|| A Spanish folktale ||
Once upon a time, in the kingdom of Granada in Spain, there lived a brave and clever king.
He ruled his subjects well.
His ministers advised that he must marry in order to have an heir to the throne.
The king wanted a wife, his queen, who would be as smart and as brave as he was.
But how do you find a worthy suitor?
He thought and thought about it. At last, he had an idea.
He told his royal proclaimers to announce in his kingdom and other kingdoms that any woman wishing to marry him should first look into a magic mirror.
The proclaimers announced that the mirror contained tears of an angel and has magic powers.
The mirror judges the goodness of the woman on her past actions and decisions. Then it displays blemishes across her face depending on her mistakes. More blemishes, more the mistakes.
Many women really wanted to marry the king but refused to look into the mirror.
They feared that their mistakes would reflect in the mirror.
They thought that not only the king would then refuse to marry, but also everyone would be talking about them.
Few days passed, no woman came forward. The ministers grew worried. They tried to convince the king to withdraw the challenge.
But the king was adamant.
After many days, only one poor shepherdess came forward to look into the mirror. The king reminded her about the challenge.
She tells the king, “Your highness, everyone makes mistakes. No one is perfect. I made mistakes too, but I learn from them. I am not afraid of what the magic mirror might show”
The king said, “Very well, go ahead. You know the consequences.”
The magic mirror is brought to the shepherdess in full court. She looks into it and the whole court, the ministers and the noblemen all look at her with bated breath.
Her own reflection looks back at her. She looks at the king puzzled.
The King then revealed that there had been no magic mirror all along. He was trying to find a brave and honest woman.
So the King married the shepherdess and they ruled the prosperous kingdom for long.
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