Sassi Punnu Lovestory that is legendary
Love that still exists even after death. I always here that some love stories leave a print behind and become legendary. Now a days love is a game for some people but if we go back in time, there was true love that still breaks our heart when we hear stories. The story I am about to tell you now is also one of the stories that will define true and honest love of two people who died for each other but there love is still in the air.
Sassi Punnun was written by the Sindhi and Sufi poet, Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai in (1689-1752).
Sassi was a romantic soul, the daughter of King Adam khan of Bhambour. When she was born the astrologers predicted that she was a curse for the royal family’s prestige. The king ordered that the child should be put in a wooden chest with a ‘taweez’(a royal family necklace) on her neck and thrown into the river Chenab. The chest was seen floating by Atta, the washer man of Bamboon village. The dhobi (washer) believed the child was a blessing from God and took her home and adopted her as his child. As the years passed by and the king did not have another child, so he decides to get married again. When he heard that the daughter of Atta, the washer man, was as beautiful as the angels, the king invited her to the palace. Sassi was still wearing the taweez (amulet), which the queen mother had put around her neck when she was taken away to be drowned. The king recognized his daughter immediately on seeing the tabweez. The pent-up sufferings of the parents flowed into tears. They wanted their lost child to return to the palace and bring joy and brightness to their lives, but Sassi refused and preferred to live in the house where she had grown up. She refused to leave the man who had adopted her.
When Sassi became a young girl, she was as beautiful as the fairies of heaven. Stories of her beauty reached Punnu and he became desperate to meet Sassi. The handsome young Prince therefore travelled to Bhambour. He sent his clothes to Sassi's father (a washerman) so that he could catch a glimpse of Sassi. When he visited the washerman's house, they fell in love with each other. Sassi's father was dispirited, hoping that Sassi would marry a washerman and no one else. He asked Punnu to prove that he was worthy of Sassi by passing the test as a washerman. Punnu agreed to prove his love. While washing, he tore all the clothes as, being a prince, he had never washed any clothes; he failed the test. But before he returned those clothes, he hid gold coins in the pockets of all the clothes, hoping this would keep the villagers quiet. The trick worked, and Sassi's father agreed to the marriage. Punnu’s Baluchi brothers developed an enmity for Sassi. They followed him and on reaching the town they saw the marriage celebrations of Sassi and Punnu in full swing, they could not bear the rejoicing. That night the brothers pretended to enjoy and participate in the marriage celebrations and forced Punnu to drink different types of liquor. When he was dead drunk the brothers carried him on a camel’s back and returned to their hometown Kicham.
The next morning, when Sassi realized that she was cheated, she became mad with the grief of separation from her lover and ran barefoot towards the town of Kicham. To reach it, she had to cross miles of desert. Alone, she continued her journey until her feet were blistered and her lips were parched from crying "Punnun, Punnun!". The journey was full of dangerous hazards, which lead to her demise. Punnu’s name was on Sassi's lips throughout the journey. She was thirsty, there she saw a shepherd coming out of a hut. He gave her some water to drink. Seeing her incredible beauty, dirty lustful thoughts came into his mind, and he tried to force himself on Sassi. Sassi ran away and prayed to God to hide her and when God listened to her prayers, land shook and split and Sassi found herself buried in the valley of mountains. When Punnu woke he was himself in Makran he could not stop himself from running back to Bhambour On the way he called out "Sassi, Sassi!" to which the shepherd replied. The shepherd told Punnu the whole story. Then Punnu also lamented the same prayer, the land shook and split again and he was also buried in the same mountain valley as Sassui. The legendary grave still exists in this valley. Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai sings this historic tale in his sufi poetry as an example of eternal love and union with Divine.