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Jan. 12th, 2013 07:22 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
moonflower77while searching for articles on the nenets culture, i came across some traditional nenets riddles. some of the answers can be quite difficult to guess unless one has lived in the tundra, or at least has a good grasp on the peculiarities of the nomadic reindeer-herding lifestyle and can imagine it in detail.
(interestingly, riddle-solving is a very popular pastime for the nenets, much as it used to be for the ancient anglo-saxons)
1. it is a forest - yet not a forest, a cloud - yet not a cloud; one moment it roams the tundra, the other it spins on one spot. [a herd of reindeer]
2. a wizard sits on a metal seat in the middle of the yurt; he can bite one or give one a treat. [the fire in the hearth]
3. a ring of fur is curled at the porch; it will allow no stranger to step into the yurt. [a guard dog]
4. like the snow, it hides from the sun, while mice will hide from itself. [a polar owl]
5. what dips its beak into fur and pulls its friend along, but forgets about the tracks? [a thread and a needle]
6. who can help you locate your yurt on a starless night? who can find the way by the direction of the wind if there are no roads in the tundra? [a reindeer]
7. two brothers are racing, but neither can overtake the other. [a pair of skis]
8. the shepherd's joy, it runs on four little sticks. once it dries, it will follow its mother. what is it? [a newborn calf]
9. what follows at a reindeer's heels no matter how hard it tries to flee? [a sleigh]
10. they come in neat lines, yet they are not letters. they have no tongue, yet they speak to the hunter. [animal tracks]
11. mottle-skinned, it looks vivacious and belligerent; though it sways on its weak little legs, it can still stand. what is it? [a newborn calf]
12. four younger brothers bow before the eldest. together, the five of them can accomplish anything. what are they? [the fingers on one's hand]
13. it is vital for a hunter to be able to tell where an owl is headed, as the direction of its flight can be used to set traps - for whom? [polar foxes]
14. there are two friends. by the time one of them starts eating, the other will have already leapt out of the yurt and flown away in pursuit of the wind. [the fire and smoke of the hearth]
15. who arrives and departs without ever being seen? [sleep]
16. i can heal any sickness and the pain of an angry heart. who am i? [fire, flames]
17. i wear a beaver pelt when i go out and a squirrel pelt when i come in. who am i? [the warm air one breathes out and the cold air one breathes in]
18. bald men hop around in a hot sea. [the bubbles in a boiling cauldron]
19. i have no arms or legs, yet i wear a shirt. who am i? [a pillow]
20. she is a strict old hag and her nose is far from smooth. who is she? [a thimble]
21. when she gets up she counts them; when she goes to bed, she counts them. what are they? [the laces on a woman's parka]
22. what vanishes when it touches water? [salt]
23. it wanted to soar to the skies but fell to the ground instead. what is it? [smoke]
24. what is twisted into curves and dwells inside a round ivory yurt? [the brain]
25. the first friend overtakes the second, then the second overtakes the first, but the two of them can never catch up with each other. [a pair of skis]
26. whirlpools swirl wherever these two wings descend. what are they? [oars]
27. this old man is so reverred by all that they help him into and out of his clothes. who is he? [a yurt]
28. what has an ivory head, a wooden body and an iron tail? [the xorey - a long stick used to drive reindeer]
29. which thief lies in wait underneath the snow? [a steel trap]
30. while the father was still tying his belt, his son had already reached the sky. [fire and smoke]
31. who sways on a single stem and is dressed in rich red fabric? [a cloudberry]
32. a dog with a tooth-filled maw is roaming the waters. [a pike]
33. he penetrated the ground and found a russian cap with ear-flaps? [a mushroom]
34. who wanders all day long but leaves no tracks? [a fish; i also thought about the wind, or a boat]
35. in the summer they are made of fur; in the winter they are made of birch bark. what are they? [reindeer horns; i also thought about the tussocks in the tundra]
36. two brothers are standing opposite each other and staring down into the water, but they will never fall in. what are they? [the "eyes" of a cauldron used to hang it from the ceiling]
37. what grows without roots? [a stone]
38. what grows without a trunk? [an egg]
39. a black coal on a hilltop. [a polar fox]
40. as all nomads, they leave, but others take their place. [horns]
41. when one of them folds his yurt and leaves, another sets up camp in the same place. [reindeer horns]
42. who is gray in the summer and white in the winter? [a ptarmigan]
43. which fish has three limbs (legs)? [a beluga whale]
44. what can you move if you have four feet, but cannot if you have two? [ears - a reindeer can move them while a human cannot]
45. one of its sides looks like a door to a yurt, while the other looks like its lining. [a reindeer's ear]
46. what is it that you cannot see beside a tree stump in winter? [a hare]
47. who trembles in fear day and night? [a hare]
48. black men are seated in fours on four sleighs. what is this? [a reindeer's hooves]
49. day and night, this old man in a fur coat shields a hole in the ice from the wind. who is he? [a reindeer's tail]
50. he has been sitting by a hole in the ice for so long he has frosted over. who is he? [a reindeer's tail]
51. nothing but innumerable burnt tree stumps. [a reindeer's stomach]
52. who resembles reindeer-lichen all year round? [a wolf]
53. in the summer it is gray like reindeer-lichen; in the fall it is brown like an alder leaf. what is it? [a squirrel]
54. what is it that no mighty hero can shake off? [reindeer fur]
55. it is a little lake, but one cannot see the bottom. [a cup of milk]
56. what is it that you can neither catch nor see? [water]
57. who carries two glowing embers in the dense forest? [a hare]
58. whose eyes are open whether asleep or awake, whether alive or dead? [a fish]
59. this giant spends half a year asleep. what is it? [a bear]
60. whose eyes stay open regardless of whether it is alive or dead? [a fish]
61. i have wings, but i cannot fly. i have feet, but i cannot walk. i never look up at the sky to count the stars. i flee from humans. what am i? [a fish]
62. whose nose is cold all year round? [a dog's]
63. a mossy (furry) tussock with seven holes. [a human head]
64. a kindly being growls at the entrance to a yurt. what is it? [a dog]
65. what can swim in the water and crawl on the ground? [an otter]
66. little pieces of amber are scattered on the tussocks; put one into your mouth and it will melt at once. what are they? [cloudberries]
67. ten black beads are hanging from the same fragile branch. what are they? [blueberries]
68. a ray of light passes through a wall. [the bough of a tree; i'm.not sure what the metaphor behind this one is]
69. a dry lake with grassy banks. [an eye]
70. a splinter of mammoth tusk sits in flesh and gathers fat. [sinew from the back of a reindeer's head]
71. a pretty wagon has been abandoned at the neck of a thin promontory. [the nose of a velvet scooter]
72. what is white from head to toe, yet its nose and the tip of its tail are black? [a stoat]
73. when some of them get up and leave, others sit down and take their place. [hoof prints]
74. a slender young tree is standing amidst floating ice floes. [a swan]
75. a young girl on thin little legs is carrying a bucket. [a sparrow]
76. who is the long-eared dandy that wears a gray woolen overcoat in the summer and puts on a fur pelt for the winter? [a hare]
77. a small white stone is lying on the ground and a heart is beating inside. what is it? [an egg]
80. a cauldron is boiling in a dense forest. [an anthill with ants]
81. which cauldron boils without fire? [an anthill with ants]
82. a man is sitting in a dense forest and counting money. who is he? [a bear eating berries]
83. what is born green in the spring, turns yellow and red in the autumn and ends its life on the ground? [leaves]
84. five khanty men share the same yurt. [mittens]
85. who climbs into a friend's bosom before going outdoors? [feet and fur socks]
86. the old woman's nose is snub, the old man's nose is broad. what are they? [women's and men's fur boots]
87. the old man's nose is flat, the old woman's nose is sharp. what are they? [the ornament on men's and women's fur boots]
88. two brothers are separated by a mountain range and cannot meet for a whole lifetime. what are they? [one's eyes]
89. two white-chested reindeer are pulling the same heavy-duty sleigh. what is this? [one's eyes and nose]
90. a river is blocked by a dam of basket-willow branches. what is this? [one's eyelashes]
91. two khanty men are standing on either side of the same log and will never meet for a lifetime. [one's nose and eyes]
92. the miniature bones chop, the small board pulls out. [one's teeth and tongue]
93. a little board is drifting in a boundless sea. what is it? [one's tongue]
94. two sledges are lying upside-down on the slope of a woolen hill. what are they? [one's ears]
95. the miniature bones chop, the slice of fat pushes further. [one's mouth, teeth and tongue]
96. a boneless entity has been crushed between two others. what is it? [the insole of a fur boot]
97. two identical twins are staring at the same spot. [a mirror]
98. the brothers are ten, but they stem from the same root. [the fingers on both hands]
99. four brothers bow before a fifth. [the fingers on one's hand]
100. five ivory cups are lying upside-down on the edges of five promontories. what are they? [one's fingernails]
101. one side of it is wooden, but the other is living flesh. what is it? [a baby inside a crib]
102. who enters into one hole and exits from three? [a person when putting on a parka]
103. a man runs and runs and comes across a dead end. what is it? [one's foot when pulling on a fur boot]
104. what holds living flesh in its teeth? [a ring on one's finger]
105. which barrel has no bottom or lid and is filled with living flesh? [a ring on one's finger]
106. what comes unseen and can steal anyone away? [sleep]
107. one little man is pulling two swans along. [one's throat and lungs]
108. a foxlet is crawling out of its burrow. [a runny nose]
109. who comes and goes without ever being seen or heard? [thought]
110. what has a wooden head with two holes in it? [a buzzer toy]
111. what flies and acts the fastest of all? [the human mind]
112. thirty men chop, the thirty-first takes over the firewood. [one's teeth and tongue]
113. a husband and his wife are reaching out toward each other over a fallen tree. [one's eyes and nose]
114. a cupful of coals is being handed over between two households. [lies; i wonder what metaphor this one was based on]
115. two sparrows urge each other to hurry (to move faster). [the two "noses" at the front of a sleigh]
116. the little wooden board grabs, the bones grind, the crunchy limb drags further. [a spoon, one's teeth and tongue]
117. whether it comes or goes, it leaves no tracks. [a boat]
118. nobody can track you if you travel in one. what is it? [a boat]
119. a wooden duck is floating down the river and flapping its wings against the water, but is unable to take off. what is it? [a boat]
120. what has a hundred feet and a hundred heads, yet is led only by two of its legs? [a fishing net]
121. the palms of two hands open and a hair-comb drops. [oars and a fishing-net]
122. a lone man is trying to collect his own tracks. who is he? [an oar dipping down into the water]
123. which worm has an ivory head? [a lasso]
124. what is small, yet can transport an entire settlement? [the central part of a reindeer harness, which is small and made of ivory]
125. what is short but can drive caravans? [the central part of a reindeer harness, which is small and made of ivory]
126. two brothers are racing, but neither can outrace his rival. [a pair of skis]
127. three families share the same settlement. [a spear, a xorey or stick for driving reindeer, and an ivory tip that can be used for either]
128. a solitary man is sitting on the slope of a hill and dangling his legs. who is he? [a hook on the saddle of the first reindeer, used for attaching the reigns]
129. there are two coves: one deeper and one shallower. what are they? [the space between the two boards that comprise a sleigh, the seat of a sleigh]
130. two dogs are barking at the sky. [the "heads" of a sleigh]
131. a caravan is winding downhill. [reigns]
132. a beautiful woman is trying to catch up with her friend and dies several times as she does so. [the moon catching up with the sun]
133. imagine a sable and a beaver of the same stature. what are they? [the earth and the sky]
134. two men are trying to gather all their reindeer, but a lifetime is not enough for them to do so. [the sun, the moon and the stars]
135. in the nest there are four eggs, inside each egg there are seven chicks. [the month, the week, the day]
136. by the time one friend gets up, the other will have travelled around the world. [fire and smoke]
137. two brothers are gazing nto the water, but they will never fall in. [the banks of a river]
138. as they flee from the sun's caresses, they hang upside down, weep and grow. what are they? [icicles]
140. it is spread out from sea to sea like a reindeer skin, turning now ginger, now white, now green. what is it? [the tundra]
141. a strip of wood has grown a tail. [a rifle]
142. a small house is standing at the edge of a narrow promontory. [the foresight of a rifle]
143. a hundred men are pulling upward while another hundred are pulling downward. [the floats and sinkers on a fishing-net]
144. a birch-tree has sprouted through rusty iron. [an axe - the iron head and the wooden handle]
145. a house made of nets is sitting in the water: a fish can enter, but not leave. what is it? [a type of fishing net]
146. what hits both those who enter the yurt and those who leave the yurt? [a flapdoor]
147. black clouds and white clouds are floating away. [the hide covers and their lower lining being lifted when a yurt is being set up]
148. a whale's ribs are glistening warmly. [the poles that serve as a carcass for a yurt]
149. two old women are holding each other by the hair. [the first two poles of a yurt]
150. which old hag has a freckled (spotted) nose? [a thimble]
151. it smooths out the tracks left by the sleigh of its friend. [a plane, shaving tool]
152. the leg of a reindeer has dried from having to walk between two yurts. [a whetstone]
153. saliva sputters from its iron sleigh. [the fire inside a yurt]
154. wherever it sits, the spot turns black. [the bottom of a cauldron]
155. the tracks of seven reindeer. [the holes in the hook used to hang a cauldron]
156. white reindeer with no horns or hooves roam the blue tundra, searching for silvery reindeer-lichen. what are they? [clouds]
157. what arrives with the birds, blossoms with the first violets and departs with the reindeer calves? [spring in the tundra]
158. a black yurt stands in the tundra for three months, while the red-cheeked ruler of the tundra wanders the lands beyond the arctic ocean. [the arctic night and the sun]
159. backwards or forwards - there is nothing but hooves are glimmering. [the floor in the yurt; i wonder what is the metaphor behind this one]
160. two men are walking around a lake but can never meet. [the "eyes" of a cauldron]
161. the ground has turned black where it used to stand. [a place where an old yurt used to stand]
162. the night has dropped a pancake from its frying pan into the river, but it will not sink. [the reflection of the moon]
163. who is silent with the silent and loud with the loud, and is never visible? [echo]
164. two friends are holding a hundred others. [the poles that serve as a carcass for a yurt]
165. in the evening, two small sparrows strive to reach the sky. [the caps on a yurt's door]
166. who is the old wizard that is helped into and out of his clothes? [a yurt]
167. lightning is flashing underneath while people are making noise above. [a cauldron boiling over a fire]
168. what is born in fire, hides amidst small twigs and disappears in the sky? [the smoke of a fire]
169. what prays in the forest and lies on its side at home? [an axe]
170. i can heal evil tongues. who am i? [fire, flames]
171. in the hot sea, in the misty distance there rides an army of warriors in helmets with sharp points. what does this mean? [a cauldron has just started to boil]
172. two bear cubs are glancing at each other from the opposite sides of a lake. [the "eyes" of a cauldron]
173. there stands a fat man with an iron belt and a wooden belly full of salted fish. who is he? [a barrel]
174. what has an ivory head and an iron tail? [a knife]
175. a khanty man is dancing naked inside a small iron house. [fire, flames]
176. who goes about naked and wears his clothes in a bundle on his bosom? [a candle]
177. four young women are covered with the same headscarf. [a table]
178. which stick can twirl and has seven holes? [a beam for cauldron hooks]
179. it is just like the tracks left by narrow khanty skis. [a beam for cauldron hooks]
180. a good horse is being trained while tethered to a long rope. [a ball of thread]
181. a skillful worker emerges from his home; he stabs, he cuts, he slices, and then enters his home again; only there can he find peace. [a knife in its sheath]
182. a tiny horse hauls a huge hay-wain. [a kettle]
183. its food scatters from the corners of its mouth. [a saw]
184. wherever it passes, it makes the path lighter. [a plane, shaving tool]
185. a little bird is hopping along the edge of a knife's blade. [a whetstone; i can barely understand this one]
186. a one-legged man fits into a hole. [a hand-drill]
187. an iron cuckoo chick has tumbled over onto its back. [a plane, shaving tool]
188. a man rests alone after work in his wooden home. [a knife in a wooden sheath]
189. one man is hunting below while another is hunting above. [the sinkers and floaters on a fishing-net]
190. the bare ribs of a whale with the meat scraped off are standing in neat rows. [the carcass of a yurt before being covered with hides]
191. a splinter of wood is drifting in an endless sea without shores. what is it? [the moon]
192. a solitary man has tied his little dog beside his home and left it there. [the moon and the northern star]
193. what happens when the moon puts on a mottled parka in the winter? [a blizzard]
194. the skin of a large bull full of little holes. [the starry sky]
195. look ahead: there is a bull's skin full of little holes. [patches of bare ground that have appeared where the snow has thawed]
196. a colorful curtain obscures the night sky and lightens up the tundra. what is it? [the aurora]
197. a silver warrior has dropped his belt; a golden warrior has picked it up, but cannot put in on. [rain, rainbow, the sun]
198. if it falls out with the summer sun, it brings relief; if it makes friends with the winter frost, it brings trouble. what is it? [the wind]
199. what dances when it flies down from the sky, weeps when it gets into the yurt, and can cover everything there is in the tundra? [snow]
200. goose down is sweeping through the tundra, but no geese are in sight. what is this? [snow]
201. the evening keeps a boiling kettle on the fire of the sunset and shrouds the earth in white vapor. [fog, mist]
202. what can travel for miles, but disappears when it reaches the shore? [a wave]
203. what is so fond of the tundra it can stay awake for a whole three months just to gaze at it? [the summer sun]
204. what is lumpy, porous, soft and brittle, yet still the best? [bread]
205. the first overtakes the second, then the second overtakes the first, but the two of them will never catch up with each other. [one's legs, feet]
(interestingly, riddle-solving is a very popular pastime for the nenets, much as it used to be for the ancient anglo-saxons)
1. it is a forest - yet not a forest, a cloud - yet not a cloud; one moment it roams the tundra, the other it spins on one spot. [a herd of reindeer]
2. a wizard sits on a metal seat in the middle of the yurt; he can bite one or give one a treat. [the fire in the hearth]
3. a ring of fur is curled at the porch; it will allow no stranger to step into the yurt. [a guard dog]
4. like the snow, it hides from the sun, while mice will hide from itself. [a polar owl]
5. what dips its beak into fur and pulls its friend along, but forgets about the tracks? [a thread and a needle]
6. who can help you locate your yurt on a starless night? who can find the way by the direction of the wind if there are no roads in the tundra? [a reindeer]
7. two brothers are racing, but neither can overtake the other. [a pair of skis]
8. the shepherd's joy, it runs on four little sticks. once it dries, it will follow its mother. what is it? [a newborn calf]
9. what follows at a reindeer's heels no matter how hard it tries to flee? [a sleigh]
10. they come in neat lines, yet they are not letters. they have no tongue, yet they speak to the hunter. [animal tracks]
11. mottle-skinned, it looks vivacious and belligerent; though it sways on its weak little legs, it can still stand. what is it? [a newborn calf]
12. four younger brothers bow before the eldest. together, the five of them can accomplish anything. what are they? [the fingers on one's hand]
13. it is vital for a hunter to be able to tell where an owl is headed, as the direction of its flight can be used to set traps - for whom? [polar foxes]
14. there are two friends. by the time one of them starts eating, the other will have already leapt out of the yurt and flown away in pursuit of the wind. [the fire and smoke of the hearth]
15. who arrives and departs without ever being seen? [sleep]
16. i can heal any sickness and the pain of an angry heart. who am i? [fire, flames]
17. i wear a beaver pelt when i go out and a squirrel pelt when i come in. who am i? [the warm air one breathes out and the cold air one breathes in]
18. bald men hop around in a hot sea. [the bubbles in a boiling cauldron]
19. i have no arms or legs, yet i wear a shirt. who am i? [a pillow]
20. she is a strict old hag and her nose is far from smooth. who is she? [a thimble]
21. when she gets up she counts them; when she goes to bed, she counts them. what are they? [the laces on a woman's parka]
22. what vanishes when it touches water? [salt]
23. it wanted to soar to the skies but fell to the ground instead. what is it? [smoke]
24. what is twisted into curves and dwells inside a round ivory yurt? [the brain]
25. the first friend overtakes the second, then the second overtakes the first, but the two of them can never catch up with each other. [a pair of skis]
26. whirlpools swirl wherever these two wings descend. what are they? [oars]
27. this old man is so reverred by all that they help him into and out of his clothes. who is he? [a yurt]
28. what has an ivory head, a wooden body and an iron tail? [the xorey - a long stick used to drive reindeer]
29. which thief lies in wait underneath the snow? [a steel trap]
30. while the father was still tying his belt, his son had already reached the sky. [fire and smoke]
31. who sways on a single stem and is dressed in rich red fabric? [a cloudberry]
32. a dog with a tooth-filled maw is roaming the waters. [a pike]
33. he penetrated the ground and found a russian cap with ear-flaps? [a mushroom]
34. who wanders all day long but leaves no tracks? [a fish; i also thought about the wind, or a boat]
35. in the summer they are made of fur; in the winter they are made of birch bark. what are they? [reindeer horns; i also thought about the tussocks in the tundra]
36. two brothers are standing opposite each other and staring down into the water, but they will never fall in. what are they? [the "eyes" of a cauldron used to hang it from the ceiling]
37. what grows without roots? [a stone]
38. what grows without a trunk? [an egg]
39. a black coal on a hilltop. [a polar fox]
40. as all nomads, they leave, but others take their place. [horns]
41. when one of them folds his yurt and leaves, another sets up camp in the same place. [reindeer horns]
42. who is gray in the summer and white in the winter? [a ptarmigan]
43. which fish has three limbs (legs)? [a beluga whale]
44. what can you move if you have four feet, but cannot if you have two? [ears - a reindeer can move them while a human cannot]
45. one of its sides looks like a door to a yurt, while the other looks like its lining. [a reindeer's ear]
46. what is it that you cannot see beside a tree stump in winter? [a hare]
47. who trembles in fear day and night? [a hare]
48. black men are seated in fours on four sleighs. what is this? [a reindeer's hooves]
49. day and night, this old man in a fur coat shields a hole in the ice from the wind. who is he? [a reindeer's tail]
50. he has been sitting by a hole in the ice for so long he has frosted over. who is he? [a reindeer's tail]
51. nothing but innumerable burnt tree stumps. [a reindeer's stomach]
52. who resembles reindeer-lichen all year round? [a wolf]
53. in the summer it is gray like reindeer-lichen; in the fall it is brown like an alder leaf. what is it? [a squirrel]
54. what is it that no mighty hero can shake off? [reindeer fur]
55. it is a little lake, but one cannot see the bottom. [a cup of milk]
56. what is it that you can neither catch nor see? [water]
57. who carries two glowing embers in the dense forest? [a hare]
58. whose eyes are open whether asleep or awake, whether alive or dead? [a fish]
59. this giant spends half a year asleep. what is it? [a bear]
60. whose eyes stay open regardless of whether it is alive or dead? [a fish]
61. i have wings, but i cannot fly. i have feet, but i cannot walk. i never look up at the sky to count the stars. i flee from humans. what am i? [a fish]
62. whose nose is cold all year round? [a dog's]
63. a mossy (furry) tussock with seven holes. [a human head]
64. a kindly being growls at the entrance to a yurt. what is it? [a dog]
65. what can swim in the water and crawl on the ground? [an otter]
66. little pieces of amber are scattered on the tussocks; put one into your mouth and it will melt at once. what are they? [cloudberries]
67. ten black beads are hanging from the same fragile branch. what are they? [blueberries]
68. a ray of light passes through a wall. [the bough of a tree; i'm.not sure what the metaphor behind this one is]
69. a dry lake with grassy banks. [an eye]
70. a splinter of mammoth tusk sits in flesh and gathers fat. [sinew from the back of a reindeer's head]
71. a pretty wagon has been abandoned at the neck of a thin promontory. [the nose of a velvet scooter]
72. what is white from head to toe, yet its nose and the tip of its tail are black? [a stoat]
73. when some of them get up and leave, others sit down and take their place. [hoof prints]
74. a slender young tree is standing amidst floating ice floes. [a swan]
75. a young girl on thin little legs is carrying a bucket. [a sparrow]
76. who is the long-eared dandy that wears a gray woolen overcoat in the summer and puts on a fur pelt for the winter? [a hare]
77. a small white stone is lying on the ground and a heart is beating inside. what is it? [an egg]
80. a cauldron is boiling in a dense forest. [an anthill with ants]
81. which cauldron boils without fire? [an anthill with ants]
82. a man is sitting in a dense forest and counting money. who is he? [a bear eating berries]
83. what is born green in the spring, turns yellow and red in the autumn and ends its life on the ground? [leaves]
84. five khanty men share the same yurt. [mittens]
85. who climbs into a friend's bosom before going outdoors? [feet and fur socks]
86. the old woman's nose is snub, the old man's nose is broad. what are they? [women's and men's fur boots]
87. the old man's nose is flat, the old woman's nose is sharp. what are they? [the ornament on men's and women's fur boots]
88. two brothers are separated by a mountain range and cannot meet for a whole lifetime. what are they? [one's eyes]
89. two white-chested reindeer are pulling the same heavy-duty sleigh. what is this? [one's eyes and nose]
90. a river is blocked by a dam of basket-willow branches. what is this? [one's eyelashes]
91. two khanty men are standing on either side of the same log and will never meet for a lifetime. [one's nose and eyes]
92. the miniature bones chop, the small board pulls out. [one's teeth and tongue]
93. a little board is drifting in a boundless sea. what is it? [one's tongue]
94. two sledges are lying upside-down on the slope of a woolen hill. what are they? [one's ears]
95. the miniature bones chop, the slice of fat pushes further. [one's mouth, teeth and tongue]
96. a boneless entity has been crushed between two others. what is it? [the insole of a fur boot]
97. two identical twins are staring at the same spot. [a mirror]
98. the brothers are ten, but they stem from the same root. [the fingers on both hands]
99. four brothers bow before a fifth. [the fingers on one's hand]
100. five ivory cups are lying upside-down on the edges of five promontories. what are they? [one's fingernails]
101. one side of it is wooden, but the other is living flesh. what is it? [a baby inside a crib]
102. who enters into one hole and exits from three? [a person when putting on a parka]
103. a man runs and runs and comes across a dead end. what is it? [one's foot when pulling on a fur boot]
104. what holds living flesh in its teeth? [a ring on one's finger]
105. which barrel has no bottom or lid and is filled with living flesh? [a ring on one's finger]
106. what comes unseen and can steal anyone away? [sleep]
107. one little man is pulling two swans along. [one's throat and lungs]
108. a foxlet is crawling out of its burrow. [a runny nose]
109. who comes and goes without ever being seen or heard? [thought]
110. what has a wooden head with two holes in it? [a buzzer toy]
111. what flies and acts the fastest of all? [the human mind]
112. thirty men chop, the thirty-first takes over the firewood. [one's teeth and tongue]
113. a husband and his wife are reaching out toward each other over a fallen tree. [one's eyes and nose]
114. a cupful of coals is being handed over between two households. [lies; i wonder what metaphor this one was based on]
115. two sparrows urge each other to hurry (to move faster). [the two "noses" at the front of a sleigh]
116. the little wooden board grabs, the bones grind, the crunchy limb drags further. [a spoon, one's teeth and tongue]
117. whether it comes or goes, it leaves no tracks. [a boat]
118. nobody can track you if you travel in one. what is it? [a boat]
119. a wooden duck is floating down the river and flapping its wings against the water, but is unable to take off. what is it? [a boat]
120. what has a hundred feet and a hundred heads, yet is led only by two of its legs? [a fishing net]
121. the palms of two hands open and a hair-comb drops. [oars and a fishing-net]
122. a lone man is trying to collect his own tracks. who is he? [an oar dipping down into the water]
123. which worm has an ivory head? [a lasso]
124. what is small, yet can transport an entire settlement? [the central part of a reindeer harness, which is small and made of ivory]
125. what is short but can drive caravans? [the central part of a reindeer harness, which is small and made of ivory]
126. two brothers are racing, but neither can outrace his rival. [a pair of skis]
127. three families share the same settlement. [a spear, a xorey or stick for driving reindeer, and an ivory tip that can be used for either]
128. a solitary man is sitting on the slope of a hill and dangling his legs. who is he? [a hook on the saddle of the first reindeer, used for attaching the reigns]
129. there are two coves: one deeper and one shallower. what are they? [the space between the two boards that comprise a sleigh, the seat of a sleigh]
130. two dogs are barking at the sky. [the "heads" of a sleigh]
131. a caravan is winding downhill. [reigns]
132. a beautiful woman is trying to catch up with her friend and dies several times as she does so. [the moon catching up with the sun]
133. imagine a sable and a beaver of the same stature. what are they? [the earth and the sky]
134. two men are trying to gather all their reindeer, but a lifetime is not enough for them to do so. [the sun, the moon and the stars]
135. in the nest there are four eggs, inside each egg there are seven chicks. [the month, the week, the day]
136. by the time one friend gets up, the other will have travelled around the world. [fire and smoke]
137. two brothers are gazing nto the water, but they will never fall in. [the banks of a river]
138. as they flee from the sun's caresses, they hang upside down, weep and grow. what are they? [icicles]
140. it is spread out from sea to sea like a reindeer skin, turning now ginger, now white, now green. what is it? [the tundra]
141. a strip of wood has grown a tail. [a rifle]
142. a small house is standing at the edge of a narrow promontory. [the foresight of a rifle]
143. a hundred men are pulling upward while another hundred are pulling downward. [the floats and sinkers on a fishing-net]
144. a birch-tree has sprouted through rusty iron. [an axe - the iron head and the wooden handle]
145. a house made of nets is sitting in the water: a fish can enter, but not leave. what is it? [a type of fishing net]
146. what hits both those who enter the yurt and those who leave the yurt? [a flapdoor]
147. black clouds and white clouds are floating away. [the hide covers and their lower lining being lifted when a yurt is being set up]
148. a whale's ribs are glistening warmly. [the poles that serve as a carcass for a yurt]
149. two old women are holding each other by the hair. [the first two poles of a yurt]
150. which old hag has a freckled (spotted) nose? [a thimble]
151. it smooths out the tracks left by the sleigh of its friend. [a plane, shaving tool]
152. the leg of a reindeer has dried from having to walk between two yurts. [a whetstone]
153. saliva sputters from its iron sleigh. [the fire inside a yurt]
154. wherever it sits, the spot turns black. [the bottom of a cauldron]
155. the tracks of seven reindeer. [the holes in the hook used to hang a cauldron]
156. white reindeer with no horns or hooves roam the blue tundra, searching for silvery reindeer-lichen. what are they? [clouds]
157. what arrives with the birds, blossoms with the first violets and departs with the reindeer calves? [spring in the tundra]
158. a black yurt stands in the tundra for three months, while the red-cheeked ruler of the tundra wanders the lands beyond the arctic ocean. [the arctic night and the sun]
159. backwards or forwards - there is nothing but hooves are glimmering. [the floor in the yurt; i wonder what is the metaphor behind this one]
160. two men are walking around a lake but can never meet. [the "eyes" of a cauldron]
161. the ground has turned black where it used to stand. [a place where an old yurt used to stand]
162. the night has dropped a pancake from its frying pan into the river, but it will not sink. [the reflection of the moon]
163. who is silent with the silent and loud with the loud, and is never visible? [echo]
164. two friends are holding a hundred others. [the poles that serve as a carcass for a yurt]
165. in the evening, two small sparrows strive to reach the sky. [the caps on a yurt's door]
166. who is the old wizard that is helped into and out of his clothes? [a yurt]
167. lightning is flashing underneath while people are making noise above. [a cauldron boiling over a fire]
168. what is born in fire, hides amidst small twigs and disappears in the sky? [the smoke of a fire]
169. what prays in the forest and lies on its side at home? [an axe]
170. i can heal evil tongues. who am i? [fire, flames]
171. in the hot sea, in the misty distance there rides an army of warriors in helmets with sharp points. what does this mean? [a cauldron has just started to boil]
172. two bear cubs are glancing at each other from the opposite sides of a lake. [the "eyes" of a cauldron]
173. there stands a fat man with an iron belt and a wooden belly full of salted fish. who is he? [a barrel]
174. what has an ivory head and an iron tail? [a knife]
175. a khanty man is dancing naked inside a small iron house. [fire, flames]
176. who goes about naked and wears his clothes in a bundle on his bosom? [a candle]
177. four young women are covered with the same headscarf. [a table]
178. which stick can twirl and has seven holes? [a beam for cauldron hooks]
179. it is just like the tracks left by narrow khanty skis. [a beam for cauldron hooks]
180. a good horse is being trained while tethered to a long rope. [a ball of thread]
181. a skillful worker emerges from his home; he stabs, he cuts, he slices, and then enters his home again; only there can he find peace. [a knife in its sheath]
182. a tiny horse hauls a huge hay-wain. [a kettle]
183. its food scatters from the corners of its mouth. [a saw]
184. wherever it passes, it makes the path lighter. [a plane, shaving tool]
185. a little bird is hopping along the edge of a knife's blade. [a whetstone; i can barely understand this one]
186. a one-legged man fits into a hole. [a hand-drill]
187. an iron cuckoo chick has tumbled over onto its back. [a plane, shaving tool]
188. a man rests alone after work in his wooden home. [a knife in a wooden sheath]
189. one man is hunting below while another is hunting above. [the sinkers and floaters on a fishing-net]
190. the bare ribs of a whale with the meat scraped off are standing in neat rows. [the carcass of a yurt before being covered with hides]
191. a splinter of wood is drifting in an endless sea without shores. what is it? [the moon]
192. a solitary man has tied his little dog beside his home and left it there. [the moon and the northern star]
193. what happens when the moon puts on a mottled parka in the winter? [a blizzard]
194. the skin of a large bull full of little holes. [the starry sky]
195. look ahead: there is a bull's skin full of little holes. [patches of bare ground that have appeared where the snow has thawed]
196. a colorful curtain obscures the night sky and lightens up the tundra. what is it? [the aurora]
197. a silver warrior has dropped his belt; a golden warrior has picked it up, but cannot put in on. [rain, rainbow, the sun]
198. if it falls out with the summer sun, it brings relief; if it makes friends with the winter frost, it brings trouble. what is it? [the wind]
199. what dances when it flies down from the sky, weeps when it gets into the yurt, and can cover everything there is in the tundra? [snow]
200. goose down is sweeping through the tundra, but no geese are in sight. what is this? [snow]
201. the evening keeps a boiling kettle on the fire of the sunset and shrouds the earth in white vapor. [fog, mist]
202. what can travel for miles, but disappears when it reaches the shore? [a wave]
203. what is so fond of the tundra it can stay awake for a whole three months just to gaze at it? [the summer sun]
204. what is lumpy, porous, soft and brittle, yet still the best? [bread]
205. the first overtakes the second, then the second overtakes the first, but the two of them will never catch up with each other. [one's legs, feet]