What made the Bastis and the Nathos to quarrel?  Why did the inhabitants of the Valley split-up?

             The incident that spoiled  relations between the two families and virtually divided the people of the Valley in to two camps had taken place many years ago:

             The people of the Valley traditionally welcomed  the spring season  with  colorful festivity. Each year on the occasion of the Spring Festival the people from all the fifteen villages used to get together at an expansive meadow close to the River Kuban. It was a beautiful spot  they called “Tham Yiane”¹ . It was situated on the right bank of the river. The Psifabe Stream passed through a bottleneck before expanding its bed  as it entered the meadow. Here it formed a large natural pool.

             No one could tell when the Spring Festival had begun to be celebrated; but there were too many to answer the question as to why it was celebrated.  To the youth it meant games,  entertainment and  rejoicing; to the aged it meant tradition;  to the sprituel it meant a welcome gesture for the nature’s awakening and a thanks giving to the gods.

             The Adiges, the ascendants of the inhabitants of the Valley had been a polytheist community since time immemorial. The most important among their gods were: Sible² , Leps³ , Seosaero⁴ , Ziguthe⁵  and Mezitha⁶  .  They believed in the goddesses of  forest and water; as well as in the existence  spirits capable of rendering  good or  evil.  They  had special reverence for the aged oak which they termed as “Kotij”.

            But over and above  the divine beings stated above the people believed in the unity of  God, supreme, omnipotent , “the God of all the gods and goddesses”, and the creator of the universe.  They called Him “Tha”.

             May be that by celebrating the Festival of Spring the people of the Psifabe Valley meant to offer their homage to Arinna⁷  the goddess of hunting and abundance  of the ancient Hittities, whom they believed as being the progenitor of Mezitha. This, however, can’t be construed as a conscious way of life. So it may be concluded that the Festival of Spring was a jubilation of unknown origin, but popular and monumental.

             The row between the Bastis and the Nathos had raptured because of a regrettable incident that took place during one of those celebrations

             It was a  pleasant sunny day, thirty years before Ahmet Sena’s arrival in Caucasia. The spring had awakened the nature.  Everywhere the ground was covered in green. The people of the Psifabe Valley rushed to celebrate the arrival of the spring season since early that morning. They advanced in groups towards
the Tham Yiane meadow.  Smaller groups merged  together to form more crowded ones, then into a sea of human being, flowing to the north. The youth singing and shouting joyously; the elders loudly narrating  the legends of their forefathers, as they advanced. The young musicians accompanied them by playing their instruments and by cheering up rhythmically. The theatrical actors made brief stops and  demonstrated their skill. The horsemen manifested their gallantry by performing  mounted acrobatism around the heavy bull-carts and in front of those on foot. While   those  proceeding  along the right side of the stream sung the song of the Kafe, the daughter of Kebertey; those proceeding on the left side of the stream responded by singing the song of the legendary heroine, the beautiful Ridade.

             Those too old  to walk were carried on horse-back. The younger ones boarded carts decorated to the occasion. The mothers, the maidens and girls were walking by the side of the vehicles or followed them  enviously. And at the end of the procession were the servants and the slaves, who most earnestly herded  the animals to be slaughtered at the site of the festival.

             There was a wooden bridge across the stream  to the south of the Tham Yiane meadow.  It was built for the occasion to help those coming in from the left bank. The advance parties approaching from either side of the stream were supposed to meet at the bridgehead. The mounted  merry-makers  approaching along the right bank were quick to take their place in a file. The mounted festival enthusiasts approaching along the left bank, were galloping across the bridge, leaving the vehicles and the walkers behind.

             Meanwhile the mounted men on the right side simulated a defensive maneuver; as if  trying to check the advancing group from the left. It appeared as a  real battle scene, though without a shooting.

             As the mounted men from the left bank galloped across the bridge and tried to enter the meadow without being caught, the other group already positioned across the stream  attempted to block their way.  The terrain was slightly graded up towards the north in the direction of the meadow. On the meadow, covered with green grass and batches of trees, practically a horse scramble had ensued. The horse-men, dismounted by  accident or by design through being pushed  or pulled down, undauntedly attacked  their adversary. A dismounted horse-man  with a well trained horse could summon his animal by whistling or calling it by name, and could  remount in no time.

             The main body of the merry-makers  arriving from both sides of the stream watched the performance of the horse-men with  great sensation and     amusement.

             Finally the simulated confrontation was concluded peacefully, and the show was equally enjoyed by all. Then the  horse-men gracefully began to ascend the slope in twin  columns  towards the Tham Yiane meadow.

             The horse-men were followed by the vehicles and  by the main body of the participants of the festival approaching on foot.

             As the procession, including the parties from both side of the stream,  moved towards the meadow they chanted an epic song, a centuries-old common heritage.  While the group to the left sang the main stanzas, the one to the right responded vocalizing the refrain. Depending on the rhythm of the song, the procession often either slowed down or at times stopped moving forward. As the rhythm became solemn a gloomy atmosphere prevailed; the female and the aged could not help wailing.

             By the time the crowed reached the center of Tham Yiane chanting ended.  The horsemen dismounted and took position in rows. Also the  bulk of the participants, those in vehicles and those on foot, took their respective places either at the eastern or western sector of the meadow, depending on whether they belonged to the right bank or to the left bank of the Psifabe Stream.

             Şora, the most honored elder of the Psifabe Valley,  had come there in the company of those from the left bank.

             As Şora gracefully proceeded to the center of the meadow, a  complete silence dominated the scene.

             He halted right at the center; and turned to the lot from the right bank.  The aged were seated in the front row.

             Şora addressed them:

             -- Adiges ,  I welcome you!

             There came a humming response from the crowd on the right: “Thank you!”

             Şora went on to say:

             -- My fellow companions have proposed that I should inaugurate this auspicious festival.  Do you also agree to the proposal?

            The crowd on the right again  gave out a humming response: “We agree; we accept the proposal.”

             Şora cautiously gazed at the thick crowd that filled the Tham Yiane meadow from one end to another. Then turned his face to the south  towards the mountain ranges  in the background. The horizon was silver bright.  The mountain summits were overcast, were lost into an infinite depth. Their existence could  only be perceived. Far away in the woods bright water crystals  twinkled.  As the moisture  ascended to the sky, it assumed  a pleasant blue  shade that relaxed humans spirit.

             Şora raised his hand high above his head and looked towards the indefinite depth.

             -- Thanks to our Tha , who has once again brought us together.

             An intense humming raised from the crowd that filled the meadow: “Thanks to our Tha!” repeated the crowd in response.  It resounded through the valley, as far as the marshy land  of the River  Kuban.

             Şora continued in a stern and clear voice not expected of him at that age. He said,

             -- We have just spent another year in peace, in happiness, full of worldly  blessings.  We are together here once again.  Today we are going to manifest the finest example of  peaceful co-existence.

             Thanks be to Mezitha, who blessed us with affluence!

             The crowd reciprocated Şora repeating “ Thanks be to Mezitha!”

             Şora lowered his hands, for a moment bowed his head, and remained motionless, apparently in meditation. He then slowly turned facing to the north, so that the main body of his audience were on his left, his right and in front of him.

             Şora, having thus finished his compliments to the divinely beings, turned to the audience. He said,

             -- Dear Adiges! We are going to prove ourselves worthy of our ancestors. We are going to perpetuate the fine traditions we have inherited. If that is done, we would have ensured our own descendants survive to eternity. No one would dare to do is there to entertain us. See how the sun shines! How beautiful  the environment is!

             Let this happy day bring luck to all of us!

             The crowd responded with jubilant shouting.

             Şora was tired. But yet he moved towards the congregation of  the participants from the right bank.  He had embracement  with the elders in the front row.

             The participants from the left bank had  followed Şora  in the same direction.

             Suddenly a total disarray occurred. People from either side of the Valley rushed towards one another, began to embrace and congratulate each other, and reciprocally offered good wishes. Particularly those who expected their friends or associates rushed to find them; and those who found them immediately formed their own groups.  Everybody, male or female, was on the lookout  to find a group in accordance with his or her own age or social status to join in. Strangers mixed up together and became informal  quite easily.  Children shouted joyously and started their first play for  the day.

             Euphoria had reached the apex.

             The confusion continued for some time;  but later gradually subsided as people began selecting their camping place under clusters of trees around the Tham Yiane meadow to settle down.

             In no time everybody had  found a suitable place for himself.  The vehicles  and the beasts of burden were unloaded.  The animals were tied  up at the pastures to east across  the wood , and guards were appointed to look after them.

             Camp-fires were lit up.

             Şora offered the first sacrifice at the altar of  the deity Mezitha at the very center of the Tham Yiane meadow. It was a white lamb, a product of the New Year.  Others followed the suit. Each family offered its sacrifice at the respective camping place. It could be a couple of sheep, a goat, or a bull, depending on the financial status of the family.

             By now the day had considerably advanced, as it was evident from the position the sun over  the sky.  The children playing at the natural terraces to the east of the meadow notified the arrival of the hunting group.  They joyfully shouted, “ Here come the hunters!”.  Soon the people at  the meadow sighted the advance party of the hunters. All faces turned towards the mountain terrace;  every body stood up and began watching  the new arrivals.

              The best hunters of the Valley  had set out for collective hunting  after midnight  the day before. In fact they had planned their arrival  at that particular hour in advance.

10              The hunters approached the meadow in two columns, each following a different course. The spare horses were loaded with hunted animals and birds.  As they reached the middle of the meadow they stood in a row. They (the hunters) began to unload and  to exhibit  their prey, which included deer, roebucks,  rabbits, assortments of birds and a number of animals hunted for the sake of their fur.

             Şora, accompanied by elders, welcomed the hunters. They were followed by a large crowd; curious youngsters had surrounded them.

             He watched the prey for a while; and then stepped back. In a vibrating voice he said:

             --Youth!

             It silenced the crowd.

             Şora went on:

             -- You have proved yourselves worthy of  carrying  a weapon. By practicing the fine customs of  our ancestors you have pleased their soul.

             Our country is  rich, our land is fertile!

             Şora pointed at the prey stretching his hand in that direction.

              -- Here is the proof!  The land is like a mother feeding us on her milk. It is her warm and tenderly lap. We are duty bound to appreciate its worth. To protect it, to defend it is a matter of honor and pride. This land shall remain ours, in peace, forever. Should need arise, we shall lay our lives at the altar of the homeland.

             I congratulate you! May Tha’s approbation be upon you!

             Şora was silent for a moment, gazed over the row of hunters from one end to the other; and then concluded:

             --You are tired.  Now please retire, join your kin and take a rest.

             As Şora and the elders accompanying him withdrew, the young hunters stood in attention for a while; and then shouldered their prey to the respective camps, assisted by fellow kinsmen. On their way out from the site of the ceremony they cut joke with the youngsters engaged in cooling the horses.

             There was a  grove of  wide topped plane trees to form  the eastern fringe  of the Tham Yiane meadow. There were about ten aged plane-trees surrounding the bank of a pool of crystal clear water.  According to hearsay these were one  thousand years old.  People used to take care of them out of reverence. The trees formed a high  and wide roof over the pool.  The space under the trees was cozy and clean. It was furnished with locally woven rugs, felts, fur-skins and pillows; so that the elders from the Valley could be entertained there.

             Şora and the elders accompanying him returned to the plane-tree-grove after having greeted the hunters.  As they approached, everybody there stood up.  As he settled in his seat, then the rest present there also sat down.

             Next to Şora were seated the most prominent ones of  the valley elders.  The celebrations in the Psifabe Valley, marking  the advent of the Spring Season, was famous in the region . Therefore, numerous visitors from outside the Valley used to turn up to watch the festivity. This time too there were visitors from Eastern Hatkoy, Kemguy, Mehosh. Abzah and Bejduğ.

             The elders, especially those seated around Şora, were quiet. They silently watched the hue and cry  going on at the camping site.

             People there were as busy as the bees: Cauldrons being boiled, the slaughtered animals being stripped, young ladies and grandmas unpacking the food they had prepared at home days in advance, and everything being re-examined.

             At an isolated space  the  youthful hunters were busy with stripping off the skin  or the feather of their prey; and  a group of  people well versed with the delicacy of the job were engaged in processing the stuff to be cooked.  As the food so prepared were to be offered to the elders first, everybody involved was extra careful.

             Delightful sound of music and singing begun to be heard from the shady spaces at the rear of the camping site.  Young girls  and boys, not assigned to any particular job, were clustered around  there with the consent of their parents.

             At a solitary spot  a middle aged man, apparently affected by traditionalist passion, was playing  pkhapşin⁸ .At another spot another young man played a nostalgic tune on his kamil⁹.  A young girl playing a pşine¹⁰ had attracted a larger crowd  of listeners. Pşine  was a new instrument in Caucasia.  It is an imported item.  Within a short period since its introduction in the region it became one of the most  popular musical instruments because it was found highly adaptable to the intonations of  Caucasian folk music.

             While a group sang a historic piece in the accompaniment of musical performance, it was  reciprocated by another group singing the deju (the refrain) of the same song.  The Gaguako¹¹, a musical troupe from the west bank, was yet in the waiting.  Its leader Usako¹² was listening to the young singers and musicians, trying to figure out the most talented among them.

             The children, always apt to be on their own, were deeply engaged at playing. Some were wrestling and some were chasing one another breathlessly. The girls were rather sober, would complain to their mothers if any boy attempted  to spoil their play.

             This delightful scene of hustle and bustle was not to last long. No one was supposed to behave arbitrarily  at the Spring Festival.  Even if one wished so, one wouldn’t find an opportunity; because there was a set programs and rules to be strictly followed in the performance of the ceremonies.

.             Şora and the elders accompanying him had appointed Janko  as the Master of Ceremony.

             Janko was 45, tall and impressive;  was a good speaker. His serious posture impressed  everyone.  Notwithstanding his serene  outlook, he was  some what nervous when the job was entrusted to him.

             Janko, immediately after assuming the responsibility, walked across the Tham Yıane meadow from one end to the other; inspected the camping one by one. He selected 15 assistants , as required  by tradition.   In doing so he was quite scrupulous.  He picked up young men of integrity and physical strength, capable of  maintaining impartiality under any circumstance. He selected half of his assistants from the left bank and half from right bank.  Thus he set up a  fair precedence of an efficient manager.

             Janko held the first meeting with his assistants at the center of the Tham Yıane meadow. He proposed his youthful  assistants to swear before Tha to be fair.

             To conduct the ceremony was a distinguished responsibility. The entire people of the Valley depended on  Janko and his assistants.  For one whole year after the festival they were expected to remain a topic of discussion in the area. So mindful of the significance of the job, they swore as proposed; promised to act in conformity with the object of the festival.

             Then a discussion  of  what must be done ensued.  A program for the day was charted out.

             According to the decisions taken by Janko and his assistants, firstly breakfast was to be served  to the elders and the guests.  Between the breakfast and the lunch time a number of competitions and dancing were to be performed.  The most difficult and trying  competitions were to be performed in the afternoon.

             The program put  in to effect immediately.  Tripod  wooden tables were set for the elders and the guests, and were  filled with cheese, honey, butter, and an assortment of  cookies. The elders were served by about twenty young men in addition to Janko and his assistants.

             Soon after the breakfast Janko sent out his assistants to invite all the youth of the Valley  to gather at the center of the Tham Yıane meadow.  The youth, boys and girls, lined up at an angle over-looking the camping site.  The girls had lined up in a north to west formation, and  the boys in a  north to east formation in multiple rows. The Geguakos  had taken their place in front row of the male youth.

12             Janko’s assistants rounded up the mischievous children and lined them up in front of the camping site.

             The elders and female  members of the Valley’s population  were to watch the games from a distance.

             When all were set,  Janko approached the elders in slow pace, and requested for permission to start the dance. “Let them start”, said some of the elders in chorus.  Şora turned to Janko and moved his head, meaning “go ahead”.  Janko retreated back in slow pace without turning his back to the elders as a gesture of reverence; and at a distance of about twenty paces away from  the elders, he turned back and rushed towards the youth. Music started with Janko’s signal.

             Janko had deputized Hatur to direct the entertainment.  He was single in his thirties, a chronic bachelor, which  wasn’t a rare case in Adiğey¹³.   He was a composed  young man; well built, efficient, and well versed in traditional formalities.

             To start with, Hatur invited Janko to dance.  Janko smiled as he stepped forward gracefully, insinuating reprimand to Hatur for involving him in the performance. Hatur smiled too, approached Libe, the senior most among the girls, and asked if she could be Janko’s dancing mate.  Libe simply smiled, and accompanied  Hatur, who  presented her to Janko.

The Geguako orchestra stopped playing in response to Hatur’s signal. He then whispered: “ Adige Kafe”.  The orchestra started playing  Kafe¹⁴

             Janko, a one time, dancing champion, was overwhelmed by the melancholic melody of Kafe, as it resounded throughout the Tham Yiane meadow. Janko  advanced towards Libe, who reciprocated him with a similar gesture.

            The young assemblage clapped in tempo with the music and sang the refrain (recurrent verse). The harmonious sound emitted by hundreds of  young men and women resounded in the woods near by.

             Janko and Libe rhythmically danced for quite a long time presenting  wonderful configurations. The spectators, seated and  standing, immensely enjoyed the performance, which they welcomed with ovation. Şora too could not help

¹ Tham Yıane  : god meal
² Şible : god of lightening, war and justice.
³ Leps : god of minerals and fire.
⁴ Seossaeros    : god of  the seamen, the streams and rivers, and  the wind.
⁵ Zigutha  : god of travelers.
⁶ Mezitha : god of the forests.
⁷ Arinna : A Hittite goddess of  hunting and abundance. First found in Anatolia. Her cult was spread over a wide area.
⁸ A kind of violin
⁹ Flute, pipe
¹⁰ Harmonica, harmonium
¹¹ A troupe consisted of professional poets, musicians and  dancers.
¹² Usakos a the composer of  folk song poetry  for the Geguako troupe
¹³ The land of Adages
¹⁴ A fine example of Caucasian folk-dance.  The Kafe music and  dance are  rather slow.  It originated in the Kebertey  region. It has been rendered in several forms. In contemporary Caucasia its notes in various forms and renditions are available