# The Bosom of Noorna explained — The Shaving of Shagpat

> Chapter companion for The Shaving of Shagpat by George Meredith.

## What happens

Noorna waits on the mountain in outer Aklis with Koorookh, teaching the bird to speak. She discovers through divination that Shibli Bagarag has peered through the veil of the ferrying figure in Aklis, rendering his name unutterable. Grieving but resolute, she enters a cavern, plunges into a torrent, and rescues Shibli and Abarak from the water. She revives Shibli in her bosom, and they mount Koorookh to fly onward.

## Themes in this chapter

### Love and Sacrifice

Noorna's grief and her daring rescue of Shibli from the torrent demonstrate her sacrificial love.

### Transformation and Renewal

Shibli is revived from near-death in Noorna's bosom, symbolizing renewal and preparation for the task ahead.

## Character check-ins

### Noorna bin Noorka

Waits on the mountain with Koorookh, divines Shibli's fate, rescues him from the torrent, and revives him in her bosom.

### Shibli Bagarag

Rescued unconscious from the water by Noorna; revived in her bosom.

### Abarak

Rescued from the torrent alongside Shibli; mounts Koorookh for the flight.

### Koorookh

Noorna's bird companion; taught to speak, helps rescue Shibli and Abarak, and carries them in flight.

## Key lines

> Noorna was wroth with it, crying, 'Oh naughty bird! is the name of my beloved hateful to thee?'

Noorna scolded Koorookh for refusing to say Shibli's name correctly.

_Shows Noorna's frustration and the bird's peculiar resistance._

> She counted the letters in the name of her betrothed, that were thirteen, and spelt them backwards, afterwards multiplying them by an equal number, and fashioning words from the selection of every third and seventh letter.

Noorna performed a numerological divination on Shibli's name.

_Reveals her magical knowledge and the revelation of Shibli's altered state._

> She, knotting her garments round the waist to give her limbs freedom and swiftness, ran a space, and then bent and plunged, catching, as she rose, the foremost to her bosom

Noorna tied up her clothes and dove into the torrent to catch the first figure that swept by.

_Highlights her bravery and decisive action in rescuing Shibli._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_shaving_of_shagpat_se/chapters/the-bosom-of-noorna
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_shaving_of_shagpat_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_shaving_of_shagpat_se/chapters