The Carpenter and Chaoren
U suba amadi Chaoren
Fungawari Singbul by B. Jayantakumar Sharma

Translation by Nganthoi Lourembam *

An illustration of Folk tale ' U suba amadi Chaoren' by Nganthoi Lourembam

Once upon a time there lived a farmer called Chaoren in a village. He was unmarried though aged. All the household work of cooking, washing clothes, cleaning utensils, wiping the floor, cutting of wood etc, were done by him. Looking after all the works of both men and women always made him busy. He never got time to attend any social works for his locality.

There was a Carpenter who lived in the neighbour of Chaoren. The carpenter lived happily with his wife and children. Apart from his work of carpentry he never took part in any household works since his wife and children were there to look after. Thereby focusing on his work, all of his products such as Upu (wardrobe), Kangthol (bed), Kaptreng, Tareng (spinning wheels) and Yongkham (olden spinning mill) proved to be firm, neat and tidy; people liked them and he was known for his works. Thus, earning money through carpentry was his only duty.

Farmer Chaoren couldn't resist but only envy his neighbour-carpenter's family. He also wanted to get married, have children and get settled but it seemed the God didn't create any women to marry him. And hence, sometimes Chaoren used to scold the Lord.

Once, Chaoren went and talked to the Carpenter, "Friend, your hand is very neat; it could create anything you want. I wanted you to make something for me!" The Carpenter said, "Yes friend, what is it? If it is something I can create then let's do it." Chaoren said, "Friend, please don't share it to anyone else because they will make fun of me. Please make a beautiful and figurative wooden sculpture of a woman. I'll satisfy my entire life looking at the sculpture."

The Carpenter thought Chaoren was serious and must not make fun of him and said, "Definitely friend, let's make it with every skill that I have." Chaoren said, "I'll pay you appropriately; please do make it" and returned home. The carpenter, beside his other works created a beautiful wooden woman for his friend Chaoren. The sculpture was beautified with colours, put on hair, dresses and jewelleries.

After giving final touch three days later the Carpenter called his friend and said, "The woman that you asked to create is ready. Come and see if you are satisfied." The carpenter unfolded the sculpture and showed it to his friend, Chaoren. Chaoren was captivated by the sculpture and said, "Friend, you are very skilful. It looks exactly like a woman. You have made it beautifully, but, in order to make it more beautiful, a mole should be kept on her red cheek."

When the Carpenter put a mole in an appropriate place of her face, the sculpture became more beautiful than before. Chaoren was completely satisfied and said, "Please don't mind as big or small about your work charge; I'll drop five loads of food grain. The Carpenter agreed with it and Chaoren happily took the sculpture at his home. Later in the evening Chaoren took five loads of food grain and handed it over to his carpenter friend.

Chaoren took so much care of the sculpture, he put on all the clothes – Phanek, Innaphee, Khudei Matup, etc (Traditional women clothes) to the wooden sculpture. The sculpture looked stunningly beautiful. Chaoren became so happy and thought, "I also got married." He followed the tradition of getting married pretending the sculpture as his wife. After returning from his farming work he would take a bath and then finish his household work before sun sets.

After he finished cooking food he would come outside of the house and say, "Lady, have you finished cooking." Then he quickly went inside the house and pretending to be a woman said, "It's over, it's over."After finished having food he said, "Lady, prepare me a bowl of Hidak Nganthak (Similar to Hookah)." "Yes, I'll prepare it" he replied himself and prepared the Hidak. Like thus he survived for several months.

There is a saying 'if believed even the dried wood becomes God.' One day, after coming back from farming Chaoren, as usual, said, "My wife is the food ready?" Someone from inside the house in a woman's voice replied, "Yes, it's over. Please have food." Chaoren was shocked. He went inside the house and checked if the wooden sculpture was there under his bed. But it disappeared. He abruptly went inside the kitchen and saw a woman was preparing to put the meal on plates.

Chaoren was unexplainably shocked and asked the woman, "Are you a human being or God? I am terribly shocked. And how are you here?" The woman replied, "Dear husband, the way you treat me with love, care and tenderness I could no longer hold myself. I decided that today I will be at your service and hence appeared as a human being. I am the wooden sculpture. I'll appear in front of you as a human being whenever I have to be at your service and rest of the time I'll go back to my original feature." Chaoren was extremely happy.

After some days, Chaoren visited his friend, carpenter and said, "Friend, the wooden woman that you have sculpted for me becomes a real woman and helps me at my household work. Now I am really happy and free from work." Listening to Chaoren, the Carpenter was shocked and asked, "Is it true what you are saying right now?"

Chaoren replied, "Yes. What's the point of telling a lie to you, my friend? When it is time for preparing meal please come and check it yourself. Then you'll come to know the truth." The Carpenter said, "Okay friend, today itself when it is time to start preparing food I'll come and see." Then the Carpenter continued his work and Chaoren went for farming.

It was time to cook food, the Carpenter came running at Chaoren's home to see Chaoren's wife. At that time Chaoren was not home. The Carpenter went inside the house and bending his head peeped inside the kitchen. He saw a beautiful woman wearing clean clothes and cooking food and said in surprise, "So my friend was speaking the truth! The body figure is how proportionate and beautiful. You are lucky my friend Chaoren."

The Carpenter came out of the house after looking at her once again. Then he thought, "She is mine. I created her so I should get her. I have to trick my friend Chaoren and get her. Eesh! How pretty her face was?" If the devil of jealousy once sits in the head of human being, no one can escape from it. People get ideas after losing. After seeing Chaoren's wife, the god of Kaal entered the mind of the Carpenter who was living happily with his perfect family and his profession. Various evil ideas came into his mind and thought, "Hmm! I definitely have to get the woman. My own hands crafted her so she has to be mine. In no way the farmer can have her."

Later he again thought, "My wife, on the other hand, is Kuru Shungdainabi, Unkhuibi (ugly signs of getting old) and ugly; so what's the point of living with her! Instead of living with my wife till death is better to live for a little while with the young, beautiful and cute woman." Consequently, the Carpenter started quarrelling with his own wife and children.

He said, "I am going to bring another woman who is younger and more beautiful than you. You along with children go back to your maiden house. I can no longer live with you." His wife and children realised that something went wrong with his mind and tried to calm him down. But it got worse day by day. The Carpenter continued using bad words against his wife and children and finally they left the place.

After getting rid from his wife and children, the Carpenter said to his friend Chaoren, "Friend, your wife is perfectly beautiful but there needs a little bit of repairing. If it is fixed there won't be anyone comparable to her." The honest friend Chaoren said, "What are you saying my friend! You are the one who created it, who else is going to repair apart from you? Please take it and fix it."

After Chaoren willingly gave the sculpture to him the Carpenter took her and kept at his place. Like his friend Chaoren did the Carpenter did household works for 5/10 days. The Carpenter was very much exhausted. Since the sculpture didn't turn to a human being even after working so hard the Carpenter called Chaoren and gave it back to him.

But when the sculpture stayed at Chaoren's place the sculpture came back as a human being and helped him at his service. The Carpenter became got nothing at the end. He suffered alone when he died since there was no one to look after him.


** From Manipur folk tale Book called "Fungawari Singbul" by B. Jayantakumar Sharma