thick protected Murom forest
is a terrible dreadful place
it is swarmed with evil spirits
keeping travellers afraid

hail and wail is heard aroung
like the living dead
even forest nightingales
practice robbery
horror and dread

there are bewitched marshes
with kikimoras inside
who can torture people by tickling
and pull down to the depth

the unmounted are catched
and the mounted
and wood-goblins
hang about any hour
horror and dread

peasants warriors and merchants
entered thick protected wood
some were drunk and some were stupid
to the thicket to intrude

both the reasonable
and the unreasonable
disappeared in the forest
irreversibly
horror and dread

from an evil foreign forest
which is real hell indeed
where cruel local devils
eat each other when they need

to unite for evil deeds
in the future
they arrived and
appointed a coaching
horror and dread

Russian Nightingale the Robber
gave a banquet and a brawl
Aliens were three-headed Dragon
and his servant, ugly Troll

they used skulls for drinking potions
they ate cobblestones
coffins served as dancing floor
to these blasphemers
horror and dread

Dragon climbed upon a fur-tree
and began to loosen it
Robber, call your girls right now!
let them show something more

let wood-goblins in your forest
sing and dance
and if not, I give my word,
you would rot
horror and dread

everybody roared like bears
had endured many years
are we witches or not witches?
are we patriots or not?

he is drunk as a lord,
he is well gone
and he coveted
our ladies!
horror and dread

Nightingale the Robber also
hadn’t been born yesterday
whooped and whistled and cried to Dragon
foreign reptile, parasite!

get away, clear off
no fight for you
get away as I say
and take Troll with you
horror and dread

now old grey-haired people
can remember all these deeds
evil spirits fought each other
until no one was alive

outraqe has been stopped
eventually
humans go to the forest
intrepidly
no horror, no dread