Friday, July 7, 2023

The three daughters of King Aedh Curucha - Part 2

The kings and princess who had come to the church saw how beautiful Trembling was in real life. They were astounded and after some thinking all of them were furious with the Prince of Omanya. All of them challenged the prince of Omanya to a fight. They said that the prince could marry Trembling only after he won the fight against them.

On the first day the king of Lochlm fought against the Prince of Omanya. The two royals fought for nine hours until finally the king of Lochlm decided that the prince of Omanya was stronger than him and he gave up the fight. 

Over the next few days the king and princess of other kingdoms also fought with the prince of Omanya all of them lost the fight.

Nobody in Omanya - royal or otherwise - wanted to fight the prince. 

So finally after having defeated all the contenders from the other kingdoms the prince of Omanya married Trembling.



Trembling and the prince were very happy with each other a year after their marriage a handsome strong son was born to them. 

The whole kingdom rejoiced. 

At this time the prince of Omanya sent for the eldest sister Fair to come and spend time with Trembling just after childbirth. 

Fair was still jealous of Trembling but nobody knew about this. 

One day when the two sisters were walking along the beach, Fair realized that no one in the castle knew that the two of them had come here because the prince of Omanya had gone hunting. Trembling had not told anyone in the castle about her outing to the beach with her sister. 

Fair pushed her sister into the waters. 

A huge enchanted whale came and swallowed Trembling at that time.

In the castle the prince of Omanya returned from hunting and he was suspicious that the woman in his castle was not his wife. 

But Fair and Trembling resembled each other so he was not sure. 

He kept his magic sword near the bed, because he knew that if the woman near him was his wife then the sword would remain warm in the morning. 



On the other hand, Trembling was washed up on the beach by the enchanted whale but because she was under the enchantment of the whale she could not move from there. 

One of the cowboys of the castle came to the beach at that particular time Trembling called the cowboy. "Tell the prince of Omanya that an enchanted whale has swallowed his wife, Trembling. The whale shall throw me up three times and no more. The whale had thrown me up first today. Tell the Prince that if he has to save me he has to come before the whale swallows me for the fourth time because after that I will never be seen again. The only way to break this enchantment is with a silver bullet."

The cowboy was surprised and looked at Trembling. "Why don't you go and tell the prince this yourself?" 

"The enchantment of the whale prevents me from leaving this beach or even talking to my husband. So you are the only one who can help me!" Trembling told the cowboy anxiously.

The cowboy agreed.

In the morning the prince of Omanya was sure that the woman who had come back to the castle from the beach was not his wife. However he did not know what had happened to his wife or who could give him answers.



Before the cowboy could come and meet the prince the elder sister Fair intercepted the cowboy. 

She gave him a sleeping draught and the cowboy fell asleep in the castle unaware of anything around him.

The next day the cowboy went to the beach. 

When the whale threw her up Trembling she was shocked when she heard the sad looking cowboy. "A lady in the castle gave me a sleeping draught. After that I do not remember anything."

"When you go to the castle today," Trembling told the cowboy even more anxiously, "Do not accept anything and go straight to the prince and tell him all that you know."

This time too Fair was waiting for the cowboy. 

But the cowboy was smart and he avoided all the offerings of Fair and went straight to the prince of Omanya and told him everything. 

The prince of Omanya went to the beach with the silver bullet. 

He was able to break the enchantment of the whale on his wife. 

As soon as the enchantment was broken, Trembling was able to speak and she could be with her husband.



Fair was punished for her deeds. 

In time Trembling gave birth to a daughter. 

Meanwhile the prince and Trembling sent the cowboy to school and trained him as one of their own children.

When they were of proper age, the cowboy and the princes' daughter married each other and they also lived happily ever after, just like Trembling and the prince.

Adapted from Myths and folklore of Ireland


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