Beyond the seven mountains and seven rivers there was a land where it was a joy to live. The forests rustled, the meadows greened and the streams gurgled. The land was ruled by an old king who had three daughters. He knew that he would not have the strength to rule forever, so he decided early on to choose a successor from among his three daughters. And who should be the one to succeed him on the royal throne? He thought he’d pass the scepter to the daughter who loved him the most.
So one morning he called out for all of his three of his daughters to be brought in and tell him how much they loved him.
The eldest came first and said, “Daddy, I love you like gold! I believe I would make the best queen.” The king nodded and turned to the middle daughter. “And how much do you love me?” he asked.
The middle daughter replied, “I love you like precious jewels and stones, because nothing in the world is more precious.” Then she snuggled up to her father and added: “Make me the queen.”
When the king finally asked his youngest daughter, she replied, “I love you like salt, Papa.” And she smiled sweetly at him as she said it.
The king was disappointed and angry at her answer. Gold and precious stones are much more valuable than salt, he thought. “Get out of my sight!” he ordered her. “When the time comes when salt is more precious than gold, you can return and become queen.”
The youngest daughter left the kingdom with great sadness in her heart. She did not want to be queen, she wanted to prove her true love to her father. She wandered for many days until she came to a deep forest where she found an old woman who gave her shelter.
Meanwhile, her sisters lived in luxury, but the king was still angry with his youngest daughter. So much so that he ordered all the salt in the kingdom to be destroyed because it would only remind him how little she loved him. Meanwhile, the king was unwilling to admit how much he missed his youngest daughter.
After some time, a grand celebration took place at the castle, at which the king would announce his successor. The dining room was decorated with gold and precious stones in honour of the two daughters who, at least according to the king, knew what was most precious and important in the world.
All the guests were seated at the festive table. The tables were heaped with a variety of foods pleasant to the eye. But that was all. As soon as the guests tasted the food, their mouths began to twist. No matter what they tried of the delicious-looking dishes, they couldn’t bring themselves to eat anything. Tempting to look at, but in the mouth completely tasteless.
The king immediately had the cooks summoned to explain what they had done to the food. “Most gracious king, you can’t cook tasty food without salt. You do not like the food because it doesn’t have salt in it. And there is not a grain of salt left in the whole kingdom by your command.”
Even now the proud king was not going to give up his whim, and ordered the cooks to serve everything sweet, for it could be done without salt. So, after a while, the serving began anew. The hungry guests rushed to the cakes and desserts of all kinds. But that wasn’t it, either. A little something sweet after the meal would certainly come in handy, but replacing lunch with sweets? The mood at the party was at a low ebb, with the rare guests from far away lands making all sorts of excuses to be back in their kingdoms, where they were served food seasoned with salt. Many of the departing guests made caustic remarks that gold and precious stones were probably used instead of salt in this country. The guests from the kingdom knew that they could not help themselves at home either since all the salt in the kingdom was destroyed. Unless they fled the kingdom. After all, without salt, nothing good awaits them here.
The king began to realise how badly he had treated his youngest daughter, only now did he realise how wise his youngest daughter was. But he didn’t know where to find her so he could apologize to her. He regretted his rash act very much. And he was hungry. He too was tired of sweet things, and there was nothing else to prepare without salt. But no one had salt, and even if they had, they would not sell it for a lump of gold. Salt was now so precious to all.
Meanwhile the youngest daughter continued to live in the forest with the charming lady, and would have missed nothing if her beloved papa had been there with her. One day the woman came to her and told her about what was happening at the kingdom, how the kingdom was languishing without salt. She gave her a small basket full of salt and told her that the salt would never run out and could help everyone. The youngest daughter went back to the kingdom. When she arrived at the castle, no one recognized her because she was modestly dressed. She asked to see the king, saying that she had something for him that would save the whole kingdom.
The king accepted her, but he told her straight away: “Nothing can save this kingdom. I was proud, I banished my dearest daughter and had the salt in the whole kingdom destroyed. You can’t give me anything to help me, girl.”
She offered him the bread salted with salt from the basket.
The king was delighted and asked how he could thank her. She revealed her face to him and said, “Papa, it is enough if you love me as I love you – like salt.” The king wept for joy and begged her forgiveness.
Soon the word spread throughout the land that the youngest daughter had returned. The salt in her basket never ran out, so there was enough for all the people of the kingdom. She was crowned queen and ruled wisely. She never forgot the kind woman who helped her through difficult times.
