Once upon a time there lived a husband, wife and daughter. One day a black sheep got lost in the forest. Her mother and father went to look for her, but left her daughter at home. They dispersed in different directions, walked through the forest and called the sheep. Suddenly, Suoyatar came towards his wife. Says:
“Spit into my sheath, walk around me three times, and your sheep will be found.”
The woman was delighted, spat into her sheath, walked around Syoyatar three times and herself turned into a black sheep! And Suoyatar turned around that woman and shouted:
- Hey, hubby, come here quickly, I already found the sheep! We went home, but my husband didn’t notice anything. They brought a sheep and locked it in a stable. The daughter immediately noticed that this was not her mother. Although she looks like her, her eyes are unkind and angry. The girl went to the barn and looked at the sheep - her eyes were like her own mother’s! She cried and hugged the sheep. She says:
- Oh, daughter, Suoyatar turned me into a sheep, and she herself took my place. Give me something to drink from a clean ladle, feed me even a crust of bread. I can't drink swill with the sheep!
The daughter began to go to the barn more often, gives her mother something to drink from clean dishes, and brings her something better to eat. Suoyatar sees that the sheep does not drink the swill and says to her husband:
“This black sheep has completely stopped eating and drinking, we must kill it, otherwise it will die.”
The daughter heard this, ran to the barn, threw herself on her mother’s neck, and burst into tears:
“They want to kill you, Mama, that’s what Suoyatar ordered my father.”
And her mother consoles her:
- Nothing can be done, daughter. And when they cut me, come with your father to the barn, take three drops of my blood in a handkerchief and bury this handkerchief under the window.
They cried together, the daughter said goodbye to her mother and went home. In the morning, the father got ready to slaughter a sheep, sharpened a knife, and his daughter followed him into the barn. She cried and asked her father not to kill the sheep. The father took pity and did not kill. He returned to the hut and hung the knife on a nail. On the second day, Suoyatar got upset and sent her husband back to the barn. The daughter again ran after her father, asking him to leave the sheep alive. The father could not resist his daughter, so he returned to the hut. Suoyatar is angry. On the third day, he sends his husband away and punishes him not to return until he kills the sheep. My daughter ran after me again and cried, but nothing helped. Father killed a sheep. She put a handkerchief on the daughter, took three drops of her mother’s blood, and buried the handkerchief under the window, as her mother had told her to do. And a white birch tree grew in this place.
Meanwhile, Suoyatar gave birth to a daughter. She disliked her stepdaughter even more and forces her to work from morning to night.
They lived like this for some time. One day the king decided to have a feast at his place. The prince needs to be married, and at the feast he will choose his bride.
The king's servants call the people:
“Good people, come to the king’s ball.” Let the healthy come on their own, the lame come on horseback, the blind come by boat.
Suoyatar began to fuss, getting ready for the royal ball. He preens his daughter, and says to his stepdaughter:
“You can’t go to the ball, there’s a lot of work.” And you, the dirty little thing, have nothing to wear.
And she herself turned the stove around and ordered that when they arrived, the stove would be in place as before. They left, and the girl did not know how to get down to business. She went to the place where she buried the handkerchief, sat down under a birch tree, and cried. Suddenly she heard her mother’s voice:
- Why are you, my daughter, crying so bitterly?
- Oh, mother, everyone has gone to the royal feast. Suoyatar dismantled the stove and ordered it to be put back in place before they arrived. If I don't do it, they will kill me. How will I install the stove?
Mother says:
- Break off a branch from a birch tree, strike it crosswise, say: “With mother’s blessing, stand up and bake as before.”
The daughter did just that. She comes back to the birch tree, joyful. And her mother asks her:
- Would you like, daughter, to go to the royal feast-ball?
“I really don’t want to, but I don’t have any clothes, only the canvas sundress that I’m wearing.”
Then a horse appeared: one hair was golden, the other was silver, and the third had no name. The mother tells her daughter to wash her face in one ear, get dressed in the other and go to the ball.
A girl arrives at the royal court, where servants meet her and tie her horse to a golden pillar. As she entered the royal chambers, everything around lit up, as if the sun had peeked out from behind a cloud. The prince looked at her and couldn’t take his eyes off her. He walks around her all evening, only dances with her, and doesn’t notice anyone else.
But Suoyatar’s daughter was not visible at the tables; she was not allowed into the wards. She sits in the front hut on a bench near the stove. The cook grumbles: “All sorts of people walk around here, begging, they can’t sit at home!” She began to take the cast iron out of the furnace with a grabber, and with the handle she hit Suoyatar’s daughter - a huge lump jumped up above her eye, she was in tears.
And the girl was already getting ready to go home. The prince wanted to know who she was and where she came from. He decided to use a trick: he told the servants to smear tar on the doorframe, in case something would stick. The girl ran, her cap off her head and stuck to the resin. The prince took the cap. And the girl ran out into the yard, jumped on her horse and rode away. They only saw her.
She returned home, put on her canvas sundress, drove the cows, cleaned the hut and climbed onto the stove. Suoyatar comes with her daughter, she covers her eye with her hand and roars at the top of her voice.
The girl asks:
- What’s wrong with you, why are you crying? And Syoyatar says:
“Yes, she was very quick, she ran around the royal chambers with the prince, played and fell, almost knocking out her eye.” So a lump popped up on my forehead. And whoever sits on the stove, nothing happens to him.
And they tell you what a beauty came to the ball. The girl says:
“Wasn’t it even me?”
- You dirty little thing, be quiet there on the stove, sort through the ashes! They won’t even let you into the royal threshold!
On the second day, the king gathers a feast again, is everyone called? “The healthy ones - let them come on their own, the lame - let them come on horseback, the blind - let them come in a boat.” Suoyatar and her daughter went again. And before leaving, she mixed barley, oats and rye together and ordered her stepdaughter to sort out all the grain in the evening, and also drive the cows from the pasture.
The girl was left alone, went to the birch tree, sobbing. The mother asks why her daughter is crying so bitterly. The girl responded:
“How can I not cry, everyone went to the feast, and Suoyatar mixed barley, rye and oats and ordered them to go through everything in the evening.” Where can I make it?
- Don’t cry, daughter, take a branch from the birch, hit it three times crosswise and say: “With mother’s blessing, separate the grains, as they were before.”
The girl took a twig, did as her mother told her, and the grains separated. She went again to the birch tree. Her mother gave her a horse: one hair was golden, the other was silver, the third had no name. The girl washed herself in one ear, dressed in the other, became more beautiful than before and went to the feast. She arrives at the royal palace, and the prince is already waiting for her, ties the horse to a golden pillar, takes the girl by the hands and leads her into the chambers, without leaving her a single step.
And Suoyatar’s daughter is sitting in the kitchen again, sorting through the bones. She is not allowed anywhere near the royal table. The cook grumbles and, in her anger, pushes the cast iron right onto Suoyatar’s daughter’s foot. She howled in pain.
The feast is already coming to an end, the girl needs to hurry home. And the prince smeared the door bracket with tar, and the ring remained there. The girl jumped on her horse and rode away. I changed my clothes, drove the cows home and climbed onto the stove. Sits, waits.
Everyone comes from the feast. Suoyatar's daughter is limping.
- What's wrong with you? - asks the stepdaughter. Mother says:
“I was running with the prince, playing blind man’s buff, and fell and hurt my leg.” And whoever sits on the stove, nothing happens to him.
Let them vying with each other tell what happened there, how a girl of unprecedented beauty arrived, and no one knows who she is or where she comes from.
“Wasn’t it even me?” - asks the girl.
- You dirty little thing! “Sit on the stove, in the ashes, and keep quiet,” says the stepmother.
OK. On the third day, the king again arranges a feast. The prince wants to find out what kind of girl this is and marry her. Suoyatar is going to a feast with his daughter again. This time she poured water into the milk.
- We will go to the royal feast, and in the meantime you separate the milk from the water. And bring the cows in the evening.
They left. The girl was left alone, became sad, went to her mother’s grave: she cried and lamented, mourning her bitter fate. The mother asks again:
- What, daughter, are you lamenting, how did they offend you? She told her mother what work Suoyatar left her. Mother says:
- Break off a twig from the birch tree, strike it three times crosswise, say: “From mother’s blessing, separate the milk and water, as before.” And come here.
The girl took the branch and struck it crosswise, as her mother taught her. The milk separated from the water. Comes back to the birch tree. Her mother gives her a horse, more beautiful than before. The girl washed her face in one ear, got dressed in the other and went to the ball. The prince meets her, leads her into the chambers, seats her at the table, and does not leave her side.
And Suoyatar’s daughter is again sitting in her original place, angry that she is not allowed into the wards. The cooks and servants grumble at her: “He’s getting in the way, getting in the way.” One cook grabbed her arm, pushed her aside, and twisted her arm. She bursts into tears again.
And the girl at the feast is having fun, everyone admires her, and the prince most of all. She spent her time, quickly went through the door again, and ran away. And the threshold was smeared with tar - the shoe stuck to it.
The prince wants to find the beauty, wherever she may be. The next day he gathered all the girls to try on the hat, ring and shoe; whomever they suit, he will marry her. And Suoyatar really wants to give his daughter to the prince. She planed her head so that the hat would fit, she planed her finger so that she could put on the ring, she planed her foot so that the shoe would fit - everything fit. The prince sees that this is not the same girl, she’s such an ugly girl, but what can she do? The royal word is strong, he promised - we must take it.
The prince went to his home with his bride. They are sailing on a boat.
And the girl grazes cows on the shore and sings:
The prince is carrying his bride:
Her leg is hewn,
Her finger is planed
And the head is like a kurik (a clapper made of hewn logs for chopping wood).
The prince asks:
-What is the girl singing about? And the bride answers:
- Yes, this is a shepherdess. She talks to the cows and amuses herself.
We drove a little, the girl walks along the shore and sings again:
The prince is carrying his bride:
Her leg is hewn,
Her finger is planed
The head is like a chicken!
The prince wants to drive up to the shore and ask the shepherdess what she is singing about, but the bride won’t let him in:
- There is no point in listening to shepherdess songs. She pleases the cows, amuses herself, she has nothing else to do.
They drive again, and the song again comes from the shore:
The prince is carrying his bride:
Her leg is hewn,
Her finger is planed
And the head is like a chicken!
The prince did not listen to the bride, drove up to the shore, and the girl told him everything. As soon as he takes off the bride’s hat, it’s like that, her head is covered in blood, her leg is covered in blood, and so is her finger.
I tried it on a shepherdess girl and it fits her perfectly. The prince took her as his wife, and threw her daughter Suoyatar into the water.
But Suoyatar knows nothing about this. She thinks that her daughter is the king’s wife.
The prince's wife gave birth to a child. Suoyatar went to visit her grandson and daughter. He is sailing on a boat and looks at a beautiful flower growing in the lake. She came closer and wanted to pick it for her grandson. And there the voice is so quiet: “What are you doing, mother, I almost tore my heart out.”
Suoyatar found out the whole truth, she revived her daughter and moved on.
He comes to the prince’s house and says nothing. She heated the bathhouse and there she turned the prince’s wife into a blue important deer, and let her run around the world, and brought her daughter to the palace. The prince sees that something has happened to his wife, it seems that it is not her. He doesn't say anything. And the child cries day and night, no one can calm him down - he is hungry, there is no milk.
They lived and lived. And the king had a shepherd, tending cows. He somehow sits on a stump, plays his horn. Out of nowhere, a blue important lady runs up to him and says:
Is my swallow crying, is my little dawn moaning? Is my master sad?
I am the wife of a prince, Suoyatar turned me into an important woman. The shepherd answers:
Your swallow is crying, your dawn is moaning, and your master is sad.
The important woman asks the shepherd:
- Bring the child to the forest tomorrow. I will come here and feed and care for him while other deer swim in the lake... And if they don’t give it, then you say: “Since you can’t comfort the child at home, give him to me in the forest. There, under the ringing of bells, under the rustling of branches, under the whisper of leaves, the child, you see, will calm down.”
In the evening, a herd of deer runs - they ran past, a second herd runs - also past, a third herd ran - and the blue important woman ran away with them.
The next day the shepherd says to the prince:
- Give me the child into the forest, I will nurse him there, since he cries all the time.
“We can’t calm you down at home, so where are you?” they tell him.
- Give it to me, there, under the ringing of bells, under the rustling of branches, under the whisper of leaves, maybe the child will calm down.
They gave it to him, maybe it will really console him. The shepherd brings the child into the forest and calls:
Important little darling, go feed your child and water your berry! She doesn’t eat from Suoyatar, doesn’t drink from the evil witch, doesn’t suck from the horn!
The important woman came running, threw off her deer skin, turned into a woman, took the child in her arms, breastfed him, and she cried and laughed with joy. I fed him, the child calmed down and fell asleep. The whole day his mother nursed him, played with him, caressed him.
In the evening I gave the child to the shepherd and told him to bring it tomorrow. She threw the skin on herself and ran after the third herd of deer.
The child slept peacefully all night at home and did not cry. The prince was surprised and thought about it.
In the morning the shepherd again asks the child:
- Give it to me in the forest for a day. There, under the ringing of bells, under the rustling of branches, under the whisper of leaves, the child will calm down.
Suoyatar did not want to give the child, but the prince did not listen to her and allowed her. Again the shepherd comes to the same place and calls the important woman:
Important little darling, go feed your child and water your berry! She doesn’t eat from Suoyatar, doesn’t drink from the evil witch, doesn’t suck from the horn!
An important woman comes running, sheds her skin, takes her child in her arms, feeds him, lulls him to sleep, sings songs. Spent the whole day with the child. It's a pity for her to leave, but she has to. She gave the baby to the shepherd and said:
- Bring it back tomorrow, for the last time. And then I won’t be able to come, our herd is leaving for other lands, beyond distant seas - I put on the skin myself and ran to catch up with the herd.
The shepherd brought the child home, the child sleeps through the night without waking up, does not cry, does not worry. The prince was seriously alarmed: something was wrong here! He decided to go to the old widow and see what she would say, she knows everything. He comes to her and says:
“My child kept crying and crying, nothing could stop him, but when the shepherd began to take him into the forest, he slept for two nights and did not speak. What kind of miracle?
“That’s it, prince,” says the old woman, “it’s no wonder that the child has calmed down; he’s been suckling his mother’s milk for two days now.” After all, Suoyatar turned your wife into a blue important woman, and you have her daughter as your wife. Here is an important mother feeding her child in the forest. Tomorrow, give the child to the shepherd again, follow him yourself and hide. The important woman will come running, shed her skin, and begin to feed the child. Meanwhile, burn the skin. As soon as you burn the skin, your wife will become dead, but don’t be afraid. There is a rock to the right, under the rock there are two springs - one has dead water, the other has living water. Bring this water, sprinkle it first with dead water, then with living water, and it will come to life. This is the only way you can save your wife, otherwise she will be important all her life.
On the third day, the prince happily gave the child to the shepherd, and he himself followed him. A shepherd comes to the forest and calls:
Important little darling, go feed your child and water your berry! She doesn’t eat from Suoyatar, doesn’t drink from the evil witch, doesn’t suck from the horn!
The prince looks - the important woman is running as fast as she can. She came running, threw off the skin, took the child in her arms, sat down on a tree stump and began to feed and caress him. The Tsarevich froze - that’s right, his wife! He crept up, took the skin and threw it into the fire. A woman feels and smells burning:
“Whoever burned my skin destroyed me!” - and fell dead.
The prince ran to the rock, scooped up dead water from one spring and living water from another. He sprinkled it with dead water, then with live water - his wife came to life, stood up, was happy, but not for long.
- Why did you save me, Suoyatar will destroy me anyway!
“It won’t kill her, she doesn’t have long to live!”
He brought his wife and child home. And Syoyatar and her daughter were burned in a tar pit, as they did in the old days.
And the prince began to live happily with his wife and child.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru