The Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion (Third Edition, Vol. 11 of 12)Frazer, James George
Religion
The Golden Bough: A Study in Magic and Religion (Third Edition, Vol. 11 of 12)
Frazer, James George
Magic; Mythology; Religion; Superstition
place.” But the queen’s young son overcame all difficulties, and got
possession of the parrot. He brought it to the door of the magician’s
palace, and began playing with it. Punchkin, the magician, saw him, and,
coming out, tried to persuade the boy to give him the parrot. “Give me my
parrot!” cried Punchkin. Then the boy took hold of the parrot and tore off
one of his wings; and as he did so the magician’s right arm fell off.
Punchkin then stretched out his left arm, crying, “Give me my parrot!” The
prince pulled off the parrot’s second wing, and the magician’s left arm
tumbled off. “Give me my parrot!” cried he, and fell on his knees. The
prince pulled off the parrot’s right leg, the magician’s right leg fell
off; the prince pulled off the parrot’s left leg, down fell the magician’s
left. Nothing remained of him except the trunk and the head; but still he
rolled his eyes, and cried, “Give me my parrot!” “Take your parrot, then,”
cried the boy; and with that he wrung the bird’s neck, and threw it at the
magician; and, as he did so, Punchkin’s head twisted round, and, with a
fearful groan, he died!(322) In another Hindoo tale an ogre is asked by
his daughter, “Papa, where do you keep your soul?” “Sixteen miles away
from this place,” he said, “is a tree. Round the tree are tigers, and
bears, and scorpions, and snakes; on the top of the tree is a very great
fat snake; on his head is a little cage; in the cage is a bird; and my
soul is in that bird.” The end of the ogre is like that of the magician in
the previous tale. As the bird’s wings and legs are torn off, the ogre’s
arms and legs drop off; and when its neck is wrung he falls down
dead.(323)
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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