This great Central Asian epic passed down through generations and now brought to life in a new
translation carries the reader into a world of nomads warriors and horselords'I am a
steel-fanged lion a dragon ready to pounce a mighty poplar with golden branches rising up to
the sky'The bard Saghïmbay Orozbaq uulu composed his oral telling of the great Central Asian
Manas epic in the early twentieth century although it draws on far older sources. This vivid
episode from his narrative tells the bravura story of an uncertain new khan Boqmurun who
holds a great feast to commemorate his predecessor Kökötöy. From east and west warriors and
their turbulent retinues come to compete in horse races jousting and wrestling and soon
insults are hurled and scores settled violently. Yet none can beat the supreme hero the mighty
truculent Manas. By turns earthy stirring bombastic and funny Saghïmbay's work stands as a
monument to the oral culture of a nomadic people.Daniel Prior's landmark translation includes a
'How to Read the Epic' section commentary maps and illustrations.Composed in oral performance
by Saghïmbay Orozbaq uulu Translated by Daniel Prior
