Opera Lover's Series: Tannhäuser

The Last Judgement, Fra Angelico

Deutsche Sagen, Jacob Grimm, Wilhelm Grimm (Brueder Grimm), 1816/18
No. 171

Noble Tannhäuser, a German knight, traveled through many countries and also spent time with the many beautiful women residing in Mistress Venus’s mountain. Passing the time among these fair ladies, he spent his hours gazing upon all the magnificent wonders. For some time he stayed there happily, but his conscience finally urged him to go out and reunite with the world. He longed to take his leave from Venus but she offered to give him anything his heart desired so he would stay. Finally she presented one of her companions to be his wife. He should only remember her red mouth and think of her red lips, which filled every hour with laughter. Tannhäuser replied that he did not desire any other woman than the one he intended for himself for he did not want to burn in eternal hell fire. The red mouth was not important to him. He could not remain because his life had become something sick and foul. But the devilish temptress tried to lure him into her chamber so they could continue to seek the pleasures of love. The noble knight scorned her loudly and called upon the Heavenly Virgin to bring an end to his misery. Filled with remorse, he made a pilgrimage to Rome to seek out Pope Urban. He would confess all his sins to him so that penance would be prescribed and his soul would be saved. But when he confessed that he had passed an entire year with Frau Venus in her mountain, the pope replied: “When this thin staff in my hand sprouts green leaves, then your sins shall be forgiven. Until then, you remain a sinner.” Tannhäuser replied: “And if I only have one year to live on earth, I should show such remorse and penance that God would have mercy on me.” Full of pain and suffering because the pope had damned him, he went out from that city and re-entered the devilish mountain with the intent to live there until eternity. Mistress Venus welcomed him, like one welcomes home a long lost lover. But on the third day the staff began to sprout green buds and the pope sent a message throughout all the countryside to find the noble knight Tannhäuser. But it was too late. He had returned to the Venusberg and to his life of pleasure. Now he must sit there until the Day of Judgement, when God will perhaps deal differently with him. A priest should not dispense such despair and misery to a sinner, but rather grant forgiveness when he comes in penance and remorse.

To read the Wartburg Singing War, Grimm's Saga No. 561, on which the opera Tannhäuser is also based, hit the link: Wartburg Singing War.

You also might be interested in reading  Grimm's Saga No. 542, Lohengrin from Brabant, click on the link.

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Of Fairies, Gnomes and Men

In addition to their pantheon of gods, ancient Germanic tribes acknowledged a number of supernatural beings, who were capable of help or harm. Air, meadow, forest, water, even the interior of the earth – in short, everything that surrounded them was populated by such beings. They were generally called Alben (goblins) or Elben (elves) and they inhabited the realm of light (Lichtalben) or darkness (Schwarzalben). Those inhabiting the realm of light lived in Lichtalbenheim, between Midgard and Asgard. They were delicate and gentle creatures of indescribable beauty. They seemed to be woven out of a sheer fabric of sunlight and vapor. They were so light and transparent, that when they landed in the calyx of a flower, it did not tremble. A dewdrop did not break when such a creature alighted on it but rather vibrated ever so slightly. More than anything else, the Light Elves or Light Fairies loved music and their greatest pleasure was dance and play. In forest clearings on quiet moonlit nights, they performed their round dances faster and faster, with ever-higher leaps into the air. Sometimes they preferred to sing their gentle songs quietly, sometimes with an even solemn grandeur. If they were disturbed by curious onlookers, they vanished immediately. Such troublemakers had to take care that the outraged elves did not seek to play some unkind prank in retaliation.

Schwarzalben or gnomes were different from their dear relatives the Light Fairies. The gods created them from the same dark fabric they used to make the monsters. They resided in Schwarzalbenheim, deep inside the earth. Many of them were so small, they could duck inside the shell of an acorn cap. They were a diminutive folk; an entire group could ride a ship fashioned from a leaf. When they celebrated a feast, the amount of water boiled in an egg-shell would be enough for all the guests. Others were about the size of a thumb but the largest among them rarely reached the height of a two-year-old child. They were ugly, their faces dark gray, ashen and full of wrinkles. Beards were wild and unkempt. They lived together in underground holes and the glitter of gold and precious stones that decorated their abodes was so radiant that they did not miss the light of day. Like the Light Fairies and Elves, they loved to dance and play in the moonlight. But they were mindful of the rising sun, for a single ray was enough to turn them to stone. Gnomes were masters of the art of finding precious stones and fashioning beautiful objects from them. They also used magic rings to uncover every treasure deep inside the earth. With their magic caps, they were able to make themselves invisible to humans.

Usually, gnomes were friendly toward humans. They richly rewarded anyone who helped them, but they did not like to be showered with gratitude. If they felt kindly toward a human, they would appear before him at night but never when the sun was shining. They did work for those they favored and it was always perfectly executed, much better than if human hands had performed the task. But woe to the man who offended them! He could be certain that the insulted dwarves would never forgive the misdeed and would seek revenge at every opportunity. They would milk the cows until their udders were dry and at night destroy all the work their enemies had finished the day before. Whatever they could steal, they carried off, including the baby in the cradle. When a human slept who had fallen from their graces, they sat on his chest and weighed down the unsuspecting slumberer like a stone. It was then said the goblin had been pressing again last night. People did everything in their power to ward off the vengeful gnomes, but this was an impossible thing to do. It was best not to kindle their wrath, but to submit to their will. There were many types of gnomes: so-called Heinzel-men, Wichtel-men, Klabauter-men (protective spirits of a ship) and Poltergeist.

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Reading Rumpelstiltskin

Rumpelstiltskin is an odd fellow. Sharing traits of both wild man and witch, he is indeed a rare breed of fairytale figure. It might be said that he represents two opposing attitudes toward paganism: on the one hand, paganism can be thought of as a virtuous and more natural way of life. On the other hand, it may also be associated with a demonic or unnatural lifestyle, one that should be shunned. Rumpelstiltskin does not fit neatly into the typical template for a fairytale fiend. He is a diligent worker, honest and true to his word. He is compassionate for he shows mercy to the queen and allows her to win back her child. We can only laud his priorities and agree with him when he says: “A living thing is more dear to me than all the treasures of the earth.”This is contrasted with the ignoble king, who loves gold above all else and only marries the miller’s daughter to enrich himself. He admits “Even if she is only a miller’s daughter, I will not find a richer woman in the whole world.”
And the queen might be quick-witted but is not necessarily a principled character. She relinquishes her first-born child because it is expedient and makes sense to her at the time.

The wild man of ancient mythology often appeared on German heraldic shields with uprooted tree in hand. He is wild, rough and crude like a satyr or faun and is associated with plants, trees and wild animals. But Rumpelstiltskin bakes and brews and this also connects him to witches, who frequently performed such tasks in fairy tales. Baking and brewing were essential tasks for survival in ancient cultures. It is very unusual to encounter a male witch in a German fairy tale and so it is worthwhile to read this story very carefully.

Another theme in Rumpelstiltskin is the power of language and naming things. But what exactly does the name Rumpelstiltskin mean? I have read several explanations, including one that interprets Rumpel as the sound made by little stilts (stiltzchen) or little legs of this diminutive character. It is impossible to ascribe a precise meaning to the name, but it does evoke the idea of a person of small stature and unknown magical properties. See commentary on The White Snake or Taboo for more on the topic of language and naming things.
There are several versions of the story. In the one printed here, Rumpelstiltskin is seized by such a powerful rage that he tears himself in two, an apt metaphor for two worldviews colliding and ripping apart the very essence of his being. In another version, he merely flies out the window on a spoon (reminiscent of a witch on a broomstick). His wretched lament at the end that “the devil told you” brings to mind a person indicting a world he doesn’t really understand or expect fair treatment from. He remains illusive but in the end, the story is still very entertaining.

To read the Brother Grimm's Version of Rumpelstiltskin, hit the link:
Rumpelstiltskin

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Grimm's Fairy Tale No. 55: Rumpelstiltskin

There was once a miller who was poor, but he had a beautiful daughter. Now it happened that he came into conversation with the king and to gain his favor told him “I have a daughter who can spin straw into gold.” The king replied “That is an art, which I hold dear. If your daughter is as clever as you say, bring her to my castle in the morning. I will test her skill.” When the maid was brought to him, he led her to a chamber, which was packed full with straw, gave her a spinning wheel and bobbin and said “Now get to work and if you do not spin this straw into gold by morning, you must die.” With that he closed the door to the chamber and she sat all alone.

The poor miller’s daughter sat quietly and did not know how to save her life. She knew nothing about how straw was spun to gold. Her fear grew until she finally began to cry bitterly. At once the door opened and a small man came inside. He spoke “Good evening, dear miller’s daughter, why are you crying so pitifully?”
“Oh,” the maid replied, “I must spin straw into gold and I don’t know how.” The little man spoke “What will you give me if I spin it for you?” “My necklace,” the maid replied. The little man took her necklace, sat in front of the wheel and whirr, whirr, whirr, the wheel turned three times and the spindle was full. Then he placed another spindle on the wheel and whirr, whirr, whirr, the wheel turned three times and the second spindle was also full. And so it continued until morning. All the straw was spun and all spindles were full of gold. When the sun went up the king entered the chamber. When he saw the gold, he was amazed and happy. But his heart was greedy for even more gold. He took the miller’s daughter to another chamber full of straw, which was even larger and commanded her to spin this too into gold if she cherished her life. The maid did not know what to do and cried bitter tears. The door opened once more and the small man appeared and said “What will you give me if I spin the straw into gold?” “The ring on my finger,” the maid replied. The little man took the ring and began once more to turn the wheel and had spun all the straw into brilliant gold by morning. The king’s joy was without bounds but he was still greedy for gold. He took the miller’s daughter to an even larger chamber full of straw and said “You must once more spin this night. But if you succeed you shall become my wife.” “Even if she is only a miller’s daughter,” he thought, “I will not find a richer woman in the whole world.” When the maid was once again alone, the little man came to her a third time and said “What will you give me if I spin the straw for you this time?” “I have nothing more that I can give,” the maid replied. “So promise me when you become queen that you will give me your first child.” “Who knows what will happen,” the miller’s daughter thought and she did not know what else to do. She promised the little man what he demanded and once more the little man spun the straw into gold. And in the morning the king came and found everything as he desired it. He celebrated his marriage with her and the beautiful miller’s daughter became queen.

Over a year later the queen bore a beautiful child and she didn’t even think about the little man again. Suddenly he entered her chamber and said “Now give me what you have promised.” The queen recoiled in fear and offered the little man all the riches of the kingdom if he would leave her the child. But the little man replied: “No, a living thing is more dear to me than all the treasures of the earth.” The queen began to weep and wail, so that the little man had compassion for her. “I will give you three days time,” he said. “If you know my name by then, you shall keep your child.”

The entire night through the queen recalled all the names she had ever heard and sent a messenger throughout the land to find all the names that existed far and wide. When the little man returned the next day, she began with Caspar, Melchior, Balzer and said all the names that she knew in order. But each time the little man said “My name that is not.” The second day she asked around the neighborhood, what people were called there and recited to the little man the most unusual and strange names. “Are you perhaps called Beastyrib or Lambchop or Stringbone? But he always replied “My name that is not.” On the third day, the messenger returned and said “I could not find out any new names, but when I reached a high mountain and came around a bend in the wood, where fox and hare say goodnight to each other, I saw a small hut and in front of the hut burned a fire and around the fire jumped a funny little man. He hopped on one leg and cried:

“Today I bake, tomorrow I brew,
Next, the queen’s child is mine;
How good it is that no one knows
Rumpelstiltskin is my name!”

You can imagine how happy the queen was when she heard the name. And soon after the little man entered her chamber and asked “Now, Mistress Queen, what is my name?” She first asked “Is your name Kunz?” “No.” “Is your name Heinz?” “No”.

“Is your name perhaps Rumpelstiltskin?”

“The devil told you, the devil told you,” the little man cried and in his rage stamped his little foot so with such force that he sank into the ground up to his waist. Then he stamped his left foot into the ground in rage and with both hands tore himself in two.


To read more about Rumpelstiltskin:

http://www.fairytalechannel.com/2008/05/reading-rumpelstiltzchen.html

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The Lorelei

Source: Ludwig Bechstein, German Saga Book, Leipzig 1853
The Lorelei (or Lurlei)

The Rhine River flows through a valley and pushes through jagged cliffs at its narrowest point near Kaub. At this lonesome place echoes reverberate off the black stone and mournful sounds ricochet upward. The river flows faster and the waves swell noisily here; then they hit the jagged rock and form a foaming eddy. The gorge is eerie and the current quick. A story is told about the beautiful water nymph of the Rhine, the dangerous Lurlei or Lorelei, who was been banished to these cliffs. She often appears to passing ships, combing her long golden hair, which shines radiantly like the bright harvest moon. She sings a sweet, beguiling song. Those who are lured to the rock, attempt to climb the cliff and fall to their death in the maelstrom of waves below. Upstream and downstream all folk speak of the Lorelei. She is most like an echo emanating from the cliff wall. Her song breaks like the waves and then repeats itself over and over. Many poets have described her charms but she remains illusive.

Lorelei is the Nymph of the Rhine. Whoever sees her and hears her song, loses his heart. High above on the highest peak of the cliff you can see a maiden in white, with flowing veil and hair, waving her arms in a beckoning gesture. But whenever someone approaches or climbs the cliff peaks, she retreats. She lures unsuspecting youth to the abrupt abyss with her supernatural beauty. The beholder only has eyes for the Lorelei and as he approaches, he believes he is standing on firm ground but takes one step forward and is dashed to the rocks below.

Some folk say that the devil himself once steered a ship down the Rhine and arrived between the Lorelei rocks. The passage seemed too narrow and he wanted to take the boat out farther, either toward the adjacent rock or break against it so that the boat would block the river and make it unnavigable. He turned his back on the Lorelei cliff and pushed himself toward the adjacent mountain. This cliff began to sway when the Lorelei started her song. The devil heard her singing and a strange feeling overcame him. He concentrated on his work but was only able to withstand the song with enormous effort. His greatest desire was to win the Lorelei as his own and kidnap her, but he had no power over her. He became so agitated that steam could be seen rising from his body. When Lorelei ended her song, he hastened away; he had already come to believe that he would have to stay forever banished at that rock. But as he slipped away, a miracle occurred. His entire shape including his forked tail left a black imprint on the cliff wall. Today, this image still marks his visit to the Lorelei. After this encounter, the devil took enormous care never to approach the siren song of the Rhine again. He was afraid of being seized by her power and being pulled into the eddy of chaos and enchantment, would cease to be able to perform his work. The Lorelei, however, still sings in the moonlight on quiet evenings. She is seen on the peak of the cliff and awaits her coming redemption. But those who love her, the beguiled, have all died out. Today the world has no time to climb her cliff or approach her in the moonlight. The wheels of the steamship turn, boats still pass by, but now without stopping. Through the swell of the waves you can no longer hear the voice of the nymph’s sweet song. 

Fairy Tale Factum

Ironically, the very steamships that the author bemoans created a new generation of Lorelei admirers in the 19th century. Flocks of tourists were now able to float down the the Rhine River leisurely and admire its charms. With Heine's poem in hand, The Lorelei, they passed jagged cliffs, picturesque villages and sleepy castles that dotted the Rhine Valley. From the comfort of a cruise ship, this new generation rediscovered national myth. Alexander Dumas, writing about the Germans love affair with the Rhine wrote of "the profound veneration" they held for the river. "The Rhine is might; it is independence, it is liberty; it has passions like a man or rather like a God. .. It is an object of fear or hope, a symbol of love or hate, the principle of life and death." Modernity, it turns out, did not kill myth but rather rekindled interest. (From: Landscape and Memory, Simon Schama, Vintage Books)

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Grimm's Saga No. 221: The Snake Queen

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The Snake Queen

Once a shepherdess found a sick snake lying high up on a rocky cliff, fading fast. The maid took pity and offered the creature her milk can. The snake lapped up the milk hungrily and soon regained strength. The maiden continued on her way and it was not long after that her lover asked for her hand in marriage. But to her rich, proud father, the suitor was too poor and thus was mockingly rejected. He was told to come back when he owned as much cattle as the old herdsman. From that moment on, the old farmer had no luck but only misfortune. It was said at night that a firey dragon hovered over his fields and soon his property lay in ruins. But the poor youth became very rich and once more asked for the maid’s hand in marriage, which was now granted. On the wedding day a snake appeared in the room, on its coiled tail was a beautiful maiden, who said it was she whom the kind shepherdess had fed milk when she lay starving. Full of gratitude she took her brilliant crown from her head and threw it into the bride’s lap. The Queen Snake immediately vanished but the young couple were blessed with abundance in their household and they were very prosperous all their lives.

Snakes and Milk? Where did this come from?
A friend in India writes the following:
On Naag Panchami (Naag in Hindi means snake), we feed snakes milk. It’s symbolic as snakes don’t drink milk. The snake charmers just take the milk with them. Naag Panchami follows some time after the Spring festival. Snakes are sacred to us so we worship them. They are the companion of Lord Shiva. Lord Shiva is a Hindu God; he wears snakes as garlands.

Thank you reader in India for this wonderful contribution! It is interesting to see the overlap between Swiss and Indian traditions. In fact, I was quite surprised to hear this!

The same reader has sent me an Indian folk tale about a snake. It's wonderful!:
The story tells a different aspect of snake behavior.Though we are all scared of snakes but in the story it is shown that snakes do have feelings of pity and forgiveness.A similar story I would like to narrate which is famous in India. This has been taken from" Panchatantra " a fairytale book famous in India.

"There was once a Brahmin(upper caste person) who had two daughters .The elder daughter was from his first wife ,who died many years ago, while the second daughter was from his second wife who was alive. His wife didnot love the elder daughter.So one day she sent the elder daughter to a forest to fetch some water.In the forest the elder daughter found a snake, who was going to die, but the good girl fed it water and the snake regained its posture, the snake asked the girl if she would marry him? The daughter took the snake to her parents and told them about its proposal. Her step mother immediately agreed as she wanted to get rid of her stepdaughter. So the marriage between the girl and snake took place. They were given a separate room. The snake went inside the room , while the girl had some work to do so after a few minutes she too went into the room. To her surprise instead of a snake she found a handsome young man and the snake skin was lying aside. She immediately took the snake skin and burnt it. The young man was so happy , then he told her that actually he was a prince but was cursed to be a snake and his curse has now been broken .The prince and his wife the lived happily ever after"
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Reading the White Snake

For the Western mind, it is hard to read The White Snake without noticing the abundance of references to one of the most famous Biblical stories of all, the creation story.

In the book of Genesis, God planted a garden that contained many trees but two trees bore distinction: the Tree of Life and the Tree of Knowledge. The Tree of Life offered immortality to persons who ate its fruit, or put in another way, they were unable to die. The Tree of Knowledge conveyed an understanding of good and bad. The serpent uses language to speak to Eve and tempt her. Remarkably, Eve understands the serpent’s language immediately.* This understanding of serpent speech causes the first humans to eat the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge and leads to man’s downfall. Speech and language are an integral part of the creation story. Here, the first instances of language are described: God speaking (“Let there be light”) and man speaking (naming the animals). God’s language brings into being, creating essences and the cosmos. Man’s language names and designates things.

In The White Snake we encounter the same elements: snake, language/speech, tree and apple. They are similar but somehow different and strange here.
Germanic tribes believed that men were created out of trees. The cosmos were actually a giant ash tree. Its branches shaded the earth and extended up into heaven The Tree of Life (or World Tree) had three roots. One extended down to Midgard the realm of men. A second root reached into Joetunheim, or the realm of giants. The third root extended into the underworld. The cosmos were under continuous threat, for the roots of the tree were gnawed by a giant worm or snake.
Iduna, the goddess of health, eternal youth and immortality was referred to as the “Evergreen”. She was indispensable to the gods, because she tended the garden and was in charge of the precious golden apples, which the gods needed to preserve their eternal youth. Once robbed of these fruits, the gods became old, their hair gray, their faces ashen and full of wrinkles. In the Fairy Tale The White Snake, the youth must first acquire knowledge (of languages) by eating the snake (not the apple). To prove himself a worthy husband he must then acquire the golden apple, conferring health, happiness and eternal youth.

*In some traditions, Adam and Eve had the innate ability to understand animal languages when they lived in Paradise. They lost this ability after the Fall.

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Grimm's Fairy Tale No. 17: The White Snake

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A very long time ago a king lived, whose wisdom was renowned throughout the entire land. There was nothing he did not know and it was as if news of the most hidden things was carried to him through the air. He had a very strange habit. Every afternoon, when everything was carried away from his dinner table and no one was present, he had a trustworthy servant bring him one more bowl. But the bowl was covered and the servant himself did not know what was under the lid for the king kept it closed and would not eat from the bowl until he was completely alone. This went on for some time until one day the servant who was carrying the bowl away was gripped by a curiosity he could not resist. He took the bowl into his chamber. When he had carefully closed the door he raised the lid and looked underneath and there lay a white snake. As he gazed upon it he could not restrain his desire to taste some. He carefully cut off a piece and placed it in his mouth. It had barely touched his tongue when he heard the strange whisper of fine voices. He went toward the sound and listened. He noticed that the sound was coming from sparrows, which were talking to each other and were telling everything they had seen in field and forest. Eating the snake had given him the ability to understand the language of animals.

Now it happened that just at that time the queen had lost her most beautiful ring and the suspicion of theft fell on the trusted servant, who had access to everything. The king called him to appear before him and threatened him under harsh words that if the culprit was not found by the morning, he would be considered the guilty one and charged. It didn’t help for him to assert his innocence. He was left with no better prospects. In his trouble and fear he went down to the courtyard and considered what he could do to alleviate his troubles. The ducks sat peacefully near the pond and rested, they preened their feathers with their bills and while resting, held a confidential conversation. The servant stood still and listened. They told each other how they had all waddled out in the morning and found such good food. One said sorrowfully, “How heavy it lays in my stomach, for in my haste I swallowed a ring, which lay under the queen’s window.” The servant immediately grabbed the duck by its neck, carried it into the kitchen and ordered the cook “Kill this one, for its plump and ready.”
“Yes,” the cook replied and weighed it in his hand. “This one wasted no time in fattening itself and should have been roasted a long time ago.” He cut off its head and when it had been removed, he found the queen’s ring in the duck’s stomach. The servant could now easily prove his innocence to the king. The king, who wanted to make good the injustice done to the servant, permitted him to request a favor and promised him the best honorary position at his court.

But the servant ruled out everything the king proposed. He asked for only a horse and travel money because he wanted to see the world and wander for a while. When his request had been fulfilled, he made his way and arrived at a pond where he noticed three fish, which had become entrapped in a pipe and were gasping for water. Although it was said that fish were without speech, he could understand their laments that they should die such a pitiable death. Because he had a compassionate heart, he dismounted and set the three captives back in the water. They wriggled and splashed for joy, stretched their heads out of the water and called to him, “We shall thank you and yours, that you have saved us.” He rode on and after a while it seemed as if he heard a voice at his feet in the sand. He listened carefully and heard how the ant king cried “If only men with their clumsy animals would stop stepping on us! The stupid horse with his heavy hooves is kicking my people without any mercy!” He turned to take a side path and the ant king called to him “We will remember you and yours.” The path led to a forest and there in the woods sat a raven father and raven mother; they stood by their nest and threw out their young. “Away with you, you gallows birds,” they cried. “We can no longer feed you until you are satisfied. You are big enough and can feed yourself.” The poor birds fell to the ground and fluttered and beat their feathers and cried “We helpless children, we should feed ourselves and can’t even fly! What else can we do but die of hunger here!” The good youth dismounted, killed his horse with his sword and left it to the ravens for food. They hopped toward him, ate their fill and cried “We will remember you and yours!”

Now he had to use his own legs and when he had walked a long way he came to a large city. There was much noise and the streets were filled with people. A rider pushed his way through the throng and announced that the king’s daughter was looking for a husband, but whoever would woo her must complete a difficult task. If he could not accomplish it with success, he would lose his life. Many had already tried and wagered their lives for naught. When the youth gazed upon the king’s daughter, he was blinded by her radiant beauty. He forgot the danger and went before the king and announced himself a suitor.

No sooner said than he was taken to the sea and before his eyes a golden ring was thrown into the waves. The king ordered him to fetch the ring from the ocean floor and added, “If you return to the water’s surface without the ring, you will be sent back to the ocean’s depths where you will die in the waves.” Everyone regretted the demise of the beautiful youth and left him standing on the beach by himself. He stood and considered what to do for he saw three fish swimming and they were no others than those whose life he had saved. The middle fish held a shell in his mouth, which he placed on the shore at the feet of the youth. When the youth picked up the shell and opened it, the golden ring lay inside. Full of joy he brought it to the king and expected him to grant him the said reward. But the proud king’s daughter, when she heard that he was not of equal birth, scorned him and demanded that he should fulfill another task. She went down to the garden and spread ten sacks full of millet in the grass. “You must pick up the millet by tomorrow before the sun comes up,” she said, “and no grain may be missing.” The youth sat in the garden and thought about how he could complete the task. But he could think of nothing and sat sadly. He awaited his death at the break of dawn. When the first sun beams fell in the garden, he saw the ten sacks and all were standing full next to each other. Not a granule was missing. The ant king with his thousand upon thousand of ants had arrived at night and the grateful animals had gathered the millet with enormous diligence. The king’s daughter came down to the garden herself and with wonder gazed upon the youth and saw he had accomplished what had been set before him. But she could not overcome her proud heart and spoke “He has solved both tasks, but he shall not become my husband until he has brought be an apple from the tree of life.” The youth did not know where the tree of life stood but took up the journey. He thought he would walk as long as his legs could carry him, but he had no hope of ever finding the tree of life. When he had already walked through three kingdoms and arrived in a forest in the evening, he sat under a tree and wanted to go to sleep. Suddenly he heard a noise in the branches above and a golden apple fell into his hands. Three ravens flew down to him and sat on his knee and said “We are three young ravens, who you saved from starvation. When we grew up and heard that you were looking for the golden apple, we flew over the ocean to the end of the earth where the tree of life stands and have brought you the apple.” Full of joy the youth made his way home and brought the beautiful king’s daughter the golden apple. Now there was no excuse. They divided the apple of life and ate it together. Her heart was filled with love for him and together they lived to old age in undisturbed happiness.

Saint Severus and The Three Languages

The fairy tale The Three Languages roughly follows the life of Saint Severus, whose relics were translated to the Severikirche in Erfurt, Germany sometime after 836 A.D. (See article below for details).
There are several churches in Germany that have been dedicated to the Saint, including those in Blankenhain, Boppard, Otterndorf, Gemuenden and Fulda. Saint Severus can also be seen in mosaic in the Basilica San Vitale in Ravenna, Italy, where he appears with dove on shoulder.

In the world of the fairy tale, the acquisition of languages (especially the knowledge of animal languages) was held in high regard. According to earliest traditions, gods and men spoke different languages. Folklore and mythology mention several ways to acquire the understanding of animal tongues; two of these methods involve snakes. Consuming the flesh of a white snake supposedly granted men the power to understand animal language. Another way was to have your ears licked by a snake. In the fairy tale appearing next week, The White Snake, the hero prevails because of his compassionate heart* and the special linguistic abilities he acquires after eating a white snake. (For the full text of The Three Languages, scroll down or hit the link to the right.)

* Compassion in a fairy tale comes in many startling forms. It may even involve committing acts which today seem cruel, barbaric or totally incomprehensible.

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