Deep inside a forest, three beautiful maidens live under the control of an old woman who forces them to spin golden flax. When a lost prince meets the youngest sister, the two fall in love. Their happiness is short-lived, however, as the old woman’s magic separates them. The prince must discover how to break the enchantment and rescue his beloved.
The Three Gold-Spinners
Once upon a time, an old woman lived in a hut hidden deep within a great forest. Three beautiful maidens lived with her, and the youngest was the fairest of them all.
The old woman made the sisters work from morning until night, spinning golden flax into fine thread. Whenever one distaff was emptied, she supplied another. The finished yarn was locked away in a secret chamber, and the maidens never learned where the golden flax came from or what the old woman intended to do with it.
Several times each summer, the old woman travelled away from the hut. Before each journey, she left enough work to keep the sisters busy throughout her absence.
She also repeated a strict warning. They must never let their eyes wander from their work or speak to a man. If they disobeyed, their golden thread would lose its brightness, and misfortune would follow.
The sisters found the warning strange. They lived in such a secluded part of the forest that they rarely saw anyone, let alone a man. Nevertheless, they remembered her words whenever she left.
One summer, the old woman departed after giving each sister six days’ work. The maidens expected another uneventful period of spinning, but an unexpected visitor soon changed their lives.
The Lost Prince
On the third day of the old woman’s absence, a young prince went hunting in the forest. He became separated from his companions and wandered until he could no longer find his way.
Exhausted, he lay beneath a tree and fell asleep while his horse grazed nearby.
When he awoke, the sun had set. He searched for a path through the trees and eventually discovered a narrow track leading to the maidens’ hut.
The two elder sisters were alarmed when they saw him approaching. They remembered the old woman’s warning and urged their youngest sister to remain inside.
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The youngest, however, was curious. She had never met anyone like the prince and wanted to speak with him.
When he reached the hut, she greeted him kindly and listened as he explained that he had lost his way. He was hungry and tired, so she brought him food and offered him a place to rest.
The two talked for hours. The prince found her company delightful, and she was equally pleased to have met him. Neither noticed how quickly the time passed.
Meanwhile, the prince’s companions searched the forest without success. They eventually sent messengers to the king, who ordered soldiers to look for his missing son.
Three days passed before the search party found the hut. The prince had been so absorbed in the maiden’s company that the time had seemed to him no longer than an hour.
Before leaving, he promised to return for her and take her to his father’s court, where he would make her his bride.
The maiden watched him depart with a joyful heart. Then she returned to her spinning wheel, hoping to make up for the work she had neglected.
The Golden Thread Loses Its Brightness
When the youngest sister examined her yarn, she discovered that its golden brightness had faded.
She remembered the old woman’s warning and began to weep. She feared that the strange meeting would bring terrible consequences, and she could not stop thinking about the prince.
That night, the old woman returned to the hut. She noticed the tarnished thread immediately and understood that the youngest maiden had disobeyed her instructions.
Her anger was fierce. She blamed the girl for bringing misfortune upon herself and the prince.
The maiden could no longer bear the uncertainty. She needed to warn the prince and find out whether anything could be done to protect them both.
Fortunately, she had learned to understand the language of birds during her childhood. Seeing a raven perched on a pine branch, she called to it and asked for help.
She instructed the bird to fly to the prince’s palace and tell him that a terrible misfortune had befallen her. The raven agreed and flew away.
By good fortune, the bird found the son of a wind wizard in the palace garden. He understood the speech of birds and passed the message to the prince.
The prince was deeply troubled. After considering how to rescue the maiden, he asked the wind wizard’s son to send a message back through the raven.
The bird returned to the forest and told the maiden to be ready on the ninth night. The prince would come with a party of armed men and take her away.
The Witch’s Magic Ball
As the appointed night approached, the maiden grew increasingly anxious. She feared that the old woman might discover her plans or find some way to prevent her escape.
When the ninth night arrived, she slipped quietly out of the hut and waited among the trees.
Soon, she heard the muffled sound of horses. The prince arrived with an armed company, having marked the trees along the route beforehand so that he could find his way out of the forest.
When he saw the maiden, he sprang from his horse, lifted her into the saddle and climbed up behind her. Together, they rode towards the edge of the forest beneath the bright moon.
For a time, everything went well. The maiden and the prince were so happy to be together that they paid little attention to the birds calling in the trees.
The old woman soon discovered that the youngest sister had escaped. She was not an ordinary old woman but a wicked witch, and she was determined to punish the fugitives.
She gathered nine different kinds of poisonous nightshade, added enchanted salt and wrapped everything into a small ball. Then she sent it after the prince and the maiden on the wings of the wind.
At midday, the prince and his company reached a deep river crossed by a narrow bridge. Only one rider could cross at a time.
The prince and the maiden were halfway across when the magic ball swept past them. Their horse reared in fright and threw the maiden into the rushing water below.
The prince immediately tried to leap after her, but his men restrained him. Despite his desperate struggles, they carried him back to the palace.
The maiden disappeared beneath the current, leaving the prince heartbroken.
A Prince Overcome by Grief
For six weeks, the prince shut himself away in a secret chamber. He refused to eat or drink, and his grief became so severe that the king feared he would die.
The king summoned the wizards of his country, hoping one of them could cure his son. None succeeded.
At last, the wind wizard’s son advised the king to send for an old wizard from Finland, whose knowledge surpassed that of the other wizards.
The Finnish wizard arrived a week later. He explained that the prince’s suffering had been brought about by the wind and the magic ball that had taken away his beloved.
His advice was simple. The prince needed to go outside and allow the wind to blow upon him until his sorrow began to lift.
The king followed the advice, and the prince gradually recovered his strength. He told his father what had happened, but the king urged him to forget the maiden and marry someone else.
The prince refused. He could not imagine loving another woman.
A year passed, but his feelings remained unchanged.
The Song Beneath the Bridge
One day, the prince rode through the forest and reached the bridge where his beloved had fallen into the river.
Memories of that terrible day returned, and he began to weep. As he stood beside the water, he thought he heard a woman singing a sorrowful song.
He looked around but could see no one.
Then the voice sang again, lamenting that the singer had been bewitched and abandoned, and that her beloved had made no effort to rescue her.
The prince searched beneath the bridge. There was no woman there, only a yellow water-lily floating on the surface, partly concealed by its broad leaves.
He could scarcely believe that a flower could sing. Yet the lament continued, and he recognised the voice as belonging to the maiden he had lost.
Suddenly, he remembered the two elder sisters. They might know what had happened and how the enchantment could be broken.
He rode back to the hut and found the sisters beside their fountain. He explained how the youngest had fallen into the river and described the mysterious song he had heard.
The sisters recognised the water-lily as their missing sibling. She had not drowned, they explained, but had been transformed by the witch’s magic ball.
They also told the prince that they remained trapped under the old woman’s power. If he could rescue their sister, they hoped he would return and free them as well.
The Birds Reveal the Secret
Before the prince went to bed, the eldest sister prepared a cake made from magical herbs and gave it to him.
That night, he dreamed that he was living in the forest and could understand everything the birds said to one another.
When he awoke, the sisters explained that the enchanted cake had given him this ability. They advised him to listen carefully to the birds because they might know how to rescue the water-lily.
The prince returned to the palace and rode through the forest, listening to the conversations around him.
He soon heard a thrush speaking to a magpie. The birds discussed the maiden’s fate and wondered why no one had rescued her, even though her sad song could be heard from the bridge.
The magpie explained that the prince was partly to blame for her continued suffering. He had heard her singing but had failed to understand what it meant.
The birds agreed that the old wizard of Finland could explain how to break the enchantment.
The prince wanted to send a message to Finland. Just then, he heard two swallows discussing a journey there.
He called to them and asked whether they would carry a message to the wizard. The swallows agreed, and he begged them to ask how he could restore a maiden who had been transformed into a flower.
The birds flew away with his request.
The Wizard’s Instructions
Some time later, the prince was sitting in the palace garden when an eagle descended and perched on a nearby tree.
The eagle brought a message from the wizard of Finland. The wizard had discovered how the maiden could be restored, but the prince would have to perform a dangerous task.
First, he must cover himself with mud and speak the words that would transform him from a man into a crab. Then he must enter the river and swim towards the roots of the water-lily.
The roots were firmly fixed in the mud and reeds. He would have to loosen them carefully, grasp the plant and bring it to the surface so that the water flowed over its leaves.
The current would carry him downstream until he reached a mountain ash tree growing beside a large stone. There, he must speak the words that would restore both himself and the maiden to their proper forms.
The instructions frightened the prince. He hesitated, wondering whether he could complete such a difficult task.
For a while, he did nothing. Then a crow rebuked him for his delay and reminded him that the wizard’s advice was trustworthy.
The prince finally resolved to act. He believed that death would be preferable to a lifetime of sorrow and returned to the bridge.
The Water-Lily Is Restored
The prince heard the maiden’s lament once more. This time, he did not hesitate.
He covered himself with mud, spoke the words that changed him into a crab and plunged into the river.
He swam towards the water-lily and began loosening its roots. The work proved difficult because they were deeply embedded in the mud and tangled among the reeds.
At last, he freed the plant and brought it to the surface. Holding the roots, he allowed the water to wash over the flower as the current carried him downstream.
For some time, he could not see the mountain ash tree described by the wizard. Eventually, he spotted it on the left bank, with a large stone nearby.
He stopped beside the tree and spoke the words the wizard had given him.
In an instant, the prince regained his human form, and the water-lily became the maiden he loved.
She was more beautiful than before, dressed in a pale yellow robe that sparkled with jewels. She thanked the prince for freeing her from the witch’s power and gladly agreed to marry him.
The prince had believed that he had spent only a few hours beneath the water. In reality, more than ten days had passed, and his horse had disappeared from the bridge.
As the couple wondered how they would return to the king’s court, a splendid coach drawn by six decorated horses appeared along the riverbank. They climbed inside and travelled to the palace.
The king and queen were at church, mourning their son, whom they had long believed dead. Their joy was overwhelming when he returned, leading the beautiful maiden by the hand.
The wedding was celebrated at once, and feasting and merrymaking continued throughout the kingdom for six weeks.
The Gold-Spinners Win Their Freedom
Some time after the wedding, the prince and his bride sat together in the garden. A crow appeared and reminded them of the two sisters who had helped them during their troubles.
The prince had promised to return for them, but happiness had caused him to forget his obligation.
Ashamed of his neglect, he immediately set out for the forest. By good fortune, he reached the hut while the old witch was away.
The two sisters had dreamed that he was coming and were ready to leave. Before departing, however, they prepared a cake containing poison and left it where the witch would find it.
When the old woman returned, she saw the cake and ate it greedily. The poison killed her, ending her cruel control over the maidens.
The prince and the three sisters searched the secret chamber and discovered an enormous store of golden flax. They found fifty wagon-loads inside, with an equal amount buried elsewhere.
The hut was destroyed, and the sisters were finally free from their captivity.
The prince returned to his kingdom with his bride and her two sisters. They lived happily ever after, no longer threatened by the wicked witch who had controlled their lives.
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Moral Lesson
Love and perseverance can inspire people to face dangers they might otherwise avoid. The prince’s determination leads him to seek help, learn the language of birds and risk his life to rescue the maiden. The tale also emphasises the importance of keeping promises and remembering those who helped us in times of difficulty.
Knowledge Check
1. Why did the three maidens have to spin golden flax?
The old woman who controlled them forced them to spin from morning until night and locked away the finished yarn.
2. How did the prince meet the youngest maiden?
He became lost while hunting in the forest and found his way to the hut where she and her sisters lived.
3. What happened when the prince and the maiden tried to escape?
The old witch sent an enchanted ball after them. Their frightened horse reared on a narrow bridge and threw the maiden into the river.
4. How did the prince discover the maiden’s fate?
He heard a mysterious song beside the bridge and discovered a yellow water-lily. The maiden’s sisters explained that she had been transformed by the witch’s magic.
5. What did the wizard of Finland instruct the prince to do?
He told the prince to transform himself into a crab, free the water-lily’s roots and carry it downstream to a mountain ash tree, where he could break the spell.
6. How did the three sisters finally gain their freedom?
After the prince returned to the hut, the sisters left a poisoned cake for the witch. She ate it and died, allowing them to escape their captivity.
Source
“The Water-Lily. The Gold-Spinners” appears in The Blue Fairy Book (1889), edited by Andrew Lang.
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