The ocean of story, being C.H. Tawney's translation of Somadeva's ...

APPENDIX I
THE "SWAN-MAIDEN" MOTIF
On p. 58 of this volume we read that, on arriving at a certain
hermitage, Marubhuti chanced to see some heavenly nymphs
who had come to bathe in the river. At the advice of the
hermit he stole the clothes of one of them, who immediately
followed him, hoping to recover them. The hermit then
informed her that she could have them back if she gave him
certain information about Naravahanadatta. On complying,
she became the wife of the hermit, and shortly afterwards
gave birth to a child. She then departed, saying that if he
wished to be united with her he must cook and eat the child.
On doing so the hermit was able to fly into the air, and was
thus united with the mysterious nymph.
Such, briefly, is the story, 1 or rather motif, which at once
suggests to us the so-called Swan-Maiden cycle, so well known
throughout European folk-literature.
At the outset of any inquiry on such a widely spread motif,
we should pause a moment to satisfy ourselves as to what we
mean by the " Swan-Maiden " motif. We mean, I take it, a
story that tells of the hero coming by chance on a number of
girls bathing, or he may see a flock of birds who turn into girls.
For some reason or other he steals their clothes or plumages
(in many cases only that of one), and by so doing obtains one
of them for his wife. He usually loses her, either by his
breaking some taboo, or else by her regaining her lost dress
or plumage. In some cases fresh adventures end in a happy
reunion ; in others he remains alone and disconsolate for the
rest of his life.
Accepting this as the typical example of the "Swan-
Maiden motif, we can look back at the incident in Somadeva
and unhesitatingly say that here we have a version of the
an unusual form of it. We have
motif in question, though
the girls bathing, the stealing of the clothes, the marriage,
the desertion, and the final reunion, In fact, the only thing
omitted is the " swan " element. But of this more anon.
1
Cf. also the Apsaras-swan-maidens who occur in Story No. 172aaa, in
Vol. IX, Chapter CXXI.
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