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9. Fisher and jinnee

Once upon a time, there had a fisher aged and miserable that he couldn't manage for his wife and three children.
Every day, he woke up, swore to the God that he only threw his fishing-net into the sea four time before he left going to sea. That's rule he set himself many years ago and had not forgetten one time from that.
He left his tent early. Moon still on the sky and sun was not going to rise. He took off the coat and threw the fishing-net the first time. It's heavy as he pulled up.
"It's must be big fish" he thought and he felt happy with the thinking. However, what he thought it's big fish was only donkey skeleton. The unexpected thing made him unhappy.
vietnamese fairy tales
He sadly mended big holes on fishing-net which the donkey skeleton had created. Then, he threw fishing-net the second time. As the first time, it's so heavy as he pulled up. However, it's a basket with full of mud instead of many fish as he thought.
"Oh my God", he screamed in sadness, "Pleassse... Don't pour your anger my head. Don't maltreat me a wretch who beg your toleration every day. I came here to earn one's living but you force me to die. I have no other job but catching fish. However, all my effort could not bring my wife and children enough things they need but complaining you is my mistake. Because maltreating honest people and pressing them in endless darkness are your likings. On the other hand, you sceen and wink at bad guys who lie about their qualities but always do evil deed." "Yes, it's your likings", he repeated.
He threw the basket away, washed fishing-net then threw it the third time. But, the bad luck still followed him what he had in fishing-net after pulled it up were broken bricks, stones, shells and other stuff like that. Nothing could expressed his disappointment at that moment. He nearly turned mad but he couldn't knee and pray God's kindness. The sun was going up. He whispered praying.
"God, you let me throw my fishing-net four times a day. I have thrown it three times and got nothing. This's the last time I hope you will help me as you have helped other wretches."
He threw fishing-net the fourth time after praying his God. He pulled up and felt it heavy as like the before times. It had no fish in there but he got a vase, a brass vase with a lead stopper upon. It's must contain something valuable because it's so heavy and beside it's stamped on the stopper. The thing brought to him a happy feeling.
"I will sell it to blacksmith and I will get a basket of wheat", he said happily.
He watched the vase then shook it to find out what was in it but he didn't feel anything. The stamp on the stopper gave him a thought that there had something valuable in. He decided opened the vase to be sure he didn't miss anything. It's not difficult to take the copper out with a small knife. He took the bottom of the vase up but nothing came out from its mouth. That made him surprised. He turned its mouth up, laid it down front his face and watched it carefully. While he was watching with concentration, a cloud of thick smoke ejected from the mouth. The smoke spread out very fast that he had to jump back three steps. Smoke reached clouded in the sky, spreaded out the beach and sea. It became a big mass of cloud covering whole a large area. That seeing made him supprised. Honestly, he scared. At last, all smoke had come out from the vase and then it started gathering. It transformed into a jinnee who's as high as tiwce of every titan's height. With the fisher the jinnee front him was not different a horrible monster. He wanted to run but he couldn't his body did not obey his mind he's too scared.
"Salomon" the jinnee cried by the voice it's as like thunders rumbling, "The greatness prophet of God. I will never disobey your orders. I will obey all of your orders. Please forgive me..."
"What are you saying the proud god?" said the fisher, "Solomon the greatness prophet of The God has not live for one thousand and eight hundred years and now we are in the end of centuries. Let me know your story. Why was you prisoned in the vase?"
The jinnee glared at the fisher. His eyes were full of arrogant after he heard the fisher.
"Be careful with your saying the little human. How do you daresay I am proud god?", said the jinnee still by the rumbling thunder voice.
"The person who should be careful with sayings is you. Whether I should call you the lucky owl."
"I told you" roared the jinnee. His voice nearly tore the sky, "You should be careful with your sayings before I kill you."
"Why do you want to kill me?" The fisher replied, "If you plan to kill me, you should remember that I has freed from this vase."
"No. I don't forget it but it don't prevent me not to kill you. I only can give you a favour, one only favour." said the jinnee.
"What's that?" the fisher asked.
"That's you will be killed by the way you want" said the jinne coldly.
"But for what?" said the fisher, "What have I done? All I have done was freed you and it's not good for you?" He raised his voice at the end.
"I couldn't do anything other",said the jinnee, "I will tell you my story and it will explain you why I have to kill you".
"I was one of powerfull god who served The God, The Creator but I had been against his will. While almost others believed Solomon was the greatest prophet of The God and served him. Only I and Sacar didn't admit the thing. To revenge the emperor of that monarchy ordered Assaf, the son of Barakhia the prime minister of the monarchy to bring me to his Lord. Solomon, son of David, forced me to give up the way I had chosen to live, admit his power and obey him. I refused it I prefered to received all his anger and punishments than to sever him completely. To punish me, he forced me to go in this brass vass and he himself stamped on the stopper name of The God, The Creatorfor sure that I could not escape. Then, he gave the vase to a close servant to threw it into the sea. The thing was performed and that's also the thing I regreted most. In the first centery staying in this vase, I swore that I would give the person who free me the wealthy whole his life and besides as he died his sons and daughters also would live in wealthy but the first centery' gone. No one came and freed me. In the second centery I swore that I would opened all the treasures on the world and gifted them to person who freed me but the luck didn't come to me. In the third centery, I swore that I would let the person who free me be a emperor. Besides, I will always besided him and gave him three wishes a day. However, It got passed with no helper as like the both centeries passing. At last, I turned confused because of disappointment. Honestly, I got mad because I had been prisoned too long. I swore that I will kill the person who freed me. I would not give any favour but to let him choose the way he's killed." " You are the person who free me. You choose the way you want to die".
"Wretch me!" the fisher screamed, "Why did I come here to loss my life, to free a treachery? Please consider again your unreasonable swear and cancel it. Forgive me and The God will forgive you. If you are tolerant letting me live, The God also will cover you."
"No. I have to kill", said the jinnee, "You only have a favour choosing the way you die."
"God! Please take pity me. You look what I have to do for you", the fisher screamed.
"I told you", said the jinnee, "It's the reason I kill you."
"It's unreasonable", the fisher squealed, "You determine to kill me to thank me for freeing you. People said that giving people who were not worthy, you would receive the ungrateful. I didn't believe it but it has come to me. It's so miserable."
"Don't waste time more", the jinnee interrupted him, "All your words will not change my mind. Tell me how you want me to kill you."
Then, because of the danger the fisher got an idea to save himself.
"If you want to kill me and that's also The God's will, I will accept it as like my fate. However, before I choose how I die, I want to know a thing. I pray you, because of the name of The God on the stopper, tell me the truth."
When the jinnee heard the pray which was on behalf of The God, he couldn't refuse he scared.
"Tell me what you want to know hurriedly." said the jinnee.
"I want to know whether you have satyed in the little vase. Do you daresay that you stayed in it front the name of The God here on the stopper?" said the fisher.
"Yes, I do." said the jinnee, "Front the name of The God here on the stopper I say that I stayed in this brass vase is truth."
"Honestly," said the fisher, "I don't believe you. This vase can't contain even one your foot so how can it can contain whole your body."
"I have swore." said the jinnee angrily, "A solemn swear, behalf on the name of The God. After all you still don't believe me."
"I will never believe you till I see that", said the fisher firmly.
Then, the body of the jinnee transformed into smoke. It spreaded out the beach and see, reached on sky. After that the mass of smoke gathered and started going in the vase. Each and each little of the smoke went in it till all of smoke was completely in the vase. Then, a voice came out from the vase.
"So what? The suspicious fisher. Now you can believe me, right?"
The fisher should have answered but he didn't he fastly took the stopper and put it in the vase's mouth immediately.
"The jinnee", shouted the fisher, "Now is the time you have to pray me. You choose how I will treat you."
"No. I had better threw you in to the place which I pulled you up. I will build a tent there and stay there to warn all people who come here to fish not to free a treachery who had swore to kill the person who free him." added the fisher.
The jinnee's angry as he heard the insult words. He struggled to escape but he couldn't because the name of The God on the stopper prevent him. So that, he forced himself calm down, changed his voice.
"Fisher," said the jinnee by a sweet voice, "You don't hurry to do the thing you said. It's a joke what I have said. You don't consider it's true. Don't make it too serious fisher."
"Jinnee", said the fisher, "just in last moments you shouted at me, frightened me that you would kill me and now you say that all you said before is lie. You are only a liar. I will never believe you. You sjould be back the sea and if you could stay in it the such time you told me, you also can stay in it to the end. I prayed you to let me live but you didn't think of it so I also do that with your praying.
The jinnee had nothing to lose. He insisted the fisher to free him.
"Please open the stopper," the jinnee prayed, "please free. I pray you. I promise I will give you all your wishes."
"You are only a treachery. I will lose my life if I believe you. I will never do the foolish thing one more time."
Then the fisher took the vase back to the place he pulled it up, threw it into the sea. He found the way to his home, felt happy as he's still alive.

THE END

Book Introductions

1. Complete Collection of Vietnamese Fairy Tales - A Treasury of Legends and Folklore

Discover over 240 enchanting Vietnamese fairy tales, translated into English and beautifully illustrated. This collection is a treasure trove of legends and folklore that reflect Vietnam's rich cultural heritage. Available as an ebook on: Kobo, Apple Books

2. Vietnamese Fairy Tales - Stories in English and Vietnamese

This bilingual collection features 162 Vietnamese fairy tales in both English and Vietnamese, with stunning illustrations. Ideal for language learners and cultural enthusiasts. Available as an ebook on: Kobo, Apple Books

3. The Treasury of Fables

An enchanting collection of timeless fables, written in English and beautifully illustrated. Perfect for all ages, these stories offer valuable moral lessons. Available as an ebook on: Kobo, Apple Books

Read more:
List of Vietnamese fairy tales
List of collected tales
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