The King of Connacht was a good king, but he had three dissolute sons who one day brought great disaster upon him.
And it all turned out because they played a cruel joke with a very dangerous person - the Lord of the Crows himself - Kromakhi.
Kromachi was an ancient sorcerer. He lived in a small hut deep in the forest, but not too far from the royal castle. Crows nested in the treetops that overhung his hut. In fact, these were not crows, but evil spirits who served their master Kromakhi.
And so - as probably others would have done in their place, when there was plenty of everything and nothing to do - the three king's sons, Diklan, Darmid and Dati, decided one fine day, just for fun, to play one of their jokes on old Kromachi: they shoved a stone slab into his chimney. Well, the sorcerer almost suffocated from the smoke.
The enraged Kromachi chased them all the way to the castle and there, in the presence of his father, whose heart almost broke with grief, he cursed them and predicted that the first son would become a thief and would be persecuted by the law all his life; the second will become a murderer and will not let go of the knife from his hands all his life, and the younger will turn into a beggar and will live on alms all his life.
Then he cursed the father, who indulged his sons and made them such mischievous and idle people, and predicted that the king would live to see how an evil fate befalls all three of his sons one after another.
The poor father, grief-stricken, immediately went to bed, and at that moment four crows flew into his bedroom, sat on the four posts of his bed and began to croak ominously: “Karr! Carr! Karr!
So they croaked day and night, day and night...
And from this croaking, not only the king’s health was weakened and his mind became clouded, everyone in the castle or near it suffered. The king summoned all the learned men of the kingdom so that they could give advice on how to get rid of such a scourge. But to no avail.
Finally, this bad news about the illness of the king and his subjects reached the Donegal Mountains and reached the ears of Dark Patrick. He felt sad in his soul, and so he slammed the door of his hut, threw a red bundle over his shoulder and walked into Connacht.
When this poor man introduced himself at the castle and asked to be taken to the royal bedroom, the servants wanted to set dogs on him. But the queen heard the noise and asked what happened. And since her heart was breaking with grief and she was ready to try any remedy, she said:
“Since none of our sages and scientists were able to help us, this dark poor man will not do us any worse.” Enter it, and come what may!
And Dark Patrick found himself in the king’s bedroom, surrounded by a crowd of philosophers, wise advisers and doctors.
Dark Patrick entered, bowed to everyone and asked to state the case, which was done. Then he looked at the black crows sitting on the four pillars of the royal bed, and ordered to call the three princes.
He asked the first, eldest prince what his name was.
- My name is Diklan.
- What curse did Kromakhi put on you?
“He said that I would become a thief and that I would be persecuted by the law all my life.”
Dark Patrick turned to the queen, who was trembling with fear, and said to her:
“Send Diklan to the best law school at once.” Let him become a judge, and not a single lawyer will find fault with him!
And at the same moment, the crow that was sitting at the head of the left post of the bed let out a piercing cry, which sent a chill down everyone’s skin, spread its wings and flew out of the open window.
Then Dark Patrick turned to the second prince:
- What's your name?
- My name is Darmid.
-What curse did you deserve?
“I will become a murderer and will not let go of the knife all my life.”
Dark Patrick turned to the trembling queen and said:
“Send Darmid to the best medical school immediately.” Let him study and become a doctor! Then his knife will not be a murderer's knife.
Then the crow, which was sitting at the foot of the bed on the right post, uttered a piercing cry, from which many people’s hearts sank, spread its wings and flew out the window.
Then Dark Patrick turned to the younger prince:
- What's your name?
- Dati.
- What curse did Kromakhi condemn you to?
“I will be a beggar and will live on alms all my life.”
Dark Patrick turned to the queen, who was choking with excitement.
“Without wasting precious time,” he said, “send this young man to the university.” Let him become a poet, and let him take what he deserves for his work!
The vile crow, sitting on the left post at the foot of the bed, uttered a piercing cry, spread its wings and flew out the window.
The joy that gradually filled the king's heart made him rise in bed and scream with happiness. And at the same moment the fourth crow let out a heartbreaking cry, which probably spread to all four corners of the Connacht kingdom, and also flew out the window.
Dark Patrick modestly refused all the honors that the king and queen offered him in joy. He also rejected the post of chief adviser, which all the sages, scientists and philosophers, following the king and queen, asked him to accept. He told them that he was a simple and dark Highlander and was not used to living at court, in a castle, among great learned men, that he could only be happy in his wretched hut in Donegal, cultivating a potato field on the side of a mountain.
And, throwing a red bundle over his shoulder, Dark Patrick set off on his way back.
In the old days they said: “Beware of three things: the hooves of a horse, the horns of a bull and the smile of an Englishman.”
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru