A long time ago, in a sieve or in straw, when the genies were throwing darts on the old current, a beautiful girl lived in a rich house. To say - you can’t tell, to write - you can’t describe, among the beautiful flowers there was a marvelous rose, among the slender trees - a cypress candle. People look at her and won’t take their eyes off her... Her mother and father couldn’t get enough of her, they protected her from the cold and the heat, but, evil fate be damned, before the young nightingale had time to sit on the girl’s branch, fate knocked on the door and took her parents to the grave. A terrible misfortune befell her. Bitterly wailing and crying out to heaven, she shed tears in streams, but what can her hands do, how can her tongue help her? They don’t die from a wound in the heart, only time and patience save us from it, the Almighty bestowed it upon us!
[Djinn is an evil spirit in the folklore of the Middle East.]
And so, glory to Allah, one day happiness smiled on her: the rose girl, the beautiful girl, became a bride, and then moved in with her husband. She got a man who is quieter than water, who won’t touch anyone with his finger, and who won’t even offend an ant. He worked by the sweat of his brow, and therefore all the housework fell on his wife.
She had never seen a broom or a tandoor before. She grew up as a mother’s daughter, and her hands were not used to working, and her fingers were not used to sewing. So the tandoor in her house was covered with soot, and all the corners were overgrown with cobwebs... To tell the truth, it became scary to look at the house. Uh-uh! Well, if it’s disgusting to look at the house, will you really admire its owner, even though she is more beautiful than a rose?.. The neighbors have long stopped visiting them, and what can a husband do! In order not to violate the agreement, not to be deprived of peace, he never said “dirty, tasteless,” he endured as much as he could, and did not even reproach his wife with a word. But you can’t eat beauty instead of cheese and bread!.. The time came, and the husband began to wrinkle his forehead and frown.
[Tandir is a stove dug in the ground.]
Uh-uh! They say - in one hint there are a thousand meanings! How could the rose girl fail to notice the change in her husband’s friendly face? I noticed, I noticed, but what could I do? If her hands turned into a brush, and her hair into a broom, she would bring a mirror shine everywhere; I would cook my hubby a delicious meal and put a smile back on his face. There is a desire in the heart, but there is no dexterity in the hands! Therefore, the girl grieves bitterly and prays to heaven for help:
- O great Allah, I have two hands, ten fingers, but they are not accustomed to work, and even if they take up some task, it is still of little use. If I decide to draw an eyebrow, I gouge out my eye, I get to work and get all dirty. If things continue like this, I'll be lost. All my hope is in you! Send me some remedy, O Allah!
And so, one day, as always, she raised her hands to the sky, a respectable woman suddenly appeared in the house.
“Rose girl, pink girl,” she said, “why are you shedding streams of tears!” When you were born, and the Almighty endowed your fingers with skill, but even iron becomes covered with rust if it is not used for work... If only your late mother had not carried you on her chest like a rose, but had taught you to work, then your fingers would have been suitable for any task! You would turn your house into a flower, and people would respect you, and your husband would be proud of you. Mothers don’t know such a trifle! But now your deeds haunt your mother even in the grave. It’s your happiness that she was kind: if she sees an orphan, she’ll feed her, she’ll meet the poor, she’ll clothe her, the poor people didn’t know how to thank her, that’s why I brought ten feathers to you!
Before the venerable woman had time to say this, all ten peris, one after another, appeared next to her. The rose girl looked at them and lost consciousness, looked again and came to her senses. А почтенная старушка говорит:
- Look at them, my daughter, they are all workers, one better than the other. Just remember, you can’t show them to people, they can’t see the world. Now I will whisper, blow, and each of them will hide in your fingers... If you need the services of one of them, then you move your finger, and she will do everything you need! Just remember: peri are very agile - if you leave them without work, they will run away from boredom, so much so that you won’t even know about it. Don’t hide your fingers in your fist anymore, make them work, regardless of day or night, and only then will you appreciate them what they deserve...
The venerable woman said this and fingered all ten of the girl’s fingers one after another. “Close your eyes!” - she ordered, and the girl closed her eyes. “Open your eyes!” - the woman ordered, and the girl opened her eyes. Thus saying “close your eyes,” “open your eyes,” “close your eyes,” “open your eyes,” the woman placed a peri on each finger. And when was the last time the rose girl heard “open your eyes!” and looked around - what do you think? - both the venerable woman and the peri disappeared.
The rose girl doesn't know whether to believe what she saw, what she heard...
- O Allah, was all this in reality or in a dream?
And so she thought, and figured it out, but did not comprehend the miracle with her mind... Not even an hour had passed before she came to her senses.
- Why am I idle again, sitting and thinking, I’ll try to work, after all, the wolves won’t eat me! If that woman put peri on my fingers, then it will immediately affect both the cleaning and dinner.
Having said this, she tied on her apron and got down to business. She began to move her fingers, as the venerable woman ordered, and ten peris in ten fingers remade all the work, prepared all the food! How can you not believe a miracle! She jumped for joy. In the evening my husband returned home. And what does he see? Everything changed, the rose girl turned her house into a flower. It’s so nice for the poor husband, his soul is so light, he looks and looks and can’t get enough of it. And dinner is like musk: he has never tasted anything like this in his life, he eats and eats, and still wants to eat.
“O rose of my garden, oh nightingale of my nest,” said the husband, “may your hands and fingers never know fatigue, may trouble not touch you, be happy in this and the next world!” Finally, our house feels like home, it’s so cozy and warm in our nest...
Since then they lived in joy and fun, smiling at each other all the time and saying only kind words. Their happiness is sung in the destans, they themselves achieved their goal, and now we can part ways.
[Destan - epic, epic narrative.]
Three more apples fell from the sky. This is for those who turn their home, their nest into paradise!
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru