The tale of a military secret, about Malchish-Kibalchish (Arkady Gaidar) read the text online, download for free. The meaning of the word boy-kibalchish in the literary encyclopedia What does kibalchish mean?

“The Tale of the Military Secret, of Malchish-Kibalchish and His Firm Word” was first published in April 1933 in the newspaper “Pionerskaya Pravda”. The main positive hero of this work was Malchish- Kibalchish, who, in the absence of adults who had gone to the front, was the leader of the boyish resistance against the main enemy - the hated bourgeoisie. In general, the end of the story is this - the bourgeoisie won and, through betrayal, captured Malchish, but never broke his spirit. He was eventually killed, but he became a hero and a symbol of fortitude.

With Malchish - Bad, everything is clear: his nickname speaks for itself. But what does the nickname “Kibalchish” mean?

This mystery is great. On the Internet you can find all sorts of guesses and versions of the etymology of this word, but none of them is completely provable.

Evgeny Demenok puts forward his original version: “Few people know the history of the origin of the strange name Malchish-Kibalchish. With Malchish-Bad, everything is clear. Then why not call the right boy Khoroshish? As it turned out, there were several reasons for this. Firstly, Khoroshish is too it’s primitive, blunt, and sounds dissonant. And most importantly, in the original version, Malchish’s name was not Kibalchish, but Kipalchish. That is, the boy is wearing a kippah. It was the Jewish boy, according to Arkady Gaidar’s idea, who was supposed to give a mortal battle to the evil bourgeoisie. Perhaps this idea was dictated by a secret passion for Trotsky’s ideas - after all, Gaidar called his first story “R.V.S.” - in honor of the Revolutionary Military Council, which Trotsky led during the most difficult years of the civil war. Moreover, Gaidar was not afraid to publish a story with that title at a time when Trotsky had already fallen into disgrace. Perhaps this idea was suggested to the writer by his wife, Rakhil Lazarevna Solomyanskaya. Be that as it may, at the last moment Arkady Petrovich replaced one letter in Malchish’s name. This is how the great Soviet country recognized him."

The Jewish trace in the roots of Gaidar's heroes is not accidental: Arkady Petrovich's first wife, the natural mother of his son Timur, Ruva, is Leya Lazarevna Solomyanskaya, and the second wife, in whose family Timur grew up and was brought up, is Dora Matveevna. Both women had a chance to go through Gulag camps... Yegor Gaidar - in today's Russia, his name is more well-known than his forgotten grandfather-writer - in his second marriage is his wife Marianna, the daughter of the famous science fiction writer Arkady Natanovich Strugatsky...

gaidar_ru puts forward his version: "...The prototype of Malchish-Kibalchish was obviously Volodya Kibalchich- future great Mexican artist Vladi. His father, Victor Kibalchich, better known under the pseudonym Victor Serge, was a writer (French-speaking - and in French, Kibalchich would be KibalchIsh), Socialist Revolutionary, then an anarchist, then a Bolshevik Comintern member, was a friend of Gaidar. http://gaidar-ru.livejournal.com/36324.html

There is also a version that Arkady Gaidar came up with the name of his hero, taking as a basis the surname of a Russian revolutionary, a member of the People's Will, Kibalchich Nikolay Ivanovich, executed for participation in the murder of Tsar Alexander II the Liberator.

However farnabazsatrap provides information proving that the "kibalchish" were not only Russian bombers, but also Jewish saints. "Rabbi Chaim Kibalchisher was terribly poor. However, he never once went into someone's house in winter to warm himself. When asked about the reason, he answered, barely containing his bitterness: “I’m so cold in my house that I’m afraid to go into another person’s house, lest, God forbid, I violate the prohibition “do not envy”... (Siah sarfey codesh 4-601)" http://www.breslev.co.il/articles/%D0%BD%D0%B5%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BB%D1%8C%D0%BD%D0 %B0%D1%8F_%D0%B3%D0%BB%D0%B0%D0%B2%D0%B0_%D1%82%D0%BE%D1%80%D1%8B/%D1%85%D0% B0%D1%81%D0%B8%D0%B4%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%B8%D0%B9_%D1%80%D0%B0%D1%81%D1%81%D0%BA% D0%B0%D0%B7/%D1%81%D1%80%D0%B5%D0%B4%D1%81%D1%82%D0%B2%D0%BE_%D0%BE%D1%82_%D0 %B7%D0%B0%D0%B2%D0%B8%D1%81%D1%82%D0%B8.aspx?id=15772&language=russian

A very “cool” version of the origin of the name Kibalchish is posted on the LEAK website
“The Caucasian tribe of Amazons, or as we called them Caucasians, was very warlike and waged an irreconcilable war for survival with the surrounding tribes and peoples. Their main competitor was a tribe called by the scientist “Caucasian runts.” It was a tribe of people whose height, judging by records, did not exceed 120 centimeters. Moreover, they were not dwarfs, but had a normal physique, comparable to today’s teenagers of 11-12 years old. One of the features of underage children from the Caucasus was increased hairiness, that is, hair on all parts of the body, including even the face. grew much denser than usual. And here we can draw an analogy with the hobbits described by Tolkien.

Caucasian women called them “ boys kibalchi”, which in their language, given their dialect, which had changed quite a lot away from the original habitat of the Amazons, meant “furry teenagers.”

The notes of a scientist named Alexander mention that while in 1922 with an expedition in Khakassia, where they were stuck for a long time as a result of the Civil War, this archaeologist had a conversation with the Red commander Golikov (Gaidar), in which he mentioned the above fact.

So it can be argued that after the start of his writing career, Arkady Gaidar used in his fairy tale as the name of the main character a slightly modified historical name, which he accidentally remembered."

S.I. Pavlov explains the meaning of the name Kibalchish, speaking about the “archaeomorph KI - the most formidable, the most militaristic and predatory of all the archaeomorphs of the relict language. This archaeomorph defines a circle of concepts of a completely lethal nature: “stab”, “kill”, “to strike to death”, “murder weapon”, “formidable”, “fighter”, “warrior”, “military”, “military”, “threaten”, “deadly threat”, “robbery” Russian and non-Russian words can serve as evidence. , in which the deadly archeo-morph is rooted: DAGGER, FLASK, KIVER, KIRASS (the same - KIRZA, i.e. - “shell”), KILL (English, “kill”, “stab”, hence KILLER - “killer” "), KING (literally: "the formidable one appeared"; English, "king") ViKings (literally: "squad of northern robbers"), KIbela (formidable goddess of Phrygian origin), KISHLAK (Middle Az. militarized village), ToKIo and KYOTO (Japanese. Cities built on the site of former fortresses, or near the sites of past bloody battles or major natural disasters), boy-KIbalchish (it is unknown where A. Gaidar took this word - KIbalchish, - however, its literal translation into modern language is as follows: “The formidable strongman wants to be fully armed”), TURKI, SAKI, Cossacks, SeKIRA, KIT (the abbreviated word KITI - literally: “formidable tail”), KITAI-gorod." http: //slovnik.narod.ru/etim_moskow.htm

However, Arkady Gaidar has other characters with “cool” names. For example, Chuk and Gek. There are no such names in the Russian language, and no one really knows what they mean. All these Kibalchishi, Chuki and Geki were born in the fevered imagination of a Soviet children's writer, who, according to his fellow Red Commissars, was not a hero, but a mentally ill person with a manic passion for murder

From the diary of Arkady Gaidar: “Khabarovsk. August 20, 1931. Mental hospital. During my life I have been to hospitals probably eight or ten times - and yet this is the only time when I will remember this - Khabarovsk, the worst of hospitals - without bitterness, because here the story about “The Boy” will be unexpectedly written “Kibalchishe.”

Which Arkady Gaidar ended with the words: “Goodbye, Malchish... You'll be left alone... Cabbage soup in the cauldron, a loaf on the table, water in the springs, and your head on your shoulders... Live as best you can, but don’t wait for me.”

And in 1939, Arkady Gaidar told his growing 13-year-old son, later Rear Admiral Timur: “I had a dream: I was in front on a horse, with a banner and a bugle. Signal to attack. I look around - no one" Indeed - no one! We do not know the son’s reaction to his father’s terrible, hopeless dream, which sums up his life.“In essence, I only have three pairs of underwear, a duffel bag, a field bag, a sheepskin coat and a hat, and nothing else and no one,” he wrote to Tukhachevsky. - No home, no friends. And this is at a time when I am not at all poor and not at all an outcast. It just works out that way.” At night he dreamed of the dead, he cut his wrists, like a hunted wolf, wandered around the country, and died in the war “under strange circumstances.” It looks like he was looking for the enemy bullet himself.

A tale about a military secret, Malchish-Kibalchish and his firm word.
“Tell me a fairy tale, Natka,” asked the blue-eyed girl and smiled guiltily.
- A fairy tale? - Natka thought. - I don’t know any fairy tales. Or not... I'll tell you Alka's tale. Can? - she asked the wary Alka.
“It’s possible,” Alka allowed, proudly looking at the quiet October students.
- I will tell Alkin a fairy tale in my own words. And if I forgot something or said something wrong, then let him correct me. Well, listen!

“In those distant, distant years, when the war had just died down throughout the country, there lived Malchish-Kibalchish.
At that time, the Red Army drove far away the white troops of the damned bourgeoisie, and everything became quiet in those wide fields, in the green meadows, where rye grew, where buckwheat blossomed, where among the dense gardens and cherry bushes stood the little house in which Malchish, nicknamed Kibalchish, lived. , yes, Malchish’s father, and Malchish’s older brother, but they didn’t have a mother.
Father works - mows hay. My brother works, hauling hay. And Malchish himself either helps his father or his brother, or simply jumps and plays around with other boys.
Hop!.. Hop!.. Okay! Bullets don't screech, shells don't crash, villages don't burn. You don’t have to lie down on the floor from bullets, you don’t have to hide in cellars from shells, you don’t have to run into the forest from fires. There is nothing to be afraid of the bourgeoisie. There is no one to bow to. Live and work - a good life!
Then one day, towards evening, Malchish-Kibalchish came out onto the porch. He looks - the sky is clear, the wind is warm, the sun is setting behind the Black Mountains at night. And everything would be fine, but something is not good. The boy hears something as if something is rattling or knocking. It seems to Malchish that the wind smells not of flowers from the gardens, not of honey from the meadows, but the wind smells of either smoke from fires, or gunpowder from explosions. He told his father, and his father came tired.
- What you? - he says to Malchish. - These are distant thunderstorms thundering behind the Black Mountains. These are the shepherds smoking fires across the Blue River, grazing their flocks and cooking dinner. Go, Boy, and sleep well.
Malchish left. Went to bed. But he can’t sleep—well, he just can’t fall asleep.
Suddenly he hears stomping on the street and knocking at the windows. Malchish-Kibalchish looked, and he saw: a horseman standing at the window. The horse is black, the saber is light, the hat is gray, and the star is red.
- Hey, get up! - the rider shouted. - Trouble came from where we didn’t expect it. The damned bourgeois attacked us from behind the Black Mountains. Again bullets are whistling, again shells are exploding. Our troops are fighting the bourgeoisie, and messengers are rushing to call for help from the distant Red Army.
So the red-star horseman said these alarming words and rushed away. And Malchish’s father went to the wall, took off his rifle, threw in his bag and put on his bandoleer.
“Well,” he says to his eldest son, “I sowed rye thickly - apparently you’ll have a lot to harvest.” Well,” he says to Malchish, “I’ve lived a great life, and apparently you, Malchish, will have to live peacefully for me.”
So he said, kissed Malchish deeply and left. And he didn’t have time to kiss much, because now everyone could see and hear the explosions buzzing across the meadows and the dawns burning behind the mountains from the glow of smoky fires...”

Is that what I say, Alka? - Natka asked, looking around at the quiet guys.
“So... so, Natka,” Alka answered quietly and put his hand on her tanned shoulder.

- “Well... A day passes, two days pass. Malchish will come out onto the porch: no... there’s no sign of the Red Army yet. Malchish will climb onto the roof. He doesn't get off the roof all day. No, I don't see it. He went to bed at night. Suddenly he hears stomping on the street and a knock at the window. Malchish looked out: the same horseman was standing at the window. Only a thin and tired horse, only a bent, dark saber, only a bullet-ridden hat, a cut star, and a bandaged head.
- Hey, get up! - the rider shouted. - It was not so bad, but now there’s trouble all around. There are many bourgeois, but few of us. There are clouds of bullets in the field, thousands of shells hitting the squads. Hey, get up, let's help!
Then the elder brother stood up and said to Malchish:
- Goodbye, Malchish... You are left alone... Cabbage soup in the cauldron, a loaf on the table, water in the keys, and your head on your shoulders... Live as best you can, but don’t wait for me.
A day passes, two days pass. Malchish sits by the chimney on the roof, and Malchish sees an unfamiliar horseman galloping from afar.
The rider galloped to Malchish, jumped off his horse and said:
- Give me, good Boy, some water to drink. I didn’t drink for three days, didn’t sleep for three nights, drove three horses. The Red Army found out about our misfortune. The trumpeters sounded all the signal pipes. The drummers beat all the loud drums. The standard bearers unfurled all their battle flags. The entire Red Army rushes and gallops to the rescue. oskazkah.ru - website If only we, Malchish, could hold out until tomorrow night.
The boy got down from the roof and brought him something to drink. The messenger got drunk and rode on.
Then evening comes, and Malchish goes to bed. But the boy can’t sleep - well, what kind of sleep is that?
Suddenly he hears footsteps on the street and a rustling at the window. Malchish looked and saw: the same man standing at the window. That one, but not that one: and there is no horse - the horse is missing, and there is no saber - the saber is broken, and there is no hat - the hat has flown off, and he himself is standing - staggering.
- Hey, get up! - he shouted for the last time. - And there are shells, but the arrows are broken. And there are rifles, but there are few fighters. And help is close, but there is no strength. Hey, get up, who's still left! If only we could stand the night and hold out for the day.
Malchish-Kibalchish looked into the street: an empty street. The shutters don't slam, the gates don't creak - there's no one to get up. And the fathers left, and the brothers left - there was no one left.
Only Malchish sees that an old grandfather of a hundred years old came out of the gate. Grandfather wanted to lift the rifle, but he was so old that he couldn’t lift it. Grandfather wanted to attach the saber, but he was so weak that he couldn’t attach it. Then the grandfather sat down on the rubble, lowered his head and cried...

Is that what I say, Alka? - Natka asked to catch her breath and looked around.

It was not only the October students who listened to this Alka fairy tale. Who knows when, Ioskino’s entire pioneer unit silently crawled up. And even the Bashkir Emine, who barely understood Russian, sat thoughtful and serious. Even the mischievous Vladik, who was lying at a distance, pretending that he was not listening, was actually listening, because he was lying quietly, not talking to anyone and not offending anyone.

Yes, Natka, yes... Even better than this,” Alka answered, moving even closer to her.

- “Well... The old grandfather sat down on the rubble, lowered his head and cried.
Then Malchish felt pain. Then Malchish-Kibalchish jumped out into the street and shouted loudly:
- Hey, you boys, little boys! Or should we boys just play with sticks and jump ropes? And the fathers left, and the brothers left. Or should we, boys, sit and wait for the bourgeoisie to come and take us into their damned bourgeoisie?
How the little boys heard such words, how they screamed at the top of their voices! Some run out the door, some climb out the window, some jump over the fence.
Everyone wants to help. Only one Bad Boy wanted to join the bourgeoisie. But this Bad guy was so cunning that he didn’t say anything to anyone, but pulled up his pants and rushed along with everyone, as if to help.
The boys fight from the dark night to the bright dawn. Only one Bad guy doesn’t fight, but keeps walking and looking for ways to help the bourgeoisie. And Plohish sees that there is a huge pile of boxes lying behind the hill, and black bombs, white shells and yellow cartridges are hidden in those boxes. “Hey,” thought Plohish, “this is what I need.”
And at this time the Chief Bourgeois asks his bourgeois:
- Well, bourgeois, have you achieved victory?
“No, Chief Bourgeois,” the bourgeois answer, “we defeated our fathers and brothers, and it was our victory, but Malchish-Kibalchish rushed to their aid, and we still can’t cope with him.”
Chief Burzhuin was very surprised and angry then, and he shouted in a menacing voice:
- Could it be that they couldn’t cope with Malchish? Oh, you worthless bourgeois cowards! How is it that you can’t break something so small? Download quickly and don't go back without winning.
So the bourgeoisie sit and think: what can they do? Suddenly they see: Bad Boy crawling out from behind the bushes and straight towards them.
- Rejoice! - he shouts to them. - I did it all, Bad Guy. I chopped wood, I hauled hay, and I lit all the boxes with black bombs, white shells and yellow cartridges. It's about to explode!
The bourgeoisie were delighted then, they quickly signed Bad Boy into their bourgeoisie and gave him a whole barrel of jam and a whole basket of cookies.
Bad Boy sits, eats and rejoices.
Suddenly the lit boxes exploded! And it thundered as if thousands of thunder struck in one place and thousands of lightning flashed from one cloud.
- Treason! - Malchish-Kibalchish shouted.
- Treason! - all his faithful boys shouted.
But then, because of the smoke and fire, a bourgeois force swooped in and grabbed and tied up Malchish-Kibalchish.
They chained Malchish in heavy chains. They put Malchish in a stone tower. And they rushed to ask: what will the Chief Burzhuin now order to do with the captive Malchish?
The Chief Burzhuin thought for a long time, and then came up with an idea and said:
- We will destroy this Malchish. But let him first tell us all their Military Secrets. You go, bourgeois, and ask him:
- Why, Malchish, did the Forty Kings and Forty Kings fight with the Red Army, fight and fight, only to be defeated themselves?
- Why, Malchish, are all the prisons full, and all the penal servitudes are packed, and all the gendarmes are on the corners, and all the troops are on their feet, but we have no peace either on a bright day or on a dark night?
- Why, Malchish, damned Kibalchish, and in my High Bourgeoisie, and in another - the Plain Kingdom, and in the third - the Snowy Kingdom, and in the fourth - the Sultry State on the same day in early spring and on the same day in late autumn on in different languages, but they sing the same songs, in different hands, but they carry the same banners, they say the same speeches, they think the same things and do the same things?
You ask, bourgeois:
- Doesn’t the Red Army have a military secret, Malchish? Let him tell the secret.
- Do our workers have outside help? And let him tell you where the help comes from.
- Isn’t there, Malchish, a secret passage from your country to all other countries, on which, as they click on you, they will respond to us, as they sing to you, so they will pick up from us, what they say from you, they will think about it here?
The bourgeoisie left, but soon returned:
- No, Chief Burzhuin, Malchish-Kibalchish did not reveal the Military Secret to us. He laughed in our faces.
“There is,” he says, “and the strong Red Army has a powerful secret.” And no matter when you attack, there will be no victory for you.
“There is,” he says, “incalculable help, and no matter how much you throw into prison, you still won’t throw it over, and you will have no peace either on a bright day or on a dark night.”
“There are,” he says, “and deep secret passages.” But no matter how much you search, you still won’t find it. And if they found it, don’t fill it up, don’t lay it down, don’t fill it up. And I won’t tell you, the bourgeoisie, anything more, and you, the damned ones, will never guess.
Then the Chief Burzhuin frowned and said:
- So, bourgeois, give this secretive Malchish-Kibalchish the most terrible Torment that there is in the world, and extract from him the Military Secret, because we will have neither life nor peace without this important Secret.
The bourgeoisie left, but now they will not return soon. They walk and shake their heads.
“No,” they say, “our boss is Chief Burzhuin.” He stood pale, Boy, but proud, and he did not tell us the Military Secret, because he had such a firm word. And when we were leaving, he sank to the floor, put his ear to the heavy stone of the cold floor, and would you believe it, O Chief Bourgeois, he smiled so that we, the bourgeois, shuddered, and we were afraid that he had heard, How does our inevitable death walk through secret passages?..
- This is not secret... this is the Red Army galloping! - Karasikov, who couldn’t bear it, shouted enthusiastically.
And he waved his hand with an imaginary saber so militantly that the same girl who, just recently, jumping on one leg and fearlessly teasing him “Karasik-rugasik,” looked at him displeasedly and, just in case, moved away.

Here Natka interrupted the story, because the signal for dinner was heard from afar.
“Prove it,” Alka said commandingly, looking angrily into her face.
“Prove it,” the flushed Ioska said convincingly. - We will quickly line up for this.
Natka looked around: none of the children got up. She saw many, many children's heads - blond, dark, chestnut, golden. Eyes looked at her from everywhere: large, brown, like Alka’s; clear, cornflower blue, like the blue-eyed one who asked for a fairy tale; narrow, black, like Emine's. And many, many other eyes - usually cheerful and mischievous, but now thoughtful and serious.
- Okay, guys, I'll finish it.

“...And we became afraid, Chief Burzhuin, that he had heard our inevitable death walking through the secret passages?..
- What kind of country is this? - the surprised Chief Burzhuin then exclaimed. - What kind of incomprehensible country is this, in which even such little children know the Military Secret and keep their firm word so tightly? Hurry up, bourgeois, and destroy this proud Malchish. Load the cannons, take out your sabers, open our bourgeois banners, because I hear our signalmen sounding the alarm and our wavers waving their flags. Apparently, we will now have not an easy battle, but a difficult battle.

And Malchish-Kibalchish died...” said Natka.
At these unexpected words, the October boy Karasikov’s face suddenly became sad and confused, and he no longer waved his hand. The blue-eyed girl frowned, and Ioska’s freckled face became angry, as if he had just been deceived or offended. The guys stirred and whispered, and only Alka, who already knew this fairy tale, sat quietly.

- “But... did you guys see the storm? Just like thunder, the military weapons thundered. Fiery explosions flashed just like lightning. Just like the winds, horse detachments rushed in, and just like the clouds, red banners flew by. This is how the Red Army advanced.
Have you ever seen torrential thunderstorms in a dry and hot summer? Just as streams, running down from the dusty mountains, merged into stormy, foamy streams, so at the first roar of war, uprisings began to bubble up in the Mountain Bourgeoisie, and thousands of angry voices responded from the Plain Kingdom, and from the Snowy Kingdom, and from the Sultry State .
And the defeated Chief Burzhuin fled in fear, loudly cursing this country with its amazing people, with its invincible army and with its unsolved Military Mystery.
And Malchish-Kibalchish was buried on a green hillock near the Blue River. And they put a big red flag over the grave. The steamers are sailing - hello to Malchish!
The pilots are flying by - hello to Malchish!
Steam locomotives will run by - hello to Malchish!
And the pioneers will pass - salute to Malchish!”

That's the whole fairy tale for you guys.

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BOY-KIBALCHISH

The hero of the fairy tale by A. Gaidar (A.P. Golikova), included in the story “Military Secret” (1935). The fairy tale was first published in April 1933 in the newspaper Pioneer. some truth" under the title "The Tale of the Military Malchish-Kibalchish and His Firm Word." Gaidar conceives an epic tale about a little boy - M.-K., a man with the soul of a real commander, faithful to his ideals and heroically steadfast in serving them. He places this strange, according to the writer, fairy tale in the context of a story about children vacationing in a pioneer camp on the shores of a warm sea. At the center of the story is baby Alka, who is essentially this M.-K. The Tale of M.-K. - this is “Alkina’s fairy tale”. The girl Natka tells it in the circle of pioneers, interrupting her story from time to time: “Is that right, Alka, is that what I’m telling?” And Alka echoes her every time: “So, Natka, so.” Gaidar calls the story “Military Secret” and himself admits that there is no secret at all. This is a tale about the sacrificial feat of the warrior-on-Malchish and a story about a little boy with a pure and courageous heart, whose sacrificial fate is inevitable for the author. It contains a secret that the reader himself must reveal. The image of the boy Alka was conceived by Gaidar as heroic. The inevitability of the child’s death at the hands of a bandit is predetermined by the author at the very beginning of work on the story: “It’s easy for me to write this warm and good story. But no one knows how sorry I am for Alka. How painfully sad I am that he dies in the book’s youth. And I can’t change anything” (Diary, August 12, 1932). Gaidar’s artistic strength lies primarily in what S.Ya. Marshak defined as “warmth and fidelity of tone, which excite the reader more than any artistic images.” The deceased M.-K. “They were buried on a green hillock near the Blue River. And they put a big red flag over the grave.” In the story, Alka was buried on a high hill above the sea “and a large red flag was placed over the grave.” There is also an anti-hero in the fairy tale: Malchish-Bad - a coward and a traitor, through whose fault M.-K dies. Gaidar’s work was motivated by a “defense” order, which required the romanticization of the Red Army. However, willingly or unwillingly, this standard social scheme is imperceptibly broken and the pathos of the fairy tale rises to epic generalizations that interpret the eternal theme of the struggle between good and evil. Even during his years of study at a real school, Gaidar was fond of reading “Kalevali” and chose “allegory” as the theme of his essay. Gaidar’s own dreams are also allegorical, which he writes down in his diary in the year the fairy tale was created. In the fairy tale there is an image of a horseman who rode three times, raising first warriors and then old people to battle with the enemy. And finally, when there was no one left, M.-K. gathers kids for battle. This triple-appearing horseman may in part evoke apocalyptic associations. The tale ends with the praise of M.-K., when, in eternal memory of him, passing trains, passing ships and flying airplanes salute him. (lit. heroes)

Literary encyclopedia. 2012

In those distant, distant years, when the war had just died down throughout the country, there lived Malchish-Kibalchish.

At that time, the Red Army drove far away the white troops of the damned bourgeoisie, and everything became quiet in those wide fields, in the green meadows, where rye grew, where buckwheat blossomed, where among the dense gardens and cherry bushes stood the little house in which Malchish, nicknamed Kibalchish, lived. , yes, Malchish’s father, and Malchish’s older brother, but they didn’t have a mother.

Father works - mows hay. My brother works, hauling hay. And Malchish himself either helps his father or his brother, or simply jumps and plays around with other boys.

Hop!.. Hop!.. Okay! Bullets don't screech, shells don't crash, villages don't burn. You don’t have to lie down on the floor from bullets, you don’t have to hide in cellars from shells, you don’t have to run into the forest from fires. There is nothing to be afraid of the bourgeoisie. There is no one to bow to. Live and work - a good life!

Then one day, towards evening, Malchish-Kibalchish came out onto the porch. He looks - the sky is clear, the wind is warm, the sun is setting behind the Black Mountains at night. And everything would be fine, but something is not good. The boy hears something as if something is rattling or knocking. It seems to Malchish that the wind smells not of flowers from the gardens, not of honey from the meadows, but the wind smells of either smoke from fires, or gunpowder from explosions. He told his father, and his father came tired.

What you? - he says to Malchish. - These are distant thunderstorms thundering behind the Black Mountains. These are the shepherds smoking fires across the Blue River, grazing their flocks and cooking dinner. Go, Boy, and sleep well.

Malchish left. Went to bed. But he can’t sleep—well, he just can’t fall asleep.

Suddenly he hears stomping on the street and knocking at the windows. Malchish-Kibalchish looked, and he saw: a horseman standing at the window. The horse is black, the saber is light, the hat is gray, and the star is red.

Hey, get up! - the rider shouted. - Trouble came from where we didn’t expect it. The damned bourgeois attacked us from behind the Black Mountains. Again bullets are whistling, again shells are exploding. Our troops are fighting the bourgeoisie, and messengers are rushing to call for help from the distant Red Army.

So the red-star horseman said these alarming words and rushed away. And Malchish’s father went to the wall, took off his rifle, threw in his bag and put on his bandoleer.

Well,” he says to his eldest son, “I sowed rye thickly - apparently you’ll have a lot to harvest.” Well,” he says to Malchish, “I’ve lived a great life, and apparently you, Malchish, will have to live peacefully for me.”

So he said, kissed Malchish deeply and left. And he didn’t have time to kiss much, because now everyone could see and hear the explosions buzzing across the meadows and the dawns burning behind the mountains from the glow of smoky fires...

A day passes, two days pass. Malchish will come out onto the porch: no... there’s no sign of the Red Army yet. Malchish will climb onto the roof. He doesn't get off the roof all day. No, I don't see it. He went to bed at night. Suddenly he hears stomping on the street and a knock at the window. Malchish looked out: the same horseman was standing at the window. Only a thin and tired horse, only a bent, dark saber, only a bullet-ridden hat, a cut star, and a bandaged head.

Hey, get up! - the rider shouted. - It was not so bad, but now there’s trouble all around. There are many bourgeois, but few of us. There are clouds of bullets in the field, thousands of shells hitting the squads. Hey, get up, let's help!

Then the elder brother stood up and said to Malchish:

Goodbye, Malchish... You are left alone... Cabbage soup in the cauldron, a loaf on the table, water in the keys, and your head on your shoulders... Live as best you can, but don’t wait for me.

A day passes, two days pass. Malchish sits by the chimney on the roof, and Malchish sees an unfamiliar horseman galloping from afar.

The rider galloped to Malchish, jumped off his horse and said:

Give me, good Boy, some water to drink. I didn’t drink for three days, didn’t sleep for three nights, drove three horses. The Red Army found out about our misfortune. The trumpeters sounded all the signal pipes. The drummers beat all the loud drums. The standard bearers unfurled all their battle flags. The entire Red Army rushes and gallops to the rescue. If only we, Malchish, could hold out until tomorrow night.

The boy got down from the roof and brought him something to drink. The messenger got drunk and rode on.

Then evening comes, and Malchish goes to bed. But the boy can’t sleep - well, what kind of sleep is that?

Suddenly he hears footsteps on the street and a rustling at the window. Malchish looked and saw: the same man standing at the window. That one, but not that one: and there is no horse - the horse is missing, and there is no saber - the saber is broken, and there is no hat - the hat has flown off, and he himself is standing - staggering.

Hey, get up! - he shouted for the last time. - And there are shells, but the arrows are broken. And there are rifles, but there are few fighters. And help is close, but there is no strength. Hey, get up, who's still left! If only we could stand the night and hold out for the day.

Malchish-Kibalchish looked into the street: an empty street. The shutters don't slam, the gates don't creak - there's no one to get up. And the fathers left, and the brothers left - there was no one left.

Only Malchish sees that an old grandfather of a hundred years old came out of the gate. Grandfather wanted to lift the rifle, but he was so old that he couldn’t lift it. Grandfather wanted to attach the saber, but he was so weak that he couldn’t attach it. Then the grandfather sat down on the rubble, lowered his head and began to cry.

Then Malchish felt pain. Then Malchish-Kibalchish jumped out into the street and shouted loudly:

Hey, you boys, little boys! Or should we boys just play with sticks and jump ropes? And the fathers left, and the brothers left. Or should we, boys, sit and wait for the bourgeoisie to come and take us into their damned bourgeoisie?

How the little boys heard such words, how they screamed at the top of their voices! Some run out the door, some climb out the window, some jump over the fence.

Everyone wants to help. Only one Bad Boy wanted to join the bourgeoisie. But this Bad guy was so cunning that he didn’t say anything to anyone, but pulled up his pants and rushed along with everyone, as if to help.

The boys fight from the dark night to the bright dawn. Only one Bad guy doesn’t fight, but keeps walking and looking for ways to help the bourgeoisie. And Plohish sees that there is a huge pile of boxes lying behind the hill, and black bombs, white shells and yellow cartridges are hidden in those boxes. “Hey,” thought Plohish, this is what I need.”

And at this time the Chief Bourgeois asks his bourgeois:

Well, bourgeois, have you achieved victory?

No, Chief Bourgeois, the bourgeois answer, we defeated our fathers and brothers, and it was our victory, but Malchish-Kibalchish rushed to their aid, and we still can’t cope with him.

Chief Burzhuin was very surprised and angry then, and he shouted in a menacing voice:

Could it be that they couldn’t cope with Malchish? Oh, you worthless bourgeois cowards! How is it that you can’t break something so small? Download quickly and don't go back without winning.

So the bourgeoisie sit and think: what can they do? Suddenly they see: Bad Boy crawling out from behind the bushes and straight towards them.

Rejoice! - he shouts to them. - I did it all, Bad Guy. I chopped wood, I hauled hay, and I lit all the boxes with black bombs, white shells and yellow cartridges. It's about to explode!

The bourgeoisie were delighted then, they quickly signed Bad Boy into their bourgeoisie and gave him a whole barrel of jam and a whole basket of cookies.

Bad Boy sits, eats and rejoices.

Suddenly the lit boxes exploded! And it thundered as if thousands of thunder struck in one place and thousands of lightning flashed from one cloud.

Treason! - Malchish-Kibalchish shouted.

Treason! - all his faithful boys shouted.

But then, because of the smoke and fire, a bourgeois force swooped in and grabbed and tied up Malchish-Kibalchish.

They chained Malchish in heavy chains. They put Malchish in a stone tower. And they rushed to ask: what will the Chief Burzhuin now order to do with the captive Malchish?

The Chief Burzhuin thought for a long time, and then came up with an idea and said:

We will destroy this Malchish. But let him first tell us all their Military Secrets. You go, bourgeois, and ask him:

Why, Malchish, did the Forty Kings and Forty Kings fight with the Red Army, fight and fight, only to be defeated themselves?

Why, Malchish, are all the prisons full, and all the penal servitudes are packed, and all the gendarmes are on the corners, and all the troops are on their feet, but we have no peace either on a bright day or on a dark night?

Why, Malchish, damned Kibalchish, and in my High Bourgeoisie, and in another - the Plain Kingdom, and in the third - the Snowy Kingdom, and in the fourth - the Sultry State on the same day in early spring and on the same day in late autumn on different languages, but they sing the same songs, in different hands, but they carry the same banners, they speak the same speeches, they think the same things and do the same things?

You ask, bourgeois:

Doesn't the Red Army have a military secret, Malchish?

And let him tell the secret.

Do our workers have outside help?

And let him tell you where the help comes from.

Isn’t there, Malchish, a secret passage from your country to all other countries, on which, as they click on you, they will respond to us, as they sing to you, so they will pick up from us, what they say from you, they will think about it here?

The bourgeoisie left, but soon returned:

No, Chief Burzhuin, Malchish-Kibalchish did not reveal to us the Military Secret. He laughed in our faces.

There is, he says, a powerful secret for the strong Red Army. And no matter when you attack, there will be no victory for you.

There is, he says, innumerable help, and no matter how much you throw into prison, you still won’t throw it in, and you will have no peace either on a bright day or on a dark night.

There are, he says, deep secret passages. But no matter how much you search, you still won’t find it. And if they found it, don’t fill it up, don’t lay it down, don’t fill it up. And I won’t tell you, the bourgeoisie, anything more, and you, the damned ones, will never guess.

Then the Chief Burzhuin frowned and said:

So, bourgeois, give this secretive Malchish-Kibalchish the most terrible Torment that there is in the world, and extract from him the Military Secret, because we will have neither life nor peace without this important Secret.

The bourgeoisie left, but now they will not return soon.

They walk and shake their heads.

No, they say, our boss is Chief Burzhuin. He stood pale, Boy, but proud, and he did not tell us the Military Secret, because he had such a firm word. And when we were leaving, he sank to the floor, put his ear to the heavy stone of the cold floor, and would you believe it, O Chief Bourgeois, he smiled so that we, the bourgeois, shuddered, and we were afraid that he had heard, How does our inevitable death walk through secret passages?..

What kind of country is this? - the surprised Chief Burzhuin then exclaimed. What kind of incomprehensible country is this, in which even such little children know the Military Secret and keep their firm word so tightly? Hurry up, bourgeois, and destroy this proud Malchish. Load the cannons, take out your sabers, open our bourgeois banners, because I hear our signalmen sounding the alarm and our wavers waving their flags. Apparently, we will now have not an easy battle, but a difficult battle.

And Malchish-Kibalchish died...

But... did you guys see the storm? Just like thunder, the military weapons thundered. Fiery explosions flashed just like lightning. Just like the winds, horse detachments rushed in, and just like the clouds, red banners flew by. This is how the Red Army advanced.

Have you ever seen torrential thunderstorms in a dry and hot summer? Just as streams, running down from the dusty mountains, merged into stormy, foamy streams, so at the first roar of war, uprisings began to bubble up in the Mountain Bourgeoisie, and thousands of angry voices responded from the Plain Kingdom, and from the Snowy Kingdom, and from the Sultry State .

And the defeated Chief Burzhuin fled in fear, loudly cursing this country with its amazing people, with its invincible army and with its unsolved Military Mystery.

And Malchish-Kibalchish was buried on a green hillock near the Blue River. And they placed a big red flag over the grave.

The ships are sailing - hello to Malchish!

The pilots are flying by - hello to Malchish!

Steam locomotives will run by - hello to Malchish!

And the pioneers will pass - salute to Malchish!

I know, I know! Now you will say that this fairy tale, which was written by Arkady Gaidar, is not called

Yes, its full name is different. But admit it, you yourself remember this difficult text by heart with all the details: “A tale about a military secret, Malchisha-Kibalchisha and his firm word”?

If you say “Yes” now, then I congratulate you! You have an excellent memory, which, unfortunately, most adults do not have. For example, I didn’t remember.

But in the end, the content of the tale about Malchish Kibalchish is much more important than the title.

Just think: 100 years have passed!!! ONE HUNDRED!!!

And there is no such country anymore. And we now perceive many things completely differently. And there are many moments that one would not want to read in the fairy tale about Malchish Kibalchish.

But despite all this, the fairy tale about the brave Kibalchish lives on. And still, with bated breath, the kids wait for the end of Kibalchish’s fight with the bad guys.

It doesn't matter what their name is. It is important that they are against our Malchish. And we are still sad when Malchish Kibalchish dies. Children have been reading this fairy tale for 100 years. Despite the political system and beliefs. They believe, they worry, they are sad. And for some reason it seems to me that you, like me, without any fear that they won’t understand something, will read about the brave Malchish Kibalchish to your children. Otherwise, why are you here? 🙂

Arkady Gaidar

“A Tale about a Military Secret, Malchisha-Kibalchisha and His Firm Word”

Tell me a fairy tale, Natka,” asked the blue-eyed girl and smiled guiltily.

A fairy tale? - Natka thought. - I don’t know any fairy tales. Or not... I'll tell you Alka's tale. Can? - she asked the wary Alka.

“You can,” Alka allowed, looking proudly at the silent October students.

I will tell Alkin a fairy tale in my own words. And if I forgot something or said something wrong, then let him correct me. Well, listen!

“In those distant, distant years, when the war had just died down throughout the country, there lived Malchish-Kibalchish.

Father works - mows hay. My brother works, hauling hay. And Malchish himself either helps his father or his brother, or simply jumps and plays around with other boys.

Malchish left. Went to bed. But he can’t sleep—well, he just can’t fall asleep.

So the red-star horseman said these alarming words and rushed away. And Malchish’s father went to the wall, took off his rifle, threw in his bag and put on his bandoleer.

Is that what I say, Alka? - Natka asked, looking around at the quiet guys.

So... so, Natka,” Alka answered quietly and put his hand on her tanned shoulder.

Then the elder brother stood up and said to Malchish:

Goodbye, Malchish... You are left alone... Cabbage soup in the cauldron, a loaf on the table, water in the keys, and your head on your shoulders... Live as best you can, but don’t wait for me.

A day passes, two days pass. Malchish sits by the chimney on the roof, and Malchish sees an unfamiliar horseman galloping from afar.

The rider galloped to Malchish, jumped off his horse and said:

The boy got down from the roof and brought him something to drink. The messenger got drunk and rode on.

Then evening comes, and Malchish goes to bed. But the boy can’t sleep - well, what kind of sleep is that?

Is that what I say, Alka? - Natka asked to catch her breath and looked around.

It was not only the October students who listened to this Alka fairy tale. Who knows when, Ioskino’s entire pioneer unit silently crawled up. And even the Bashkir Emine, who barely understood Russian, sat thoughtful and serene. Even the mischievous Vladik, who was lying at a distance, pretending that he was not listening, was actually listening, because he was lying quietly, not talking to anyone and not offending anyone.

Yes, Natka, yes... Even better than this,” Alka answered, moving even closer to her.

- “Well... The old grandfather sat down on the rubble, lowered his head and cried.

Then Malchish felt pain. Then Malchish-Kibalchish jumped out into the street and shouted loudly:

How the little boys heard such words, how they screamed at the top of their voices! Some run out the door, some climb out the window, some jump over the fence.

And at this time the Chief Bourgeois asks his bourgeois:

Well, bourgeois, have you achieved victory?

No, Chief Bourgeois, the bourgeois answer, we defeated our fathers and brothers, and it was our victory, but Malchish-Kibalchish rushed to their aid, and we still can’t cope with him.

Chief Burzhuin was very surprised and angry then, and he shouted in a menacing voice:

Could it be that they couldn’t cope with Malchish? Oh, you worthless bourgeois cowards! How is it that you can’t break something so small? Download quickly and don't go back without winning.

So the bourgeoisie sit and think: what can they do? Suddenly they see: Bad Boy crawling out from behind the bushes and straight towards them.

Rejoice! - he shouts to them. - I did it all, Bad Guy. I chopped wood, I hauled hay, and I lit all the boxes with black bombs, white shells and yellow cartridges. It's about to explode!

The bourgeoisie were delighted then, they quickly signed Bad Boy into their bourgeoisie and gave him a whole barrel of jam and a whole basket of cookies.

Bad Boy sits, eats and rejoices.

Suddenly the lit boxes exploded! And it thundered as if thousands of thunder struck in one place and thousands of lightning flashed from one cloud.

Treason! - Malchish-Kibalchish shouted.

Treason! - all his faithful boys shouted.

But then, because of the smoke and fire, a bourgeois force swooped in and grabbed and tied up Malchish-Kibalchish.

They chained Malchish in heavy chains. They put Malchish in a stone tower. And they rushed to ask: what will the Chief Burzhuin now order to do with the captive Malchish?

The Chief Burzhuin thought for a long time, and then came up with an idea and said:

We will destroy this Malchish. But let him first tell us all their Military Secrets. You go, bourgeois, and ask him:

Why, Malchish, did the Forty Kings and Forty Kings fight with the Red Army, fight and fight, only to be defeated themselves?

You ask, bourgeois:

Doesn't the Red Army have a military secret, Malchish? Let him tell the secret.

Do our workers have outside help? And let him tell you where the help comes from.

The bourgeoisie left, but soon returned:

No, Chief Burzhuin, Malchish-Kibalchish did not reveal to us the Military Secret. He laughed in our faces.

There is, he says, a powerful secret for the strong Red Army. And no matter when you attack, there will be no victory for you.

There is, he says, innumerable help, and no matter how much you throw into prison, you still won’t throw it in, and you will have no peace either on a bright day or on a dark night.

Then the Chief Burzhuin frowned and said:

The bourgeoisie left, but now they will not return soon. They walk and shake their heads.

This is not secret... this is the Red Army galloping! - Karasikov, who couldn’t bear it, shouted enthusiastically.

And he waved his hand with an imaginary saber so militantly that the same girl who, just recently, jumping on one leg and fearlessly teasing him “Karasik-rugasik,” looked at him displeasedly and, just in case, moved away.

Here Natka interrupted the story, because the signal for dinner was heard from afar.

“Prove it,” Alka said commandingly, looking angrily into her face.

“Prove it,” the flushed Ioska said convincingly. - We will quickly line up for this.

Natka looked around: none of the children got up. She saw many, many children's heads - blond, dark, chestnut, golden. Eyes looked at her from everywhere: large, brown, like Alka’s; clear, cornflower blue, like the blue-eyed one who asked for a fairy tale; narrow, black, like Emine's. And many, many other eyes - usually cheerful and mischievous, but now thoughtful and serious.

Okay, guys, I'll finish it.

“...And we became afraid, Chief Burzhuin, that he had heard our inevitable death walking through the secret passages?..

What kind of country is this? - the surprised Chief Burzhuin then exclaimed. - What kind of incomprehensible country is this, in which even such little children know the Military Secret and keep their firm word so tightly? Hurry up, bourgeois, and destroy this proud Malchish. Load the cannons, take out your sabers, open our bourgeois banners, because I hear our signalmen sounding the alarm and our wavers waving their flags. Apparently, we will now have not an easy battle, but a difficult battle.

And Malchish-Kibalchish died...” said Natka.

At these unexpected words, the October boy Karasikov’s face suddenly became sad and confused, and he no longer waved his hand. The blue-eyed girl frowned, and Ioska’s freckled face became angry, as if he had just been deceived or offended. The guys stirred and whispered, and only Alka, who already knew this fairy tale, sat quietly.

And the defeated Chief Burzhuin fled in fear, loudly cursing this country with its amazing people, with its invincible army and with its unsolved Military Mystery.

And Malchish-Kibalchish was buried on a green hillock near the Blue River. And they placed a big red flag over the grave.

The ships are sailing - hello to Malchish!

The pilots are flying by - hello to Malchish!

Steam locomotives will run by - hello to Malchish!

And the pioneers will pass - salute to Malchish!

That's the whole fairy tale for you guys.