Ashik Kerib
Encyclopedia
This article is about the short story by Lermontov. For the film directed by Sergei Parajanov see Ashik Kerib (film)
.
Ashik Kerib is a short story
by Mikhail Lermontov
, written in 1837. It is inspired by Caucasian and Turkish folklore
, which reflects Lermontov's lifelong love for the landscape and culture of the Caucasus Mountains
region in southern Russia
.
living in the city of Tiflis, is in love with Magul-Megeri, the beautiful daughter of a local rich man. The feeling is mutual, but Magul-Megeri's father would prefer her to marry Kurshudbek, a rather rude but wealthier man who has long has his eye on her. Ashik Kerib makes a deal with her father: he will travel the world for seven years and earn enough wealth to be worthy of Magul-Megeri's hand. If he fails to return or returns with not enough, she will have to marry Kurshudbek.
On Ashik Kerib's way out of the city, Kurshudbek meets him on the road and they travel together for a short while, until they reach a river. There is no bridge, so Kurshudbek tells Ashik Kerib to take off his robe and swim across, he would follow close behind. As soon as Ashik Kerib is in the river, though, Kurshudbek steals his robe and rides back to Tiflis, where he goes to the house of Ashik Kerib's mother and tells her that her son has drowned in the river, offering the wet robe as proof. She weeps bitterly, but Magul-Megeri tells her not to believe Kurshudbek, it is all a trick to make her marry him. For her part, Magul-Megeri flatly refuses to marry Kurshudbek before the seven years have gone by.
Unaware of the drama unfolding back in Tiflis, Ashik Kerib wanders on, traveling from village to village, singing and playing his saz
(Turkic lute) in exchange for food and shelter. Eventually he comes to the city of Khalaf, where he begins playing and singing in a tavern. In Khalaf there is a wealthy pasha
who loves music, and many musicians have come to his court hoping for some rewards or gifts, but he is never satisfied with any of them and kicks each one out with no payment whatsoever. But as soon as the townsfolk hear Ashik Kerib, they all urge him to go and play for the pasha, who they say is sure to like him. Ashik Kerib is not entirely convinced, but goes and plays anyway. He sings a song in praise of his beloved Magul-Megeri, and it touches the angry pasha so deeply that he immediately agrees to take on Ashik Kerib into his own house.
In the care of the pasha of Khalaf, Ashik Kerib gets very rich. He wears the finest clothes, eats the best food, and lives comfortably and happily, with all he could ever wish for. He stays with the pasha for nearly seven years, and all but forgets his home and his beloved.
Meanwhile, back in Tiflis, Magul-Megeri is getting worried. Has her Ashik Kerib forgotten her? Or worse, has he really been killed like Kurshudbek said? She gets an idea, and goes to see the town merchant who is about to leave with the caravanserai
. She gives him a golden plate from her home, one that she knows Ashik Kerib will recognize, and instructs him to show it to every man in every town he visits to see who recognizes it. He agrees, and it goes just according to plan: when he reaches Khalaf and is showing the dish around, Ashik Kerib shouts from the crowd that it is his. The merchant recognizes Ashik Kerib as well, and tells him that he'd better hurry up back to Tiflis, because the seven years are almost up and if he does not return in time, she will be given to Kurshudbek.
Suddenly remembering everything, Ashik Kerib clutches his head in his hands with shame, and immediately gets on his horse to ride back to Tiflis. But he has only three days before the seven years are up, and it is at least three months to Tiflis. Everything looks hopeless. In despair, Ashik Kerib cries out to the heavens: "O mighty Allah
! If you don't help me now, then there is nothing left for me on Earth!"
Then suddenly Ashik Kerib sees in the distance a man on a great white horse. The man calls out to him: "What is it you desire?" Ashik Kerib miserably replies that he wants to die. "Well, get down on the ground then, if that's what you want, and I'll kill you," says the man, but Ashik Kerib hesitates and decides he doesn't really want to die.
The man invites Ashik Kerib to follow along behind him, but Ashik Kerib's horse is too slow, so the man lets him sit behind him in the saddle of the great white horse. The man asks him where he needs to go, and Ashik Kerib replies that first of all he needs to make it to the town of Arzrum. So the man instructs Ashik Kerib to close his eyes, and a few seconds later when he opens them he is astonished to see that they are in Arzrum! Ashik Kerib gets curious, and tells the man that he made a mistake, and he really had to be in Kars. So again, he closes his eyes and when he opens them, finds himself in Kars.
Now Ashik Kerib is terribly ashamed of himself, throws himself down onto his knees and begs forgiveness from the mysterious man for lying, and tells him that really, he has to be in Tiflis. The man is angry, but agrees to take him finally to Tiflis.
Ashik Kerib (film)
Ashik Kerib is a 1988 film by the Soviet-Armenian filmmaker Sergei Parajanov based on the short story of the same name by Mikhail Lermontov...
.
Ashik Kerib is a short story
Short story
A short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...
by Mikhail Lermontov
Mikhail Lermontov
Mikhail Yuryevich Lermontov , a Russian Romantic writer, poet and painter, sometimes called "the poet of the Caucasus", became the most important Russian poet after Alexander Pushkin's death in 1837. Lermontov is considered the supreme poet of Russian literature alongside Pushkin and the greatest...
, written in 1837. It is inspired by Caucasian and Turkish folklore
Turkish folklore
The tradition of folklore—folktales, jokes, legends, and the like—in the Turkish language is very rich, and is incorporated into everyday life and events.-Nasreddin Hoca:...
, which reflects Lermontov's lifelong love for the landscape and culture of the Caucasus Mountains
Caucasus Mountains
The Caucasus Mountains is a mountain system in Eurasia between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea in the Caucasus region .The Caucasus Mountains includes:* the Greater Caucasus Mountain Range and* the Lesser Caucasus Mountains....
region in southern Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
.
Synopsis
Kerib, a poor but good-hearted ashikAshik
An Ashik is a mystic troubadour or traveling bard, in Turkey, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Armenia, and Iran who sings and plays the saz, a form of lute. Ashiks' songs are semi-improvised around common bases....
living in the city of Tiflis, is in love with Magul-Megeri, the beautiful daughter of a local rich man. The feeling is mutual, but Magul-Megeri's father would prefer her to marry Kurshudbek, a rather rude but wealthier man who has long has his eye on her. Ashik Kerib makes a deal with her father: he will travel the world for seven years and earn enough wealth to be worthy of Magul-Megeri's hand. If he fails to return or returns with not enough, she will have to marry Kurshudbek.
On Ashik Kerib's way out of the city, Kurshudbek meets him on the road and they travel together for a short while, until they reach a river. There is no bridge, so Kurshudbek tells Ashik Kerib to take off his robe and swim across, he would follow close behind. As soon as Ashik Kerib is in the river, though, Kurshudbek steals his robe and rides back to Tiflis, where he goes to the house of Ashik Kerib's mother and tells her that her son has drowned in the river, offering the wet robe as proof. She weeps bitterly, but Magul-Megeri tells her not to believe Kurshudbek, it is all a trick to make her marry him. For her part, Magul-Megeri flatly refuses to marry Kurshudbek before the seven years have gone by.
Unaware of the drama unfolding back in Tiflis, Ashik Kerib wanders on, traveling from village to village, singing and playing his saz
Baglama
thumb|180px|Cura and bağlamaThe bağlama is a stringed musical instrument shared by various cultures in the Eastern Mediterranean, Near East, and Central Asia....
(Turkic lute) in exchange for food and shelter. Eventually he comes to the city of Khalaf, where he begins playing and singing in a tavern. In Khalaf there is a wealthy pasha
Pasha
Pasha or pascha, formerly bashaw, was a high rank in the Ottoman Empire political system, typically granted to governors, generals and dignitaries. As an honorary title, Pasha, in one of its various ranks, is equivalent to the British title of Lord, and was also one of the highest titles in...
who loves music, and many musicians have come to his court hoping for some rewards or gifts, but he is never satisfied with any of them and kicks each one out with no payment whatsoever. But as soon as the townsfolk hear Ashik Kerib, they all urge him to go and play for the pasha, who they say is sure to like him. Ashik Kerib is not entirely convinced, but goes and plays anyway. He sings a song in praise of his beloved Magul-Megeri, and it touches the angry pasha so deeply that he immediately agrees to take on Ashik Kerib into his own house.
In the care of the pasha of Khalaf, Ashik Kerib gets very rich. He wears the finest clothes, eats the best food, and lives comfortably and happily, with all he could ever wish for. He stays with the pasha for nearly seven years, and all but forgets his home and his beloved.
Meanwhile, back in Tiflis, Magul-Megeri is getting worried. Has her Ashik Kerib forgotten her? Or worse, has he really been killed like Kurshudbek said? She gets an idea, and goes to see the town merchant who is about to leave with the caravanserai
Caravanserai
A caravanserai, or khan, also known as caravansary, caravansera, or caravansara in English was a roadside inn where travelers could rest and recover from the day's journey...
. She gives him a golden plate from her home, one that she knows Ashik Kerib will recognize, and instructs him to show it to every man in every town he visits to see who recognizes it. He agrees, and it goes just according to plan: when he reaches Khalaf and is showing the dish around, Ashik Kerib shouts from the crowd that it is his. The merchant recognizes Ashik Kerib as well, and tells him that he'd better hurry up back to Tiflis, because the seven years are almost up and if he does not return in time, she will be given to Kurshudbek.
Suddenly remembering everything, Ashik Kerib clutches his head in his hands with shame, and immediately gets on his horse to ride back to Tiflis. But he has only three days before the seven years are up, and it is at least three months to Tiflis. Everything looks hopeless. In despair, Ashik Kerib cries out to the heavens: "O mighty Allah
Allah
Allah is a word for God used in the context of Islam. In Arabic, the word means simply "God". It is used primarily by Muslims and Bahá'ís, and often, albeit not exclusively, used by Arabic-speaking Eastern Catholic Christians, Maltese Roman Catholics, Eastern Orthodox Christians, Mizrahi Jews and...
! If you don't help me now, then there is nothing left for me on Earth!"
Then suddenly Ashik Kerib sees in the distance a man on a great white horse. The man calls out to him: "What is it you desire?" Ashik Kerib miserably replies that he wants to die. "Well, get down on the ground then, if that's what you want, and I'll kill you," says the man, but Ashik Kerib hesitates and decides he doesn't really want to die.
The man invites Ashik Kerib to follow along behind him, but Ashik Kerib's horse is too slow, so the man lets him sit behind him in the saddle of the great white horse. The man asks him where he needs to go, and Ashik Kerib replies that first of all he needs to make it to the town of Arzrum. So the man instructs Ashik Kerib to close his eyes, and a few seconds later when he opens them he is astonished to see that they are in Arzrum! Ashik Kerib gets curious, and tells the man that he made a mistake, and he really had to be in Kars. So again, he closes his eyes and when he opens them, finds himself in Kars.
Now Ashik Kerib is terribly ashamed of himself, throws himself down onto his knees and begs forgiveness from the mysterious man for lying, and tells him that really, he has to be in Tiflis. The man is angry, but agrees to take him finally to Tiflis.