The Gifts From the Underworld

legend · Greenland · North American

An envious old bachelor seeks a way to surpass a younger, more successful hunter. Guided by his mother, he discovers a hidden path to the underworld. He is instructed to ignore the first boat he sees and take a piece of matak (whale-skin) from the second. The matak grants him incredible hunting luck, but when he tries to deceive the younger man by telling him to take from the first boat, the younger man is cursed with bad luck. Eventually, the path to the underworld is sealed, leaving the old man unable to retrieve more luck, a cautionary tale about greed and the perils of deceit.

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