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The founding of Vilnius and Grand Duke Gediminas Castle. A legend that became history

Legendary, Vilnius

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The Grand Duke Gediminas planned to build an undefeatable castle so, so he summoned priests, wizards and wise men and asked them for a piece of advice on what should be done to make the castle a real castle. The Wise man Krivaitis told them that the fortress would only become undefeatable if the life of the only poor man's beloved son was sacrificed under its foundation. But the only son had to be pushed into a pit by his mother and the stone should be put on the top. The envoys were sent to look for such a mother through Lithuania. They didn't have to search for a long time. Very soon there was a woman who loved her homeland so passionately that even agreed to sacrifice her only son on behalf of it. The mother and her son arrived at the place chosen for the castle, where a pit for the first foundation stone had already been dug. They stood on its edge and the mother was getting ready to push her offspring into it. A thought came to the unfortunate young man: were the Gods of Lithuania so cruel to wish for his death, could the strength of the castle depend on his life? He asked the Grand Duke to let him before the death ask the wise men three questions. If the Wise men answered those questions sagely, the youngster would trust the will of the Gods and would not resist death. The Grand Duke thought and agreed to fulfil the wish of the chosen one. After the consent was given, the young man asked: what is the lightest, what is the hardest and what is the sweetest in the world? The Wise mused the questions and finally gave the answer: the lightest is  a down, the hardest is steel, and the sweetest is honey. After listening to the answer, young man denied it. He said, “The lightest is the baby in the mother's hands, the sweetest is the mother's milk, and the hardest in the world is my mother's heart, as she brought me here to sacrifice in your presence.” The Grand Duke contemplated the answers. After an hour, he said he would not allow that young man to be killed, having him alive, would be more beneficial to the land of Lithuania than having him sacrificed.

The Grand Duke Gediminas told the Wise men to find another way to make that castle invincible. Then the wise man had discussions again, cast spells, and finally declared that the gods wanted an innocent girl who would sacrifice herself. The news was widely spread throughout Lithuania. The wait was not long either. A beautiful maiden, dressed as for the greatest festivities, wearing a wreath of rue, carrying a bouquet of wildflowers came and jumped into the pit cheerfully. At that time, the eldest Wise man with his entourage was rolling a huge stone for the foundation on the girl. However, a miracle happened: the falling stone did not touch the girl but ripped out of her hands the bouquet. Finally, both, the Grand Duke and Wise men realized that the Gods were content with a bunch of Lithuanian field flowers they did not need a human life. The Grand Duke was also finally convinced that the castle built on the flowers of the Lithuanian fields would be the best castle he wanted.

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