Epic Poem 4

There was a man with his wife and three sons, The Eldest Son, the Foolish Son, and the Lazy Son, live by the Willowy River. The Eldest Son leaves to get married; arrives at Yongleryi’s camp and stays there. After a successful wild reindeer hunt a wife is given to the Eldest Son. The Eldest Son and his wife leave home. During their travels, a man comes to demand compensation for the Eldest Son’s wife, who he says had been promised to him as his wife. The Eldest Son does not give him the reindeer. A son is born to the Eldest Son and his wife.

The Foolish Son leaves to get married, shouting on his way. He is given a wife, and a bow, because he is threatening his father-in-law with warfare. They leave home, the man demanding compensation gets the reindeer that the Foolish Son received as a dowry. They come home. A son is born to them.

The Foolish Son leaves to get the reindeer back with his allies. They come to the Iron Swing, where the reindeer are. There are 14 giants swinging, and the Foolish Son sits on the swing. The Lazy Son kills the giants and saves his brother. The brother kills his mother’s sister during his travel in the underworld.

The wife of the Foolish Son goes to the underworld and gets a wife for their son, as ordered by the Foolish Son. The two mammoths give their daughter as a wife for the son. The reindeer taken away from the Foolish Son are given back.

The Yongleryis and the camp at the Willowy River begin fighting each other and during this fighting everyone dies. Only the daughter of the Foolish Son and Yongleryi’s son stay alive. Everyone leaves.