I am wondering if anyone else out there has noticed the triads that occur in many stories of folklore such as nursery rhymes and other forms that we have around today. For instance, a triad is a comon theme in children's literature that has been passed down from one generation to the next, much like the Druidic tradition.

The Three Little Pigs is a great example of this particular genre, where there is not two little pigs nor is there four little pigs, but three. Interestingly enough, we do not have one author we can pin down on this tale, but everyone knows it. Another is Three Billy Goats Gruff. In this tale, each goat has to go through his own trial before he is able to pass over the bridge. While this story has been commonly associated with Icelandic mythology, it is still a story that contains a triad and is still a very popular children's story today.

There are other stories as well in folklore that are not as obvious as the ones mentioned above. For instance, in Cinderella, there are three evil step-sisters and three tests of the magic slipper before it fits the right foot.

My question is how the triad became such an integral part in this kind of folklore literature? Should we thank (or blame) Patrick for his Trinity story with the clover and the Son, the Father, and the Holy Ghost? Or is it more of an ancient Indo-European tradition to consider things in threes?