The Tale of the Pig, Her Five Piglets, and the Wolf

There was once a pig, and she had five piglets: Golodun (Hungry), Kholodun (Cold), Teplun (Warm), Opozdun (Late), and Krepysh (Strong). The pig was very clever, and her piglets were no fools either. The pig would roam the fields, digging up the earth, searching for beets and carrots. If she found fresh grass, she would chew it like a cow. If she stumbled upon a potato field, she would immediately start looking for leftover potatoes and happily devour them, muttering to herself, "How kind humans are! They must know how much I love potatoes and apples of the earth, and that's why they leave so much tasty food in the ground for me."

And our little pig didn’t turn her nose up at rotten, wormy fruit either, while cornfields and wheat fields were like paradise to her. Her udder was full of milk, and her piglets were well-fed and content, as plump as little cucumbers. All five of them were very clever and obedient.

One day, the pig was digging in the field. She dug and dug until she reached a mouse hole. She saw that the hole was stuffed with ears of ripe, full-grained wheat. She pulled out the grains one by one and began to feast on the delicious wheat, savoring every bite. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a wolf appeared, looming over her—his eyes blazing, his teeth gnashing.

"Hello there, pig!" growled the wolf.

The poor pig’s hair stood on end.

"What are you doing, pig? Why are you digging in the earth? What are you looking for?" asked the wolf.

"May God grant you health, sir!" stammered the pig, nearly dead with fear. "What can I do? I found a mouse hole full of wheat ears. It seems the mouse saved them for winter. Would you like me to pick out a nice, ripe ear for you to eat?"

"What?!" roared the wolf. "Do you want thorns to get stuck in my throat and choke me?! I’ll teach you a lesson, you thief! Who gave you the right to rob that poor mouse? Who knows how hard she worked to store this wheat for the winter, and here you are, destroying it all! She’ll starve, while you grow fat and feed your piglets! For this, I’ll eat you right now, you bandit! Repent for your sins!"

The pig realized she was in trouble, but as they say, cunning is stronger than strength—she just had to think fast! "What should I do? How can I save myself from this bloodthirsty beast?" she thought.

"Great sir!" the pig began. "It’s your will to do as you please, but let me say just one thing."

"Speak quickly, don’t waste my time," growled the wolf.

"I’m very old. I remember you when you were just a tiny wolf cub, and I remember your father, may God rest his soul... I don’t even know how old I am. My bones have turned to stone, my skin has hardened, and my piglets have sucked all the fat out of me with my milk. What taste could I possibly have? Please, come to my place. I have five piglets: Golodun, Kholodun, Teplun, Opozdun, and Krepysh. They’re all so plump—pure fat. Take any of them, and then you can eat me too, if you find any flavor left in me after their tender, fatty meat."

The wolf thought for a moment—five young, tender piglets were always better than an old pig—and said, "Fine, go home. I’ll come by this evening. But know this—if you trick me, you’ll regret it!"

"May God grant you a long life," said the pig. "Come by this evening, we’ll all be waiting in the pigsty."

The wolf went on his way, delighted at the thought of the delicious dinner he’d have that evening.

The pig ran off too. As she ran, she thought, "What if the wolf changes his mind and realizes that today’s egg is better than tomorrow’s chicken? He might come back and tear me apart."

When the pig reached her piglets, she told them everything that had happened and taught them what to do and say when the wolf arrived. Then she firmly shut the doors, settled her piglets, and lay down by the door herself. She didn’t sleep, waiting for the wolf. When it grew dark, the wolf appeared, knocking on the pigsty door.

"Who’s there?" asked the pig, as if nothing had happened. "What kind of time is this for visitors? Everyone’s already gone home!"

"It’s me, open the door, pig!" howled the wolf.

"You’re the pig, get out of here!" shouted the pig. The wolf realized things weren’t going well and called out to Golodun: "Golodun, open the door!"

But Golodun replied, "I’m still hungry, suckling at the teat. I don’t have time for you!"

"Kholodun, open the door!" the wolf yelled at Kholodun.

"It’s too cold, I can’t be bothered!" said Kholodun.

"Teplun, open the door!" the wolf shouted.

"I’ve got nothing to do," said Teplun. "I just got cozy and warm. I’m not getting up and freezing for your sake."

"Opozdun, open the door!" the wolf cried.

"You’re too late, you bloodsucker! Don’t expect us to open the door for you!" squeaked Opazdun.

The wolf grew furious and didn’t know what to do. He decided to call out to Krepysh one last time.

"Hey, Krepysh, open the door!"

"The door’s locked tight, it won’t open," said Krepysh. "Wherever you came from, go back there! Go look for fools to open doors for you! Get out of here!"

The wolf completely lost his temper: "Just you wait, I’ll show you! I’ll swallow you all in one gulp!" he shouted. "Just open the door!"

But who would open the door for him?

The wolf stood by the pigsty for a long time, thinking someone would open the door eventually. He tried to break it down, but the doors were indeed very sturdy. With no other choice, the wolf slunk back to his den with an empty stomach.

And so, the pig saved herself from the wolf’s teeth.

Feast here, famine there,
Chaff there, flour here.

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The Tale of the Pig, Her Five Piglets, and the Wolf

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