History of the Bear

There are animals about which songs are sung, there are animals about which fairy tales are told and jokes are made loudly, there are animals about which they talk in a low voice. And there is a beast that they talk about only in whispers, but more often they just keep silent. Even his name is forbidden to say out loud, and if you need to somehow address him, they just say "master" or "bear."
 
The king of the summer forest, with whom both animals and small spirits are considered, fierce in anger, but also a faithful helper in need – if only you know how to show him your respect. Everyone who lives in the forest knows the bear, is afraid of him and has boundless respect.
 
And everyone also knows that the bear sleeps in winter, and in no case should it be woken up. The king of the forest, awakened at the wrong time, loses his mind and brings only death and ruin to everything that comes his way. If this happens, the inhabitants of the surrounding villages gather together and arrange a hunt, because otherwise it is simply impossible to stop a raging hungry bear. Each such case is a great tragedy, and bears wake up more and more often from year to year. Pundits believe that the fault lies in the ashes, incessantly erupting from the Sulfur Heart. Maybe it is.
 
But sometimes a wandering shaman may meet a rod, and then the fate of the beast will be different. No one knows how shamans pacify the spirit of the forest king, and make his madness recede. Just as no one knows why such bears leave their possessions and stay with shamans forever.
 
Sometimes you can meet a visionary with a tambourine, traveling on the back of a bear through frozen forests and icy plains. And I tell you, you will never forget this sight!
 
And sometimes there may be a sorcerer, a warrior, and even a monk on the back of a bear! After all, if any shaman manages to save more than one animal, he will have to give it away - necessarily in good hands and for hard money. Of course, the shamans themselves do not use money, but they are always ready to help their native village.
 
And even if the riding bear has lost its memory, most of its strength and is no longer the master of the forest, it remains a formidable beast and protector for the one it carries on its back.
 
The main thing is not to forget to feed him to his heart's content and always be respectful to him.