Mohna de gori kayina

The folktale Mohna De Gori Kayina follows the adventures of Radi Mai Batau Tura of Delhi (also known by Chhail Batohi Kunwar) and Queen Mohna De Gori Kayina of Avdhe Nagar (present day Jaijaipur). A similar telling of the story was compiled in the book In quest of Indian folktales: Pandit Ram Gharib Chaube and William Crooke by Sadhana Naithani. The narration and story are different than the Chhattisgari version, possibly due to differences in location.
Plot
There were five Fakirs who served King Akbar the Great that decided to travel from Delhi to Avdhe Nagar, Chhatisgarh in order to beg for alms. Once they arrived they were welcomed by Queen Mohna De Gori Kayina, who rewarded them with alms and gifts for their long journey. Before they were to leave to return home, the queen asked them if they would be able to deliver something to King Akbar, asking them if they would actually deliver the present or if they would keep it for their own purposes. The Fakirs replied that they were trustworthy and would take care to deliver it to King Akbar as if it were their own sons.
The queen commanded that two statues be made in her image, one of gold and another of silver, and gave them to the Fakirs to deliver to King Akbar. On their return to Delhi the Fakirs debated whether they should visit their homes first or if they should immediately deliver the statues to their king. After some consideration they decided that it was their duty to deliver the presents first and immediately went to the court to present the gifts. The king was struck by the depictions of the queen's beauty and asked the Fakirs how beautiful the queen actually was. Without thinking, the Fakirs replied that she was so beautiful that eating paan was like the lower portion of her heel.
King Akbar immediately sent the Fakirs to jail and after consulting with his Prime Minister Birbal, decided that he would reward anyone who were to get a nude portrait of the queen with half of his kingdom and treasury. The challenge was announced and a tray of paan with betel was circulated in the royal court, for to take the paan was to accept the challenge. Nobody in the court dared to accept the challenge and the dish was passed to the surrounding city.
Later in the afternoon the king's cowherd Radi Mai Batau Tura was returning from duty and without knowing the meaning behind the paan, put it in his mouth. Negi Birball immediately asked Radi if he would take responsibility for his actions, to which the boy answered that he would. Radi was brought before the king, who was disappointed by the appearance of the youthful boy. Upon noticing the king's disappointment, Birbal replied that if he had brought some other person with him the king would be delighted, but upon bringing his own cowherd the king's heart was full of remorse.
In Popular Culture
Many idioms of day-to-day talk in Chhattisgarh are taken from this story, including:
# Gaay La Nai Dekhe An Ta Ka Okar Dharsa Na Nai Dekhe An (I haven't seen the cow, but have I not also seen the way through which it walks?)
# SatGatVa Bhaat (A Brahmin who is acting so only for namesake)
# Tola To Kasno Kar Ke Khusaar Lebo, Tor Haathi Sahi Ghoda Ke Taapu Ha Nai Samavaye (We can pull you in a hole but how canwe pull your horse whose even hoof would not enter concerning the size of hole)
# Ka Mor Jaat-Saga Ha Mor Sange Sang Kindarathe (Are folks of my caste walking along with me to watch over me?)
Bibliography
* Sadhana Naithani In Quest of Indian Folktales: Pandit Ram Gharib Chaube and William Crooke. Indiana University Press, 2005. ISBN 978-0253345448

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