This happened during the time of the twenty-fifth king of Koguryo - the glorious Pyonganwan. The young man Ondar lived near Pyongyang, near the fortress wall, with his old blind mother. The young man loved his mother and revered her. They were poor, couldn't be poorer. They didn't always eat to their fill. Ondar will go to the mountains, find elm bark and arrowroot roots - that’s all their lunch. If he doesn’t find it, he takes the pagazhi, goes to the fortress wall, and asks for alms.
[Pyeongganwan ruled 559 - 590]
[Pagazhi is a ladle, a ladle for water made from the dried half of a gourd.]
Ondar was as tall as a hero—six choks, it would be. Well-cut, well-knitted.
Ondar has no clothes, he somehow covers his body with rags, puts on straw sandals, and walks like that in winter and summer. The hair is disheveled, the face is dirty, unwashed, only two large eyes shine.
They laugh at Ondar, people make fun of him, they call him a fool. They marvel: this is how the mother honors the fact that she collects alms for her sake. Aren't you a fool?
And the young man is not a fool at all. He's got a lot of mind. And how strong and brave! And his face is handsome. If only he could be washed and combed, the guy could do anything!
Isn’t it offensive to Ondar that they called him a fool? But such is the lot of the poor man - to endure and suffer.
King Pyeongganwan had an only daughter. Smart and beautiful. How good! Whether it’s for a poor man or a rich man, it’s all the same to her. One thing is bad: as soon as the princess cries, she bursts into tears, and they call her a crybaby for this.
They give her a lot of porridge and she cries; if she doesn’t give her enough, she also cries. He wants to sleep - he cries, he doesn’t want to - he cries again.
The king dotes on his daughter, does not scold her, persuades her:
- Don't cry! If you cry, I’ll give you in marriage to the fool Ondar. A noble young man would not marry such a crybaby. - He persuades, but he laughs. The king is joking, he is not serious.
Time flies by. The princess has grown up. She became even more beautiful, even kinder. She was sixteen years old. The princess no longer cries, and no one calls her a crybaby. The king began to look for a groom for her and chose the son of a dignitary - Ko.
The dignitary himself once helped Pyonganwan ascend the throne.
A groom is good for everyone: noble, rich, and of ancient descent. And how he shoots a bow and rides a horse! It will beat anyone. And at hunting competitions in Aknan in the fall and spring, you will not find his equal. But it’s not him that the princess dreams of—Ondar the Fool! The princess doesn't like the groom. All he knows is that he boasts of his wealth and nobility, and despises others. But what can you do - such is the will of the father. In honor of the groom, the king gave a feast in the palace.
The king dressed himself in ceremonial attire and put on a golden crown. He sat the groom down next to him. And what a dress the groom is wearing! It sparkles with colorful stones.
The music began to play, the lights shone, dignitaries appeared in magnificent clothes - as if all the stars that shine in the sky, all the flowers that grow on the earth, have gathered here.
The king and guests are waiting for the princess, but she doesn’t come. They send for her once, twice, three times - she finally appears. The dress she’s wearing is a simple one, not appropriate for the occasion. It's like she's not the bride. The king marveled and asked:
- What's wrong with you, my daughter?
The princess answers:
- Forgive me, father, but I cannot fulfill your will.
The king does not believe his ears, his face has changed. And the princess calmly says:
- Remember, when I was little, you said that you would give me for Ondar. Not only a king, even a commoner should not break his promise.
The king shouted:
-Are you going to contradict me?!
But the princess stands her ground:
“That was your will, and I don’t dare break it!” I won’t marry anyone, only my betrothed!
The king got angry and jumped off the throne when he shouted:
- Get out, nasty girl, so that your spirit is not in the palace!
The dignitaries stand and remain silent. They won't understand what happened.
And the king says:
“You are no longer my daughter if you do not want to fulfill my will.”
The king said so and retired to his chambers. The dignitaries saw this and did not know what to do. And the princess ran away from the palace to look for her betrothed, Ondar the Fool. She walked and walked and only found his house in the evening. There is a house behind the fortress wall, near a lonely elm tree.
The princess entered the house, but Ondar was not there, he had gone to the mountains to collect tree bark. Only the old blind woman is sitting, all in rags.
- Does Ondar live here? - says the princess.
-Who will you be? - asks the old woman.
- Is Ondar your son? - the princess asks again.
“Son,” the old woman answers.
The princess's heart was relieved and she began to look around and take a closer look. This is the kind of home her betrothed has! A dugout dug in the mountain is covered with tree bark on top in case of rain. Two openings are covered with burlap instead of doors. The princess had never seen anything like this. She never walked on foot - she was carried for a walk in a palanquin by a whole retinue of courtiers.
The princess approached the old woman, took her hand, and asked:
-Where is your son?
The old woman got scared, moved away from the princess and said:
- Why do you need my son? He didn't do anything wrong. And what he collects tree bark in the mountains and asks for alms is out of need. He is not to blame for anything.
“I’m not saying that I’m guilty,” the princess replies, “I just need to meet him, I want to ask him about one thing.”
The old woman doesn’t believe it and asks:
- What other matter? I don’t see you, but I smell you: gentle, pleasant! And hands that are not worn out are soft, like cotton wool. What can you ask of my poor son? No, that's not why you came!
The princess persuaded the old woman for a long time before she said that her son had gone to the mountains to collect elm bark.
“It’s already getting dark,” says the princess, “I’ll go meet Ondar.” - And left the house.
The princess was running along the path and almost ran into Ondar - he was just returning home.
Princess says:
- Listen, aren’t you Ondar?
- Why do you need me? - asks Ondar.
And the princess told Ondar everything as it was. Ondar couldn’t believe his ears and asked:
- Have you lost your mind?
- If all this were not true, how would I end up here?
- I don't believe you. Either you are a spirit or a werefox. Where have you seen a princess marry a poor man? - Ondar said this and ran away in fear. The princess was not angry with Ondar, she was not offended. I thought: he couldn’t believe this.
She spent the whole night in the open air and was frozen. And in the morning I entered the dugout. The old woman tells her:
- Where has it been seen, where has it been heard that a princess would marry a poor man? Did you live in a poor house?
The princess answers:
- Even in the old days they said: people can be happy even if they share a measure of grain, and sew clothes from scraps of linen. For love, neither wealth nor nobility is needed.
What can I say?
And the princess became Ondar's wife. I bought a house and an ox. When she ran away from the palace, she took with her gold, silver and precious stones.
A husband and wife live in perfect harmony. And then the princess realized that no Ondar was a fool. I bought him a bow, arrows, and a horse. To learn how to shoot a bow and ride a horse. So that he can serve his homeland faithfully. Whether in terms of his strength or his status, Ondar will not yield to anyone. I washed the dirt off my face - how good I looked! The eyes are smart, lively - two ringing bells. And there is nothing to say about skill and ingenuity. As soon as Ondar picked up a bow, he began to shoot better than anyone else. As soon as he sat on the horse, he galloped over everyone. Ondar rushes through the mountains and valleys, hunting animals. You couldn't find a more skillful hunter.
Spring has come, the time when people make sacrifices to Heaven, and on this occasion they organize hunting competitions. Ondar began to prepare for the competition, and his wife said to him:
“You are the most skillful shooter and the best rider.” You will defeat everyone! Let everyone now know what kind of husband she has! And let the king know! And her ex-fiancé, braggart Ko. The princess did everything to make her husband a winner. I got him a magic horse. And the horse is the first thing. That's what the palace groom once told her. If you want to defeat the enemy, catch his horse by the bridle! And of course you need courage!
And finally the third day of the third moon arrived. Day of spring sacrifice to Heaven. In both spring and autumn, this ceremony is held with special pomp in Aknan, not far from Pyongyang.
This has been the case for a long time in the state of Koguryo. On this day, hunters kill many different animals: deer, roe deer - and sacrifice them to the spirits of mountains and rivers. In the spring they pray to Heaven for the earth to bear fruit, and in the fall they thank Him for a bountiful harvest. People are gathering visibly or invisibly. The king also arrives with his large retinue.
Before the ceremony, competitions are held. The five best hunters come from the five districts of the capital. And those who are strong and brave can also try their luck.
Spring has just begun. Apricots, plums and cherries bloomed on the hills of Aknan. The ice has long since disappeared from the Phegang River, and the willows are bending down to the water itself. Warm!
"The sun is shining brightly around. The king sits in a tall and spacious palanquin, and next to the palanquin there are guards, wearing clothes of gold and silver, guarding the king's guards. Five hunters, five main rivals, their armor sparkling. The commoners also dressed up, boasting to each other about who is better.
The princess saw off her husband to the holiday and went herself, taking her mother-in-law with her.
The music started playing. The hunters lined up - several hundred of them gathered here. Young Ko is among them. All in gold, it shines. And he has a golden helmet and armor, and he himself is good and handsome. Only Ondar will not yield to him, even though he is not wearing golden armor. On the head is a cholphoon decorated with feathers. The suit is pale blue; there are boots on his feet, a bow with a drawn string in his hands, and a quiver of arrows behind his back. And how stately! No worse than warriors in rich armor.
[Cholphun is a headdress worn by Koguryeo warriors.]
The princess stands on the mountainside and can’t stop looking at her husband.
The king of the archers looked around, the manager gave a sign, and the competition began.
The horsemen rushed off with loud shouts. The horses neighed. The noise spread throughout the entire area. Dust rose to the very sky. But then the horsemen disappeared from sight, and everything became quiet.
People began to guess who would be the winner, and they decided:
- He will come out victorious; no one can compare with him, except perhaps the heavenly hero.
The hunters returned. A burly guy rushed forward, dragging a huge boar. People won't understand: who is he? We've never seen him before. But this is not the son of a dignitary, not young Ko! It was Ondar.
The steward ran up to the king and said:
“The commoner Ondar won the competition; he lives behind the fortress wall.
Everyone here made noise and shouted. Ondar appeared before the king. The king looks at Ondar and is silent. He looked for a long time, then asked:
- So your name is Ondar? - And he doesn’t take his eyes off Ondar.
Ondar bowed low and answered:
- Yes, Your Majesty, my name is Ondar.
The king grinned and said:
- But, of course, you are not the Ondar who was called a fool.
Ondar answers as if nothing had happened:
“The same one, Your Majesty,” he answers proudly.
It's nice to look at Ondar. A real hero! What a posture, what a face, what eyes! Then the king realized that his son-in-law was in front of him, but he couldn’t say anything, he wouldn’t come to his senses.
And the princess stands in the crowd, looks at her husband and smiles. Shouldn't she be happy? Her cherished dream came true. Now no one will dare to say that her husband, her Ondar, is a fool.
Enemy warriors once attacked Kogure. The king himself came out against them with his army. Ondar fought bravely in the front ranks and played a significant role in the defeat of the enemy.
Then finally the king recognized him as his son-in-law, allowed him to have a wedding and granted Ondar the title of tahen.
[Takhen is the highest military title in the royal court]
Pyonganwan was succeeded on the throne by his son Yanganwan. Ondar went to the new king and said:
“Silla has captured our northern region. But people don't want to live in captivity.
Give me an army, and I will conquer the lands of our ancestors from the enemy.
The king knew how loyal and brave Ondar was, and gave him an army. Well then Ondar said:
“If I don’t recapture our lands, I won’t go back.”
And Ondar did not return. A stray arrow killed him in the battle with the Sillans for the Adan fortress. The hero was buried magnificently and solemnly. But what’s strange is that no one could move the coffin from its place. Then the princess came up to the coffin, stroked her husband with her hand and said:
- You need to leave life calmly.
The coffin was immediately lifted and burial was performed.
The entire people of Koguryo mourned Ondar.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru