On the high hills of Altai, the tops of old pines and fir-trees engage in peaceful communion. They know much—these mountain forests! They stand in wonder before the snowy ranges of the mountains. Their roots know what riches, what innumerable mineral treasures, are guarded in the stony depths of the mountains, for the future prosperity of humanity.
And the roots of these giant trees tenderly embrace the gray stones. These are the stones of the “site of compassion.”
Who knows who placed these stones here? And who saw these men transfixed in awe beneath the stone stronghold?
Had these people heard of the future wealth of this country? Did they know of Zvenigorod, the City of the Bells? Was it they, who conceived the saga of the river Katum, of all the events which passed on the shores of this river, as it rolled down the great stones from the White Mountain, Belukha?
Were these people settlers or wanderers?
Old grandmother Anisya knows something about this place.
She comes here to perform her invocations and conjurations. Do not be afraid! She is not a witch, she is not a Shaman sorceress. No one would speak ill of grandmother Anisya. But she knows many precious things. She knows the healing herbs; she knows conjurations which serve as prayers; she learned them from her grandmother. And a century ago the same stones and the same forest stood here as now.
Grandmother Anisya knows conjurations against all evils. No one besides herself knows that the kirik stone from the nest of a hoopoe is the best protection against treason. No one besides herself knows the best time to find this nest and how to obtain the stone.
She can tell you how hard are the present times and that you can be saved only by conjurations. At the present time three conjurations need be remembered:
The first of them is against enemies, against thieves and evil men. The second—do not forget it! against mortal weapons. The third—remember sharply! against lightning, against all thunder of heaven or earth! The thunder of earth resounds and heavenly forces rise.
Remember the first one:
“On the sea, on the ocean, on the Buyan Island, there is an iron chest and in this iron chest there are steel swords. Ho, steel swords! Approach our enemy! Cut his body in pieces! Pierce his heart! Until he renounces all evil; until he returns the stolen booty; until he will surrender all, without concealing anything. Thou enemy, adversary, be cursed by my powerful conjurations!
“Be damned in the depths of hell! Beyond the Arrarat mountains, into the boiling tar! Into the burning ashes! Into the scum of swamps! Into the bottomless abyss!
“Be you, enemy, pierced by the spike of an aspen tree!
“And be dried even more than the hay!
“And be frozen even more than the ice!
“Become cross-eyed, lame, mad, armless, impoverished, hungry, outcast; and perish by another’s hand!”...
You see, what strong powers grandmother Anisya possesses! Who can withstand such conjurations!
And not only does she speak in a strident voice, but she also holds in her hand a tiny stick, and as she speaks of the death of an enemy, she breaks this stick, just as the life of her evil adversary shall be broken. And never shall he know from what hill, from what mountain, came this unconquerable power.
The second conjuration is against weapons. Each warrior must know this conjuration. Hear and remember!
“Beyond the far-off mountains is the sea of iron. In the sea stands a pillar of bronze. And on that bronze pillar there stands a shepherd of cast iron. And this pillar rises from earth into heaven. From the East to the West.
“And the shepherd commands his children; he commands the iron, the steel, red and blue, the copper, the lead, the silver, and the gold. He speaks to guns and to arrows. He gives to the fighters and warriors the great command:
“ ‘You iron, copper, lead, go back into your mother-earth, away from the warrior; return, tree, to the far-off shore, and you, arrow-feathers, return to the birds! And you birds—disappear in the sky!’
“And he commands swords, axes, boar-spears, knives, arquebuses, arrows and all warriors—to be calm and peaceful!
“And he orders every warrior not to shoot at me from a gun!
“But he orders the arbalest and stringbows to bend and cast all arrows deep down into the earth!
“Let my body be stronger than stone. Firmer than steel. Let my armor be stronger than helmets and ring-armor.
“I seal my words with all locks. I cast the keys under the white Flaming Stone, Alatyr!
“And as locks are strong, so strong are my words.”...