The Red Hart of Ten
ORIGIN TALE OF THE LOVASNÉP PEOPLE
BARCHETNÉK AND LOVÁSETNÉK AND THE RED HART OF TEN
BARCHETNÉK ÉS LOVÁSETNÉK ÉS A VÖRÖSZARVASJA TÍZ PONT
In ancient times there was a great kingdom in the East. Around its northern borders stood a range of high peaked mountains, and in the south it was bordered by the blue ocean. A broad river flowed down from the mountains, irrigating the fertile plain as it made its way south to the foamy sea. The people who lived in this prosperous kingdom between the mountains and the sea were handsome and clever, and renowned for their art, science and wisdom. The kingdom was ruled by a powerful and benevolent king of the Heberőszian line named Ősinagyapa, who would become the father of many nations.
One day a large and majestic delegation of foreigners from the edge of the world arrived in his capital city, led by a tall swarthy prince named Jóképűherceg. Among the prince’s retinue was a beautiful princess named Hajnalanya. King Ősinagyapa became enamored of the young princess, and arranged to take her as his wife. The following year, she gave birth to twin sons – Barchetnék and Lovásetnék.
King Ősinagyapa doted on Barchetnék and Lovásetnék. In their youth, he saw that they learned grammar, logic and rhetoric. As they grew, they were instructed in arithmetic, geometry, music and astronomy, as well as athletics, sport and the martial arts. On a summer day, as the king was hunting with his two sons, the young princes saw before them a wondrous red hart with ten points upon its horns.
They set out in pursuit, along with several of the royal hunting party, and were led westward over many glades and meadows. As night fell around them, they lost sight of the glorious stag, and so decided to make a camp and await the dawn. When the sun rose in the morning, the magnificent creature reappeared and again Barchetnék and Lovásetnék gave chase. But they could not catch it. The red hart led them further and further west, and out of their own country, but still they continued to pursue the prized beast.
Over mountains and through wild places, and into strange lands they followed the tireless hart for many days, until they found themselves in a vast wetland of fens and bogs. The red hart led them to the mouth of the river that fed the great marshland, and then raced up along its bank. Barchetnék and Lovásetnék followed, up the shallow river until at last they found themselves in a most beautiful country – rich, fertile and full of game. The mighty stag led them on until they came to a wide and deep lake, into which it leapt with a great bound, and was never seen again.
Despondent at their failure to capture the Red Hart of Ten, the brothers and their hunting party returned home to the kingdom between the mountains and the sea. They told their father of their travels in pursuit of the stag, and of the bountiful country it had shown them. King Ősinagyapa listened in wonder to their story, and the following morning he set out with them to see the place for himself.
When Ősinagyapa came to the plenteous land beyond the great marshes, he saw its beautiful hills and valleys, and forests abundant in game, and its clear streams teeming with fish of every kind. The king claimed the country for himself and his sons, and erected a temple on the shore of the wide lake, which he named Lake Vöröszarvas, meaning Lake of the Red Deer. Nearby he built a strong house, which he called Halántékház, to provide accommodation for visitors to the temple.
In the years that followed, Barchetnék and Lovásetnék visited the temple at Lake Vöröszarvas often, and spent many seasons at Halántékház, scouting their new country and the surrounding territories. After seven years, a learned and wise teacher named Bölcstanár, who some say was Saint Abibo, came to the temple from the west, alone and bringing with him only his satchel of scrolls, codices and folios. He set up a school under the spreading branches of an oak tree overlooking Lake Vöröszarvas, and taught the young princes in the ways of the great kings of old.
There came a day in the summer time that Barchetnék and Lovásetnék were traveling along the bank of a swift running brook, when they heard the sound of music. They followed the sound to a clearing in the forest where they spied a circle of dancing and singing maidens who were celebrating the feast of the Summer Moons. The maidens in the clearing were the daughters of the Truysili, and among them were the two beautiful daughters of the Truysil king, Sinsearach.
The princesses were named d’Fhoráil and Anáilfhianna, and the two young men were so enchanted by them that they resolved to marry them. That night, they returned with their men to the Truysil camp in the clearing and kidnapped all of the women, and married them according to their custom. Barchetnék and Lovásetnék each built a strong house near the temple on the shore of Lake Vöröszarvas, and their families prospered and multiplied, along with those of their followers.
Their descendants populated the nearby lands, founding the 108 clans of the Podravian nation, which at its height stretched from the Boreal Sea in the north to the Mascotic Marshes in the south. The descendants of Barchetnék and d’Fhoráil became the nation of the Barchinép, while the descendants of Lovásetnék and Anáilfhianna became the nation of the Lovasnép.
First recorded in the fifth century, the Tale of the Red Hart of Ten is one of the oldest legends of the nation, and purports to tell the history of the origin of the Lovasnép people, as well as to connect them to the Barchinép, from whom the name Barchuria/Barchu is derived. The arrival of the wise teacher is a later addition to the tale, and his anachronistic identification with Saint Abibo was introduced later still. While historically inaccurate, the legend has become so deeply embedded in the Lovasnép identity that most believe it to be entirely true.
One day a large and majestic delegation of foreigners from the edge of the world arrived in his capital city, led by a tall swarthy prince named Jóképűherceg. Among the prince’s retinue was a beautiful princess named Hajnalanya. King Ősinagyapa became enamored of the young princess, and arranged to take her as his wife. The following year, she gave birth to twin sons – Barchetnék and Lovásetnék.
King Ősinagyapa doted on Barchetnék and Lovásetnék. In their youth, he saw that they learned grammar, logic and rhetoric. As they grew, they were instructed in arithmetic, geometry, music and astronomy, as well as athletics, sport and the martial arts. On a summer day, as the king was hunting with his two sons, the young princes saw before them a wondrous red hart with ten points upon its horns.
They set out in pursuit, along with several of the royal hunting party, and were led westward over many glades and meadows. As night fell around them, they lost sight of the glorious stag, and so decided to make a camp and await the dawn. When the sun rose in the morning, the magnificent creature reappeared and again Barchetnék and Lovásetnék gave chase. But they could not catch it. The red hart led them further and further west, and out of their own country, but still they continued to pursue the prized beast.
Over mountains and through wild places, and into strange lands they followed the tireless hart for many days, until they found themselves in a vast wetland of fens and bogs. The red hart led them to the mouth of the river that fed the great marshland, and then raced up along its bank. Barchetnék and Lovásetnék followed, up the shallow river until at last they found themselves in a most beautiful country – rich, fertile and full of game. The mighty stag led them on until they came to a wide and deep lake, into which it leapt with a great bound, and was never seen again.
Despondent at their failure to capture the Red Hart of Ten, the brothers and their hunting party returned home to the kingdom between the mountains and the sea. They told their father of their travels in pursuit of the stag, and of the bountiful country it had shown them. King Ősinagyapa listened in wonder to their story, and the following morning he set out with them to see the place for himself.
When Ősinagyapa came to the plenteous land beyond the great marshes, he saw its beautiful hills and valleys, and forests abundant in game, and its clear streams teeming with fish of every kind. The king claimed the country for himself and his sons, and erected a temple on the shore of the wide lake, which he named Lake Vöröszarvas, meaning Lake of the Red Deer. Nearby he built a strong house, which he called Halántékház, to provide accommodation for visitors to the temple.
In the years that followed, Barchetnék and Lovásetnék visited the temple at Lake Vöröszarvas often, and spent many seasons at Halántékház, scouting their new country and the surrounding territories. After seven years, a learned and wise teacher named Bölcstanár, who some say was Saint Abibo, came to the temple from the west, alone and bringing with him only his satchel of scrolls, codices and folios. He set up a school under the spreading branches of an oak tree overlooking Lake Vöröszarvas, and taught the young princes in the ways of the great kings of old.
There came a day in the summer time that Barchetnék and Lovásetnék were traveling along the bank of a swift running brook, when they heard the sound of music. They followed the sound to a clearing in the forest where they spied a circle of dancing and singing maidens who were celebrating the feast of the Summer Moons. The maidens in the clearing were the daughters of the Truysili, and among them were the two beautiful daughters of the Truysil king, Sinsearach.
The princesses were named d’Fhoráil and Anáilfhianna, and the two young men were so enchanted by them that they resolved to marry them. That night, they returned with their men to the Truysil camp in the clearing and kidnapped all of the women, and married them according to their custom. Barchetnék and Lovásetnék each built a strong house near the temple on the shore of Lake Vöröszarvas, and their families prospered and multiplied, along with those of their followers.
Their descendants populated the nearby lands, founding the 108 clans of the Podravian nation, which at its height stretched from the Boreal Sea in the north to the Mascotic Marshes in the south. The descendants of Barchetnék and d’Fhoráil became the nation of the Barchinép, while the descendants of Lovásetnék and Anáilfhianna became the nation of the Lovasnép.
First recorded in the fifth century, the Tale of the Red Hart of Ten is one of the oldest legends of the nation, and purports to tell the history of the origin of the Lovasnép people, as well as to connect them to the Barchinép, from whom the name Barchuria/Barchu is derived. The arrival of the wise teacher is a later addition to the tale, and his anachronistic identification with Saint Abibo was introduced later still. While historically inaccurate, the legend has become so deeply embedded in the Lovasnép identity that most believe it to be entirely true.
PART OF A SERIES ON
LOVASNÉP MYTHOLOGY
The Turul with the Sword of Teldus
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