Long ago, in the old days, there was a lot of fish, there was a lot of animals, there was a lot of game. The Nivkhs cooked yukola and lived well. Each person prepared yukola for himself, putting it in the barn.
One day a lot of crows appeared. Nivkhs could not go to barns. Crows snatched yukola from people and ate it. People began to live in poverty. Only together, protecting each other, with sticks in their hands, did they go to the barn.
Then one man named Kulgin saw something shiny and sharp on the tubercle - Kulgin picked up the thing, but did not understand what it was. I felt it and saw that it was something strong. I thought and slashed it at the grass - the grass was cut off. I thought and hit a thick tree. The tree was cut down. It turns out that it was a saber. Kulgin took the saber home.
There were even more crows. Autumn has come. Snow slightly covered the ground. Then Kulgin took a saber, went out, walked not far from the house and screamed like a crow. The crows began to flock to him. Then he began to cut them with his saber. The snow even turned black all around.
There were few crows, they got scared and hid. Since then, crows have become afraid of people. People began to live well again.
Several years have passed. One day people went into the forest to hunt and disappeared. When they were found, they were lying dead, and their tongues had been torn out.
Then Kulgin went into the forest. There he cut down many trees with a saber. In the evening a big fire was lit. He chopped off two logs. He put one under his head, and the other at his feet, between himself and the fire, to protect his legs from the fire. Lay down. As he lay there, a human scream was heard somewhere. The scream was getting closer and closer. When the scream began to be heard very close, Kulgin stood up, straightened the fire and lay down again. He kept his saber ready.
An unknown person approached the fire and screamed so loudly that the bark of the trees flew off and rose up from his scream. Then the newcomer jumped over the fire, went up to the block of wood that lay at Kulgin’s feet, and stood on it. Kulgin looked - it was a small, squirrel-like devil-halo-fing. His chest was white, and he licked his lips. Kulgin pushed the block of wood. The devil fell towards him. Kulgin cut him in half with a saber.
Since then, people have gone into the forest and never disappeared. Life began to be good again.
Several more years passed. One day, people were wading a small river and drowned.
Kulgin and his friend went to the river. He undressed and began to wade across it, carefully feeling the bottom with his feet. Suddenly a huge hand stuck out of the water and grabbed his leg. Then Kulgin cut off this hand with a saber. When I looked, I saw a small seal emerge, cut in half. This seal was the devil.
Since then, people have not drowned. Life began to be good again.
Kulgin killed bears and meat with his saber and gave it to his fellow villagers. One day he cut off the bear's left ear, and the bear ran away from him. After some time, near the village, the sea washed ashore a dead whale. People went to him and cut him open. Comrade Kulgin also came ashore. Then a man emerged from the cut belly of the whale. He didn't have a left ear. He approached Kulgin’s comrade and said:
- Kulgin kills bears with his saber. After this, none of the bears he killed returns back to their village. When bears are killed with other weapons, they come back. Now I have come to waylay Kulgin. Send him here. The comrade went to Kulgin and told him:
- One man came out of the belly of a whale, his left ear was missing. This man said that you kill bears with a saber, so they don’t come back to their village. He told you to come to him.
Kulgin realized that a bear had come, whose ear he cut off. Then he said to his friend:
- Come with me, sit nearby, look. Let's go together. The comrade sat down not far away and began to look. Kulgin went to the whale. As soon as he came closer, a huge bear jumped out of the whale’s belly with its left ear severed. With a strong roar he attacked Kulgin. Kulgin began to fight with the bear, cutting it with a saber. The bear was very dexterous and did not give in. Nevertheless, Kulgin killed him and returned with his comrade to the village.
People began to live well again.
Several years have passed. One evening the children went out into the yard to play and disappeared. Whether the devil kidnapped them - no one knew.
Then Kulgin said to his friend:
- Friend, you are not married, but I have a wife and two sons. If I accidentally die, you take my wife and raise my children.
Kulgin's comrade agreed. In the evening Kulgin said to his comrade:
- Let's take my kids to the shore. Let them play there. We will both sit a little higher in the grass. We'll watch them from there.
So they carried the children to the shore. They sat down not far away and began to watch.
After some time, something red and large appeared in the sea and disappeared. After some time, something appeared near the shore and plunged into the water again.
Then Kulgin said to his comrade:
- Go down, take the children, take them to the house.
The comrade came down, took the children and carried them away.
Kulgin ran to the very edge of the water. Then the water rose, splashed onto the shore and covered Kul-gin.
People saw that after a while Kulgin jumped out all over, appeared above the water and sank again. Then he again jumped out of the water up to his feet and sank again. Then he again rose high out of the water, but now only to the middle of his shins. Then he sank again and disappeared.
When the tide went out, people found on the shore a large sea lion made of red stone, which Kulgin cut in half. This sea lion was a devil. Kulgin's saber was broken. One half of the sea lion in the water crushed Kulgin’s leg, so he drowned.
People took the corpse of their comrade and burned it with honor.
From then on, the children went out to play in the evening and did not disappear, because there were fewer devils.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru