Evril Turon (Mamadali Mahmud): White Flower (A true story) 15-22
Evril Turon
(Mamadali Mahmud)
White Flower
(A true story)
Oynur
A novel by Evril Turon
I dedicate this book to Ugur Akin,
to gracious and polite person with the good manners and to person who is always with friends in their in their both good and bad days .
“Who would a good thinking person address to for help?
Who possesses the law? In the hands of evil priests…
He captured wealth unfairly.
Who would throw him away from ruling and life?”
Zoroaster
“Laws are created to not frighten people, but to help them.”
Walter
Every false government is afraid of freedom of speech.”
N.Berdyayev (Russian philosopher)
15.
After we returned from the communication center, we dropped Oynur off in her house. Nizom-tuynak and I followed Chingizkhon’s plan. We loaded a net, a robe, a rope, an axe, a knife, a big mallet, and four long iron stakes onto the Ural’s box and came to the hill. We gathered wet and dry of branches of haloxylon in the lizard’s hole. We hammered the iron stakes in the hole and tied the net up to them so that the fire would not reach the net. Then we set fire emitting thick puffs of smoke. The lizard choked from the smoke went out of its hole and was caught in our trap. As the lizard tried to get rid of the net so hard it was wrapped n the net even better. Nizom-tuynak, who was quicker than demon, threw him onto the lizard with the robe. I pressed its tail. Chingizkhon tightly fastened the lizard’s mouth and head with the rope. After that he cut its throat with the knife. We loaded its head onto the Ural. Its main body remained outside the motorcycle box. Nizom-tuynak laid the robe on it and sat there. I took the rear seat.
This was the same creature Oynur and I saw a while ago: Crocodile. I felt sorry for it.
“What a tragic fate!” I said to myself. It wanted to get rid of the eagle but was caught in our trap. The poor creature had such a fate!”
A human being will always find
A reason,
A pretext
An excuse
For his own deed: be it a crime or treason.
Thus, he consoles himself and justifies.
We reached Lochin the healer’s house in the evening. He was surprised:
“I have never seen such a big lizard in my life. I cannot believe how you could catch it so quickly. We can get so much of oil and flour from this creature. I will be able to heal so many ill people now. By the way, when Lola will come?”
“In three or four days,” I said. “She will come for two months. We count on you now, uncle Lochin.”
“You are caring about her as if she’s your relative, Evril, aren’t you?”
“I love Oynur as my own sister, uncle Lochin. And Sister Lola is her relative.”
“Really?”
In response to his question, I wanted to tell that “Sister Lola is a good historian” but another Evril in my in denied it, “It’s not relevant to say it now.”
“I think something divine is hidden in sense. And I think this is God’s present for us,” said uncle Lochin.
Bek confirmed his words as a wise man:
“I agree with you.”
“My heart feels, guys, that Lola will get rid of that illness.”
I felt there was pure belief in the healer’s voice.
16.
In the morning, a truck with half-covered upper side dropped us off in the desert. I told Oynur about what we have done. She became so happy as a child:
“Thank you, Evril! You are my true friend!”
I cannot describe how I was glad to hear those words.
“Yet you, Lola and I will carry out so many good things!”
Though it was too hot we worked in elevated feelings. Our clothes became wet from sweating. But we were not tired.
Approximately one hundred and fifty million kilometers far from us, the sun came straight with the speed of two hundred and fifty kilometers a second. I felt that as if the entire world became like a very hot oven. Hot wind burnt our body. Our hearts warmed up. And we came under the shadow of shrubs. As she wiped out her face, Oynur said:
“Evril, it looks like at least fifty five degrees now.”
“Even higher than that, Sister Oynur.”
We drank ayron[1]. After that we drank yogurt and ate fried chicken with bread. Then we had green tea. We relaxed a bit.
“Evril, if you want you can sleep until the sun comes down,” said Oynur, stroking my head as my sister.
“And you?”
“I will speak with Lola.”
“How?”
“In my thoughts,” she smiled sweetly.
“Sister Oynur, yesterday you were telling that your Erkhon grandfather had a long history, right?”
”Yes.”
“I am very much interested in that.”
Since Oynur was in a good mood, she started talking about Erkhon-botir — Erkhon the gallant.
“My Erkhon grandpa!..” she exclaimed.
And she stared at long, very long distances, as if she wanted to see her grandpa. To make up her mind, she stayed silent for a while. The she said in sad voice:
“My mother did not see my great grandpa either. We don’t even have his photo. My mother could imagine Erkhon grandfather from the stories of Iqlim-momo who is over hundred years old now:
“I am so pleased with you, my daughter, if I tell the whole story it will not fit a whole book, therefore I will the story partially:
Erkhon the gallant[2] was a handsome person as sharp as a sword. God also granted him with wisdom. He also was very tolerant. Every girl in the village wanted to unite her life with him. However, he was not predestined to anyone in Iqon[3]. Do you ask why? Please listen to me carefully.
A teenager, Erkhon-botir used to go to China, Rome and India with trading caravan for business. From time to time, we had heard about dangers on the road and we recalled our own relatives who joined the caravan. Of course, Erkhon-botir also was in our mind, my daughter. And we had worried about their fate.
In the times when Russians crawled like snake from west to east, when they invaded Small and Middle parts of Kyrgyz land, when Oqmachit[4] was taken away fro mthe Kokand Khanate, or even later, my sweet daughter, Erkhon-botir will suddenly disappear in Baliqkent (do people call it Beijing now?) His friends in the same caravan became anxious about it. They look for him everywhere but could not find. After all they return back to their homeland.
Rich parents of Erkhon-botir grieved over him so much, but they hoped that he would return one day. His mother, Sister Oykhumor, with bitter tears in her eyes, waited for him at the threshold every other day. I also grieved seeing this with y own eyes. Other people and girls were also upset about it.
Fire years have passed since then. One day, his father, brother Erjon, received a letter from Erkhon-botir. His parents became so happy like a melted dry flower after rain. They treated people for three days. I was sixteen years old then. Erkhon-botir’s sister Oykhon and I were intimate friends. As I was too interested, I asked Oykhon for the letter and read it.
Surprisingly, I still remember some two or three words written in the letter that I did not understand well:
”… Father, I stayed in China to master the secrets of Karate, Kung-Fu and U-shu and other martial arts. I felt obliged to do this in the time when the enemy was approaching. I wrote that in my first letter, too. Please forgive me for making you grieve over me, father…”
I don’t remember what else was written in the letter. So many years have passed since then, my daughter.
I learned the reason of Erkhon-botir’s staying in China for some months after a while. It turned out that he married Hun-Su, a very beautiful daughter of the master who taught him the secrets of martial arts there. It looked like he fell in love with her. He would have a son called O’rkhun.
The time would come when he had to return to homeland. But his teacher said:
“Hun-Su is my only daughter. What would I do without her? I am an old man already. Plese stay here and have my property and wealth.”
Erkhon-botir could not say “no” to his teacher and stayed in Baliqkent for one year. Hun-Su cried bitter tears, asking for solution from his old father. And the old man kept his word.
Erkhon-botir remained between the two:
He would either stay with his wife and son…
Or would go back to his motherland and his own nation…
Despite he loved his wife and son, the feeling of Motherland prevails. Before this feeling, Erkhon-botir’s wisdom and intelligence became powerless. Therefore, he said this to Hun-Su. She cried bitter tears again. In the end, she gave consent for him to go.
“Will you come back and take us with you?” she asked.
Erkhon-botir promised:
“Yes, Hun-Su.”
17.
I still remember how his parents, relatives, whole village, including us, girls, were all happy seeing him when Erkhon-botir returned to Iqon. I remember it well that in honor of his return uncle Erjon made a big feast and donated so many food and clothes to the poor. Girls again waited for Erkhon-botir to ask them for a wife. His parents too wished him get married sooner.
For about one year, Erkhon-botir kept it secret that he had a wife and a son. That time with the advice of his father (uncle Erjon was aksakal – chairperson of the village then) and elderly he established a group of voluntters in Iqon. Young people from Avliyo-ota, Chinkent, Sayram and Turkestan joined the group.
The following words of Erkhon-botir he addressed to the volunteers were also acceptable to my father:
“We, Turkic people, will win from making cooperation with other nations and accept their good traditions. Europe is ahead of us in terms of science, industry, construction, etc. Why don’t we learn from them? Or why don’t we learn martial arts from Japan and China?”
As he mentioned himself, he started teaching martial arts (Karate, U-Shu, Kung-Fu, shooting, fencing, etc) to the volunteers. We, girls, sometimes watched them with surprise.
The enemy was approaching faster, breaking through the Kokand Khanate. Erkhon-botir was very much concerned about the fact that khanates in Kokand, Bukhara and Khiva did not unite against the enemy; on the contrary, they were struggling with each other.
“They are all so indifferent; as such, what will happen to the nation? Would the future generation not curse us? Would history forgive us?”
My father used to say:
“If a man like Erkhon-botir was the head of our nation, no one would dare to attack us.”
Later uncle Erjon and aunty Oykhumor strictly required Erkhon-botir to get married and by necessity, he confessed, saying:
“You have a grandson called Orkhun.”
18.
By that time, Hun-Su’s father was dead and Orkhun could already walk. So, Hun-Su had to decide:
Either her motherland
Or Erkhon.
At last she made her mind and decided to chose:
Erkhon!
She thought that it would be better for her son to grow up with his father too.
Thus, she sold all the property she had, took his son and came to Irqon together with Turkestan caravan.
Erkhon’s parents warmly welcomed their bride. They loved their grandson. They organized a wedding ceremony and treated people. Instead of being jealous, we, the girls, from time to time we went to aunty Oykhumor’s house to see the most beautiful bride. First days we went there we called Hun-Su as “Hun Suv”. Later we started calling her Suluv. She learned our mother language very quickly and was assimilated into our nation.
After that, the number of children who looked like Chinese increased in Iqon. That’s why, my sweet daughter, you also have slanted eyes.
At first, Erkhon’s parents wanted to marry their son to someone from their own nation, but later they changed their mind. Though Chinese Hun-Su grew up in the city, she knew how to bake bread, milk a cow, wash clothes, etc, and did all of those tasks with all of her heart. Moreover, she gave birth to one more son and a daughter. Wearing same clothes and speaking in the same language, she became closer to the women in Iqon. In short, we all liked Suluv very much.
19.
While a sweet life continued in Iqon, General Verevski invaded present Olma-ota, which belonged to Kokand Khanate before. There, he built Verniy military camp.
In 1863, nine people headed by Erkhon-botir approached the enemy on horseback.
It’s true, my sweet daughter, that I was not present at the battlefield, but I will tell you exactly what I had heard. In fact, I would tell what I could remember.
The men on horseback quickly identified the plan, ability and number of enemies. As the enemies could win over the nation almost without any difficulties, they did not protect their camp. Aware of this, in a dark evening, the men, wearing the uniform of Russians, killed the Russian guards, took three hundred horses of the enemy, and loaded arms, clothes and food on horseback and rode to Iqon. Only Erkhon-botir and Ergash stayed in the camp. When their friends went farther, the two of them set fire on the enemy’s storage. Then, to distract the enemy’s attention, they rode to the opposite side, to China. About hundred cavalrymen of the enemy pursued them. The two gallants shot the enemies behind the shrubs from time to time with the guns they took from the invaders. After that, they ran again. Thus, they killed forty-one enemies; nine of them were severely wounded. Four of five of them were killed with a sword when they came face to face. So the two men ran again. The tired enemy would think that those were Chinese. From this they got frightened and withdrew.
The two gallants returned to Iqon through the other circular road. Oh, I just forgot to mention that after that the people would start calling those men as heroes. I still remember the names of those gallant men: Elbek, Qo’ldosh, Ergash, Dovul, Temur, Po’lat, Toshbek, Elchin, Egam…
Sorry, I cannot tell the whole story with every detail, my daughter, because I don’t know details. I could only tell whatever I heard from people and from my husband, Ergash-botir. And I only tell some small part of the whole story. So many years have passed since then, my sweet daughter.
After that attack, the invader would stop their invasion for some time.
20.
Erkhon-botir went to Kokand. There, he met with chief commander of Kokand Khanate, Alimquli. I don’t know what did they speak about. My husband Ergash-botir did not tell me anything about that either. However, I think the story ran in the following way:
Erkhon-botir was a straightforward man, who could affect any other person. There was a special power in him that attracted people so much in his own person and made others to believe him. Perhaps, that was granted to him by Allah.
As such, we could say that Erkhon-botir was able to persuade Alimquli. His troops would go to Chimkent. In 1864, the troops came across with the invaderin the outskirts of Iqon. According to Erkhon-botir’s plan, the volunteers had to attack the two wings of the enemy. Erkhon-botir aong with the nine gallants would finish with the storage. Nevertheless, they had a harsh battle. Finally, the enemy went away. Alimquli and Erkhon-botir pursue the enemy until the threshold of Verevski. Then, commanders panicked and said to Alimquli:
“Our food reserves are about to finish,” said the right side commander of ALimqul in a troubled voice. “So it would be better if we go back.”
The left side commander also supported him:
“In Verevski, there is a Russian military camp[5]. They say that it is a very powerful fort. The helping powers in the fort would just overcome us. Moreover, our troops and horses are tired very much.”
Erkhon-botir begs Alimquli:
“The enemy is half-dead. It has only several soldiers left in the camp. If we don’t kill a half-dead snake, it would sting us. We should surrender Verevski. It’s possible that we would not have another chance to do so.
“Why are you speaking confidently, Erkhon?”
“My spies learned everything we needed.”
Commanders screamed:
“It’s not true!”
“It’s a lie!”
“This information is false!”
Affected by this, Alimquli said to Erkhon-botir sarcastically:
“Don’t believe it unless you see it with your own eyes. And don’t hasten about invading Olma-ota, since everything has its own time.”
Erkhon-botir said nothing in reply.
The troops of the khan rode to Kokand long with big trophy. Though Erkhon-botir said nothing to them, two hundred volunteers separated themselves from the troops. Erkhon-botir thought:
“He said everything had its own time. But when? In a thousand years? Several hundred years have passed since the enemy’s invasion of our Ural and Siberia lands. What about our lands such as Oltin O’rda[6], Ashtarkhon[7], Saratov[8], and O’rinbur[9]? Now, in the world map, those endless, beautiful and rich lands are called as Russia. Our brothers and sisters of same blood: Saha, Hokas, Tuva, Sho’r, Qipchoq, and Uz are not seen at all on the scene of history. Moreover, they all were forcedly converted to Christianity. The remainder of Khuns – Chuvashs too the same. From time to time, they all forget their own language and origin. Other relatives of us such as Tartar, Boshwird, Chuvash, Qorachoy, Ko’ko’ghuz (Gagauz), Bolqar, Qirimli[10], Qumiq, No’ghay, Qorayim[11] also the same: under the Russian pressure.
So, when would they get rid of the chains? The water that does not flow will turn into a puddle. If we don’t fight for freedom, we would tunr into a paddle too. Now we are going to leave Verniy. Toorrow, maybe we would leave Avliyo-ota, Chimkent, Tashkent, Samarkand, Bkhara, Khiva and others. Turkestan is also under threat… Even in such a tragic situation, we console ourselves, saying that “there is its own time for everything.” Actually, by saying this we hide that we are afraid and that we are cowardly.
If we don’t unite and fight against the invader under one single Turkic flag, we will make an incurable mistake.
History will curse us.
Our future generations will curse us.
Will Oghuzkhon come out of us one day?
Will Chingizkhon come out?
Will Temurkhon?
Where are those powerful incomparable empires of us?
Will Turkestan not get up?
Will Turon not wake up?
21.
When the khan’s troops get out of sight, my husband Ergash-botir went to meet him. Erkhon-botir came to his senses. Considering him his own friend, Ergash-botir said to him:
“If three khanates do not unite, the enemy will defeat us.”
“Do you think they can unite?”
“I am afraid they can’t.”|
“Why?”
“Because each of them is arrogant.”
“Maybe they will unite now, when the motherland is under threat.”
“I wish I was wrong, but my sense is that the three khanates love themselves more than they love their motherland.”
“As such, the three of them would definitely be defeated.”
“You say this, my friend. But what will the nation’s fate be like? What would the country face in the end? If I had a big wealth, my friend, I would wait for help from neither of them. I would create my own troops to defeat the enemy completely. Now, with a small group of volunteers, I cannot fulfill this aim. What a pity! What makes me angry is that we stepped back when we were about to win. This one is the beginning of tragedy. It means that we became unlucky. My friend Ergash, if I had at least a thousand volunteers, I would not go back. I would take the Verniy fort. After that I would take Port-Prevski[12] fort! Later I would free Kichik Juz and O’rta Juz[13]. I believe this from all of my heart. I would definitely go for it. I have confidence in myself.
“I trust you, my friend.”
“But where are those troops? Where are a thousand of those volunteers?
“I think there is only one key to resolve this: The rich… We should speak to them, Erkhon.”
“Would they agree?”
“If not now, when would they help?”
“Do you believe?”
“It depends on how we would explain and persuade them. If the enemy invades us, it would affect the rich first. They would lose everything they have.”
22.
As a group of gallant men approached them, they stopped talking to each other.
“It’s dangerous for us to stay here,” one of the men, Dovul-botir, said. “If tehe enemy knew that it is not being chased after, it would send a spy to us.”
”You are right,” said Erkhon-botir and ordered volunteers to get ready.
They went to the west, Avliyo-ota.
They got tired and hungry after some time. Their horses also got tired. Therefore, they stopped near the forest at the end of the mountains and near the flooded rivulet.
A group of men headed by Elbek-botir went to a nearby village to bring ten sheep, bread and fodder.
They cut sheep, skinned them, taking out their bowels. After that, they stuck them to long trees as a whole. They set fire in ten places and pounded y-like sticks on two sides of the fire. Then, they hang sheep on them. They clean and comb their saddles and harnesses before the meat is ready to eat. They also swam in the rivulet. They fed their horses. And later they ate meat with an appetite sitting on the grassland.
That time the guards standing on the peaks hastily informed:
“Invaders are surrounding us.”
“Approximately, how many of them?”
“About thousand.”
Ordered by Erkhon-botir, with their horses and weapons volunteers moved to the neighboring bank under the rock chains next to the sky. Erkhon-botir behaved himself properly and without any hesitation said the following words, as if there was nothing happening:
“Now the enemy will not be able to attack us from backside. The rock is our shield. Even wild goats cannot pass through it. We are standing above the enemy – in the middle of giant rocks. The enemy will now attack us from three sides: opposite and two other wings. Therefore, we will divide into three parts and start attacking. We have enough riffles, bullets, swords and sticks. This will be an experimental battle for us. From what we learned, I can say that the enemy might not be equal to us in fighting with swords and sticks. We are also better in fighting with hands. We know how to take aim with riffles very well. The enemy is stronger than us only because they have machine-guns. We don’t have them. But their bullets cannot get through the rocks. The rocks will protect us as shields. Don’t forget: when the enemy approaches we will suddenly attack them from behind the rocks. Please start when I make a subtle gesture. I feel that we will defeat them!”
“We will defeat!” – screamed brave men.
And the rocks echoed as well:
“We will defeat!”
The invader came from three sides. Commander Chernyayev said to his soldiers:
“These sheep were frightened too much and hid themselves behind the rocks. Shooting with machine-guns frighten them even more. But do not touch their horses. We will need them ourselves…”
“They do not worth our bullets,” a military leader of the right side, Ivan, protested. “We’ll surrender them without a battle.”
Chernyayev ordered his Tartar translator:
“Speak to them!”
The translator passed Chernyayev’s words to Erkhon-botir. Erkhon-botir (through the translator) said the same thing to Chernyayev. As a response to his calling them as “sheep” he also added:
“Let Chernyayev come to my feet asking for pardon and I will not behead that wild pig.”
Hearing that response, Chernyayev became furious and very angry. Hatred in fire like a dragon, Chernyayev roared:
“Use machine-guns against them!”
So they attacked the brave men with machine-guns.
Countless bullets reached the rocks and horses jumped up and neighed louder. The invaders also used their riffles. Like the wild cannibals, they yelled and approached the volunteers quickly:
“Hurrah[14]!”
“Hurrah!!”
“Hurrah!!!”
The distance between the two sides became too short. Around two hundred young brave men with ready riffles were waiting for an order. Finally, Erkhon-botir make a gesture by raising his hand. Two hundred bullets flew to the enemy at the same time, almost without a mistake. Invaders fell down like the trees felling because of the strong storm.
They fell down yelling.
They feel down calling their mothers for help.
Flustered, the rest of the enemy was in a dead lock.
They stayed in a panic.
The volunteers shot them again, not waiting for them to come to their senses.
Again…
Again…
And again…
The invaders fell down like the leaves falling in the wind in autumn. Like the mountain goats, the brave men jumped on the rocks and started attacking the nemey with their swords and sticks. They sowed the enemy like canes, since the enemy was not used to battle on the rocks. The ones who were alive felt that they would die as well and ran away, crying out:
“These are the killers hired from China!”
They left the dead bodies.
They left the wounded soldiers.
They ran leaving their horses.
They ran leaving their weapons.
They ran leaving behind their wounded military leaders such as Ivan.
They ran away soiling their own pride.
“The enemy ran away like this from Chengizkhan,” said Elbek-botir.
“The enemy ran away like that from Temur-khoqon,” said Ergash-botir.
“Because everyone wants to live,” laughs Erkhon-botir. “At such moments,
They do not want to confess the feelings of
Motherland,
Nation,
and Religion.
Look at them! Look how they all run to save their own lives. Do you see that even Chernyayev is running away to save his own life?
To honor their dead friends, the volunteers buried them under the rocks.
Erkhon-botir wept.
All the brave men wept.
[1] Ayron – yogurt drink.
[2] Erkhon the gallant – People in Iqon village called him like that; he was called thus because he was invincible in battles and was brave and fearless man.
[3] Iqon – a village between Chimkent and Turkestan
[4] Oqmachit – Kyzyl Orda
[5] Verniy military camp.
[6] Oltin O’rda – Volgograd.
[7] Ashtarkhon- Astrakhan – Hojitarkhon.
[8] Saratov – Saritov – Sariqtogh.
[9] O’rinbur – Orenburg.
[10] Qirimli – Crimean turks.
[11] Qorayim – in Jewish religion (Yahudo). Basically, our blood brothers and sisters who live in the Baltic aera and Israel.
[12] Port-Perevski – a military fort built in 1848 in Oqmachit (Qizil Orda).
[13] Uz – Juz – Kazakh call it Juz. Kichik Juz (small Juz) was invaded in 1834, O’rta Juz (middle Juz) in 1841.
[14] Hurrah – it’s a Turkic word derived from “Ur – hit”. During the cross war, Saljuqids (Turks) attacked the enemy coming out of the rocks and ambushes, yelling “Ur, ur-a ur” (Hit them or defeat them!). That time the word “hurrah” also entered Europe. Bowfard also wrote about it in his book.
МАҚОЛАНИ ДЎСТЛАР БИЛАН БАҲАМЛАШИНГ