Book: Filipino Popular Tales

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Benfey (in Ausland, 1858 : 969, 995, 1017, 1038, 1067) has made
a somewhat exhaustive study of the Märchen, which he calls "Das
Märchen von den Menschen mit den wunderbaren Eigenschaften." As a
matter of fact, he examines particularly the stories of our type
II (see above), to which he connects the folk-tales of our types
III and IV as a later popular development. As has been said in the
notes to No. 11 Benfey thinks that the "Skilful Companions" cycle
is a droll or comic offshoot of this much older group. Our type I he
does not discuss at all, possibly thinking that it is not a part of
the "Rival Brothers" cycle. It strikes me, however, as being a part
fully as much as is the "Skilful Companions" cycle, which is perhaps
more nearly related to the "Bride Wager" group than to the "Rival
Brothers." Professor G. L. Kittredge, in his "Arthur and Gorlagon"
(Harvard Studies and Notes in Philology and Literature, No. 8),
226, has likewise failed to differentiate clearly the two cycles,
and his outline of the "Skilful Companions" is that of our type
II of the "Rival Brothers." I am far from wishing to quarrel over
nomenclature,--possibly "Rival Brothers" is no better name for the
group of tales under discussion than is "Skilful Companions,"--but,
as G. H. Gerould has remarked ("The Grateful Dead," Folk-Lore Society,
1907 : 126, note 3), Kittredge's analysis would not hold for all
variants, even when uncompounded. However, Mr. Gerould does not
attempt to explain the cause of the confusion, nor was he called upon
to do so in his study of an entirely distinct cycle. Consequently,
as no one else has yet done so, for the sake of clearness, I propose
a division of the large family of sagas and folk-tales dealing with
men endowed with extraordinary powers [46] into at least two cycles,
--the "Rival Brothers" and the "Skilful Companions" (see No. 11). The
former of these, which is the group discussed here, I subdivide,
as has already been indicated, into four types. Of intermixtures of
these types with other cycles we shall not concern ourselves here,
though they have been many. [47] We now turn to an examination of
the four types. [48]

(I) Type I had its origin in India, doubtless. The oldest form seems to
be that found in the Sanscrit "Vetâlapancavinçati," No. 22, whence it
was incorporated into Somadeva's story collection (twelfth century)
called the "Kathásaritságara." An outline of this last version
(Tawney's translation, 2 : 348-350) is as follows.



Story of the Four Brahman Brothers who Resuscitated the Lion.

Four Bráhman brothers, sons of a very poor man, leave home to
beg. After their state has become even more miserable, they decide
to separate and to search through the earth for some magic power. So,
fixing upon a trysting-place, they leave one another, one going east,
one west, one north, one south. In the course of time they meet again,
and each tells of his accomplishments: the first can immediately
produce on a bit of bone the flesh of that animal; the second can
produce on that flesh skin and hair appropriate to that animal; the
third can create the limbs of the animal after the flesh, skin, and
hair have been formed; the fourth can endow the completed carcass with
life. The four now go into the forest to find a piece of bone with
which to test their skill; they find one, but are ignorant that it
is the bone of a lion. The first Brahman covers the bone with flesh;
the second gives it skin and hair; the third completes the animal
by supplying appropriate limbs; the fourth endows it with life. The
terrible beast, springing up, charges the four brothers and slays
them on the spot.

The question which the vetála now asks the king is, "Which of these
four was guilty in respect of the lion who slew them all?" King
Vikramasena answers, "The one that gave life to the lion is guilty. The
others produced flesh, skin, hair, and limbs without knowing what kind
of animal they were making. Therefore, being ignorant, they were not
guilty. But the fourth, seeing the complete lion's shape before him,
was guilty of their death, because he gave the creature life."


The "Pancatantra" version (v, 4) varies slightly. Here, as in the
preceding, there are four brothers, but only three of them possess
all knowledge; the fourth possesses common sense. The first brother
joins together the bones of a lion; the second covers them with
skin, flesh, and blood; the third is about to give the animal life,
when the fourth brother--he who possessed common sense--says, "If
you raise him to life, he will kill us all." Finding that the third
brother will not desist from his intention, the fourth climbs a tree
and saves himself, while his three brothers are torn to pieces. For
a modern Indian popular form, see Thornhill, 289.

In the Persian "Tûtî-nâmah" (No. 5) the story assumes a decidedly
different form, as may be seen from the following abstract. (I think
that there can be no doubt, however, that this tale was inspired
by some redaction of "Vetâlapancavinçati," No. 22, not unlikely in
combination with "Vetâlapancavinçati," No. 2.)


The Goldsmith, the Carpenter, the Tailor, and the Hermit who Quarrelled
about a Wooden Woman.

A goldsmith, a carpenter, a tailor, and a hermit, travelling together,
come to a desert place where they must spend the night. They decide
that each shall take a watch during the night as guard. The carpenter's
turn is first: to prevent sleep he carves out a wooden figure. When
his turn comes, the goldsmith shows his skill by preparing jewels and
adorning the puppet. The tailor's turn is next: he sees the beautiful
wooden woman decked with exquisite jewels, but naked; consequently
he makes neat clothes becoming a bride, and dresses her. When the
hermit's turn to watch comes, he prays to God that the figure may
have life; and it begins to speak like a human being.

In the morning all four fall desperately in love with the woman,
and each claims her as his. Finally they come to a fifth person,
and refer the matter to him. He claims her to be his wife, who has
been seduced from his house, and hails the four travellers before the
cutwal. But the cutwal falls in love with the woman, says that she
is his brother's wife, accuses the five of his brother's murder, and
carries them before the cazi. The cazi, no less enamoured, says that
the woman is his bondmaid, who had absconded with much money. After
the seven have disputed and wrangled a long time, an old man in the
crowd that has meantime gathered suggests that the case be laid before
the Tree of Decision, which can be found in a certain town. When they
have all come before the tree with the woman, the tree divides, the
woman runs into the cleft, the tree unites, and she has disappeared
forever. A voice from the tree then says, "Everything returns to its
first principles." The seven suitors are overwhelmed with shame.


A Mongolian form, to be found in the Ardschi-Bordschi saga (see
Busk, 298-304), seems to furnish the link of connection between the
"Tûtî-nâmah" version and "Vetâlapancavinçati," Nos. 22 and 2:--


Who Invented Woman?

Four shepherd youths pasture their flocks near one another, and when
they have time amuse themselves together. One day one of them there
alone, to pass away the time, takes wood and sculptures it until he
has fashioned a beautiful female form. When he sees what he has done,
he cares no more for his companions, but goes his way. The next day
the second youth comes alone to the place, and, finding the image, he
paints it fair with the five colors, and goes his way. On the third
day the third youth finds the statue, and infuses into it wit and
understanding. He, too, cares no more to sport with his companions,
and goes his way. On the fourth day the fourth youth finds the figure,
and, breathing softly into its lips, behold! he gives it a soul that
can be loved,--a beautiful woman.

When the other three see what has happened, they come back and demand
possession of her by right of invention. Each urges his claim; but
they can come to no decision, and so they lay the matter before the
king. The question is, Who has invented the woman, and to whom does
she belong by right? The answer of the king is as follows: "The first
youth stands in the place of a father to her; the second youth, who
has tinted her fairly, stands in the place of a mother; the third,
is he not Lama (Buddhist priest, hence instructor)? The fourth has
given her a soul that can be loved, and it is he alone who has really
made her. She belongs to him, and therefore he is her husband."


I cannot refrain from giving a résumé of "Vetâlapancavinçati,"
No. 2, because it has been overlooked by Benfey, and seems to be of
no little significance in connection with our cycle: it establishes
the connection between types I and II. This abstract is taken from
Tawney's translation of Somadeva's redaction, 2 : 242-244:--


Story of the Three Young Brahmans who Restored a Dead Lady to Life.

Bráhman Agnisvámin has a beautiful daughter, Mandáravatí. Three young
Bráhmans, equally matched in accomplishments, come to Agnisvámin, and
demand the daughter, each for himself. Her father refuses, fearing to
cause the death of any one of them. Mandáravatí remains unmarried. The
three suitors stay at her house day and night, living on the sight of
her. Then Mandáravatí suddenly dies of a fever. The three Bráhmans
take her body to the cemetery and burn it. One builds a hut there,
and makes her ashes his bed; the second takes her bones, and goes
with them to the sacred river Ganges; the third becomes an ascetic,
and sets out travelling.

While roaming about, the third suitor reaches a village, where he is
entertained by a Bráhman. From him the ascetic steals a magic book
that will restore life to dead ashes. (He has seen its power proved
after his hostess, in a fit of anger, throws her crying child into
the fire.) With his magic book he returns to the cemetery before the
second suitor has thrown the maiden's bones into the river. After
having the first Bráhman remove the hut he had erected, the ascetic,
reading the charm and throwing some dust on the ashes of Mandáravatí,
causes the maiden to rise up alive, more beautiful than ever. Then
the three quarrel about her, each claiming her as his own. The first
says, "She is mine, for I preserved her ashes and resuscitated her
by asceticism." The second says, "She belongs to me, for she was
produced by the efficacy of sacred bathing-places." The third says,
"She is my wife, for she was won by the power of my charm."

The vetâla, who has been telling the story, now puts the question to
King Vikramasena. The king rules as follows: "The third Bráhman must
be considered as her father; the second, as her son; and the first,
as her husband, for he lay in the cemetery embracing her ashes,
which was an act of deep affection."


A modern link is the Georgian folk-tale of "The King and the Apple"
(Wardrop, No. XVI), in which the king's magic apple tells three
riddle-stories to the wonderful boy:--

(1) A woman is travelling with her husband and brother. The party
meets brigands, and the two men are decapitated. Their heads are
restored to them by the woman through the help of a magic herb
revealed to her by a mouse. However, she gets her husband's head on
her brother's body. Q.--Which man is the right husband? A.--The one
with the husband's head.

(2) A joiner, a tailor, and a priest are travelling. When night comes,
they appoint three watches. The joiner, for amusement, cuts down a
tree and carves out a man. The tailor, in his turn, takes off his
clothes and dresses the figure. The priest, when his turn comes,
prays for a soul for the image, and the figure becomes alive. Q.-Who
made the man? A.--He who gave him the soul.

(3) A diviner, a physician, and a swift runner are met together. The
diviner says, "There is a certain prince ill with such and such
a disease." The physician says, "I know a cure." The swift runner
says, "I will run with it." The physician prepares the medicine,
the runner runs with it, and the prince is cured. Q.--Who cured the
king's son? A.--He who made the medicine.

These three stories, with their framework, appear to be descended in
part from the Ardschi-Bordschi saga. A connection between the third
and our type II is obvious.

A Bohemian form of this type is No. 4 of Wratislaw's collection.

(II) Type II, according to Benfey, also originated in India. The
oldest known form of the story is the "Vetâlapancavinçati," No. 5. A
brief summary of Somadeva's version, "The Story of Somaprabhá and
her Three Suitors" (Tawney, 2 : 258-260), may be given here:--

In Ujjayiní there lived a Bráhman who had an excellent son and a
beautiful proud daughter. When the time for her to be married came,
she told her mother to give the following message to her father and
her brother: "I am to be given in marriage only to a person possessed
of heroism, knowledge, or magic power."

A noble Brahman (No. 1) in time came to the father and asked for
his daughter's hand. When told of the conditions, he said, "I am
possessed of magic power," and to demonstrate, he made a chariot and
took the father for a ride in the clouds. Then Harisvámin, the father,
promised his daughter to the Bráhman possessed of magic power, and
set the marriage day seven days hence.

Another Bráhman (No. 2) came and asked the son for his sister's
hand. When told the conditions, he said that he was a hero, and he
displayed his skill in the use of weapons. The brother, ignorant of
what his father had done, promised his sister's hand to this man,
and by the advice of an astrologer he selected the same day for the
wedding as his father had selected.

A third Bráhman (No. 3) on that same day asked the mother for her
daughter's hand, saying that he was possessed of wisdom. Ignorant of
what her husband and her son had done, she questioned this Bráhman
about the past and the future, and at length promised him her
daughter's hand on the same seventh day.

On the same day, then, three bridegrooms appeared, and, strange to say,
on that very day the bride disappeared. No. 3, with his knowledge,
discovered that she had been carried off by a Rákshasa. No. 1 made a
chariot equipped with weapons, and the three suitors and Harisvámin
were carried to the Rákshasa's abode. There No. 2 fought and killed the
demon, and all returned with the maiden. A dispute then arose among
the Bráhmans as to which was entitled to the maiden's hand. Each set
forth his claim.

The vetâla, who has been telling the story, now makes King Vikramasena
decide which deserves the girl. The king says that the girl ought to
be given to No. 2, who risked his life in battle to save her. Nos. 1
and 3 were only instruments; calculators and artificers are always
subordinate to others.


The story next passed over into Mongolia, growing by the way. The
version in the "Siddhi-Kür," No. 13, is interesting, because it
shows our story already linked up with another cycle, the "True
Brothers." Only the last part, which begins approximately where
the companions miss the rich youth, corresponds to the Sanscrit
above. (This Mongolian version may be found in English in Busk,
105-114.) The story then moved westward, and we next meet it
in the Persian and the Turkish "Tûtî-nâmah," "The Story of the
Beautiful Zehra." (For an English rendering from the Persian, see
"The Tootinameh; or, Tales of a Parrot," Persian text with English
translation [Calcutta, 1792], pp. 111-114.)

W. A. Clouston (Clouston 3, 2 : 277-288) has discussed this group of
stories, and gives abstracts of a number of variants that Benfey does
not mention: Dozon, "Albanian Tales," No. 4; a Persian manuscript text
of the "Sindibád Náma;" a Japanese legend known as early as the tenth
century; the "1001 Nights" story of "Prince Ahmed and the Peri Bánú;"
Powell and Magnussen's "Icelandic Legends," pp. 348-354, "The Story
of the Three Princes;" Von Hahn, "Contes Populaires Grecs" (Athens
and Copenhagen, 1879), No. II, p. 98. Of these he says (p. 285),
"We have probably the original of all these different versions in the
fifth of the 'Vetálapanchavinsati,'"--but hardly from No. 5 alone,
probably in combination with Nos. 2 and 22 (cf. above). At least,
the Arabian, Icelandic, and Greek forms cited by Clouston include
the search for trades or magic objects by rival brothers, a detail
not found in No. 5, but occurring in Nos. 22 and 2. Clouston calls
attention to the fact that in No. 5 and in the "Tûtî-nâmah" version the
damsel is not represented as being ill, while in the "Sindibád-Námá"
and in the Arabian version she is so represented.

(III) The third type seems to be of European origin. It is perhaps
best represented by Grimm, No. 124, "The Three Brothers." In his
notes, Grimm calls this story an old lying and jesting tale, and says
that it is apparently very widespread. He cites few analogues of it,
however. He does mention an old one (sixteenth century) which seems
to be the parent of the German story. It is Philippe d'Alcripe's
"Trois frères, excellens ouvriers de leurs mestiers" (No. 1 in the
1853 Paris edition, Biblioth. Elzevirien). As in Grimm, the three
skilled brothers in the French tale are a barber, a horse-shoer, and
a swordsman; and the performances of skill are identical in the two
stories. The French version, however, ends with the display of skill:
no decision is made as to which is entitled to receive the "petite
maison," the property that the father wishes to leave to the son who
proves himself to be the best craftsman. Our fifth story, the Bicol
variant, clearly belongs to this type, although it has undergone some
modifications, and has been influenced by contact with other cycles.

(IV) The fourth type represents the form to which our four printed
stories most closely approximate. As remarked above, it is a
combination of the third and the second types. This combination
appears to have been developed in Europe, although, as may be seen
from the analysis of "Vetâlapancavincati," No. 2, it might easily have
been suggested by the Sanscrit. Compare also the "Siddhi-Kür" form
of type II, where, although not brothers, and six in number instead
of three, the six comrades set out to seek their fortunes. But here
there is no suggestion of the six acquiring skill: they have that
before they separate.

The earliest known European version of this type is Morlini's, Nov. 30
(about 1520). His Latin was translated by Straparola (about 1553)
in the "Tredici piacevoli Notti," VII, 5. In outline his version runs
about as follows:--

Three brothers, sons of a poor man, voluntarily leave home to seek
their fortunes, promising to return in ten years. After determining on
a meeting-place, they separate. The first takes service with soldiers,
and becomes expert in the art of war: he can scale walls, dagger in
hand. The second becomes a master shipwright. The third spends his
time in the woods, and becomes skilled in the tongues of birds. After
ten years they meet again, as appointed. While they are sitting in
an inn, the youngest hears a bird say that there is a great treasure
hidden by the corner-stone of the inn. This they dig up, and return
as wealthy men to their father's house.

Another bird announces the imprisonment of the beautiful Aglea in a
tower on an island in the Ægean Sea. She is guarded by a serpent. The
second brother builds a swift ship, in which all three sail to the
island. There the first brother climbs the tower, rescues Aglea, and
plunders all the serpent's treasure. With the wealth and the lady
the three return. A dispute now arises as to which brother has the
best claim over her. The matter is left undecided by the story-teller.

At the beginning of the seventeenth century, Basile, working very
likely on oral tradition, and independent of Straparola (with whose
work he does not appear to have been acquainted), gives another
version, "Pentamerone," v, 7:--

Pacione, a poor father, sends his five good-for-nothing sons out into
the world for one year to learn a craft. They return at the appointed
time. During the year the eldest son has learned thieving; the second
has learned boat-building; the third, how to shoot with the cross-bow;
the fourth has learned of an herb that will cause the dead to rise;
the fifth has learned the language of birds. While the five sons are
eating with their father, the youngest son hears sparrows saying that a
ghoul has stolen the princess, daughter of the King of Autogolfo. The
father suggests that his five sons go to her rescue. So a boat is
built, the princess is stolen from the ghoul, the ghoul pursues and
is blinded by a shot from the bow, the princess falls in a dead faint
and is restored by the life-giving herb. After the five brothers have
returned the princess to her father, they dispute as to who did the
greatest deed of prowess, so as to be worthy of being her husband. Her
father the king decides the dispute by giving his daughter to Pacione,
because he is the parent-stem of all these branches.

Benfey thinks that the brother who knows of the life-restoring herb
is an original addition of Basile's or of his immediate source; but
this character is to be found in the cycle from earliest times (see
"Vetâlapancavinçati," No. 2; and "Siddhi-Kür," No. 13).

The story is next found as a Märchen pretty well scattered throughout
Europe. German, Russian, Bohemian, Italian, Greek, and Serbian forms
are known (see Benfey's article, and Grimm's notes to No. 129). We
may examine briefly six interesting versions not mentioned by Benfey
or Grimm:--

Greek (Von Hahn, No. 47).--A king with three sons wishes to marry
off the eldest. He seeks a suitable wife for the prince; but when
she is found and brought to the court, she is so beautiful, that all
three brothers want her. To decide their dispute, the king, on advice,
sends them abroad, promising the hand of the princess to the one who
shall bring back the most valuable article. The three brothers set
out; they separate at Adrianople, agreeing to meet there again at an
appointed time. On his travels, the eldest buys a telescope through
which he can see anything he wishes to see. The second buys an orange
that will restore to life the dying if the sick person but smells
of the fruit. The third buys a magic transportation-carpet. They all
meet as agreed. By means of the telescope one of the brothers learns
that the princess is dying. The magic carpet carries them all home
instantaneously, and the orange cures the maiden. A quarrel arises
as to which brother deserves her hand. The king, unable to decide,
marries her himself.

Bohemian (Waldau [Prag, 1860], "Das Weise Urteil").--In this there are
three rival brothers. One has a magic mirror; another, a magic chariot;
and the third, three magic apples. The first finds out that the lady
is desperately ill; the second takes himself and his rivals to her;
and the third restores her to health. A dispute arising, an old man
decides that the third brother should have her, as his apples were
consumed as medicine, while the other two still have their chariot and
mirror respectively. (Compare the decision in the Georgian folk-tale
under type II.)

Serbian (Mme. Mijatovies, 230 ff., "The Three Suitors").--Three
noblemen seek the hand of a princess. As the king cannot make a
choice, he says to the three, "Go travel about the world. The one who
brings home the most remarkable thing shall be my son-in-law." As in
the Greek story, one gets a transportation-carpet; another, a magic
telescope; and the third, a wonder-working ointment that will cure all
diseases and even bring the dead to life. The three noblemen meet,
learn through the telescope of the princess's mortal illness, and,
hastening to her side with the help of the magic carpet, cure her
with the ointment. A dispute arises as to which suitor shall have
her. The king decides that each has as good a claim as the others,
and persuades all to give up the idea of marrying the princess. They
do so, go to a far-off desert, and become hermits, while the king
marries his daughter to another noble. The story does not end here,
but thus much is all we are interested in.

Italian Tyrolese (Schneller, No. 14, "Die Drei Liebhaber").--This story
is like Von Hahn, No. 47. The magic objects are an apple, a chair,
and a mirror. In the magic mirror the three suitors see the bride
on the point of death. They are carried to her in the magic chair,
and she is saved by means of the apple. The story ends as a riddle:
Who married the maiden?

Icelandic (Rittershaus, No. XLIII, "Die drei Freier um eine
Braut").--This story, which closely follows the "1001 Nights" version
and is probably derived from it, agrees in the first part with Von
Hahn, No. 47. When a folk-tribunal is called to decide which brother
most deserves the princess and is unable to agree, the king proposes
another test,--a shooting-match. The princess is to be given to the one
who can shoot his arrow the farthest. The youngest really wins; but, as
his arrow goes out of sight and cannot be found, the princess is given
to the second brother. From this point on, the adventures of the hero
are derived from another cycle that does not belong with our group.

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