Not in our time, but a long time ago there lived a man in the world. His name was Sheidulla, and he was a lazy man and a slacker.
His wife and children were constantly hungry, and they didn’t even dare to dream of new dresses.
Sheidulla’s wife will reproach him for not wanting to work, and Sheidulla will respond:
- It’s okay, don’t worry! Now we live poorly, soon we will live richly!
- How are we going to live richly? - asked the wife. - After all, you lie all day long, you won’t touch a finger!
And Sheydulla is his again:
- Wait, the time will come - we will live richly!
The wife was waiting, the children were waiting - they couldn’t wait.
“There’s nothing to wait for,” says the wife, “we’re dying of hunger!”
Sheidulla decided to go to the sage for advice on how to get rid of poverty. I got ready and went.
Sheidulla walked for three days and three nights and met a skinny wolf on the road.
-Where are you going, good man? - the wolf asked him.
- Yes, I’m going to the sage to ask for advice on how to become rich.
The wolf heard this and said to Sheidulla:
- Be kind, by the way, find out what I should do. For the third year now I have had terrible pain in my stomach: I have no peace day or night. Let the sage advise me how to get rid of this pain.
“Okay,” Sheidulla answers, “I’ll ask.” And he moved on.
Sheidulla walked again for three days and three nights and saw an apple tree near the road.
-Where are you going, good man? - the apple tree asks him.
“I’m going to the sage to ask for advice on how to live without labor.”
“Be so kind as to ask the sage for advice for me too,” says the apple tree. “Every year in the spring I bloom all over, and when my flowers bloom, they all fall off at once.” Ask a wise man why this is.
“Okay, I’ll ask,” Sheidulla answered and went on.
He walked again for three days and three nights and reached a deep lake.
A big fish stuck its head out of the water and asked:
-Where are you going, good man?
- Yes, I’m going to the sage to ask for advice and help.
- Be so kind as to convey my request to the sage. This is the seventh year now that I have constantly had something in my throat. Let the sage give advice on how to become healthy.
“Okay, I’ll ask,” Sheidulla said and went on.
Sheidulla walked again for three days and three nights. Finally he reached the grove. And the grove was all made of rose bushes. He looks and sees an old man with a long gray beard sitting under one bush. The old man looked at Sheidulla and asked:
- What do you need, Sheidulla? Sheidulla was surprised.
“How did you find out my name,” he asks? Are you the sage to whom I go for advice?
“Yes,” answered the old man. “What do you need from me?” Speak quickly!
Sheidulla told why he came, what he needed.
The sage listened to him and asked:
“Is there anything else you want to ask me?”
“I want to,” Sheydulla answers. And he spoke about the requests of the skinny wolf, the apple tree and the big fish.
“The fish,” said the sage, “has a large gem stuck in its throat.” When this stone is taken out of her throat, then she will recover. A large jug of silver is buried under the apple tree. When this jug is dug, then the flowers of the apple tree will stop drying up and apples will ripen on it. And the wolf, in order to get rid of pain, needs to swallow the first lazy person he comes across.
- What about my request? - Sheidulla asks.
- Your request has already been fulfilled. Go! Sheidulla was delighted, did not ask the sage any more about anything and went home. He walked and walked and reached the lake. A big fish was waiting impatiently for him there. As soon as she saw Sheidulla, she asked:
- Well, what did the sage advise me?
“When the precious stone is taken out of your throat, then you will become healthy,” Sheidulla told her and wanted to move on.
“Good man, have pity on me,” the fish began to ask him, “take this thing out of my throat.”
stone! And you will free me, and you will receive wealth yourself!
- Well, no, why should I work in vain? I will already have wealth by itself!” Sheidulla said and went on.
Sheidulla came to the apple tree. The apple tree saw him and began to tremble with all its branches and rustle with all its leaves.
- Well? - asks. “Have you learned from the sage how I can get rid of my grief?”
“I found out,” says Sheidulla. “They need to dig out a large jug of silver from under your roots.” Then your flowers will not dry out, then your apples will ripen.
Sheidulla said this and wanted to move on.
The apple tree began to ask him:
- Dig out this jug of silver from under my roots! This will benefit you too - you will immediately get rich!
- Well, no, I don’t want to work! The sage said that I would have everything without it,” Sheidulla answered and went his way.
He walked and walked and met a skinny wolf. The skinny wolf saw Sheidulla and began to shake with impatience.
“Well,” he asks, “what did the sage advise me?” Don’t be tormented, tell me quickly!..
“Eat the first lazy person you meet on the way, and you’ll get better right away,” said Sheidulla.
The wolf thanked Sheidulla and began asking him about everything he had seen and heard along the way.
Sheidulla told the wolf about his meetings with the big fish and the apple tree and about their requests.
“But I didn’t linger,” says Sheidulla, “I’ll be rich already.”
The wolf listened to him and was very happy.
“Well,” he says, “I don’t need to look for the lazy guy now: he came to me himself!” There is no one in the world more stupid and lazier than this Sheidulla!
The wolf rushed at Sheidulla and swallowed him whole!
And so the lazy man Sheidulla disappeared.
Three apples fell from the sky: one to the one who listened, another to the one who told, and the third to everyone else.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru