"Libussa's Vision" a Prague Travel Page by yooperprof

In the good old days, the beautiful Princess Libussa was wondrously blessed with the gift of prophecy. She was the granddaughter of the patriarch Czech, who had settled his people in the mystic and fertile valley of the Vltava. For a while, Princess Libussa had actually been ruler of the tribe, but ultimately she had married the cunning plowman Premysl. On a beautiful summer evening - not unlike the evenings I experienced in the summer of 2003 - Princess Libussa, her spouse Premysl, and the elders of the tribe gathered on a high bluff overlooking the Vltava. Libussa was suddenly seized with a vision of the future: "I foresee a great city whose fame will touch the stars! Just as princes and brave soldiers bow their heads when they cross the threshold of a house [in Czech, "prah"], so will they bow their heads to my city. It will be honored, noble and respected by all the world."

Alas, the good old days did not last. They never do, do they? A terrible civil war broke out between Princess Libussa's female retainers and the male partisans of Premysl. The maidens put up a strong fight; many men were killed in battle - or in bed! But ultimately, Premysl's forces gained the upper hand, and the women's army was crushed. Libussa's vision seemed unattainable.

How interesting that Prague's Castle contains its Cathedral! The sacred symbols of church and state - and of nation - are conjoined on this hilltop in an amazing and unforgettable manner. Prague's peculiar and powerful charm stems from the way in which the beliefs and values of the past have been institutionalized in art and architecture, woven into a dense urban fabric that overwhelms the senses of the visitor. "The past" isn't past here - it remains part of the present, and helps to shape the future. Libussa's vision is being realized in the twenty-first century.