Somehow it turned out to be an unlucky year in the fishing village. Since the fall, the fish did not go well in the nets - by spring, the pantries were empty. For fishermen, fish is like bread for peasants. There is no fish - the whole village is starving.
The fishermen all gathered together and began to hold council. What to do, what to do? To go to sea - the time has not come; to stay at home - you will be completely lost.
The fishermen thought and thought and decided to try their luck.
“Maybe the sea will have mercy on us and at least send something into our nets!”
And one fisherman said:
“I don’t know whether these are fairy tales or the truth, but they say that old Kaarel was once friends with the mistress of the sea herself.” Surely he knows how to lure fish.
“I remember something too,” said another fisherman. “When I was still a boy, my grandfather told me that Karel had a treasured little thing that lured fish at all times. Shouldn't we go to the old man - maybe he will give it to us for good luck!
Kaarel lived on the very edge of the village. He was once a brave and successful fisherman. But time had long ago bent his back, and not only did the old man stop going to sea, but he rarely stepped beyond the threshold of his hut. But when the fishermen knocked on the door, Kaarel came out to them and said:
“I know, friends, why you came to me, and this is what I will tell you: a good fisherman does not rely on luck, but on his skill and the strength of his hands.” But you have started a difficult task. It’s time to go out to sea, but the sea doesn’t like it. Okay, go ahead, I'll help you.
Here old Kaarel took off his neckerchief and showed it to the fishermen.
- You see - there are three knots on the scarf. The first knot will bring you a tailwind. Untie it as you hoist a sail. The second knot will attract fish to you. Untie it as you cast a net. Do not untie the third knot at all. If you untie it, expect trouble. And I’ll also tell you: be content with what the sea itself sends you. No matter how many fish you catch, don’t cast your net a second time.
“Don’t be afraid, Kaarel,” answered the fishermen. - As you say, we will do so. We give you our word.
“Well, look, the sailor’s word is the right word,” said the old man and gave the fishermen the handkerchief.
All night the fishermen tarred the longboat and repaired the nets. By morning everything was ready. The fishermen jumped into the boat and pushed off from the shore.
Soon they left the bay and set sail. Then the foreman took out old Kaarel’s handkerchief and said:
- Let's untie the first knot.
The knot was untied. And immediately a fresh wind blew, filled the sails and drove the boat forward.
The boat was sailing well. She turned without a rudder, like cutting through the waves with a knife. Fishermen swam far into the open sea. And suddenly the wind died down, the sail fell, and the boat stopped.
“That’s right, this is the place the old man was talking about!” - said the fishermen. Let's put our networks here.
Everyone got to work together. They dropped anchor, straightened the nets and threw them into the sea.
- Now untie the second knot! - the fishermen shouted.
The foreman took old Kaarel’s handkerchief out of his bosom and untied the knot. And as soon as he untied it, something splashed in the sea, circles appeared in the water, the floats trembled on the nets.
The fishermen waited until everything had calmed down and began to carefully select their nets. Never before have nets been so heavy. The fishermen pulled with all their might. Finally, the edges of the nets rose above the water. The fish were literally swarming in the net. The silvery scales glittered in the sun so much that it was painful for the eyes to look at.
- One, two! - the foreman commanded.
The fishermen pulled their nets and the fish fell into the boat.
- Good catch! - said one fisherman. - Thanks to old Kaarel.
- That's how it is! - answered the other fisherman. - Yes, so that everyone would be well-fed until the poutine season, we would need three such catches. Shouldn't we, friends, cast our nets again?
- What are you, what are you! - said the youngest fisherman. “Remember what Kaarel said: be content with what the sea itself sends you.”
“Well, the old and young need a little,” the foreman laughed. - And we will be ashamed if we return with a boat that is not full to the brim.
And the fishermen cast their nets again.
But this time they were not lucky. The empty nets were pulled out by the catchers. And they didn’t catch a small fish.
The fishermen became despondent, and the foreman said:
“That’s because we didn’t untie the third knot on old Kaarel’s scarf.” You can see for yourself that his scarf is not a simple one. Each node attracts good luck. There's one more left, let's untie him too. Then our boat will be full to the brim.
“Oh, foreman,” the oldest fisherman said now, “after all, Kaarel ordered not to touch this knot.”
“Well, you’re also an old man,” answered the foreman, “and old people have a well-known saying: don’t tempt fate until three times.” But they say it differently: fools refuse happiness.
“And that’s true,” said the fishermen. - Eh, come what may! Untie the knot, sergeant major!
And the foreman has had his handkerchief ready for a long time. He pulled the last knot and untied it. And then the sea began to rustle, the waves rose behind the stern, and the floats on the nets began to dance.
- Well, let's go fish! - said the foreman. “Didn’t I tell you the truth!”
The old people were delighted and could hardly wait until it was time to pull the nets. And again, just like the first time, the nets seemed very heavy to them. But fishermen are tough people.
Together they leaned on the ropes and pulled out the net. So what! There was only one fish in the nets. It was a surprisingly large pike, and its tail was blunt, as if it had been chopped off with an axe.
- What a monster! - the fishermen were amazed and annoyedly threw the pike into the boat.
Meanwhile, the sun had already begun to descend towards the water. The waves calmed down before sunset.
And suddenly some voices echoed across the quiet sea. The fishermen jumped up and looked around.
“Who else has need driven out to sea before its time?” - they thought.
But there was not a single boat to be seen anywhere.
“It must have been a seagull screaming,” said the foreman.
Then the horn began to play loudly and protractedly, as if a shepherd in the village was calling his flock. Then a woman's voice asked:
- Is everyone home?
And a clear girlish voice answered:
- Everyone is at home. Only there is no tailless goat.
And the horn began to play again, even louder, even longer.
A pike suddenly began to hustle in the boat; it opened its toothy mouth as wide as it could and pushed other fish with all its might. But the foreman pushed her with his boot, and shouted loudly to his comrades:
- Raise the anchor! Somehow I don't like all this. Let's get out of here as soon as possible.
The fishermen raised the anchor and turned the boats towards their home shore.
But what miracles! No matter how hard they leaned on the oars, the boat would not move. It was as if the sea had frozen like jelly, as if the bottom of the boat had grown to the water. The fishermen raised their oars together, but the boat did not move an inch forward.
The fishermen suffered all night. They either threw the oars in despair, then started rowing again, but nothing helped. It seemed that no force could move the boat.
At dawn, as soon as it turned red in the east, amazing voices were heard again:
- Is everyone awake, is everyone gathered?
“Everyone woke up, everyone got ready, but the tailless goat is still missing!”
And the horn played again, and the bells rang thinly. And suddenly a fish began to move in the boat. From the very bottom, wriggling, an amazing pike crawled out, opened its toothy mouth and flapped its gills.
- What a restless monster! - the foreman grumbled and suddenly thought: “Isn’t it all about her? Isn’t she there waiting for her?”
Then the foreman jumped up from the bench, grabbed the pike and threw it overboard.
And now, somewhere far away, maybe at the bottom of the sea, someone clapped their hands and shouted cheerfully:
- Look, look, a tailless goat is swimming towards the house! He's in such a hurry, he's even blowing bubbles!
The fishermen heard nothing more. Such a terrible wind arose and the waves roared so loudly that the fishermen could not hear each other.
The boat was torn from its place and carried along the waves.
All day long the fishermen circled in the stormy sea. The boat either flew high up, as if it wanted to rise to the clouds, then fell deep, deep down, almost to the very bottom of the sea. It’s true that even the old people did not remember such a storm in their lifetime.
By evening the boat washed up on a rocky island. The fishermen jumped ashore and somehow pulled the boat onto land.
-What is this island? - they asked each other. -Where does this take us?
Then a little old man came out from behind the rock. His back was bent like a wheel, and his white beard fell almost to the ground.
“This is the island of Hiu-maa,” said the old man. “It’s no wonder you don’t know him.” Rarely does anyone swim here of their own free will.
The old man led the fishermen to a log cabin behind the rocks, warmed them up, fed them, and then said:
-Who are you and where are you from? And why did you go fishing so early?
- What were we supposed to do? Our storerooms are empty, hunger has come to the village,” the fishermen answered and told the old man everything that happened to them. They kept silent about only one thing - how they untied the third, forbidden, knot on old Kaarel’s scarf.
The old man listened to them and said:
“I once knew your Kaarel.” He is a brave and wise fisherman. The sea is like home for him. Do you know where he sent your boat? Straight to the pasture of the sea mistress. There she grazes her fish. But her fish is cunning and smart - she will never get caught in the net. Your net has caught schools of fish that swim from afar to feed along with the herds of the sea mistress. But I just don’t understand how a tailless pike got into your net. What did you do to lure her?
Then the fishermen realized what trouble Kaarel wanted to protect them from, but they did not answer the old man. Their hearts were heavy. The storm at sea did not subside, the wind howled in the chimney, and large splashes knocked on the window. It’s true that the bad weather turned out to be bad for more than one day.
The old man laid the fishermen in the corner of the hut on old nets, and they fell into a deep sleep.
At dawn the old man woke up the fishermen. The storm still roared outside the window, and the waves crashed against the stones. The fishermen were completely depressed.
- What should we do? - they asked the old man. “We’ll never get out of here like that.” And hungry children are waiting at home.
“Nothing,” answered the old man, “maybe you’ll get out.” Come on, give me old Kaarel's handkerchief.
The foreman reluctantly took out the handkerchief and gave it to the old man. The old man looked at the handkerchief and shook his head.
- I already saw him once. Only, I remember, there were three knots on it. You said two knots yourself, but where is the third knot?
What were the fishermen to do? They told everything without hiding.
The old man frowned:
- You are bad sailors! - he said. “You didn’t listen to old Kaarel and wanted to deceive me.”
The fishermen felt ashamed and hung their heads low.
“Well,” said the old man, “I see that you have already been punished.” For the sake of old Kaarel, for the sake of your hungry children, I will help you.
Then the old man took a handkerchief, tied a knot in it and said:
- Make sure that your word forward is always as strong as this knot.
And as soon as he tightened the noose, the wind outside the window suddenly died down and the waves subsided into the sea. It was as if there had never been a storm.
The fishermen thanked the old man and went to their boat.
The old man accompanied them all the way to the shore and, when the sail was raised, he waved his hand as if in farewell. And now a light wind inflated the sail, and the boat rushed across the calm sea.
On the same day, the fishermen sailed to their village.
Their friends and relatives greeted them with joy.
And the catch was enough until the fishing season.
All's well that ends well. But the fishermen never forgot the lesson they learned. Since then, the word of a sailor is as strong as the sea knots that they tie on the ropes.
And remember this fairy tale more often: after all, not only sailors must be true to their word.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru