Once upon a time, two brothers had some sheep which grazed in their vast land.

After some dry months, the land became dry, and the sheep became hungry and thirsty.

Nearby was a valley full of trees, green grass and water. The valley was guarded by a large snake which stung and killed anyone who approached it.

The little brother said to the older one: “Why don’t I take the sheep to that valley and graze them until they grow up and become fat?”

The elder brother replied: “No, don’t ever go there. I’m afraid the snake will sting and kill you.” But the little brother did not listen and drove his cattle to the valley. Suddenly, the snake appeared. The young shepherd was afraid and tried to run away, but the snake was faster than him. It stung him and he died right away.

The elder brother was very sad and said to himself: “How could I live without my brother? I should go and kill that evil snake. If I could it would feel much better, otherwise I would follow the fate of my dear brother.”

He went to the valley looking for the snake which appeared after a while on the branch of a big tree. The snake said to the elder brother: “Do you accept to make peace with me?” “I will let you graze your sheep in this valley and give you a dinar each day,” added the snake.

The elder brother agreed. He started to go to the valley every morning and graze his cattle. The snake gave him a dinar at the end of each day.

The elder brother became rich, and one day, he remembered his little brother who was killed by the snake. He said to himself: “How could I live with the one who killed my brother? How could I make peace with this evil snake? I should get rid of it.”

He brought an axe and hid so that the snake would not see him. He waited until the snake showed up and attacked it, but it ran away. He chased the snake and before it entered its hole, the man hit it but missed and hit its burow instead.

Since then, the snake didn’t give any dinars to the shepard who regretted his deed and was afraid the snake would take revenge on him, so he went to it and asked to make peace once again.

The snake smiled and said: “How could I make peace with you while the traces of your axe still show on my house? You are a betrayer. You didn’t keep your word. Get out of here or I will kill you.”