The fisherman

The fisherman

It was long ago. A fisherman with his wife had not caught even one fish for many years.

One day the fisherman went fishing to the river at dawn. He caught some fish and came home happy. His wife was glad and invited a lama *.

The woman boiled the fish; her husband went to the lama.

After her husband had left to see the lama, she tasted her fish: it seemed to her that the fish was very tasty. She ate up the fish.

She grew hungry again and ate up another fish.

Eventually, she ate up four fish.

The man invited the lama and brought him in. The man was sharpening his knife while the lama was sitting.

The woman said to the lama in a whisper: ‘My husband wants to cut off your ears. Having deceived you, he invited you to eat fish and brought you here’, she said.

‘Not two, I will not give you even one!’ the lama shouted, hiding his ears and left.

‘Oh, the lama has taken your fish and run away. Catch up with him and take back your fish’, the wife said to her husband.

‘I will not give you even one!’ the lama shouted, running.

The fisherman could not catch up with the lama.

The wife ate up her fish and lived happily.

A lama * - the name of the rank of Buddhist monk. Lamas were much respected among Kalmyks.

Translated from Kalmyk into English by Danara Balayeva-Kokayeva
Перевод с калмыцкого на английский Данары Балаевой-Кокаевой

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