Gambling Hansel facts for kids
Gambling Hansel (in German, De Spielhansl) is a German fairy tale. It was collected by the famous Brothers Grimm and first published in their book Kinder- und Hausmärchen (Grimm's Fairy Tales) in 1812. This story is number 82 in their collection. It shares some ideas with other folk tales where a character gets three wishes. This Hansel is a different character from the one in the well-known story of Hansel and Gretel.
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The Story of Gambling Hansel
The story of Gambling Hansel was translated into English by Margaret Raine Hunt in 1884. It tells about a man who loved to gamble more than anything else.
Hansel's Bad Habit
There once was a man known only as Gambling Hansel. He loved to gamble so much that he played away his house and everything he owned. The day before his house was to be taken by people he owed money to, two special visitors arrived. These visitors were the Lord and Saint Peter, and they asked Hansel for a place to stay the night.
Hansel told them they could stay, but he had no bed or food to offer. The Lord said it was fine; they would buy their own food. Saint Peter gave Hansel three coins and asked him to buy some bread.
Hansel went to the baker's, but on his way, he saw other gamblers. Even though they had won all his money before, they called out to him. "Hansel, come in!" they said. Hansel joked, "Do you want to win my three coins too?" But they wouldn't let him leave. So, he went in and gambled away the three coins.
Special Guests and Strange Wishes
The Lord and Saint Peter waited for a long time. When Hansel finally came back, he pretended the money had fallen into a gutter. He kept looking for it, but the Lord already knew he had lost it gambling. Saint Peter gave him three more coins. This time, Hansel went straight to the baker's and bought the bread.
The Lord then asked if Hansel had any wine. Hansel said, "Oh no, sir, all the barrels are empty!" But the Lord told him to go to the cellar, saying the best wine was still there. Hansel didn't believe it at first. He went down, thinking there would be nothing. But when he turned the tap, the finest wine flowed out! He brought it up, and the three of them spent the night.
The next morning, the Lord told Hansel he could ask for three special favors. The Lord probably expected Hansel to ask to go to Heaven. But Hansel had different ideas. He asked for:
- A special deck of cards that would let him win every game.
- Dice that would also make him win every game.
- A magical tree where all kinds of fruit would grow. Anyone who climbed this tree could not come down until Hansel told them to.
The Lord gave Hansel all three wishes, and then he and Saint Peter left.
Tricking Death
With his new magical items, Gambling Hansel started gambling seriously. Soon, he had won a huge amount of wealth. Saint Peter noticed this and told the Lord, "Lord, this can't go on! He will win everything!" So, they decided to send Death to Hansel.
When Death arrived, Hansel was at his gambling table. Death said, "Hansel, come with me." But Hansel replied, "Wait a moment until this game is finished. In the meantime, climb that tree outside and pick some fruit for us to eat on our journey."
Death climbed the tree. But when Death tried to come down, it couldn't! Hansel left Death stuck in the tree for seven years. During this time, no one in the world died.
A Journey to the Afterlife
Saint Peter again spoke to the Lord, "Lord, this cannot continue. People are not dying! We must go ourselves." So, they went to Hansel. The Lord told Hansel to let Death come down.
Hansel went to Death and said, "You can come down now." As soon as Death was free, it took Hansel, and Hansel's life ended. They traveled together to the next world.
Gambling Hansel went straight to the door of Heaven and knocked. "Who is there?" a voice asked. "Gambling Hansel," he replied. The voice said, "Oh, we don't want him here! Go away!"
So, Hansel went to the door of Purgatory and knocked again. "Who is there?" "Gambling Hansel." The voice from Purgatory said, "There's enough sadness here already. We don't want to gamble. Just go away."
Finally, he went to the door of Hell. There, they let him in.
The End of Hansel's Game
In Hell, only Lucifer and some devils were there. As soon as Hansel arrived, he started to gamble again. Lucifer had nothing to lose but his devils. With his special cards, Hansel won all of Lucifer's devils!
Hansel then left Hell with his new devils. They went to a place called Hohenfuert and pulled up a tall hop-pole. They took it to Heaven and began to push the pole against it. Heaven started to crack!
Saint Peter said to the Lord, "Lord, this can't go on. We must let him in, or he will break Heaven!" So, they let Hansel into Heaven.
But once inside, Gambling Hansel immediately started playing cards again. He made so much noise and caused such a commotion that no one could hear themselves speak. Saint Peter said once more, "Lord, this cannot continue. We must throw him out, or he will cause chaos in Heaven!"
So, they went to Hansel and threw him out of Heaven. His spirit broke into many pieces, and these pieces went into all the people who love to gamble, even to this very day.
