Abskril's childhood was wonderful. He grew by leaps and bounds. In ten years he became an adult. His mind also quickly matured, his strength strengthened, and his dexterity developed.
In those days, Apsny - the Country of the Soul - was often attacked by foreigners and ravaged it. Abskril gathered his brave relatives and defeated his enemies in hot battles.
The raids stopped, and the country of Apsny became calm. The name Abskril alone struck fear into his enemies; the enemies were afraid to draw their weapons; their checkers and daggers rusted in their sheaths. And the people loved their friend and protector Abskril. Rumors about him spread from country to country, from edge to edge.
When the robbers and robbers disappeared, Abskril began to destroy the ferns that were sucking its life-giving juices out of the earth, cut down the thorny tree, and cut down the vines hanging across the roads. And the fields began to produce unprecedented harvests, lush grasses turned green in the meadows, the udders of cows and goats were full of milk.
Abskril was merciless towards oppressors and evil people, but he did not want to put up with God. He rushed high in the sky on his war horse, arash, chopped clouds with a saber and struck lightning from them. If on the ground his path was blocked by a tenacious vine that had spread from tree to tree, he would cut it down so that he would not have to bend down and so that people would not think: “Here Abskril bows his head to God.”
But Abskril had a rival in strength - the evil giant Adau. He lived on a high inaccessible mountain; From there he stretched out his long arms to the sea and sank ships on a whim. When he was hungry, he snatched fish from the abyss, brought it to the sun, baked it and ate it with the bones.
One day Abskril took over the Adau. He approached the giant and called out to him:
- Hey, what are you doing here?
- Don't you see? I eat fish.
“And you’re not capable of anything else?”
“But now I’ll jump into the sea and throw out so much water that it will drown all the coastal inhabitants and you along with them.” Beware! - the adau shouted and was about to jump.
But Abskril was ahead of the villain. He shot an arrow at him, it stuck in his leg and the adau fell to the ground. And the blood flowed in such a stormy stream that it almost carried Abskril into the sea. Adau jerked his wounded leg and knocked down a centuries-old oak grove with his ankle.
Finally, God became unable to bear Abskril’s proud disposition, so he called his servants and said:
- Go, grab this proud man, throw him into the abyss, and let him suffer there until he comes to his senses.
But Abskril chose the top of Mount Ertsakhu and the seaside as refuges. As soon as God's servants reached Ertsakh, Abskril jumped on his faithful arash and he instantly carried him to the seashore. There Abskril lay down in the shadow of a cliff on a cloak and rested. And when God’s servants went down to the shore, he again sat on the arash and it rushed him to the top of Ertsakhu.
This is how Abskril escaped from his enemies. God's servants could not do anything about him. Finally, they went to an old sorceress who had once given her word to Abskril that she would give up her vile craft, and he spared her. She hated him in the depths of her heart.
- Help us out! - God's messengers prayed. “We can’t cope with Abskril without your help.”
“Kill a herd of bulls and cows,” the old woman said in response, “remove their skins, lay them with the hairless side up at the top of Ertsakhu and sprinkle them with millet.” When Arash steps on the skins, he will slip and fall. Here, grab Abskril.
Having done everything as the sorceress ordered them, part of God’s servants headed to the seashore, where Abskril was resting, and the other began to lie in wait for him at the top. As always, the sensitive Arash neighed and warned his owner about the danger. Abskril jumped on it and instantly found himself at the gray-headed peak of Ertsakhu. But Arash slipped on the skins, Abskril did not have time to jump off him and both fell into a deep gorge. There, God's messengers grabbed and tied up the hero.
God ordered his servants to chain Abskril and imprison him in the most inaccessible cave. The old witch pointed them to the Chlou Cave. The chained Abskril and his faithful Arash were imprisoned in it. And the chains were attached to an iron pole driven deep into the ground. God instructed the sorceress to watch the cave so that no one gets in there. Abskril had to die of hunger.
But the old woman, having quenched her thirst for revenge, still took pity on Abskril - she gave him milk and boiled pumpkin, and ground steel for Arasha.
God found out about this and became angry; he turned the sorceress into a dog and cast a spell on her - to forever guard Abskril and his arash. Then the dog began to lick the chain with which Abskril was chained. Soon the chain became thinner - it became like a silk thread. But as soon as the dog sat down to rest, the chain became the same. Again the dog began to lick, thinning the chain, and again the chain was restored as soon as the dog got tired. This was repeated endlessly.
Abskril did not sleep either; he was shaking the iron pillar with even greater fury. Now the pillar is already shaking, another push, and now, it seems, Abskril will bring it down and free himself. But suddenly some black bird lands on the top of the pillar, and the prisoner notices that the pillar has ceased to yield to his efforts. Abskril drives the bird away, tries to shake the post again, but again it lands on the top of the post... In frustration, the hero hits the place where the bird sat with a hammer, but only drives the post deeper into the ground.
The hero works again - day after day, night after night. But his efforts are in vain: as soon as the pillar shakes, an unknown bird flies in...
One day, brave people with lit torches penetrated into the depths of the cave; they loudly called Abskril, they wanted to free him. They walked for a long time in waist-deep water, exhausted from the cold. It was not easy for them to walk in a low cave with an uneven arch. At this time, Abskril, gritting his teeth, was shaking the pillar. Then he heard human voices, and the chained Arash neighed joyfully. A ray of light flashed in the darkness.
Abskril's voice came from the darkness of the cave:
- You, good people, will not get to me. When you approach, evil forces remove me from you, come back! Just tell me, do ferns and weeds still grow on the ground? Are there still thorns and thorns? Do evil people oppress the weak?
“Yes, ferns are growing,” the Abskril admirers who entered the cave answered with sorrow. - There are thorns and thorns, evil people oppress the weak!..
Abskril pulled the pillar with renewed vigor and the chains began to ring. Hero simply:
- Eh, there is still no happiness in one’s native country, there is still no peace for a person on earth!
With that the cave fell silent and was silent for centuries.
Sometimes people talk about the captivity of Abskril differently. They say that he was always rescued by a mountain staff - alabasha - with a sharp iron tip. In a moment of danger, Abskril stuck the alabasha into the ground and, leaning on it, made such a jump that he disappeared from the eyes of his enemies.
And God's servants turned to the black woodpecker to harm the Alabasha Abskril, and for this they promised him a red riding hood. The woodpecker found Abskril and, while he was sleeping, began to peck at the Alabasha. He continued it halfway, and then notified God’s servants about it. They rushed to Abskril. The hero woke up in time, saw the enemies, jumped up and, leaning on the alabasha, wanted to jump over the gorge, but the alabasha broke and he fell. It was then that the enemies arrived and grabbed him...
One way or another, Abskril remained a prisoner of the cave. But the memory of him is alive among the people. His exploits remained an example for brave, noble people, inspiring them in the fight against enemies and the unbridled forces of nature.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru