78 lines
4.8 KiB
Text
78 lines
4.8 KiB
Text
The Seven Ravens
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There was once a man who had seven sons, and still he had no daughter,
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however much he wished for one. At length his wife again gave him hope
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of a child, and when it came into the world it was a girl. The joy was
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great, but the child was sickly and small, and had to be privately
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baptized on account of its weakness. The father sent one of the boys in
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haste to the spring to fetch water for the baptism. The other six went
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with him, and as each of them wanted to be first to fill it, the jug
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fell into the well. There they stood and did not know what to do, and
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none of them dared to go home. As they still did not return, the father
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grew impatient, and said, "They have certainly forgotten it for some
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game, the wicked boys!" He became afraid that the girl would have to
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die without being baptized, and in his anger cried, "I wish the boys
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were all turned into ravens." Hardly was the word spoken before he
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heard a whirring of wings over his head in the air, looked up and saw
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seven coal-black ravens flying away. The parents could not recall the
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curse, and however sad they were at the loss of their seven sons, they
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still to some extent comforted themselves with their dear little
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daughter, who soon grew strong and every day became more beautiful. For
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a long time she did not know that she had had brothers, for her parents
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were careful not to mention them before her, but one day she
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accidentally heard some people saying of herself, "that the girl was
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certainly beautiful, but that in reality she was to blame for the
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misfortune which had befallen her seven brothers." Then she was much
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troubled, and went to her father and mother and asked if it was true
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that she had had brothers, and what had become of them? The parents now
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dared keep the secret no longer, but said that what had befallen her
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brothers was the will of Heaven, and that her birth had only been the
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innocent cause. But the maiden took it to heart daily, and thought she
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must deliver her brothers. She had no rest or peace until she set out
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secretly, and went forth into the wide world to trace out her brothers
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and set them free, let it cost what it might. She took nothing with her
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but a little ring belonging to her parents as a keepsake, a loaf of
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bread against hunger, a little pitcher of water against thirst, and a
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little chair as a provision against weariness.
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And now she went continually onwards, far, far to the very end of the
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world. Then she came to the sun, but it was too hot and terrible, and
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devoured little children. Hastily she ran away, and ran to the moon,
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but it was far too cold, and also awful and malicious, and when it saw
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the child, it said, "I smell, I smell the flesh of men." On this she
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ran swiftly away, and came to the stars, which were kind and good to
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her, and each of them sat on its own particular little chair. But the
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morning star arose, and gave her the drumstick of a chicken, and said,
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"If you thou hast not that drumstick thou canst not open the Glass
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mountain, and in the Glass mountain are thy brothers."
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The maiden took the drumstick, wrapped it carefully in a cloth, and
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went onwards again until she came to the Glass mountain. The door was
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shut, and she thought she would take out the drumstick; but when she
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undid the cloth, it was empty, and she had lost the good star's
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present. What was she now to do? She wished to rescue her brothers, and
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had no key to the Glass mountain. The good sister took a knife, cut off
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one of her little fingers, put it in the door, and succeeded in opening
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it. When she had gone inside, a little dwarf came to meet her, who
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said, "My child, what are you looking for?" "I am looking for my
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brothers, the seven ravens," she replied. The dwarf said, "The lord
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ravens are not at home, but if you will wait here until they come, step
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in." Thereupon the little dwarf carried the ravens' dinner in, on seven
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little plates, and in seven little glasses, and the little sister ate a
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morsel from each plate, and from each little glass she took a sip, but
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in the last little glass she dropped the ring which she had brought
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away with her.
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Suddenly she heard a whirring of wings and a rushing through the air,
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and then the little dwarf said, "Now the lord ravens are flying home."
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Then they came, and wanted to eat and drink, and looked for their
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little plates and glasses. Then said one after the other, "Who has
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eaten something from my plate? Who has drunk out of my little glass? It
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was a human mouth." And when the seventh came to the bottom of the
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glass, the ring rolled against his mouth. Then he looked at it, and saw
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that it was a ring belonging to his father and mother, and said, "God
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grant that our sister may be here, and then we shall be free." When the
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maiden, who was standing behind the door watching, heard that wish, she
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came forth, and on this all the ravens were restored to their human
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form again. And they embraced and kissed each other, and went joyfully
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home.
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