The Aurach water spirit

A water spirit tries her hand at being a maid

Somewhere in the Aurach Valley, a long time ago, there was a shrine in a remote place. The exact location is no longer known, but people still tell tales of why it was built:

One evening, a farmer was resting there after his day’s work was done, enjoying the last warm rays of the sun on his face. As a shadow was cast on him, he looked up, irritated. A woman was standing in front of him, her face more beautiful than the setting sun. Astonished, he admired her jet-black hair and her eyes, which were as green as the reeds on a riverbank. She wore a wet dress that stuck to her body like a second skin. Dark creepers and light duckweed wound around the hem of the skirt. These were plants that could not be found anywhere in the area. The man was so enchanted by her that he did not notice her peculiar robes. The strange woman began to stroke his billy goat and sat down next to the man.

They began to talk, and the farmer enjoyed the company of the eloquent woman. Then the stranger asked the farmer if she could come and live with him as a servant. The farmer was surprised and delighted and they quickly came to an agreement, especially since she did not ask for a wage. She just said, "I want to be a diligent and good handmaiden to you always. But if I want to leave your farm, you must let me go at any time."

The farmer agreed and brought her to his farm. From morning to night she worked on the farm and did everything she was told to do. She was a hardworking and well-behaved maidservant. However, she refused to go to Kufhaus or Pinsdorf; she never wanted to leave the farm. In addition, she always wept bitterly when bells rang. The strange handmaiden seemed odd, but because she was so hardworking and neat, she was let alone.

In this way time passed on the farm and in the fields. Once again, the farmer was busy in the forest. He cut off saplings and sharpened his knife on a stone. He hadn't noticed a giant frog resting among the stones. The sharpening startled the animal and he hopped towards the farmer. He was frightened by the green beast, which was bigger than a loaf of bread. Frightened, he grabbed a cut branch and struck at the frog. It opened his big mouth and croaked: "Because you hit me, I'll collect my bride!" With mighty leaps he hopped down into the valley and disappeared in a thicket.

The farmer stood as if frozen; for a long time he could not think clearly. His knees were shaking and sweat was running down his forehead. He could not continue working after this encounter. All the while he wondered what the frog's strange words meant. He quickly loaded the cut saplings onto his shoulder and hurried home. He couldn't get the giant frog out of his head.

When he stepped through the gate of the farm, he was startled a second time. With hoots and shouts, the strange maiden went whizzing over his head. Her dark hair was blowing like a shadow in the wind. She rode upon a jet-black billy goat and on her lap sat the giant frog. The three of them were riding like a tempest in the direction of Aurach.

For a long time the farmer could not forget this experience. Was the strange maiden the frog's bride? Or was she even a water spirit who had left her deep waters? The farmer decided to erect a shrine at the place where he had first met the strange handmaiden and then the frog.

From that time on, people called the farmer Froschschläger or "frog beater." His children and grandchildren kept the name. It is only a short time ago that the last of this old farming family is said to have died.