[342]
1.
I pray for mercy on Pokr Mher,
I pray for mercy on Kohar Khanum,
I pray for mercy on Tzenov Hovan,
I pray for mercy on Kerry Toros,
I pray for mercy on David of Seven-Lineage.
From lineage to lineage we come to Pokr Mher.
2.
[342] When David died—
May his sun be granted to your sons—
His son, Mher, was at Gaboudgogh.
He had not heard of his father's death.
With forty young men and
Forty young women he was drinking
Seven-year-old pomegranate wine and making merry.
Time passed.
Kerry Toros, thinking over [their situation],
Said: —Tzenov Ho van,
Ch'm'shkig Sultan will come,
Pillage and devastate Sassoun.
Let us go and bring back David's son, Mher.
He will avenge the death of his father,
He will rule Sassoun, and head the Chochantz Doun [House of Grandees].
He took with him Tzenov Hovan, seven buffalo hides,
And went to Gaboudgogh.
They asked the keeper [of the palace gate]:
—The son of our brother and sister-in-law is here.
Where is he?
—He is dead, the keeper said—
They had taken Mher behind seven doors,
Keeping him under guard,
Blowing trumpets, and beating drums,
So that he would not hear the voice of his uncles
And come out.
Mher, like a fort,
Had been holding back enemy kings—
Not letting them set foot in Gaboudgogh.
Kerry Toros said:
—We know how to identify our dead kinsmen.
[344] If a member of our household dies at one year of age,
His grave will be ten Alep-Kaz long.
If he dies at two years of age,
His grave will be twenty Alep-Kaz long—
With every year the size of his grave
Increases ten kazes [in length].
We can identify the tomb of our kin.
They went to the graveyard
But found no tomb in the size of their kinsmen.
Tzenov Hovan said:
—Wrap the buffalo hides around me,
So that I can send out a call.
They wrapped seven buffalo hides around him
And went [took him] to a hilltop.
Tzenov Hovan then sent out a call:
[Chanting:]
—Mher, lad, drink!
Mher, lad, drink the pomegranate wine;
Your father has been killed;
We have been mourning him for seven days.
Mher heard Hovan's voice.
Louder and louder they blew the trumpets
And beat the drums.
Mher shouted to the minstrels:
—Stop that noise! I heard the voice of my kinsman:
[Chanting:]
—A voice was coming, I do not know from where,
From the east or from the west?
From the north or from the south?
Uncle Hovan called back:
[Chanting:]
—It is from the north,
[345] It is from the south,
It is from the west,
It is from the east;
Your father has been killed,
We have been mourning him for seven days.
—Your father's death is unavenged,
Come with us to avenge his death.
You are one of the warriors of the House of Sassoun.
The minstrels played their drums
And trumpets louder and louder.
Mher said: —I am going out;
It is my uncle calling.
As he started to leave, the guard said:
—That is not the call of your kinsman,
It is the noise of the trumpets and the voice of the boys.
But when Mher heard the call three times,
He kicked and broke down the first door,
Then the next door and one after the other,
Until he broke down the seven doors and came out.
As Mher came toward them,
Kerry Toros said:
—Hovan, let me put him to a test;
If he is David's son, I will take him to Sassoun;
If he is not, I will shoot him,
And we can return to Sassoun.
As Mher came to him,
Kerry Toros asked:
—Where are you going so haughtily, lad?
Mher said: —Two men were calling me,
Where did they go?
Toros asked: —Who are you that people should call you?
[346] You are only a boy.
Mher said: —If you are a man, why can't I be a man?
Kerry Toros said: —I would throw my mace at you, lad,
But you are only a boy; throw yours at me first;
I will throw mine after.
When Mher hurled his mace at him,
Kerry Toros spurred his six-footed Lazky.
Mher missed him.
The mace passed under the belly of the horse.
Kerry Toros stopped, swung his mace, and said:
—On guard, lad. I am throwing my mace.
As Toros threw his mace,
It pinned Mher's leg to the saddle of the horse.
As Kerry Toros drew out the mace,
Mher did not even whimper.
Then he asked Mher:
—Tell me, lad, who is your father?
Who is your mother?
I think you are a bastard.
When I hit with my mace, rocks break into bits;
You didn't even whimper.
Mher replied: —You are the bastard.
David is my father,
Khantout is my mother.
They recognized each other then.
Not seeing his father with them,
Mher asked where he was.
Tzenov Hovan said:
—Your father has been killed, your mother is dead;
Any moment Ch'm'shkig Sultan may come
And pillage, devastate Sassoun.
Mher wept and fell on his face.
As he fell, his uncles ran to his aid,
But could not lift him up.
His tears flowed for three days,
[347] Turned the ground into a bog.
At the end of three days, Mher arose and lamented:
[Chanting:]
—Oh, eyes, you should have gone blind,
You should not have been the eyes of an orphaned child,
You should have rejoiced seeing
The helmet on my father's head.
Oh, eyes, you should have gone blind,
You should not have been the eyes of an orphaned child,
You should have rejoiced seeing
The girdle around my father's waist.
Oh, eyes, you should have gone blind,
You should not have been the eyes of an orphaned child,
You should have rejoiced seeing
My father's Lightning Sword.
Oh, eyes, you should have gone blind,
You should not have been the eyes of an orphaned child,
You should have rejoiced seeing
My father's coat of mail.
Oh, eyes, you should have gone blind,
You should not have been the eyes of an orphaned child,
You should have rejoiced seeing
My father's boots on his feet.
Oh, eyes, you should have gone blind,
You should not have been the eyes of an orphaned child,
You should have rejoiced seeing
My father's Kourkig Jelaly.
Mher [stopped his lamenting,] mounted his horse,
And with Kerry Toros and Uncle Hovan
Set out for Sassoun.
3.
[348] On the road to Sassoun
There was a monastery called Madghavank.
[Neighboring] kings, enemies of David,
Had heard that, on his way to Sassoun,
Mher would take the monastery road.
They had gone to the abbot and said:
—Send word to us
As soon as you see Mher coming this way.
They were conspiring to ambush and kill Mher.
As they came near the monastery toward evening,
Kerry Toros suddenly stopped—
He was riding ahead, Hovan and Mher were following him.
Seeing his uncle stop, Mher asked:
—Why did you stop, Uncle?
Toros said: —They have blocked the road with huge logs
So that our enemies can overtake and capture us.
The abbot had set the snare, so that,
By moving the timbers away,
Mher would become exhausted and
Stop at the monastery to rest.
The enemies would attack him then.
Mher asked: —How can we clear the road?
Kerry Toros replied: —If David were here,
I would raise these logs with my spear
And he would carry them away.
Mher said: —Kerry, you lift them,
I will carry them away.
Toros then raised a huge log with his spear,
And said to Mher: —Take this and carry it away.
Mher put his arms around the huge log,
Carried it to the edge of the ravine
And with his foot pushed it down the precipice.
One by one they removed the logs
[349] And cleared the road before nightfall.
Then they went to the monastery.
The abbot gave them a big room, and food to eat,
While he secretly sent word to their enemies.
Mher, Txenov Hovan, and Kerry Toros
Ate their evening meal and went to sleep.
Kerry Toros woke up at daybreak.
Looking outside,
He saw that the armies of the seven kings
Had surrounded the monastery.
Seeing the encamped enemy, he shouted to Mher:
—Mher, get up, look outside,
The armies of the seven kings
Have surrounded the monastery.
Mher woke up, rubbed his eyes;
Tzenov Hovan woke up, too;
Together they came to the window and looked outside—
The trees in a forest could be counted,
But the soldiers of the seven kings could not be counted.
Among them they saw the abbot.
Mher said: —I am going out, you follow me.
Mher mounted his horse and rode forth . . .
His uncles also saddled their horses and rode after him.
Mher fell upon the enemy soldiers,
Dealt them heavy blows right and left,
Mowed them down and scattered them like the wind
That blows away swarms of gnats.
Seeing this,
Toros and Hovan were aroused to join the fight.
Each pulled up a plane tree
And fell upon the enemy.
Seeing them, Mher asked:
—What are you doing, fighting with trees?
They said: —We are doing nothing, lad,
While you are spreading the sheaves of wheat
On the threshing floor,
[350] We are rounding up the stray stalks.
After they destroyed the last of the enemy,
They captured the abbot and brought him to the monastery.
With one hand Mher lifted the heavy lintel of the door,
With the other hand he grabbed the abbot by the hair,
Put his head under the lintel
And dropped the lintel on the head. Then he said:
—This monastery shall no longer be called Madghavank,
It shall be called Madnavank,
For the treachery that the abbot plotted.
Mher, Kerry Toros, Tzenov Hovan,
Then rode on to Sassoun.
4.
When they reached Sassoun, Tzenov Hovan brought out
The armour and arms of the House of Sassoun;
He also brought out Kourkig Jelaly, and said:
—Son, take this armour and arms,
Gird yourself with them and ride the horse.
Of the warriors of the House of Sassoun
You are the only one left.
Whom shall I save these for?
Mher then put on
David's Coat of Mail,
The Velvet Cloak, the Boots from Arzroum,
Girded himself with the Lightning Sword,
Took in his hand the warrior's Spear, and
Hung the mighty Mace on his arm;
Placed the steel bit into Kourkig Jelaly's mouth,
And the Saddle of Mother-of-Pearl on his back.
[351] As he led Kourkig Jelaly out to mount him,
Kourkig spoke:
—Ey, arrogant lad, who are you to ride me?
Do you dare to ride me?
Mher replied: —Kourkig Jelaly, don't be so recalcitrant,
I am one of the braves of the House of Sassoun, too.
Kourkig Jelaly said:
—For David's sake
I will not resent what you said; mount me.
Mher mounted Kourkig Jelaly
And asked his uncles to lead the way.
He went [with them] to fight Ch'm'shkig Sultan.
Tzenov Hovan said: —What am I to do?
Mher is a boy, he does not know [what he is facing],
And I am old, can fight no more.
Mher said: —Uncle, we are of the House of Sassoun,
Are we not?
Enemy kings would not dare to come near our grave
Even when we are dead.
Ride on! Let us get into our fight.
Kourkig Jelaly spoke then:
—Why are you afraid, you faithless man?
I will trample to death thrice as many soldiers as these.
What do they amount to? will slaughter them
With my tail, my hoofs, and my breath.
They set out, reached the city [of Ch'm'shkig Sultan].
Mher asked:
—Uncle, do you want to attack the city or the army?
They thought about it and said:
—We are not strong enough to capture
And destroy the city.
Mher said to them:
—You each weigh twice as much as I,
I will send you both to one front,
[352] And alone I will take the other front; do you agree?
Tzenov Hovan, Kerry Toros said:
—We will attack the city. And they set out.
Mher drew the Lightning Sword
And fell upon the soldiers.
He struck right, he struck left;
He spared neither soldier, nor officer.
He slaughtered them all, and said:
—This [I did] to avenge my father.
Mher seized Ch'm'shkig Sultan,
Tied her hair to Kourkig Jelaly's tail.
The horse left a piece of her body in many lands.
Only her hair was left tied to his tail.
Mher then said: —I will go and see
What my Kerry and uncle have done.
He went and found the city destroyed,
Except for one cat
That had perched on the spire of a minaret
And was looking around.
Mher pulled up a plane tree and
Knocked the cat off the spire.
Then he climbed to the summit of [Mount] Nemruth;
Looking around, he saw smoke rising.
He came back, went to the city
And found an old witch huddled in a corner
Among the ruins, kindling a fire.
Mher and his uncles asked her:
—Why are you sending up smoke?
The witch said: —So that you will not say,
'We destroyed Khlat so completely that
No smoke could rise from any chimney.'
Mher seized the witch, [bent down two trees,]
Tied one of her feet to the top of one tree
[353] And the other foot to the top of the other tree
And then let both trees go.
Thus he destroyed Khlat.
—I have avenged my father's death, said Mher.
The three together returned home.