The legends of the Panjâb

No. X.
THE LEGEND OF
SILA DAi,
AOOOBDING TO THE VERSION PLATED AT JAGADHRt
IN THE AMBALA DISTRICT.
[This legend is anotlier of the teu mahals or divisions of the full story of R^jfl
Basfilfi. Like the story of Gurd Gugg^ it is composed in the form of a
swing or metrical play, and is so played annually at the Holi Festival.
Like that too, however, it is not strictly a play according to our ideas.
It is a most popular story, and its details are very widely known.]
Pt has been divided herein into two portions. The Ist of 964 verses and the
2nd of 528 verses, because the bard who began it could not remember the
latter portion, and it was taken up aud finished by the same man that
sang for me the Legend of Gurd Guggd. The style of composition is not
quite the same in the two portions, though they are composed on the same
lines and tell precisely the same story. In the first part the metre never
varies, and there are no songs ; the narative portions too are not introduced,
as in the latter part, into the speeches of the actors, but are assigned
in complete stanzas to the Brihman Rang^ohSr, who appeared in the
Gugga Legend as the family priest of Gurd Gugg^. The composition
displays considerable dramatic talent, and the story is well put together,
but it is very long drawn out in order to suit the taste of the audience.]
[The story has been already referred to in the 'Adventures of ESjA RasAld
where he plays a trick on his Minister MahitA Choprfl in order to test the
boasted virtue of the latter's wife, Rfini Chfindni. Chfindni now appears
as SilA Dai, and this story is a variant of the former one. It is to be observed
that in the former legend Mahiti appears as a Chopra, one of the
septs of the PanjSbi caste of the Khatris, whereas in this legend he is mads
out to be a member of the AgarwAl sept of the Hinddi caste of the Cauiyds,
and to come from their original seat at Agrohd near Hissdr.]
[Eas&ld appears here as Ris£l and Eisal, and the scene of those parts of the
play, which is not laid at Agrob^, is at Si&lkot, frequently called herein
Risdlgarh or Eisalgarh. The anthromorphism, too, which raises Gurd
Gorakhn&th almost to the level of a god and reduces Siva aud Pdrvatl
almost to that of mortals, is very noticeable.]
[The game of chavpur occurs so frequently in these legends, and its
teohnioalities
play so important a part in them, that I give here an account of it.
The chaupur board is generally made of cloth, and is in the form of a
cross. Each arm of the cross is divided into 24 squares in 3 rows of 8 each,
12 red and 12 black : in the centre, where the arms meet, is a large black
square. The cross is called ehaupur, the arms are called phihada and