In a certain kingdom there lived a rich merchant. The merchant died and left three sons at an age. The two eldest went hunting every day.
At the same time, they took their younger brother, Ivan, with them on a hunt, took him into a dense forest and left him there - so that they could divide all their father’s estate among themselves, and deprive him of his inheritance.
Ivan, the merchant’s son, wandered through the forest for a long time, eating berries and roots; Finally he got out onto the plain and on that plain he saw a house.
He entered the rooms, walked, walked - there was no one, everything was empty; Only in one room the table is set with three cutlery, and there are three breads on the plates. Ivan the merchant's son took a small bite from each bread and hid behind the door.
Suddenly an eagle flew in, hit the ground and became a young man; A falcon flew after him, a sparrow followed the falcon - they hit the ground and also turned into good fellows. We sat down at the table to eat.
- But we have begun to eat bread! - says the eagle.
“And that’s true,” the falcon answers, “apparently someone has come to visit us.”
They began to look for the guest and call him. Eagle says:
- Show yourself to us! If you are an old man, you will be our dear father, if you are a good fellow, you will be our dear brother, if you are an old lady, you will be our dear mother, and if you are a beautiful maiden, we will call you our dear sister.
Ivan the merchant's son came out from behind the door, they affectionately received him and called him their brother. The next day the eagle began to ask Ivan, the merchant’s son:
- Do us a service - stay here and in exactly a year on this very day you will put it on the table.
“Okay,” the merchant’s son answers, “it will be done.”
The eagle gave him the keys, allowed him to go everywhere, look at everything, but he didn’t order him to take the one key that was hanging on the wall.
After that, the good fellows turned into birds - an eagle, a falcon and a sparrow - and flew away.
Ivan the merchant's son once walked around the yard and saw a door in the ground behind a strong lock; I wanted to look there, I tried the keys - there were none; he ran into the rooms, took the forbidden key from the wall, unlocked the lock and opened the door.
In the dungeon, a heroic horse stands - in all its trimmings, on both sides of the saddle two bags are hung: in one - gold, in the other - semi-precious stones.
He began to stroke the horse: the heroic horse hit him in the chest with its hoof and knocked him out of the dungeon a whole fathom. That is why Ivan, the merchant’s son, slept soundly until the very day on which his sworn brothers were to arrive.
As soon as he woke up, he locked the door, hung the key in its old place and set the table for three places. An eagle, a falcon and a sparrow flew in, hit the ground and became good fellows, greeted each other and sat down to dinner.
The next day, the falcon began to ask Ivan, the merchant’s son, to serve for another year! Ivan the merchant's son agreed.
The brothers flew away, and he again walked around the yard, saw another door in the ground, and unlocked it with the same key. In the dungeon, a heroic horse stands - in all its trimmings, bags are attached to both sides of the saddle: in one - gold, in the other - semi-precious stones. He began to stroke the horse; the heroic horse hit him in the chest with its hoof and knocked him out of the dungeon a whole fathom. That’s why Ivan the merchant’s son slept soundly for the same amount of time as before.
I woke up on the very day when the brothers were supposed to arrive, locked the door, hung the key on the wall and prepared the table.
An eagle, a falcon and a sparrow arrive; They hit the ground, said hello and sat down to dinner.
The next day, in the morning, the sparrow began to ask Ivan, the merchant’s son: serve one more year! He agreed.
The brothers turned into birds and flew away. Ivan the merchant’s son lived alone for a whole year and, when the appointed day arrived, he set the table and waited for his brothers.
The brothers flew in, hit the ground and became good fellows; went out, said hello and had lunch.
After dinner, the elder brother, the eagle, says:
“Thank you, merchant’s son, for your service; Here is a heroic horse - I give you with all the harness, and with gold, and with semi-precious stones.
The middle brother, the falcon, gave him another heroic horse, and the younger brother, the sparrow, gave him a shirt.
“Take it,” he says, “a bullet won’t take this shirt; If you put it on, no one will overpower you!
Ivan the merchant's son put on that shirt, mounted a heroic horse and went to woo Elena the Beautiful for himself; and it was announced all over the world: whoever defeats the Serpent Gorynych, she should marry him. Ivan the merchant's son attacked Zmey Gorynych, defeated him and was about to pin his head on an oak stump, but Zmey Gorynych began to tearfully beg and ask:
- Don’t beat me to death, take me into your service; I will be your faithful servant!
Ivan the merchant's son took pity on him, took him with him, brought him to Elena the Beautiful and a little later married her, and made Zmey Gorynych a cook. Once the merchant’s son went hunting, and the Serpent Gorynych seduced Elena the Beautiful and ordered her to find out why Ivan, the merchant’s son, is so wise and strong. The serpent Gorynych brewed a strong potion, and Elena the Beautiful gave her husband that potion to drink and began to ask:
“Tell me, Ivan the merchant’s son, where is your wisdom?”
- In the kitchen, in a broom. Elena the Beautiful took that broom, decorated it with different flowers and put it in a prominent place. Ivan the merchant’s son returned from hunting, saw a broom and asked:
- Why did you decorate this broom?
“And then,” says Elena the Beautiful, “that your wisdom and strength are hidden in it.”
- Oh, how stupid you are! Can my strength and wisdom be in a broom?
Elena the Beautiful again gave him a strong potion and asked:
- Tell me, dear, where is your wisdom?
- On the bull's horns. She ordered the bull's horns to be gilded.
The next day, Ivan the merchant’s son returned from hunting, saw the bull and asked:
- What does this mean? Why are the horns gilded?
“And then,” answers Elena the Beautiful, “that your strength and wisdom are hidden here.”
- Oh, how stupid you are! How can my strength and wisdom be in the horns?
Elena the Beautiful gave her husband a strong potion to drink and began asking him again:
- Tell me, dear, where is your wisdom, where is your strength?
Ivan is a merchant’s son and told her a secret:
“My strength and wisdom are in this shirt.” After that I fell asleep.
Elena the Beautiful took off his shirt, chopped him into small pieces and ordered him to be thrown into an open field, and she herself began to live with the Serpent Gorynych. For three days the body of Ivan lay scattered across an open field; the crows had already flown in to peck him. At that time, an eagle, a falcon and a sparrow flew past and saw their dead brother.
The falcon rushed down, caught the little raven and said to the old raven:
- Bring quickly dead and living water. An eagle, a falcon and a sparrow laid down the body of Ivan, the merchant’s son, and sprinkled it first with dead water, and then with living water. Ivan the merchant's son stood up, thanked them, they gave him a gold ring. As soon as Ivan, the merchant’s son, put the ring on his hand, he immediately turned into a horse and ran to the courtyard of Helen the Beautiful.
The serpent Gorynych recognized him, ordered to catch this horse, put it in the stable and cut off his head the next morning.
There was a maid with Helen the Beautiful; She felt sorry for such a nice horse, went to the stable, she cried bitterly and said:
- Oh, poor horse, you will be executed tomorrow. The horse spoke to her in a human voice:
“Come tomorrow, red maiden, to the place of execution, and when my blood splashes on the ground, cover it with your foot; then collect this blood along with the earth and scatter it around the palace.
In the morning they took the horse to execute; They cut off his head, blood sprayed out - the red maiden stepped on it with her foot, and then collected it with the earth and scattered it around the palace; On the same day, glorious garden trees grew around the palace.
Serpent Gorynych gave the order to cut down these trees and burn every single one.
The maid began to cry and went into the garden for the last time to take a walk and admire it. One tree spoke to her in a human voice:
- Listen, red maiden! When they start cutting down the garden, take one sliver of wood and throw it into the lake. She did so, threw a sliver of wood into the lake - the sliver turned into a golden drake and floated across the water.
The Serpent Gorynych came to that lake, decided to hunt, and saw a golden drake. “Give me,” he thinks, “I’ll catch you alive!”
He took off the wonderful shirt that the sparrow had given to Ivan, the merchant’s son, and threw himself into the lake. And the drake went further and further, led the Serpent Gorynych deeper into the depths, fluttered up - and onto the shore, turned into a good fellow, put on a shirt and killed the snake.
After that, Ivan, the merchant’s son, came to the palace, drove away Elena the Beautiful, and married her maid and began to live and live with her, making good money.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru