SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS 



VOL. 12: 



Nong Shiok Changed into a Tiger. His Be- 

 loved Wife Used a Plan so that He again 

 Became a Man (HI) 



Nong Shioh *^ was an orphan of ancient 

 times. His parents died early. He lived with 

 his uncle and aunt. His uncle and his aunt 

 married a wife for him. His wife was Yang 

 Leo's daughter Nts'ai Mi Ntsai (a girl who 

 was a youngest twin). The age of the hus- 

 band and his wife was the same, and they 

 loved each other greatly. But Nong Shioh 

 had been formerly deceived by Na Bo Ndzong 

 who changed people's souls into tigers. Daily 

 he went outside and would speak only very 

 briefly. He was afraid that people would find 

 this out and tell it. He did not let his wife 

 know about it and said to her, "When you 

 bring food for me to eat, you must send your 

 dog ahead before you come, and if you do not 

 I am afraid that a wild animal will frighten 

 you." 



His wife heeded his words, but it was like 

 this every day. His wife said, "What should 

 we fear in a place that is as bright as day?" 

 One day her husband again went to plow. At 

 breakfast time his wife brought his break- 

 fast and secretly looked to see what he was 

 doing. Her husband was there working care- 

 lessly. He then climbed alone to the top of 

 the hill and sighed and wept. He said, "Why 

 is this, oh heaven.? In vain have my uncle 

 and aunt used up the wine and the meat 

 (for the wedding) and secured Yang Leo's 

 daughter Nts'ai Mi Ntsai for me. In vain 

 my uncle and aunt have paid out silver money 

 to secure Yang Leo's little girl for my wife. 

 It is truly hard for Nong Shioh to be a 

 human being. I have to be a demon or a 

 tiger." 



When his wife heard these words she paid 

 careful attention. Afterward she followed him 

 every day. No matter where he went she 

 went along, hand in hand, and would not 

 allow him to be alone, or to speak wantonly. 

 The husband was helpless and could not go 

 alone (to change into a tiger). All he could 

 do was to bear it daily. His face was yellow 

 (not a healthy red). In less than a year the 

 husband dried up and died. His wife said, 

 "Although he is dead, I am going to watch 

 over his grave and see what he changes into 

 later." 



One day the uncle and the aunt carried 

 out Nong Shioh and buried him. At sunset 

 the wife said to the uncle and the aunt, "I 

 thank you, uncle and aunt. When your son 



*9 Nong Shioh is said to mean an older brother 

 of a girl who laughs and cries. 



was on the earth, I was under the control of 

 your family. Now your son is dead, and there 

 is nobody to look after me. I am going to 

 leave." 



When she had said this she took a torch 

 and went to the grave. She watched it until 

 midnight and then until daybreak. When the 

 sky became yellow on the horizon, and the 

 sky was white in the east, she looked up at 

 the mountain. Suddenly she saw Na Bo 

 Ndzong carrying on her back a bundle 

 wrapped in her apron. She walked unsteadily 

 down from the mountain top. Then the wife 

 hid behind a stump and pretended not to 

 know about it. 



When Na Bo Ndzong arrived at the grave, 

 she walked around to the right and to the 

 left of the grave three times, then sat on the 

 foot of the grave to rest, and whistled three 

 times as if to rest.^° Then she opened her 

 mouth and said an incantation: 



"The mountain road to the mountain 

 creek. Wait awhile and the creek is all red. 

 Never fear that your flesh is rotting in the 

 grave. Never fear because your blood is 

 soaking into three layers of red soil. Never 

 mind that your flesh is filthy. Never mind 

 that your filth enters Bo Na's hemp field, 

 that your blood sprinkles red into your 

 wife's forest or house." 



When she had said this she called "Shioh, 

 Shioh, arise. May your ancestors for nine 

 generations and your forefathers for seven 

 generations increase your strength and we go 

 on climbing to the land of the sky horse 

 below the great cliff below the mountain and 

 find food to eat." But the dead person did 

 not arise. 



At daylight Na Bo Ndzong went away. She 

 came in the same way three mornings, and 

 three mornings she repeated the incantations, 

 speaking in the same way. Suddenly, at the 

 end of the three mornings, when she had fin- 

 ished the incantation, the wife heard the dead 

 person move about, and then the coffin 

 opened. Then the dead person followed Na 

 Bo Ndzong away. But his wife at this time 

 had gone to sleep. An insect called to her, 

 "Nts'ai Mi Ntsai, get up and pursue." The 

 insect called three times and awakened her. 

 Then she rubbed open her eyes and looked 

 and saw that the coffin had been opened and 

 the dead person had gone. She looked on 

 the ground and saw their tracks where they 



^0 Load carriers or travelers in West China 

 often whistle when they are tired. They believe 

 that whistling rests people. 



