There were three brothers, all three were single. They lived separately and had their own houses. One of them said:
- We'll get married. Junior said:
“Big brother, when we get up tomorrow, we’ll think about it.” The next day, the younger brother got up and came to his older brother. The middle brother didn't come. As they sat, the door opened. They look - the middle brother stands, holds a spear and says:
- My older brother, my younger brother! I'll go look for a wife.
After that I went. Then the elder brother said to his younger brother:
- Go with him, he is very stupid! The younger brother took the blessing from his older brother and went. He left and on the way caught up with his middle brother. Let's go together. As they walked, they heard a knock: someone was chopping wood. They began to creep up: it turned out that the old woman was chopping logs. We came close to her. She left the firewood and said to herself:
- Ear, what are you saying? Have people come? A voice is heard from the ear:
- We've arrived.
Then he says again:
- Back of the head, what are you saying? Have people come?
A voice is heard from the back of my head:
- We've arrived.
The old woman approached the house, went into the house, and said:
- Women, come out!
Beautiful girls came out. The guys saw those girls. The middle brother wanted to go to the girls right away. Junior said:
- Middle brother, don't go. He speaks from the back of his head, from his ear, which means he is not a man, but a devil. If you die, don't go!
In response to this, the middle brother hit his younger brother and went to the girls. The younger brother remained.
The middle brother entered the house. When I entered, I saw two beautiful girls sitting there. The old lady is sitting in the front seat.
- Good man, tell me where you came from? To this he said:
- I'm looking for a wife. The old woman moves closer to him. That man saw the back of her head with teeth. She came close to him. The old woman jumped on the man and began to bite his neck. She gnawed his neck and killed him.
The younger brother came there secretly and saw that the middle brother had been killed long ago. After that he ran back. I reached my house, my elder brother was sitting alone. Entered. His elder brother asked him:
- Friend, is your brother alive? The younger brother replied:
“The old lady killed my middle brother.” The elder brother said:
- Tomorrow you get up, go look for a wife. The next morning the younger brother got up and got dressed. Having gathered himself, the younger brother said:
-Where will I go? The elder brother said:
- Go up the river. When you reach the place where the river flows into two branches, throw my spear there. Whichever direction it falls, go there. Take my skis.
The younger brother bowed at the feet of his older brother and then went up the river. I came to the place where the river flowed into two branches. Threw his older brother with a spear. The spear fell towards the right river and went along the right river. I reached a large clearing. From the clearing I saw a house. His yard is full of deer. I went to that house and reached the courtyard of the house. Having reached it, he turned back. Turning around, I saw that the old house was nowhere to be found: There was an old house, it was bad. I entered this house. When he entered, the old woman, shuddering, jumped up. When she jumped up, all the skin came off her belly.
He took a cauldron, filled it with water, boiled the skin from her belly and took it out. When I took it out, I saw it and it turned out that it was fat from the back of an elk. That man ate moose fat. The old lady said:
- He apparently came from afar. Go to bed. Went to bed. The next morning, when I woke up, I saw a nice house. He looks into the middle - a beautiful girl walks in the middle of the house, prepares food... That man stood up. The girl said:
– Don’t touch me yet! If you manage to take my owner’s deer in the yard, then you will take me as your wife.
That man came out. As I was leaving, I saw that there were just as many deer as there were mosquitoes. Among those deer there was one with iron antlers, his hooves were also iron, and he threw sparks with his mouth and nose. The man went to him. As he walked, he saw that the bag was lying full. A beaded cap can be seen from the hole in the bag. I took it. A deer with iron antlers chased the guy. Started to butt him. The man began to hit the deer with his hat and shouted:
- What's wrong with you? I'm your master! After that, the deer stopped goring and began scratching the man’s muzzle. The man put a belt on the deer and led it. When he led him, the deer all went behind him. I reached the house. Entering the house, he said:
- Mistress, I brought your reindeer. The girl said:
- Let's go to your house!
They gathered for ten days. Let's go. Her husband was at the front of the caravan. The wife was behind. I reached my older brother. The elder brother was delighted:
- My younger brother and his wife arrived. The older brother began making poles for the chum. Everything was painted red. The younger brother's wife built the house. After setting up the house, she killed a deer. She cooked it, called her husband’s older brother and fed it. Then the ninbu tablet took it, went out, and called the deer. The deer have arrived. He walks among the deer, counting them. The yearling deer came with the sun on his forehead. Ninboy hit that deer on the forehead. Immediately a beautiful girl stood in front of her. She took this girl by the hand and led her into the house. He offers his older brother his husband as a wife. The elder brother rejoiced and said to the younger brother:
- Let's go look for our middle brother. We got ready. The older brother took the pliers and took the hammer. Went. As they walked, they reached a dense forest. They hear a knock: someone is cutting down the forest. They began to creep up. They look - an old woman is cutting down a forest. The old lady said:
- Back of the head, what are you saying?
“People have come,” a voice is heard from the back of my head.
The old woman ran to the house and said:
- Women, start a fire. Two women came out, looked and entered again. People came to the house. They look: two girls are sitting, and an old woman is with them. She says:
- Tell me why you came.
While talking, he approaches them. People look: the back of the old woman’s head has teeth. The older brother grabbed her by the teeth with pincers and began beating her with a hammer. The old woman breaks out and shouts:
- I'm dying, leave me!
- Why did you kill my younger brother? Bring my little brother.
She brought his bones and collected them. The brothers put them in their bag. After the old woman brought the bones, the brothers killed her and burned her along with the house. They burned it and went home. The elder brother's wife came out to meet him, knocked down the black deer alive, and tore open its belly. The bones of a dead person were put there. Look, the bones are all covered with veins. Another deer, a motley one, was knocked down alive and its belly was torn open. She put the human bones back in. Then he looks - he’s covered all over with meat, but there’s no breathing. She knocked down a white deer alive and tore open his belly. I put a person there again. A little later he was resurrected. Said:
- Apparently he slept for a long time. His elder brother replied:
“If I wasn’t there, you would have slept longer.” They entered the house. The elder brother's wife cooked food and fed everyone. After that, she took the ninba and left. When she came out, she whistled. A deer came with the sun on its forehead. Hit Ninboy on the forehead, the beautiful girl stood up. She brought her into the house and gave her to that man as a wife. The man was happy. They still live well.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru