Chinese fairy tales for children are short. Reflection of imaginative thinking

Once upon a time there lived one very lazy young man. All day long he wandered from place to place, and nothing pleased him, he could not find pleasure in anything.

“What is pleasure?” - he thought one day and decided to go look for him.

He left the house and after a while found himself at the foot of high mountain, blocking his path. Then he saw an old peasant digging the ground.

“Grandfather, don’t you know what you can find pleasure in?” - the young man asked him.

In Yunnan Province, where the Yi people have long lived, there is a large mountain called Guanyingpan. A fast stream with cool water flows under the mountain. Every day, village shepherds drive cows here and sit on the shore while the cows nibble grass and drink clear spring water.

And then the shepherds noticed: exactly at noon it appears from nowhere beautiful girl, and in the herd instead of ninety-nine cows there become one hundred. By evening, when it’s time to drive the cows to the village, there are again ninety-nine of them. And the girl disappears somewhere.

It was a long time ago. A wide, bright, transparent river flowed through the plains of Inner Mongolia. On its western bank, a girl of extraordinary beauty lived quietly and peacefully with her mother. Her name was Sola.

And on the eastern bank of the river lived a rich noyon (Noyon-prince, owner of livestock and pastures) with his servants and entourage.

Among the servants of the noyon there was one young man. Also in early childhood he lost his parents, and he didn’t even have a name. From an early age he tended Noyon's cattle, and everyone simply called him shepherd.

“As soon as my daughters start talking, all the pigeons from the trees immediately fly to them,” he said.

The rumor about the eloquent girls spread far and wide, and the father's heart rejoiced.

And their life passed without a single joyful day. One day before the New Year, Ah San came to visit a rich neighbor and saw that his family was preparing for the holiday: they were baking sweet cakes, preparing soy cheese, and frying meat. Ah San felt sad. He remembered that he didn’t even have a handful of beans at home. Sad, he returned to his room and said to his wife:

There lived a certain prince. He was already over fifty, but he had never left his palace. He spent whole days with his wives, drinking, eating and having fun.

But finally he got tired of it, and he decided to see what was happening in this world. That same day, taking a servant with him, he left the palace.

On the way he met a peasant. The prince was so frightened that he stepped back.

- Why were you afraid, prince? - asked his servant.

But the monkey thought and thought, grimaced, puffed and finally found a way to punish the fox. Out of joy, she somersaulted and, jumping out of the tree, told everything to the hare who lived in a hole under the tree. He listened to her and blinked his eyes. And if the hare blinks his eyes, it means he doesn’t really believe.

Once upon a time there lived an old man with his son and daughter. The father and son were weaving bamboo baskets, and the girl, having prepared dinner and done housework, helped them. The whole family worked hard all day and even at night.

At that time, neither cotton, from which warm clothes were made, nor lamps burning in oil were known. Clothes were made from the skins of wild animals or from tree bark, and light and warmth were provided only by the flame of a fire.

And the family worked at night under a smoky, flickering flame, from which the eyelids turned red and the eyes festered. So months and years dragged on.

M, " Children's literature", 1988

The audio book "Chinese Folk Tales" offers voice-overs of all the fairy tales of the Chinese people from Volume III of "Fairy Tales of the Peoples of Asia", the series "Fairy Tales of the Peoples of the World", the 1988 edition of "Children's Literature": "On how they began to count the years using animals", “How a mountain mouse and a city mouse visited each other”, “How a dog and a cat began to quarrel”, “Hare’s tails”, “How a bird and a fish argued”, “The Tale of the Spotted Calf”, “The Zhaogu Bird”, “ Five Sisters", "Garden of the Jade Fairy", "Portrait of a Girl from the Palace", "Magic Vat", "Seven Brothers", "Peasant and Judge", "Stupid Official and His Smart Son", " Smart son", "A Cake and an Armful of Firewood", "Family Jewel", "Stupid Husband", "A Tale Without End".
A fairy tale is an amazing creation of human genius. She makes him happy, gives him faith in his strength, in the future, and captivates him with faith in the impossible. A fairy tale is usually called an oral story of a magical, adventure or everyday nature with a fictional attitude. Chinese folk tales immediately transport the listener to a fabulous time and a fabulous place, using traditional openings: “There is in the mountains...”, “There is a mountain in the world...”, “Once upon a time there lived...”, “In the old days there stood at the foot of high mountains on the seashore...", "Once upon a time there lived one...", "It was a very long time ago...", "It happened in ancient times..."
It is customary to distinguish fairy tales about animals, magical and everyday ones.
Tales about animals arose in ancient times. They were associated with economic activity person. Animals, the heroes of fairy tales, retained traces of totemism, which believed in the genealogical connection between man and animal. Primitive spiritualized everything around him, endowed him with his abilities and properties, “humanized” certain animals. And in fairy tales they talk to each other, understand human speech - the Chinese folk tale “About the Spotted Calf.”
If a tiger appears in a Chinese fairy tale, it will be an important gentleman. The tiger symbolizes strength and power. The tiger was worshiped as a deity. Images of tigers guarded the doors at the entrance to temples. Military leaders decorated their clothes with them. But the ferocious tiger is given the role of a fool who is deceived by a weak animal - a hare or rabbit - a character distinguished by special insight, dexterity, and cleverness.
Many fairy tales tell about quarrels and competitions between large and strong animals and small, weak ones. These tales, as a rule, are imbued with a desire for social justice: although the tales talk about animals, they almost always mean people. A weak, that is, socially disadvantaged, character wins with the help of the intelligence and dexterity of a stronger and more powerful beast. So in the Chinese folk tale “On how they began to count the years by animals,” in which, of the twelve animals, the most cunning one turned out to be a small mouse, which managed to prove that it was the largest even in comparison with the ox and the sheep. Therefore, the twelve-year cycle in China begins with the year of the mouse.
Scientists believe that the fairy tale originated during the decomposition of the primitive communal system and the transition to class society. It is believed that it was then that tales of an innocently persecuted younger brother, stepdaughter or orphan. Conflict between family members reflects social and class relations. The older brother in fairy tales is usually rich, and the younger brother is poor and deprived, etc. Thus, a fairytale family is a schematic representation of a society in which social inequality exists. In Chinese epic, these are the tales “Bird Zhaogu”, “Five Sisters”, “Garden of the Jade Fairy”
Legendary tales are explained in a fairy-tale way, by a quarrel or friendship of animals, by some kind of adventures - the origin of the structural features of animals' bodies or their habits. An example would be the Chinese audio tales “How a dog and a cat began to quarrel,” “Hare’s tails,” “How a bird and a fish argued.”
We invite you to listen to wonderful Chinese folk audio tales translated by B. Riftin.

Chinese folk audio a fairy tale about animals “On how they began to count the years using animals,” in which, of the twelve animals, the small mouse turned out to be the most cunning: she managed to prove that the ox was shorter than her. Therefore, to this day, as the fairy tale says, the year of the mouse begins counting the years of the twelve-year cycle in countries Far East and in...

Chinese folk audio tale about animals “How a mountain mouse and a city mouse visited each other”, listen and read the summary. One day a mountain mouse and a city mouse met, started talking and from then on became bosom friends. Once a mountain mouse invited a city mouse to visit her and treated her to groundnuts, sweet...

“How a dog and a cat began to quarrel” is a Chinese folk audio tale from the series “Tales of the Peoples of the World, Volume 3 - “Fairy Tales of the Peoples of Asia”. “How a dog and a cat began to quarrel” is a magical audio tale. Worldwide famous story. Literary origins V Indian collection"Twenty-five stories of Vetala." The plot is reminiscent of a Russian folk tale...

"Hare's Tails" is a Chinese folk audio tale from the "Fairy Tales of the World" series. Chinese animal tale "Hare's Tails" - legend, in a fabulous way explaining the origin of short hare tails. “In ancient times, the tails of hares were completely different from what they are now. The first hare on earth with a hare had beautiful tails,...

Chinese folk audio tale about animals "How a bird and a fish argued", listen online, download and read full text fairy tales. “Once a fish and a bird had an argument. The fish looked mockingly at the bird that was sitting on a tree and said: “Poor bird! Are you really so stupid that, with your eyes wide open, you sit and wait until the hunter kills...

Chinese folk audio tale with a chain plot "The Tale of the Spotted Calf". Listen and read the summary. A long time ago, there lived an old woman in a village, all alone. She only had a calf. And the old woman followed the calf, as if it were her grandson. He gets up in the morning, bakes butter cakes, hangs them on the calf’s horns, and...

Chinese folk magical etiological audio tale "Bird Zhaogu" - about the origin of the name of the bird "zhaogu" or "looking for a sister." A beautiful, poetic tale about an evil old woman who pitied her daughter and mocked her daughter-in-law (the wife of her son, who after the wedding left behind the Great Wall, apparently to earn money). And her daughter was a beauty, and a character...

"Five Sisters" is a Chinese folk audio tale from the series "Tales of the Peoples of the World", volume 3 - "Tales of the Peoples of Asia". Magical audio fairy tale "Five Sisters" - about an unkind and unfair stepfather. “...He didn’t order his stepdaughters to sew dresses from new material, he didn’t order them to feed them good food. Anything he doesn’t like, he screams and swears...” One day his stepfather started...

"The Garden of the Jade Fairy" is another beautiful Chinese folk audio fairy tale from the series "Tales of the Peoples of the World", volume 3 - "Tales of the Peoples of Asia". “The Garden of the Jade Fairy” is a magical fairy tale; its plot vaguely resembles P. P. Bazhov’s fairy tale “The Mistress of the Copper Mountain” and “The Malachite Box”. The main topic These tales reveal extraordinary hard work...

Chinese folk audio fairy tale "Portrait of a Girl from the Palace". To the main character - outstanding young man, named Tiantai, helps a whole host mythical creatures: this is the sorceress of Mount Yishan, who gave Tantai a magic mat equal in value to a flying carpet; and Mother Black Fish, and Baidi Xian, the immortal spirit from Mount Menshan,...

The Chinese folk audio fairy tale "The Magic Tub" for the MyAudioLib website is read by Nadezhda Prokma. “A long time ago, there lived a young man nicknamed Van the Elder. And then one day Van asked his neighbors to help him build a wall out of clay. He began to dig clay,... suddenly he looked - a large vat, all covered with mold... Then the straw hat flew off Van’s head and directly...

The Chinese folk audio fairy tale "Seven Brothers" calls for the struggle for liberation from the oppression of an unjust government. "In the old days, there was a village at the foot of high mountains on the seashore. An old man lived there with seven sons. The sons were stately and strong and tall in stature. The eldest was called Zhuangshi - Remarkable Strength, the second - Guafeng - Blow...

Chinese folk audio tale "The Peasant and the Judge". Among everyday tales Tales about courts and judges stand out. In the fairy tale "The Peasant and the Judge" the image of the judge is especially important. The judge, called upon to administer justice and find justice in the everyday affairs of the population, appears as an arrogant, narrow-minded official. We invite you to read the analysis of the fairy tale, listen...

Chinese folk audio fairy tale-anecdote "A stupid official and his smart son." Read and listen to the full text of the tale. “A long time ago, there lived an important official in China. He wanted to somehow fish. And he ordered his servants: “Make me a long, very long fishing rod.” He decided that the longer the fishing rod, the more fish you can catch...

Chinese folk audio fairy tale-anecdote "Clever Son" - read and listen to the full text of the fairy tale performed by Nadezhda Prokma. "The rich man went to the city and took his son with him. The father mistakenly put on different shoes: the left one with a thin sole, and the right one with a thick sole. He walks and feels that he is uncomfortable, as if he was lame in one leg. What’s the matter? He and ...

“A Flatbread and an Armful of Brushwood” is a Chinese folk audio tale from the series “Tales of the Peoples of the World”, volume 3 - Tales of the Peoples of Asia. A household audio fairy tale is the fable “A Cake and an Armful of Twigs,” in which a hungry farmhand taught his master a lesson by bringing him several twigs instead of an armful. In response to the owner’s anger, he replied: “It’s no problem, owner. You soak the brushwood, it...

"The Family Jewel" is a Chinese folk audio tale from the series "Tales of the Peoples of the World", volume 3 - "Tales of the Peoples of Asia". Fairy tale - parable "Family Jewel" about how a blacksmith taught his son to work. And when he managed to earn a yuan in ten days, his father handed him the chest, saying: “Not gold, not silver, not rare treasures...

Chinese folk audio tale "The Foolish Husband". Every nation has a fairy tale with similar plot about the adventures of an unlucky husband. “One woman had a stupid husband. He didn’t know how to do anything, no matter what he took on, everything was awry with him...” As in all such fairy tales different nations, the stupid husband was in all the troubles as written:...

Chinese folk household audio fairy tale "A Tale Without End" in which the emperor loved to listen to fairy tales, but did not like when fairy tales ended. Therefore, as soon as the fairy tale ended, the narrator was executed. They are such emperors!.. One day, the guards brought a young man to tell a fairy tale to the emperor. He was not afraid, he began to talk about...

Audio "Dictionary" difficult words to the Chinese folk tales" gives an explanation of the following words and expressions found in the book: how they began to count years using animals; Yu-di, the Jade Lord; Heavenly Palace; Great Wall; Silkworm; Kahn; Yamen; Mat; Forbidden Imperial City; Pagoda; The drums will beat the third watch;...

Once upon a time there lived one very lazy young man. All day long he wandered from place to place, and nothing pleased him, he could not find pleasure in anything.
"What is pleasure?" - he thought one day and decided to go look for him.
He left the house and after a while found himself at the foot of a high mountain that blocked his path. Then he saw an old peasant digging the ground.
- Grandfather, don’t you know what you can find pleasure in? - the young man asked him.
“I know,” the old man answered, without interrupting his work, “but if I talk to you, I won’t be able to work.”

And then the shepherds noticed: exactly at noon, a beautiful girl appears from nowhere, and instead of ninety-nine cows in the herd, there become one hundred. By evening, when it’s time to drive the cows to the village, there are again ninety-nine of them. And the girl disappears somewhere.

And on the eastern bank of the river lived a rich noyon (Noyon-prince, owner of livestock and pastures) with his servants and entourage.

There lived one man named Lao Lin-mu. He had a son and three daughters. The daughters were beautiful, like goddesses, and very eloquent; This is what their father especially liked to show off to their neighbors.
“As soon as my daughters start talking, all the pigeons from the trees immediately fly to them,” he said.
The rumor about the eloquent girls spread far and wide, and the father's heart rejoiced.

In ancient times, the tails of hares were completely different from what they are now. The first hare and hare on earth had beautiful, long and fluffy tails. They were very proud of them, considered themselves better than all other animals and often threw out all sorts of things to laugh at them.
But one day, because of such a thing, the hares lost their beautiful tails and were left with short, unlike anything else stumps. That's how it was.

There were only two people in A San's family: himself and his wife. The couple worked in the fields from morning to night, but lived very poorly. Today we thought about how to live tomorrow; and the next day they lamented that the day after tomorrow there would be nothing to eat.
And their life passed without a single joyful day. One day before the New Year, Ah San came to visit a rich neighbor and saw that his family was preparing for the holiday: they were baking sweet cakes, preparing soy cheese, and frying meat. Ah San felt sad. He remembered that he didn’t even have a handful of beans at home. Sad, he returned to his room and said to his wife:
“The neighbors are preparing a rich treat for the New Year, but we don’t even have soy cheese to make from.” What about sacrifices to ancestors?

There lived a certain prince. He was already over fifty, but he had never left his palace. He spent whole days with his wives, drinking, eating and having fun.
But finally he got tired of it, and he decided to see what was happening in this world. That same day, taking a servant with him, he left the palace.
On the way he met a peasant. The prince was so frightened that he stepped back.
- Why were you afraid, prince? - asked his servant.
- Look, a monster with long arms is coming towards us.

The forest animals have no peace from the fox: he will outwit one, deceive another, here he snatches a tidbit for himself, there he makes fun of someone for the amusement of the whole forest. There was not a single animal in the area that would not have suffered from it. And no one could figure out how to teach the scoundrel a lesson.
But the monkey thought and thought, grimaced, puffed and finally found a way to punish the fox. Out of joy, she somersaulted and, jumping out of the tree, told everything to the hare who lived in a hole under the tree. He listened to her and blinked his eyes. And if the hare blinks his eyes, it means he doesn’t really believe.

But Wang Xue-qin’s sons were not like their father: they loitered around all day, but did not want to work. Father more than once persuaded them to come to their senses, but they ignored his words and continued to be lazy. Concerns about them did not give Wang Xue-qin peace. What will these lazy people live on when he is gone?

ABOUT HOW THEY BEGAN TO COUNT BY ANIMALS

They say that in the old days they did not know how to count the years of animals. This was taught to people by Yu-di himself, the Jade Lord. That’s why he once called all the animals and birds to his Heavenly Palace. In those days, a cat and a mouse great friendship were and lived together like sisters. They were glad that they had received an invitation to the Heavenly Palace, and they agreed to go together.

Everyone knows that cats love to sleep. Our cat also knew this weakness, and therefore decided to come to an agreement with the mouse ahead of time.

“You know, sister mouse, how much I love to sleep,” she began politely. - Please wake me up tomorrow, when it’s time to go to the palace.

The mouse hit itself in the chest with its paw and promised:

I will definitely wake you up! Sleep, don't worry about anything!

Thank you - said the cat, brushed her whiskers and, without worrying about anything, fell asleep.

The next morning the mouse got up just before dawn. She didn't even think about waking the cat. She ate and went alone to the Heavenly Palace.

Now let's talk about the dragon who lived in the abyss. He also received an invitation to the palace.

“Whoever will be chosen, but I will certainly be chosen,” the dragon decided. And rightly so. He really did look warlike: the armor on his body was sparkling, and his mustache was sticking out under his nose. He had only one drawback - his head was bare, nothing grew on it. “If only I could get horns, then no one could compare with me in beauty!” The dragon thought so and decided to borrow the horns from someone for a week.

As soon as he stuck his head out of the water, he saw a rooster on the shore. He stuck out his chest and walked around so important. In those days, roosters had huge horns. The dragon was delighted, swam to the shore and said to the rooster:

Uncle rooster, and uncle rooster, lend me your horns, tomorrow I will go with them to the Heavenly Palace.

Ay-ya! Brother dragon! - answered the rooster. - Excuse me, but I will also go to the Heavenly Palace tomorrow.

Uncle rooster, such big horns don’t suit you at all, your head is too small, you’d better give them to me. Look at this! They're just right for me!

It so happened that at this time a centipede crawled out of the crevice. And centipedes love to poke their noses into other people's affairs. The centipede heard the dragon's words and said:

Uncle is a rooster, and uncle is a rooster! Lend your brother dragon some horns, just for once. And if you are afraid, I am ready to vouch for him. Well, will you borrow it?

The rooster agreed. After all, the centipede vouched for the dragon. And he, the rooster, is good-looking even without horns.

The next day all the animals and birds came to the Heavenly Palace. A great number of them gathered. The Jade Lord came out to them and said:

From now on we will count the years by animals and birds. And for what reason - you name it yourself.

And the animals named the ox, the horse, the ram, the dog, the pig, the hare, the tiger, the dragon, the snake, the monkey, the rooster and the mouse.

Nobody knows why the animals chose them then. Why a rooster and not a duck? Tiger, not lion?

So, only twelve animals were chosen. They chose to choose. How to put them in order? This is where the controversy and gossip began.

The biggest ox among you, let him be the first,” said the Jade Lord.

Everyone agreed, even the tiger. But then suddenly the little mouse raised her paw and said:

Am I not bigger than an ox? Why then, when they see me, everyone shouts: “Ay-ya! What a huge mouse!”? But no one ever said: “Ay-ya! What a huge ox!” It turns out that people think that I am bigger than an ox!

The Jade Lord was surprised:

Are you telling the truth? I don't believe it!

Don't believe me? Let's check!

The rooster, ram, dog and hare agreed.

Let’s check,” the Jade Lord said.

The animals went to people.

So what would you think? Everything happened exactly as the mouse said.

When an ox passed by people, everyone vied with each other to praise him: “How good, how fat!” But no one said: “How huge!” Meanwhile, the cunning mouse climbed onto the ox’s back and stood on its hind legs. People saw her and shouted:

Ay-ya! What a huge mouse!

The Jade Lord heard this with his own ears, frowned and said:

OK! Since people think that a mouse is bigger than an ox, let the ox give it first place. And let him be second.

That's what they decided on. That is why, to this day, they count from the year of the mouse, and only then comes the year of the ox.

The mouse returned home, happy and glad that it was the first among the animals, proud and self-important. And the cat just opened her eyes, she saw the mouse and asked:

Why are you silent, sister mouse? Haven’t we been told to welcome you to the palace today?

Are you still sleeping? And I’ve already returned from the palace. Twelve animals were chosen to count the years, and I am the first among them!

The cat was surprised, opened her eyes wide and asked:

Why didn't you wake me up?

I forgot! - the mouse answered as if nothing had happened.

The cat got angry, her whiskers were sticking up, and she screamed:

Lousy rubbish! And I still believed you, I fell asleep without worrying about anything! Weren't you the one who promised to wake me up? I know! You wanted to hurt me. Wait for it! I'll settle accounts with you!

The mouse did not admit guilt and said:

What's the point of making noise! She didn’t wake me up, which means she didn’t want to. This is my business. I'm not your servant!

The cat began to boil: she began to breathe heavily, bared her teeth, rushed at the mouse and tore its throat out - the mouse only managed to squeak and twitch its hind legs.

Since then, the cat and the mouse have remained fierce enemies.

Now let's talk about the rooster. He returned home very, very sad and thought: “The Jade Lord put the dragon in front of me because the horns on his head were mine.” And the rooster decided to definitely take his horns from the dragon.

He approached the abyss and looked - the dragon was frolicking merrily in the water. And then the rooster said to the dragon very politely:

Brother dragon! Please give me back my horns!

The dragon was surprised, but answered with dignity, without getting excited:

Oh, is that you, uncle rooster? Why do you need horns? In truth, you are much more beautiful without them. And your horns come in handy for me!

Whether they are convenient for you or inappropriate is none of my business,” the rooster answered sadly. - Once you took it, you have to give it back.

The dragon didn't answer. He thought for a while, then suddenly bowed respectfully to the rooster and said:

Don't blame me, uncle rooster! It's late, time to rest. And we'll talk about this another time.

Before the rooster could even open his mouth, the dragon disappeared under the water. The rooster became enraged, flapped his wings and screamed at the top of his lungs:

Brother dragon, give me the horns! Brother dragon, give me the horns!

But by that time the dragon was already fast asleep at the very bottom of the abyss and did not hear anything.

The rooster crowed for a long time, became hoarse and completely exhausted. Nothing to do. He decided to find the centipede. After all, she then vouched for the dragon.

The rooster found the centipede on a pile of stones, told her everything in order and said:

Lady Centipede, you have vouched for the dragon and cannot leave this matter like that.

The centipede raised its head, paused and finally said slowly:

Brother dragon will give you back his horns. If he doesn’t return it, so be it! Judge for yourself! I can’t find him at the bottom of the abyss!

The rooster even blushed with anger.

What kind of guarantor are you? There is no point in meddling in other people's affairs then. Trouble has happened, but at least you care!

Don’t make false accusations against me, uncle rooster,” the centipede began to justify itself. - You yourself gave the dragon its horns. And I just vouched for him. Who would have thought that Brother Dragon couldn't be trusted? If I had known this before, I would not have vouched for him.

What to do now? - asked the rooster, subduing his anger.

I told you what to do. Admit that you are unlucky if the dragon never gives up its horns. It's my own fault. I should have thought carefully before giving it away.

Do you think it's my own fault? - The rooster widened his eyes, stuck out his chest and began to step on the centipede.

It’s my own fault, it’s my own fault, I should have thought carefully,” the centipede repeated, neither alive nor dead.

The rooster blushed even more, stretched his neck, and pecked the centipede on the head. He shook his head once or twice and swallowed the centipede alive.

Since then, the roosters have been pecking centipedes in the yard every summer. And in the morning, as soon as it begins to get light, they shout at the top of their lungs:

Long-gege, jiao huan wo! Brother dragon, give me the horns!

ABOUT PINE, TURTLE AND TIGER

In ancient times, in an unknown land, a huge mountain rose, and on that mountain strange stones were piled on top of each other. At the top of the mountain, in a very black cave, lived a huge tiger: its skin was spotted, its eyes were bulging, there was a white mark on its forehead, and its strength was such that no one could compare with it. The tiger will roar angrily - the earth will tremble, the mountains will shake. At the foot of the mountain, in a bottomless green abyss, a huge turtle lived. The turtle will get angry, hit the water with its shell - they will run in and the waves will swirl. If she stretches out her neck, she will become even larger, more than a whole zhang. And in the very middle of the mountain there grew a pine tree several dozen zhangs tall. Everything was twisted, bent - it was a thousand years old. The old pine tree tried with all its might to spread its branches wider - it was afraid that young trees might grow next to it.

Although the tiger lived at the very top of the mountain, and the turtle lived in a deep pool, they were inseparable friends. They don't see each other for a day, then they get sad for another, and three days don't pass - they run to visit each other. Either the tiger will descend from the mountain, or the turtle will rise to the top. And every time they passed by an old pine tree, they often inquired about its health.

Ooh, uh,” the pine tree made noise in response, and she secretly envied her friends.

She did not like the power of the tiger, she did not like the strength of the turtle, but most of all it annoyed the pine tree strong friendship. A long time ago, the pine tree planned to separate inseparable friends, to sow enmity between them, but kept wondering how to do this. And I finally came up with it. Only while she was thinking, it dried up half and turned black, and its needles turned yellow.

Just at that time, the turtle went to the mountain to visit his friend the tiger. She reached the pine tree and was just about to say hello, when suddenly she heard the pine tree ask her:

Where are you going, sister turtle?

“I’m going to visit the tiger’s older brother,” the turtle replies.

The pine tree sighed here, it was so heavy. The turtle marveled and asked:

Why are you sighing, sister pine?

I wouldn't advise you to go to the tiger.

The turtle was more surprised than before and asked again:

Why don’t you advise me to go to the tiger?

If you knew,” the pine tree said quietly, “how yesterday on the top of the mountain he reviled you, my ears would not listen.”

How did he insult me? - the turtle began to inquire.

I can tell you, but won’t you be angry? - asked the pine tree even more quietly, so that no one would hear. - So, he called you a tadpole, threatened, when you came to him, to gnaw your shell and drink your bile.

The turtle heard this, stuck its head out and crawled back into its pool in a wild rage.

And the tiger was waiting for her, waiting in the cave, and he said to himself:

Why is this sister turtle not coming?

The tiger came out of his den and looked around: the turtle was nowhere to be seen. “I’ll go and check on her myself.” The tiger decided so and rushed down the mountain.

Suddenly he hears a pine tree asking him:

Where are you going, brother tiger?

The tiger answers her:

Well, I couldn’t wait for the turtle and decided to visit it myself.

The pine tree sighed here, it was so heavy.

Why are you sighing, sister pine? - the tiger marveled.

And the pine tree sighed heavily again and said:

I wouldn't advise you to go to the turtle.

The tiger was more amazed than before and asked again:

Why don’t you advise me to go to the turtle?

If you knew,” the pine tree said quietly, “how she just reviled you here, my ears wouldn’t listen.”

How did she insult me? - the tiger began to inquire.

Then the pine tree answered even more quietly, so that no one would hear:

She called you a filthy tiger cub. When you came to her, she threatened to bite your claws with her teeth, drag you by the paws into the water and drown you.

The tiger heard this, got angry, waved his tail and ran back.

Much water has passed under the bridge since then, but the tiger and turtle never met again. But the tiger had a hot temper. As soon as he remembers the turtle, he becomes angry. One day he could not stand it, he jumped out of the cave and ran to the pool.

And the pine tree is so happy, it almost laughs. The tiger runs to the pool and swears:

So I’ll show you, you turtle spawn, did you threaten to gnaw my claws and drag me into the pool by my legs?

A turtle popped out of the water and started swearing too:

So I’ll show you, you filthy tiger cub, did you threaten to gnaw my shell and drink my bile?

They swore and swore, but they got so excited that they began to fight. But it never occurred to anyone to distinguish truth from falsehood. The turtle grabbed his teeth tiger paw and pulled him into the pool. And the tiger has sunk its fangs into the turtle’s shell, and even if it dies, it won’t let go. A little time passed, the turtle gave up the ghost, the tiger choked on water.

The next morning a young man walked past the pool. He sees a dead tiger and turtle floating on the surface. The young man called the people, and they decided to take the tiger and turtle to their village. They began to judge and sort out where they could get so much firewood to cook a tiger and a turtle. The young man heard this and led people with axes and saws up the mountain.

They reached the middle of the mountain, where the old pine tree stood, the young man looked at it and said:

This pine tree is almost a thousand years old. It's already half dry. It does not grow on its own and does not allow young trees to grow. Why feel sorry for her? Let's cut it down - there's enough wood for the fire.

Everyone got to work together and felled the old pine tree.

That's the story they tell.

HOW A MOUNTAIN MOUSE AND A CITY MOUSE WENT TO VISIT EACH OTHER

One day a mountain mouse went out for a walk and met a city mouse on the road. The mice started talking and really liked each other. From that day on they became bosom friends.

A city mountain mouse once said:

Sister, dear, you are probably fed up with city delicacies. Come to me, I will treat you to glory! You will taste fresh, juicy fruits!

The city mouse was delighted and, without hesitation, agreed. The mountain mouse brought her friend into her hole, took out groundnuts, sweet potatoes, and various berries from the pantry, and began to treat her guest. And she pleased the city mouse so much that she immediately invited the mountain mouse to come to her to taste lard, sugar and cookies. And the mountain mouse is glad that it had the opportunity to eat expensive delicacies.

The next day the mountain mouse set off on its journey. Her friend lived in the basement of the shop, and she always had plenty of all kinds of delicious food. The mice chatted about this and that, came out of the underground, snacked on the lard, and gnawed on the sugar. The mountain mouse has eaten and had its fill. Suddenly he sees a large clay vat standing in the corner.

Sister, sister,” she called out to her friend, “what’s there, in the vat?”

In a vat? Oil. It’s tasty, fatty, but you can’t drink a lot of it. Try it if you want!

The mouse is hanging by its own tail, as if on a rope, drinking oil. She got drunk and again asks for a friend:

Get me up! I can't drink oil anymore! The city mouse pulled it out and said:

Come on, sister, let's get out of here as quickly as possible, otherwise, no matter how bad things happen, a black cat is walking nearby!

“Don’t be afraid,” the mountain mouse answers, “I really want to drink some more butter!” I liked it!

She took a rest and climbed into the vat again. And the city mouse sits on the edge of the vat, holding her friend by the tail.

Suddenly the door opened and a huge black cat appeared on the threshold.

The city mouse will scream:

Oh, sister, come out quickly! - and released her friend’s tail from her teeth.

“Putun!” It was a mountain mouse that flopped into the oil. And I couldn’t swim out - I was too heavy. And so she drowned.

HOW A DOG AND A CAT STARTED TO FEDER

Once upon a time there lived a poor old man with his blind old woman. They had no children, only a dog and a cat. The animals lived together, followed each other like a shadow follows a man, and served their masters faithfully. When the old man leaves the house, he and the old woman guard the house and don’t let strangers get close. The old people cherished their favorites more than treasures; they did not beat or scold them. With a dog and a cat, life was not so sad for them, the unfortunate ones.

Once an old man went to the mountains to mow grass. He goes back and looks - there is a black snake lying on the ground, apparently hungry, unable to move. The old man took pity on the snake, hid it in his bosom, and went his way. I came home, took the snake out, and fattened it up. But then one day the old man says to her:

Get out of our house, snake. We've run out of rice, there's no more grass - we have nothing to feed you with!

The snake nodded its head and said:

Good grandfather, if it weren’t for you, I would have died of hunger. Yes, I don’t know how to thank you. All I have is my own tail. Take it, put it in a wooden box and bury it away so that no one else can see it. And when you need money, shake it and coins will fall out of the tail.

The old man agreed. And as soon as he cut off the snake’s tail, it disappeared. The old man put the snake's tail in a wooden box, and buried the box behind the kitchen, where no one else looked.

As soon as the money is transferred from the old people, they will dig up the treasured box, take out the snake’s tail, shake it, and the copper coins will tinkle on the floor. The old man will collect coins, go to the market, buy oil, salt, rice, brushwood. He returns home and cooks food. He will cook it and divide it into four parts: one for the old woman, another for the dog, a third for the cat, and a fourth for himself. So they lived, not knowing any need.

But one day a traveling merchant knocked on the door of the old people. He was afraid alone dark night to walk along the road, so I asked to spend the night. The old man let him in.

And the next day, before dawn, the old man walked quietly behind the kitchen, took out a snake tail from the box, and shook it. And the coppers fell to the ground. All you can hear is: jiang-tseyang-hua-lan. The merchant saw all this through the window. As soon as the old man left the house, he immediately jumped up, dug up the precious box, put it in the basket, lifted the yoke and walked away.

The old man returned home, and the old woman was crying, so pitifully. The old man asks:

What trouble happened?

And the old woman answers:

A traveling merchant took away our precious box!

The old man didn't believe it:

What are you doing, old man? I buried her far and deep. How could he find her? Apparently, you were looking in the wrong place.

The old man said so and went into the kitchen himself. I searched and searched and found nothing.

The old man and the old woman became sad. The old man sighs heavily, and the old woman bursts into tears. Just then the cat and dog came back from the yard to have breakfast with their owners. And the owners have sad faces, frowning eyebrows, the cat and dog sense that trouble has happened, but they don’t know what kind of trouble. The old man looked at them, sighed and said:

The villainous merchant took away our box. Run quickly! We need to catch up with him!

Let’s run, maybe we’ll catch him,” the dog said to the cat, “see how our benefactors are being killed!”

They jumped out of the house and hit the road. They go, sniff out everything, look out - there is no precious box anywhere. And they decided to go to the merchant. And his house stood across the river.

They approached the river, the river was seething, the waves were foaming on it. The cat cowered into a ball with fear.

Don’t be afraid,” the dog encourages her, “somehow we’ll get to the other side, I know how to swim.” And it’s better for us not to return home without the box.

The cat saw that the dog was so brave, she became brave and jumped on her back. They swam across the river and found themselves in a small village. They walk through the village, look into every yard, and don’t miss a single one. Suddenly they see him standing in the yard big house, apparently and invisibly, the people, some in red, some in green, are preparing for the wedding. And they recognized the groom as the same merchant who spent the night with the old man.

“Go into the house,” the dog says in the cat’s ear, “find out where the merchant buried the treasured box.” I would go myself, but I’m afraid they’ll notice me. And when you find out, immediately run outside the outskirts, I will wait for you under the willow tree.

The cat nodded her head, meowed, climbed onto the roof, jumped straight from the roof into the yard, and from the yard, through a small window, crawled into the bedroom. The cat is looking for the treasured box, it has searched all the corners and is nowhere to be found. The cat sat down under the bed and wondered what to do. Suddenly he sees a mouse crawling out of the chest that was in the bedroom. The cat rushed at her, and the mouse trembled in the cat’s paws, asking to be let go. The cat says to her with an indifferent look:

If you help me with one thing, I'll let you go.

I’ll do everything, queen cat, just order,” the mouse squeaked.

Reach into the master's chest and see if there is a wooden box there. If you find it, quickly bring it here.

The mouse climbed into the chest, instantly pulled out the treasured box and, with a low bow, handed it over to the cat. The cat grabbed the box and ran away.

The merchant saw the cat and shouted:

Hold the cat! She stole the treasure! Hold her!

People rushed after the cat, and she darted through the wall, and that was all they saw. She ran to the outskirts, and there her dog was waiting under a willow tree, and they set off on their way back. They can't be happier. When they approached the river, the dog strictly ordered the cat:

If you see a fish or a crayfish, be careful not to open your mouth, otherwise you will drop the box into the water.

Now the cat was no longer afraid to swim across the river. She sat solemnly on the dog’s back and imagined how her owners would thank her. They swam to the middle of the river, and suddenly they saw fish frolicking in the water. The cat even began to salivate, she couldn’t stand it and screamed:

Oh, so many fish!

Hua-la - this box fell into the water and sank.

I told you not to open your mouth and keep quiet. What should we do now?

A dog and a cat swam to the shore, left the cat, and returned to the middle of the river. She forcibly pulled the precious box out of the water.

The dog was tired, sat down to rest, closed her eyes and did not notice how she dozed off. Meanwhile, the cat grabbed the box and ran home.

The old man saw that the cat had brought the box, was delighted, and rushed to the old woman to tell her the good news. And they began vying with each other to praise the cat: how dexterous and agile she was. The old man opened the box, took out a snake tail, shook it - copper coins fell onto the floor and jingled. The old man bought all sorts of things, prepared various tasty dishes, and began to treat the cat. The cat sat down more comfortably, but did not have time to start eating when she saw a dog running.

Oh, you parasite! All you know is to fill your belly! - the owner attacked her.

And the cat is gobbling it up. At least she could say a word. The dog really wanted to drink and eat, but she didn’t get anything tasty, so she had to be content with the leftover soup and rice.

Since then the dog hated the cat. As soon as he sees him, he immediately tries to grab him by the throat.

And so their enmity began.

GRATEFUL TIGRESS

Once a woodcutter went to the mountains to chop brushwood. Suddenly he hears - below, in the ravine, someone is moaning, so pitifully: ooh. The woodcutter followed the voice, came to a rock, there was a cave in the rock, a tigress was lying in the cave - she just couldn’t lamb. Her intestines came out of her womb and got caught in a thorny bush. She can't bear it, so she moans. The tigress saw the woodcutter, looked at him sadly, as if she wanted to say: “Save me, woodcutter!”, and moaned even more pitifully. The woodcutter looked at the tigress and listened to her moan. I feel sorry for the poor fellow. He ran home and said to his mother:

I just saw a tigress, lying in a cave, she couldn’t lamb, her guts were coming out of her. It's a shame to watch! You alone can save her; everyone knows what a skilled midwife you are! Let's go quickly!

And his mother answers him:

Yes, if the guts are out, it won’t take long to die. You can save the tigress, you just need to bring a basin of wine, splash wine on the intestines, and then quietly and lightly put them in the belly.

The woodcutter and his mother went to save the tigress. And she really felt better; she gave birth to four cubs. And the old midwife, before returning home, patted the tigress on the back and said:

We are overcome by need, my son can’t even bring his wife into the house, so you should bring him a bride on your back to repay us for our kindness.

The tigress nodded her head, as if she understood what the old woman told her.

And then one night, when the north wind howled and blew and snow fell in flakes, the bride was carried past the mountains in a palanquin. Suddenly there was a deafening roar, like thunder, and five tigers rushed down the mountain. Those who carried the palanquin all scattered. And the tigress and the cubs kidnapped the bride and took her to the woodcutter’s house. They started knocking on the gate. The owner himself came out when he knocked. I saw the bride and was so happy that it is impossible to say or describe. The wedding took place right there. Rumors about this reached the parents of the groom, whose bride was kidnapped by the tigers, and the parents complained to the judge. The district chief sent for a woodcutter and interrogated him. The woodcutter told him everything that happened. The official doesn't believe me. And then the woodcutter’s mother went to the mountains to call the tigers as witnesses. The tigers were not afraid; all five of them showed up. The judge trembles with fear, and he himself asks:

Is it true that you brought your bride to the woodcutter’s house?

The tigers all nodded their heads at once - it’s true, they say. The judge didn’t bother asking any more questions - he was afraid - so he let the woodcutter go.

And soon the prince of the barbarians sent wild animals to that country. The bravest commanders did not dare to go against them. And then the sovereign asked the woodcutter with five tigers to rescue the country from trouble. Three days had not passed before all the prince's animals disappeared, like petals in a stormy stream - the tigers devoured them. But the prince barely escaped and did not dare to attack anymore. The sovereign rejoiced here, granted the woodcutter the rank of Commander of the Five Tigers and ordered him to guard the borders. Since then, peace and tranquility have reigned in the country.

HOW THE TIGER KAP-KAPA GOT SCARED

One day, when it was already evening, two peasants were sitting in a reed hut and talking among themselves. One peasant asks another:

Aren't you afraid to live alone in such a remote place?

And he answers:

I’m not afraid of anyone, not a tiger, not the devil, I’m only afraid that drips will drip from the roof.

About that time, a tiger was hiding nearby. He heard these words and quietly said to himself: “He’s not afraid of the tiger, not the devil, he’s only afraid of the drip-drip. It turns out that this drip-drip is scarier and more menacing than me? I’d better get out of here and say hello.” The tiger said this to himself and ran away from the hut. He ran and ran and did not notice how he came running to one village. There lived in that village about two dozen, well, maybe two and a half families.

And it so happened that just at that time a thief entered the village. A thief came to the gate tall house, and in his hands a big, big paper lantern is dangling. The tiger saw him, stopped in fear and thought: “This is the same drip-drip.” He thought so, shrank and decided to quietly walk around that house. He walked around, found a reed hut, and lay down to sleep in it.

Soon the thief ran there - the people scared him away. The thief lay down next to the tiger and fell asleep. And the tiger lies there, trembling with fear, thinking: this is the drip-drip sleeping next to him. He's afraid to raise his head. And the thief mistook the tiger for a cow and rejoices: “Now happiness has arrived! What luck! You ran all night in vain - people scared you away, and suddenly there was a cow on top of you. I’ll take her with me.” But the tiger doesn’t remember himself from fear, he’s shaking, thinking: “Let him take him out of the hut, let him take him with him - I still won’t raise my head.”

Meanwhile, it was already getting light. The thief decided to take a better look at the cow - is it big? He looked and felt that his heart and gall bladder were about to burst. The thief rushed out of the hut and climbed to the very top of the tree. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a monkey appeared. I saw that the tiger was in trouble, and let’s laugh:

Why are you so afraid, brother tiger?

Don’t you even know it, sister monkey? Last night I met a dude. He led me on his lead until the dew. Trouble, and that’s all!

What is this drip-drip?

Just look at it yourself, otherwise I’m afraid. There he is, sitting on a tree.

Did you imagine it, or what? You will also say: drip-drip! After all, this is a man sitting on a tree. If you don’t believe me, I’m about to tear out a vine, tie it to your paw with one end, and to mine with the other. I’ll throw it down quickly, and you can enjoy it to your heart’s content. And when it drips, I shake my head. Then run and drag me with you away from trouble. Well, do you agree?

I agree, I agree! You can't imagine anything better!

A monkey climbed a tree. I just got to the middle, and the thief dropped his pants in fear. It dripped onto the monkey: drip-drip. The monkey shook its head and began to shake itself off. The tiger saw it, started running as fast as he could, and dragged the monkey after him. The poor fellow was killed to death.

The tiger ran for more than thirty years in one breath, became out of breath, saw a high hill, and sat down to rest. It would be nice, he thinks, to dine on deer. He had heard that there were deer in the mountains, but he had never seen them in his life. Suddenly he looks - some animal has appeared in the distance. Runs straight at him. And this was just a deer. The deer saw the tiger, trembled with fear, and stopped, neither alive nor dead. And the tiger smiled and very politely said to the deer:

Be kind, my friend! Tell me your precious last name and nice name!

The deer heard this, immediately realized that he was a stupid tiger, became brave and answered:

I have no last name, only an insignificant nickname. And I am called the Venerable Tiger.

The tiger marveled at this nickname and said:

Brother Venerable Tiger! What useless chatter! Tell me better, have you ever met a deer?

Why do you need him?

I'm hungry. I want to eat venison.

And I - tiger meat. So first tell me if you have seen a tiger.

I didn’t see it, I didn’t see it!

What's under your belly?

Teapot for wine.

Do you carry it with you?

But of course! I'll eat some reindeer meat and then drink some wine!

What's that on your head?

Bamboo cart.

Do you carry it with you?

Well, yes! If you come across a tiger, you won’t eat it right away! So I put the leftovers on the cart - convenient and beautiful.

The tiger was dumbfounded here, he senses that the soul and body are about to part. And he wet himself out of fear. The deer saw this and screamed:

Drip-drip has arrived!

The tiger heard and ran away, but the deer was just waiting for this, turned and ran away.

A TALE ABOUT THE SPOTLEN CALF

Once upon a time, there lived an old old woman in a village. Alone in the whole world - she had neither a son nor a daughter, only a calf. And the old woman followed the calf as if it were her grandson.

He gets up in the morning and bakes butter cakes. He will hang cakes on the calf’s horns and tie a bag to his backside. And let the calf go into the mountains - let him eat cakes and remember to break brushwood. And in the evening, before the sun has time to set, the calf runs home, carrying a sack full of brushwood.

But one day the sun set behind the mountains, and the little calf still wouldn’t go. The old man can’t wait for him, doesn’t know what to think. Now the sky has turned black, and the calf is still nowhere to be seen. Apparently the old woman can’t wait for her pet. She took the stick and went into the mountains to look for it. Suddenly she met a hare. The old woman asks him:

Tell me, good bunny, have you seen where my little calf is?

The witch ate your little calf, and at night she will come and gnaw you to death.

The old woman got scared and started spinning. There was nothing to do, I cried and went home. She sat down at the gate, shedding tears. The old woman cries, and the melancholy gnaws at her heart more and more. People heard how the old woman was killing herself, and then they themselves began to cry. Brother Shilo walked past and asked:

Don't be afraid, grandma! I’ll come running at night and take away the trouble!

Sister Thorn walked past and asked:

Grandma, grandma, are you freaking out?

The evil witch ate my little calf, and she will come at night and gnaw me to death!

Don't be afraid, grandma. I’ll come running at night and take away the trouble!

Auntie a chicken egg rolled past, rolled up and asked:

Grandma, grandma, why are you crying?

The evil witch ate my little calf, and she will come at night and gnaw me to death.

Aunt Frog jumped past, jumped up and asked:

Grandma, grandma, why are you killing yourself like this?

The evil witch ate my little calf, and she will come at night and gnaw me to death!

Don't be afraid, grandma, I'll come running at night and take away the trouble!

My brother splashed cow dung past and asked:

Grandma, grandma, are you sad?

The evil witch ate my little calf, and she will come at night and gnaw me to death!

Don't be afraid, grandma, I'll come running at night and take away the trouble!

A stone roller rolled past, pulled up and asked:

Grandma, grandma, why are you pushing?

The evil witch ate my little calf, and she will come at night and gnaw me to death!

Don't be afraid, grandma, I'll come running at night and take away the trouble!

Meanwhile, the time was approaching night, and they began to hold advice among themselves. Brother Awl hid in the old woman’s belt, Sister Thorn hid behind the lamp, Auntie’s chicken egg rolled into the stove, Auntie Frog jumped into a vat of water, Uncle Roller hid over the lintel, and little brother had nowhere to go for the cow dung, so he plopped down straight to the ground.

An evil witch came, burst into the house, and said:

Old woman, old woman, now I’ll eat you, but I don’t know where to start.

The old woman answers her:

And you start with the stomach!

The witch wanted to grab her stomach, but that was not the case! The brother was going to stab her in the side!

Oh, there are thorns growing on your stomach!

Then start from the head!

Hair grows on the head.

And you tear them out! Just light the lamp first!

The witch wanted to light the lamp, but the little sister thorn pierced her hand! The witch ran to the stove to get a fire and shine it, and Auntie covered her eyes with a chicken egg. She got to a vat of water to scoop up water, and Auntie Frog grabbed her by the nose. The witch got scared, wanted to run away, but slipped on cow dung. Then Uncle Roller arrived in time and crushed the evil witch. Let him know how to eat other people's calves!

HOW A TIGER STOLEN THE BRIDE

One day a man decided to get married. But when the wedding palanquin and the bride were being carried past the mountain, suddenly a tiger jumped out onto the road. The palanquin bearers and the entire bride's retinue fled in fear in all directions. Meanwhile, the tiger climbed into the palanquin, grabbed the bride and took her to his cave. He took care of her and pleased her, like his own daughter, and she looked after his household. Every morning the tiger left to get food. Either he will bring a rooster, or a ram or a calf. The girl cooked the meat and fed the tiger. And the tiger, as soon as he began to eat boiled food, quickly learned the human language.

But then one day some official called his servants to him and ordered them to find rooster eggs and get sparrow combs, in a word, something that does not happen in the world. Nothing to do. The servants did not hesitate and went to the mountains to carry out the official’s order. And at that time the tiger had just left the house, leaving the girl alone. She heard that people had come, and then she shouted: “Save me!” People followed the voice and approached the cave. They see a girl sitting there, and let’s ask her about everything. And when they found out that the tiger had brought her to the cave a long time ago, they began to persuade her:

We will free you, just promise that you will be our master’s second wife.

The girl agreed and answered:

I will be your master’s second wife, just take me away from here as quickly as possible.

What ransom should I give for you?

The girl answers:

I don't need anything. Prepare only a red wedding palanquin and another basket of red and green chopsticks.

When do you want me to come for you?

Tomorrow at the same time.

The girl began to get ready for the journey. And the official’s servants returned home and reported everything to their master. The next day, the official prepared everything that the girl asked for and sent people to the mountains to fetch the bride. The girl sat down in the palanquin and ordered that chopsticks be thrown along the entire road, all the way to the official’s house. And when she entered the gate, she immediately ordered to buy dongua pumpkin for her, steam it, and then pour it over it. cold water so that the crust becomes even harder.

The tiger returned to the cave, saw that the girl had disappeared, immediately realized that it was people who had kidnapped her, and went to look for her along the same road where the red and green sticks were scattered. He came straight to the official’s house, raised his head, looked around, and suddenly saw a girl standing upstairs at the window. She saw a tiger and screamed:

People stole me, open your mouth quickly, I’ll jump into it now, and you’ll take me back to the cave.

The tiger opened his mouth, and the girl threw the pumpkin. It hit him right in the throat. The tiger choked and died, and the girl got his skin and bones.

Once the Chinese philosopher Zhu Xi asked his student: where did the custom of naming years by twelve animals come from and what does the books say about this? The student, however, could not answer, although references to the animal chronology system in Chinese sources have been found since the beginning of our era. The student also did not know the legends that were told among the people. According to this legend, recorded in the coastal province of Zhejiang, the counting of years by animals was established by the supreme ruler himself - the Jade Sovereign. He gathered animals in his palace and chose twelve of them. But a heated argument broke out only when it was necessary to put them in order. The cunning mouse deceived everyone, managing to prove that it was the largest among animals, even larger than an ox. The tale “On how to count the years by animals” opens the collection. Like the legend about the animal cycle, other tales about animals recorded by the Chinese are based on explaining the characteristics of animals, the origin of their habits or appearance. They tell why dogs and cats quarrel, why the crab is flattened, or why geese don’t eat pork. These kinds of fairy tales, called etiological in science, are being replaced by funny stories about the tricks of animals, the cunning and resourcefulness of a small beast in front of a big beast, which, according to fairy-tale logic, certainly turns out to be a fool. The largest place in the fairy-tale repertoire of the Chinese and, accordingly, in this collection is occupied by fairy tales. They fall into separate cycles: stories about kidnapping a bride and rescuing her from another world, about marrying a wonderful wife, and tales about how a disadvantaged hero gains the upper hand over evil relatives. Fairy tales about a wonderful wife are very common among the Chinese. In the fairy tale " Magic picture“The hero marries a maiden who came out of a painting, in another fairy tale the wife turns out to be a peony maiden, in the third - the Jade Fairy - the spirit of the peach tree, in the fourth - a lotus girl, in the fifth - a carp maiden. The most ancient basis of all these tales is marriage with a totem wife. Marrying a totem maiden was thought of in the deepest antiquity as a way to take possession of the natural resources that she supposedly controlled. This ancient basis is most clearly visible in the tale “Renshen the Werewolf”, the heroine of which, a wonderful maiden, shows her beloved the place where the healing root grows. In all the fairy tales recorded in our time, the totemic maiden turned into a werewolf maiden. This happened, apparently, under the influence of a very widespread belief in werewolves in the countries of the Far East: any old object or animal that has lived for a long time can take on a human form: a broom forgotten behind a closet after many years can turn into a werebroom, an animal that has lived for a thousand years , becomes white, and the one who has lived ten thousand years becomes black - both have the magical ability to transform. The belief in werewolf animals was so tenacious among the people that even in the encyclopedia of crafts and Agriculture in the 15th century, they spoke with complete seriousness about ways to expel were-foxes: it is enough to hit a werewolf with a piece of old, dried wood, and he will immediately return to his original form. The fairy tales of the Chinese, like some other Far Eastern peoples, are distinguished by the special “down-to-earthness” of fairy-tale fiction. The action in them never takes place in a certain kingdom - the thirtieth state; everything unusual, on the contrary, happens next to the hero, in places native and familiar to the storyteller. The section of everyday fairy tales, among which there are satirical ones, opens with the fairy tales “The Magic Vat” and “ Beautiful wife"; they are built according to the laws of a satirical fairy tale, although main role while magic items are still playing. In other fairy tales, everyday elements replaced everything magical. Among them there are many stories known all over the world. Wherever they tell a fairy tale about a fool who does everything at the wrong time! At the funeral he shouts: “You can’t drag it,” and at the wedding - “Eve and incense.” His Chinese “brother” (“Stupid Husband”) does almost the same thing: he attacks the funeral procession with abuse, and offers to help the bearers of the painted wedding palanquin carry the coffin. Such fairy tales always end the same way: in a Russian fairy tale, the fool ends up beaten, and in a Chinese fairy tale, he is caught on the horns of an angry bull. In Chinese satirical tales the reader will find another extremely popular one in different literatures plot: lover hidden in a chest.B last section the books included tales of artisans and ginshen seekers, as well as ancient legends. Craftsmen's tales are a little-known part of Chinese folklore. Many of them are associated with the names of deified heroes who taught their amazing art other people or who sacrificed themselves in order to help craftsmen complete some difficult task. The collection is completed by three legends that are extremely common in China. Legends, as well as fairy tales of various genres, show us the originality of oral folk art Chinese and at the same time indicate that the Chinese fairy tale epic is not a unique phenomenon. On the contrary, Chinese fairy tales are a national version of global fairy-tale creativity, which developed on the basis of primitive ideas and beliefs that are very similar to most peoples. Chinese fairy tales bring to us the breath of life of the Chinese people, depict their difficult past and show how rich and inexhaustible ancient Chinese folklore is.