Maymun & Khajista

Tales from the Tutinama | 01

The Birth of Maymun & his wedding to Khajista

Once upon a time, lived Ahmed Sultan. His riches knew no end. His army comprised of one hundred thousand horses, fifteen hundred chains of elephants, and nine hundred strings of camels, ready to mobilise upon one word. But he had no children, neither son nor daughter. Therefore, he often visited Dargahs, day and night, offering up prayers for a son.

After some time, Allah the Almighty bestowed upon Ahmed Sultan a son, a beautiful baby boy, with his countenance resplendent as the sun, and his forehead resembling the moon. Overjoyed, Ahmed Sultan’s heart bloomed like a rose in spring, and he gave away several thousand rupees and huns to dervishes and fakeers every day for three months. The umarah, viziers, and scholars were treated to feasts, gifted new clothes, and sent other presents.

When the young prince turned seven years old, he was placed under the guidance of an ustad, who was well-versed in all kinds of sciences. In a short time, he learnt the alphabet, beginning with the amudnamah, and gradually progressed to the Insha-i Harkaran, the Gulistan, Jami-ul-Qawanan, Insha-i Abul-Fazl, Insha-i Yusufi, along with the Ruqaat-i Jami, through which he acquired complete mastery of the Arabic and Persian sciences. He also learnt the ceremonies observed in the royal council, as well as the rules of conversation and deportment at an imperial banquet, and earned the respect of the king and all the nobles of the court.

The young prince was named Maymun and married to a beautiful young lady, Khajista. The newly married young couple was inseparable and quickly developed both friendship and affection.

One day, Maymun went around in his palki to the bazaar, where he saw a hawker with a parrot-cage in his hand. Maymun asked the parrot seller the price of the bird, upon which the seller told him that the bird was for sale for a thousand huns.

Maymun remarked that such an exorbitant sum was ridiculous for a handful of feathers. Whilst the parrot-seller did not have an answer, the parrot thought to itself that if this raees did not buy him, evil and misfortune might follow; for only by associating with great minds can the understanding of the world be improved.

The parrot decided to take matters into his own hands and spoke to Maymun.

“Young man,” he said, “you are handsome, wealthy, and skilled in every art. Though I may look like nothing more than a bundle of feathers, wisdom and knowledge allow me to soar far beyond the sky. Even the most eloquent are left amazed when they hear me speak. I possess a rare gift: I know what has happened and what is yet to come. For instance, caravans from Kabul are due to arrive soon. They will be looking for spikenard. My advice is this: purchase all the spikenard in the bazaars now, store it carefully, and sell it once the merchants arrive. You will make a considerable profit.”

Maymun, having heard the bird, understood its wisdom. He bought it nd brought it home. He then purchased all the spikenard in the city for ten thousand huns and stored it in one of his palaces. Three days later, merchants from Kabul indeed did arrive, just as the parrot had predicted. Finding no spikenrd anywhere in the city, they approached Maymun, who sold it to them for fifty thousand huns.

Incredibly pleased with the parrot, he bought another bird, a sharuk, to keep his parrot company. As the saying goes, “Kabootar ba Kabootar, Baaz ba Baaz” – so he really did not want his parrot to suffer the burden of loneliness.

One day, Maymun informed Khajista that he would be making a voyage to several port cities for trade. He advised her to consult the parrot and the sharuk before making any decisions in his absence. Khajista was miserable at being parted from her beloved. She lost her sleep and her appetite. She turned to the parrot, who consoled her heart by narrating many pleasant stories.

Some six months passed by, and one day, as Khajista was looking out of the jharoka into the street, she saw the prince of another country, who had travelled to her city. Their eyes met, and the two became enamoured with one another.

At the same hour, the prince sent a message to Khajista through a woman, that if she would take the trouble to visit him at his lodgings at night, for four hours, he would, in return, gift her a precious ring. At first, however, she did not agree to his proposal, but the instigation of the prince’s messenger prevailed. She responded to the message and informed the prince that she would wait for him after midnight.

Early at night, after having donned her best attire, she went and sought advice from the sharuk, who she assumed would understand her, because like her, the sharuk too had the heart of a woman. However, the sharuk did not give her leave to visit the prince, and rather advised her not to commit an act so heinous and disgraceful.

However, as Khajista was now obsessed with the prince, the sharuk's refusal threw her into a rage. She seized the bird fast by both legs, pulled her out of her cage, and struck her against the ground with such violence that the sharuk died. Then, full of wrath and indignation, she came to the parrot, to whom she explained her desires, as well as the particulars of the incident with the sharuk.

The parrot knew that if he refused consent, he too would be murdered like the sharuk. He then addressed Khajista, in the softest tone imaginable, and explained, "The sharuk was a female, many of whom are deficient in wisdom. It is wise to avoid divulging secrets to them. Don't let your heart and mind be uneasy; I will gratify your inclinations. And God forbid, if this secret of yours should be divulged, and your husband hear of it, I will make peace between you and him, like the parrot of Farrukh Beg."

Khajista asked, “What is the story of the parrot of Farrukh Beg? I would like to hear the tale.”

The parrot began narrating the story. “There once lived a merchant, Farrukh Beg, who had a sagacious parrot for a pet. Since he was often travelling, he left his goods, chattels, and his wife in the care of his parrot.

Soon after his departure, his wife became acquainted with a young Mughal. He often came to visit her, and one night, they shared a bed with one another. Whilst the parrot was aware of this, he acted as if he had neither seen nor heard anything.

A year and a half later, the merchant returned home. He inquired about household affairs from his parrot. Whilst the parrot faithfully narrated everything else, he concealed the affair his wife had with the young Mughal, for it would have caused a separation between the couple.

However, as the Sufis say, musk and love cannot be concealed for too long. The merchant heard of the affair from a stranger. Enraged, he rebuked and punished her and drove her out of his house. She naturally suspected the parrot, and in anger, plucked out the bird’s feathers, and flung him outside the haveli. She then told the servants that a cat had eaten the parrot.

She assumed that the parrot had died, but he had not. Whilst he was severely injured, the parrot lay still for about an hour, and then hobbled to a graveyard nearby. He found shelter in one of the tombs, fasted all day, and came out at night.

Travellers often came to pay their respects and recite the Holy Quran for the deceased. Many of them usually brought food and water with them. At night, the parrot pecked at whatever crumbs had been left behind and returned to his hiding place in the morning. After some time, the parrot's feathers began to grow again. Soon, he was able to fly a short distance, from one tomb to another. Then, perched on nearby trees, he ate any seeds he could find.

Back at the haveli, early morning, after the night on which the parrot had gone missing, the merchant got out of bed and came to the cage. When he saw that the parrot was not there, he threw his turban on the ground and cried in despair.

Enraged at his wife, he drove her out of his house. The wife thought to herself that if she were repudiated by her husband, the town would speak ill of her. So she thought it would be best to make her way to the graveyard, where she would die of hunger and thirst.

So she went and spent the day fasting. At night, the parrot called out from his hole. “Khanum! Shave all the hair off your head and body, and observe a chilla in this burial fount for forty days. I will then pardon the sins you have committed in your life, and will make peace between you and your husband.”

The woman was astonished at hearing this voice. She thought that many wise and pious men had been buried here, so this must be a divine intervention. Persuaded, she shaved herself and continued to fast for forty days.

The following morning, the parrot came out of his hole and spoke to her. “Khanum, you plucked out my feathers and injured me grievously, even though I was not at fault. It is what my stars had ordained. And whilst I have suffered cruelty needlessly, your husband purchased me, it makes you my lady. Rest assured of my loyalty, I do not backbite, and I will do well by you, for you have fed me, and I have eaten your salt. I will reconcile between you and your husband.”

The parrot then went to his master’s house, asked him for his blessing. The merchant asked, “Who are you, and where do you come from?”

Then, after recognising the bird, he was overjoyed. “Where have you been for so long? Where did you live? Tell me your story. I have missed you!”

The bird answered, “I am your old parrot, master. A cat took me out of the cage. I have been imprisoned in her belly since then.”

The master asked, “How did you come back to life?”

The parrot replied, “You drove from your house, your innocent wife. She then retired to the cemetery and fasted for forty days with great grief and lamentation. The Almighty, in commiseration of her condition, restored me to life and said, "O parrot! Go to this woman's husband, and make peace between them; may you be the evidence of the truth.”

The bird's master felt the force in this cause. He quickly mounted his horse and went to the cemetery to find his wife. Apologising and asking for her forgiveness, he brought her home. And from then on, they lived in harmony, growing old together.

Maymun's parrot finished the tale of the merchant's parrot, and then asked Khajista to hurry and meet the prince, so her promise may not be broken and her word not violated. He promised that if God forbid, Maymun found out, the parrot was here, and would establish peace between them, like Farrukh’s parrot.

Khajista was delighted to hear these words, but just as she rose, dawn was starting to break, so she postponed her departure. Tired after being awake all night to hear the story, she retired to her bed and quickly fell asleep.