The Duel of Manas with Konurbai
The son of Koketey Bokmurun
The latter announced the tournament.
— While the horses gallop
From the distant alaman-baygi,
Let the contest of er-sayish
End the memorial feast.
For the prize of two thousand horses
Will be awarded to the one who wins.
The loser must give up
His horse as well! —
He shouted at sunset.
In the morning, all the people gathered.
Here the sun rose to its zenith,
But for the tournament of er-sayish
No one stepped forward:
In a tournament with a battle spear
The outcome can be deadly.
And only in the evening by the river
At Algara, with a spear in hand
Konurbai stepped out for battle.
— I am Konurbai, the Chinese khan.
Only a khan has the right
To step onto the meydan with me.
These are our rules!
Let the Kyrgyz khan or Manas
Come out to the sayish with me!
Whoever is thrown from the saddle,
Will give up his horse! —
Roared the brave Konurbai.
(To have a horse like Ak-Kula,
Konurbai had long dreamed.
And for that he saved Alagara
And did not send it to the races).
Tying a belt around his neck,
Almanbet came to Manas.
— My khan, I will go in your place!
Self-satisfied Konurbai —
My rival and eternal enemy.
Allow me, my good brother,
To fight Konurbai here!
In front of everyone, I will knock him down!
I will take revenge on the scoundrel
For all the insults!
— No, Almanbet, forgive me:
They will think I have cowardice,
And for amusement at the sayish
I sent two Chinese against him.
How I regret that I sent my horse
To the races yesterday!
You better, my brother Almanbet,
Give me your horse Sarala.
In battle, your horse will not let you down,
Like my faithful friend Ak-Kula!
And Almanbet, dismounting,
Gave Sarala to Manas.
And here, bowing, approached
Manas's wife Kanikei,
And forty young women behind her,
A chapan with armor ak-olpok,
Sewn by her, she presented.
And the wise aksakal Bakai
Blessed Manas for battle,
That he would surely win
And protect the honor of the Kyrgyz.
The mediator and judge Koshoy
Took a copper coin for drawing lots,
So they would know among themselves:
Who will start the fight, who will accept the fight.
He was stopped by Manas:
— Khan Konurbai is a guest to the Kyrgyz.
We have a holy honor for guests —
Let Konurbai start first!
And, taking a spear with a blunt end,
Konurbai rushed first,
To throw Manas from the saddle,
To snatch the shield from the hero's hands
And kill the defenseless.
But the nimble, experienced Manas
Deflected the opponent's spear.
Then it was his turn —
He rushed Sarala forward.
But Konurbai was not to be missed —
He deflected the spear with his shield.
And so, count, up to thirty
Spears broke against shields.
Then they went for close combat —
They crossed spears with each other.
Here with a fierce cry, Konurbai
Struck with all his might —
He nearly threw Manas from his horse!
The tip of the spear, bypassing the shield,
Stabbed Manas in the right side,
But ak-olpok saved him from death!
He, immediately turning his horse,
Struck the Chinese with his blow.
Konurbai could not deflect the blow,
Fell to the ground like a sack,
And his armor did not save him!
Faster than a fired arrow,
Manas rushed to Alagara
And grabbed the horse by the bridle.
But here the poor Konurbai
In tears, kneeling,
Began to plead with Manas:
— The people saw once again,
How mighty you are, hero Manas!
I bow my head!
Here is the saber. If you want — cut off!
Let me die right here —
Return Alagara to me, Manas! —
Begged the defeated hero.
Manas felt sorry for him —
He threw a chylbyr to Konurbai.
For this noble gesture
Almanbet unleashed his wrath:
— Manas, no doubt, you are strong,
But you are lacking in wisdom!
It seems, not for nothing in childhood
You were called a big fool!
Why did you give Alagara
To an irreconcilable enemy?
Have you counted in your mind,
What evil he will bring
To all the Kyrgyz, to you and me
On this battle horse?!
Why, Manas, did you let go
The fox caught in the trap?
If you had not given up your horse,
I would have punished Konurbai!
For all my grievances
I would have taken cruel revenge on him!
While Kalcha Konur lives,
The Kyrgyz will see no good!
You yourself, my khan, will understand more than once,
That you gave Alagara in vain!
Epic "Manas". The Struggle of Koshoy with Jolo