________________
MARCH, 1897.]
NOTES AND QUERIES.
This is the story told to account for the following well-known verse :
Mugdhe! payopi dugdhe trimam-apy-aśnâti tarnakam Sute, Nádindhamasya mayam jậtu na jậnasi jatush Mabishi.
मुग्धे ! पयोपि दुग्धे नृणमप्यइनाति तर्णकं सूते।
नाडिन्धमस्य मायां जात न जानासि जातुषी महिषी ।। * O Innocent woman. What if it gives us milk, what if it grazes upon grass, what if t bring forth calves! You do not know the tricks of goldsmiths. It is for all that a buffalo made of lac."
forgiveness.
NOTES AND QUERIES. A FOLK ETYMOLOGY OF LAL BEG'S NAME. | Lal Beg (Lal beg 8 farmiiya); "this was
The holy prophet (hazrat paighambar), saint the order of Almighty God that you should (Mehtar) Ilias (the prophet Elias), attended at
be the Prophet (Nabi) of the sweepers (mehtaron the Court of Almighty God where many prophets ko), and intercede for thera at the day of judg. were sitting. Mehtar Ilias coughed, and finding
ment." Mehtar Ilias took him home, and room to spit in. he anat unwanda. and his placing him under a nim tree (Axidarachte apittle fell upon the prophets. They all felt
indica) filled his huqa (pipe) for lim (a custom disgusted, and complained to Almighty God.
of the sweepers to the present day towards The Almighty ordered that he should serve
their religious teachers) and worshipped him. throughout the world as a sweeper (jhdru du
LAI Bêg became at once invisible, and Mehtar liaró). Mehtar Ilias begged that some prophet
Iliâs went to the Great Saint and told the story. might be created in the world to intercede for
The Great Saint said that Lal Beg had disaphim, and it was ordered that such an one should
peared because he did not approve of his religion. be born. According to the order of the God of "However, worship him and he will intercede for Mercy he came into the world, and took to
you." He then ordered Mehtar Ilias to do sweeping, and passed many days in the hope of
pe of penance, and said :-"In the first age the gnatmnt
(vessels worshipped to represent Lal Bêg) will be
golden; in the second, it will be silver'; in the One day the Great Saint (Baré Pir Sahib -
third, copper; in the fourth, earthern." This is 1. c., Pir-i-Dastagir or Sayyid 'Addu'l-Qadir
why the Mchtars now worship vessels of earth, Jilani, flourished 1078 to 1166 A. D.) took
and believe in their prophet. his coat (chola) off and gave it Mehtar Ilias to wear. Mehtar Ilias put it into an earthen pitcher
R. C. TEMPLE in P. N. and Q. 1883. (macht) and intended to wear it at some auspicious time. One day the Great Saint asked him
PANJABI NICKNAMES. why he did not wear the coat. He answered :
In the Pañjabi some nicknames are, as in "My work is to sweep, and it would become dirty. I will wear it on some lucky day."
England, connected with some event in the The
victim's career, - e. g., & low caste employé, il Great Saint said :-“Wear it to-day and come to
Jhinwar or drawer of water, named, say, Lil me." He igreed, and went to open the pitcher, but
Singh, rose to greatness, passing over the heads it was shut so fast that he could not open it. He
of men of good caste, and was immediately came to the Saint and said that the pitcher would
dubbed by his less fortunate comrades Jal-khich not open. The Saint said:--"Take my name
Singh or Water-drawing Singh, and unkind and say to the pitcher that the Pir Sahib calls
refcrences to the discarded implements of his you." Mehtar Iliils went and did as he was
profession were covertly made. Again, a Euro. bidden, and putting the pitcher on his head,
pean officer who gave a down-trodden county brought it to the Saint.
'aman (peace, happiness, prosperity) was honorifiThe Saint said:- "Nikal 80, Lil, beg, comccally nicknamed Taran Sahib, or Mr. Rescuer out quickly, my boy:" (lal is my dear boy, my from drowning. The title of Dhari-wala, or the darling son: bey is quickly). Immediately out man with the beard, resulted from a weakness of the pitcher a fair man görd rang kit idmi) that a lato ruler of the Pañjal had for allowing wearing lil big (should be bhekl) or red clothes persons with fine beards Rs. 5 or Rs. 10 a monti. (ya lal kapri) came out, and the Saint seid te for ciuds, combs and other toilet articles. A vun
