B68B. Tried to frighten God. .16.27.28.31.-.36.

A character who, by appearance, behavior or unexpected appearance, tried to frighten God (people), is transformed into an animal (of a different appearance than it was before).

French (Lorraine, Pyrenees), Flemings, Romanians, Russians (Arkhangelsk, Lower Pechora), Belarusians, Ukrainians (Galicia, Volyn, Kharkov, Kherson), Swedes, Western Saami, Latvians, Lithuanians, Komi, Mari, Chelkans, Kumandins, Khakass, Baikal Buryats, Northern and Eastern Khanty, Kets, Yugs, Central Yakuts, Sym, Ilimpiysk, Western, Baikal and Far Eastern Evenks.

Western Europe. French (Lorraine, late 18th century) [a boor hid in the forest and, as the Lord approached, suddenly jumped out and roared: Oche! (dialect for "bear", our); the Lord: as He said, so it shall be (origin of bears)]: Sébillot 1906: 6; French (Pyrenees) [as the Lord passed by, a man roared; the Lord turned him into a bear so that he could roar at his pleasure (origin of bears)]: Sébillot 1906: 6; French (Pyrenees) [in the presence of the Lord, a blacksmith struck his anvil with all his might, so that sparks flew; the Lord: a bear you want to be, a bear you will become, scratching any tree except the beech]: Sébillot 1906: 6 (=Kabakova 1998, no. 29: 46); Flemings [The Lord was walking through the forest, deep in thought; suddenly someone growled from the bushes to scare him; The Lord: Don't you want to be a man? Then you'll be a bear – you wanted it yourself]: Van den Berg 2000, No. 80: 96.

Balkans. Romanians (translated by N.G. Golant) [a man was tending sheep, climbed a dogwood tree and, imitating the voice of a cuckoo, greatly frightened the Virgin; she cursed the shepherd, ordering him to turn into a bear, and ordered the dogwood tree to blossom first and bear fruit last]: Brill 2005: 175.

Central Europe. Russians (Arkhangelsk) [earlier the hazel grouse screamed like a nightingale the robber; a forest peasant walked by, the hazel grouse whistled, clapped, frightened him; the forest peasant told him to be quieter and made him small]: Efimova 1997: 168 in Kuznetsova 2014: 58-59; Russians (Nizovaya Pechora, Ust-Tsilma, Old Believers, 2007) [the hazel grouse was the size of a cow; it flew up noisily before the Lord, frightening Him, who made the hazel grouse the size of a fist; the white meat of a deer and other animals is the parts of the hazel grouse that they got]: Ilyina et al. 2010: 59; Belarusians (Smolensk) [a woman wanted to frighten God, became a she-bear; when God was walking through the village, she hid in a hole and began to roar; God told her to become a she-bear; that is why she-bears have nipples on their chests like people, and not on their bellies like other animals]: Dobrovolsky 1891: 288 (=Belova, Kabakova 2014, no. 135: 105); Belarusians : Federowski, no. 742 [a man wanted to scare God, hid under a bridge, was turned into a bear (the origin of bears)], 743 [a man wanted to scare God, and for this purpose he put on a fur coat with the fur outside and got down on all fours] in Dähnhardt 1909: 99; Belarusians [a man hid behind a sycamore tree, and when God approached, he rushed at him and roared; God turned him into a bear (the origin of bears: Serbov 1915: 179-180; Ukrainians (Galicia, Buchatsky povit) [Jesus and Peter walked the earth; in one village, children were playing hares and a dog; the one who was a dog began to bark at Jesus; he turned him into a dog]: Gnatyuk 1902(2), No. 85: 76; Ukrainians (Galicia, Buchatsky povit) [Jesus walked the world, a man climbed a tree and wanted to scare him; he turned him into a monkey]: Gnatyuk 1902(2), No. 86: 67; Ukrainians (Volyn, Starokostiantynivsky district, Skovorodki village) [Bear. Jesus Christ, wandering the earth, crosses a dam. A miller who saw him from afar thinks to scare Jesus and climbs under the dam. When Jesus walks along it, the miller scares him. As punishment, God turns the miller into a bear, frightening people with his appearance]: Teodorovich 1899: 264; Ukrainians (Kharkiv) [the bear used to be a man; he can still walk on his hind legs, dance, and has no tail; St. Paul and St. Peter were traveling; the evil man and his wife hid under the bridge to scare them; they put on skins and jumped out growling; the saints made them bears]: Afanasyev 1859: xi; Ukrainians (Kherson) [an evil husband and wife decided to scare the Savior; to do this, they hid behind a dam and suddenly jumped out; the husband growled like a bear, and the wife cuckooed like a cuckoo; the Savior turned them into a bear and a cuckoo]: Afanasyev 1859, No. 189: Afanasyev 1959: xi; Ukrainians(Galicia) [Jesus and St. Peter in the guise of beggars went to the miller; he saw them and decided to scare them by roaring unexpectedly from behind the door; the Lord told him to go into the forest, to become a bear]: Dähnhardt 1909: 99; Ukrainians [bear from the miller; God walked the earth; the miller put on his sheepskin coat with the fur outside and decided to scare him; God: so you will scare him now; the miller became a bear]: Dragomanov 1876, No. 10: 5-6.

Baltoscandia. Swedes (northern, near the border with Finland) [at first the hazel grouse was the largest of all birds; when it flew through the forest, it sounded like thunder; it once frightened Jesus as he was walking through the forest; he divided it and made it the smallest; on the Day of Judgement the hazel grouse will again become the largest of all birds; pieces of white hazel grouse meat are found in the breast of all birds and above the eyes of all fish; variants: either a donkey or the horse of the Virgin Mary was frightened]: Klintberg 2013: 16-18; Western Sami (Sweden) [the hazel grouse was the largest of all birds; when it flew up, it frightened God; he made it small by distributing pieces of its flesh among the other animals; in the reindeer this piece is in the neck, in the fish – in the head under the lower jaw, in birds – above the breastbone]: Simonsen 2014: 87; Western Sami [the hazel grouse (jerpe) was enormous; when it took off, even angels were frightened, God himself was frightened; he took most of its meat and distributed it among other birds; all birds have a piece of hazel grouse on each side of the breast; the hazel grouse became small]: Pollan 2005, no. 108: 221; Latvians [the hazel grouse was enormous, and when it took off, it made a roar like thunder; it once frightened the horse of Perkons (Pehrko{n}es; {n missing}); he squeezed it in his fist until it was the size that only the hazel grouse's heart had previously had]: Dähnhardt 2010: 2; Lithuanians (Samogitians) [a man put on his skin inside out to frighten others; Jesus told him to become a beast, thus bears were born]: Veckenstedt 1883: 224; Lithuanians [horse herders put their fur coats on inside out and approached God/Christ roaring; they turned into wolves/bears]: Kerbelyte 2001: 79.

Volga - Perm. Komi : Limerov 2005, No. 14 [The Leshy made the hazel grouse big; when it took off, thunder rumbled from its wings; Ilya the Great was riding through the forest, the hazel grouse took off, the horse was frightened, I. fell; he ordered the hazel grouse to be no bigger than his crop]: 31; Rochev 1984, No. 101 [Ilya the Great was riding through the forest, the hazel grouse took off and frightened his horse; I. ordered it to be no bigger than his stomach; now the hazel grouse is small (=Limerov 2005, No. 14: 31?)], 102 [the hazel grouse was the largest bird; when it took off, it frightened Christ, who was riding on a horse; he ordered it to be the size of his heart]: 109 (=2006: 150); Uotila 2006, no. 39 [the hazel grouse explains to the wood grouse that in a distant land he scared a saint with the noise of his wings and for this he was made small, while before he was the biggest bird]: 191-193; (cf. Udmurts [an old man wants to chip a splinter from a birch tree, which promises to fulfill all his wishes; a married couple becomes rich; an old woman tells the old man to ask for something scary so that everyone will be afraid of them; they turn into bears; (the origin of bears)]: Klabukov 1948, no. 44: 129-131); Mari [two women and a man stopped at a bridge; the women decided to scare someone, the man tries to object, but they do not listen; they put their fur coats on inside out, inserted spruce branches into the sleeves - claws; seeing them, the merchant ran away, abandoning his goods and horses; The old man was not afraid, but turned them into bears; since then they have been ashamed and have avoided people]: Aktsorin 1984: 276-278.

Southern Siberia - Mongolia. Chelkantsy [at first Dyayashy created all the birds large; his horse was frightened by a flying Hazel Grouse, D. fell on a stone; he decided to exterminate all the birds, called them together, Hazel Grouse was brought only after three days; he explains that on the first day he counted fish and stones, there were more fish if you count oblong stones as fish; on the second day - stars and hummocks, there were more hummocks if you also count stumps; on the third - women and men, there were more women if you add to them men who succumb to women's persuasion; D. decided that he intended to kill Hazel Grouse because of his mother's persuasion, he decided to simply make him small]: Sadalova 2002, No. 6: 87-91; Chelkantsy [the hazel grouse was the largest; the god rode into the forest, the hazel grouse took off, the god's horse was frightened, the god fell off his horse, hit a stone; having returned home, he decided to exterminate the birds; called them, the hazel grouse did not appear; God ordered him to be brought; he explains that on the first day he counted fish and stones, there are more fish; God: I created more stones; hazel grouse: I counted long stones as fish; on the second day he counted stars and hummocks - there are more hummocks; God: there should be more stars; hazel grouse: I counted stumps as hummocks; on the third day he counted men and women, there are more women; God: I created more men; hazel grouse: I counted men living according to the opinion of women as women; God decided that to kill the hazel grouse for scaring a horse - you will be included in the number of women; decided to make it small, gave its meat to all the animals; any animal and bird has the white meat of the hazel grouse, only the owl did not take it for itself; that is why its wings are soft, it flies silently; the hazel grouse is small, but considers itself smarter than God]: Kandarakova 1978: 169-172; Kumandins : Oynotkinova et al. 2011, #52 [ Dayachi created all birds; the hazel grouse was large; when it suddenly flew out, Dayachi fell off his horse; Dayachi caught the hazel grouse, divided its blood and meat between the burbot, the maral, and the bird, and made the hazel grouse the size of a handful], commentary on text #52 [God created all birds and animals large; one day he was riding a horse, a hazel grouse frightened the horse, and God fell off it; after that he decided to destroy all the birds, gave the order to gather them all; all the birds of Altai gathered, but the hazel grouse did not show up; God's mother tried to convince him that the hazel grouse needed to be killed; the hazel grouse was found and brought in; God asked why it did not show up right away; the hazel grouse said that for three days he had been counting what was more numerous on earth: on the first day – stones or fish, on the second day – stars or hummocks, on the third day – men or women {without details}; God did not like the fact that the hazel grouse, when counting, had included men who listen to women among the women: this meant that he, too, listening to his mother, would be included among the women; as a result, he made a decision: not to kill the hazel grouse, but to make it smaller in size; he gave the white meat of the hazel grouse to all the animals and birds; only the owl did not take the meat of the hazel grouse; thus, it retained the ability to fly silently and easily]: 163, 445-446; Khakass: Gomboev 1890 (Kachinians) [the hazel grouse was the largest bird and weighed 12 poods; Jesus Christ rode through the taiga on an elephant; the hazel grouse took off and frightened the elephant; it rushed into the thicket and galloped so fast that Christ could hardly hold it back; “It is not good for the hazel grouse to be so big,” he decided and ordered the hazel grouse meat to be divided among all the birds; because of this, the hazel grouse became small, and each bird has at least a little white meat]: 142-143; Baikal Buryats (Alar) [the hazel grouse was huge; having taken off, it frightened the Burkhan’s horse; he divided its meat, putting it into the breast of each bird, and made the hazel grouse small]: Gomboev 1890, no. 15: 76 (retold in Eliasov 1973, no. 99: 365-366).

Western Siberia. Northern Khanty (Sherkal dialect) [at the time of the creation of the world, the hazel grouse was the size of a cow; the underground spirit went hunting, the hazel grouse took off, the spirit fell to its knees in fear; at home he wrote a letter of complaint to God; God thought: "(If) in the future there will be a world of little Ostyaks with cut navels, (lasting) one century, how will they walk along the hunting trail?"; God cut the hazel grouse into small pieces, distributed them to many animals; since then, everyone has a piece of white meat, these are pieces excised from the hazel grouse]: Steinitz 2014, No. 30: 196; Eastern Khanty (Vasyugan River) [The hazel grouse was huge, having fluttered up, it frightened Torum ; he tore it into seven pieces, scattered them, and from one piece became the current hazel grouse; Since then, white hazel grouse meat has been eaten by all birds and animals (in the case of elk, along the ridge)]: Lukina 1990, no. 18: 76; Eastern Khanty [the son of Num-torum violates his father's ban on leaving the palace; he scares the horses, the horse's hoof makes a hole, he sees the ground through the hole; he wants to go down to eat fruits and berries; N. lowers him into a cradle at the end of a chain; she orders him not to eat corpses and human supplies, to tear only guilty people; the son goes down, becomes a bear]: Karjalainen 1996: 11-12; Kets [The hazel grouse was a large bird, and when it took off, it scared people; it scared Es , who made it small, and divided its white meat among everyone; in fish, it is under the gills]: Alekseenko 1976, no. 19: 77; yug [The hazel grouse was huge, and when it flew up, it frightened people and dogs; God saw this, divided its meat among all the fish, and the hazel grouse became small]: Werner 1997, no. 31: 287-288.

Eastern Siberia. Central Yakuts [a huge hazel grouse frightened the Virgin Mary (or God the Father) with the noise of its flight; Christ reduced its size and distributed the cut off part among all the birds and quadrupeds; now all animals have white pieces in their muscles]: Kulakovsky 1979: 70-71; Sym Evenks [Konstantin Ilyich Likhachev, August 12, 2009; the hazel grouse was large and frightened all the birds when it took off; they gathered and decided to divide its meat; each got a piece of white meat {and the hazel grouse became small}; The raven did not come, so its meat is entirely black]: Davletshin, Duvakin 2009, personal communication, no. 3; Ilimpiysky Evenks (Turinsk) [the hazel grouse was a giant; the Kheveks made people; the hazel grouse took off and frightened Kh.; At that time he was making a man; out of fear he dropped the image on the ground; when the statue fell, the elder brother H. smeared it with snot, said, Let them be with drool, with snot, let them become ill ; H. got angry with the hazel grouse, divided its meat among the other birds; if the hazel grouse had not frightened H., the people would not have fallen, would not have died]: Vasilevich 1936, No. 33: 32 (= 1959: 178); Western Evenks (Katanga, west in 1925) [The hazel grouse was big, it frightened Jesus, he cut off the excess meat from it, gave it to other animals, birds and fish; that is why they have pieces of white meat, the perch is entirely made of hazel grouse meat]: Osharov 1936a: 53; Western Evenks (Podkamennaya Tunkuska) [everyone was afraid of the huge hazel grouse, the animals complained to the man; he cut off pieces of meat from it and distributed it to the animals, birds and fish; birds have this white meat on their chests, fish have it on their cheeks, and animals have it on their necks; the hazel grouse became small]: Suvorov 1956: 66; Western Evenks (Ngokonnovskie) [the hazel grouse was bigger than an elk, it scared God; he divided its meat among all the living, the hazel grouse became small]: Vasilevich 1936, No. 34: 32; Baikal Evenks (northern Transbaikalia, Chara village, 1944) [Tangara was riding a horse through the forest, a huge hazel grouse jumped out, the horse got scared, Tangara fell; punished the hazel grouse by making it small, and gave pieces of its meat to wood grouse, partridges, and black grouse; that is why they only have white meat on their chests]: Pinegina 2019: 170; Far Eastern Evenks (Uchur) [The hazel grouse flew up, frightening Nikola-Seveki's horse ; he cut off its white meat, gave it to the birds and put it on the pike's cheek]: Romanova, Myreeva 1971, no. 7: 327; Far Eastern Evenks (Olyokma) [Kheveki walked the earth to see how his creations lived; a huge hazel grouse flew up in front of him; Kh. got scared, got angry, and made the hazel grouse small; he gave its white meat to all the fish and birds; [the meat of the hazel grouse is white, unlike other forest game]: Varlamova et al. 2021, No. 23: 151; RussianPriangarie [two variations; the hazel grouse was the size of a bull, flew up, frightening Jesus (Nikola); he made it small, divided the meat among all the animals]: Belova 2004a, No. 384: 180.