The Marriage of Manas to Kanikei
Hey!
Manas, who had two wives,
Lived in this world for thirty years.
And he often began to grieve,
That until now there were no children.
And Karabork and Akylai
Managed to get along with each other
And share their husband at night,
But they could not together
Give Manas a son.
Seeing how his friend was sorrowing,
Almanbet said to Manas:
— Although you have two wives,
At thirty years old, you are still a bachelor.
You did not court them at all,
And did not go to them as a suitor,
You did not pay kalym for them.
To conclude a peace with you,
They were given to you as a pledge.
Or maybe our highest God
Does not grant you offspring
Because you, waging war,
Did not take a lawful wife? —
Almanbet asked jokingly.
Manas-batyr pondered:
Indeed, the infidel speaks the truth!
And he immediately went to his father,
Said that he could not fulfill
His fatherly duty before his son.
— I have lived for thirty years —
Father, you did not marry me.
Your first daughter-in-law
I took as a trophy in battle.
Kayip gave her to me for free,
You did not pay kalym for her!
When we left Altai,
Akylai became my wife.
She was given to us by Khan Shooruk,
Having paid kalym for those
Whom he killed in that battle.
Do not disgrace yourself, father:
Am I not worthy
Of having a lawful wife?
I know you are a great miser,
But fulfill your duty, father!
And if suddenly they demand
A large kalym for the bride,
We will pay him in full —
The people will always support us.
Choose a good bride for me,
Father, be strict.
And let her be more lovely
Than Karabork and Akylai,
So that in military affairs and labor
She gives me wise counsel,
And so that she is in the family
A friend, a faithful wife.
When my hour of death comes,
So that I can pass on the testament to my descendants,
I said to my father, batyr Manas.
Jakyp was very upset:
How could he not think of this before!
Having lived in the world for so many years,
He had not married his son.
So that no one could reproach him
For his stinginess as before,
Taking gold and silver,
Sables and other goods,
He set out to find a bride.
He passed through Jizak and Samarkand,
Tashkent, Uzgen, all of Fergana,
And finally, Jakyp arrived
In Bukhara, among the Tajiks.
The governor of the city, Alim
(He had once been friends with him),
Upon learning why Jakyp had come,
Gave advice to his friend.
The Bukhara emir, Atemir,
Rich and famous,
Has a daughter for marriage.
It is known in the region that she
Is gentle, beautiful, and smart,
And to all who court her,
She gives a refusal and says,
That she is waiting for another suitor.
— The Bukhara emir will accept you:
He knows who Manas is.
They all remember well
How er-Manas, the Kyrgyz khan,
Drove the Chinese out of Fergana.
He will be glad to become related to him!
Such advice was given to Jakyp
By the governor of Bukhara, Alim.
And he immediately reported to the guard,
That the glorious father of Manas
Had arrived with a matter at the palace.
The Bukhara emir, Atemir,
Immediately invited Jakyp,
And treated him with great honor.
Upon learning that bay Jakyp had come
To court his daughter Sanira,
He said he would be very glad
To enter into kinship with the Kyrgyz,
To create a strong unity.
But there is one condition:
His eldest daughter
Has a strong character, a fierce nature:
Sanirabiga swore
That if she is given in marriage
Without showing her the suitor,
The girl will end her life.
— And my advice to you, bay Jakyp,
Is that your son, the valiant Manas,
Should come to me in Bukhara.
And here your son and my daughter
Will look each other in the eyes,
And if it works out for them —
Your son is the most worthy suitor! —
Said Atemir to Jakyp.
Jakyp returned to Talas,
Telling his son in detail
How he chose a bride.
About how the emir in Bukhara
Met and escorted him.
About how Sanirabiga
Wants to see her suitor.
— If she likes him — only then
Will she utter the word “yes.”
— Well, come on, be brave, er-Manas,
Otherwise, you will go in vain! —
Joked close friends. —
Wash yourself, trim your nails!
Put your clothes, beard, and mustache
In proper order.
On your fierce face,
Show kindness
And a gentle gaze!
Manas, admiring himself,
With a mighty, battle-ready retinue,
As if going into mortal combat,
Arrived in the hot city of Bukhara.
Manas was met like a deity:
The emir himself came out with his retinue —
Rich, famous Atemir.
Everyone knew that the Kyrgyz khan
Had brought freedom, equality, and peace
To his native Turkestan.
The abundant feast came to an end.
Now bright candles were lit,
And the sisters Aruuke and Sani
Brought young dancers to the guests
To show them by the fountain.
The girls, lovely in appearance,
Walked with a flexible reed,
And, stretching their necks,
Walked back like cranes.
Barely revealing their flexible waist,
In transparent trousers, like glass,
Fluttering gently and lightly,
To the sound of the tambourine and pleasant ringing
And in a clear, playful rhythm
The beauties began to dance.
Such heavenly beauty
The nomad had not seen in the mountains.
The Tajik girls with their grace
Almost drove the fierce Kyrgyz warriors
Out of their minds,
Did not knock them down.
And among them was one —
Beautiful in face and gentle,
A little taller than the others,
In golden earrings and beads,
And her black eyes
Burned like two stars,
As if they had just fallen
On Sani’s face.
And the girl was shaped
Like a white swan, slender.
Jakyp approached Manas,
Whispered quietly: “She.”
From emotion, Manas
Wiped a tear from his burning eyes.
Seeing Sanirabiga,
Manas was overwhelmed with delight
And thought: “Will there be a limit
To her heavenly beauty?”
And he could not hold himself back,
He chuckled like a fool,
When he saw before him
The bride’s bare belly button.
And next to her was Aruuke —
The younger sister,
Though a bit shorter in stature,
Was still a beauty.
— How old is the little sister? —
Asked sly Almanbet.
And it was clear from his eyes,
That he had fallen in love with Aruuke,
Ready for wedding nikah.
When the invited feast was over,
The emir allowed Manas
To meet with the daughters.
And here Manas and Almanbet
Entered the girls' quarters.
Manas, in the steppe tradition,
Wanted to kiss her hand,
Then to put a golden bracelet
On the bride’s arm.
But as soon as he approached the bride,
Gently took her by the elbow,
She suddenly grabbed a small dagger
And struck his hand.
Manas groaned in pain —
He did not expect this!
— How dare you, Kyrgyz khan,
A savage, nomad, brute,
Without performing the holy nikah,
To touch my hand!
My maiden honor is dear to me! —
Cried Sanirabiga.
Er-Manas reached for his sword,
Ready to cut off her head,
But Almanbet stood between them,
Not allowing murder to be committed.
Manas, humiliated and angry,
With blood from his wounded hand,
In rage left the palace
And ordered his warriors
To take revenge for the insult:
To destroy the city of Bukhara,
To demolish the emir's palace,
To forcibly take the dancers, Rabiga and her sister
With them!
And the whole city from all sides
Was surrounded by troops.
And there, behind the fortress wall,
A bloody robbery began,
Bringing ruin to Bukhara.
In the morning dawn,
Sanirabiga ran to her father:
— To save my native people,
I will sacrifice myself!
I will go to the Kyrgyz myself
And there I will find my fate!
And if he is rude to me,
I will end my life right there!
— The khan Manas is terrible in anger,
I fear he will not spare us.
When a nomad is insulted,
He is cruel and merciless! —
Said the father and decided
Not to let his daughter go to the Kyrgyz.
— Oh no, father! Let me go!
I will go to Manas myself! —
Said Sanirabiga
And, taking a white handkerchief,
Raising it above her head,
She went to her death and her deed.
Seeing a woman in the distance,
Alone, coming with a handkerchief,
The Kyrgyz could not understand
What to do: wait
Or shoot?
And then Almanbet exclaimed:
— This is Sanirabiga!
Look, Manas, your proud bride
Is coming to you herself!
And in an instant, Manas leaped off his horse,
And ran to meet her,
And the wound with blood on his hand
He, like a madman, kissed!
The Tajik girl gently embraced him
With her hand around his neck,
And he pressed her to his chest
And, like a child, cried.
And it seemed to her then,
That the mighty Manas
Was made of gold and silver,
From the height of the heavens,
From the warm kindness of the earth.
And he shines from within,
Like the sun of the morning dawn,
Shining in the midnight gloom,
Like the bright moon in the sky.
And he goes to his goal,
Like an ocean wave.
Born from a cloud of the heavens,
Manas was a miracle of miracles.
And words are not enough to explain,
At that moment, when in your chest
Love trembles with flame!
Mighty, brave er-Manas
Defeated cruel enemies,
But from those battle victories
He did not know such happiness!
— Well, rise, my khan! Forgive me!
From now on, you will never see
Such audacity again! —
Said Sanirabiga.
And here, in the camps here and there
There were cries, noise, and commotion.
The skies shone brightly,
The mountains and forests thundered.
Opening the gates of Bukhara,
They went out to meet with music.
Then the wedding began!
Thus, khan Manas
And his milk brother Almanbet married:
Manas — to Sanirabiga,
Alma — to the younger Aruuke.
Years passed. Centuries passed.
Sanirabiga was forgotten.
Only the name Kanikei remained,
Which means — the khan's nikah.
And from that time to this day
Kanikei lives in the people.
The ancient Tajik
Is considered the mother of his own.
As a symbol of love, family,
Friendship, mother, wife
We must bow to her!
The young wife of Manas was met with enthusiasm by the people. The first two wives, Karabork and Akylai, were welcoming and tactful. Sanirabiga quickly mastered the language, life, and customs of the Kyrgyz and soon became a caring friend and advisor to Manas, recognized as the head of the family, earning the honor and respect of the entire Kyrgyz khanate.
Epic "Manas". The Tale of How Almanbet Came to Manas