This Lithuanian folk tale about Death, classified as a sakmė or etiological legend, offers a mythological explanation for why death always seems to have a cause. The narrative demonstrates how traditional societies created meaningful frameworks for understanding inevitable but often inexplicable aspects of human existence.

According to the tale, when God assigned various forces of nature their duties, Death was tasked with taking human lives. However, Death expressed concern about facing human anger and resentment for this necessary but unwelcome role. Understanding this dilemma, God promised to provide a reason for each death—whether through injury, illness, drowning, or other circumstances—ensuring that there would always be an explanation for mortality that would deflect blame from Death itself.

This simple yet profound narrative addresses a fundamental human need to find meaning and causality in mortality. By establishing that every death has a specific cause, the legend creates an explanatory framework that helps communities process loss while maintaining belief in a purposeful cosmic order. Death is positioned not as arbitrary or malevolent, but as an agent fulfilling a necessary function within a divinely ordered system.

The story reflects a sophisticated theological perspective that acknowledges death's inevitability while suggesting that the reasons behind individual deaths are part of a greater design, even when they appear harsh or unfair to human understanding. This perspective offers a way to reconcile belief in divine benevolence with the reality of suffering and loss.

Compiled by the noted Lithuanian folklorist Norbertas Vėlius in How the Earth Came to Be: Lithuanian Etiological Legends, this tale represents an important element of traditional Lithuanian understanding of mortality, demonstrating how mythological narratives helped communities make meaning from fundamental existential questions.