THE BEGINNING OF THE LEGEND
Oh, this ancient tale
It is time for us to tell you.
This old legend
We must pass on to you.
Where here is truth, where here is lie –
It is hard to discern these days.
We have told only part,
So that you may enjoy.
We will speak long
About the hero Manas –
He who in valiant battles
Immortalized his name.
Those who saw all this,
Are long since gone.
Only the tale has survived
Of those hot days of yore.
Shall we not begin the story
Of past battles,
As a lesson for descendants –
So that they may know everything.
So that glory is not forgotten,
So that courage always lives,
So that honor and nobility,
Do not leave our hearts.
From days of old to this day
Days have flickered in succession,
And many nights have passed,
With them – years and centuries.
In this world since ancient times
So many souls have passed,
As there are stones in the world,
Or perhaps even more.
There were good and evil,
And the good and the bad,
There were strong men like mountains,
There were all-knowing sages,
There were all-capable masters,
There were populous nations –
Long since disappeared,
From which now remain
Only their names…
What was yesterday, is no more today.
In this world only the stars
Eternally rule their path under the eternal moon,
Only the eternal sun always rises from the east,
Only the black-breasted earth remains in its eternal place…
And meanwhile, the rocks have crumbled to dust,
And the winds have carried that dust into the infinite distance.
Cities were built,
And on old foundations, new walls arose.
From those days to ours
Word gave birth to word,
Thought gave birth to thought,
Deed gave birth to deed,
Song merged with song,
Reality became an ancient tale…
THE CONQUEST OF THE KYRGYZ BY KHAN ALOOKE
By the will of fate, at the appointed hour, having lived all the days granted to him, the Kyrgyz Khan Orozdu set out on his distant journey, from which there is no return. The Chinese Khan Alooke was fierce and harsh, he devastated homes in peaceful Kyrgyz villages, made girls and women weep, and stained with blood all who resisted.
There was no one to resist, no one to stand against, and the Kalmyks, the Chinese, and the Manchus mocked the people, tormented the wives, took possession of young girls who had not yet matured. They burned homes, devastated dwellings, and over all the Kyrgyz people loomed the threat of complete destruction, the wretched inhabitants without a ruler found themselves under the power of foreigners.
“If only Orozdu were alive, we wouldn’t have to endure all these humiliations,” cried the devastated and trampled families, cried the elders with all their people, cried the young maidens who were taken into slavery, and all the people sank into sorrow, and grief overwhelmed all.
Just yesterday, the people lived in peace and prosperity, and in an instant lost their freedom. Countless enemy troops attacked and ravaged the numerous Kyrgyz people, extinguished the fires of their hearths, took them into slavery, expelled them from their native places, and scattered the people in all four corners of the earth, instilling terror in the fleeing inhabitants. And the unfortunate Kyrgyz, unable to bear the humiliations and oppression of Alooke, wandered – some to Altai, some to Kangai, some to Iran, and some even further. Some settled beyond the vast Kashgar, at the foot of the Kebez-Tuu mountains. The orphaned people, unable to gather again, were bewildered by the misfortunes that had befallen them, lost their ancestral lands, fled, and wandered the world.
The seven sons of Orozdu, who lost their father early, were unable to withstand the onslaught of the numerous Kalmyks, could not find either support or wise words to stop the enemies, and they plundered them, took away all their scant possessions, all the livestock inherited, while the Kyrgyz remained in grief and sorrow with nothing, and they wept, naked and wretched, in the open field.
Years passed, their children grew up, matured, and the people became stronger, ready to leap onto their horses to rush into the open field, and then Akbalta from the Noygut clan gathered to find all his people and went to seek them. He too was beaten and captured by Khan Alooke, he too endured incredible hardships, sorrows and deprivations, persecution and humiliation.
He wanted to unite with the sons of Orozdu, to be with them in joy and sorrow, in battles and campaigns, in victories and defeats; he did not want to pay tribute every year with young women and very young maidens, giving away the last riches. It was better to fight against the hated Kara-Kitay and Manchus, and so he bravely and boldly, at the same time with deep respect, addressed Jakyp:
– My dear brother Jakyp, please listen to me. The Tyrogoots have attacked us with all their might, led by Khan Alooke, they broke my back, crushed my resistance, captured our heroes, our warriors were defeated naked. This insatiable dog Alooke is excessively bloodthirsty; he demanded from my people tribute of six thousand silver ingots and a thousand otter pelts.
– Yes, I have heard of Alooke’s atrocities before. It turns out all this is true, Akbalta-ake.
– Do rumors just arise, Jakyp? May his house burn, only Alooke has as many as sixty sons.
He hates the Kyrgyz people; his face changes immediately when he hears about us, he boils over, barely hearing our name. And now he is planning to attack you. My dear Jakyp, it will be difficult to deal with this boar; today we are here, and tomorrow we are not – such is this cursed life.
– And what should we do? Please suggest something, Akbalta-ake.
And then Akbalta, who had endured so many hardships and humiliations, rejoiced at his brother’s words and could not hold back his tears.
– What is wrong with you, Akbalta-ake? You have always been strong and courageous, and now you cry like a child? Be strong.
Akbalta, trying to hold back, trying not to show his weakness, continued his speech:
– Oh, this cruel world! We are completely bewildered. There is only hope in you, Jakyp, son of Khan Orozdu; all the Kyrgyz are ready to unite around you. I am ready to join you, ready to give my life for you, ready to strike down any enemy, to stand against the Kara-Kitay and Manchus.
– You speak the truth, Akbalta-ake. We must reflect on your words, weigh everything.
– My dear Jakyp, I came to you with the hope that you still have courage in your heart, strength in your hands, wisdom in your head, and bravery in your soul. All the hope of the people, all its support – it is you, brother Jakyp.
Thus Akbalta finished his words, and silence fell, and just as Jakyp was about to speak, from afar, raising dust, driving horses to the seventh sweat, the bewildered Tekechi-khan and Shigay-khan hastily arrived.
Having given all their wealth and countless herds to the marauding Kara-Kitay, stripped to the skin and unhappy, they rushed in and, even failing to greet properly, immediately began to wail, asking for help and support:
– Oh, uncle Akbalta, what is there to talk about? The Chinese have attacked and taken all my livestock; the rest, which I inherited from my father, the Kalmyks have scattered. I pity the livestock, but I also pity my own life: I tried to stop them, to return our goods and livestock, and then they beat us all, – Tekechi-khan exclaimed in rage, and at that moment Shigay-khan interrupted the conversation:
– They are all clad in iron armor, well-armed heroes are divided into groups; all who try to resist are crushed to pieces, their heads are split with swords, they kill and cut people mercilessly, like cattle. May they be cursed!
– You are our hero, Jakyp; this is the truth. I have seen all the atrocities of Alooke with my own eyes. – Just as Akbalta confirmed these words, Tekechi-khan continued his lament:
– Uncle Akbalta, the people are suffering and can no longer endure the demands and oppressions of Khan Alooke.
Hearing their complaints, Ulak-khan and the children of Orozdu, led by Jakyp, fell silent for a long time, not knowing what to respond. Tekechi, Shigay, and Akbalta consulted among themselves and gathered the next day all the people in the meadow of Uyrulmo. One after another, the Kyrgyz spoke and all said the same about the outrages Alooke was committing, how he had not given peace to the people in recent days, how he took livestock – both that which grazes in the open field and that which is fed in the yard, and how he beat and robbed the entire people from young to old, how he oppressed everyone every day and did not allow people to live peacefully. And then Tekechi-khan spoke up; he said much and concluded his speech with these words:
– My dear compatriots, there is nothing worse than being a slave and living like cattle, enduring humiliation and insults.
Is it better to fight the vile enemies, to fight to the death and shed blood, what do you think, my fellow countrymen?
Akbalta picked up his words:
– What can we say to the Tyrogoots and Manchus? Better to perish in battle than to live on our own land as slaves and endure humiliation.
Shigay, frightened by the ferocity of Alooke, did not like these words very much:
– Esteemed uncle Akbalta, dear compatriots! Yes, it is not easy for us now, but otherwise it is not possible yet. In a difficult hour, there is no need for simple boasting. We do not yet have a king who would unite and lead the people. We do not yet have the strength to stand against the Kalmyks and Manchus. Will anything remain of a lamb if nine wolves attack it? Will a small people withstand if an innumerable army of Chinese attacks it?
Hearing Shigay’s pitiful words, Akbalta frowned, darkened, angry and furious, flashed his eyes and twitched his mustache:
– What are you saying, hero Shigay? In the worst case, we will perish, but is there anyone who would live forever?
If it is destined to die, then all the treasures of the world and even the fastest steed in the world will not save you. If we become subjects of Alooke, he will drive us like donkeys, beat us like cattle, humiliate us like slaves.
He will twist us as he wishes, will mock the small people as much as he wants. How can we surrender when we still have warriors? Alooke has gone mad; let’s try to grapple with this dog, what do you say, my people?
His words were immediately echoed by Bai:
– Esteemed compatriots, Akbalta is right here. Think a little. Is it not clear that if we leave everything as it is, Alooke will forever take our land and rob our people? Where will you hide, having lost your native land, from whom will you seek protection, having lost your own people? While we are alive and healthy, can we allow our people to be mocked, my dear brothers, what do you say to that, huh?
While the people stared silently at the ground, the silence was suddenly broken by the cry of "kakan," and, raising the earth, an innumerable army under a motley flag appeared from behind the mountains. The drums thundered loudly, the horns played brightly, and the enemies caught the completely unarmed people by surprise. Riding on a pace horse, draped in a silk robe, Alooke rode, resting his hand on his side, and gave orders to his numerous army:
– Hey, horsemen, beat the vile Burots; if they resist, catch them and scalp them. Extinguish the hearths of the vile Burots, do not let them gather, but scatter them in different directions, wreak havoc on these cursed Burots. Leave no one of them, destroy them all.
Receiving orders from the cruel khan, the enraged warriors did as they pleased with the defenseless people. Most of the Kyrgyz were bewildered, not knowing how to save themselves. A small part, however, did not lose their composure, fleeing to the mountains. There were also those who, to save their own skins, fell prostrate before the enemies and begged for mercy.
And then the Chinese Khan Alooke burned the camp of the Kyrgyz to the ground, captured all the women and made them his concubines, leveled the capital of Orozdu to the ground, and instilled fear in the unfortunate people.
A huge stream of troops moved, finishing off all who could not hide; arrows rained down on the people, spears and swords were stained with blood, houses were engulfed in flames, the face of the sun was hidden by blue smoke, dogs howled, and the people who had lived peacefully until now were thrown into confusion.
Unable to resist the enemy, Tekechi-khan and Shigay-khan fled towards Ala-Tuu and barely escaped.
Khan Alooke ordered to take tens of thousands of horses grazing on the hills and hundreds of thousands of horses grazing in the mountains on pasture. He ordered to exterminate the young brave warriors who resisted him, and to take the young beautiful girls as concubines. He subdued Andijan and Kokand, even further Margilan, and even further Samarkand; upon hearing the name Alooke, crying children immediately ceased to cry; from every household he took tribute in large livestock, leaving nothing for the people, he completely stripped the people bare.
When spring came, he did not allow the Kyrgyz to breed mares; when autumn came, he did not allow them to feed the fattened lambs; when winter came, he began to take tribute in young beauties. Parents who did not want to give their daughters to the cursed Alooke cried bloody tears, while their unfortunate daughters, not knowing whether to die or to live on, endured unbearable torment.