(return home) Timbarin the Fool is based on an old Welsh fairy tale in which a young cousin of King Arthur falls in love with a girl after only hearing her name. In the fairy tale, the boy then sets off to win Olwen away from her ogre father, who's vowed to murder her suitors; in Timbarin something similar happens, but it may only be happening in the hero's imagination. From Timbarin the Fool The labor of the mother brought profit to the son and this was an ordeal. The labor was not finished and it fell upon the son, and who can know how the profit fell. As hands worked the earth, scraping the lonely plow, Timbarin built him stories. His labor was wide and many. Timbarin bimbarin fimbarin farry, where is your maiden and when will you marry? Timbarin walked to the end of the earth, and founded a port. When a city had grown in the port he sold his labor for a space of years, and at the end of the years he bought a ship. The ship he called the Twilight Dream and sailed to the end of the ocean. There he came to rest on an island and lived alone with a single tree. He cut the tree's branch, and when it had grown and grown another he cut it again. He slept the space of many years in the shade of the tree, and at the end of the years he made of the branches a ladder. He set his ladder against the sky, and walked up his ladder to the sun. Timbarin the fool took his companion knife, that was sweeter than any wine, from his sleeve and he cut away a portion of the sun. In the space of many years he returned down his ladder of branches. He sailed his Twilight Dream from the island to a desert of stone, and in the space of many years with his knife, that was longer than a single night, he cut stone from the ground to build a fortress. From morning to evening and evening to morning through an age he towered the stone, and when his fortress was darker than any mountain he hid within it his portion of the sun. He sailed his Twilight Dream again to the island, and in the space of many years he climbed his ladder of branches, returning with himself and his iron sleeve, again to cut the sun. When he had hidden all the sun within his fortress, he traveled the world seeking a shepherd. For a space of years he followed the shepherd and without profit he cut wool with his knife. But when the herd had passed through many generations, and he had beaten skill into his blade, he returned to the desert of stone. Within his grey castle Timbarin the fool sheared the sun. He traveled the world to find a spinner, and through the space of years he sat at her feet. In his grey desert he built a wheel of the bones of a salamander and spun sunlight. Timbarin returned to the city of the port, and sold his labor for a space of years and ages, and when he was richer than any man, he hired a weaver. The weaver wove for him with the sunlight thread and made for him morning-break hair. Timbarin carved with his knife in the walls of the castle, saying, What is her hair but the sun? and this was all a single word in his story. Timbarin walked out of his desert walking north. He passed through four ages and seven countries, and he sailed the Twilight Dream over twelve oceans. He came to a land of ice that was so frozen he could hardly take a step. Timbarin sailed again south until he came to a mighty forest, and there he sat through the winter at the mouth of a cave. When the first baby grasses pushed out through mother earth he touched the blade in his sleeve. When the first young flowers dressed themselves in petals, a bear walked out of the cave. Timbarin fell upon him but his enemy was strong. They fought in the forest and their backs broke trees. They fought on a mountain and ripped the sky. They fell in a river and fought under water through springtime and summer until the hero's blade knew his enemy's throat. In the winter at another cave Timbarin dressed the skin, and in spring again he met another. Timbarin made a coat of twelve bearskins and he sailed again to the north. In the north, under his great coat, he walked through a land of ice. He came to a second land of ice, that was so frozen he could hardly take a step. He walked again through ice to the south, and sailed to the forest, and killed twelve bears. In his suit of twenty-four bearskins he came again to the second land of ice, and under his bearskins he could breathe. But the snow was too thick to walk through and rained too heavy to walk on. Timbarin leaned on the edge of his blade, and though it took him an hour to cut him a step, he crossed in a space of years the second country of ice. He came to a third country of ice, that was so frozen he could hardly take a step. Timbarin cut his way again through one country of ice and marched his way through another, and sailed to the forest and killed twelve bears. He made boots and hood from their skins, and skis and poles from their bones, and sailed to the north. Covered in the skins of thirty-six bears he sailed on his skis over two countries of ice. He left his skis and crossed into the third country where he cut himself twelve steps in the daytime and twelve steps at night. In a space of years he came to the land of final ice, where the sky and air were frozen and fiercer than stone. His breath froze as it left his nostrils, and he could not breathe without his companion blade flashing before his face. When he cut this way he did not move, and so he held his breath and cut the ice. It cost him the work of a day to cut a single step, the day and a night to cut a pace. In a space of many years and ages, while in the world below kingdoms were made and broken and people lived and died as the grasses, Timbarin crossed the land of final ice. At the end of the land of final ice, where all things were whiter than white, was a rock of salt that was whiter than ice. Licking the rock was a cow that was whiter than salt. From her udders she gave ice that was whiter than a cow. Timbarin's blood froze, and he moved now more slowly than rocks and ages. But while countries lived and died as the grasses Timbarin milked the white cow, and he bundled her milky ice into a leather bottle, and he turned himself to the south. In the desert of stone, Timbarin was weary and hungry. But he tasted the milky ice and did not hunger. He tied a strand of morning-break hair around his wrist and was not weary. He cut stone from the ground through many ages, and through many ages towered it, building a second fortress. And when this fortress was deeper than the ocean he hid his bottle of ice within it. Timbarin carved with his knife on the walls of the castle, saying, What is her brow but ice? and it was a word of his story. Timbarin walked out of his desert to the east, walking until the sky met the earth. There he met the shepherd that watches the clouds, who steps over mountains as if stepping on grass, and combs his hair through the stars. He pulled his knife from his sleeve and challenged him. Twelve months passed as his challenge traveled from his mouth to the shepherd's ear, and the challenge spent another year to reach his heart. Two years were taken for his bending down to see the hero, and only a moment for the opening of his throat. Timbarin stole the flock of clouds, and returning to the desert he built them again a fortress, for what is her breast but cloud? Timbarin walked out of his desert to the north again, passing through seven countries, twelve oceans and four lands of ice. He came to the final ocean, and in an age he opened a thousand oysters to find a single pearl. In a second age he found a second, and in a third a third. When he held thirty-two pearls in the pocket of his bearskin jacket he returned to his desert and built a fourth fortress, for what are her teeth but pearls? Timbarin walked out of his desert to the south and east till he came to a country of mulberry trees. He sold his labor in their capital for a space of years and ages till he was richer than any king. He brought his gold to the market place and he called for silk. He was offered a castle full of fine silk, or a treasure house of finer. He was offered a cottage of still finer silk, or a trunk of still finer. But Timbarin bought a single thread that was not as long as his thumb, and hiding it in his wallet he went again to sell his labor. After a space of ages, he built a loom of white feathers, and he made a silken cloth. He cut from morning to evening and evening to morning through a space of years to build a fortress in his desert, and when it was blacker than any heaven's ink he hid his silk within it. He carved on the walls of the fortress, saying What is her throat but silk? Timbarin walked out of his desert and he walked to the west. He sailed on his Twilight Dream past thirty oceans until he came to a country of valleys. Leaving his ship secure in the harbor he entered the country and entered the valley. In a bright morning the young hero walked down into the valley, and up again to the other side, where he tripped on his long white beard. He fell on the door of a little cottage, where a maiden took him in and shaved his beard, and gave him to eat and drink and a bed to sleep in. In the morning he entered a second valley and on its far side he fell over his beard again. In a space of many years of many beards he came to the last valley, whose sides were so steep that Timbarin walked backwards. When at last he came to the other side, he came up crawling, dragging behind him the weight of his wide snowy beard. There he found a beautiful maiden, whose hair was the sun and brighter, whose brow was ice and whiter, whose teeth were pearls and whose throat was of silk. She shaved his beard and he sat at the hearth while she wove a rope that was white as salt. On a bright morning the young hero entered a country of mountains, his waist wrapped in a milk-white rope. The first mountain was only a hill and he crossed past it in a single day. But the second mountain was steeper, and a day again only took him to the peak, where he rested for a single breath. He used the night to descend to the ground. The third mountain was higher and steeper and the fourth mountain was steeper and higher. At last after a space of many years Timbarin came to the final mountain, whose peak crossed the sky and heavens and came to rest at its own base, that was blacker than the back of his eye, that was steepest. Fastening his rope around his waist, he climbed the sides so steep that he walked upside-down. After a space of years and ages he came to the mountain's peak, which rested against the mountain's foot, and he took up his bearskin jacket that he had left on the ground. He walked down the far side of the mountain to its foot. There he sat on the ground to coil his rope and many years passed before he had finished. Timbarin stood at the foot of the sky. He reached for the lowest and dullest star, thinking to climb it, but before he could touch it he was burned. Timbarin turned and he crossed through a country of mountains, climbing the steepest mountain upside-down and running over the hill. He crossed through the country of valleys, leaving many white beards to many young maidens. He sailed on his Twilight Dream until he came to a mountain of fire. There he sat and he sat for twelve years waiting. Seeing at last a salamander he killed it, and made of it enough skin to cover his smallest toe. He sat down on the ground and waited twelve years. When he had made himself a suit of skin and a helmet of bones, he sailed his ship again to the country of valleys. He crossed the country of valleys till he came to the country of mountains; he crossed the country of mountains till he came to the foot of the sky. He fastened his rope around his waist and stepped on the lowest star. In the sky he climbed through seventy countries and sailed through seventy oceans. He fought in seventy wars and he ruled in seventy kingdoms. He married seventy maidens and left behind him seventy orphans. After a space of many years he came to the roof of the sky, where there sits a golden counting house. Inside the golden counting house there sits a king who hoards the stars. Taking his pointed companion knife from his sleeve, Timbarin touched the lock. The door fell open, and surprising the king at his table Timbarin sent him under the night. He returned through seventy countries and seventy oceans to the foot of the sky, through a land of mountains and a land of valleys to the ocean shore, he sailed over thirty oceans till he came to a port, and in the city of the port he bought a leather bag. He sailed over thirty oceans and crossed a country of valleys and a country of mountains, he climbed in the sky through seventy oceans and seventy countries, and he gathered up the stars. He returned through the sky and the earth to his desert of stone. Timbarin cut with his knife in the ground, cutting out stones. He cut through the ground until he reached water, and then holding his breath he cut through the water. He cut through the water until he reached fire, and then in his suit of salamander skin he cut through the fire. He cut through the fire until he reached the land of the dead. He cut through bones until he reached steel. He cut through steel until he reached ice, and through ice until he reached a single diamond. Through a space of many years and ages, Timbarin towered his blocks of stone and of water, of water and fire, of fire and bones, of bones and steel. Timbarin built over his desert and his other castles a tower that was taller than the mountain that touches the sky, that was wider than seventy oceans, that was blacker than the back of his voice. Making a lock from the roots of a mountain, the side of a circle, and the heart of a stone, Timbarin locked away his stars in the very bottom of his tower. At the bottom of his tower sat a diamond as foundation. Though every line cost him a month and each letter a year, Timbarin cut his letters into the diamond at the center of all the earth. What are her eyes but stars?