Mediaeval Sinhalese Art c30.s2: Appendix II
Mediaeval Sinhalese Art c30.s2
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Appendix II
c30.s2.1
PANNAN KATURA, the story of how in the time of King Mahā Sammata, a daughter Mat and her mother-in-law had words and wove (in rivalry). weaving
1. Long ago King Sammata had no mat for his bed; when he told his chamberlain of this, song the chamberlain spake thus to the king,—
2. “There are living in these villages, here and there, women who can plait; I will go and fetch them quickly.”
3. The chamberlain went from village to village, in search of cunning women, “By his Majesty’s orders, weave a good mat and bring (it here) to-morrow.”
4. Now there were no rushes with which to weave the king’s mat; “My Mother-in-law, let us gather and bring good rushes.
5. “Hear me, my Mother, listen kindly (to my prayer), do not stay, let us go, Mother, to cut rushes;
6. “Let us go to the field-of-rushes and seek for good rushes, let us cut the rushes quickly, Mother,
7. “Let us bring the rushes home, straightway lay them in the sun, then taking up the rushes, let us, Mother, weave a mat of them;
8. “(See the) growing beauty (of the) women gathering, neatly they bind the loosened hair upon their head; let us, Mother, take a grass-knife and go to gather (rushes) in the meadow.”
9. Polishing her teeth with powder, she smiled at her handsome husband, saying, “My Mother-in-law has gone to gather rushes in the field, see! I, too, will go to gather rushes.”
10. “‘A seven months child is in your womb, parti-coloured spots are on your breast, it will miscarry if you go to gather in the field-of-rushes, do not go,’ my husband called to me:
11. “See how the women gather and bring the rushes, (how) they have prepared them and are ready to (begin the) plaiting, (see how) the women fare on the path; do you go, Mother, I cannot go for this man’s worrying.”
12. “Let us go, elder sister, to gather rushes, already they have gone to the ran-minuvan (golden rushes) meadow.” “If I go to gather rushes, staying till afternoon, who will give milk to the baby?”
13. Then were the women ready to set out, dressed in clean white cloths: “I cannot leave my pretty babe and go.
14. “Mother, hear my loving words, do you go with our seven good friends, kind and friendly women, bringing minuvan rushes from the meadow.
15. “Anoint with oil and sandal paste and neatly bind your hair, putting oil on your face, go seek the minuvan, Mother, will you not go to cut the rushes.
16. “Take a grass-knife with you, go seek the field-of-rushes gladly, cut the rushes, split and dry them, tie them in a bundle and leave them to dry.
c30.s2.2
17. "Sister, why do you delay? if I go now the baby will cry and the boys will beat him, you go then, my sister, to tie up the rushes."
18. Tying up the rushes and putting the bundles on their heads, "Let us go" said the women, ready in a row, going one by one along the path, "let us split the rushes and weave a mat for the king."
19. Bringing the rushes and laying them in the sun to dry, straightway they split the rushes everywhere, and taking up a handful to begin the work, "I weave a *depota raṭāva*" (said one).
20. Then splitting up the rushes, charming women, whose breasts are like the parrot's beak, (shining) with dust of gold, begin the mat; thus the women begin the mats,—
21. The women weaving mats begin from the corner, after splitting up the rush and dyeing it, round (the mat) they weave *mal-peṭi* ornament, they weave the *raṭā piyum*.
22. "We will weave *piyum* for the head and the same for the foot, in the middle a good *espat* pattern, thus will we weave a mat for the king to see."
23. They wove pretty *mal-peṭi* and white-spotted elephants, and cobras, *polongas* and beasts in a row, parrots and *seḷa-lihiṇi* with every beast round about, a mat like the full moon they wove.
24. The women kind and lovely, who went to fetch rushes from the meadow, weaving parrots, *maliti* and pretty *mal-peṭi*, begin a mat to show the king.
25. How pretty their faces, shining like gold! How pretty the silver worn on their hands! How pretty this woman's breasts! How cleverly the pretty girl splits the rush.
26. After fetching rushes from the field and drying them in the yard, I begin a mat as I sit on the ledge. "Why, my sister, are the edges of your mat untidily woven?"
27. A man's luck changes often! No one ever saw the like of this! A nice sort of mat Namal Kumāriya is weaving! "Sister your *minuvan* mat is full of holes," said she.
28. "Sister, my baby called out for his milk, in my house there is always chattering and nagging, I used short rushes that is why the mat is small; well, sister I did it amiss," said she.
29. She begun to weave tuskers, horses, elephants and bears, *depota raṭāva* and *lanu daṅge* in the mat; the mat is not dyed a good colour; "The reason is sister that I started badly."
30. She weaves parrots, *maliti*, pretty *mal-peṭi*, suras, elephants, arches, and finishes the mat, in the four corners the four *Varan Deviyō*, a splendid mat she takes to show the king.
31. At the head of the mat is Īśvara, at the foot Mihikata, in the four corners the four *Varan Deviyō*, (such) a mat she weaves to give the great king.
32. They went with the mat to give it to the king, mother and daughter-in-law wove the mat together, a splendid mat they took with them and gave it to His Highness.
33. When he asked who wove the mat, and they told him a mother and a daughter in this village, "Bring them before me" said he, and both were brought in to the presence of the king.
34. To both he gave one elephant-load of goods, saying "Take and divide in peace; it is well if day by day you weave more mats and bring them to the king."
35. "By our fortune of old this gift has come to us; give me, Mother, half of the present given by the king"; "What, wench, shall I give you a gift?" she exclaimed; from that day forth these two disagreed.
36. From that time they would not weave together, the mother-in-law mis-saying the daughter, thenceforth disagreeing with the husband too, these two wove one against the other.
37. "Dear and loving Mother hearken to my words" (she said), and being very sleepy she began to cry. "Dear daughter, tell the kindly word." "Give me at least a mat to sleep upon."
c30.s2.3
38. “O stupid one! why do you speak dolefully? how can a woman live who cannot *Mat weaving* weave?” Swaying from side to side she asked, “Am I a slave to give you a mat?”
39. “Dear daughter, why do you talk to me? Find out how to get (for yourself) on in *song* future. Why are you thus angry with me? Let us see what we two can do at weaving.
40. “I weave a mat with *haras raṭava*, in the middle doves and parrots I am weaving, first for a foot I start with *pannan-katuru*, I will turn out a mat for my daughter to see.”
41. “I am weaving a mat with *piyum raṭava*, pretty *toḍu* and squirrels I am weaving around it, with sun and moon at head and foot, playing I will weave a mat for my Mother to see.”
42. “Why do you bandy words with me? I can weave to melt the earth! *sunu-vel daṅge* I start round the mat, *lanu-geṭa* and *pohoṭṭuva* I will weave for my daughter.”
43. “Do you speak against me? see, I start on the mat a *havaḍi daṅge*, I begin the *geṭa-pana* pattern, see *rat-mal* and *pohoṭṭu*, Mother.”
44. “When the moon in the sky is bright, ministers are willing to wage war, Lo! a fine four-legged beast, I will weave a mat for my daughter to see.”
45. “A pandit, a four-footed beast I am weaving, a friend and a four-hoofed beast, I have no ill-will towards you, I will weave a fox for my Mother to eat the hare,”
46. “Four legs and eight hoofs—I begin the weaving, cloven hoofs, shining white spots, two horns on the head I am weaving, a pretty deer I will weave for my daughter to see.”
47. “Four feet, twenty nails I begin, a devil’s face, a round chin and a beard, a tail like a cat and shining white spots, I will weave for my mother a cheetah to eat the deer.”
48. “Hear what I say well, an elephant I will weave for my daughter, with huge trunk blowing in the ten directions and two shining tusks like tender golden buds.”
49. “I will make the lord and king reigning over every jungle beast, who jumps into sea-water and swims ashore, I will weave for my Mother a lion to eat the elephant.”
50. “Devil dances are held for those who are sick and cannot be cured, for the *tovil taṭuva* in the four corners of the mat, lo, there is a fowl for my daughter.”
51. “Nought else have I done for fame in the world save a little weaving, I learnt to gather goods, I’ll better my Mother, a *kola-diviya* I will weave to spring on the fowl and devour it.”
52. “The good Lord’s praise I am telling, and the holy law o’er the three worlds spread, the shining diamond throne filled with blessings, Māra’s army I weave in the mat for my daughter.”
53. A beautiful *bō-tree* she weaves in the mat, she tells of the highest law for men, a *bō-tree* and crystal throne she weaves in the mat, Him she weaves who drove away the gathered army (of Māra).
54. “In time gone by we two were agreed, not saying harsh words, let us be in peace (again), fast friends we were ever in times gone by; you are not my daughter, you are my Mother.”
55. “Trustfully hearken to my many kind words, think how we two have grown up by the help of the Gods. If misfortune be due, be it far from us; in the future we two will be born from one Mother’s womb.”