Two birds lived on the same tree: a crow and a sparrow. Their nests were nearby, on the highest branch.
And the crow had this habit: when hunger began to torment her, she would take and eat her eggs.
One day a crow flew home hungry and thought: “What should I eat?” He looks - there is not a single egg in the nest anymore. She thought and thought and thought: “I’ll eat the sparrow’s eggs.”
She says to the sparrow:
- Sparrow, sparrow! Give me your balls. I'll eat them. If you don’t give it, I’ll go to war against you.
- No! No! - the sparrow answers her. “Look how dirty your nose is - you’ve obviously been rummaging through all sorts of rubbish.” I won't give you my balls - you'll desecrate them. Fly down, get some water and wash your nose thoroughly. Then ask.
A crow flew to the pond:
- Pond, pond! Give me some water. I need to wash my nose. Then the sparrow will let me eat her eggs.
Well, take it,” says the pond. “Just bring the jug.”
A crow flies to the potter and asks:
- Potter, potter! Give me the jug. I’ll fill it with water and wash my nose. Then the sparrow will let me eat her eggs.
“Okay,” the potter answers. “Fly down and bring some clay.” I'll make you a jug.
A crow flew to the mountain and said:
- Mountain, mountain! Give me some clay. The potter will make me a jug. I'll fill it with water and wash my nose. Then the sparrow will let me eat her eggs.
“Go to the cow, ask her for a horn,” the mountain answers. “So you can dig up clay for them, as much as you need.”
A crow flies to the cow and asks:
- Cow, cow! Give me your horn. I'll dig up clay for them. The potter will make me a jug. I'll fill it with some water and wash my nose. Then the sparrow will let me eat her eggs...
“Okay,” the cow answers. “Just bring me some grass to eat.” Then I'll give you the horn.
A crow flies to the meadow and asks:
- Meadow, meadow! Give me some herbs. I will take the grass to the cow, and she will give me her horn. With this horn I will dig up clay and take it to the potter. The potter will make me a jug. I'll fill a jug with water and wash my nose. Then the sparrow will let me eat her eggs.
“Okay,” says the meadow. - Take as much herbs as you need. Just get the sickle first.
The crow went to the blacksmith to get a sickle.
“Blacksmith, blacksmith!” she asks. “Give me a sickle to cut the herbs.” I'll take the grass to the cow. The cow will give me her horn. With its horn I will dig up clay and take it to the potter. He will make me a jug. I'll fill a jug with water and wash my nose. Then the sparrow will let me eat her eggs.
The blacksmith took a strip of iron, heated it red-hot in the forge and forged a sickle. Then he asks the crow:
-Which sickle do you need: red or black?
“Red,” answers the crow.
The blacksmith heated the sickle even more and placed it in front of the crow. And the crow asks:
“Put the sickle on my shoulders, otherwise I won’t be able to lift it myself.”
Well, the blacksmith put the red-hot sickle on the crow’s back. Her feathers flared up with a crash, and instantly all that was left of the crow was a handful of ashes.
From then on, the sparrow began to live peacefully.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru