Fables

[a.ratchasi]

Mystical stories with talking animals, multi faceted human beings and not forgetting the atrocious plots....interesting....it is.
However, what baffles is the sense of truth thrown that makes a fable what it is....a speedbreaker of sorts for man to stop and evaluate what he has done or should not have done.
Or simply to figure why people are as they are?

Fables... simplicity with abundance of wisdom...

[a.ratchasi]

The Father and His Two Daughters

A MAN had two daughters, the one married to a gardener, and the
other to a tile-maker. After a time he went to the daughter who
had married the gardener, and inquired how she was and how all
things went with her. She said, "All things are prospering with
me, and I have only one wish, that there may be a heavy fall of
rain, in order that the plants may be well watered." Not long
after, he went to the daughter who had married the tilemaker, and
likewise inquired of her how she fared; she replied, "I want for
nothing, and have only one wish, that the dry weather may
continue, and the sun shine hot and bright, so that the bricks
might be dried." He said to her, "If your sister wishes for rain,
and you for dry weather, with which of the two am I to join my
wishes?'

Moral of the story:
You can't please everybody

[a.ratchasi]

The Scorpion and the Frog

A scorpion and a frog meet on the bank of a stream and the
scorpion asks the frog to carry him across on its back. The
frog asks, "How do I know you won't sting me?" The scorpion
says, "Because if I do, I will die too."

The frog is satisfied, and they set out, but in midstream,
the scorpion stings the frog. The frog feels the onset of
paralysis and starts to sink, knowing they both will drown,
but has just enough time to gasp "Why?"

Replies the scorpion: "It is my nature..."

[a.ratchasi]

The Serpent and the Eagle

An Eagle swooped down upon a Serpent and seized it in his talons
with the intention of carrying it off and devouring it. But the
Serpent was too quick for him and had its coils round him in a moment; and then there ensued a life-and-death struggle between the two.

A countryman, who was a witness of the encounter, came to the assistance of the eagle, and succeeded in freeing him from the Serpent and enabling him to escape. In revenge, the Serpent spat some of his poison into the man's drinking-horn. Heated with his exertions, the man was about to slake his thirst with a draught from the horn, when the Eagle knocked it out of his hand, and spilled its contents upon the ground.

Moral of the story:
One good turn deserves another

[a.ratchasi]

The Thieves and the rooster

SOME THIEVES broke into a house and found nothing but a rooster,
whom they stole, and got off as fast as they could. Upon
arriving at home they prepared to kill the rooster, who thus pleaded for his life: "Pray spare me; I am very serviceable to men. I wake them up in the night to their work." "That is the very
reason why we must the more kill you," they replied; "for when
you wake your neighbors, you entirely put an end to our
business."

Moral:
The safeguards of virtue are hateful to those with evil intentions.

[a.ratchasi]

The Sick Lion

A Lion had come to the end of his days and lay sick unto death
at the mouth of his cave, gasping for breath. The animals, his
subjects, came round him and drew nearer as he grew more and more helpless.

When they saw him on the point of death they thought to
themselves: "Now is the time to pay off old grudges." So the Boar
came up and drove at him with his tusks; then a Bull gored him
with his horns; still the Lion lay helpless before them: so the
Ass, feeling quite safe from danger, came up, and turning his tail
to the Lion kicked up his heels into his face. "This is a double
death," growled the Lion.

The moral of the story is:
Only cowards insult dying majesty.

[a.ratchasi]

The Travelers and the Plane-Tree

Two travelers, worn out by the heat of the summer's sun, laid
themselves down at noon under the widespreading branches of a
plane tree. As they rested under its shade, one of the travelers
said to the other, "What a singularly useless tree is the Plane!
It bears no fruit, and is not of the least service to man." The
Plane-Tree, interrupting him, said, "You ungrateful fellows! Do
you, while receiving benefits from me and resting under my shade,
dare to describe me as useless, and unprofitable?'

Moral:
Some men underrate their best blessings

[a.ratchasi]

The Fox Borrows the Tiger's Terror

In the Warring States period, the Chu State had a very capable minister called Zhao Xixu. He was well respected and held in awe by the people of other countries as well as his own. One day, the king asked his ministers "I hear every state in the north is afraid of our minister Zhao Xixu, is that so?" At the question, almost all the ministers kept silent except one called Jiangyi, who liked to curry the king's favor very much. He lost no time to seize the opportunity and said, "Your Majesty, you know, it's you who people awe and respect, not him! Have you ever heard the story The Fox Borrows the Tiger's Terror?" Well, here is the story.

One day a tiger was hunting around in a forest. An unlucky fox was met and caught by the tiger. For the fox, the inescapable fate was very clear -- death. Despite the danger, the fox thought hard to find a way out. Promptly, the fox declared to the tiger, "How dare you kill me!" On hearing the words the tiger was surprised and asked for the reason" The fox raised his voice a bit higher and declared arrogantly: "To tell you the truth, it's I who was accredited by God to the forest as the king of all the animals! If you kill me, that will be against the God's will, you know?" Seeing that the tiger became suspicions, the fox added: "Let's have a test. Let's go through the forest. Follow me and you will see HOW THE ANIMALS ARE FRIGHTENED OF ME." The tiger agreed. So the fox walked ahead of the tiger proudly through the forest. As you can imagine, the animals, seeing the tiger behind, were all terribly frightened and ran away. Then the fox said proudly: "There is no doubt that what I said is true, isn't it?" The tiger had nothing to say but to acknowledge the result. So the tiger nodded and said: "You are right. You are the king."

When Minister Jiangyi finished the story above, he added to the king: "It seems as if the northern neighbors were afraid of Minister Zhao xixu. In fact, they are afraid of Your Majesty just as the animals were afraid of the tiger not of the fox." The king was very pleased at Minister Jiangyi's words. And never doubted its truth.

[blahblah]

Ratchasi,thirty eight views but no posts from others?But you seem to be in good form.Can Icomeout with some Aesop's fables?

[a.ratchasi]

Blahblah, to post or not to post, is up to the hubbers.
I am not going to measure this thread by the number of 'worded' response it gets. Rather it is the imparting value that counts.

Of course, when a ratchasi can post a fable or two, I dont see why not a rabbit?