any long years ago in the land or Myanmar, which is sometimes called Burma, there lived a prosperous rice farmer with three fine sons. Each morning of the world, a beautiful blue bird would fly from the Golden Land, perch in the tree outside his window and sing him awake. After breakfast, the bird would fly back to its home, to return the next day. The farmer was happy and life was good, until one morning… As the farmer sat down to breakfast with his sons, all three announced, "Father, we wish to get married. Can you find suitable brides for each of us?" This put the farmer in a terrible dilemma, and set him to thinking. Not only would he need to find beautiful and obedient brides for his boys, but he would need to decide how to split up his rice farm between the three of them. Each had his good points and his bad. The eldest was strong, but sometimes used his strength to unfair advantage. The second was clever, though some would say he was also crafty and sly. The youngest was compassionate, though this sometimes led him to call an early halt to the day’s work if the oxen seemed tired. The farmer fretted and stewed over this problem all day, and could hardly eat his supper because he was so perplexed. He went to bed with a sour stomach and slept fitfully. In his dreams, an old man came to him. "You must send your sons to the Golden Land", the ancient told him. "There they will find the brides they seek." In the morning, the farmer related the dream to his sons. "If you leave immediately," he said, "you can follow the beautiful blue bird to the Golden Land." The sons packed a few belongings and set out on the trail of the blue bird. By mid-day, they came to a tall hill with a crude hut at the base of it. An old witch-woman waited for them there. "Come in," she said. "Your dinner is ready." When they had finished eating, with much conversation about their quest, the woman explained, "You can search the wide world over, but you will never find the Golden Land. This is because it lies under the earth and not on top of it." As she sent the three sons on their way, she gave them each a gift. To the eldest, she gave a great iron hammer. The next received a fine basket, and the youngest was gifted with a length of strong rope. With that, she pointed them to the top of the hill, as that was where they would find the entry they sought. At the top of the hill, the found a large, flat stone, covering a hole in the hill. Though it was too heavy to lift, the first brother applied his hammer and shattered the thing. The other two tied the rope to the basket and the first (and strongest) lowered them down. Then he followed, going hand-over-hand down the rope. At the bottom, a green land spread out all around them, and they argued for a while as to which direction they should go to find the Golden Land. In the end, they decided to each go his separate way. The youngest headed generally east, as that is the direction he felt the blue bird would fly. Along the way, he paused often to marvel at the flowers and the birds and the trees and the animals. In a while, he came to a fine house, with beautiful gardens all around. He knocked at the door but there was no answer. He entered and explored one empty room after another. In the last room, he found an ancient woman dressed as a housekeeper. He greeted her courteously, and asked the whereabouts of the owner. "For many years," she said, " I have watched over this place. You are the first human I have seen in a long time. Since you are so mannerly, I will give you a gift." She led him out to the stables where there were many fine horses. "Take your pick of any of these, but choose wisely." The youngest son looked all around and finally spied an old mare in a darkened corner. Her head drooped and her coat was dirty. He took pity on her and said, "I will choose this one." The old woman smiled. "You have chosen well, for this mare will lead you to your destiny." And with that, she was gone. The lad washed and scrubbed and brushed and combed the old mare, and gave her plenty to eat and drink. In the end, she was a fine looking animal. He climbed upon her back and she set out in the same easterly direction. After a time, they came to the shore of a great lake with a beautiful golden island in the middle of it. The youth searched for a bridge or a causeway, but to no avail. Just as he was about to give up hope, the mare turned to him and spoke. "Do not fear. I will swim out to the island with you on my back. I have done it many times before. And she did just that. When they reached the shore, the King of the Golden Land was waiting for them. "I know why you have come!" he announced. "You have come for the blue bird, and you shall have her if you can win at my game. First, I will hide from you three times and you shall have to find me. Then, you will have to hide from me three times, so well that I cannot find you. If you do this, the bird shall be yours." With this, the King turned around three times and was gone. The young man was perplexed because he was looking for a bride, and not a blue bird. He was also dismayed because he had no idea as to how he could find the King. He said as much to the mare. "Do not despair," she said. "Go to the orchard and find the plumpest and juiciest apple. Pick it and cut it open. The King will fall out, and there will be a cut upon his head." The lad did exactly as he was told and sure enough, the King fell out of the apple with a bright red mark upon his head. The King hurried off to hide himself a second time and the young man looked to the mare for advice. "It is near to supper time. When you are offered soup, eat it with your knife and not with a spoon. As the youth dipped his knife into the soup at supper, the King stumbled out with a second scar on his forehead. Just before dark, the mare told the boy, "Take some grains of barley and scatter them on the lawn of the palace. I think you will know what to do from there." So he took the grain and scattered it. Soon a fat pea-hen came by and ate up all the grain. She then squatted in the grass and laid a large egg. The lad picked it up and cracked it open with his knife. There was the King inside, with a third red scar on his head. "Tomorrow," he announced, "it will be your turn to hide, and my turn to find you. For now, get a good night full of sleep. It has been a long and busy day for both of us." The young man went to the stables and brushed the coat of his mare until it shone like the finest of silks. He combed out her mane and her tail, and all the while he worried about how he could hide himself from the King. "Have no worries," said the mare. Sleep soundly and I will tell you my plan in the morning." Before anyone had time for breakfast, the mare turned the boy into a flea, and he hid in the thick fur of one of the kings hunting hounds. The King searched the palace and grounds. He looked high and low and examined each dog carefully, but never found the right flea. After breakfast, the mare turned the lad into a drop of honey and dripped him into the bottom-most honeycomb of the king’s hives. The King used all his magical powers and still did not find the exact drop which was the youth. After lunch, the mare hid the lad in the hair of the princess. The King searched the castle and the grounds and his entire staff and family. Still he missed the one finest hair on the nape of his daughter’s neck. After a sleepless night and a day of searching, the King took to his bed. "Now is your chance," said the mare. "The King of the Golden Land falls asleep only once every seven years. Hurry to the King’s bedchamber and take the cage with the blue bird. Bring it straight back to me and do not stop along the way, either going or coming." The youth followed her instructions to the letter and was soon back with the bird. He climbed onto the mare’s back and they were off at a gallop. They plunged into the chill waters of the lake and swam to the shore, where they continued at top speed until they reached the fine old house. The old woman was watching from an upper window and rushed down the stairs to greet them. "A job well done," she told the youth. "You have just saved three maidens from the magic of the King of the Golden Land. The housekeeper opened the cage and released the blue bird, who lit on the ground and changed into a lovely young princess dressed in blue. The princess then touched the mare and the drab housekeeper. They shed their outward appearances and turned into beautiful young ladies in brown and in gray. They all thanked the young man for saving them and then they all hurried to the place where the rope and basket hung down from a hole in the sky. The other two brothers were waiting there, empty-handed. After a series of hurried greetings and introductions, it was quite obvious as to who belonged with whom. The princess in gray paired off with the oldest of the brothers while the princess in brown gravitated to the middle son. The blue princess, of course, was meant for the youngest of the three. Without further ado, the eldest brother climbed the rope and then hauled up his bride-to-be. The second brother and his chosen were taken up together. When the basket came back down, the blue princess cautioned her savior. "Wait!" she said. " I shall show you just how false your brothers are." Instead of entering the basket, they filled it with several large rocks and then gave a tug on he rope. The basket went up swiftly until it was near the top. Then, the two eldest brothers cut the rope, as they did not want to split their father’s inheritance any more than necessary. Down came the basket with a great crash! The two oldest brothers hurried down the hill with their brides until they came to the old witch-woman in front of her hut. "And where did you leave your youngest brother and his bride?" she asked. "They decided to stay in the Golden Land," they replied in unison. "You are lying!" she exclaimed. "You have done something terrible to him!" And with that, she turned the two princesses into blue birds, complete with golden cages. The two older brothers returned to their father with blue birds instead of brides. When the old man asked about his youngest son, the eldest brother said, "He did not want to go all the way to the Golden Land. He wandered off into the woods, shortly after we left here. We searched but could not find him." The father was saddened by this news, but said not a word. The brothers took their blue bird, princess, wives to be, to their rooms and hung the cages in bright and cheerful spots. The birds were sad and sung not a note, and the brothers wondered if they would ever get their princesses back. Meanwhile, back at the bottom of the hole, the blue princess turned herself back into a blue bird. She tried and tried to carry the rope back up to the top, but it was too heavy. The youngest brother searched the area and soon collected a number of long hairs from the mare’s tail. He braided these into a thin cord and his dear blue bird was able to carry this to the top. There, she changed back into a princess and the son tied the bottom end to the rope. Now she could haul the heavy rope to the top. She tied it off to a large rock and the youngest son was able to climb out. Just before they reached the house, the princess changed back into a blue bird, complete with a golden cage. When the father saw his youngest son, he was overjoyed. He ordered a great feast and everyone from all around was invited. The father and his three sons, each with his blue bird, sat at the head table. In the midst of the feast, the youngest son rose and asked, "Would you like to hear the song of the Blue Bird from the Golden Land?" He lifted up the cage and the bird sang. Back to the house the elder brothers came Carrying with them dishonor and shame. They tried to kill their father’s youngest son A sad situation, and now my song is done! As soon as she was finished, she flew from her cage and turned back into a princess. She freed the other two birds who also changed back to their princess forms. Everyone looked at the two eldest brothers, who fell on their knees and begged forgiveness from their father. "It is your younger brother that you should be asking!" the old man declared. "It is he who you tried to wrong." The youngest brother still had enough compassion left in him that he found it in his heart to forgive them. Soon there was another great feast. This time it was to celebrate the triple wedding of the sons and their princess-brides. The father gave over the management of the great rice farm to the youngest son and he let the other two help him with the work. And they all lived happily together for many long years after. Credits: This is a folk tale which is told in many lands under different names and with slight variations on the theme. I have heard it in an Irish setting, with Russian characters, as a native American story, and as a tale from the land of Burma (Myanmar). It is this last version that I am relating here. One version can be found in: "American Fairy Tales", retold by Vladimir Stuchl, Octopus Books, 1979. The "Blue Bird" is a stock photo of an Australian Bird of Paradise, which I have modified and recolored using PhotoShop.