Extra Reading Diary: Turkish Fairy Tales

Turkish Fairy Tales

The Soothsayer: There was word that the chief soothsayer's wife would be coming to the bath. A woman went home and told her husband that she would leave him if he did not become a soothsayer. The man went and pondered his situation and ran into a friend. He told his friend his troubles and the friend, who is intimate with the bath-woman, told him not to worry. The bath woman told the man to scribble words down like a soothsayer at the gate of the bath. The bath-woman took the ring of the soothsayer's wife and told the man where to find it. When the soothsayer's wife realized it she threw a fit and the man acted like a soothsayer and told her where it could be found. Everybody believed him to be a soothsayer and when the Sultana lost her ring, he was brought in again to find it. A slave had stolen it and confessed to the man and he had her feed it to a goose and then break its leg. He had the Sultan gather all of the poultry and chose the goose with the broken leg. He was promoted to chief soothsayer.

(Hodjas, Source:UnTextbook)

The Wizard and His Pupil: A young boy ran away from every school that he attended. He asked his mother to allow him to apprentice for a wizard. The boy eventually learned all that he could from the wizard and the wizard told the boy that he would transform into a ram, sell him at market, but be sure to keep the rope. The boy did as he was told and sold the ram for 500 piastres and the wizard escaped and returned to his human form. The wizard transformed into a horse and told the boy to sell him at market but to keep the rope again. When the horse was sold, the boy went home and told his mother that he would transform into a lavish bath and that she was to sell him but to keep the key. When the wizard returned home and saw the boy was gone, he was furious. He went to the market the next day and saw the lavish bath and realized it was the boy. He bid for the bath and refused to pay the mother if she refused the key. She gave it over, but the boy transformed into a bird and the wizard transformed into a falcon. The wizard chased the boy until eventually the boy killed the wizard. A king witnessed all this and offered the boy his daughter to wed and the position of vizir. 

The Liver: A little girl was to buy a piece of liver from the market, wash it in the pond and take it to her mother. When she washing it in the river, a stork stole the liver and refused to give the liver back unless she got him some barley. So the girl went to the farmer and asked for barley, but he asked her to pray for rain. She then had to go the market and get incense for the prayer. The merchant asked for shoes in exchange for the incense. She went to shoemaker and he asked for ox-leather. The tanner wanted a hide in exchange for the leather. She went to the ox and asked for hide and he wanted a piece of straw. She then went to a peasant for straw and he asked for a kiss. She accepted and gained all the objects. She gets to eat the liver with her mother.