The Gold Spinners (1)

I want to tell you a beautiful story from the legacy of ancient times, which happened when the anger was still coming from the old way Wisdom language of the quadrupeds and the feathered ones echoed.

Once upon a time, in a deep forest, there lived a lame old woman three new daughters: their hut was hidden in the thicket. The Daughters bloomed beautiful flowers like around their mother's withered stump; The youngest sister was particularly beautiful and delicate as a child Bean pods. But in this solitude there were no other spectators as by day the sun, and by night the moon and the eyes of the stars.

»Burning hot with youthful eyes
The sun shone on her headdress,
Shined on the colorful ribbons,
Reddened the colorful hems."

The old mother did not let the girls go idle or be late, but kept them to work from morning to evening; they sat day every day at the distaff and spinning gold flax into yarn. To the poor Things were not granted leisure time on either Thursday or Saturday evening To enrich the gift box, and if not at dusk or in the The knitting needle was secretly picked up in moonlight, So the box remained without any additions. If the Kunkel was spun off, it was A new one was immediately put on, and what's more, the yarn had to be flat, twisty and be fine. The old woman kept the finished yarn behind lock and key in a secret chamber where the daughters do not set foot were allowed. From where the golden flax was brought into the house, or for something For a fabric the yarns were spun, that was the spinners not known; the mother never answered such questions Answer. Two or three times every summer the old woman went on a journey, You didn't know where to go, sometimes you stayed away for more than a week and you always came back at night, so that the daughters never found out what happened she had brought with her. Before she left, she always shared it daughters for as many days of work as she intended to miss.

Now the time had come again for the old woman to start her journey wanted to undertake. The girls were told it would last six days handed out, and the old admonition was reiterated: “Children Don't let your eyes wander and keep your fingers clever The thread in the spool does not break, otherwise the shine of the gold thread would be damaged disappear and your happiness would be over too!” The girls laughed at this emphatic admonition; before the mother When she got ten steps from the house on her crutch, they caught her all three start to sneer. »This stupid ban that keeps repeating itself "We wouldn't have had to," said the youngest sister. "The Gold yarn thread doesn’t break when plucked, let alone when spun.” The other sister added: “It is just as unlikely that the golden shine is lost.« Girls-foreheadness often has some things prematurely mocked, which finally, after much cheering, turned into tears he grew.

On the third day after the mother's departure something unexpected happened Incident that initially frightened the daughters, then brought them joy and happiness But it would cause grief for a long time. A kalev sprout of a king Son, had strayed from his companions while pursuing the game, and had gotten so far lost in the forest that neither the barking of the dogs nor blowing the horns brought him a signpost. All shouting only found its own echo, or got caught in the thick bushes. Tired and disgruntled, the royal youth finally got down horses and threw himself down to rest in the shade of a bush, while the horse looks for food on the lawn as it pleases could. When the king's son woke up from his sleep, the sun was shining already low. As he now crosses and crosses again Looking for the path, he finally discovered a small footpath that led him brought to the lame old woman's hut. The daughters are probably frightened when They suddenly saw the strange man, the like of which their eyes had never seen before had seen. Meanwhile, after completing their day's work, they were in... The cool of the evening made friends with the stranger, so that they didn't even talk wanted to go to rest. And when finally the older sisters meet had gone to sleep, the youngest was still sitting on the bed with the guest doorstep, and no sleep came to their eyes that night.

While the two share their hearts in the face of the moon and the stars open up and have sweet conversations, we want to look after the hunters look around who had lost their leader in the forest. Was tireless The entire forest was searched by them on all sides until the darkness of the night gave the search a goal. Then two men became sent back to the city to deliver the sad news, while the others camp for the night under a wide, branchy spruce set up and searched again the next morning. The king had immediately given orders, the next morning a regiment on horseback and to send one out on foot to find his lost son. The long, wide forest extended the investigation until the third day out of; Only then were footsteps found early on followed and thereby discovered the footpath that led to the hut. Dem The king's son was not in the company of the girls for long he had even less longed to go home. Before him When he left, he secretly promised the youngest that he would leave in a short time come back and then, whether for good or by force, take them with him want to take him and make him his wife. Even if the older ones Sisters hadn't heard about this appointment, that's how it happened but out and in a way that no one would have suspected.

The youngest daughter's dismay was no small when she, after the king's son had gone away, sat down at the distaff and found that the thread in the spool was broken. Although the ends of the The thread is tied back together in a cross knot and the wheel is fastened Brought into gear, so that diligent work takes place in love with the bridegroom would make up for lost time. Just an unheard of and An inexplicable circumstance made the girl's heart tremble: the gold thread no longer had its former glory. -- No amount of rubbing helped sighing and no watering with tears; Things weren't going well again make. Misfortune jumps into the door of the house and comes through the window in and crawls through every crack it finds unblocked, says one old wise word; That's what happened now too.

The old woman came home that night. When she went into the morning As soon as she entered the room, she realized that something was wrong here had proceeded. Her heart burned with anger; she left the daughters one one after the other came before him and demanded an account. With denial and excuses didn't get the girls very far, lies have short legs; the The clever old woman soon discovered what the village rooster was doing behind her back had crowed in the youngest daughter's ear. The old woman now began to curse as horribly as if she wanted heaven and earth with hers Curses darken. Finally she threatened to cut the young man's throat break and throw his flesh to the wild beasts for food, if he would feel like coming back again. --The youngest Daughter turned red like a boiled cancer and couldn't find any all day Peace and quiet and couldn't close my eyes at night either; it was always difficult for her on the soul that the young man would find his death if he came back could. Early in the morning, when the mother and daughters were still in the As she lay in her morning slumber, she secretly left the house to go to the To breathe in the coolness of the dew. Luckily she had it from the old woman as a child She learned bird language, and that came in handy now. Sat nearby On a spruce top a raven with its feathers in its beak plucked. The girl shouted. »_Dear light bird, smartest_ of the bird race! Do you want to help me?" "What help do you desire?” asked the raven. The girl replied, "Fly out of there." Forest out across land until you find a magnificent city with a... Köuigssitz belches. Seek to meet the king's son and report He told him what a misfortune had happened to me." Then she told him Raben tells the story in detail, from the breaking of the thread to the terrible threat from his mother, and made the request that the Young man no longer wants to come back. The raven promised the order if he found someone who knew his language and flew away immediately.

The mother no longer allowed her youngest daughter to sit at the distaff but stopped them to unwind the spun yarn. This Work would have been easier for the girl than her previous one, but it was eternal Her mother's cursing and bickering didn't bother her from morning to evening Quiet. If the virgin tried to apologize, that's how things turned out even more trouble. When a woman's bile overflows and anger once their jaws are opened, no force can close them again close.

Towards evening the raven called from the spruce tops kraa, kraa! and that tormented girl rushed out to hear the news. The raven had fortunately in the king's garden of a wind wizard son found who fully understood bird language. He reported it to him black bird received the message entrusted to him by the Virgin, and asked him to inform the king's son of the matter. When the gardener's boy dem After telling the king's son everything, his heart became heavy, but he did He secretly consulted with his friends about the liberation of the virgin. “Tell the raven,” he then instructed the wind magician’s son, “that he would fly back quickly and tell the Virgin: be awake in the ninth night, then a savior appears and takes the cake out of the clutches of the... The raven received as payment for the order a piece of meat to strengthen his wings, and then he became sent back again. The maiden thanked the black bird for his errand, but hid what she had heard in her heart so that the others don't know about it. But the closer the ninth day came, the more Her heart grew heavier when she considered that one unforeseen misfortune could ruin everything.

On the ninth night, when the old mother and the sisters went to sleep After they had laid down to rest, the youngest sister crept out on her toes home, and sat under a tree on the lawn to attend to the bridegroom to wait. Hope and fear filled her heart at the same time. Already crowed the cock for the second time, but there was no sound from the forest You can still hear a shout. Between the second and third At cockcrow, a sound like the gentle trampling of horses came from far away her ear. She let herself be guided by this noise and went to see what was coming so that their approach does not wake up those sleeping in the house want. Soon she saw the band of warriors, at the head of which The king's son himself rode as a guide, as he had when he left here had left, secret signs were made on the trees by which he recognized the right path. When he saw the maiden, he jumped from the horse, helped her into the saddle, sat down in front of her, so that she could lean on him and then we quickly went home. The Moon gave so much light between the trees that the path marked was not lost to them. The early red had birds' tongues everywhere solved and her chirping awakened. Would the maiden have to pay attention to her and knew to draw instruction from their dialogue, it would have Both are more satisfied than the honeyed flattery that comes from this King's son's mouth was flowing and the only thing that came into her ear was her ear. She heard and saw nothing other than the bridegroom who asked her, all vain To give up fear and boldly rely on the protection of the warriors. As When they came outside, the sun was already quite high.

Fortunately, the old mother did not allow her daughter to escape early that morning immediately noticed; only a little later, when she didn't have the yarn winch When she found it unwound, she asked where the youngest sister had gone. Nobody knew how to answer that. Seen from various signs now the mother, that the daughter had escaped; She immediately grabbed it treacherous intention to send punishment right after the fugitive. She pulled down a handful of nine species from the ground mixed witch herbs, poured in the salt that was discussed and tied everything into a rag so that it became a tassel; then she breathed Curses and imprecations on it and now left the ball of witches with it Winds blow away as she sang:

»Whirlwind! give wings!
Wind mother! your fit!
Push this ball forward,
That it rushes along as fast as the wind,
That it goes there spreading death,
Fly on with the plague!”

Between midmorning and noon the king's son arrived with the A band of warriors on the banks of a wide river, across which a A narrow bridge was built so that the men could only cross one at a time could. The king's son was riding in the middle of the bridge when he was with him The ball of witches came along and hit the horse like a horsefly. The horse snorted in fright and suddenly stood upright Hind legs, and before anyone could come to help, it slipped Virgin suddenly descends from the saddle into the river. The king's son wanted jump after her, but the warriors prevented him from doing so by holding him to hold on; for the river was profoundly deep and human help could no longer remedy the misfortune that had once happened.

Terror and deep sorrow had completely stunned the king's son; the Warriors led him back home against his will, where he spent weeks mourned the misfortune for a long time in a quiet room, so that at first he did not even eat food or drink. The king left everyone out They summoned magicians from places near and far, but no one could I couldn't explain the illness, nor did anyone know how to cure it. There said one day the wind magician's son, who was in the king's garden Gardener's boy was: "Send only to Finland, that the ancient wizard Come, he understands more than the magicians of your country."

Immediately the king sent a message to the old magician of Finland, and this arrived after just a week on the wings of the wind. He said to the king: “Dear King! the disease has blown with the wind. A An evil bunch of witches has taken away the better half of the young man's heart, and he worries about it all the time. Often send him into the wind, so that the wind drives worries into the forest.«

That's how it really happened; the king's son began to recover, food to take and sleep at night. Finally he confessed to his parents his heartbreak; the father wanted the son to return to the If a suitor wants to go and lead a young woman home according to his wishes, but the son didn't want to know anything about it.

The young man had already spent over a year in mourning when he... One day he happened to come to the bridge where his loved one met her end had. As he recalled the misfortune, he was kicked bitter tears in his eyes. Suddenly he heard a beautiful one singing, even though there was no human being in sight. The voice sang:

»Summoned by the mother's curse
The water took its toll,
The wave grave contained the little one,
Covered Ahti's Fluth's sweetheart."

The king's son got off his horse and looked in all directions to see if there was anything wrong Someone was hiding under the bridge, but as far as his eyes could see, there was no singer anywhere to be seen. Rocked on the surface of the water Between broad leaves there was a pondhertle, that was the only one object he saw. But a swinging flower could Don't sing, there had to be some wonderful secret behind it. He tied his horse to a tree stump on the bank and sat on it bridge and listened to see whether eyes or ears would provide further information. One Everything remained quiet for a while, then the invisible singer sang again:

»Summoned by the mother's curse
The water took its toll,
The wave grave contained the little one,
Covered Ahti's tide's darling."

Just as it is not uncommon for people to have a good thought unexpectedly blown by the wind is blown over, that's what happened here too. The king's son thought: if I I'll ride straight to the forest hut, who knows if I won't Gold spinners can interpret this wonderful case. So he got on horses and took the path to the forest. Hoped at the earlier signs It was easy for him to find his way around, but the forest had grown and he had to search for over a day before he got to the footpath. Near the hut he stopped to wait for one of the maidens would come out. Early in the morning the eldest sister came to the spring, to wash your face. The youth came closer and told him this Misfortune that happened on the bridge last year and what for a song he heard there a few days ago. The old mother Luckily he wasn't at home at the moment, so the maiden invited him King's son into the house. As the girls the detailed narrative After listening to them, they immediately understood that the misfortune of was created last year by a witchcraft of the mother, and that the sister has not yet died, but in magical bonds lie. The eldest sister asked: “Is that what you’re looking at? There was nothing on the water surface that could have rung out a song "Nothing," replied the king's son. »As far as I can see All that was visible on the surface of the water was one yellow pondherb between broad leaves, but flowers and leaves “We can’t sing.” The daughters immediately suspected that that was the case Ponderosa could be nothing other than hers in the waves sunken sister transformed into a flower by witchcraft. They knew how the old mother got the cursed ball of witches let fly, which if it didn't kill her sister, in could transform in any way. Of this conjecture they said However, nothing to the king's son, as long as they did not yet know what to do for their liberation, they did not want to raise vain hopes. Since the The mother was not expected to return for a few days, they had Time to consult.

The eldest sister fetched a handful in the evening mixed magic herbs from the ground, ground them up, made them made a dough with flour, made a cake and gave it to the young man eat before he went to bed in the evening. The king's son had in the At night he had a wonderful dream, as if he were living in the forest among the birds and that everyone would understand their own language. As he in the morning When he told his dream to the maidens, the eldest sister said: “Zur You have come to us at a good hour, you have come to a good hour had the dream that will become reality for you on your way home becomes. My pork pie from yesterday, which I made to you Buck and food was filled with magical herbs that brought you in be able to understand everything the clever birds say talk to each other. There is a lot hidden in these little men in feathers Wisdom unknown to men, therefore pay careful attention to what the birds' beaks proclaim. And then when your suffering is over, So also think of us poor children who are here as if in an eternal place “Sitting on the distaff in the dungeon.”

The king's son thanked the girls for their good disposition and promised to free them from their bondage later, be it for a ransom or by force; said goodbye and hastily started the journey back. The Girls were happy when they saw that the thread hadn't broken and the gold shine has not faded; the old mother could if she came home and didn't blame them for anything.

Things were all the more fun with the king's son, who was in the forest rode there in the middle of a large company because of the singing and that Birds chirping quite understandably as words hit his ears. Here he saw in amazement how much wisdom this gave people What remains unknown is that he does not understand bird language. Of what When the feathered people spoke at first, the hiker couldn't quite understand most of them grasp; This and that was spilled about many people, but these people and their activities were alien to him. Then he suddenly saw on a high pine treetop a magpie and a thrush, theirs The conversation was aimed at him.

"The stupidity of men is great," said the thrush. "You know not being able to really touch even the smallest things. Sitting there next to the bridge in the shape of a water lily of the old lame woman's foster child for a whole year, singing and complaining to passers-by about their plight, but Nobody comes to redeem her. Just a few days ago her former one rode Bridegroom crossed the bridge and heard the longing song of the A virgin, but she wasn't any smarter than the others." The magpie replied: "And yet, for his sake, the girl must go away from her mother endure the punishment. Unless he receives greater wisdom than what he hears from people's mouths remains that way the girl will forever be a little flower." "The girl's liberation would be one “It would be a small matter,” said the thrush, “if the matter belongs to the old magician would be thoroughly explained by Finland. He could easily get the virgin free from her wet dungeon and her flower compulsion."

This conversation made the youth thoughtful; as he rode on, He went with him to the council, where he would probably take a messenger to follow Finland could send. Then he heard something over his head Swallow said to the other: "Come on, let's go to Finland, that's where it is." nest better than here!”

"Hold on, friends!" cried the king's son in the language of birds. “Bring it to him old magician in Finland a thousand greetings from me and asks him for Let me know how it would be possible to have one turned into a water lily “To make the Virgin human again.” The Swallows promised to carry out the task and flew away.

When he came to the bank of the river, he let his horse take a breather stopped on the bridge to listen for the singing let me hear it again. But there was silence all around and there was nothing to be heard as the sound of the waves and the whistling of the wind. Displeased, the young man got back on his horse and rode home, saying but no word to anyone about this hike and its adventure.

One day a week later he was sitting in the garden and thought, Swallows must have forgotten his message, as a large one Eagle circled high in the air above his head. Gradually rose the bird descends lower and lower until it finally sits on a linden branch settled near the king's son. »The old wizard in Finland," said the eagle, "sends you many greetings, and asks not to blame him for not answering earlier has granted. There was no one to be found who wanted to come here. Around In order to free the Virgin from her flowery state, only this is necessary: Go to the bank of the river, throw off your clothes and smear yourself Cover the body all over with mud so that there is no white spot remains; then take the tip of your nose between your fingers and call out: »»Off the man is a cancer!”«You become a cancer in an instant, then leave the depth of the river; You don't have to worry about drowning. Urges Boldly get under the roots of the pondweed and loosen them Mud and reeds, so that they no longer sit firmly anywhere. Hang on then use your scissors on a branch of the root, and it will be good for you Lift the water and the flower onto the surface. Then go with it The stream continues until you see a rowan tree on the left bank leafy branches. Not far from the mountain ash There is a stone the height of a small bathroom. When it comes to stones you have to utter the words to her: »»From the water lily the virgin, from the cancer the man!”« At that very moment it will happen like this.» As the eagle When he had finished, he raised his wing and flew away. The youth saw him for a while and didn't know what to think of it.

More than a week passed in his thoughts; he had neither Courage and trust enough to attempt liberation in this way. Then one day he heard from the mouth of a crow: “Why are you hesitating? To follow the instructions of the old man? The old wizard has never been wrong Sent the message, and the bird language has never been deceptive. Hurry to the bank of the river and dry the tears of longing Virgin." The crow's speech gave the youth courage; he thought: No greater misfortune can befall me than death, but it is easier is death as incessant mourning. He sat on horseback and rode the familiar path to the bank of the river. When he came to the bridge, he heard the singing:

»Summoned by the mother's curse
Must I lie here in slumber,
Must the young child wither,
To languish in the waves.
The deep bed was damp and cold
Now cover the delicate maiden.”

The king's son put an ankle chain on his horse so that it wouldn't move could get too far from the bridge, threw off his clothes, smeared the body covered in mud so that there was not a white spot anywhere stayed, then grabbed the tip of his nose and jumped into the water with him Shouts: “The man has become a crab!” For a moment the water hissed, then everything was quiet again as before.

The little man turned into a crab started the roots of the water lily But getting out of the riverbed took a lot of time. The Roots got stuck in the mud and reeds, so the crab sifted He had to work hard for days until the matter was resolved. As the When the work was finished, the little crab hooked his claws into it A small branch of the root and the water picked it up along with the flower the surface of the river. The rocking waves drove cancer and Water lily only gradually advances, and there are enough trees and bushes became visible on the bank, the mountain ash always came with the big one Stone does not appear. Finally he saw the tree on the left bank its arbor and the red berry clusters, and something further stood also the rock, which was the height of a small bathroom. Now thrust the little crab utters the words: “From the water lily the virgin, out "The man is the crab!" -- Instantly two were swimming on the water Human heads, a male and a female, were driven by the water to the shore, but both were stark naked, as God created them.

The bashful maiden now asked: “Dear young man, I don’t have any That's why I don't want to get out of the water." -- Der The young man, on the other hand, asked: “Step on the bank under the rowan tree, I will do it.” Keep your eyes closed until you climb up and get under the tree recovered. Then I hurry to the bridge, where I have my horse and my clothes when I jumped into the river." The maiden was under the Rowan hid, and the youth hurried to the bridge, where he found clothes and left the horse; but he found neither one nor that there Other. He knew that his cancer had lasted so many days not, rather he thought he was only at the bottom of the water for a few hours to have been. Behold, there comes to him on the bank a magnificent one with six Horse-drawn carriage slowly approaches. He found everything in the carriage Necessary, both for themselves and for those released from the water prison Virgo; even a servant and a maid were with the carriage arrived. The king's son kept the servant, the girl, for himself he sent with the carriage and the clothes to where his naked Darling was waiting under the rowan tree. It was over an hour before it came the wedding-decorated maiden in the carriage to the place where the king's son was waiting. He was also splendid as a bridegroom dressed and sat down in the carriage with her. They drove straight to the city and to the church door. The king and queen sat in mourning clothes in the church, because they mourned over the dear ones prodigal son who was believed to have drowned in the river because he had a horse and found clothes on the shore. The parents' joy was great when the for The son, who had mourned his death, lived before her at the side of a beautiful maiden came, both in splendid robes. The king himself led her to the altar and they were married. Then a wedding party was held, which... It lasted six weeks in a whirlwind.

In the course of time there is no standstill or rest, but still The days of joy seem to flow by faster than the hours the tribulation. After the wedding feast, autumn came, then Frost and snow came, so the young couple didn't have much desire to set foot out of the house. But when spring returned and new ones Bringing joy, the king's son went with his young wife in the garden stroll. Then they heard something like a magpie coming from the top of a tree cried: “O you ungrateful creature, who in the days of happiness helpful friends have forgotten. Let the two poor virgins Spin gold yarn all your life? The lame old woman is not the mother Girls, but a magical witch who casts the virgins as children stolen from distant lands. The sins of the elderly are great, they deserve it no mercy. Cooked hemlock would be best for her Court; otherwise she would probably have the rescued child again with one Tracking the witches.”

Now the king's son remembered and confessed to his wife, how he went to the forest hut to ask the sisters for advice, I learned the language of birds there and promised the virgins to release them from their captivity. The wife pleaded with tears in her eyes Eyes to come to the sisters' aid. When she did the next morning When she woke up, she said, "I had a meaningful dream. The old Mother had left home and left the daughters alone; now would certainly be the right time to come to their aid.”

The king's son immediately ordered a band of warriors to prepare themselves and went with them them to the forest hut. The next day they arrived there. The girls were, as the dream had prophesied, alone at home and came with us Shouts of joy to the Saviors. A man of war was given orders given to collect hemlock roots and use them for the old woman Cooking a dish so that when she came home she would get her fill of it if she ate, her desire to eat would disappear forever. They stayed in for the night the forest hut and set off with them early the next morning Girls set off so that they could reach the city in the evening. The The sisters were very happy when they met here again after two years found united.

The old woman had come home that same night; she ate with us With great greed she ate the food she found on the table and then crawled went to bed to rest, but didn't wake up again: the hemlock had put an end to the monster's life. As the king's son one A week later he sent a reliable captain to take care of the matter To look at it, the old woman was found dead. In the secret chamber were Fifty loads of gold thread were found heaped up among the sisters were distributed. When the treasure was carried away, the captain left it Put the fire cock on the roof. The rooster already stretched out his red comb out to the smoke hole when a large cat with glowing eyes comes out Roof climbed down the wall. The warriors hunted him cat and soon got hold of it. There was a little bird from one The instruction came down from the top of a tree: “Put a trap on the cat Tail, then everything will come to light!” The men did so.

“Don’t torture me, you men!” asked the cat. "I am a human like you, even if I am now banished into cat form by witch magic am. It was the reward for my wickedness that I became a cat was transformed. I was in a rich royal castle far from here housekeeper, and the old woman was the queen's first chambermaid. From Driven by greed, we made the secret plan together To steal the king's three daughters and also a great treasure and then to escape. After we gradually put all the golden devices aside which the old woman had turned into golden flax we the children, the oldest three years old, the youngest six months old was. The old woman then feared that I would repent and change my mind wanted, and therefore turned myself into a cat; although I was in At the hour of her death the tongue was loosened, but I have the former form not received again." The captain said as the cat had said: "You don't need to have a better end than that “Old ones!” and had them thrown into the fire.

But the king's two daughters soon had, like their youngest sister, Kings' sons to men, and what they spun in the forest hut Gold yarn was a rich dowry for them. Her place of birth and her parents remained unknown. It is said that the old woman still has many things Fuder had buried gold yarn underground, but no one could Specify position.