The Complete Fables

by Aesop

  But, just as he was in that frame of mind, the lion saw an elephant nearby and went over to have a chat with him about this and that. As they were talking, the lion noticed that the elephant kept twitching his ears.

  ‘What’s wrong?’ asked the lion. ‘Can’t you keep your ears still for one moment?’

  At that very moment a gnat settled on the head of the elephant.

  ‘Oh, my God!’ said the elephant. ‘Do you see that? There, that little buzzing insect, there! If it were to get into my ears, why, I’d be finished. That would be the end of me. I’d die, you know!’

  ‘Well,’ said the lion to himself, ‘I don’t feel so bad any more. And to think I was wishing myself dead for shame! In fact, I’m big and strong and much better off than the elephant, since a cockerel is much more frightening than a gnat!’

  One sees that the gnat is strong enough to make even an elephant fearful.

  211

  The Lion and the Bull

  A lion wanted to hunt down a bull, so he decided to use a trick to try to get hold of him. He told him that he had sacrificed a sheep and he invited the bull to the feast, his intention being to kill him when he was reclining on his side to eat. The bull accepted the invitation but, seeing the huge spits and giant cauldrons – but no sheep – he departed without saying a word. The lion reproached him as to why, having suffered no harm, he left without reason.

  ‘Oh, I have my reasons,’ said the bull. ‘I see no sign of your having slaughtered a sheep but I do see, very plainly, that you have made every preparation for dining on beef.’

  This fable shows that you should trust your own eyes rather than sweet words and reassurances.

  212

  The Raging Lion and the Stag

  A lion was enraged and a stag, who saw him from the forest, called out:

  ‘Woe betide us! What won’t this lion do in his fury, when he was already intolerable in a calm frame of mind!’

  Avoid hotheaded men who are accustomed to doing harm when they come to power.

  213

  The Lion Who Was Afraid of a Mouse, and the Fox

  There was a lion lying asleep one day when a mouse ran all the way up his body. The lion awoke with a start and rolled over and over, trying to find out what or who it was that had attacked him. A fox, who had seen all this, rebuked him for being afraid – he, a lion, afraid of a mouse! To which the lion replied:

  ‘It isn’t that I was afraid of the mouse, but I was most surprised that there was anyone at all who could be so bold as to run along the body of a sleeping lion.’

  This fable shows that wise men don’t ignore even the little things.

  214

  The Bandit and the Mulberry Tree

  A bandit, who had killed a man on the road, saw that he was being pursued by some people who happened to be nearby. So he abandoned his bloodstained victim and fled. But some travellers who were coming in the opposite direction asked him what had made his hands so stained. He said he had just climbed down from a mulberry tree. When he said this, the people who were pursuing him caught up with him, seized him and hung him from a nearby mulberry tree. And the tree said to him:

  ‘I am not sorry to assist with your punishment. You are the one who committed the murder, and yet you wiped the blood on me.’

  Even naturally good men, when they see themselves slandered, do not hesitate to show spite towards those who have slandered them.

  215

  The Wolves and the Dogs at War

  One day, enmity broke out between the dogs and the wolves. The dogs elected a Greek to be their general. But he was in no hurry to engage in battle, despite the violent intimidation of the wolves. ‘Understand,’ he said to them, ‘why I deliberately put off engagement. It is because one must always take counsel before acting. The wolves, on the one hand, are all of the same race, all of the same colour. But our soldiers have very varied habits, and each one is proud of his own country. Even their colours are not uniform: some are black, some russett, and others white or ash-grey. How can I lead into battle those who are not in harmony and who are all dissimilar?’

  In all armies it is unity of will and purpose which assures victory over the enemy.

  NOTE: The reference to the dogs being proud of their own countries refers to the ancient Greek habit of calling dogs by the names of the countries or regions in which they were customarily bred, such as Molossian or Laconian hounds or Maltese terriers. Different breeds of dogs were thus named after different countries in common parlance, so that if one spoke of them all one seemed to be talking of many countries.

  216

  The Dogs Reconciled with the Wolves

  The wolves said to the dogs: ‘Why, when you are so like us in all respects, don’t we come to some brotherly understanding? For there is no difference between us except our ways of thinking. We live in freedom; you submit and are enslaved by man and endure his blows. You wear collars and you watch over their flocks, and when your masters eat, all they throw to you are some bones. But take our word for it, if you hand over the flocks to us we can all club together and gorge our appetites jointly.’

  The dogs were sympathetic to this proposal, so the wolves, making their way inside the sheepfold, tore the dogs to pieces.

  Such is the reward that traitors who betray their fatherland deserve.

  217

  The Wolves and the Sheep

  Some wolves were trying to surprise a flock of sheep. Unable to be masters of the situation because of the dogs which were guarding them, they resolved to use a ruse to reach their desired end: they sent some delegates to ask the sheep to give up their dogs. It was the dogs, they said, who created the bad blood between them. One only had to surrender the dogs and peace would reign between them. The sheep, not foreseeing what would happen, gave up the dogs. And the wolves, being in control of the situation, easily slaughtered the sheep who were no longer guarded.

  This is the case with states: those who easily surrender up their orators cannot doubt that they will very soon be subjugated by their enemies.

  218

  The Wolves, the Sheep and the Ram

  The wolves sent some envoys to the sheep, offering to make a lasting peace with them if they surrendered up their dogs to be put to death. The stupid sheep agreed to do it. But an old ram exclaimed:

  ‘How should I accept that idea and live with you when, even when we were guarded by the dogs, it was impossible for me to graze in safety?’

  We must not part with that which assures our safety, in making faith with our irreconcilable enemies.

  219

  The Wolf Proud of His Shadow, and the Lion

  One day a wolf was wandering in some uninhabited regions at the hour when the sun sinks low down towards the horizon. Seeing his elongated shadow, he said:

  ‘Look at that! With my stature, should I fear the lion? With such an immense size, should I not become the king of all the animals?’

  And as he was fully given up to pride with this thought, a lion of great strength suddenly leapt upon him and devoured him.

  The wolf changed his opinion and cried:

  ‘Presumption brings us misfortune.’

  220

  The Wolf and the Goat

  A wolf espied a nanny-goat grazing above a cave on a sheer cliff-face. Unable to reach her, he urged her to come down. For she could, he said, inadvertently fall. Furthermore, the meadow down below, where he was standing, was much better for pasture, for the grass there was lush. But the goat replied:

  ‘It’s not for my benefit that you summon me to that pasture; it is because it is you who have nothing to eat.’

  Thus, when cunning scoundrels exert their wickedness among people whom they know, they gain nothing by their machinations.

  221

  The Wolf and the Lamb

  A wolf saw a lamb drinking at a stream and wanted to devise a suitable pretext for devouring it. So, although he was himself upstream, he accused the lamb of muddying the water and
preventing him from drinking. The lamb replied that he only drank with the tip of his tongue and that, besides, being downstream he couldn’t muddy the water upstream. The wolf’s stratagem having collapsed, he replied:

  ‘But last year you insulted my father.’

  ‘I wasn’t even born then,’ replied the lamb.

  So the wolf resumed:

  ‘Whatever you say to justify yourself, I will eat you all the same.’

  This fable shows that when some people decide upon doing harm, the fairest defence has no effect whatever.

  222

  The Wolf and the Young Lamb Taking Refuge in a Temple

  A wolf pursued a young lamb, who took refuge in a temple. The wolf called out to it and said that the sacrificer would offer it up to the god if he found the lamb there. But the lamb replied:

  ‘Ah well! I would prefer to be a victim of a god than to die by your hand.’

  This fable shows that if one is being driven towards death, it is better to die with honour.

  223

  The Wolf and the Old Woman

  A hungry wolf was prowling in search of food. Coming to a certain place, he heard a child crying and an old woman who was saying to it:

  ‘Don’t cry any more, or else I will give you to the wolf at once!’

  The wolf thought that the old woman meant it, so he stopped and waited for a long time. When evening fell he again heard the old woman cuddling the little one, saying to it:

  ‘If the wolf comes here, my child, we will kill him.’

  After hearing these words, the wolf went on his way, saying:

  ‘In this farm they say one thing and do another.’

  This fable addresses itself to people who do not match their words with their deeds.

  224

  The Wolf and the Heron

  A wolf swallowed a bone and looked everywhere for relief from his predicament. He met a heron who, for a certain fee, agreed to retrieve the bone. So the heron lowered his head into the wolf’s throat, pulled out the bone, and then claimed his promised fee.

  ‘Listen, pal!’ replied the wolf. ‘Isn’t it enough to have pulled your head safe and sound from a wolf’s throat? What more do you want?’

  This fable shows that the most we can expect from bad people is that they won’t commit an injury against us in addition to their lack of gratitude.

  225

  The Wolf and the Horse

  A wolf crossed an arable field [aroura] and discovered that it contained barley. As he couldn’t eat it, he left it and went on his way. Soon after he met a horse, whom he led to the field, telling him he had found some barley.

  The wolf said:

  ‘Rather than eat it myself, I decided to watch over it for you instead. For I very much enjoy the sound of your munching.’

  The horse replied:

  ‘Ha! My friend, if wolves could eat barley for their dinner, you would never have preferred the use of your ears to the filling of your stomach!’

  This fable shows that those who are naturally wicked, even when they pride themselves on being good, are not actually believed.

  226

  The Wolf and the Dog

  A wolf saw a huge dog wearing a large wooden restraining-collar and asked him:

  ‘Who has chained you up and fed you like that?’

  ‘A hunter,’ replied the dog.

  ‘Ah, God preserve wolves from him, as much as from hunger and a heavy restraining-collar!’

  This fable shows that in misfortune one doesn’t even have the pleasures of the stomach.

  NOTE: In ancient Greece large or unruly dogs were restrained by a heavy wooden collar called a kloios. The meaning of the fable depends upon knowing about this obsolete object.

  227

  The Wolf and the Lion

  One day, a wolf seized a sheep from a flock and carried it to his lair. But, on his way, a lion crossed his path and took the sheep from him. The wolf remained at a safe distance but complained to the lion:

  ‘You have no right to take my property!’

  The lion said to the wolf mockingly:

  ‘You came by it honestly yourself, as a gift from a friend, no doubt?’

  Insatiable plunderers and thieves who fall out among themselves when they meet with a setback can learn from this story.

  228

  The Wolf and the Ass

  A wolf became chief over the other wolves and established some general laws to the effect that whatever was caught by hunting would be shared communally. By that means, the wolves would never again be reduced to a shortage of food and thus to eating one another.

  But an ass came forward and, shaking his mane, said:

  ‘The wolf has been inspired by a noble idea. But what about your catch of yesterday which you have concealed in your lair? Bring it out and share it with the community.’ The wolf, disconcerted, abolished his laws.

  Those who seem to legislate according to justice cannot even abide by the rules which they themselves have established and decreed.

  229

  The Wolf and the Shepherd

  A wolf followed a flock of sheep without doing them any harm. At first the shepherd was fearful of it as an enemy and watched it nervously. But, as the wolfkept on following without making any attempt to harm them, he began to look upon it as more of a guardian than an enemy to be wary of. As he needed to go into town one day, he left the sheep with the wolf in attendance. The wolf, seeing his opportunity, hurled himself at the sheep and tore most of them to pieces. When the shepherd returned and saw the lost sheep he cried out:

  ‘It serves me right. How could I have entrusted my sheep to a wolf?’

  It is the same with men: when you entrust valuables to greedy people it is natural that you will lose things.

  230

  The Satisfied Wolf and the Ewe

  A wolf, well-gorged with food, saw a ewe lying on her back on the ground, unable to right herself. Realizing that she had collapsed from fright, he approached her and reassured her. He promised that if she would utter three truths he would leave her alone. So the ewe began by telling him she would like not to have to meet him again, or failing that she would like him to go blind, and thirdly she wished ‘that wicked wolves would meet violent deaths so that we would suffer no more harm from you and you would make no more war against us’. The wolf acknowledged her veracity and left her to go her own way.

  This fable shows that often truth has this effect on one’s enemies.

  231

  The Injured Wolf and the Ewe

  A wolf, bitten and injured by some dogs, had fallen to the ground. As he was in no state to hunt for food, he espied a ewe and begged her to fetch him a drink from the nearby stream:

  ‘If you give me something to drink I will find myself something to eat,’ said the wolf.

  ‘But if I give you something to drink,’ replied the ewe, ‘it is I who will make you a meal’

  This fable is aimed at the wrongdoer who lays a hypocritical trap.

  232

  The Lamp

  Intoxicated with oil, a lamp threw out a vivid light, boasting that it was more brilliant than the sun. But a gust of wind blew up and it was extinguished instantly. Someone relit it and said:

  ‘Light up, lamp, and be assured that the light of the stars is never eclipsed.’

  You mustn’t be dazzled by pride when you are held in high repute, for all that is acquired is extraneous to us.

  233

  The Diviner

  A diviner was sitting plying his trade in the agora. Suddenly, someone rushed up to him and said that the front door of his house was wide open and the contents gone. The diviner leapt up in consternation and ran home, gasping to see what had happened. A passer-by who saw him running called out:

  ‘Hey there! You who pride yourself on foretelling the future for others! Can’t you foresee what will happen to yourself?’

  One could apply this fable to people who order their own lives woefully but who dabble
in controlling affairs which are not their concern.

  234

  The Bees and Zeus

  Begrudging the honey they gave to men, the bees went to Zeus to ask him to give them the power to kill with their stings anyone approaching their honeycombs. Indignant at their envy, Zeus condemned the bees to lose their sting-barbs every time they stung someone, and to die as a result.

  This fable is applicable to those who suffer as a result of their own envy.

  235

  The Beekeeper

  A man broke into a beekeeper’s abode and, in his absence, stole some honey and honeycombs. When the beekeeper returned and saw the empty hives he stopped to examine them. But the bees, flying back home from foraging and finding him there, attacked him and stung him terribly.

  ‘Wretched creatures,’ he exclaimed, ‘you let the person who stole your combs escape with impunity and you mercilessly persecute me, who takes care of you!’

  Thus, it often happens that, through ignorance, we are not on guard against our enemies and that we drive off our friends and hold them in suspicion.

  236

  The Begging Priests of Cybele