Since ancient times, they say, a young peasant man, the son of Sharaj, lived in one village. And in the middle of this village there was a high mound, and on the sunny side of the mound lay a large ambergris stone1.
It was on this very ambergris stone that the son of Sharaj sat every day, basking in the sun.
The aul was ruled by a strong, well-born prince, more cruel than any beast, and he had seven daughters - one more beautiful than the other. The prince did not marry off his daughters. I waited for the youngest to grow up. And then the time came, she grew up, and the prince sent horsemen everywhere with the news: whoever wants to become his son-in-law, let him come and try his luck!
What horseman could resist hearing such news? The suitors began to arrive. And when everyone was assembled, the prince ordered this:
“My daughters will choose their own husbands.” Whoever throws a ring at him will be her husband!
Is this long? As they said, so they did! The prince's daughters climbed to the top of the mound, and bride seekers passed in front of them below. The eldest threw her ring to the young neighboring prince. Following her, five more daughters chose husbands equal in nobility. Only the youngest and most beautiful did not throw a gold ring to anyone.
“How dare you violate your father’s will?” the prince became angry. “Or are you not thinking of getting married?”
“Don’t be angry, father!” asked the youngest. “I didn’t throw away the ring because the one who was destined to be my husband didn’t come.”
The prince ordered to call everyone, old and young, who wears a hat on their head. They all passed in front of the youngest daughter, but this time she did not throw away the ring.
“Who dared not listen to me?” the prince shouted in anger. “Who didn’t come at my call?”
“There is no one left except Sharaj’s son,” the people answered.
“Bring him here!” the prince shouted. “Drag him!”
They brought their son Sharaj as he was, in an old hat and a torn beshmet. And the youngest princely daughter threw him her golden ring. A
when she threw the ring to the peasant’s son, the prince’s eyes became bloodshot with rage and he drove her away from the house:
“You are not my daughter, and after my death do not come to mourn me!”
But the girl was not afraid of her father’s anger and acted in her own way. She was placed, as custom dictates, before the wedding with respectable people in the family in the same village, and the son of Sharaj and his friends were waiting. At that time, the old people gathered and headed to the bride.
“You, daughter, need to live somewhere,” they said. “We decided to build a house for you and Sharaj’s son.” Tell me which place you like?
“I have a fiance,” the girl answered. “If you decide, don’t ask me, ask him about everything.”
Isn't this an answer pleasant for old people? Yes, very nice!
Let's go to Sharaj's son.
“Thank you, good people,” he said with a bow. “I ask you to build a house so that my ambergris stone lies at the threshold.”
“Okay!” say the old people.
We decided - and we did it! How long will it take to build a house when all the people get down to business?! So they built a hut, and whoever could bring it to the hut, they celebrated the wedding. And Sharaj’s son and his wife lived in a new house. And when the time came, they had a boy, beautiful, like a ray of sunshine.
But Sharaj’s son still sat and sat on the ambergris stone near the mound where their house stood from morning to evening. The wife struggled for a long time, and in the end she lost patience, and she turned to her husband with these words:
“You and I live together, you have never offended me in any way, and our son is one of those children about whom they say: “so as not to jinx it with an unkind glance.” Throwing the ring to you, I knew that you had courage, intelligence, and honor. Show them! I want to be proud of my husband in front of people, as other women are proud.
The son of Sharaj lowered his head, thought, and then answered:
“Well, apparently it’s time to tell you everything.” Come on, I'll tell you my secret.
He took his wife to the ambergris stone on which he constantly sat. He pushed the stone away with his dude's toe. And the door turned out to be under a stone. Her son Sharaj opened it and went down with his wife into the dungeon. There a woman saw a marvelous storeroom full of gold and silver. And behind that storeroom is another storeroom full of all sorts of gems. There was also a third storeroom, and it contained military clothing, a saddle made by the most skilled craftsmen, and a precious saber made of Damascus steel. Just don’t think that this is the main thing! The main thing is yet to come! Behind that third storeroom there was a spacious cave, and in that cave stood a winged Alp horse.
- This is all my wealth! Mine and yours. Silver, gold, gems - take whatever you need,” said Sharaj’s son. “And this horse and this saber will serve me well.” Who knows, maybe something bad will happen, an enemy will attack our land... But remember, while I’m alive, not a single soul should know about what you saw! When I die, do as you please.
That's what they decided on. The wife calmed down and happily ran the house, and Sharaj’s son, still in an old hat and a holey beshmet, sat on the ambergris stone.
Meanwhile, trouble was not far off - it was already at the doorstep. A foreign khan attacked the land of the Circassians and brought with him a countless army. He destroyed the village in which Sharaj's son lived. Those who were killed in the battle, those who were executed, and those who remained alive, abandoned everything and went into the forests.
The prince and princess, six princely daughters and six sons-in-law were captured. The Crimean Khan ordered them to be tied up and taken along in a wagon train. Only Sharaj’s son was not touched: who needs such a poor fellow? Sit on a rock and let him sit there!
But the time has come for Sharaj's son to act. He pushed away the ambergris stone with the toe of his dude. He put on military armor, saddled his alp, took a saber and left the village. He caught up with the army of the foreign khan and entered into battle with him. The son of Sharaj killed so many enemies that the saber began to slip in his hand. The old princess who was sitting on the cart saw this. Could it have occurred to her that this mighty hero was her hated younger son-in-law? No, it couldn't! And when Sharaj’s son was fighting from a cart nearby, the princess threw him a snow-white silk scarf.
“Wrap the hilt of your saber!” she shouted.
The son of Sharaj wrapped the hilt of his saber in silk and defeated so many more enemies that a whole wall grew behind him. He freed the prisoners, untied the prince and princess and all their relatives, returned to the people the goods taken by the enemies and galloped away. And when it got dark, he came home and in the morning sat down, as before, on his ambergris stone, in an old hat, in a holey beshmet.
Little by little people became bolder, the village came to life. The prince also gained courage and came with his family. Uvi-
The arrogant princely sons-in-law shared Sharadzh's son, and even though they themselves did not distinguish themselves in battle, let's mock him:
“Even the enemies didn’t touch this ragamuffin.” Look, he remained unharmed!
Sharaj's son did not say a word to them in response. And everything went as before. Little by little people forgot their grief. The wounds were healed... But then the old prince fell ill, and so seriously that no one could cure him. They brought doctors from all over the Circassian land, and the sons-in-law looked for the rarest medicines for the prince, and his daughters shed tears over him. But the youngest daughter - the wife of Sharaj's son - was not even allowed into the yard when she came to visit her father. They didn’t even let in the beggar wanderer who came after her, they drove him away: they say, we have no time for you!
However, the wanderer stood at the door and kept repeating:
- I know how to cure your patient. They finally heard him and took him to his chambers.
dying prince.
“For your illness, prince, there is no other cure except the milk of a white deer and the meat of a black hare.” But only a real hero can get them! That’s what the wanderer said.
The princess released him with a gift, and the six princely sons-in-law immediately saddled their fast horses and went hunting. They searched for seven days and seven nights and all in vain, because the path to those forests where white deer and black hares lived was dangerous and difficult. And the old prince was already dying. The youngest daughter heard about this and came to her husband in tears to ask for help.
Sharaj's son got ready, put on his battle armor, mounted an alp, and went hunting. The path that the prince's sons-in-law took in seven days and seven
spent the night, he traveled in half a day. I found those protected forests and shot a black hare. He skinned the hare and hung the meat on a tree. I caught a white doe and milked a jug of milk. He made a stop for himself, rested...
Just don’t think, this is not the main thing! The main thing is ahead! Soon six horsemen rode up to him. They were the prince's sons-in-law. How could they know Sharaj's son? And Sharaj's son pretended not to recognize them. He invited the riders to rest and treated them to his travel treats. And when the guests had finally eaten and rested, he asked:
-Where are you going? Do you need my help?
The prince's sons-in-law told Sharaj's son about everything from the very beginning to the end.
“I have deer milk and black hare meat,” says Sharaj’s son.
- Take what you want, just sell us this milk and this meat! - the princely sons-in-law began to beg him.
“I’m not used to selling,” answered Sharaj’s son. “I’ll give both meat and milk for free, I’ll just put my mark on each of you on the back.” The one with which I sword my sheep...
The prince's sons-in-law threatened him and begged him, but the son of Sharaj firmly stood his ground, and, there was nothing to be done - not to return without medicine - they agreed. The son of Sharaj branded all six arrogant sons-in-law with his brand, and then shared with them the meat of a hare and the milk of a deer. They went their own way, and Sharaj's son went his own.
He covered the route that the prince's sons-in-law had to cover in seven days and seven nights on his alpine in half a day and returned earlier
them home... Alpa put them in a cave, hid the armor in the pantry, sat down on his ambergris stone at the foot of the mound and sat in an old hat, in a holey beshmet. And he ordered the hare meat to be roasted, and for his wife to take it along with the doe’s milk to her sick father, as quickly as possible...
The wife did everything as her husband told her, then she washed white the silk scarf that her mother had once given to Sharaj’s son in battle, covered the pot of milk and the roast with this scarf and took it to the dying father.
The prince felt so bad that he didn’t even ask where the medicine came from. He ate hare meat, washed it down with doe milk and immediately recovered. But the princess recognized her silk scarf, ordered to call her daughter and let’s ask: how did she get the scarf, where did she get it, where did the doe’s milk come from, and who got the hare?.. But the daughter didn’t want to say anything and just kept repeating:
- Ask my husband!
The proud princess did not want to send for Sharaj’s son. But she sent it anyway.
“I’ll come when your sons-in-law return from hunting,” said Sharaj’s son.
What could the princess do? She had to wait seven days and seven nights until her older brothers-in-law arrived. They returned from hunting. They look important, proud, as if they had performed some heroic act. Meanwhile, the prince no longer needed the medicine; he recovered and celebrated with a merry feast.
The prince called his six sons-in-law. And when they arrived, the princess sent the servant of her son Sharaj to tell him where his wife got the silk scarf and where the medicine for the prince came from.
- You yourself, princess, remember about the scarf,
“Who did you give it to,” said Sharaj’s son. “And I killed a black hare in the forest, and I got the milk of a deer.” Then I met your sons-in-law in the forest, gave them half the milk and half the hare meat. If you don’t believe me, look: I put my mark on their memory. Order, let them show their backs!
Everyone was convinced who the true hero was. The old prince gave his possessions to the peasant son. The prince was already old, and he was no longer able to rule. And the son of Sharaj did things fairly. Life was easy for the common people under him. This tale remains to us as a memory of Sharaj’s son.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru