The son of Satan liked Badynoko’s courage, Badynoko’s strength. Sosruko firmly decided to make Badynoko his friend and associate for life. He sent a messenger to Badynoko:
- Come visit me: I want us to become friends.
“Okay,” said Badynoko and set a date for his arrival: he also liked Sosruko.
The time came, and Badynoko went to Sosruko. But before leaving, he said to his horse:
- When we arrive at Sosruko, tear out everything that the horsemen tie you to. I'll tie it - pretend you can't pull it out.
Here Badynoko arrived to Sosruko. The Nart horsemen - guests of Sosruko - met Badynoko with honor, helped him dismount and, taking his horse and whip, led the knight to the kunatskaya.
The horsemen hung the whip on a nail, but it tore off the nail. They put her on the chest - she broke the chest. Seeing that the horsemen were powerless, Badynoko took the whip from them and hung it on the hilt of his sword, which hung on his belt. Taking the sword from his belt, he handed the whip to the Nart horsemen. But the sword was heavy, the horsemen were unable to hold it, they fell. Then Badynoko took the sword again, hung it on his belt and said:
- May you bring your blow down on the chint’s head!
Having said this, he entered the kunatskaya armed. The sanitary drinking began. The feast was in full swing when a horseman entered the feast and addressed Badynoko:
“We can’t handle your horse.” He pulls out everything you tie him to. Now he is rushing through the yard with a hitching post torn out of the ground and tied to his reins, rushing and maiming young sledges.
Badynoko came out of the kunatskaya, followed by all the feasting people. A bay horse galloped around the yard with a huge hitching post torn out of the ground.
- So that the dogs can eat you, why are you rowdy? - Badynoko shouted, catching the horse. He pulled the chestnut's reins and forced the horse to rear. Then he took an arrow from the quiver, drove it into the ground and tied his horse to it.
“I’ll see how you tear it out,” said Badynoko and went to the kunatskaya. The bay, as the owner agreed with him, pretended that he wanted to pull the arrow out of the ground, but could not.
The feast in Kunatskaya continued. Sosruko, wanting to test Badynoko, handed him the horn of the light sano and said:
“Drain this horn—a sign of my respect—and dance the way I dance.”
- Sosruko, you want to play a cruel joke on me. Guests are treated to wine, not tested. “If you want to test me, then order nine cartloads of thorns to be brought,” Badynoko replied.
They brought nine cartloads of thorns, poured thorns in the middle of the yard, and a hill grew. Badynoko put on his transparent leggings and began to dance on the thorny hill. He trampled nine cartloads of thorns, turned the thorns into dust and scattered them with the wind of his breath.
Entering the kunatskaya, he began to dance, as Sosruko danced, on a small tripod table laden with drinks and food, began to dance along the edges of the bowl with seasoning and did not spill a drop. He jumped off the tripod table and crashed through the dirt floor, sinking knee-deep into the ground. And when he broke out of the ground, such a wind rose from under his Circassian coat that the sledges fell off their benches and a huge cauldron with beef from bull meat overturned. The hot brew scalded the legs of the sledges standing near the boiler.
So Badynoko surpassed Sosruko both in strength and dexterity. But Sosruko did not chase someone else’s glory: he became friends with Badynoko for life.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru