How Ashamez found his pipe The beauty was called Akhumida, the Narts were proud of her beauty. Her shirt is whiter than snow, And she has a dress with trim on it. She wears only silk, And embroiders only with silver. There will be talk about beauty - All disputes here and there will cease, - They say, Ahumida is good with us. She is reputed to be the first of the first. The Narts do not find a place for themselves: If the groom is looking for a bride, He goes to the wise woman Ahumida, Only seeing her alone.
The girl has grown into a stately, slender woman; she will be a worthy wife for Nartu. How to select young sledges, The most invisible one is the hero! Here his herd is wandering under the mountain, Here he is leaving on a long journey... Only Akhumida is not getting married, The father himself does not know what to do. No matter how many sledges came to them, they were all disliked and not to her liking. Still, she is not loved, not desired, She looks for flaws in everyone. Whoever comes, the conversations are the same, They began to woo her less and less: Akhumida is painfully picky.
One morning she is sitting, and suddenly a black, stern, new groom, unknown to her, arrives. Old Emzag is calling Akhumida, modest in appearance - she has come. The guest seemed to her more disgusting than everyone else - As if by some wondrous power the Evil dragon turned into a husband, Black on the outside, black in soul. No, Ahumida doesn’t like him! The black horseman said in offense:
“If they turn to me with a task, I will seem skillful to everyone. If I want anything, I will get it; Everything is subject to me everywhere. You are as good as the spring of earth, How can you live without knowing love? You upset your father, You have darkened the life of many horsemen, And you don’t want to look at me, Am I not more worthy than others? So I have never been humiliated by anyone. Listen: I am not offended by the refusal, But I do not leave the one who caused the insult without vengeance. I did not retreat in the middle of the campaign, I did not disgrace the noble family. O golden-haired touchy one, you drove everyone away from the threshold. You did not find the heart of the young man, But for you the time of retribution will come, Cut my heart, look, indeed, it has been engulfed in fire, I know. It’s not for nothing that I saw you. During the day you stand before my eyes, At night I repeat your name, I stand before you without deceit, I have no right to come to your house in love. I have never known failure, I always returned with a victory to like my love, But it’s not in my power, apparently, as a guest, you comb my hair with a comb!”
In the flattering speeches of the unkind guest, there seemed to be no anger and malice... The girl did not refuse the request and combed his curls. He said goodbye to her without annoyance, left the garden, mounted his horse, and soon he was no longer visible...
Having tiredly closed the doors behind him, the girl sat down and suddenly with alarm she saw the Amish God at her feet... How did this god get under her roof? Where can she hide God Amish? The Narts have always worshiped God, - Let God worship the Narts!
She put it in a black chest and tightly closed the lid over it. How many days have flown by - I still haven’t had the chance to look into the chest. Once Ahumida opened the chest: Amish lay dead in the chest. And Akhumida did not hesitate: She mixed water with Amish’s blood to give health to the cattle. She sprinkled the medicine on the cattle to increase the offspring of the cattle.
The mountains are already covered with herds, their abundance pleases the eye. Nine shepherds are not enough, - The life of the Narts has become joyful! And Akhumida found Amish’s arrow in her old chest and decided: whoever guesses, who guesses, whose arrow will be her eternal companion in life, her heart will get a guess. That's what she told her father.
He listened to Akhumida’s speech and, without contradicting, answered her: “I can’t guess, Gray head, People will say: you’re old! Let the Narts guess. Sosruko’s sharp mind is like an arrow from a bow, And Badynoko’s keen eye sees, Nartu Batarazu Everything is clear at once. Well, the slender Ashi’s worthy son will figure out the girls’ plans faster!”
...The knights have gathered, as if for battle, There is no end to the suitors. The most unprepossessing one is worthy of glory, - He did not go on a hike for fun: There is no count of valiant deeds, No matter the work, it boils in his hands. Here Badynoko is flying on a horse - a keen eye, there is fire in the heart. Proud Sosruko, as before a fight: He wants to quickly show off his guess. The horse of the steel-breasted Bataraza is only waiting for an order - where to ride. There is also a dashing rider - the son of Kange. Everyone is captivated by the beauty. We thought for a long time, but we couldn’t figure it out, Even the sledges were tired of thinking. Having rested, they guess again, - The answers do not hit the target; As before, indifferent to everyone, Ahumida is again without a groom. The beauty is bored - as if in exile - sitting alone at her embroidery. One day she looks out the window and sees something shining in the sun. The rider flies on a horse with zeal, the white mane is like snow in the mountains. A lean horse with a thin neck, The rider to match him is handsome! The ant's body is tied with a belt, His lion's gaze burns with fire. Who is this brave, slender young man? That is the restless Nart Ashamez. For a long time he wandered into the distance, He visited many villages, He went everywhere with his pipe, He brought happiness and joy to the people. He will sing - and the bowels of the earth will generously give to people in abundance, The wondrous pipe will bloom with sonorous singing and bring peace to the world. The fields are growing fat, the meadows are variegated, shimmering, everything is in bloom, the steppe, languishing from the heat, seems to be covered in waves. A small seed that fell into the ground soon sprouts, The dry riverbed has become a river, The seabed has become deep, Shackled by the bitter cold, The grasses and vines have become warm, The buds are opening with a crack, The leaves on the trees are shining, The expanse of the desert is breathing cool, Contented cattle are roaming in the valley. Everywhere the pipe of Ashamez is famous, The toast of life is sung everywhere.
But it must be said that Ashamez’s pipe was not a simple one - it was the pipe of Thagolej, the god of fertility. One end of the pipe was white, the other black. The song that flowed through the white hole of the pipe was not similar to the one that flowed through the black one. Ashamez blows into the white end, and life becomes blooming and abundant, but if he blew into the black end, joy on earth would disappear, the grass would wilt, people and animals would die.
Ashamez gallops towards Ahumida, and a wonderful melody flows through the white hole of the pipe. Everywhere there is blossom, singing, murmur, a kind young man brings news of happiness to people with his cheerful song. Wherever He rushes with a flute - Everywhere there is fun, Everywhere there is abundance, Peace and tranquility.
Ashamez rides and gallops to Ahumida. He galloped into Emzag's yard and dismounted. The beauty liked the thin-walled sled. She asked him a riddle, but he couldn’t guess.
“Oh, you unlucky knight!” said Ahumida, and there was mockery in her words: “Turn back, don’t count on luck. Your marching whip has not a boxwood handle, The strap is not gilded And it’s shorter than it should be, Without emerald stones The horse’s breastplate is poor. How will you become in front of the enemy’s eyes, If you’re not on the loose Is the swan cushion of your saddle?”
Ashamez became angry and quickly left the room, forgetting his treasured pipe. He jumped on his horse and rode off. Akhumida noticed the forgotten pipe, rushed after Ashamez, and where there was - there was no trace of him - he disappeared behind the clouds. Akhumida peers into the clouds, wants to distinguish the gray horse Ashamez in them, but instead sees a galloping red horse. The horse is approaching, and in its rider Akhumida recognizes the black horseman who recently asked for her hand. The young man is black, like a bear, scary to look at! He is similar to an animal, Neck like a hedgehog, Little beauty: Even a mustache, As you can see - Pure reeds!
He is not made of iron, not of clay - The appearance of an animal... That’s right, he is a Black Dragon, a cattle stealer and a destroyer of Nart households.
An insurmountable obstacle has long lay across his evil path. This is Ashamez's pipe. Many times the dragon tried to steal the pipe that brings happiness to people. He learned that Ashamez had left his pipe with Akhumida, and he was riding on his horse for the pipe. So he galloped into the Emzag courtyard, saw Akhumida, snatched the pipe from her hands and flew under the clouds.
- Hey, sledges, help! - Akhumida cried. But no one responded, no one was nearby. Akhumid saw her father's horse saddled, jumped on it and rushed after the black rider. All Black needs is for her to be next to him. You can barely see him behind the clouds, and Akhumida is following him. He turned his horse towards Akhumida. Akhumida has no weapons. Black shoots an arrow from his bow and hits his horse. The girl flew down like a cloud, the enemy picked up her light body, rose with him to the heavenly bodies, spinning, spinning in the heavens, and fiery traces remain in the sky like a rainbow. Woe! He achieved his desired goal - The black end of the pipe at his lips! It blows into it, and with the stifling heat the sky and the earth are burned by dry winds, everything burns out, everything dies. The horseman plays angrier and angrier and disappears into the depths of heaven. * * * Nights and days flew by in succession... There is no beauty, no pipe; The Nart land is gnawed by drought. Who will help the poor land? To escape the dark hour, Khas decided to gather the sledges. They decided for a long time, they held advice, How to save their land from sadness. Even if they have to go around the whole world, they will still be found missing. Oh, I wish I could find Akhumida as soon as possible, Oh, I wish I could quickly find a pipe, To get rid of the misfortune, To return strength and happiness to the earth! Shoes and staffs made of iron will be useful to the sledges on the way, - Sosruko distributes all this to them, the guarantee of happiness is his mind. The sledges set out on their journey at dawn, divided the world into seven parts, - Each sledge has its own path, Each one has a lot to cover. They precisely set the meeting place: “The year will end and evening will come - There, on the mound, there will be a meeting of Those who remained alive in their wanderings...” Time flew, time spun... The iron shoes were worn out, The sled's staffs became shortened, - They became barely visible in the Nart's hands. The sledges measured the distance, - They wandered in vain, they came with nothing... ... Long is the boundless path of Ashamez, - The iron of his soles was worn away, And the staff turned into fragments. Nart was tired on the long journey. I’ve lost track of time, poor fellow, In vain does courage boil in my chest. So he approaches the Indyl River and does not find a drop of water. The riverbed has dried up, everything has burned, Everything on the bank has turned yellow. Dry wind and lumps of stones, Dead fish on the empty bottom. There are no animals, no plants, and there is no trace of the villages. The wanderer trembled, forgot his fatigue, Grief and pity pierced his chest:
“Where are you, pipe, so that you can return life to my fatherland with Zdravitsa?” How he would play the pipe - The trees would turn green again, The riverbeds would be filled with water, Over the young native land The grains would sway quietly again, The grass would be sweet to the herds. He doesn’t have the treasured pipe! And the earth mourns unrequitedly, It burns with heat in exhaustion. Bitter grief! How can I help her? Ashamez sat down on the dry grass and began to sing a dull song: Perhaps this bitter song will return the joy of blossoming to the earth! He sings in vain - everything is joyless on his boundless native land. And Ashamez fell silent sadly, As if a song froze on his lips. The young man’s heart breaks... And half-dead animals and birds gather around him, A dove sits on his chest, Emaciated lions stand nearby, A bear looks with a pitiful gaze, And he has no strength to roar for a long time... Here a striped tiger crawls up, A slender, horned deer wanders. They all surround the young man, as if they want to say something.
And overhead the Cranes are crowing, the Swans and geese are calling and circling. “Swans, geese, Why are your wings drooping into impotence? Why are your eyes Cloudy night?” Two blue-winged Doves coo. Everyone is sad, praying to Nart for salvation. Ashamez is in confusion, Ashamez is powerless, he jumped to his feet and involuntarily stepped with his heel on the paw of the gray-haired Dove, and he broke the paw of the gray-haired Dove. And the winged one said: “What am I to blame for? What have I done to you?” “The white light is not dear to me, You have added grief to the burning sea of tears.” Here the word of another Dove was heard:
“A man unwittingly Hurt you. Tired and unaware, He wanders, suffering, He searches for a pipe; As soon as he whistles into it, People, animals, fields will become alive again. In the glorious land of the Narts, Elder Emzag had a beautiful daughter, Though proud and arrogant. But this knight, Look, marvel, He wielded a pipe, He sang with a good purpose. But the destroyer dragon, the destroyer of Narts, offended everyone - stole Akhumida and stole the pipe. He is the destroyer of everything.
The Nartas are looking for the dragon everywhere. This young man is Nart by birth, He is kinder than everyone else, He warms the earth with a kind song. Call this sled Ashamez. He is thin-walled and desired everywhere. Wherever he passes, everything blossoms, the fields grow fat, the riverbeds become full. He revives the Dead Land with the Nart flute, He is thin-walled, Desired everywhere. Narta's deeds: Full of water, Years of abundance, Fat fields, Generous millet, Dew on the grass. He is noble, he is pleasing to everyone, thin-waisted Nart, desired everywhere. He wakes up the bear from oblivion, and drives away the clouds from the sky and the steep slope. Everything is golden, faces are shining. Narta's merits are Glorious everywhere. Asha's firstborn is more beautiful than all the sledges. He is thin-walled and desired everywhere. Now he is tormented by burning suffering, worn out by grief, enraged by anger. Now I know the reason for the Anger and pain of the Good Nart: The Enemy has been threatening the Narts for a long time, A wingless Raven is circling over them, a hateful enemy. It prowls the world, looking for moments to cover the Nart sun with a shadow. Changing his appearance, he was waiting for an opportunity, - So he waited... He boldly kidnapped Akhumida, He deprived the Narts of the wondrous pipe, With this pipe He disappeared into the dungeon today. There, in the underworld, And Akhumida. Into that deep darkness there is only one Path, There is no other. Where the border of the earthly land is, Where the thickness of the earth is rounded, Your gaze will see the cap of the mound, And on the mound the Wonder Tree - the Old plane tree. The roots are powerful, twisted in the depths, the trunk is vast, there is also a hollow in it, like a cave. If you move the branches apart, you will find the entrance. Your descent will begin on a dark road, As if in a well, gloomy and damp, There is no glimmer of light on the road.
There is nothing to cling to, be afraid of straying from the path! This path is an inevitable path, If you go wrong, it’s a disaster! This path is a seven-day path, humble your angry heart, you have to endure hunger and cold for three more months. After three months of wandering, you will come to the kingdom of the dragon, to these distant domains. There, languishing in captivity, In the black seventh dungeon, Nart joy mourns, In the black seventh dungeon, The voice of the pipe is also closed... The path will not end with this. Do not forget that to this day, Whoever visited that abyss did not return home. But obstacles are not for the brave, Dragons are mortal, even if they are evil! This insatiable dragon loves to gallop like a horseman, to rob people in the open air, - the glutton of good is not enough! And when he returns full, he sleeps for seven days and nights. This sometimes carefully you can get to him, you can with a skillful grip, with your cunning guess, take Akhumida from him and an expensive pipe. With the strong softness of a tiger You can win the game, You won’t win with rudeness, You will perish, you will be lost forever, If they notice you. Remember that this is dangerous, But it is not in vain that the Husband was given both reason and flame, “You will melt the stone with your mind.” So the dove told him, circling above his head.
The pigeons flew away, but in the young man’s body the blood began to boil hotly again, and the strength returned to him. The fair Nart moved impatiently home. The horse is flying towards the Nart mound like a hurricane. The Narts gathered together were struck by the news: “I know, Narts, now, Where, like a slave, Akhumida is tormented in captivity, I know where the pipe is. We must ride without delay to that distant distance. Time does not wait, respond, Is every knight ready?” And Badynoko answered:
“Whether it’s close or far, I’m going. If the universe had the handle, I would lift the Earth three times, lift it up and turn it.”
Sosruko answered loudly: “The first thing, friends, is food on a difficult hike. I promise to feed you for six months on the road. Well, and besides, my body is hardened in the flame, It is invulnerable.”
And Bataraz responded: “If the World had remained in darkness, having lost its light, My strength would have been enough for Seven hopeless nights, Instead of the midday rays, to illuminate with my Will.” The son of Kanzha, the Valiant Nart Shauei, spoke a word: “If the tired sky drops the Sun to the ground, The universe begins to darken, Rising high into the air, I will grab the Sun in the blink of an eye, and I will give the Narts their native luminary.”
The young man listened to the speech: “Go farther, friends!” - And Ashamez puts them on lean horses. The sledges are ready for exploits, They give a strong word: Labor, victories, and wounds are equally divided among themselves. * * * How many days and nights have passed since then... Where the earth curved, the Narts met a mound. And on the mound there is a Tree-Wonder, a Tree-Wonder - Old plane tree. The roots are powerful, twisted in the depths. The trunk is vast, ancient and stately. Here Badynoko, stormy as the wind, touched and pushed apart the upper branches. The trunk was exposed, and there was a hollow in it, like a cave. The sledges enter the doors of the plane tree and enter the dungeon slowly, they find the path. There is no sun there, There is no light, There is nothing for the sledges to cling to. If you go astray from the path, you will never return! The seven-day journey, the hopeless darkness... Honor Batarazu! The knight suddenly cuts his chest with a powerful hand and takes out his hot heart. The heart sparkles like a bright light. He raised his heart Above his head, Fighting with the darkness The seven-day path of the Narts was passed. Hunger torments them, Thirst burns them, Heavy torment!
The wise Sosruko dispelled the flour. He does not break promises - He gives everyone nourishing food from the supplies given by the Mother. The Knights regain their strength.
Now, at the end of their third month, the Narts are approaching the domain of the Evil Dragon together: He sleeps deeply - He was far away. Quietly, without a sound, Sosruko enters the beast’s den; He looks for the way, He searches, he finds, He quickly frees the captive, With her and the flute He rushes to his brothers. * * * Joyfully the sledges are going back. Late or early, Sooner or later A terrible storm boils menacingly, Glooming fiercely Heaven and earth, Scattering the proud rocks into dust. Everything sparkled, and the bosom of the earth began to hum. “It’s me that’s being chased!” — The cry of Ahumida is heard through the storm. "Hey, don't yawn, don't give in!" Here Clever Sosruko turned into a steel fortress, Everyone strengthened himself in this fortress. Not seeing the light, the Monster gallops, It is true that he yearns for Akhumida... The Narts are ready to fight with the dragon; He showers blows on the screens, blazing with heat, sparks flickering. The blows are in vain, He fights in vain, - The steel fortress is invincible. He blushes, He also turns pale: a fortress-hulk, a miracle barrier. There is no limit to the dragon's wrath:
“If the handle had a fortress, I would have lifted the fortress and dragged it to the underworld! If there was a small gap here for the eye, I would immediately turn the fortress to dust!” Then Badynoko shouted: “He wants a crack for an eye, Let’s make a crack!” Black blinks his eyes angrily. Frozen to the side Yes. as soon as it explodes, - His shoulders are strong, - He smashed the steel fortress into pieces. Took Akhumida, disappeared from sight...
The Narts are in confusion, - The vision is darkened! But Ashamez has no time to think: He releases nine mighty fast-flying arrows, pierces the cloudy clouds with steel. The Narts look at the sky in confusion: Black shadows between the clouds. From a distance you can see: Two people fall from the sky to the ground. Shauei has a fleet-footed horse. Across them, the Knight takes off, deftly grabs the Girl of the sled, and places her next to her - on the back of the alpa. He immediately sees the death of the dragon: he flies head down into the abyss.
So the Messenger of Happiness returned again to Ashamez with wondrous power. And Ahumida returned to the house. Everything came to life: The Narts are feasting, In honor of Ashamez - the Firstborn of Asha - They raise large bowls High. Here is the reward, - The old thamada brings the cup and asks to taste it. “Khokh” exclaims and calls him the best Warrior, the mighty Nart. The warrior youth, the slender Nart, is worthy of glory, desired everywhere. Nart pipe Sounding songs Serve the people, Teach nature. Ashamez's chest Breathes spaciously: White - not black - The tip of the pipe Lips kiss. There is no sadness, - The sounds have disappeared The heaviness of the past. Life blossoms, all evil melts away, and there is abundance above the earth again. With a slight effort he blew into the pipe - And the valleys were full of flowers, The dry riverbed became a river, The sea was deep, The grief became distant. The grains are growing fat, the poppies are turning red. There is freedom everywhere by the will of the song. The thin-walled Nart did all this, the majestic Nart, Now crowned with good glory. The Youth serves with a wonderful song and noble Glory to the people.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru