Then the Tom-tom Beater, being invisible to everybody, descended from the tree, and went to his village.
Two or three days afterwards, he came with the wedding party to the Gamarāla’s house, for the purpose of taking away the daughter. Thereupon, having eaten the [wedding] feast, on the morning of the following day, because the giving of the Gamarāla’s daughter was demeaning he put her in a sack, and having tied it as a bundle for carrying under a pole, [the Gamarāla] gave her, placing [the pole] on the shoulders of two persons, and telling them to go. Then, lifting up the load, the party went away. Having gone thus, it having become night they stayed near a tree.
At yet [another] city, the King of the city, having seized a bear that ate human flesh, and put it in a sack, and tied it as a bundle for carrying under a pole, gave it to two persons, and told them to take it and throw it into the river.
At that time that party also came to the place where that [other] party were staying. Thereupon, without speaking they placed the two bundles in one spot. In the very same way again, without speaking they were sleeping in one place.
On the morning of the following day, at dawn, the wedding party having arisen went to the village, taking the bundle in which the bear was tied.
The people who remained here unfastened the bag in order to put the bear into the river. At that time [they saw that] a Princess was there. So the party having gone taking the Princess gave her to the King. Then the King married that Queen.
The wedding party who went taking the bear bundle having gone to the house, that very day, in order that the faults (dōsa) of the bride and bridegroom might go, drove away any evil influence of the planets (baliyak).
At that time, having put the sack and the bridegroom into a house they shut and tied the door. Having tied it they conducted the service [against the evil influence of the planets] in the open.
Thereupon the bridegroom who was inside the house unfastened the sack in order to take out the bride. Then the bear having come out began to bite the man. The bridegroom said, “Don’t bite me! Don’t bite me!” When he was saying it, the men who were sending away the evil planetary influences said, “Āyibō! Āyibō!”[1] The two who were in the house remained without speaking any words [after that].
Thereupon it became light. These people having gone [there] opened the door. Then the bear that ate men having sprung outside and bitten the [would-be] mother-in-law, went into the midst of the forest. The bridegroom, the bear having bitten him, died.