The events in the epic unfold in the city of Novgorod. It splits into two parts (Sadko receives wealth and Sadko from the Sea King). Main character - guslar Sadko. At the beginning of the epic, the Novgorod boyars neglected him and stopped inviting him to feasts. Offended, Sadko goes to Lake Ilmen, sits on the “white-flammable stone” and begins to play “Yarovchaty Guselki”. The Sea King liked his game:
Just then the water in the lake began to stir, the king of the sea appeared, came out of Ilmen from the lake, and himself said these words: “Oh, you, Sadke of Novgorod! a gentle game." 1
The Sea King decided to help Sadko and give him untold wealth. He told him to make a bet with the Novgorod merchants that he would catch a fish in the lake - a golden feather. The king will send this fish to Sadko in the net.
Guslyar did just that and won three shops of red goods in a dispute with merchants, became rich, erected magnificent palaces, decorating them with marvelous paintings:
Sadke arranged everything in heavenly fashion: There is sun in the sky and there is sun in the chambers, There is a month in the sky and there is a month in the chambers, There are stars in the sky and there are stars in the chambers. 2
Sadko “invited noble guests to his honorable feast,” who at the feast ate, got drunk and all boasted with boasts." Sadko boasted of buying up all the goods in Novgorod, argued with him about the wealth. But the bet lost: no matter how much he bought goods in Novgorod shops, in the morning more and more new ones brought from all over Rus' appeared in them. And Sadko realized that he was not the rich merchant of Novgorod - his glorious Novgorod was richer. And if at the beginning of the epic the popular consciousness was on the side of the poor guslar, then Sadko the merchant, who imagined , that he is richer and stronger than the entire trading city, deprived of the sympathy of the people. The epic forces him to recognize the victory of Novgorod. It clearly expresses the idea of \u200b\u200bthe trading power of the great city of northern Rus'.
In the second part of the epic, Sadko, a rich merchant, equips ships and sets off with his comrades to trade overseas:
Strong weather met on the blue sea, The blackened ships stagnated on the blue sea: And the wave hits, tears the sails, Breaks the blackened ships; But the ships do not move from their place on the blue sea. 3
This is how landscape is introduced into the epic. The ships are at sea - the Sea King does not let Sadko in and demands a ransom from him. First, the shipbuilders try to pay off with a barrel of pure silver, red gold, but the wave hits everything, tears the sails, and “the ships still do not move from their place on the blue sea.” Sadko guesses that the Tsar of the Sea demands “a living head in the blue sea.” They cast lots three times as to who should go to the Sea King. And no matter how hard Sadko tried, the lot fell on him. Taking only the harp, Sadko rushes into the depths of the sea.
The image of the underwater kingdom in the epic is real, the landscape is realistic:
In the blue sea at the very bottom. Through the water I saw the baking red sun, the evening dawn, the morning dawn. I saw Sadko: in the blue sea there was a white stone chamber... 4
What we see here is not fantasy, but rather a certain amount of convention. The King of the Sea himself is also depicted. The epic gives only one detail of his portrait: “the king’s head is like a heap of hay.” The singers use the technique of hyperbolization: the king’s head is compared to a heap of hay, which indicates its significant size and introduces an element of comedy.
How Sadko began to play guselki yarovchaty, How the king of the sea began to dance in the blue sea, How the king of the sea began to dance. Sadke played for a day, others played too, and Sadke and others played, And still the king danced in the blue sea. 5
Grateful for the fun, the Sea King began to persuade Sadko to marry one of his thirty daughters. Meanwhile, in the blue sea, the waters shake, ships break, and righteous people drown.
In reality, an Orthodox person, in search of deliverance from misfortunes, always turns to Christian saints, which is reflected in the epic: “the people began to pray to Mikola of Mozhaisk.” It is no coincidence that the image of the Christian intercessor Mykola, the patron saint of all seafarers and sailors, is introduced into the epic. This reveals the general Christian idea of Russian folklore:
The saint appeared before Sadko on the seabed: He turned around and looked at Sadko of Novgorod: A gray-haired old man was standing there. Novgorodsky said to Sadka: “I have no will of my own in the blue sea, I am ordered to play guselki yarovchaty.” The old man says these words: “And you tear out the strings, And you break out the pins. Say: “I didn’t have any strings, And the pins weren’t useful, There’s nothing else to play with: The verge-shaped goosenecks broke.” 6
Saint Mikola teaches the unlucky guslar how to return to Novgorod. He must choose as his bride the last daughter of the Sea King, the girl Chernavushka. Having listened to wise advice, the next morning Sadko found himself on land, and the girl he chose turned out to be a Novgorod river. In gratitude, Sadko built the cathedral church of Mykola Mozhaisky.
In the Novgorod Chronicle, under 1167, the name of a certain Sadko Sytinets is mentioned, who founded the church. The epic Sadko coincides with a real historical figure.
V.G. Belinsky wrote about Novgorod epics that all the rest of Russian fairy-tale poetry is visible in front of them. A new and special world is visible, which served as the source of the forms and very spirit of Russian life, and consequently of Russian poetry. About “Sadko” he writes: “The whole poem is imbued with extraordinary animation and is full of poetry. This is one of the pearls of Russian folk poetry.”
The epic “Sadko” is one of the pearls of Russian folk epics of the Novgorod cycle. Its main theme is a colorful description of the trading merchant life of Novgorod and the fantastic wanderings of the merchant-guslar through the depths of the sea.
The plot of the epic is constructed in conventional three parts, each of which has its own inherent self-sufficiency. And the work itself has a clearly expressed dramatic conflict of a historical nature.
Story
According to historians, the first basis of the ancient epic about Sadko was a song about a Novgorod merchant whose name was Sodko Sotynets. He was mentioned in the Novgorod Chronicle of 1167 as the builder of the Boris and Gleb Church in Novgorod. It is noteworthy that the prototypes of the main characters - Sadko the Guslar and the Sea King - are found in the epic narratives of different peoples - Greek, Finnish, Estonian, Kyrgyz and Old French tales.
Analysis
Description of the work
The action takes place in a rich and prosperous Novgorod. The young guslar singer Sadko pleases numerous Novgorod merchants with his sweet-voiced singing. At one of the feasts, realizing that no one is listening to him, the saddened singer goes to the shore of Lake Ilmen. Having poured out his soul in a beautiful, but at the same time filled with sadness song, Sadko excited with his singing the king of the sea, who thanked the guslar with the opportunity to gain wealth. Having won an argument with three merchants that there are fish with golden feathers in Lake Ilmen, Sadko becomes a rich man and over the course of twelve years increases his property many times over.
One day, Sadko the merchant sets out on a long trading journey, loading thirty ships with untold riches. A sudden strong storm forces Sadko to try to appease the king of the sea, but the lot shows that the ruler of the sea does not need wealth, he needs a sweet-voiced psaltery singer. Sadko pleased the tsar and his entire retinue with his play from morning to evening; he was promised untold riches, but dreams of his beloved Novgorod turned out to be stronger than the devilish temptation of the underwater world. Thanks to his love for the sea beauty Chernavushka and the help of the famous saint Nicholas the Wonderworker (Mozhaisky), Sadko returns to his hometown, throws a feast and builds a church in the name of the saint who saved him.
Epic quotes
“How can I brag about something, Sadku? But I don’t have a lot of countless golden treasury, And I don’t have a beautiful young wife, But how can I, Sadku, only have one thing to brag about: In Ilmen and like in the lake And there are fish like golden feathers, after all.”
“And how hello, rich merchant, Sadko and Novgorod! And how no matter how much you traveled across the sea, And how you never paid tribute to the king of the sea in the blue sea, And now he himself came to me all and in gifts.”
“And whoever boasts about something at a feast: And another boasts about his countless golden treasury, And another he boasts about a good horse, And another he boasts about his strength and good luck; And now how smart he is, how he boasts about A and his old father, his old mother, And how the crazy fool now boasts, And how he boasts about his young wife.”(Narrator)
Main characters
A talented young guslar singer. He sacrifices himself during a storm, thereby saving the lives of his squad. In this act, the Christian spirit of the hero is manifested, along with high morality and patriotism.
The image of the ruler of the seas is very ambiguous; it combines both power and destructive force, and love for the talent of the guslar singer Sadko. This character acts first as a benefactor, and over time as the singer’s enslaver, while he does not understand that for Sadko there is nothing more precious than earthly life in his hometown.
Structure of the work
The plot and compositional structure of the epic includes three self-sufficient parts. According to Belinsky, the work clearly expresses a dramatic conflict of a historical nature. The uniqueness of the work is the combination of three epics from different times of writing, starting from the early pagan (the image of the good sea king) and ending with the Christian (the image of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker). Also unusual is the choice of the main character - not an epic hero, but a poor talented guslar singer.
Final conclusion
The epic “Sadko” is a unique monument of Russian culture, which expresses the entire historical and patriotic essence of the image of a wandering guslar singer who defeated both merchants and the seductive temptations of fantastic underwater life.
The holiness of the image of his native Novgorod is what turns out to be above all for Sadko, a patriot and Christian. The epic is of particular historical value - it shows with great truthfulness the everyday life of Novgorodians in all its manifestations.
Drawing on a plate by E. Populov
Sadko is a young guslar from Veliky Novgorod. At the beginning of the story he is poor, proud and proud. His only asset is the spring harp, which he plays, moving from one cheerful feast to another.
However, a day comes, and then another, a third, when Sadko is not invited to an honest feast. The hero’s pride is hurt, but he shows no offense to anyone. He goes alone to Lake Ilmen, sits on a white-flammable stone on the shore and takes out the treasured harp. Sadko plays, bringing his soul into the music. His play caused the water in the lake to ripple. Ignoring this, Sadko returns back to the city.
Soon history repeats itself. Sadko is not invited to the feast again - once, twice, three times. He again goes to Lake Ilmen, again sits down on the flammable stone and begins to play. And again the water in the lake sways, foreshadowing something.
When Sadko comes to Lake Ilmen for the third time, a miracle happens. After his playing on the harp, the waters part and from the depths of the lake the sea king himself appears, who addresses the hero with the following words:
Oh, you, Sadko Novgorodsky!
I don’t know how to greet you
For your great joys,
Al countless golden treasury?..
The sea king gives Sadko advice: make a bet with the merchants that he will catch fish in the lake - golden feathers. The Tsar promises to throw these fish into Sadko’s net.
At the next feast, the musician follows this advice. In a circle of very tipsy merchants, he proposes an argument, boasting that he knows “the wonderful miracle in Lake Ilmen.” He suggests to his rivals, who laugh at his stories:
Let's hit the big bet:
I'll lay my head down
And you patch up the red goods shops.
Three of the merchants agree. The dispute ends with a complete victory for Sadko. Throwing the net three times, he pulls out three goldfish. The merchants give him three shops of expensive goods.
From this moment on, Sadko begins to rapidly grow rich. He becomes a successful trader and receives “great profits.” His life changes, he acquires luxury, giving free rein to his whimsical imagination. In his white stone chambers, Sadko arranges “everything like heaven”:
There is sun in the sky and sun in the chambers,
There is a month in the sky and a month in the chambers,
There are stars in the sky and stars in the chambers."
He sets up a rich feast, to which he invites the most eminent Novgorod citizens. At the feast, everyone eats, gets drunk and begins to boast to each other - some about their bravery, some about their countless treasury, some about their good horse, some about their noble family, some about their beautiful wife. Sadko remains silent for the time being. The guests finally wonder why the owner doesn’t “boast” about anything. Sadko importantly replies that his superiority is now too obvious to start an argument. And as proof of his power, he declares that he is able to buy up all Novgorod goods.
Before he has time to say this, all the guests shout at him “Oh great bet”, offended by such exorbitant pride. They decide that if Sadko does not keep his word, he will give thirty thousand rubles to the merchants.
The next day, Sadko wakes up at dawn, wakes up his brave squad, gives each squad member a lot of money and one single order: to go to the shopping malls and buy everything. He himself also goes to the living room, where he buys everything indiscriminately.
The next morning the hero gets up early again and wakes up the squad again. In the shopping and dining aisles, they find goods twice as high as before and again buy up everything that comes to hand. The shops and ruins are empty - but only until a new day. In the morning, Sadko and his warriors see an even greater abundance of goods - now there are three times as much, and not twice as much as before!
Sadko has no choice but to think about it. He understands that it is not in his power to buy goods in this wonderful trading city, he admits that overseas goods will also come in time for Moscow goods. And no matter how rich the merchant is, glorious Novgorod will be richer than anyone. So the vain hero learns a good lesson in time. After losing, Sadko humbly gives thirty thousand to his rivals, and with the remaining money he builds thirty ships.
Now Sadko - reckless and daring - decides to see the world. Through the Volkhov, Ladoga and Neva, it enters the open sea, then turns south and reaches the possessions of the Golden Horde. There he successfully sells the Novgorod goods he had taken with him, as a result of which his wealth increases again. Sadko pours barrels of gold and silver and turns the ships back to Novgorod.
On the way back, the caravan of ships encounters a terrible storm. The waves hit the ships, the wind tears the sails. Sadko understands that his old acquaintance, the sea king, who has not paid tribute for a long time, is fooling him. The merchant turns to his squad with the order to throw a barrel of silver into the sea. But the elements do not calm down. The ships cannot move due to the storm. They throw a barrel of gold - the same result. Then Sadko understands: the sea king demands “a living head in the blue sea.” He himself invites his warriors to cast lots. They throw twice, and both times the lot falls on Sadko.
And now Sadko the merchant gives the last orders before sinking to the bottom. He bequeaths his estates to God's churches, his young wife and poor brethren, and the rest to his brave warriors. Having said goodbye to his comrades, he takes an old spring harp and remains on one board on the waves. At the same moment, the storm subsides, the ships take off and disappear into the distance.
Sadko falls asleep on his raft right in the middle of the sea. He wakes up in the domain of the sea king. In a white-stone underwater palace, he meets with the king himself. He does not hide his triumph:
For a century you, Sadko, traveled on the sea,
He did not pay tribute to me, the king,
And all of them came to me as gifts.
The king asks the guest to play the harp for him. Sadko begins a dance melody: the king, unable to bear it, begins to dance, becoming more and more excited. Sadko plays for a day, then the second and third - without a break. The king continues his dance. A terrible storm arose at sea from this dance. Many ships sank and broke, the shores and villages were flooded. People everywhere prayed to Mikola Mozhaisky. It was he, the saint, who pushed Sadko on the shoulder, quietly and sternly explaining to the guslar that it was time to stop dancing. Sadko objected that he had an order and he could not disobey the Tsar. “You rip out the strings,” the gray-haired old man taught him. And he also gave this advice. If the sea king orders you to get married, do not argue with him. But from hundreds of proposed brides, choose the very last one - Chernavushka. Yes, on the first wedding night, do not commit fornication with her, otherwise he will forever be destined to remain at the bottom of the sea.
And with one movement, Sadko breaks the treasured strings and breaks his favorite harp. The storm subsides. Grateful for the music, the sea king invites Sadko to choose a bride for himself. Early in the morning, Sadko goes to the bride. He sees three hundred painted beauties, but misses them all. Behind everyone walks, with downcast eyes, the girl Chernavushka. Sadko calls her his betrothed. After the wedding feast they are left alone, but Sadko does not touch his wife. He falls asleep next to Chernavushka, and when he wakes up, he discovers that he is in Novgorod, on the steep bank of the Chernava River. On Volkhov he sees his suitable, intact ships. There his wife and squad remember Sadko. They don’t believe their eyes when they see him alive, meeting them in Novgorod.
He hugs his wife, then greets his friends. Unloads his wealth from ships. And he builds the cathedral church of Nicholas of Mozhaisk - as the saint asked him to do.
Since then, “Sadko no longer went to the blue sea, / Sadko began to live in Novi Grad.”
Retold
1. The epic “Sadko” belongs to the Novgorod cycle of epics. Researchers date the emergence of Novgorod epics to the 12th century, the time of the decline of Kievan Rus and the heyday of Novgorod. Novgorod was the largest trading city; it was not directly affected by the Tatar-Mongol invasion. D.S. Likhachev wrote: “The heyday of Kyiv was in the past - and epic tales about military exploits are attached to the past of Kyiv. The heyday of Novgorod was for the 12th century living modernity, and the themes of modernity were primarily social and everyday.
The theme of the epic is the life of the merchants. organization of trade.
The hero of the Novgorod epic Sadko is not a warrior-hero, but a merchant. The epic consists of three parts, which also occur as independent epics. The most ancient part of the epic tells about Sadko’s stay in the underwater kingdom. This plot goes back to the myths about the hero’s journey to the “other world”. Such myths are found among all nations. Later, the epic included a story about how Sadko became rich with the help of goldfish given to him by the king of the sea, who heard him playing on the shore of Lake Ilmen. Some storytellers in this part of the epic say not the “sea” king, but the “water” king. This suggests that we are talking about two different characters. It is known that in Russian folklore there is an idea of a three-level hierarchy of water spirits: mermen living in small streams, rivers and lakes, mermen - the owners of larger bodies of water, and the sea king - the ruler of the world ocean. The latest part of the epic is a colorful story about how Sadko tried to “buy up all Novgorod goods.” Some researchers believe that the epic Sadko had a real prototype - the rich Novgorodian Sadko Sytinich, mentioned in the chronicle due to the fact that in 1167 he built a stone church in Novgorod in the name of Boris and Gleb .
Sadko lived in the glorious city of Novgorod. Sadko did not have a gold treasury, he only had spring gooses. Sadko walked and played at honest feasts, entertaining the Novgorod people. Yes, it happened once - they didn’t invite Sadko to the feast. Out of such resentment, Sadko went to the shore of Lake Ilmen, sat down on a white-flammable stone and began to play spring goose for himself. Suddenly Lake Ilmen shook, became muddy from the yellow sand, high waves came over it - the king of the water rose from the water. The water king Sadko says: “Oh, you, Sadko of Novgorod! You amused me in Lake Ilmen, you disrespected me! How can I reward you for your game? Perhaps I’ll give you three fish, and not ordinary ones, but with golden feathers. Go.” now to Novgorod, make a bet with the Novgorod merchants that you will catch such fish from the lake. Pledge your wild head, and let the merchants put red goods in the shop." Sadko returned to Novgorod and said to the Novgorod merchants: "And you, merchants Novgorod! I know a wonderful miracle in Lake Ilmen: there are three fish walking there - golden feathers. And I will catch those fish." Sadko's merchants did not believe it, then he made a great bet with them - he laid his violent head against the red goods shops.
2. Sadko is the hero of epics. According to Novgorod epics, guslar Sadko, whose playing was loved by the Sea King, bets with Novgorod merchants that he will catch fish with “golden feathers” in Lake Ilmen. With the help of the Sea King, Sadko wins the bet and becomes rich. Sadko equips merchant ships. However, they stop at sea - the guslar must descend by lot to the seabed. Once in the chambers of the Sea King, Sadko plays for him. The sea king begins to dance, causing the sea to ripple and seafarers to die. Sadko, on the advice of Mikola the Pleasant who appeared to him, stops playing, breaking the strings of the gusli. The sea king invites Sadko to marry a sea maiden. Guslyar, on the advice of Mikola Ugodnik, chooses the girl Chernava. Sadko falls asleep after the wedding feast and wakes up on the banks of the Chernava River. At the same time his ships return. Sadko erects churches in Novgorod in gratitude.
3. The sea king had 12 daughters and all were unmarried. Sadko was sailing on a ship, the sea king raised a terrible storm, a storm, the bottom of the ship was sunk, the king lined up all the daughters in front of the young man and put him down, but he loved his Lyubava and the whale helped Sadko got ashore and saved him. The journey ended happily: Sadko brought untold wealth to the city and married Lyubava, they lived happily ever after!
4. for the harp, swing at one of the daughters.
As Sadko went to Lake Ilmen, sat down on a white-flammable stone and began to play spring goose. Just then the water in the lake began to shake, the king of the sea appeared, came out of Ilmen from the lake, and himself spoke these words: “Oh, you, Sadko of Novgorod! I don’t know how you will be rewarded with For your great pleasures, For your necessary game: Or with countless golden treasury? Otherwise, I’ll go to Novgorod and hit the big bet, lay down my violent head and strip the other merchants of the shops of red goods and argue that in Lake Ilmen there are fish - gold-feathers. As soon as you strike a great bet, go and tie a silk net and come to Lake Ilmen to catch: I’ll give you three fish—gold-feathers. Then you, Sadko, will be happy!”
Since ancient times, epics have glorified the courage and bravery of soldiers, patriotism and love for the homeland. This oral folk art reflected the life of Ancient Rus' in the 9th-13th centuries. We come close to the topic “Epic “Sadko”: summary, main characters.” Here the guslar acts as a true patriot of his land, a deeply religious person, whose soul cannot be deceived and cannot be bought for any price. The king of the seas will be exactly the tempter who is ready to give all his treasures for such a talented young man.
Epic "Sadko": summary for children
In Veliky Novgorod there lived a young guslar Sadko. This is how the epic “Sadko” begins. The summary tells that he was very handsome, but poor, with a proud and self-loving nature. He earned his living by playing the harp very lively and soulfully. From one merry feast he found himself in another. But one day the turning point came when they stopped calling him.
One day passed, then a second, a third, and then the abandoned young man went to Lake Ilmen, found a white-flammable stone near the shore, sat down on it, took out his harp and began to play as if his soul was crying in melancholy and loneliness. Because of such playing, the water in the lake began to sway violently, but the musician did not pay anyone any attention to this and returned back to the city.
King of the Sea
Now every day he began to come ashore and play his instrument. And one day Sadko saw how the waters of Lake Ilmen became excited and parted from his music. The King of the Sea himself appeared on its surface and addressed the musician with words of praise.
For such beautiful sounds, he wanted to reward him with countless golden treasuries. The king tells Sadko to bet with local merchants that he will catch a fish with golden feathers, and promises to throw it into his net.
This dialogue is described very interestingly by the epic “Sadko”. The summary, however, continues with the fact that when the merchant people were having fun at one of the feasts, Sadko, taking advantage of the moment, proposed an argument and boasted that he would catch a wonderful fish in the lake, the “golden feathers” fish.
But no one believed these tales, so the three merchants easily agreed to bet. The wrangler cast the net three times and pulled out one goldfish at a time. The discouraged merchants gave away three stores of the best goods that had been disputed. Over time, Sadko became a real rich man and began to receive “great profits.”
Sadko promises to buy back all the goods
His life changed a lot, he indulged in real luxury and made all his fantasies come true. He had white stone chambers, he began to throw luxurious feasts and invite all the eminent Novgorod nobility. The intoxicated merchants each time began to boast about who had a good horse, who had a beautiful wife, and who had countless treasuries.
Sadko, however, was always silent, but until a certain time, but then, when he was asked to boast about something, he said that he was too rich and that he could buy all the goods in the shops of Novgorod. As soon as the merchant Sadko uttered these words, the guests, offended by such exorbitant pride, immediately struck a bet with him.
This is how the epic “Sadko” gains its intriguing turn. The summary continues with the fact that the next day Sadko orders that his squad be given a lot of money and sends it to all the trading shops in the city to buy all the goods in a row. And he himself went to the living room row to also buy everything indiscriminately.
Sadko lost his bet
However, the next morning the merchants again brought in goods, only twice as much. And the squad bought everything again. And so every morning the shops were replenished with more goods than before. It was then that the avid debater learned a good lesson and admitted that they could not keep up with Moscow and overseas goods, and that the Novgorod merchant would really be richer than anyone.
But this is not the end of the epic “Sadko”; the summary further tells that Sadko bet thirty thousand to the traders, but with the rest of the money he had left he decided to build thirty ships and set sail on a journey to see the world with his own eyes. He sails through the Volkhov, Ladoga and Neva, and then enters the open sea and after some time arrives at the Golden Horde. There he sells his goods for a good price, and again he has a lot of money in his treasury. He fills the barrels with gold and silver and goes home to Novgorod.
Long journey and storm
But on the way back, an unprecedented storm raged, and the ships were about to sink. The masts are bent, the sails are torn. Sadko begins to figure out who is perpetrating such intrigues on him, because he understands to whom he has not paid tribute for so long. Then he takes a barrel of silver and throws it into the sea, but the elements do not subside, and the ships do not move due to the strong wind. Then Sadko orders to throw away the barrel of gold, but even then the storm does not subside. And then he understands that the Sea King wants to get a “living head.” On the ship, lots were cast, which fell twice on Sadko himself. And then he gives his final orders. He bequeaths his entire inheritance to the churches of God, his young wife, poor brethren and brave warriors.
In the kingdom of the sea
And so, having said goodbye to everyone, taking his native harp, he sets off to sea on a raft. The storm immediately subsided, and the ship set off on its way. Sadko dozed off and woke up already in the sea possessions in the white-stone mansions of the King of the Sea, who did not hide his joy and said that the guslar had not paid him tribute for a long time, so he himself went as a gift.
Saint Nicholas of Mozhaisk
The King of the Seas immediately asked to play the harp for him, and the musician, waving his hand, struck the ringing strings. Cheerful dance music started playing. Real dancing began at the bottom of the sea. The merchant played for three days without a break, during which time a huge number of ships sank, the banks and villages were flooded.
The poor earthly people prayed to Saint Nicholas of Mozhaisk (Nicholas the Wonderworker). And then the holy elder appears near the guslar. He poked him in the shoulder and sternly but kindly explained that it was time to stop dancing. Sadko answered him that he had an order and that he was unable to disobey the King of the Seas. Then Saint Nicholas told him to break the strings. He also warned that if the Tsar proposes marriage, then from the hundreds of proposed brides, let him choose the very last one, Chernavushka, and not go to bed with her on the wedding day, otherwise he will forever remain at the bottom of the sea.
Native land
Sadko did just that, with one swing he broke the strings and broke the harp. The storm immediately subsided. The appeased Tsar, in gratitude, invited him to choose any bride from his daughters. In the morning, the guslar comes to the bride and sees three hundred extraordinary beauties, but remembers the words of the holy elder and chooses the maiden Chernavushka. After the wedding feast, he calls her his betrothed and goes with her to the bedchamber. He didn’t even touch her with a finger, fell asleep on the wedding bed in a deep sleep, and when he woke up, he was already on his native bank of the Chernava River in Novgorod. On the Volkhov River, he saw his ships safe and sound, quietly sailing to the shore. There were his wife and children and friends who tearfully remembered Sadko, and then, seeing him alive and unharmed, they could not believe their eyes. Everyone started hugging and kissing. Sadko unloaded all the wealth from the ships. And the first thing he did was to build a cathedral church in honor of St. Nicholas of Mozhaisk. The saint's will was fulfilled.
This is how the epic “Sadko” ended with a very brief summary of the entire plot. After this, the guslar no longer sailed the seas, but began to live peacefully in his Novgorod.
Epic "Sadko": summary and author
This epic may have different interpretations. According to the hypothesis of some historians, the basis of this ancient epic was a song about a Novgorod merchant named Sodko Sytinets, who is mentioned in the chronicle of 1167 as the builder of the Church of Boris and Gleb in Novgorod. Surely the image of Sadko was transformed over time into the Indo-European image of the mythical groom of the daughter of the ruler of the seas and oceans.
Expanding the topic of “Sadko”: summary, author,” it should be noted that the author of epics and songs is the people. However, this work was used to create the famous opera “Sadko” by Rimsky-Korsakov (1897). And in 1952, the magnificent fairy tale “Sadko” directed by A. Ptushko was filmed.