Thousand & One Nights 3: Tale of An Ox and A Donkey

There was a wealthy and prosperous merchant who worked on his farm in the village. He employed many men, owned many camels and herds of cattle. He had a woman and many children in her; both grown up as well as toddlers. He knew the language of animals.  One day as he sat with his wife beside him, and the toddlers playing around, he glanced at a donkey and an ox, kept at the farmhouse, tied to the adjacent troughs. Both were immersed in talking. Since the farmer-merchant knew the language of animals, he began to listen. Ox was the first to talk: "Watchful, you are enjoying the comfort and the sevice you are getting. Your ground is swept and watered. They feed you with sifted barley, you have clear and cool water to drink.  Look at my situation; they take me in the midnight to plough, they clamp on me something they call yoke and plough, push me all day under the whip, to plough the field, and drive me beyond my endurance, until my sides are cut open, and my neck flayed. They work me from night to night, take me back in dark, offer me soiled beans, and hay mixed with chaff. I spend the night lying in urine and dung. You sleep on well-swept, watered and smoothed ground. You have a clean trough full of hay. You stand in comfort, save for the rare occasion when your master rides you to do a brief errand. You are comfortable, while I am weary; you sleep while I keep awake."

Now, it was the turn of donkey. "Greenhorn, they were right in calling you ox, for you ox harbour no deceit, malice or meanness. Being sincere, you exert and exhaust yourself to comfort others.  Have you not heard the saying, 'out of bad luck they hastened on the road'? You go into the field to endure their torture.  When the plough man takes you back
and tie you on the trough, you go on butting and beating with your horns, kicking with your hoofs and bellowing for beans, until they toss them to you; then you begin to eat. Next time, when they bring them to you, don't eat or even touch them, but smell them, then draw back and lie down on the hay and straw. If you do this, life will be better and kinder to you, and you will find relief."

Donkey's advice attracted the ox very much. He thanked donkey. The merchant understood the full conversation between the ox and the donkey.  Next day when the plough man came and took the ox under the yoke, chased him to the field the ox began to observe the instructions of donkey. In the field he lagged behind. The plough man hit him. But he fell on his belly. The plough man hit him again. The ox got up and fell down.  The plough man took him home and tied him to the trough. He did not kick the gound with his hoofs or bellow. Instead he withdrew away from the trough. Astonished, the plough man brought him the beans and fodder. The ox only smelled and withdrew and lay down on the hay and straw.  When the plough man arrived in the morning, he found the trough as he had left it, full of beans and fodder, and he saw the ox lying, hardly breathing, his belly puffed and his legs stretched stiff.  The plough man felt sorry for him, and said to himself, "By God, he did seem weak and unable to work." Then he went to the merchant, and said, "Master, last night, the ox refused to eat, or to touch his fodder."

The merchant, who knew what was going on, said to the plough man, "Go to the wily donkey, put him to the plough, and work him hard until he finishes the ox's task." The plough man left, took the donkey, and placed the yoke upon his neck. Then he took him out to the field, and drove him with blows, and beat him until his sides were cut, and his neck was flayed.  At nighfall he took him home, barely able to drag his legs under his tired body, and his drooping ears.

The ox spent the day resting. He ate, and drank, and lay quietly, chewing his cud in comfort. All day he kept praising the donkey's advice.  When the donkey came back at night, the ox stood up to greet him, saying, "Good evening, watchful one! You have done me a favour beyond description, for I have been sitting in comfort. God bless you for my sake."
Seething with anger, donkey did not reply, but said to himself, "All this happened to me because of my miscalculation. I would be sitting pretty, but for my curiosity. If I don't find a way to return this ox to his former situation, I will perish." Then he went to his trough and lay down, while the ox continued to chew his cud, and invoke God's blessing on him.

"You my daughter, will likewise perish because of your miscalculation. Desist, sit quietly, and don't expose yourself to peril. I advise you out of compassion for you," said vizier.

She replied, "Father, I must go to the king, and you must give me to him."

"Don't do it," he said.

"I must." She insisted.

"If you don't desist, I will do to you what the merchant do to his wife."

"What did the merchant," asked Shahrazad to her father, "do to his wife?"

End of the Story











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