Why the Camel Rolls in the Ashes
A long time ago the names
of the animals representing the twelve years of the Mongolian calendar
(1) were being chosen and eleven names were called
at once. But then there was the question which animal should begin the circle of
the twelve years. The camel and the mouse proposed their names and quarreled
about who should be included in the circle. Not wanting to offend either of them
said: "Settle this between yourselves!"
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The two animals made the
following bet: who would see the first rays of the rising sun the next morning,
would start the twelve years. The camel faced the east where the sun would rise
and waited. The mouse climbed upon the camel's hump and stared unwaveringly at
the mountain peaks in the west. When the sun rose, the first rays were reflected
from the peaks of the western mountains and so the mouse was the first to see
them crying: "The sun is rising!" |
The camel was very
angering to have lost the bet and wanted to trample the mouse to death. The
mouse quickly crawled beneath a pile of ashes hiding there.
Since then whenever a
camel sees a pile of ashes it wants trample down the hated enemy, the mouse, and
starts trampling and rolling in the ashes.
So the mouse got included in the circle while
the camel was left out. But although the camel wasn't included in the calendar,
its body bears the distinctive features of the twelve animals of the circle.
These features are:
1. the
ears of the mouse
2. the
belly of the cow
3. the
paws of the tiger
4. the
lips of the hare
5. the
body of the dragon
6. the
eyes of the snake
7. the
mane of the horse (2)
8. the
wool of the sheep
9. the
hump of the monkey
10. the scomb the cock
11. the legs of the dog
and
12. the tail of the pig.
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(1)
The Mongolian calendar consists of twelve years each represented by a certain
animal not unlike the European signs of the zodiac. (back to
text)
(2)
This mane is meant to be the longish hair on the underside of the camel's neck.
(back to text)
