The Original Folk and Fairy Tales of the Brothers Grimm (44 page)

“That's wonderful,” he answered. “I'll go and offer it to him.”

And he went to the dear Lord and told him that, if he did not mind, he could sleep in their bed and give his limbs a proper rest.

The dear Lord didn't want to take the old couple's bed, but they insisted until he finally took their bed and lay down in it. Meanwhile, they made a bed of straw for themselves and lay on the ground. The next morning they were up before daybreak and cooked a pitiful breakfast for their guest. When the sun began to shine through the little window and the dear Lord stood up, he ate with them again and prepared to continue his journey. As he was standing in the doorway, however, he turned around and said, “Because you are so kind and good, I'm going to grant you three wishes, and they shall indeed be fulfilled.”

“There's nothing I want more than eternal salvation,” said the man, “and also that we stay healthy and get our meager daily bread as long as we wish. As for the third thing, I don't know what to wish.”

“Don't you want to wish for a new house in place of this old one?” asked the dear Lord.

“Oh, yes,” said the man. “I'd certainly be pleased if I could have that as well.”

Right before his departure the dear Lord fulfilled their wishes, turned the old house into a new one, and departed.

When the rich man got up, it was broad daylight. As he looked out his window toward the other side of the road, he saw a beautiful new house. His eyes popped wide open, and he called his wife and said: “Take a look. How did that happen? Just yesterday there was a dumpy house standing there, and today there's this new beautiful one. Run over and find out what happened.”

So his wife went over and asked the poor man, who told her, “Last night a traveler came by looking for a night's lodging, and right before his departure this morning he granted us three wishes, eternal salvation, good health and our meager daily bread for the rest of our lives, and a beautiful new house in place of our old shack.”

After the rich man's wife heard this, she hurried back and told her husband what had happened. Then the man said, “I'd like to tear myself in two and beat myself to a pulp. If I had only known! The stranger came to our house first, but I turned him away.”

“Hurry,” said his wife, “and get on your horse. The man hasn't got far. You must catch up to him and get him to grant you three wishes, too.”

Now the rich man mounted his horse and managed to catch up with the dear Lord. He used sweet talk with the dear Lord and begged him not to take it amiss that he had not let him into his house right away, for he had gone to look for the door key, but the stranger had disappeared in the meantime. The rich man assured him that, if he passed by again, he would find a place to stay at his house.

“Very well,” said the dear Lord. “If I come back again, I shall stay with you.”

Then the rich man asked him whether he also could have three wishes, like his neighbor. The Lord said yes, but that they would not turn out well for him, and it might be best if he refrained from wishing for anything. The rich man disagreed and asserted that he'd be able to choose something good if he knew for certain that the wishes would be fulfilled.

“Just ride home,” said the dear Lord. “The three wishes you make shall be fulfilled.”

Now the rich man had what he wanted. So he rode home and began to ponder what he should wish for. As he was thus steeped in thought, he let the reins drop, and the horse began jumping so much that his thoughts were continually disturbed and he couldn't collect them. He was so annoyed by the horse that he lost his patience and said: “I wish you'd break your neck!”

As soon as he had uttered those words,
boom!
—he was thrown to the ground, and the horse lay dead and didn't move anymore. Thus the first wish had been fulfilled. Since the rich man was greedy, however, he didn't want to leave the saddle behind. So he cut it off, swung it over his back, and proceeded on foot. Despite all this, he consoled himself that he had two wishes left. As he went walking through the sand under the blazing noonday sun, he became hot and surly. The saddle rested heavily on his back,
and he was having a great deal of trouble thinking of a wish. Whenever he thought he had found the right wish, it would seem to him afterward to be too little and modest. At one point he began thinking about how easy his wife had it at home, where she was probably in a cool room and enjoying a fine meal. Just the thought of that irritated him so much that, before he knew it, he blurted out, “I wish she were sitting on this saddle at home and couldn't get off, instead of my carrying it on my back!”

And just as the last word left his lips the saddle vanished from his back, and he realized that his second wish had been fulfilled. He became so hot now that he began to run. He was looking forward to sitting down alone in his room where he would think of something great for his last wish. However, when he arrived home and opened the door to the living room, his wife was sitting on the saddle in the middle of the room. Since she couldn't get off, she was screaming and complaining.

“You should be happy,” he said. “I'm going to get you all the riches in the world with my wish. Just stay where you are.”

However, she yelled at him, “What good are all the riches in the world to me if I have to sit on this saddle. You wished me up here, and now you'd better get me off!”

Whether he liked it or not, he had to use the third wish to help her get rid of the saddle and climb down off of it. His wish was fulfilled at once, and so he got nothing from the wishes but irritation, wasted effort, and a lost horse. On the other hand, the poor people spent their lives happily, peacefully, and devoutly until they reached their blissful end.

2

THE SINGING, SPRINGING LARK

Once upon a time there was a man about to go on a long journey, and upon his departure he asked his three daughters what he should bring back to them. The oldest wanted pearls, the second diamonds, but the third said, “Dear father, I'd like to have a singing, springing lark.”

“Yes,” said the father. “If I can get one, you shall have it.” So he kissed all three daughters and departed.

Now, by the time he was ready for his return journey, he had purchased pearls and diamonds for the two oldest daughters, but even though he had looked all over, he had not been able to find the singing, springing lark for his youngest. He was particularly sorry about that because she was his favorite. In the meantime, his way took him through a forest, in the middle of which he discovered a magnificent castle. Near the castle was a tree, and way on top of this tree he saw a lark singing and springing about.

“Well, you've come just at the right time!” he said, quite pleased, and he ordered his servant to climb the tree and catch the little bird. But when the servant went over to the tree, a lion jumped out from under it, shook himself, and roared so ferociously that the leaves on the trees trembled.

“If anyone tries to steal my singing, springing lark,” he cried, “I'll eat him up!”

“I didn't know the bird belonged to you,” said the man. “Can I buy my way out of this?”

“No!” said the lion. “There's nothing that can save you unless you promise to give me the first thing you meet when you get home. If you agree, then I'll not only grant you your life, but I'll also give you the bird for your daughter.”

However, the man refused and said, “That could be my youngest daughter. She loves me most of all and always runs to meet me when I return home.”

But the servant was very frightened and remarked, “It could also be a cat or a dog.”

The man let himself be persuaded, took the singing, springing lark with a sad heart, and promised the lion he would give him the first thing that he encountered when he reached his house.

When he now rode home, the first thing that he met was none other than his youngest and dearest daughter. Indeed, she came running up to him, threw her arms around him, and kissed him. As soon as she saw that he had brought her a singing, springing lark, she was even more overcome by joy. But her father could not rejoice and began to weep.

“Alas, dearest child!” he said. “I've had to pay a high price for this bird. To get it I had to promise you to a wild lion, and when he gets you, he'll tear you to pieces and eat you up.”

Then he went on to tell her how everything had happened and begged her not to go there, no matter what the consequences might be. Yet she consoled him and said, “Dearest father, since you've made a promise, you must keep it. I'll go there, and once I've made the lion nice and tame, I'll be back here safe and sound.”

The next morning she had her father show her the way. Then she took leave of him and walked calmly into the forest.

Now, the lion was actually an enchanted prince. During the day he and his men were lions, and during the night they assumed their true human forms. When she arrived there, she was welcomed in a friendly way, and the wedding was celebrated. As soon as night came, the lion became a handsome man, and so they stayed awake at night and slept during the day, and they lived happily together for a long time.

One day the prince came to her and said, “Tomorrow there will be a celebration at your father's house because your oldest sister is to be married. If it would give you pleasure to attend, my lions will escort you there.”

She replied that, yes, she would very much like to see her father again, and she went there accompanied by the lions. There was great rejoicing when she arrived, for they had all believed that she had been torn to pieces by the lion and had long been dead. But she told them how well off she was and stayed with them just as long as the wedding celebration lasted. Then she went back to the forest.

When the second daughter was about to be married, she was again invited to the wedding, but on this occasion she said to the lion, “This time I don't want to go without you. You must come with me.”

However, the lion didn't want to attend the wedding and said it would be too dangerous for him because if a ray of light were to fall upon him, he would be changed into a dove and have to fly about with the doves for seven years.

But she wouldn't leave him in peace and said that she'd be sure to take good care of him and protect him from the light. So they went off together
and also took their small child with them. Once there she had a hall built for him so strong and thick that not a single ray of light could penetrate it. That was the place where he was to sit when the wedding candles were lit. However, its door was made out of green wood, and it split and developed a crack that nobody saw.

Now the wedding was celebrated in splendor, but when the wedding procession with all the candles and torches came back from church and passed by the prince's hall, a very, very thin ray fell upon the prince, and he was instantly transformed into a dove. When his wife entered the hall to look for him, she could only find a white dove sitting there, and he said to her, “For seven years I shall have to fly about the world, but for every seven steps you take I shall leave a drop of red blood and a white feather to show you the way. And, if you follow the traces, you'll be able to rescue me.”

Then the dove flew out the door, and she followed him. At every seventh step she took, a little drop of blood and a little white feather would fall and show her the way. Thus she went farther and farther into the wide world and never looked about or stopped until the seven years were almost up. She was looking forward to that and thought they would soon be free. But they were still quite far from their goal.

Once, as she was moving along, she failed to find any more little feathers or little drops of blood, and when she raised her head, the dove had also vanished. “I won't be able to get help from a mortal,” she thought, and so she climbed up to the sun and said to her, “You shine into every nook and cranny. Is there any chance that you've seen a white dove flying around?”

“No,” said the sun, “I haven't, but I'll give you a little casket. Just open it when your need is greatest.”

She thanked the sun and continued on her way until the moon began to shine in the evening. “You shine the whole night through and on all fields and woods. Have you seen a white dove flying around?”

“No,” said the moon, “I haven't, but I'll give you an egg. Just crack it open when your need is greatest.”

She thanked the moon and went farther until the Night Wind stirred and started to blow. “You blow over every tree and under every leaf. Have you seen a white dove flying around?”

“No,” said the Night Wind, “I haven't, but I'll ask the three other winds. Perhaps they've seen one.”

The East Wind and the West Wind came and reported they had not seen a thing, but the South Wind said, “I've seen the white dove. It's flown to the Red Sea and has become a lion again, for the seven years are over. Right now the lion's in the midst of a battle with a dragon, which is really an enchanted princess.”

Then the Night Wind said to her, “Here's what I would advise you to do: Go to the Red Sea, where you'll find some tall reeds growing along the shore. Then count them until you come to the eleventh one, which you're to cut off and use to strike the dragon. That done, the lion will be able to conquer the dragon, and both will regain their human forms. After that, look around, and you'll see the griffin sitting by the Red Sea. Get on his back with the prince, and the griffin will carry you home across the sea. Now, here's a nut for you. When you cross over the middle of the sea, let it drop. A nut tree will instantly sprout out of the water, and the griffin will be able to rest on it. If he can't rest there, he won't be strong enough to carry you both across the sea. So if you forget to drop the nut into the sea, he'll let you fall into the water.”

She went there and found everything as the Night Wind had said. She counted the reeds by the sea, cut off the eleventh, and struck the dragon with it. Consequently, the lion defeated the dragon, and both immediately regained their human forms. But when the princess, who had previously been a dragon, was set free from the magic spell, she picked the prince up in her arms, got on the griffin, and carried him off with her. So the poor maiden, who had journeyed so far, stood alone and forsaken again. However, she said, “I'll keep going as far as the wind blows and so long as the cock crows until I find him.”