and goats
Are not afraid of people there.
From the high mountain Chech-Dobe
The whole valley could be seen.
And as if a miracle among miracles,
A tent from the blue heavens,
Below, the waters of Issyk-Kul splashed.
Surely, the god Koke-Tengir
Collected his last tear
Drop by drop in his palm,
And gave it to the Kyrgyz for centuries.
And further, the camp of the Katagan clan is green —
Where the elder Koshoy-khan rules.
Manas sent a messenger ahead,
To inform who is coming to them.
The old man was moved to tears,
When he learned the good news.
Koshoy himself came out to meet:
— Manas, my dear son!
I have heard of your feats,
How you drove away Zholoya and Neskara
With your warrior retinue.
Is your father still alive?
Are my friend Akbalta,
My relatives and friends alive?
— Yes, they are all alive! And they send greetings
To you from my relatives.
We have stood on our feet, we live
As one united family.
I was sent to Ala-Too
To find out how our wise uncle Koshoy is doing! —
Manas replied to the elder.
— When the Manju came here
And surrounded my whole clan,
I fought with them as much as I could,
Fled here, to the mountain gorge.
Every spring and summer
The Manju does not give us peace.
And day and night, in cold and heat,
My warriors are on guard,
Ready to engage in mortal combat!
I am happy, er-Manas, and glad,
That we now have a hero,
Ready to unite everyone,
To create the Kyrgyz khanate,
To restore our native Talas.
Lead our people from Altai!
We have long been waiting in our native land
For our relatives with impatience!
Now I fear one thing:
The enemies might suddenly learn
That you have gone to Ala-Too,
And they will arrange a raid without you.
Return home quickly! —
The wise Khan Koshoy concluded,
Generously rewarded the retinue
And blessed them for a good journey.
Manas and his retinue
Covered a large part of the way.
And suddenly they saw
A detachment in battle armor.
— Who are you? — Manas asked them.
— We are Kyrgyz! — was the answer.
— I am the son of Bay, called Bakay,
I am going with my warrior retinue
To Manas, my brother! —
Answered their leader.
— Greetings to you, Bakay, and honor!
And I am your brother Manas!
Laughter rang out here.
The two brothers embraced tightly,
Swore to be friends until death.
When Manas and brother Bakay
Returned together to Altai,
To meet them came out
In armor, with spears in hand,
On good battle horses
Two thousand heroes.
They came to Manas from all corners of the earth
To Altai.
And Khan Manas was very glad:
From now on under his command
Not a small battle detachment,
But a multitude of thousands,
And with it, they can go anywhere
To embark on a victorious campaign!
Manas gathered everyone in the valley
And gave a passionate speech:
— Friends and brothers! My people!
Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Kipchak, Oirat —
Who lives here in a foreign land!
You have acquired wealth and livestock.
But if the enemy comes here,
Everything will fall into foreign hands!
And those who want to live here,
The Manju will not give them peace!
The salvation of all of us is one:
To leave the foreign Altai,
And return quickly to our native land!
Many of us have gathered here,
Now we have the strength
To restore our dishonored honor!
How can we reconcile with the fact
That our native land Turkestan,
The sacred mountains of Ala-Too,
Valleys, rivers, and pastures,
Our Issyk-Kul — as a paradise,
Allah has given to the Kyrgyz —
Is in foreign hands!
Our son’s duty: to free the native land
From the foreigners,
To stake life and death on it!
And if we do not fulfill
The sacred duty before fate,
The spirit of the ancestors will not forgive this,
Will punish us severely
The shaggy earth,
The black hole of graves!
In response to Manas, like thunder,
A cheer resounded under the sky: “Hooray!”

Epic "Manas". The Election of Manas as Khan