The Man and the Bear's Skin

A man was walking through the woods when he came upon an old bear skin that had been left behind by a hunter. He adorned himself in it, pretending to be a great bear. He hid in the wood by the road scaring passersby. All were afraid, both person and animal alike, and fled for their lives from the man. The man said to himself, "Behold I am as cunning as Atin!"

Atin heard what the man had said, and they cursed him so that the skin would never come off. When the man went to return home, he found the skin had become like his own. He said to himself, "If I return home like this, surely my people will kill me, believing that I am a bear." So the man spent his time in the woods, eating berries and finding small animals to hunt and kill. Soon thereafter, the man started to believe that he was a bear.

There passed two moons before the man's brother came through the wood, hunting for deer. He saw his brother dressed as a bear. The man, lost in his delusion, charged at his brother. Instead of running, the man's brother called out to him saying, "Brother! Oh brother, you have been away from home for such a time! Please return for we all miss you greatly!" for he had recognized his brother even through the bear's fur.

The man stopped and began to weep. He cried, "Oh brother of mine, I had not returned for I was afraid no one would recognize me in this bear skin. I had worn it in jest, but now it is not possible to remove all on my own. I am stuck and cannot be freed."

The man's brother then went over and brought him into the light. Together, they removed the fur from him and cast it aside into the wood, for it had loosened under the sun. Thereafter, they returned home to their village.