The Bird with Nine Heads

So, imagine a bird like this, but with nine heads.

Hello, reader! It's sort of a tough time for everyone these days, so I offer you an escape into a realm of magic. Today's fairy tale is The Bird with Nine Heads, and it's from China. This one probably has some of the coolest magic items. Read the story in the link above, and continue with me below to analyze it.

What is up with this bird? Clearly, something happened for the hound of heaven to have bitten off this bird's tenth head. I want to know what that something was. And how long was the bird bleeding from that wound? There were other princesses in the cave who starved to death. Were they all there to care for this bird's wound? Or has this bird just been kidnapping princesses? Whatever the reason, why was the bird so terrible at taking care of these princesses? Especially if all they had to do was lick a rock to be full. Whatever the reason the hound of heaven bit off this bird's head, I think the hound was probably right.

I'm also rooting for this princess. After helping the guy kill the bird who kidnapped her, she still had the presence of mind that he should get out of the cave first so he wasn't stranded there. Honestly, when I was reading this story, I thought she was saying that because of magic or a spell or something. But she had a better idea of how awful people can be when they have a "prize" they didn't earn. Also, despite the pressure of her father, she wouldn't marry any of the men who claimed to have rescued her. She's smart and strong. Definitely in my good books!

The hero of this story, like so many other heroes, seems to stumble into good fortune. He had the bravery and skill with a sword to rescue the princess, but it wasn't his plan that got him there. He stumbled into rescuing a prince and stumbled into getting out of the cave. Then, he didn't seem to think about marrying the princess. He just happened to find a nice place to stay for awhile. And then just happened to come to the town where she was on the day before she married someone else. Wow. I guess that gives us all hope that we can do great things, even if we don't know what we're doing.

The moral of this story is that if you're lucky, everything will work out well for you eventually. Alternatively, if someone rescues you from a monster in a cave, make sure they leave the cave first.

Have a different moral? Wondering what the hero of this story did with his life before he rescued a princess? Have a different story you want me to look at? Comment below!