The Tale of Vasilisa the Beautiful

 


The Tale of Vasilisa the Beautiful

Once upon a time, in a faraway Russian village, there lived a merchant and his beautiful daughter, Vasilisa. When Vasilisa was still a child, her mother grew gravely ill. Before she passed away, she gave Vasilisa a small wooden doll, saying, "Keep this doll close, and whenever you need help, feed it a little bread and it will guide you."

After her mother's death, Vasilisa's father remarried. Her new stepmother and stepsisters were cruel and jealous of her beauty and kindness. They made her do all the chores and treated her like a servant. But Vasilisa never complained, and whenever she felt lonely or overwhelmed, she would feed her doll a crumb of bread, and it would magically help her complete the impossible tasks.

One day, the merchant had to leave on a long journey. As soon as he left, the wicked stepmother saw her chance. She extinguished all the fires in the house and commanded Vasilisa, "Go into the forest and ask Baba Yaga for fire!"

Now, everyone in the village knew of Baba Yaga, the fearsome witch who lived deep in the forest in a hut that stood on chicken legs. But Vasilisa, trusting her doll, bravely set off into the dark woods.

After walking for hours, Vasilisa reached Baba Yaga's hut, which spun around on its chicken legs, surrounded by a fence made of human bones. Vasilisa called out, "Grandmother Baba Yaga, I have come for fire."

Baba Yaga flew down in her mortar, steering it with a pestle, and hissed, "I will give you fire, but first, you must complete three tasks. If you fail, I will eat you!"

The first task was to clean the entire house and yard until they sparkled. The second was to separate a pile of poppy seeds from dirt. The third was to weave a cloth from the finest thread. These tasks were impossible for one person alone, but Vasilisa fed her doll, and each time, the doll completed the work while Vasilisa rested.

Baba Yaga was furious that Vasilisa had succeeded but couldn't deny her promise. She handed Vasilisa a skull with glowing eyes and said, "Here’s your fire. Take it and be gone!"

Vasilisa returned home, carrying the skull. But when she entered the house, the skull's fiery eyes glared at the wicked stepmother and stepsisters, burning them to ashes. Vasilisa, finally free from their cruelty, buried the skull and moved to the city.

Eventually, Vasilisa's beauty and kindness caught the attention of the Tsar. She became his queen, and her magical doll remained her faithful friend for the rest of her days.

Russian fairy tales often feature Baba Yaga, a mysterious character who can be both a villain and a helper.

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