I don’t know in what region, I don’t know in what times this story happened. And does it really matter? Maybe far away - where the sky and the earth meet. Or maybe it’s close, just a stone’s throw away. Once upon a time there lived a young man. Handsome and stately. Every day I went to the river to fish. And every time I met the old man there. An old man sits on the shore and quietly says:
- Get caught, get caught, get caught! Get caught, get caught, get caught! Go away, little fish, come, big one!
The young man began to watch him secretly and spy on him. The bigger fish all swim to the old man. Somehow the young man could not stand it and said:
- Good grandfather! Teach me to fish like you do!
The old man raised his head and answered:
“I won’t teach you how to fish.” I see you are an honest guy, better walk along the river along the bank, good luck awaits you.
The old man said this, shook the fishing line, only waves ran across the water, and he disappeared.
The guy was amazed and thought: “No other than this old man - the immortal Shen Xian. If I listen to him, I’ll walk along the shore, maybe luck really awaits me there.” And the young man walked along the shore. From noon I walked until the evening. The sun had already set, the stars in the sky were shining, the moon was shining. Suddenly the young man sees a large pool appear in front of him, all overgrown with lotuses. And the moon seemed to become brighter. Or maybe it’s not the moon, but the lotuses that sparkle. The young man was enchanted and staring, when suddenly he saw the lotus leaves moving slightly, the flowers swaying. The young man took a step, and apparently he stepped on a green lichen, slipped and fell. But when he got to his feet and looked around, he didn’t recognize this place. The stars descended from the sky to earth and scattered their lights across the emerald mulberries. There is a small house in the grove, the door is slightly open, through the crack you can see a girl weaving silk by a lamp. The girl is wearing a long skirt, as if a dark green lotus leaf is glowing in the flame of a lamp. A fresh lotus bud is stuck into her hair, black as a raven's wing. A young man approached the house and asked:
-Where did I go?
The girl stopped weaving, raised her head and said:
- I won’t deceive you. You wandered into the Lotus Village, and I am the Lotus Maiden. If you are tired on the road, go home and rest.
The girl was truly beautiful, like a lotus under the moon. The young man was delighted, entered the house, and the girl uttered a word, then another, lowered her head and began to weave again. Yes, so quickly that you can’t even see how she passes the shuttle under the base. Only the silver thimble glitters with a white path. The girl is silent, the young man is about to leave - he doesn’t hold back, silently accompanies him to the door. The young man took one step, took another, looked around - everything had disappeared, only the large pool sparkled. The young man stands and thinks: “It’s impossible that the lotus flower turned into a fairy. I wish I could take such an immortal maiden as my wife.”
The young man returned home, he couldn’t do anything, he didn’t have the heart for work. It had not yet gotten dark, but he was already heading towards the lotus bay. The sun will not hide behind the mountains, golden scales are scattered across the water, and the lotuses are filled with crimson. With great difficulty the young man waited for darkness, and looked - the Lotus Virgin had indeed appeared in front of him. So affectionate, more affectionate than yesterday. The girl told the young man to take off his torn jacket and let’s mend it: stitch by stitch, stitch by stitch. She fixed it and gave it to the young man. And the young man looked at the girl and said:
“I’m the only one in the world!”
The lotus maiden does not seem to hear, does not speak, and accompanies the young man to the door.
The young man returned home after midnight. He can’t find a place for himself: if he sits down, he can’t sit. When he gets up, he feels numb again. And he ran again to the river. A white fog spreads over the river, the shoes get wet from the dew, and the young man runs as fast as he can. He rushed to the lotus pool when the birds on the willows were already singing. The sun rose and cleared away the fog. The water in the pool seemed even clearer to the young man, the lotus leaves were even clearer, and dewdrop pearls were rolling over the delicate petals. The aroma of lotuses spreads around. A young man walks along the creek and looks - in the middle there is a flower rising, the largest, the most beautiful. The young man began to wonder: “Isn’t this flower turning into the Lotus Virgin?” As soon as he thought this, he looked - the flower moved and out of nowhere the Lotus Maiden appeared on the water. A maiden walks along the waves, only her long skirt flutters in the wind. Out of joy, the young man forgot that there was a fairy in front of him, he wanted to hold her so that she wouldn’t go under the water, but just as he was about to extend his hand, the maiden was already standing on the shore. And she rejoices and grieves.
The maiden says:
“My father doesn’t want me to know a mere mortal.” We will never see you again.
It was as if thunder struck the young man. He stood there, didn’t move, and then started crying, so bitterly. The girl saw how he was grieving, how he was dying, shook her head and said:
“If you don’t know fear and you don’t have, as they say, “three hearts and two thoughts,” let’s run away with you to the very edge of the sky to the island of the sea.
The young man’s tears had not yet dried, but he was already smiling:
- With you, I feel joy everywhere - even in the high mountains, even in the wild forests.
The girl pulled out a lotus bud from her hair, blew on it - the flower opened: on each petal a pearl rolls, around the green pistil the stamens-stars glitter like gold! The girl lifted the flower with one hand, as if she opened an umbrella, with the other hand she took the young man by the hand, and they flew into the sky. White clouds stroke their backs, eagles flap their wings under their feet. They fly so high and so fast that it is impossible to describe. You can't compare them to anything, except maybe a wonderful shooting star. It was as if very little time had passed, and they had already sank to the ground, straight into a mountain gorge. The young man looked at his feet - everything was overgrown with grass, and stones were scattered on the grass. I looked around - tall mountains piled on top of each other. The young man became sad, but the Lotus Virgin rejoiced:
“I’ll weave, and you’ll hunt, so we’ll have food and clothing.”
-Where will we live? - asks the young man.
- It's not your concern. I’ll exchange my silk skirt for a canvas one, and I can break pine branches and plant mulberries just as well as you.
That’s what the girl did: she took off her long green skirt, threw it at her feet, the skirt flew, spun and began to quietly fall to the ground. The girl led the boy to the place where the skirt dropped. The young man looks - instead of a skirt, there is a large creek, like an emerald glistening. There is a house in the middle of the creek. There is a bridge to the house. The young man and the girl crossed the bridge, entered the house - it was spacious and there was so much: a cauldron, cups, ladles, basins, mats, blankets, various utensils, even a loom stood against the wall.
In the morning the young man got ready to hunt. The Lotus Maiden ran out the gate, pulled out a lotus bud from her hair, gave it to the young man and said:
- Take this flower, it will protect you from all sorts of reptiles, from wolves and tigers, from bloodthirsty leopards. If they see him, they will immediately run away. Just be sure to take care of it and don’t give it to anyone.
The young man took the flower and set off on his way. He climbs the eastern mountains, and there the hares are really not afraid of people, but they scatter, the pheasants do not fly away. He caught a great variety of pheasants and hares and got ready to head back. He walks and sees a mulberry forest growing green on the mountain slope. I came closer, and it turned out that the Lotus Virgin was breaking mulberry branches and sticking them between the cameos. Before he has time to stick it in, the branch has already turned into a huge mulberry tree. The maiden breaks pine branches, does not give herself rest, breaks them, sticks them between stones. My hands were bleeding, my face was scorched by the sun.
The young man felt sorry for the girl, he called out to her:
- Let's go home and take a little rest.
And the maiden laughs:
“We’ll build a house here, we’ll get a farm, so I want this channel to become a big lake, and for a mulberry forest to grow on the mountains.”
The young man hunted one day, hunted another, and on the third he climbed the western mountains. He looked - wild horses were grazing in a herd, whole herds of wild goats were running straight towards him. The young man grabbed the goat, jumped on his horse, and rode home. And at home there is green silk on the canoe. The Lotus Maiden takes a piece of silk, spreads it on the grass, and the silk immediately turns into green water.
It’s getting late, and the Lotus Maiden weaves and weaves her silk, not feeling her arms or legs from fatigue. The young man took pity on her and said:
- Night is coming soon. Take a break.
And the maiden laughs:
“We’ll build a house here, we’ll get a farm, so I want this channel to become a big lake, and for a mulberry forest to grow on the mountains.”
A day passed, followed by another, a month ended, another began. It is unknown how much time has passed. Probably a lot, because the young man noticed that the Lotus Virgin was no longer as beautiful as before. Her black hair is not so shiny. The pink face doesn't shine as much. The young man asks her:
“Isn’t it because of work and care that you grew old early?”
The Lotus Maiden said nothing, she just shook her head.
One day a young man went hunting. He will descend from one mountain, climb another, come out of one gorge, enter another. And he reached the hollow on the other side of the mountain. He raised his head and looked around - not a flower anywhere, not a blade of grass, only the cave turned black. The young man thought, thought, looked, looked, and climbed the mountain. He took the lotus that his wife had once given him and boldly entered the cave. He walks, and the cave becomes darker and darker, more and more gloomy, and it even smells like blood. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a tiger jumped out, his eyes were two lanterns, his mouth was open, and just behold, he would rush at the young man. The young man recoiled in fear, showed the treasured flower to the tiger, and from that flower a red ray burst out, thin and long, well, like lightning. The tiger turned and ran away.
The young man walked further, walking, walking, and suddenly a pack of wolves met him. Long tails drag along the ground, ears stick up. The wolves surrounded the young man. He recoiled in fear and showed them the treasured flower. A lightning ray burst out from that flower. The wolves lowered their heads, turned, and ran away. The young man walked further, walking, walking, and suddenly he saw that it had become brighter ahead. I walked a little more and found myself in front of a high gate. He opened the gate and looked - behind the gate the bright lanterns were burning, the candles were blazing with fire. Kane is standing, there is a beauty on the kane. The face is white, the lips are scarlet, the voice is gentle, the appearance is friendly. The beauty spoke to the young man, instantly jumped off the kana and rushed towards him. Here the young man remembered the Lotus Maiden. Can you compare her with this beauty? He entered the courtyard and sat down on the canal, closer to the beauty. And the beauty chirps, bursts into ringing laughter, fills a golden glass with wine, and serves snacks on silver saucers. The young man tasted snacks from silver saucers, drank from a golden glass of wine, and the beauty hovered around him. And the young man took her as his wife. In the joys and amusements I did not notice how three days had passed, three nights had flown by. And I completely forgot about the kindness of the Lotus Maiden. He himself rejoices, and does not think how heavy the lotus fairy’s heart is now. The fourth day has arrived.
“I want to visit my relatives,” says the beauty, “but I’m afraid of poisonous reptiles, evil tigers and bloodthirsty leopards.”
The young man did not hesitate here. And why? As they say, three times seven is twenty-one. He gave the beauty the treasured flower. Eh! As soon as the beauty left the house, the gate slammed behind her and it became pitch dark. The young man stretched out his hand - he came across a stone, he stretched out his other hand - again a stone. And there is a stone underfoot. And outside the doors tigers growl, wolves howl. Suddenly the stone under your feet began to move, and the stones above your head were about to collapse. The young man began to scream - no one responded, he began to call for help - no one responded. The young man became afraid. He sat down by a stone and became sad.
And the Lotus Maiden was sitting in the house at that time, diligently weaving silk. Then she raised her head and looked - it was already midday, but her husband was still not there. The girl's heart ached. She told fortunes on her fingers and immediately understood everything: an hour passes on the ground, but in the cave day turns into night. This means that the young man has been making love with the werewolf woman for three whole days. The maiden was angry, she felt offended, she didn’t know what to do: save him or not save him. She sighed quietly, dropped two tears and decided: “Even if he is not good, but bad, I will still save his life.” With the speed of the wind she moved from mountain to mountain, from gorge to gorge. And finally she found herself at the northern slope of the very mountain where the young man was imprisoned. The Lotus Maiden wanted to enter the cave, but she saw that the entrance was blocked with huge stones. She didn’t hesitate, climbed to the very top of the mountain, took the silver thimble off her finger and threw it away. The thimble landed right on the stones, and they moved apart quietly: neither a spark was seen, nor a roar was heard; neither a narrow crack nor a wide gap. But as soon as he drilled a well with a silver thimble, it was round and round, deep and deep - the bottom was not visible. It pierced right through that huge mountain.
Meanwhile, the young man is sitting in a cave, he can’t get out of it, it’s dark all around. He clenches his fingers, but he doesn’t see his fist. If he opens it, he won’t be able to see his palms. He is scared, sadness gnaws at him. “How do we get out of here?” - the young man thinks. And as soon as he thought so, it became light in the cave, he didn’t have time to blink, and the Lotus Maiden was right there. She took him by the hand and led him along. Before the young man had time to straighten his back, he already found himself at the top of the mountain.
The maiden bent down, picked up the silver thimble, and put it on her finger again. And at that very moment the well disappeared, as if it had never existed.
The young man is ashamed and anxious. The fairy was not angry with him, only tears fell from her eyes, and she said to the young man:
“I didn’t think, I didn’t imagine that you would offend me so much!” I did not hide from you that I have two treasures: this thimble - the key that opens the mountains, and the lotus. If I take a lotus in my hands, I can fly across the blue sky; if I stick it in my hair, I will remain young forever.
As soon as the Lotus Maiden said this, a menacing whirlwind flew into the cave. The female werewolf sent him. The maiden grabbed the young man by the hand, and they ran away from this place. Now the evil witch owned the treasured flower, and the Lotus Maiden did not have the strength to defeat her. So the Lotus Maiden decided to lure the sorceress to her gorge. No wonder they say: “a slow boat will overtake a fast horse.” The maiden rushes - she swims along the rapids, the young man does not feel the earth beneath him. Meanwhile, the sorceress began to catch up with them. He does not dare to approach, he is afraid of the Lotus Maiden, but he calls to the young man:
- Come back!
“Make sure you don’t turn around,” the Lotus Maiden punishes, “or you’ll die!”
But the witch doesn’t let up:
- Remember, young man, how good it was for us in the cave! How we spent three days loving each other! Remember my beauty!
The young man listened, listened, and everything began to spin in his head, he began to spin. He couldn’t stand it and turned around. And the witch waved her handkerchief, and the young man’s feet ran towards her. Here the sorceress called a snake, sat astride it with the young man and flew with the wind towards the cave.
The Lotus Maiden sighed:
“Didn’t I want to save you!” Didn't I try! It's all in vain!
After a little time, the Lotus Maiden approached the witch’s cave. He looks - clothes are lying around and bones are scattered near the cave. The Lotus Maiden took the young man’s clothes, picked up his bones, and buried them near her hut.
The Lotus Maiden was very hardworking. During the day he feeds silkworms and plants mulberry trees. And at night, by the light of a lamp, she weaves silk. A year passed, then two, three. From those pine branches that the Lotus Maiden poked in the mountains, large pines grew, from the mulberry branches dark green mulberries rose - all the mountains around became green. The green silk that the maiden wove turned into a sparkling crystal lake. Multi-colored butterflies flutter in a dark green grove, and lotuses bloom on a soft green lake. And then one day the Lotus Maiden saw that a blade of grass had grown on the grave near her hut. The maiden touched it, and the blade of grass became ashamed, curled up its leaves and drooped.
A few days later, the same old man whom the young man once met came to the lake to fish. The lotus maiden told him everything without concealment about what had happened to her. The old man went somewhere and soon brought the girl the treasured lotus, which he took from the witch. The girl stuck a lotus into her black hair, her hair shone again, her face sparkled with its former beauty. The old man collected the seeds of that green grass and went to the distant mountains. And the next year in the spring, green blades of grass grew everywhere: in mountain groves, and near the sea on the coastal hills, and even in small gardens near houses. And people called these blades of grass, shame on you, grass, or mimosa. To this day, you only have to touch a mimosa, and it has already curled up its leaves and drooped. To this day, there are people walking around the world who look like that young man. They see something new and immediately forget about the old. And don't be ashamed of them!
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru