The Song of Ganga

The Mountain King's daughter, the Queen of the Water,
Fell in love with that old, old king,
She came to him a lover, he said she was like a daughter,
And left her heart a sad song to sing.

Years passed and years, and yet a maiden was she,
When she went to the plains for the spring,
And the young prince a-hunting, came upon the lady,
"Of the Elephant City, I am the king!"

The Princess of the Mountains, and the Queen of the Plains,
He won her heart, he won everything,
She followed him to his palace, when not hot, filled with rains,
And yet a lonely song did she sing.

For she missed the snowy mountains, she missed the icy rivers,
And most of all she missed the crackling wind,
She drowned her sons in sorrow, and yet he did forgive her,
Till he could not bear to lose his kin.

Seven were her dead sons, and seven, her grave sins,
The eighth was alive and fit and well,
Still she left the king and took with her, the infant prince,
And left him in a cold, living hell.

The Mountain King's daughter, the Queen of the Water,
Was mother to the Terrible Prince,
The first born who would be a prince for ever after,
Pledging his life for his kin.