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Translation (Rita Seng Mai)
I will tell you about how a firefly had become. Once upon a time, there was a large village with many villagers. There was a couple living in that village, too. They were newlyweds. The wife was pregnant and close to her due date. The husband went away to earn money to spend during labor and care for their newborn. After he had gone, a catastrophe struck their village. It was cholera. All the villagers died due to cholera. Everyone died. The pregnant wife also died during the catastrophe. Meanwhile, the husband was earning a lot of money and returned to the village. On his way back to his village, it grew dark, so he rested at a house along the way. The villagers said to him, "Don't go back to your village. All the villagers died of cholera." But he didn't believe what they said at all. He believed that his wife and child would be alive. He said, "No. I will definitely go back. I will go and check." When he got back home, he saw that his wife and child were alive. He saw that his wife was carrying the child. He said to his wife, "Other people said you had already died. That's not true at all! They lied to me! But I didn't believe them, so I came here to check. Now I get to see you." They told everything that happened to them and lived happily. One day, the husband went away to do his business. On his way, he spent the night at the same place he had stayed before. He said to the old man from that house, "Uncle, you said that all the villagers from my village died in the catastrophe. You said that my wife also died. But my wife is still alive. She takes care of me and prepares my food. She is truly alive!" The old man said, "If you want to see whether she is still alive, bend over and look at her between your legs. Then you will find out the truth." He was doubtful and went back home. While his wife was cooking, he looked at her from that position. He saw that she looked terrifying, like a corpse. She was nothing but a corpse with decayed flesh. All the food she had cooked was maggots. He was shocked to see her and the maggots. Therefore, he ran away. His wife chased him as soon as he ran away, so he thought of an idea to escape her. He was thinking of a way to escape and said to his wife, "I will go pee just for a moment." As he ran, his wife caught him and tied him up with a rope. He said to her, "I am just going out for a while. Untie me. I will be back soon." She loosened the rope and let him go outside for a while to relieve himself. He was scared to live with her, so he tried his best to run away. He untied the loosened rope and tied it to the paddy mortar. Then he ran away. As soon as the wife knew, she chased him. He ran along a path where there were many large fallen tree logs. When her decayed flesh got caught in the fallen trees, the flesh got stuck to them, and all the flesh was gone. Her body was left only as a skeleton, yet she still chased him. He kept running with all his strength. He crossed the water and ran with all his might, yet she still chased him. He didn't know what to do, so he ran to the blacksmith's place in the neighboring village. When he met the blacksmith, he told him everything about his wife. in the neighboring village. He said to the old man, "My wife is chasing me." Then the old man let him hide in his place. He heated the metal and waited for the ghost. When she came to his place, he poured the molten metal on her and said, "Your husband is not here! Go away!" She shouted in pain, "Ouch!" But she kept searching for her husband. In the end, she found him. However, as soon as she found him, he ran away. She continued chasing him. As the man kept running, he arrived at the house of an old man who made percussion-lock firearms. He told the old man about him. The old man let him hide at his place, too. When the ghost arrived there, he said, "Come here. Look! I put your husband here. Come and look inside." At that moment, her body seemed to become tiny, since her decayed flesh was gone. The old man said to her, "Take a look inside. I put your husband inside this bottle. You go inside, too. Go inside." The bamboo used to make the firearms seemed very large. Then he loaded a bullet and fired it quickly. The muzzle flash from the firearm turned into fireflies. The firefly came from the Ndang Nat, the spirit of a woman who died in childbirth.
Transcription (Htu Bu)
Ndai kalang gaw Myihtan Tu Tai Mat Ai Nu A Lam hpe tsun dan na re. Moi kalang mi hta e, kahtawng langai mi kaw e, masha grai law hkra nga ma ai da. Dai kaw e, num langai mi hte la langai mi ma shan la ma nga ma ai da. Dai yan la gaw nnan sha naw, hkung-ran na nnan sha naw nga ai yan la rai ma ai da. Madu wa gaw madu jan mung Ma hkum byin sai hte maren shi mung Ma shangai wa ai shaloi jai lang na, sha na Gumhpraw ni hpe shi, tam na matu shi sumtsan de hkawm mat wa ai da. Dai mare kaw gaw madu wa n nga ai hpang e, ana zinli byin ai majaw, Htawk Dang ana byin ai majaw dai mare kaw na ni yawng hkra hte si ma ai da. Mare, wurum rum mat ai da. Dai shaloi shi a, dai num shan nu mung Ma hkum hte si lawm mat ai da. La wa gaw Gumhpraw ni hpe law law tam rai na, Gumhpraw tam na bai wa ai shaloi gaw, Gumhpraw tam na bai wa ai shaloi gaw, kahtawng langai mi kaw wa du ai da. Jan du mat ai majaw dai kaw wa yup ai da. Dai kaw na ni tsun ai da, "Nang, nanhte nga ai mare dai de hkum wa sanu. Dai de na ni anna zinli byin ai majaw masha yawng si ma sai." ngu tsun ai da. Raitim shi n kam ai da. Shi madu jan yan nu gaw hkrung nga na re, ngu shi shadu ai majaw shi, "Wa nan wa na." ngu na, "Sha pyi wa mada yu da na." ngu na shi wa ai da. Dai shaloi gaw shi nta kaw gaw, madu jan yan nu mung nga nga ai da. Ma sha ba rai na, grai, dan rai na nga taw nga ai da. Dai shaloi gaw dai la wa mung, dai madu jan kaw e, "Masha ni tsun ai wa mi nang si mat sai nga, hpa si mung n si ai wa. dan nga ngai hpe masu ai. Raitim ngai n kam ai majaw wa yu ai. Dai majaw ya ngai daini ngai, nang hte hkrum ai re." ngu na wa tsun dan ai da. Dan na, dai byin ai lam ni hpe jahta na shan yan lahkawng grai pyaw hkra nga ai da. Lani mi na n'htoi hta gaw, dai la wa gaw, bungli bai, bai matut hkawm mat wa ai da. Hkawm mat wa re shaloi gaw, dai mi sa yup ai shara kaw bai du ai da. Dai kaw na dingla wa gaw, dingla wa hpe shi tsun ai da, "E, a gu dingla e, nang tsun ai, anhte mare kaw ana zinli byin na yawng si ma sai. Nye madu jan mung n nga sai nga wa mi. Nye madu jan nga nga la ai le, yawng hkra hte ngai hpe mung, ra n rawng hkra lajang da na ngai hpe lusha ni mung lajang jaw ai. Nga nga ai le." ngu tsun ai da. Dai shaloi gaw, "E, na madu jan rai n rai gaw, nang jagrawng grawng na nhtang hku lagaw lapran hku baw shale na yu u. Dai shaloi mu na ra ai." ngu da. Shi mung kam n kam nga na bai nhtang wa sai da. Bai nhtang wa na madu jan shat shadu nga ai kaw dai hku bai yu ai shaloi gaw, madu jan gaw hkrit si na zawn rai na, namlim hte amyaw amya rai na yat nga ai mang langai mi rai taw nga ai da. Dan rai na she shi mung, dai shi galaw nga ai shat mung, shi shadu da ai shat ni mung byet she rai taw ai da. Dai hpe shi mu kajawng na shi kalang ta, hprawng mat wa ai da. Hprawng mat wa ai shaloi gaw, madu jan bai hkan shachyut woi la ai da. Shi gaw ladat shaw sai da. Shi dai kaw na lu hprawng na matu ladat shaw na shi gaw madu jan hpe tsun ai da, "Ngai shinggan chyahkring mi naw gan pru na. ngai hpe e, aw, madu jan gaw shi hpe dai hku hprawng mat mat rai jang she, madu jan gaw shi hpe sumri hte gyit na sumri kaw jum da ai da. "Ngai shinggan chyahkring mi sha gan pru na ngai hpe e, ahkang naw jaw rit. Ngai chyahkring sha bai nhtang wa na." ngu tsun ai da. Dai shaloi gaw, madu wa, madu jan mung shi hpe e sumri, sharen dat ya na shi shinggan pru sa mat ai da. Shi hkrit ai majaw shi kalang ta shi hkum hpe gyit tawn da ai sumri hpe shi dai htum, htum nhpang kaw, dai htum hpe gyit kau da na shi gaw hprawng mat wa ai da. Dai shaloi gaw, dai num dai gaw, hkan shachyut ai da. Hkan shachyut na she, hkan shachyut ai shaloi gaw, la dai gaw punghkaw kaba law gran ai hku hkrai hkrai lai ai da. Dai shaloi gaw dai kaw hkra yang arut arut rai yang gaw shi shan ni gaw yawng ye na she dai punghkaw hku yawng shan ni yawng lwi ma ai da. Dan raitim shi gaw naw shachyut ai da. Dai shaloi gaw dai la wa gaw hprawng mat wa na she, Hka ni rap hprawng mat wa ai. Raitim, dai wa gaw naw hkan shachyut ai da. Dan jang she, hpang e gaw shi gaw kaning n chye di wa na she oh kaga mare kaw na n'dup dup ai shara de shi hprawng mat wa ai da. n'dup dup ai shara de hprawng mat wa ai shaloi gaw, n'dup dup ai dingla wa hte hkrum ai shaloi, shi madu jan dai hku dai hku byin ai, ngai hpe shachyut taw nga ai, ngu na wa tsun dan ai shaloi gaw dai dingla wa gaw shi hpe makoi da na, la taw ai da. Dai shi n'dup dup ai kaw na ntsin, hpri ntsin shabyawng tawn da ai dai hte hkap jaw bun ai da. "Na madu ndai kaw n nga ai. Pru wa su." ngu na hkap jaw bun dat ai da. Raitim shi mung "Ahte law!" sha nga na she, bai matut tam mat wa ai shaloi gaw madu wa hpe bai mu ai. Raitim, madu wa mung shi hpe mu, shi hpe wa mu kau ai hte shi kalang bai matut hprawng mat wa ai. Dai hku na sha bai shi mung bai shachyut ai shaloi gaw shara mi kaw bai du mat wa ai shaloi gaw dunghpau galaw ai shara kaw du mat wa ai da. Dunghpau galaw ai kaw dingla wa hpe bai wa tsun dan ai shaloi, dingla wa mung shi hpe bai makoi kau na she, "Sa wa yu rit, Ma e. Na madu wa hpe ngai ndai kaw bang kau sai gaw. Nang sa yu yu u." ngu tsun na she, dai shaloi dai num wa gaw kachyi sha law mat shana hku nga. Byaw hkrai byaw, byaw hkrai byaw, hkrat hkrai hkrat ma yang, kachyi sha law mat ai da. Dai shaloi gaw dai hku kaw she, "Nang kaw bang u yaw. Nang kaw yu u yaw. Na madu wa hpe ngai ndai kaw bang da ai. Nang ma ndai kaw shang u." ngu tsun na she Nang ma ndai kaw shang u." ngu tsun na she moi na dunghpau gaw dumlawng grai kaba sam ai gaw dai kaw she, shi hpe jashawn na she kalang ta wan tsi zawk na gap kau dat ai da. Dai kaw na pru mat wa ai wan num yang ni gaw Myihtan Tu byin mat ai da. Dai majaw ya gaw Myihtan Tu byin ai ngu gaw dai Ndang num kaw na hpang ai re da. |
