अबूखाँची बकरी Abukhanachi Bakri (Abu Khan's Goat - a Tale of Freedom)

हिमालयाच्या पायथ्याशी असलेल्या अलमोरा गावात अबूखाँ नावाचा एकटा म्हातारा राहत असे, जो आपल्या बकऱ्यांवर जीवापलीकडे प्रेम करी. मात्र त्याने कितीही जीव लावला, तरी बकऱ्या डोंगरात चरायला जाण्याची व लांडग्याच्या भीतीची पर्वा न करता संधी मिळताच निघून जात.

In the small village of Almora, nestled at the foot of the Himalayas, lived an old man named Abu Khan, who, being alone, always kept one or two goats and loved them beyond his own life - giving them playful names like Kallu, Mangalia, Gonari and Hukuma. He fed them, told them stories, took them wandering through the valleys, and watched over them anxiously at night, fearful of the wolf. Yet however well he cared for them, whenever they got the chance, the goats went off to graze on the mountain and never tried to return - their inborn love of freedom made them prefer the dangerous life of the wild valleys over the confined safety of Abu Khan's home.

बकऱ्या डोंगरात जाऊन लांडग्याची शिकार होत, हे पाहून अबूखाँ दुःखी होई. शेवटी त्याने बकरी न पाळण्याचे ठरवले, पण करमेना म्हणून त्याने बर्फासारखी शुभ्र, सुंदर बकरी आणली आणि तिचे नाव 'चांदणी' ठेवले. तिला डोंगरात जाण्याची इच्छाही होऊ नये म्हणून त्याने खूप काळजी घेतली.

Seeing his goats repeatedly go off to the mountain and fall prey to the wolf grieved Abu Khan deeply - 'Even after feeding them so well, why don't they stay with me,' he would lament to himself. He finally resolved never to keep a goat again, but within a few days he could not bear the loneliness, so he brought a beautiful little goat, snow-white with soft fur, sharp horns and bright red eyes, and named her 'Chandani' (Little Star). Feeding her generously, keeping her close at all times, and building a sturdy bamboo fence around the house, he arranged everything so that the thought of the mountain would never even cross her mind, and Chandani too settled happily there at first.

एके दिवशी चांदणी सुंदर पर्वतशिखरे पाहते आणि तिच्या मनात डोंगरातील मुक्त जीवनाची तीव्र ओढ निर्माण होते. ती हळूहळू अबूखाँच्या गवत-गोष्टींत रस घेईनाशी होते आणि सतत डोंगराकडेच पाहत बसते.

One day Chandani looked at the beautiful mountain peaks before her, and a thought stirred in her mind - 'Why have we fallen into this bondage? We need the mountain, we need free air, we need to roam wild and joyful - that alone is true happiness of the soul.' After this her behaviour changed entirely - Abu Khan's grass no longer appealed to her, the sweetness of water from his hand was lost, she took no interest in his stories, and she kept gazing constantly towards the mountain. Abu Khan sensed her sorrow and tried harder to care for her, warning her of the wolf to hold her back, but Chandani showed her horns, expressing her resolve to fight.

अबूखाँने चांदणीला खोलीत कोंडले, पण ती खिडकीतून उडी मारून पळाली आणि डोंगराच्या मोकळ्या वातावरणात मनमुराद नाचली, खेळली. रात्री लांडगा आला, तेव्हा चांदणी घाबरली नाही - तिने प्राणपणाने झुंज दिली आणि सूर्योदयापर्यंत लढत राहिली. शेवटी ती रक्तबंबाळ होऊन पडली, पण एका शहाण्या पक्ष्याने सांगितले की ही झुंज चांदणीनेच जिंकली.

To keep Chandani safe, Abu Khan locked her in a room, but overlooked the window, and Chandani leapt through it, gathering all her strength to flee. The mountain seemed to welcome her with open arms - there were no four walls, no fence, no rope to bind her; she danced, played, frolicked and sang to her heart's content. In the evening, Abu Khan's whistle called her back, but Chandani resisted the temptation. At night, when the wolf came to pounce, Chandani did not flinch - resolving 'we are not cowards, we are brave, we must fight,' she confronted it like a tigress. The battle raged all night, and when the cock finally crowed at dawn, Chandani lay bleeding and battered - yet a wise bird perched on a tree declared, 'This fight was won by Chandani,' for she had fought bravely for her freedom to her very last breath.