The Book of the Nishan Shaman 08

Previous instalments: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7
baldu bayan tere niyalma de baniha bufi morin yalufi dahvme feksime dergi dubede isinjifi,

baldu bayan [Baldu Bayan]
tere niyalma de [that man]
baniha bufi [having thanked] lit. having given a thank

morin [horse]
yalufi [having mounted]

dahvme [again] lit. repeating
feksime [gallopping]
dergi dube-de [to the eastern bank]
isinjifi [having arrived]

Baldu Bayan thanked the man, mounted his horse, and galloped back to the eastern bank.

morin ci ebufi boode dosifi, tuwaci julergi nahan de emu funiyehe xaraka sakda mama tehebi jun i angga bade emu se asigan hehe dambagu be gocime ilihabi

morin ci [from horse]
ebufi [having dismounted]

boo-de [to house]
dosifi [having gone]

tuwaci [looked]

julergi nahan de* [on southern kang]
emu [one] here as indefinite article
funiyehe xaraka [white-haired]
sakda mama [old woman]
tehebi [was sitting]

jun i angga bade [by stove door] lit. stove mouth
emu se asigan hehe [a very young woman]
dambagu be [tobacco]
gocime [smoking]
ilihabi [was standing]

He dismounted from his horse and went into the house, and he saw an old, white-haired woman sitting on the southern kang*. A young woman was standing by the stove door, smoking.

* nahan, Chinese: 炕 kàng. The kang built on the southern wall (especially in the western room) is the most honourable place in the house where elderly people sleep.

yuwan wai gvnici ere nahan de tehe sakda mama jiduji saman dere seme nada niyakvrafi

yuwan wai [landlord]
gvnici [thought]

ere [this]
nahan de tehe [sitting on kang]
sakda mama [old woman]
jiduji [surely]
saman dere [shaman]

seme [said]

na-da [on ground] misspelling of nade
niyakvrafi [having knelt]

The landlord thought, “The old woman sitting on the kang surely is the shaman” and knelt down on the ground before her.

baire de sakda mama hendume bi saman waka agu si taxarabuhabi, jun bade ilihangge mini urun, saman inu serede

baire de [when begged]

sakda mama [old woman]
hendume [said]

bi [I]
saman [shaman]
waka [(am) not]

agu [friend]
si [you]
taxabuhabi [were deceived]

jun ba-de [by stove]
ilihangge [standing]
mini urun [my daughter-in-law]
saman [shaman]
inu emphatic particle

serede [said]

Upon his begging, the old woman said, “I am not a shaman. You have been deceived, my friend. My daughter-in-law who is standing by the stove, she is the shaman.”

baldu bayan uthai ilifi ere gehe de niyakvrafi baime hendume,

baldu bayan [Baldu Bayan]
uthai [then]
ilifi [having stood]

ere gehe de [before this young lady]
fiyakvrafi [having knelt]

baime [asking]
hendume [told]

Then Baldu Bayan stood up, knelt before the young lady and asked,

saman gehe, amba algin algikabi gebu gvtubume tucikebi, orin saman i oilori, dehi saman deleri turgunde, bairengge han julhun be tuwabume jorimbureo seme baime jihe

saman gehe [shaman lady]
amba algin [great fame]
algikabi [became known]

“Shaman lady! Your great fame has spread!

gebu [name]
gvtubume [spoiling, bringing disgrace]
tucikebi [has excelled]

Your name has excelled, putting others to shame.

orin saman i [twenty shamans]
oilori [outside]
dehi saman [forty shamans]
deleri [above]
turgun-de [because]
bairengge [please] literally: begging

han julhun be** [son’s disease]
tuwabume [examining]
jorimbureo [indicate] can be spelled joribureoseme [saying]

baime [to ask]
jihe [came]

Please, it is because you are above and beyond scores of shamans that I came to ask you to examine my son’s disease!”.

** han julhun – a name of a disease.  han seems to be an appellation referring to Sergudai, and julhun seems to refer to the disease, since a cure is yet to be indicated.  Kawachi interprets it as a variant or misspelling of jijuhun [digram, trigram, or hexagram of the Book of Changes], or julgen [good fortune, lucky chance]; Durrant translates it as “circumstances of death”; Volkova simply transcribes it and adds a note saying “a name of a disease, apparently a shamanic term”.

gehe jobombi seme ainara xar seme gosifi algin be gaime bureo serede

gehe [young lady] lit. elder sister
jobombi [became worried]

seme [said]

ainara [how]
xar seme [moved with sympathy]
gosifi [having pitied]

algin be [fame]
gaime [taking away]
bureo [ask]

serede [said]

The young lady became worried, and moved with sympathy, pitied him.  “Please, put aside my fame” she said.

tere hehe injerxeme hendume bayan agu be holtorakv, mini beye ice tacifi goidaha akv de han julhun tuwarengge tondo akv ayoo

tere hehe [that woman]
injerxeme [smiling cheerfully]
hendume [said]

bayan agu be [wealthy friend]
holtorakv [not deceive]

mini beye [I]
ice [new]
tacifi [having learned]
goidaha akv de [a little while] can be spelled goidahakv

han julhun [(the disease)]
tuwarengge [examining]
tondo akv [wrongly] lit. without right
ayoo particle of fear or doubt ***

She smiled cheerfully and said, “Wealthy friend, I am not deceiving you.  I have only studied a little while.  I doubt I could examine your son’s disease rightly.”

***It is connected with Chinese 啊哟 āyō. However, Schmidt doesn’t have this as a loanword from Chinese, and MA-CH-MO translates ayoo as 惟恐口氣 (an exclamation of fear), so the Chinese version seems to be the younger one.  On the other hand, ayoo can be spelled ayao as well, and this diphtong appears in Chinese loanwords only.

ume baita be tookabure gvwa erdemungge saman sabe baifi erdeken i tuwabuna ume heoledere serede

ume [do not]
baita be [matter]
tookabure [postpone]

gvwa [other]
erdemungge saman sa-be [powerful shamans]
baifi [having asked]

erdeken i [soon]
tuwabuna [go to be examined]

ume heoledere [don’t be careless]

serede [said]

“Do not postpone the matter, hurry and ask other, more powerful shamans to examine your son. Do not be careless!”

baldu bayan yasai muke eyebume, hengkixeme dahvn dabtai i baire jakade, saman hendume

baldu bayan [Baldu Bayan]
yasa-i muke [tears]
eyebume [made flow]
hengkixeme [kowtowing repeatedly] from hengkilembi with -xe suffix (frequentative verb)
dahvn dabtai i [repeatedly] can be spelled dabtan
baire jakade [when begged]
saman [shaman]
hendume [said]

When Baldu Bayan burst into tears, begging her and kowtowing repeatedly, she said,

tuktan jihebe dahame, emu mudan tuwambureo gvwa niyalma oho bici ainaha seme tuwarakv bihe sefi

tuktan [the first time]
jihe-be [(one who) came]
dahame [because]
emu mudan [once]
tuwambureo [please let me see]

gvwa niyalma [another person]
oho bici [if were]

ainaha seme [surely] lit. saying “for what purpose?”
tuwarakv bihe [would not divine]

sefi [having said]

“Since it is your first time coming, let me see.  If it were another person, I surely would not divine.”

dere yasa obufi, hiyan dere faidafi, muheliyen tonio be muke de maktafi, falan dulin de mulan teku be sindafi

dere [face]
yasa [eyes]
obufi [having washed] dict. form: obofi

hiyan dere [table used for burning incense] hiyan [incense] from Chinese 香 xiāng
faidafi [having arranged]

muheliyen tonio be [round Go stones (围棋; wéiqí)] to learn more about Go stones used in the ritual, look here (page 43)
muke de [to water]
maktafi [having thrown]

falan dulin de [in the middle of the room]
teku be [seat]
sindafi [having placed]

She washed her face and eyes, arranged the incense table, threw round Go stones into the water, and placed a seat in the middle of the room.

saman beye ice galai yemcen be jafafi hashv galai hailan moo gisun be halhifi teku de teme yemcen be torgime geyeme baime deribuhe

saman [shaman]
beye [herself]
ice gala-i [with right hand] dict. form: ici
yemcen be**** [drum] can be spelled imcin
jafafi [having taken]

hashv gala-i [with left hand]
hailan moo gisun be [elm-wood drumstick]
halhifi [having grasped] can be spelled halgifi

teku de [on seat]
teme [sitting]
yemcen be [drum]
torgime [making circles]
geyeme [beating] lit. carving
baime deribuhe [began invoking]

She took the drum**** in her right hand, grasped the elm-wood drumstick with her left hand, and sat on the seat.  Making circles with the drum and beating it, she began her invocation.

**** for detailed information about shamanic drums, look here: 1, 2, 3.

hocohvn jilgan hobage be hvlame den jilgan deyangku be dahinjime yayame baifi weceku be beyede singgebufi baldu bayan nade niyakvrafi donjimbi,

hocohvn jilgan [beautiful voice] dict. form: hocikon
hobage be [hobage]
hvlame [chanting]

den jilgan [high voice]
deyangku be [deyangku]
dahinjime [repeating]

yayame [mumbling an incantation]
baifi [having invoked]

weceku be [spirit] See this article. In the article, “vochko” = weceku.
beye-de [into herself]
singgebufi [having caused to enter] also ’caused to soak into, permeate, go deep into’

baldu bayan [Baldu Bayan]
na-de [on ground]
niyakvrafi [having knelt]

donjimbi [listened]

Chanting “hobage” in beautiful voice, repeating “deyangku” in a high voice, and mumbling, she chanted her invocation.  She caused a spirit to enter her.  Baldu Bayan was kneeling on the ground and listening.

nixan saman yayame deribuhe, jorime yayaha gisun,
eikule yekule ere baldu halai
eikule yekule muduri aniyangga
eikule yekule haha si donji
eikule yekule han be tuwabume
eikule yekule jihe age
eikule yekule getuken donji
eikule yekule waka seci
eikule yekule wake sebai
eikule yekule holo seci
eikule yekule holo sebai

nixan saman [the Nishan Shaman]
yayame deribuhe [began to mumble (an incantation)]

jorime [explaining]
yayaha gisun [mumbled words]

ere baldu hala-i [of this Baldu clan]
muduri aniyangga [born in the Year of Dragon]

haha [man]
si [you]
donji [listen]

han be [lord]
tuwabume [to examine]
jihe age [master who came]
getuken [clearly]
donji [listen]

waka [not]
seci [if say]
waka [not]
se [say]
bai particle of command and emphasis, from Chinese 罷呀 (罢呀/吧呀, .ba.ya)

holo [false]
seci [if say]
holo [false]
se bai [say]

The Nishan Shaman begun to mumble (the incantation), explaining in these words:
“Eikule yekule, man of the Baldu clan,
eikule yekule, born in the Year of the Dragon,
eikule yekule, man, you listen!
Eikule yekule, for having the lord to be examined,
eikule yekule, man who came,
Eikule yekule, listen carefully!
Eikule yekule, if I say ‘no’,
eikule yekule, say ‘no’!
Eikule yekule, if I say ‘false’,
eikule yekule, say ‘false’!”

eikule yekule holo saman holtombi
eikule yekule suwende alarao
eikule yekule orin sunja sede
eikule yekule emu haha jui
eikule yekule ujihe bihe
eikule yekule tofohon se ofi
eikule yekule heng lang xan
eikule yekule alin de
eikule yekule abalame genefi
eikule yekule tere alin de
eikule yekule kumuru hutu
eikule yekule sini jui i
eikule yekule fainggo be
eikule yekule jafame jefi
eikule yekule ini beye
eikule yekule nimeku bahafi
eikule yekule bucehe bi

holo saman [false shaman]
holtombi [lies]

suwende [to you]
alarao [will tell]

orin sunja se-de [at the age of twenty five]
emu haha jui [one son]
ujihe bihe [had been born]

tofohon se [fifteen years]
ofi [having turned]

heng lang xan [Heng Lang Shan]
alin de [to the mountain]
abalame [to hunt]
genefi [having gone]

tere alin de [on that mountain]
kumuru hutu [Kumuru ghost]
sini jui i [your yon’s]
fainggo be [(yang) soul] dict. form: fayangga
jafame [catching]
jefi [having kidnapped]

ini beye [he]
nimeku [disease]
bahafi [having caught]

bucehe bi [died]

“Eikule yekule, the shaman lies,
eikule yekule, I will tell you.
Eikule yekule, at the age of twenty-five,
eikule yekule, a son
eikule yekule, had been born.
Eikule yekule, when he turned fifteen,
eikule yekule, to Heng Lang Shan Mountain
eikule yekule, to the mountain,
eikule yekule, to hunt,
eikule yekule, he had gone.
Eikule yekule, on that mountain,
eikule yekule, Kumuru ghost,
eikule yekule, your son’s
eikule yekule, soul
eikule yekule, has caught and kidnapped.
Eikule yekule, He,
eikule yekule, having caught a disease,
eikule yekule, has died.”

eikule yekule tereci juse
eikule yekule ujihe akvbi
eikule yekule susai sede
eikule yekule emu haha jui
eikule yekule sabufi ujihebi
eikule yekule susai sede
eikule yekule banjiha ofi
eikule yekule gebube sergudai
eikule yekule fiyanggo sembi
eikule yekule seme gebulehebi
eikule yekule mergen gebu mukdehebi
eikule yekule amba gebu tucikebi eikule yekule tofohon se ofi

tere-ci [since then]
juse [son]
ujihe akv-bi [was not born]

susai se-de [at the age of fifty]
emu haha jui [one son]

sabufi [having seen]

ujihebi [was born]

susai se-de [at the age of fifty]
banjiha ofi [was born]

gebu-be [name]
sergudai fiyanggo [Sergudai Fiyanggo]
sembi [called]

seme [saying]
gebulehebi [was called a name]

mergen gebu [wise name]
mukdehebi [arose]

amba gebu [great name]
tucikebi [excelled]

tofohon se [fifteen years]
ofi [turned]

“Eikule yekule, since that time, a son
eikule yekule, had not been born,
eikule yekule, at the age of fifty,
eikule yekule, a son,
eikule yekule, I saw, was born,
eikule yekule, at the age of fifty,
eikule yekule, a son was born to you.
Eikule yekule, his name was Sergudai,
eikule yekule, Fiyanggo he was called.
Eikule yekule, that was the name.
Eikule yekule, his wise name arose,
eikule yekule, his great name excelled.
Eikule yekule, he turned fifteen.”

eikule yekule julergi alin de
eikule yekule gurgube ambula
eikule yekule waha turgunde
eikule yekule ilmun han donjifi
eikule yekule hutu be takvrafi
eikule yekule fainggo be jafafi
eikule yekule gamaha bi kai
eikule yekule weijubure de mangga
eikule yekule aitubure de jobombi
eikule yekule inu seci inu se
eikule yekule waka seci waka se eikule yekule

julergi alin de [in southern mountains]
gurgu-be [beasts]
ambula [many]
waha [killed]
turgunde [because]

ilmun han [Ilmun Han, ruler of the underworld]
donjifi [having listened]

hutu be [ghost]
takvrafi [having commanded]

fainggo be [soul]
jafafi [having caught]

gamaha bi [executed (the order)]
kai emphatic particle

weijubure de [bringing back to life]
mangga [(is) difficult]

aitubure de [reviving]
jobombi [needs]

inu [yes]
seci [if say]
inu [yes]
se [say]

waka [not]
seci [if say]
waka [not]
se [say]

“Eikule yekule, in the mountains of the South,
eikule yekule, many beasts,
eikule yekule, since he killed,
eikule yekule, Ilmun Han heard of it,
eikule yekule, having ,
Eikule yekule, sent a ghost,
eikule yekule, having caught Sergudai’s soul,
eikule yekule, he executed the order.
Eikule yekule, it is difficult to revive him;
eikule yekule, he needs to be revived.
Eikule yekule, if I say ‘yes’, say ‘yes’,
eikule yekule, if I say ‘no’, say ‘no’.”

Next part >>