Utegen Kumisbayev – Doctor of Philological Science, Professor of the Department of Iranian and Arabic studies of the Faculty of Oriental studies of al-Farabi National University.

THE KAZAKH POEM ABOUT RUSTAM

“Kissa-and Rustam” came out as an individual edition in Kazan by the Printing-Office of the Imperial University in1901. The book was published due to the private means of Ismagul Nazhimidin uly Shamsidin. It is written so on the title page thereof. The title page bears also the surname: Abdisalam Katiev. It is probable that is not an author but more likely a scribe or a typographer of the edition.

“Kissa-and Rustam” written in Kazakh begins with a common introduction covering two pages. First, it is referred to the four prophets, then to Iskander, Lukpan-Hakim, Ibn Sin, Hodja Ahmed Jassavi followed by the Kazakh celebrities, khans, sultans, steppe bogatyrs, and orators. After that the author comes to the story about Rustam and narrates how a dastan (heroic poem) was created on an eastern subject.

It turns out that the author of “Kissa-and Rustam” was a Kazakh poet Serdaly, whereof the introduction of the book expressly states. The author writes: “I’ll begin a story about Rustam, before that Kissa wrote about Zarkum but a certain Mavlekey-Nogai published it in his own name. If this thing reaches Kazan and is published by the printing-office, it is undesirable to do the book in the combined Kazakh and Nogai languages because there is a language difference between them. Now I’ll write about Rustam, let Mavlekey feel ill at ease. I have been worked on this piece of work over two years throughout the day and night. Let the narratee enjoy, my name is Serdaly”.

Now everything becomes clear. “Kissa-and Rustam” was undoubtedly written by Serdaly – the author of a number of dastans on eastern subjects. He was a literate akyn and read eastern books in the original.

In his processing of tunes from “Shah-Name”, Serdaly is not hortatory, nor religious, and he does not force his ideas on the reader. He narrates about feats of the Iranian and Turanian bogatyrs in simple phrase in the manner of the Kazakh national epos. He creates a national adaptation as if adapting to local habits carrying the action into the local ground. The main basis is taken from “Shah-Name”, but we will see no word-for-word similarities and repetitions in the Kazakh version. First, an excursion is made into the historical domain of the ancestry of the bogatyr Rustam followed by the short episode about the birth of the future batyr (bogatyr), and then Rustam’s actions are narrated.

It is batyr Rustam, who is in the centre of attention of the Kazakh dastan. A combat between Shakhrap, the son of Rustam, and the daughter of Iran is depicted with interest and dynamic expression. First, the young bogatyr does not know that he combats with the woman. The enemy retreats step by step, the enemy’s helmet falls down from the head – and Shakhrap recognizes by long hair that it is a woman, who is standing in front of him. Then the retreat follows. The author narrates that Rustam having lost his horse – Rakhsh walks in the steppe. Suddenly he catches sight of a fortress. The King of Samarkand meets the Iranian bogatyr honourably and gives his daughter Takhmina in marriage to him. Then Rustam finds his favourite horse. Rustam lives during six months in the city. The King’s daughter – Takhmina has a baby on the way. Rustam leaves for his native land, Iran.

Takhmina gives birth to her son. Seven days later she calls him Shakhrap (Sukhrab). Forty days later, the child is given a lion heart to eat and a messenger is sent to Iran to bring joyous news to Rustam of the birth of his son. As a gift for the joyous news, Rustam causes ten camels saddled with gold to be sent to Samarkand.

Shakhrap grows. When he reaches the age of fourteen, twenty boys fail to wrest him down, so much that he became strong. Throughout the entire Samarkand there is no man of muscle to thrash him. So, the glory of Shakhrap increases. He gets his army together to make a war against Iran. The King of Aphrasiyap rejoices that the man is found at last who will be able to oppose the menacing Rustam. The Turanian King instructs Human: to use all efforts so as the son could not recognize his father. Let a combat take place. Keikaus writes a letter to Rustam that the enemy is close and Iran must be saved. It’s just the Iranian bogatyr Rustam, who can avert a calamity. There occurs a conflict between Keikaus and Rustam. There is such scene in “Shah-Name” of Firdousi as well. Rustam cites everything that he did for Keikaus for that period but he got no awards. The King asks pardon the bogatyr. The Iranian bogatyrs are glad that Rustam will vindicate the honour of his country.

At night, Rustam stealthily finds way into the Shakhrap’s camp. A combat between the father and the son is depicted in a masterly fashion. Shakhrap is defeated and he is killed by his father, who first did not recognize his son. The irreparable thing occurs. Having understood that, Rustam retires away from people.

One day he sees a dream. In his dream, some Iranian comes to him and says that he must return to Iran. The famous bogatyr should not live such a vagabond life. After that, Rustam overcomes several difficulties. After a while, a rumour about the death of Rustam is blazed in Turan and Iran, and of course, the Turanians rejoice to hear the news but the Iranians grieved. Nut it is false news.

Further on in the Kazakh text, the following words occur: “Rum”, “Russia”, “Mongol”, China”, “Kipshak”, “Africa”, “Tashkent”, “Astaryakhis”, “Adai” that is an innovation introduced by the Kazakh poet Serdaly. Feats of Rustam’s sons Zhakrid, Zhakhangez and Faramruz are narrated. They win Turanian bogatyrs on the battlefield. Those parentheses are created by the Kazakh poet, and they are not available in “Shah-Name”. The departure of Rustam from Iran is explained by the author by the fact that, while Shakhrap was dying, Rustam sent a messenger to the King Keikaus requesting him for the remedy “nom” retrieving people from certain death but is refused. And his son dyes. Struck with sudden grief, Rustam leaves Iran for eighteen years. He hides away from people under the name of Zandarzama.

The son of Rustam Zhakhangez, having learned of that, vindicates the honour of the Turanians: he captures eighteen Iranian bogatyrs. The Iranians are sad about that event. Now Faramruz must be at war against his brother Zhakhangez. Their grandfather Nariman cries, he warns his grandsons and reminds them of the death of the young Shakhrap. Bloodshed is prevented.

And Rustam is ahorse again. The bogatyrs of Iran are very glad, they are: Kurai, Tauys, and Keusa. He comes back to Iran at the will of his people, who truly love and respect him. Under his command, they win the King of Maghrib – Darap. After the victory, Rustam is honourably met in Iran. The whole retinue headed by the grandfather of Rustam - Zalem meet midway their favourite bogatyr, the Iranian cry with joy like children. The scene of their meeting is depicted pathetically. Once again Serdaly demonstrates his poetic skill. “Nobody cried like the grandfather with his grandsons, even mountains and stones cried. When Rustam saw his grandfather Zal, he went to him like a breeze”, - the author writes.

A feast is held, and celebrations last ten days. Then again, battles begin against the Turanians, who is led by Aphrasiyap. The Turanians are defeated. In the honor of the victory, a feast of the Iranians lasted six months. Rustam gives gold and things to the poor people. The batyr meets his mother Rudiya and his sister Kaushapbanu. At that, “Kissa-and Rustam” of the Kazakh akyn comes to an end.

The expansion of subjects from “Shah-Name” of Firdousi in the Kazakh literature is very interesting. A clear example is Serdaly’s “Kissa-and Rustam”. The main basis is fully taken from “Shah-Name”, and there are all Iranian characters but no word-for-word similarities or repetitions are available. The author conveyed the plot in his own way, based on which he created a piece of work having preserved the general subject of “Shah-Name”. “Kissa-and Rustam” should never be deemed to be a direct translation of the source, it is more likely an altered version of the well-known tune in his own way. Prior to the revolution, many Kazakh akyns and singers handled foreign materials just so.

The author of “Kissa-and Rustam” – Serdaly Myrzaly uly came from the Kokchetav Oblast, and he was a contemporary of Akhanseri, a famous Kazakh poet and composer. “Kissa-and Rustam” consists of four thousands of lines. The dastan was written with a hendecasyllabic.

At the end of the poem, the following lines are given, which somewhat puzzle the readers. They are:

This thing was written by the mullah Husaiyn, so I am called, I’ll die but my words won’t die, My little brother Fazyl, if you go to the town, please give it to the publisher.¹

(Interlinear translation)

One is tempted to ask a question, where from the name of the mullah Husaiyn penetrated into the text? Because it is known from the introduction that the author of “Kissa-and Rustam” is Serdaly. But Husaiyn was not even a translator. He was just a scribe, the publisher of Serdaly’s work. But in those Kazakh books, which were published before the revolution, a publisher and a collector were also regarded as authors and they put their names of title pages. “It would be blasphemous and insulting for the true author – Serdaly to believe the words of Husaiyn and to attribute the work to him”-, M. Karatayev writes and the theorist of literature Baidildayev.² Thus, it is uncontroversial that Serdaly wrote his poem on his own based on the tunes of a work of a medieval Persian author.

U.K. Kumisbayev, Professor of the Al-Farabi Kazakh National University, DLitt

Almaty City, Republic of Kazakhstan

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¹ “Kissa-and Rustam”, Kazan, 1901, p.p. 78-79

² History of the Kazakh Literature, V. II, Beginning of XX century (in Kazakh). Alma-Ata, 1965, p.314