NO. I 



CH UAN MIAO SONGS AND STORIES — GRAHAM 



119 



tain and look at the great city wall of 

 Chien Wu. 



3. Na nong gi leo mi nong shiang.*^^ 

 When we have eaten three dipperfuls of 



cold rice and swallowed three spoonfuls of 

 small-bean soup, and have gone up on a high 

 hill with a fortification on it, then we will 

 see Gien Wu's great stone bamboo sprout (a 

 natural high pillar of stone). 



4. Na nong gi leo mi nong tsa.^" 



When we have eaten three dipperfuls of 

 cold rice, and swallowed diree spoonfuls of 

 han ts'ai (a pickled vegetable), then we will 

 climb the J{ao pao chai (the stronghold on the 

 high peak), and will see Gien Wu's horn 

 prongs.^^ 



5. Na nong gi mi nong gang.^^ 



When we have eaten three dipperfuls of 

 cold rice and swallowed three spoonfuls 

 (small dipperfuls) of the ba san bean (a bean 

 that grows on the sides of mountains), then 

 we will go up to the Gao Chai peak (the 

 peak of the high stronghold) and will cer- 

 tainly see Gien Wu's five granaries. 



5. Na nong jai mi nong tsi."° 



When we have eaten three dipperfuls of 

 cold rice and swallowed three spoonfuls of 

 soup of beancurd skin and have climbed up 

 the high stronghold peak, then we will see 

 Gien Wu's Gieu Ssi Ts'en."^ 



A Song Sung while Smo\ing (127) 



It is easy to stretch out your arm but hard 

 to draw it back. I will reach my hand out, 

 but I will not give j'ou any tobacco. I take 

 out a leaf of the bitter bamboo, and stretch 

 out my hand to you, but do not give out any 

 tobacco (because my tobacco is not good). 

 It sounds like hair-grass (a fine grass) . When 

 you take it and taste it, if it is fragrant you 

 may smoke it, and if not you may throw it 

 at the foot of the wall, and when some day 

 three or four friends come you may take it 

 and give it to them to smoke."^ 



^^ JjaO^ — a big old mother bird that sings "gi 

 leo" and has many small birds. 



^"^ Tsa*'' means spotted, a great female bird that 

 calls "gi leo" and a small spotted bird. 



^s Five hilltops like animal horns, also called 

 tvu ren at or five men's cliff, as though the five 

 peaks were five people. 



^^ The old mother bird gives a worm to the 

 small bird to eat. gi is d5i*' and gang is gaO". 



70 Na-* noO= dpdi" mi-^ noO" ts9, a big bird 

 and a small blue bird. 



7^ The romanization here is according to the 

 pronunciation in Szechwan. Gieu Ss'i Ts'en is a 

 natural stronghold, famous in history, about 30 li 

 east of Lo Piao in southern Szechwan. 



7- This song is sung by a group of young peo- 



A Song Comparing Animals (153) 



"When the wild goose ^^ cuts me, I will 

 suck the blood (and spit it out). When 

 thorns and brambles prick us, it is painful. 

 When you come you act like people who 

 block the road with firewood (hindering 

 people). When we run we are like a flower 

 in bloom. When the chicken is lean, the 

 chicken's wings hang down. When a pig is 

 lean, its back is crooked. When you repeat 

 the Buddhist books, you should speak with 

 a low voice. When I repeat them, I will sur- 

 round myself and not separate."* 



"When the chicken is lean, its wings hang 

 downward. When the pig is lean, its tail is 

 bent. When you repeat the Buddhist books, 

 you cannot speak fluently. When I repeat the 

 secrets (Sacred Books), I can speak as if I 

 were on a big road." 



Again he said, "The yellow dragon will 

 suck the blood of the tiger when the striped 

 tiger comes into the forests on the mountain. 

 The striped tiger intends to cat to pieces the 

 dragon's woolen rug." 



The cow said that her horns were straight. 

 The steer said that certainly his horns were 

 big. The steer thought it was able to butt 

 the goat down the bank, but the ewe butted 

 the cow down the bank. 



The song is ended. 



A Sad Song (196) 



Oh, the broad sky. Oh, the dark earth. My 

 father begat me. When I was only four years 

 old, Ntzi called him away in death. My 

 father separated my mother and me. At that 

 time my family was very poor. We had noth- 

 ing to eat or wear. My mother did not care 

 for me. She took my little brother and mar- 

 ried him to another. 



Then my mother left me. Alas, I am not a 

 good beggar or thief. I am not good at tak- 

 ing other people's things. At this time I ran 

 to the east, and sought hiding in the west. 

 I slept where I happened to be when it was 

 dark. I remember one time when I was 

 sleeping in the wilderness, on a big moun- 



ple who are very friendly. It is used either by 

 men or by women. The use of tobacco among 

 young people is a potent means of developing 

 friendship and good will. For the giver to pre- 

 tend that the gift is no good is a common oriental 

 custom. 



"^^ What is called the wild goose here is a large 

 crane which flies and calls much like a wild 

 goose. 



■^4 This means he will chant more loudly when 

 repeating the sacred books of the Buddhists. 



