Heart of stone - German fairy tale. The petrified kingdom - Russian folk tale Petrified heart fairy tale

There was a knight in the world who wanted to become famous and become the first in his country. He often said that he was ready for any sacrifice for wealth and power. Nevertheless, he was kind, just, and compassionate, and loved by all who depended on him. By the way, he dealt mercifully with a poor coal miner who lived with his family in the forest. The poor man could not pay taxes to the knight, and the managers wanted to sell all his things and drive them out of the forest.
Maria, the coal miner's daughter, decided to go to the knight and ask him to take pity on her father. The knight listened to her and ordered his managers not to touch the coal miner and his family. In addition, he gave her money and sent everything she needed to her sick mother.
Once the knight went hunting in the forest. He chased a beautiful deer and got lost. Trying to get out of the thicket, he fell into a swamp and almost drowned in a viscous bog. When he managed to get out on solid ground again, he noticed the lights that jumped back and forth. These were wandering lights. And suddenly they laughed and shouted:
- You almost fell into our hands. But we do not want your death. On the contrary, we will make you powerful and rich, only for this give us your heart. Instead, we will put a stone in your chest.
They laughed, trembled, and a whole rain of gold pieces fell all around. The offer of lights seemed tempting to the knight. He agreed, especially since the wandering lights did not say they would hurt him. They surrounded him and began to breathe into his face. He felt dizzy and fell unconscious.
When the knight came to himself, he noticed that everything had changed. The beauty of the forest, the sweet singing of birds did not please him anymore, when his horse stumbled, he brutally beat her. On the high road, he met peasants, they bowed to him, but he did not thank them for their greetings and only cast an angry glance.
And so it was now always. Nothing amused the knight anymore. He forgot how to laugh, but he was not afraid of anything, never cared about anything, did not worry, did not feel sorry for anyone, did not show compassion to anyone. And no wonder: there was a cold stone heart in his chest.
He became a cruel master for his subjects. A watchman walked along its tower, who looked to see if the wagonload of wandering merchants, fearfully passing by the castle, seemed loaded with goods. When the sound of the watchman's horn was heard, the knight armed his soldiers and squires and jumped on his horse. Hiding in ambush, he lay in wait for arriving carts and attacked them. He robbed and killed, took rich merchants to the castle and, in anticipation of ransom, imprisoned them in underground dungeons.
All goods, all treasures were appropriated by this robber. However, he gave a small part of the stolen goods to his people. His prisoners sat in prisons, eating bread and water. They were released only when they were able to pay a large ransom.
The knight became unusually powerful and rich. Everyone was afraid of him, but they considered him the worst of the bad. This did not bother him. He didn't care what people thought of him. However, the stolen treasures did not please him. Now nothing gave him pleasure. He did not love anyone, he never smiled, his heart knew only cruelty. Many became unhappy because of him, but he himself was the most unhappy of all, since a stone heart pressed on his chest.
Everyone hated him now. Only Mary continued to love the knight and did not forget his good deeds. She was very sad when they told her about his cruelty, and, without ceasing, prayed for him, asking Heaven to make him again the same as he was before.
Once she met him in the forest. Shyly and respectfully, Maria stepped aside and bowed deeply. Noticing the basket in her hands, the knight asked what she was carrying.
“Only berries and mushrooms that I gathered in the forest, sir,” she said.
- How dare you do it? he shouted in rage. - Everything that grows in the forest is mine. You stole my mushrooms and berries, and I will punish you for that.
He tore the basket out of her hands, scattered mushrooms and berries, knocked the girl down with his horse, drew his sword and struck the poor thing with it. Maybe he only wanted to hit Maria flat, but he wounded her. Blood spurted from the girl's body, and she fell senseless to the ground.
The knight left, not thinking about what would happen to her, and Maria regained consciousness only a few hours later. She got up with difficulty. The blood stopped of its own accord, but the wound burned fiercely, and she wanted to cool it. Not far off could be seen a clearing, which ended in a swamp, a stream ran along it. Maria approached him and bent down to his life-giving streams. She was told that evil forest spirits appeared in this place in the form of wandering fires, but she had a pure heart, she relied on God and therefore was not afraid of anything.
With the water of the stream, the girl refreshed the wound, but she was so weak that she could not go further, and lay down in the grass, hoping to rest. Maria fell asleep. When she opened her eyes, it was completely dark. Only in the direction of the swamp a strange light flickered. Soon the girl noticed the swinging lights, which became gigantic large, then very tiny. They jumped as if they were dancing, and their whispering and crackling sounded like mocking laughter.
Maria sat motionless and listened. Heavy footsteps were heard, it seemed, an armed man was walking. A moment later, a voice rang out that reminded her of the voice of a knight.
He said to the wandering lights:
- You lied to me. I am so unhappy that I can no longer live. Everyone shuns me since the heart of stone lies in my chest, and I feel nothing.
The wandering lights laughed, hissed, whistled.
“After all, we gave you power, power and wealth,” they said, “and that's what you wanted. We have kept our word.
- Wealth and power do not give me happiness, - answered the knight, - give me back my previous beating, feeling heart.
“It will never happen,” laughed the wandering lights. “You gave it of your own free will. You can't get it back. Only if another pure heart is given to us, yours will return to your chest. But those who want to give us their hearts will die. Who would dare to sacrifice themselves for you? After all, you have become hated by everyone.
The knight sighed and was about to leave when Maria approached him. What she heard both delighted and excited her. So the knight was not as guilty as it seemed. In an unfortunate moment, he made a pact with the fires and became evil only because he was given a stone heart instead of a living heart. Now he wanted to free himself from the terrible spell, and the girl decided to help him and die for him.
She no longer felt weak, the decision gave her strength and courage. She said:
“I am ready to give my heart for the heart of this noble gentleman.
“But it will cost you your life,” the lights said.
“I’ll sacrifice my life if you only promise me to return the knight to his old heart.
The lights promised her this and added:
- We give you time to think. If you don’t change your mind, come here on the next full moon, and then we will do what you ask.
Maria agreed. The knight listened in silence. He was not even surprised that the girl he had treated so cruelly wanted to sacrifice her life to save him.
As time went. Maria's wound healed thanks to medicinal herbs and ointments. Her decision was not shaken. In order not to upset her parents, she said nothing to them, and when the full moon came, she walked along the forest road. Near the swamp, she saw the wandering lights and the knight. The fires asked her what she wanted, and, having heard from her the same firm answer, ordered her to prepare for death.
Until now, the knight stood silently and motionless. When Maria so calmly and firmly said “yes”, something changed in his soul. Did his heart really wake up after such a long time? It began to beat fearfully again. When the girl finally prepared to give her heart, such terrible blows were heard in his chest that it seemed that she was about to burst. The knight's heart came to life.
He rushed and shouted:
- Maria shouldn't suffer. Do with me what you want, but I will not give it up!
At that moment, the wandering lights went out. It was dark all around. Maria trembled like an aspen leaf and cried softly. The knight calmed her down and led her out of the forest, carefully choosing the path for her. She was embarrassed that her sacrifice was not required, but the knight said that her desire alone had already saved him, since now a living, feeling heart was beating in his chest. He again became as kind and meek as he was before. Soon the knight tried to make amends, and everyone fell in love with him again. He was deeply grateful to Mary, gave her a golden ring and introduced her to his house as a wife. And they lived for a long time in peace, harmony and love.

The tale of the Petrified Kingdom about a brave and responsible soldier. You will find out what award the soldier received for diligence and courage when you read an interesting fairy tale online.

The tale of the Petrified Kingdom read

Tired of the soldier for loyal and impeccable service from the authorities, scolding and undeservedly receiving beatings, he decided to flee from service. A servant for three years hired a king to guard the garden in which at night someone broke trees. At the end of the third year, a terrible bird flew in and began to uproot the trees in the garden. A soldier rushed after her. The bird disappeared into the gorge. The soldier rushed after her and found himself at the bottom of a deep hole. I woke up and saw the city exactly like on earth. Only all living things in him were petrified, except for the beautiful princess. The princess told the soldier that her sister, who had done atrocities at the king's garden, had brought a lot of evil to people and bewitched the whole kingdom. The princess asked the young man to read spells from the magic book. This is the only way to remove the curse and free the people. The soldier spent three terrible nights reading a magic book. All kinds of evil spirited around him, horrors seemed to him, an eerie grinding and howling was heard, executioners rushed at him with axes, terrible ghosts tried to take away the magic book. The soldier held out. After the third night he went outside and saw that the city came to life. They all began to thank the soldier and made him their king. And the princess happily married the daredevil. They live in love and joy. You can read the story online on our website.

Analysis of the tale of the Petrified Kingdom

The plot of a fairy tale is simple and straightforward. It clearly expresses the line of the protagonist, who personifies the best human qualities. Honesty, responsibility, courage are traits that help the hero in life. The main idea of \u200b\u200bthe Petrified Kingdom fairy tale is that there is no need to be afraid of difficulties, you need to find a way to overcome them.

There was a knight in the world who wanted to become famous and become the first in his country. He often said that he was ready for any sacrifice for wealth and power. Nevertheless, he was kind, just, and compassionate, and loved by all who depended on him. By the way, he dealt mercifully with a poor coal miner who lived with his family in the forest. The poor man could not pay taxes to the knight, and the managers wanted to sell all his things and drive them out of the forest.

Maria, the coal miner's daughter, decided to go to the knight and ask him to take pity on her father. The knight listened to her and ordered his managers not to touch the coal miner and his family. In addition, he gave her money and sent everything she needed to her sick mother.

Once the knight went hunting in the forest. He chased a beautiful deer and got lost. Trying to get out of the thicket, he fell into a swamp and almost drowned in a viscous bog. When he managed to get out on solid ground again, he noticed the lights that jumped back and forth. These were wandering lights. And suddenly they laughed and shouted:

- You almost fell into our hands. But we do not want your death. On the contrary, we will make you powerful and rich, only for this give us your heart. Instead, we will put a stone in your chest.

They laughed, trembled, and a whole rain of gold pieces fell all around. The offer of lights seemed tempting to the knight. He agreed, especially since the wandering lights did not say they would hurt him. They surrounded him and began to breathe into his face. He felt dizzy and fell unconscious.

When the knight came to himself, he noticed that everything had changed. The beauty of the forest, the sweet singing of birds did not please him anymore, when his horse stumbled, he brutally beat her. On the high road, he met peasants, they bowed to him, but he did not thank them for their greetings and only cast an angry glance.

And so it was now always. Nothing amused the knight anymore. He forgot how to laugh, but he was not afraid of anything, never cared about anything, did not worry, did not feel sorry for anyone, did not show compassion to anyone. And no wonder: there was a cold stone heart in his chest.

He became a cruel master for his subjects. A watchman walked along its tower, who looked to see if the wagonload of wandering merchants, fearfully passing by the castle, seemed loaded with goods. When the sound of the watchman's horn was heard, the knight armed his soldiers and squires and jumped on his horse. Hiding in ambush, he lay in wait for arriving carts and attacked them. He robbed and killed, took rich merchants to the castle and, in anticipation of ransom, imprisoned them in underground dungeons.

All goods, all treasures were appropriated by this robber. However, he gave a small part of the stolen goods to his people. His prisoners sat in prisons, eating bread and water. They were released only when they were able to pay a large ransom.

The knight became unusually powerful and rich. Everyone was afraid of him, but they considered him the worst of the bad. This did not bother him. He didn't care what people thought of him. However, the stolen treasures did not please him. Now nothing gave him pleasure. He did not love anyone, he never smiled, his heart knew only cruelty. Many became unhappy because of him, but he himself was the most unhappy of all, since a stone heart pressed on his chest.

Everyone hated him now. Only Mary continued to love the knight and did not forget his good deeds. She was very sad when they told her about his cruelty, and, without ceasing, prayed for him, asking Heaven to make him again the same as he was before.

Once she met him in the forest. Shyly and respectfully, Maria stepped aside and bowed deeply. Noticing the basket in her hands, the knight asked what she was carrying.

“Only berries and mushrooms that I gathered in the forest, sir,” she said.

- How dare you do it? He shouted in rage. - Everything that grows in the forest is mine. You stole my mushrooms and berries, and I will punish you for that.

He tore the basket out of her hands, scattered mushrooms and berries, knocked the girl down with his horse, drew his sword and struck the poor thing with it. Maybe he only wanted to hit Maria flat, but he wounded her. Blood spurted from the girl's body, and she fell senseless to the ground.

The knight left, not thinking about what would happen to her, and Maria regained consciousness only a few hours later. She got up with difficulty. The blood stopped of its own accord, but the wound burned fiercely, and she wanted to cool it. Not far off could be seen a clearing, which ended in a swamp, a stream ran along it. Maria approached him and bent down to his life-giving streams. She was told that evil forest spirits appeared in this place in the form of wandering fires, but she had a pure heart, she relied on God and therefore was not afraid of anything.

With the water of the stream, the girl refreshed the wound, but she was so weak that she could not go further, and lay down in the grass, hoping to rest. Maria fell asleep. When she opened her eyes, it was completely dark. Only in the direction of the swamp a strange light flickered. Soon the girl noticed the swinging lights, which became gigantic large, then very tiny. They jumped as if they were dancing, and their whispering and crackling sounded like mocking laughter.

Maria sat motionless and listened. Heavy footsteps were heard, it seemed, an armed man was walking. A moment later, a voice rang out that reminded her of the voice of a knight.

He said to the wandering lights:

- You lied to me. I am so unhappy that I can no longer live. Everybody has been avoiding me since the heart of stone lies in my chest and I feel nothing.

The wandering lights laughed, hissed, whistled.

“After all, we gave you power, power and wealth,” they said, “and that's what you wanted. We have kept our word.

- Wealth and power do not give me happiness, - answered the knight, - give me back my previous beating, feeling heart.

“It will never be,” laughed the wandering lights. “You gave it of your own free will. You can't get it back. Only if another pure heart is given to us, yours will return to your chest. But whoever wants to give us his heart will die. And who would dare to sacrifice himself for you? After all, you have become hated by everyone.

The knight sighed and was about to leave when Maria approached him. What she heard both delighted and excited her. So the knight was not as guilty as it seemed. In an unfortunate moment, he made a pact with the fires and became evil only because he was given a stone heart instead of a living heart. Now he wanted to free himself from the terrible spell, and the girl decided to help him and die for him.

She no longer felt weak, the decision gave her strength and courage. She said:

“I am ready to give my heart for the heart of this noble gentleman.

“But it will cost you your life,” the lights said.

“I will sacrifice my life if only you promise me to return the knight to his old heart.

The lights promised her this and added:

- We give you time to think. If you don’t change your mind, come here on the next full moon, and then we will do what you ask.

Maria agreed. The knight listened in silence. He was not even surprised that the girl he had treated so cruelly wanted to sacrifice her life to save him.

As time went. Maria's wound healed thanks to medicinal herbs and ointments. Her decision was not shaken. In order not to upset her parents, she said nothing to them, and when the full moon came, she walked along the forest road. Near the swamp, she saw the wandering lights and the knight. The fires asked her what she wanted, and, having heard from her the same firm answer, ordered her to prepare for death.

Until now, the knight stood silently and motionless. When Maria so calmly and firmly said “yes”, something changed in his soul. Did his heart really wake up after such a long time? It began to beat fearfully again. When the girl finally prepared to give her heart, such terrible blows were heard in his chest that it seemed that she was about to burst. The knight's heart came to life.

In a certain kingdom, in a certain state, there lived a soldier; He served for a long time and flawlessly, he knew the service well, he came clean and in good order to inspections, to training. He began to serve the last year - as unfortunately, his superiors took a dislike to him, not only the big ones, but also the small ones: every now and then, under the sticks, take the rap.
It became hard for the soldier, and he planned to flee; satchel over his shoulder, a gun on his shoulder and began to say goodbye to his comrades, and they asked him:
- Where are you going? Al battalion demands?
- Don't ask, brothers! Pull up the knapsack more tightly, but don't remember it dashingly!
And he went, good fellow, where his eyes were looking.
How many, how little did he walk - he ended up in a different state, saw a sentry and asks:
- Is it possible where to stop and rest?
The sentry said to the corporal, the corporal to the officer, the officer to the general, the general reported to the king himself. The king ordered to call the servant in front of his bright eyes.
Then a soldier appeared - properly, in uniform, made a gun to guard and stood rooted to the spot. The king says to him:
- Tell me honestly, where are you going from and where?
- Your royal majesty, do not order to be executed, order to say the word.
He confessed everything to the king in good conscience and began to ask for service.
“All right,” said the king, “hire me to guard the garden. It's not good in my garden now - someone is breaking my favorite trees - so you try, save it, and for your work I will give you a considerable wage.
The soldier agreed and began to keep a guard in the garden.
He has been serving for a year or two - everything is fine with him; And so the third year is drawing to a close, one day I went to look around the garden and saw: half of the best trees were broken.
"My God! - thinks to himself." This is what a misfortune has happened! As the king will notice, he is now ordering to grab me and hang me. "
He took the gun in his hands, leaned against a tree, and thought hard, hard.
Suddenly there was a crackling and noise; A good fellow woke up, lo and behold - a huge, terrible bird flew into the garden and well, fell trees! The soldier shot her with a gun, did not kill her, but only wounded her in the right wing; three feathers fell from that wing, and the bird itself flew along the ground. The soldier follows her. The bird's legs are fast, quickly ran to the hole and disappeared from sight.
The soldier was not afraid and after her rushed into that hole: he fell into a deep, deep abyss, knocked off all his livers and lay there for a whole day without memory.
After he came to his senses, got up, looked around. What? - and underground the same light.
"So," he thinks, "there are people here too!"
He walked, walked - in front of him a large city, at the gate of the guardhouse, with her sentry; began to ask him - the sentry is silent, does not move; took his hand - and he is completely stone!
A soldier entered the guardhouse. There are many people - both standing and sitting - only all are petrified; started wandering the streets - everywhere the same thing: there is not a single living human soul, everything is just like a stone! Here is the palace - painted, carved. March there, looks - the rooms are rich, there are all kinds of snacks and drinks on the tables, and everything is quiet and empty.
The soldier ate and drank, sat down to rest, and he heard it as if someone had driven up to the porch; he grabbed a gun and stood at the door.
A beautiful princess with mothers and nurses enters the room. The soldier saluted her, and she bowed to him affectionately.
- Hello, servant! Tell, - he says, - what fates did you get here?
The soldier began to tell:
“I was hoping to watch over the royal garden, and a big bird got into the habit of flying and breaking trees. So I lay in wait for her, fired a rifle and knocked three feathers out of her wing; rushed after her and found himself here.
- This bird is my own sister; She does much of all evil and has sent misfortune to my kingdom - she has petrified all my people. Listen: here's a book for you, stand here and read it from the evening until the roosters sing. Whatever passions may seem to you, you know yours - read the book and hold it tighter so that you don't tear it out, or you won't be alive! If you stay three nights, I will marry you.
- Okay! - answered the soldier.
As soon as it got dark, he took the book and began to read.
Suddenly there was a knock, a thundering - a whole army appeared in the palace, his former commanders approached the soldier and scold him and threaten him with death for his escape; now they are loading their guns, taking aim. But the soldier doesn’t look at that, he doesn’t let go of the book, he’s reading to himself.
The roosters crowed - and everything disappeared at once!
The next night it was worse, and on the third and even worse: the executioners came running with saws, axes, hammers, they wanted to crush his bones, pull the veins, burn him on the fire, and they themselves only think how to snatch the book out of their hands. Such passions were that the soldier could hardly bear it.
The roosters crowed - and the obsession disappeared!
At that very hour, the whole kingdom revived, people fussed through the streets and in their houses, the princess came to the palace with the generals, with her retinue, and everyone began to thank the soldier and call him their sovereign.
The next day he married a beautiful princess and lived with her in love and joy.

There was a knight in the world who wanted to become famous and become the first in his country. He often said that he was ready for any sacrifice for wealth and power. Nevertheless, he was kind, just, and compassionate, and loved by all who depended on him. By the way, he dealt mercifully with a poor coal miner who lived with his family in the forest. The poor man could not pay taxes to the knight, and the managers wanted to sell all his things and drive them out of the forest.
Maria, the coal miner's daughter, decided to go to the knight and ask him to take pity on her father. The knight listened to her and ordered his managers not to touch the coal miner and his family. In addition, he gave her money and sent everything she needed to her sick mother.
Once the knight went hunting in the forest. He chased a beautiful deer and got lost. Trying to get out of the thicket, he fell into a swamp and almost drowned in a viscous bog. When he managed to get out on solid ground again, he noticed the lights that jumped back and forth. These were wandering lights. And suddenly they laughed and shouted:
- You almost fell into our hands. But we do not want your death. On the contrary, we will make you powerful and rich, only for this give us your heart. Instead, we will put a stone in your chest.
They laughed, trembled, and a whole rain of gold pieces fell all around. The offer of lights seemed tempting to the knight. He agreed, especially since the wandering lights did not say they would hurt him. They surrounded him and began to breathe into his face. He felt dizzy and fell unconscious.
When the knight came to himself, he noticed that everything had changed. The beauty of the forest, the sweet singing of birds did not please him anymore, when his horse stumbled, he brutally beat her. On the high road, he met peasants, they bowed to him, but he did not thank them for their greetings and only cast an angry glance.
And so it was now always. Nothing amused the knight anymore. He forgot how to laugh, but he was not afraid of anything, never cared about anything, did not worry, did not feel sorry for anyone, did not show compassion to anyone. And no wonder: there was a cold stone heart in his chest.
He became a cruel master for his subjects. A watchman walked along its tower, who looked to see if the wagonload of wandering merchants, fearfully passing by the castle, seemed loaded with goods. When the sound of the watchman's horn was heard, the knight armed his soldiers and squires and jumped on his horse. Hiding in ambush, he lay in wait for arriving carts and attacked them. He robbed and killed, took rich merchants to the castle and, in anticipation of ransom, imprisoned them in underground dungeons.
All goods, all treasures were appropriated by this robber. However, he gave a small part of the stolen goods to his people. His prisoners sat in prisons, eating bread and water. They were released only when they were able to pay a large ransom.
The knight became unusually powerful and rich. Everyone was afraid of him, but they considered him the worst of the bad. This did not bother him. He didn't care what people thought of him. However, the stolen treasures did not please him. Now nothing gave him pleasure. He did not love anyone, he never smiled, his heart knew only cruelty. Many became unhappy because of him, but he himself was the most unhappy of all, since a stone heart pressed on his chest.
Everyone hated him now. Only Mary continued to love the knight and did not forget his good deeds. She was very sad when they told her about his cruelty, and, without ceasing, prayed for him, asking Heaven to make him again the same as he was before.
Once she met him in the forest. Shyly and respectfully, Maria stepped aside and bowed deeply. Noticing the basket in her hands, the knight asked what she was carrying.
“Only berries and mushrooms that I gathered in the forest, sir,” she said.
- How dare you do it? he shouted in rage. - Everything that grows in the forest is mine. You stole my mushrooms and berries, and I will punish you for that.
He tore the basket out of her hands, scattered mushrooms and berries, knocked the girl down with his horse, drew his sword and struck the poor thing with it. Maybe he only wanted to hit Maria flat, but he wounded her. Blood spurted from the girl's body, and she fell senseless to the ground.
The knight left, not thinking about what would happen to her, and Maria regained consciousness only a few hours later. She got up with difficulty. The blood stopped of its own accord, but the wound burned fiercely, and she wanted to cool it. Not far off could be seen a clearing, which ended in a swamp, a stream ran along it. Maria approached him and bent down to his life-giving streams. She was told that evil forest spirits appeared in this place in the form of wandering fires, but she had a pure heart, she relied on God and therefore was not afraid of anything.
With the water of the stream, the girl refreshed the wound, but she was so weak that she could not go further, and lay down in the grass, hoping to rest. Maria fell asleep. When she opened her eyes, it was completely dark. Only in the direction of the swamp a strange light flickered. Soon the girl noticed the swinging lights, which became gigantic large, then very tiny. They jumped as if they were dancing, and their whispering and crackling sounded like mocking laughter.
Maria sat motionless and listened. Heavy footsteps were heard, it seemed, an armed man was walking. A moment later, a voice rang out that reminded her of the voice of a knight.
He said to the wandering lights:
- You lied to me. I am so unhappy that I can no longer live. Everyone shuns me since the heart of stone lies in my chest, and I feel nothing.
The wandering lights laughed, hissed, whistled.
“After all, we gave you power, power and wealth,” they said, “and that's what you wanted. We have kept our word.
- Wealth and power do not give me happiness, - answered the knight, - give me back my previous beating, feeling heart.
“It will never happen,” laughed the wandering lights. “You gave it of your own free will. You can't get it back. Only if another pure heart is given to us, yours will return to your chest. But those who want to give us their hearts will die. Who would dare to sacrifice themselves for you? After all, you have become hated by everyone.
The knight sighed and was about to leave when Maria approached him. What she heard both delighted and excited her. So the knight was not as guilty as it seemed. In an unfortunate moment, he made a pact with the fires and became evil only because he was given a stone heart instead of a living heart. Now he wanted to free himself from the terrible spell, and the girl decided to help him and die for him.
She no longer felt weak, the decision gave her strength and courage. She said:
“I am ready to give my heart for the heart of this noble gentleman.
“But it will cost you your life,” the lights said.
“I’ll sacrifice my life if you only promise me to return the knight to his old heart.
The lights promised her this and added:
- We give you time to think. If you don’t change your mind, come here on the next full moon, and then we will do what you ask.
Maria agreed. The knight listened in silence. He was not even surprised that the girl he had treated so cruelly wanted to sacrifice her life to save him.
As time went. Maria's wound healed thanks to medicinal herbs and ointments. Her decision was not shaken. In order not to upset her parents, she said nothing to them, and when the full moon came, she walked along the forest road. Near the swamp, she saw the wandering lights and the knight. The fires asked her what she wanted, and, having heard from her the same firm answer, ordered her to prepare for death.
Until now, the knight stood silently and motionless. When Maria so calmly and firmly said “yes”, something changed in his soul. Did his heart really wake up after such a long time? It began to beat fearfully again. When the girl finally prepared to give her heart, such terrible blows were heard in his chest that it seemed that she was about to burst. The knight's heart came to life.
He rushed and shouted:
- Maria shouldn't suffer. Do with me what you want, but I will not give it up!
At that moment, the wandering lights went out. It was dark all around. Maria trembled like an aspen leaf and cried softly. The knight calmed her down and led her out of the forest, carefully choosing the path for her. She was embarrassed that her sacrifice was not required, but the knight said that her desire alone had already saved him, since now a living, feeling heart was beating in his chest. He again became as kind and meek as he was before. Soon the knight tried to make amends, and everyone fell in love with him again. He was deeply grateful to Mary, gave her a golden ring and introduced her to his house as a wife. And they lived for a long time in peace, harmony and love.

 

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