Once upon a time there lived a hero. One day he wanted to add strength to himself. He sat on the deer and went looking for strength. There were three roads: one to the north, another to the east, and a third to the west. “Let me,” he thinks, “I’ll go along the road that goes north.” And I went. I rode for a year, rode for two, and on the third I met a giant man, as tall as a forest. The giant lifted the hero and the deer into his arms, bent down and said:
-Who is this? Only heroes walk along this road... Probably a hero?!
- Yes. In my thoughts I’m a hero...,” he answers.
- Do you want to add strength?
- I want, I want! - says the hero.
- Then continue along this road. There are two plagues there. A rich old man sits in one. He himself is blind, but he has taken away the strength of all people and keeps it in his backpack. We need to take that power back and distribute it to people. You go to him, but don’t go in right away. When you get there, enter the smaller tent first. His forge is there. It contains magic tongs. They force the old man to share his power. The tongs are red hot in the forge and go to the old man. The old man will extend his hand to greet you. Say hello. Just put the tongs in instead of your hand. If you give me your hand, it will crush you. And the tongs will hold you out and make you add strength. Then the old man himself will tell you what to do. As soon as the power arrives, move on. Don't wait for the old man. Can kill. The last power will be taken away. On the road his white deer walks saddled. He has one tursuk tied to each side. And in those tursuks all human strength is collected. You sit on the deer and go back along that road. If you meet that old man, don’t be afraid. Without a deer, he will be weaker than you. Don't get off the deer, you'll lose your strength. Drop the tursuki, as if by accident, and ask the rich man to pick him up. Then you will find out what will happen to him...
How long or how fast does the hero walk, but he only sees a wide clearing. There are two tents in the clearing. One tent is higher than the forest, and the other is slightly lower. He got off the deer and let him go into the taiga. I went into a small tent. He inflated the furnace with bellows, heated the tongs red-hot, he barely lifted them and went to the old man’s tent. He comes and says:
- Hello, grandfather!
- Oh, who is he?
- Yes, a small man...
- Young, right? Well, great... - and extends his hand to him, and instead of a hand, the wrestler thrusts red-hot tongs into him. The old man grabbed the tongs with his hand and squeezed them so that between his fingers the red iron from the tongs came out and smoke came out of his hand. Then he let go of the tongs and said:
“Your little girl is angry... Would you like me to add something?”
- I want, I want!
- Then follow the road that goes east. There you will find a lake with clear water. Pass by. Then there will be a lake with red water. Stop here. Soak your fingers in that water and lick them with your tongue. Go no further. Wait for me. I'll come to you in three days.
The hero said goodbye and went out into the street. Looks, the path from the plague goes straight to the east. I followed it. He sees a large lake ahead. The water there is clear as the sky. Swans swim all over the lake. I passed by. Whether he walked for a long time or quickly, he only saw the lake ahead again. The water in it is like red lingonberries. I approached the shore. He dipped his fingers in the water and licked them. As soon as I licked them, I immediately felt the power.
The ground under his feet began to settle. Wherever he steps, his legs sink into the ground up to his knees. I was happy. He sees that the road goes west from the lake. I followed it. He walked away a little and looked and saw a white deer standing on the road. He has a beaded saddle on his back and two red turks tied to his sides. I went up to him, sat on the deer and rode back. He sees an old man coming towards him, moving a stick in front of him and singing a song:
If the earth had a handle,
I would move the earth!
And the hero drove up to him, dropped his tursuki to the ground and said:
- Grandpa, pick it up. It’s awkward to get off a deer. The old man guessed and became angry that he had taken all the power to himself. But there is nothing to do. The hero was now stronger than him. He started to lift those backpacks, but he couldn’t lift them. “What,” he thinks, “is this? I’ll press again.” He pressed half-heartedly. He went into the ground up to his waist, but the Tursuks did not move. “What a miracle?” he thinks. “I’ll press with all my might.” He went into the ground up to his shoulders, but the tursuks still did not move. Bogatyr says:
- And he boasted about turning over the earth! The old man felt ashamed. Didn't answer. The hero bent down from the deer, picked up his tursuki and rode on, but the rich man remained in the ground. I couldn't get out. Turned into a stone. If you find a stone in the forest, it will be the same one.
And the hero came to the people and distributed to all of them the power from the Tursuks. Since then, people have become stronger than anyone in the world.
And that giant, they say, went overseas, to where the same rich old men keep their human power.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru