People who outwit death. How a mere mortal outsmarted the god of death They say he once outsmarted death

One poor man had twelve children, and he had to work day and night to get their daily bread. When his thirteenth child was born, he no longer knew what to do, ran out onto the high road and wanted to call the first person he met to be his godfather.
The first person he met on the road was the Lord God himself, and he already knew what the poor man had in his heart. God said to him:
- I feel sorry for you, poor thing. I will take your child from the font, I will take care of him and give him happiness on earth.
The poor man asked him:
- And who are you?
- I am the Lord God.
- Well, I don’t want to take you as a godfather, - said the poor man, - you are only generous to the rich, but you make the poor starve.
He said this because he did not know how wisely God distributes wealth and poverty among people.
And he turned away from the Lord, and went his own way.
Then the devil approached the poor man and asked:
- What are you looking for? Would you like to take me as a godparent to your child? I will then shower him with gold from head to toe and give him all the joys of the world.
The poor man asked:
- Yes, who are you?
- I `m devil.
“Well, I don’t want you to be godparents,” said the poor man, “you deceive everyone and lead people into temptation.
And he went on his way, the road, and he sees: Death is coming towards him, hobbling on his bony legs. Death says:
- Take me to godfather.
The poor man asked:
- And who are you?
- I am Death, which makes everyone equal.
- Well, so you are my real godfather! said the poor man. - You indifferently carry away both the poor and the rich ... You and be my child's godmother.
Death said:
- I will enrich and glorify your child - the one who is friends with me should have good luck in everything.
The poor man said:
- We baptize next Sunday: look, do not be late.
Death appeared according to a promise and stood at the font, like a real godmother.
When the boy grew up, one day his godmother came to him and ordered him to follow her. She led her godson into the forest, pointed out to him some grass that grew in the forest, and said:

Here is a baptismal gift from me. I will make you a famous doctor. When you are called to the patient, I will appear to you every time: if I stand in the minds of the patient, you can safely say that you will cure him and give him this herb. But if you see me at the feet of a patient, then know that he is mine, and then you must say that no doctor in the world can save him. Remember: do not give grass to the sick against my will, otherwise you yourself may feel bad.
A short time later, the young man became the most famous doctor in the whole world. “He has only to look at the patient, so he knows how things are, and he says right away: will he recover or die” - such a rumor went about him everywhere, and from everywhere they came to him for treatment, brought the sick and gave him so much gold for treatment that he soon became rich.
So it happened one day that the king himself fell ill. A doctor was called to see him to tell him if recovery was possible. The doctor approached the patient's bed and saw that Death was at his feet and there was no hope for healing. “What if I try to outsmart Death just once? thought the doctor. - Of course, she will be angry with me, but I'm her godson, and she, of course, will look through her fingers ... Come on, I'll try.
And he took the patient in his arms and laid him on the bed so that Death was no longer in his legs, but in his head. Then he gave him his herb and the king recovered and recovered.
But Death came to the doctor, frowning and sternly knitting her eyebrows, shook her finger at him and said:
- You thought to trick me?! Okay, this time I'll let you down because you're my godson. But if you dare to do so again, you will not do well and I will carry you away.
Shortly thereafter, the king's daughter fell ill. She was his only child, and the poor king wept day and night over her, almost blinded by tears, and announced to everyone that whoever saved her from death would receive her as his wife and inherit the crown.
The doctor, coming to the patient's bedside, saw Death at her feet. He should have remembered her warning, but the beauty of the princess and the promised happiness in marriage with her so bewildered him that he forgot about everything in the world.
He did not even look at the fact that Death cast angry glances at him, that she raised her hand and threatened him with her bony fist - he lifted the patient into his arms and shifted her so that her head was at her feet, and her legs were in place of the headboard. The doctor gave her a taste of his herb - and immediately her cheeks blushed, and life returned to her again.
Death, thus deceived a second time by the physician, who snatched her prey from her hands, slowly approached the physician and said:
- Well, now there is no mercy for you, it's your turn ...
With her ice-cold hand, she grabbed him so tightly that he could not even think of resistance, and led him into an underground cave.
There he saw endless rows of thousands and thousands of candles burning with a bright flame: some of them were large, others were medium, others were very small. Every minute some went out, others lit up again, so that the lights, constantly changing, seemed to be transferred from place to place.

You see, - said Death, - these are all the candles of people's lives. Large ones are children's candles, medium ones belong to people in the color of their years and strength, small ones belong to old people. But both children and young people often have very small candles.
“Show me the candle of my life,” the doctor asked, hoping that it should still be large enough.
Death pointed to a small stub of a candle, which was about to burn out, and said:

You see, here she is.
- Oh, dear godmother! - the doctor was frightened. - Light a new candle for me out of love for me, so that I can enjoy life, be a king and the husband of a beautiful princess!
"I can't do that," said Death. - First this one should go out, and then a new one can be lit in its place.
“So put at least the stub of my old candle on a new one, which could immediately catch fire when the stub burns out,” the doctor pleaded.
Death pretended to want to fulfill his desire, and began to take out a new large candle, but, wanting to take revenge on the doctor, she deliberately shuddered - and the stub of the doctor's old candle fell and went out.
At that moment the doctor fell to the ground and died.

How did Iosif Kobzon repeatedly cheat death?

The singer had a long creative way, during which Iosiv Davydovich became the owner of many professional awards and prizes. Many people were surprised at Kobzon's energy - he managed to conduct active touring, political and social activities.

His colleague Larisa Dolina spoke about the death of the singer.

“He has such strength of character, such willpower and such a zest for life that he has outwitted everything. He outwitted death. Five days after the most difficult operation, he arrives in Jurmala, goes on stage, unlike many of our “stars”, he sings live.

The biography of Joseph Davydovich was very bright, including due to his political views and statements. People's Artist of the USSR and the Russian Federation is simply a "fount of comments" for journalists and observers.

« I am not ashamed of my position either in front of you, or in front of society, or in front of my grandchildren. I live the way I want, the way I think is right. And three hundred times I would not care about those who curse me"(Interview with the newspaper "Arguments and Facts" on September 11, 2017).

And how did the formation of Kobzon take place?

Joseph's short childhood

The artist's childhood began in September 1937, when he was born in Chasov Yar (Donetsk region). Ida, Joseph's mother, matured early - her father left the family when the girl was 13. She was forced to work and help at home with the housework.

Already becoming a mother, Ida Isaevna Shoikhet-Kobzon became a people's judge. Iosif Kobzon often shared in an interview that his mother influenced his formation and continued to be a guide throughout his life.

Before the start of the Great Patriotic War Joseph's family moved to Lvov. After the family repeatedly wandered from place to place. Soon the family experienced drama - the father met a woman and left them. The family had three children. Soon, Joseph's mother remarried and two more children appeared in the family.

Creativity and the first steps of Kobzon the artist

In 1956, Kobzon was drafted into the army. Until the end of the 50s, he sang in the Song and Dance Ensemble of the Transcaucasian Military District.

After his dismissal, Kobzon returned to Dnepropetrovsk. Here, in the local Palace of Students, the singer met his first mentor - the head of the choir Leonid Tereshchenko. He undertook to prepare Joseph for admission to the conservatory. Tereshchenko worked with a student on an individual program, realizing that he had a unique talent in front of him.

In 1959, Iosif Kobzon became the soloist of the All-Union Radio. Here he worked for 4 years. At this time, his individual performing style was formed, by which the singer began to be recognized. This is a harmonious combination of bel canto technique and ease. In 1964, Kobzon was twice a laureate. He won on All-Russian competition pop artists and at the festival in Polish Sopot. In the same year, Joseph Davydovich became an Honored Artist of the Chechen-Ingush ASSR.

All kinds of competitions, festivals, awards and titles become an integral part of Joseph's life after the 1960s.

After the 1980s, Iosif Davydovich Kobzon was already a teacher of pop vocals in Gnesinka. His students: Valentina Legkostupova, Irina Otieva, Valeria, etc.

Iosif Kobzon gave concerts at all Soviet construction sites. He spoke to the military contingent in Afghanistan and the liquidators of the accident on Chernobyl nuclear power plant. He has over 3,000 songs in his repertoire. Among them are many hits of the 30s, which were previously performed by Claudia Shulzhenko, Isabella Yuryeva, Vadim Kozin and Konstantin Sokolsky.

Despite his venerable age and serious illness, Kobzon was a regular guest at the Song of the Year festival, New Year's Blue Lights and at all holiday concerts. The singer participated in the most non-trivial duets with popular youth groups and singers: Yegor Creed, with the Respublika group. Some of their songs ("Dress", " White light”, “Thrushes”) became hits.

Iosif Kobzon's fans love his song "Daughter" to the verses of Irina Gribulina. The composition "Evening Table" performed by the master with Grigory Leps and Alexander Rosenbaum is one of the favorites for many.

The main and most popular song performed by Kobzon was and remains the song "Moments" from the cult film "Seventeen Moments of Spring". It is recognized that this is the most penetrating and unforgettable performance of the composition.

Politics - election to deputies, "black list", renunciation of citizenship and much more...

Iosif Kobzon from childhood was a man with a pronounced opinion of his own and an active life position. Not surprisingly, since 1990 he has become politician, Deputy of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR. The artist was repeatedly elected to the State Duma of the Russian Federation from the Aginsky Buryat Autonomous Okrug.

In 2002, Iosif Kobzon was not afraid to enter into negotiations with the invaders of the Theater Center on Dubrovka.

At a certain point, Iosif Kobzon begins to show his position on the coup d'état in Ukraine. This leads to the fact that the European Union included the artist in its "black list" of Russian citizens who are prohibited from entering the EU.

Also, the artist was included in their "black lists" Ukraine and Latvia. In many Ukrainian cities, the singer was deprived of the status of "honorary citizen". In January 2015, Kobzon was deprived of "honorary citizenship" in Kramatorsk, which became his native.

Due to EU sanctions, all the assets of Iosif Kobzon (as well as his colleagues) in Europe are frozen.

But Kobzon did not lose heart, but continued his social and concert activities. He still traveled to Donetsk and Lugansk with concerts, and also publicly supported the militias. In 2014, Iosif Kobzon refused the status People's Artist Ukraine.

Personal life and personal dramas of Kobzon

Iosif Kobzon was married three times. The wives were a match for him - talented, bright and incredibly charismatic personalities. The first wife of Joseph Davydovich is the singer Veronika Kruglova. Kobzon married Kruglova in 1965. Veronica at that time was an incredibly popular singer. Her hits “Top-top, baby stomps” and “I don’t see anything, I don’t hear anything” were adored by the whole country.

The second wife of Kobzon was also a singer, Lyudmila Gurchenko. The marriage lasted three years. Joseph Kobzon's mother did not accept any of the first two daughters-in-law.

Everything changed when Joseph married for the third time. It happened in the early 1970s. The beauty's name was Ninel Mikhailovna Drizina. She was 13 years younger than her husband. She was a modest girl from a good Jewish family, smart and economic. Today everyone knows her as Nelly Kobzon. The third chosen one immediately liked the artist's mother, who instantly appreciated her with the wise look of a worldly woman.

Nelly Kobzon gave birth to her husband two children - Andrey and Natalya.

Andrei first followed in the footsteps of his father and devoted some time to music. He was a drummer and performed with the musicians of the Resurrection group - Alexei Romanov and Andrei Sapunov. But later the guy gave up music and went into business. He was the director of the famous metropolitan nightclub Giusto. Then he moved into real estate business.

Daughter Natalya was a press secretary for the famous fashion designer Valentin Yudashkin. She married an Australian citizen, lawyer Yuri Rappoport.

Illness and secret of Kobzon

Iosif Kobzon has been wearing parkas since the age of 35 and did not hide it - Joseph was diagnosed with early baldness in adolescence.

In 2005, it became known that the artist had experienced the most complicated operation to remove a malignant tumor. The news about the terrible illness of the artist instantly spread in the information space.

The disease weakened the artist's immunity, inflammation of the lungs and kidneys increased. Incredible vitality and love for life kept the artist in the most painful moments of his biography, he repeatedly went on stage, almost from the hospital ward. The singer preferred to sing live even in the most difficult moments when his health was depleted by illnesses and medicines.

In 2009, the artist was operated on for the second time. Five days later, having outwitted the disease, Kobzon already performed at the festival in Jurmala, performing his hits exclusively "live".

A sharp deterioration in health overtook the master Russian stage in 2010, then Kobzon lost consciousness at a concert in Astana. The artist could not lie in bed and live without a stage.

Death of an artist

At the end of July 2018, Iosif Kobzon was urgently hospitalized in the Department of Neurosurgery, where he was connected to a ventilator.

Quite an interesting historical post about people in different time sentenced to death, but managed to stay alive after that. It turns out that this has happened, and in most cases due to the negligence and incompetence of the executors of this measure of punishment. Well, the fact that a person managed to stay alive was in itself considered God's providence and proof of innocence, so such miraculously saved criminals, as a rule, were given life and replaced the punishment with a milder one.

1. "Man Franks"

One of the Australian newspapers posted a note in 1872 about how the killer, nicknamed "Man Franks", survived his own execution due to the monstrous incompetence of the performers.

At first, the execution itself was delayed by several hours, as the sheriff found the scheduled time inconvenient. During the waiting time it rained and the wet rope prepared for the execution was taken to dry over the fire.

Because of this, the rope stopped slipping. Before throwing a noose around the neck of the convict, the executioner had to stick his leg into the noose and pull with all his might to move the tightly stuck knot. Then the would-be executioner tried to fix the noose around Franks' neck, but, despite all his efforts, he did not manage to do it as tightly as required by the rules.

In the end, a support was knocked out from under Frank, but after three minutes of unsuccessfully trying to suffocate, he began to twitch, asking to end his suffering and finish him off at last. And since his hands were as “tightly” tied as his neck, it was not difficult for him to pull himself up and, moving the rope from his throat, scold the organizers of the execution for their “hack-work”. Finally, one of the servants cut the rope, and the long-suffering victim of justice met the hard ground with a dull thud, since no one had thought to lay something soft on him.

Needless to say, after all that had been seen, no one wanted to finish the job, and Franks had his sentence commuted, replaced by imprisonment, and the executive power of the new monarchical elite of Fiji became the subject of ridicule all over the world.

2. Anna Green

At that time, there was a law that any unmarried woman who concealed a pregnancy or a newborn was considered a child killer. Despite the fact that the midwives recognized the fetus as stillborn, Greene was sentenced to death by hanging in the courtyard of Oxford Castle.

During last word she asked to condemn "the debauchery in the family in which she lived." She asked her friends to hang on her body to hasten her demise, and they did not refuse.

After the execution, the supposedly lifeless body was removed and taken to the anatomical theater for student training. But when the coffin was opened, the doctors discovered that the chest of the "corpse" makes barely noticeable respiratory movements. They forgot their original purpose and began resuscitation through bloodletting, stimulating respiratory reflexes, and applying warm heating pads.

The public saw this as a sign from above and Green was pardoned. Taking the coffin with her as a souvenir, she settled in another town, got married and had a child.

3. Half-Hung Maggie

Maggie Dixon became pregnant while waiting for the return of her sailor husband, which was not at all a rosy situation for a woman in 1724. She, of course, tried to hide the pregnancy (concealment was punishable by law), but she failed and she was sentenced to death by hanging.

After the execution, her family managed to take the body away without giving it to the medicine butchers for dissection. While they saw Maggie off last way in the graveyard, they heard a knock from inside closed coffin. The resurrection of Maggie was perceived only as the will of God. So she became a celebrity and acquired the nickname "Half-Hanged Maggie". She lived another 40 years and to this day, not far from the place of her execution, there is a tavern named after her.

4. Inetta de Balsham

5. Romel Broom

In 2009, Romel was convicted of kidnapping, rape, murder and became the first criminal to survive a lethal injection.

The performers spent two hours trying to find a suitable vein for the IV. After cutting through Broom's entire body, they never found a vein, making the drug's effect unreliable. In the end, he was sent back to his cell with a week's reprieve from his death sentence.

During this time, Romel's lawyers began to prove that their ward experienced cruel and unusual treatment for prisoners during the unsuccessful execution. They managed to initiate a major movement aimed at changing the US law on the use of lethal injection, and Romel in this case is the main witness who cannot be executed. Broome is still alive and awaiting amnesty.

6. Evan McDonald

His "corpse" was sent to the same place as the bodies of the rest of the tortured criminals - to the anatomical theater of the local medical institution. In those days, doctors almost specifically hunted for such corpses, since they were the only practical "manuals" by which it was possible to legally study human anatomy.

This is probably why MacDonald was not destined to survive: when the surgeon who entered saw the dumbfounded convict sitting on the operating table, he, without thinking twice, grabbed a surgical hammer and completed the work of the executioner, breaking the criminal's skull. It is said that God's punishment overtook this doctor when his own horse mortally wounded him on the head with a hoof.

Source 7The Man Who Couldn't Be Hanged 3 Times in a Row

Even after carefully checking the mechanism, every time John was tried to be hanged, there was a constant malfunction in the mechanism that removes the pallet on which the accused is standing. During the execution, John loudly shouted that the Lord is just and does not allow the innocent to die.

After 3 unsuccessful attempts to hang John, the judge changed the sentence to life. After spending a little over twenty years in prison, John Lee was released early.

A certain man lived in the Chola country[*] on the banks of the Kaveri River. Since childhood, he loved gambling, and in his native village he was nicknamed "The Gambler". He was exceedingly bold, daring, and resourceful in language, and had no equal in cunning. He played dice all day long. and didn't want to do anything else. [* Chola - a state in southern India, ruled by the Chola dynasty. (Here and below are notes by A. Ibragimov.)] Every morning, after bathing and breakfast, he would grab a playing board and bones, go out into the street, pounce on the first person he met and almost force him to play with him. In the game, he did not disdain any tricks, threw bones for two, and having cleaned his opponent cleanly, drove him away without any pity. Therefore, as soon as they saw the player, all the villagers rushed in all directions. "That damned Sakuni[*] again," they grumbled as they slammed the gates shut. And so it was everywhere: on the street where the goldsmiths lived, and on the street where the blacksmiths lived. The matter ended with the fact that the player had no one to play with, which means that there was nothing to feed his family on. [* Sakuni is the hero of the ancient Indian epic poem "Mahabharata", the opponent of Yudhishthira in the game of dice.] One day, with a game board under his arm, he went around the whole village, but did not find anyone with whom he could play. "How can I earn at least some money? - he thought. - Why not play with the attendant of the temple of Perumal?[*]" exclaimed: "O Govindan! [*]" - and hid behind a large statue of Perumal, in the inner sanctuary. [* Govindan (lit. shepherd) is one of the names of the god Vishnu.] Hurriedly entering the courtyard, the player shouted: - Guru-swami[*], guru-swami, I have come to pray. Where are you? [* Guru is a spiritual mentor. Swami is a god, also a reference to a clergyman.] He searched the whole courtyard, but could not find a servant. Then he looked into the inner sanctuary and saw the statue of Perumal. - Yeah! Today I came across the god himself, - the player grinned wryly. - Well, I'll play with him. - He laid out a playing board in front of the statue and continued:

I won. I have twelve!.. Why are you silent, Perumal? Do you want to get rid of me? Is it fair? Or are you called the Embodiment of Justice for nothing? But I am a determined person, I will not let myself be offended. Now I will list all your ten avatars one by one[**], and in the meantime you pay me honor by honor. And know that I will not back down from mine! [* Ganesha is the god of wisdom.] [** Avatars are the earthly incarnations of the god Vishnu.] Suddenly, Perumal opened his mouth and spoke: - Understand, player. I am only called the Giver of Gold, but I don't have any gold coins. All the money that believers bring is taken by the servants of the temple. And not only money, but even halves of coconuts. I myself do not have a single copper. How can I pay you my debt? - You don't fool me, - the player grumbled, - you attacked the wrong one. Either give me the gold one, or I'll take the goddess at your feet. It is made of pure gold and, of course, costs more than one gold one. I will take it as a pledge, melt it down into coins and take what is due to me. He grabbed the statue of Amman[*] and headed for the exit. [* Amman (lit. Mother) is one of the names of the wife of the god Vishnu.] The attendant, who was hiding behind the statue, was in great confusion. "This blasphemer, without fear of God's wrath, carries away Amman," he thought. "If I try to stop him, he will break off my sides. No, let Perumal take care of his Amman." The daring antics of the player amused God. - Yes, I see, you will not yield to Ravana himself! [*] - he exclaimed. - Be a little more reasonable and leave Amman where it is. Tomorrow before dawn I will cry with you. [* Ravana is the leader of the demons.] - What do I hear? - the player was indignant. - God Himself asks for a delay! But why should I trust you? What if tomorrow you hide with your Amman in the Ocean of Milk? Where then to look for you? I know you are a faithful servant of women, so swear by the names of your wives - Sidevi and Mudevi, that you will not deceive me! [* The Milky Ocean is a mythical ocean, from where the gods got the drink of life - amrita.] After Perumal took an oath, the player said: - Well, we agreed. It is rightly said: "Blows and the washing stone [*] will move." Tomorrow morning you will give me one gold piece or something of equal value. [* In India they wash clothes by hitting them against stones.] He put the figurine in its place and left. And the minister, amazed at everything he saw, wandered to his wife. That night, seven divine maidens flew into the temple: Rambha, Urvashi, Menaka, Tilottama and others. They danced their dance before God, and Perumal let them go to the heavenly abode - all except Rambha, whom he ordered to linger. In the morning a player came to the temple. - Where is your gold? he asked God. - I wait. - I already told you that I have no gold, - Perumal answered. “I want to give you a more valuable treasure. He pointed to the celestial maiden. This is Rambha. Her beauty is worth more than gold. Take it for yourself. “You are a bigamist, Perumal, and you want me to become a bigamist too,” the player did not fail to taunt. - You know that I already have the goddess of misfortune at home - Mudevi - and decided to send me the goddess of happiness - Sidevi. Okay, so be it, I accept it. Only one condition. Although Rambha is a celestial maiden, she must behave with me humbly and respectfully, like an earthly woman. I must obey my elder wife, who has been preparing rice for me for so many years. And her temper, frankly, is heavy. Angry - real Durga[*]. Under a hot hand, it can beat. If this happens younger wife must not return to heaven. And since she was given to me in payment of a debt, let her earn money for food not only for herself, but also for me. So they told her! [* Durga is a formidable goddess, the wife of the god Shiva.] "Here's an insolent one!" - Perumal got angry, but did not argue with the player, he only said to Rambha:

You will be this man's wife. Do whatever he tells you. The Divine Maiden fell at the player's feet. - My lord! she said. - Parandamar[*] ordered me to serve you like a slave. Let's go to our home! [* Parandamar (literally. Inhabitant of heaven) is one of the names of the god Vishnu.] - Let's go, dear, - the player affectionately told her, and the two of them went home. Along the way, they met the eldest wife of the player. “Perumal sent me a gift of the divine Rambha,” the player announced to her. She will live with us. The older wife affably invited the younger one to enter their shack. There was no other such wretched hut in the whole village. The palm roof has long since worn out. Clay walls crumbled, and a great many bugs huddled in them. Dirty clothes were scattered in one corner, things soiled with coal in the other. Pretty accommodation for the beautiful Rambha, who delights the hearts of art connoisseurs all over the world! However, the heavenly maiden was not upset. With the power of her magic, she turned the hut into a luxurious palace. All the rooms in it sparkled with wonderful patterns. And around the house there is a marvelous palm garden with a beautiful fence.

Rambha bestowed expensive jewelry and rich clothes on her elder wife. “Akka![*] You are the eldest, I am the youngest,” she said. Let us serve our dear husband together. [* Akka (lit. elder sister) - a respectful appeal to an older woman.] - You have generously endowed us, dear. Thank you, - answered the first wife. - But the agreement is this: I will serve my husband, and you will serve me! For six days the player lived in paradise. On the seventh came Rambha's turn to dance before the god Indra[*] and his divine retinue, and she asked her husband for permission to fly to heaven. [* Indra is the god of the sky, a thunderer.] - It is not customary for us on earth to let go of a wife one night, even so that she dances in front of the god Indra himself, - the player objected to her. - I will give my consent only if you take me with you. Rambha had to take her husband with her. She turned him into a flower basket, hung the basket around her neck, and when she rose to heaven, she returned the player to his appearance and began to dance in front of the god Indra and his retinue. That day, overjoyed to have her husband watching her, Rambha danced so wonderfully that the gods and holy hermits became overjoyed and asked her to repeat the dance again and again. Eventually Rambha got so tired that she fell unconscious. The alarmed gods rushed to her with the whole crowd. One sprayed her with rose water. Another was fanning with a fan made from the tail of a yak. The third brought some kind of treat. The player was very pleased to see how carefully the gods looked after his wife. When Rambha woke up, she again turned her husband into a wicker, hung the wicker around his neck, sank to the ground and returned her husband to his form. “Go home, dear,” the player told her, “and take care of elder wife . And I will take a bath in Kaveri and also return home. It was just flood time. Kaveri overflowed widely, and gods and holy hermits bathed in its waters - the very ones that honored Rambha. "Why don't they greet me with due respect?" the player was angry. "After all, I am Rambha's husband. Maybe they didn't notice me?" And he marched with majestic steps before the gods and hermits, but they did not pay any attention to him. The player went into a complete rage. “These gods yesterday pleased my wife, who sang and danced before them,” he thought. “But I, her husband, are treated with disdain, because I am a mere mortal. Well, never mind, now I will ask them!” He picked up a bunch of rods, pounced on the gods and saints, and began to whip them. The gods were taken aback by surprise. However, they thought it was a special ceremony in their honor. So on a holiday in honor of the god Shiva, believers quilt him with cuttings of palm leaves. - What is this strange rite? they asked the player plaintively. “Today we have a feast of rods,” he answered them. - Yesterday you were all fussing around my wife Rambha. Why do you treat me, her husband, with disdain? Is such arrogance appropriate for you? He whipped the gods and hermits so that they, crying loudly from pain, ascended to heaven and complained to the god Indra himself. - Does Rambha have a bully husband on earth? Indra was surprised. - Call her to me. When the player returned home, Rambha greeted him by scattering flowers at his feet. Suddenly, the player burst into loud laughter. - Oh my husband! What do you want to laugh at? - Rambha asked him in bewilderment. The player laughed more than ever. “Explain to your slave why you are laughing,” the heavenly maiden asked him again. - I want to take part in your fun too. The player told her about everything that had happened. - Well, I asked these swaggers! he laughed. - I can not remember without laughing how they fled! Rambha became very alarmed. How dare you raise your hand against the gods? she said, trembling. - If they complain to the god Indra, you will not escape severe punishment! - My love! The most beautiful of all heavenly maidens! Now fly to the god Indra and beg for my forgiveness, the player told her. As soon as Rambha appeared in paradise, Indra, angry, jumped up from the throne: - Rambha! You belong to the world of immortals, but fell in love with a mortal man. And not only fell in love with him, but also became his wife. Did you teach him how to whip him with the rods of the gods? I will curse you! But all the gods stood up in unison to protect the heavenly dancer: - O Indra! Rambha has nothing to do with it. Her husband is to blame - a rude bad person. He must be punished with all severity! - O lord of the universe, - said Rambha, - I became the wife of this man at the behest of Perumal himself. And my husband is not to blame - he defended his and my dignity. If you decide to punish someone, punish me. - Are you protecting this mortal, Rambha? Then I will put a curse on you. The eleven-tiered gate tower of the Benares temple of Visvanatha[*] will crumble and turn into dust that will be blown away by the wind. Until this tower rises again to heaven with all its eleven tiers, you will wander the earth as an evil spirit. [* Visvanatha (lit. Lord of all things) is the name of the god Shiva.] Rambha calmly accepted this curse, only asked Indra: - Allow me to remain in my appearance until I see my husband and tell him about everything. - May it be so! Indra agreed. Filled with burning tears, Rambha went down to the banks of the Kaveri and saw the player there. - Favorite! Through your fault, I am doomed to become an evil spirit,” she said. - I will not reproach you, so, apparently, it was predetermined by fate. I will inhabit the daughter of the Rajah of Benares. Spellcasters from all over the world will gather to banish me from her body. But no one but you can do it. See the Rajah of Benares and think of a way to free me from the curse that hangs over me. Then I will return to your house again. At these words, Rambha turned into an evil spirit, flew to Benares and moved into the daughter of the Raja, who at that time was playing ball. In a fit of madness, the princess tore all her clothes. Her friends in fear rushed to the king and informed him that his daughter was possessed by demonic power. The king hastened to female half palace. The princess, seized with madness, now laughed, then suddenly went into a frenzy, then she sang and danced naked. She did not recognize her father. When they tried to put on her discarded clothes, she began to beat and bite everyone around. With great difficulty, they managed to lock her in a room. Very worried, the Raja called for the doctors. They said that the princess had an age-related illness. However, after observing her more closely, they decided that an evil spirit had entered into her, which no medicine could expel, and, powerless to help her, withdrew. Priests and exorcists assured the king that they would chase away the evil spirit like a dog. But the princess raged so furiously that they were frightened and ran away themselves, like stoned dogs. The tsar's heralds announced to the beat of a drum: - To the one who casts out the evil spirit from the princess, the tsar will give her as a wife. And gives half the kingdom. A player appeared in the royal palace. “I heard, O king,” he said, “that your daughter is mad, tearing her clothes. Show it to me. I will take the evil spirit that has possessed her to my home. - Who are you? - the king was amazed. "Can you really save my daughter?" Can you overcome demonic power? - I'm smarter than any demon. The evil spirit that possessed your daughter is my second wife. And I, as promised, will take her home. The king, in complete confusion, said to his chief adviser: - In appearance, this man is a rude dork. But he demands that I show him my daughter. Will he be able to exorcise the evil spirit? Or just wants to gawk at my daughter? “Who knows which snake hides in which hole,” the adviser replied. “Maybe he really can keep his promise. - Well, let's try our luck, - said the king and added, turning to the player: - If you drive out the evil spirit, I will give you my daughter and half the kingdom. If you do not cast out the evil spirit, I will order you to cut off your head and throw it to be eaten by vultures. Now, if you haven't changed your mind, let's sign a contract with you.

After signing the contract, the player said:

Maharaja! Order to unlock the door of the room where your daughter is. I have to look by the lamps to see if the demonic power has really entered into her. Tell me to bring betel, censer sticks and everything necessary for the sacrifice. The player was taken to a separate house. In front of all the advisers and exorcists, he sprinkled holy ash on his forehead and muttered: