Many scholars of Russian folklore rank the epic about Solovy Budimirovich as the oldest examples of oral art created by our people. This article will present a brief summary of this work, as well as some interesting facts about the features of its plot and the history of the creation and appearance of the printed version.
Arrival of a rich guest in the city of Kiev
The epic “Nightingale Budimirovich” begins with a small introductory part, in which the nature of the Russian land with its wealth is glorified.
Further, this panorama narrows markedly. Unknown authors focus readers on the Dnieper River. Numerous ships belonging to a rich and noble man, Solovy Budimirovich, who returned with his subordinates from a long overseas wandering, are moving along its waters. All vessels are large and luxurious in design. The owner of this water caravan rides on the most beautiful and expensive of them.
Wonderful ship
The summary of “Nightingale Budimirovich” is impossible to imagine without a description of the ship on which the main character arrived. It is decorated with expensive furs, and precious stones. In the center of the deck there is a gazebo in which Solovey Budimirovich himself sits.
He holds advice with his subordinates on what gifts should be presented to Prince Vladimir of Kiev Vladimir the Red Sun when they arrive in the capital city.
Appearance in the capital
When this huge flotilla approached the Russian coast, those who arrived, as it should be for pious citizens, paid all the necessary duties, giving part of their cargo to the treasury.
After observing all the formalities, the young master of untold wealth went straight to the palace of the Kiev prince.
According to the rules of Old Russian diplomatic ethics, before talking about the matter, he presented gifts to the ruler and his wife. Vladimir Krasno Solnyshko and his wife were extremely pleased with the visit of this guest.
I especially admired the expensive presentations of the spouse of the Grand Duke. The very head of the old Russian state offered Solovy Budimirovich any title that he would choose for himself. The noble guest said that he did not want to be either a prince, or a nobleman, or a boyar, and he only wanted the powerful lord to allow him to build a tower in the garden of his niece Zabava Putyatichny, where nuts and cherries grew.
Jack of all trades
The ruler of Kievan Rus gave permission, and Solovey Budimirovich began to carry out his plan. He called the whole team with which he arrived in the capital city of Kiev and gave them the order to build a tower in the garden of the Fun Putyatichny.
Usually in Russian epics and tales in episodes where some work is done, the authors quote the following proverb: "Soon the tale is told, but soon the thing is done." In this case, everything happened exactly the opposite.
In the garden of the girl, to whom the protagonist of this work decided to get married, three towers arose in one evening, each of which was of unprecedented beauty. The interior of the houses were painted very skillfully and brightly. On them one could see the sun, and the rainbow, and other natural phenomena.
Charmed bride
The next morning, Zabava Putyatichna looked out of the window at her garden and did not recognize him. She liked the richly decorated towers so much that she immediately ran out into the street and began to examine them closely. Approaching the first, the girl listened, but not a single sound came from inside her. Then she approached the second building.
Here, the girl heard the words of the prayer said by the mother of Nightingale Budimirovich.
She also did not enter this tower. The fun proceeded to the next building, from which the music reached. She decided to go into it.
Once inside, the heroine of the epic was amazed at the beauty of the murals on the walls. She saw on them the sun, and the rainbow, and much, much more. These drawings were made so skillfully that they could not be distinguished from real natural phenomena. In this tower she met Nightingale Budimirovich.
The girl was so delighted with the gifts of the young man that she herself offered to become his wife.
Getting to know mother
The Nightingale's mother said she was giving her blessing, but before wedding, the son needed to go on a long journey, trade with foreigners and return with rich profits. He obeyed his mother and hit the road.
Insidious rival
Some time later, after Nightingale's departure to foreign countries, a certain merchant came to Prince Vladimir, said that the groom of the niece of the ruler of Russia was imprisoned in one of the countries in which he was trading.
Upon learning of the sad fate of the narrowed Fun Putyatichna, Vladimir decided to pass her off as the merchant who brought the sad news.
The wedding day has come. Tables in the princely palace were bursting with an abundance of various dishes. Suddenly, Solovey Budimirovich appeared in the chambers. He said that his overseas trading expedition was successful, and he returned with innumerable profits. Fun Putyatichna was glad to see her fiance. She said that the upcoming wedding needs to be canceled, but the prince objected to her.
On this day the wedding nevertheless took place, but not the vile merchant, but Solovey Budimirovich became the husband of Fun Putyatichna.
The main character
Many scholars of Russian folklore believe that this character and the Nightingale the Robber are one person.
But this theory does not explain how the merchant Solovey Budimirovich, a hero distinguished by good manners and leading a decent life, turned into a robber. Therefore, most scientists still believe that the character discussed in this article has nothing to do with his namesake.
About profession and nationality
The question of whether the protagonist is a Russian is no less controversial. Proponents of the theory of his foreign origin say that the main proof of their assumption is that Solovey Budimirovich comes from foreign lands, and this episode is placed at the beginning of the work, while in most Russian epics, characters, on the contrary, go on a journey around the world.
Other studies of the epic "Solovey Budimirovich" show that this example of folk art can be considered the first work of a new type. The arrival of the protagonist from overseas does not mean his non-Russian nationality. They claim that the Nightingale is a Kiev merchant. And the episode of his return with rich profit was placed at the beginning to emphasize his profession.
In the era when the Kievan Rus state was formed, the young country began to need not only heroes, defenders of the motherland, but also people who helped strengthen its economy.
According to some researchers, Solovey Budimirovich was such a hero.
The plot with riddles
Specialists in Russian folklore cannot even agree on the question of when this epic was created and which city of ancient Russia can be considered its homeland. Despite the fact that the name of Kiev appears in the text, there are historians who say that this story first appeared in Novgorod. There are those who hold the opinion of the later, Moscow origin of this epic.
Proponents of each of the theories find elements in the language of the work that can serve as evidence of their point of view.
There are more original versions about the place and time of birth of this plot. A number of scholars find it similar to episodes from ancient Indian mythology.
However, most experts are inclined to believe that this epic arose in Kiev, at the time of the reign of Prince Vladimir, that is, in the tenth century AD.
Second birth
Over time, many medieval examples of folk art in Russia were forgotten. The same fate befell the epic about Nightingale Budimirovich. The story of the revival of the work began in the eighteenth century in the Urals. Then, a master named Kirsha Danilov worked at the plant of a large industrialist Demidov. In his free time from his main occupation, he was engaged in recording ancient epics and fairy tales common in his area. These works were published in a collection that gained wide popularity. At the end of the nineteenth century the book was reprinted. In subsequent years, it was published several more times. All these publications contained notes, as some of the epics could not be published for reasons of censorship. In the mid-nineties of the twentieth century, a collection was first published, which presented the full texts of works known before in abbreviation.