The Reward of The Fisherman

There was once a king whose favorite food was fish. Everyday, he wanted to eat fish. He did not mind if it was boiled, steamed, curried or fried; but it had to be fish. If there was no fish at a meal, the king was very unhappy.

One day, there was a terrible storm and none of the fishermen dared go fishing in the sea. That day, no fish appeared on the king’s table, nor the next, nor the day after that.

The king knew why he could not have any fish to eat. However, he loved fish so much that no other food had any taste for him. So the king did not eat anything and he became very bad tempered. He sat on his throne and frowned. Not even the best dancers or clowns could bring a smile on his lips.

Finally, the king said that whoever brought him a fish to eat could name his own reward. Two days passed and no one appeared with a fish. But on the third day, a tall fisherman came with a fat fish he had just caught in the sea.

When the king saw the fish, he smiled. He felt hungry again. The palace cook was told to cook the fish at once. While he was waiting for the meal to be served, the king said to the fisherman, “My good man, tell me what you want for your reward. What do you wish to have for that marvelous fish?”

The fisherman, who was knelling in front of the throne, touched the floor with his forehead and said respectfully, “Your Majesty, as my reward I would like to have thirty lashes with the cane.”

“What!” said the king, “Say that again, I don’t think I heard what you said.”

“Your Majesty, I want to have thirty lashes with the cane in exchange for the fish,” repeated the fisherman.

“Thirty lashes! Impossible, my good man, impossible! You have saved my health and you want to have thirty lashes! How can I do that to you?” And the king lifted his hands in horror. “Listen,” he said again, “what about a bag filled with golden coins? Or a house in the city? Or perhaps a new boat? Don’t be afraid or shy. Tell me what you really want?”

“Your Majesty, I really wish to have thirty lashes with the cane,” replied the fisherman firmly.

“But why? Why such a strange reward?” asked the king in amazement.

The fisherman looked at the floor, but did not answer. The king shrugged his shoulders. “Well, I have said you can name your reward, and if that is what you want, then I shall give you thirty lashes. Though I must say you are the strangest person I have ever met.”

The king called one of his palace guards and whispered something in his ear. The palace guard took a long cane and he began to whip the fisherman’s back with it. Although the cane swished through the air, it fell so gently on the man’s back that the skin was not even marked.

Another palace guard counted the strokes in a loud voice. When he came to fifteen, the fisherman suddenly straightened himself and said in a loud voice, “Enough, enough, Your Majesty.”

The guard stopped and the king asked anxiously, “Did he hurt you? I ordered him not to beat you hard.”

“No, no, Your Majesty, he did not hurt me. Only half of my reward is for me. The other half belongs to one of your servants.”

“One of my servants? What has one of my servants got to do with your reward? Can you explain?”

“Yes, Your Majesty. It was like this. When I came here with the fish I met this servant in the corridor. He gripped my arm and demanded half of the reward for the fish. If I did not promise him that, I would not have been able to present the fish for you. Your Majesty, I spent two days on the open sea to catch this fish. It would have been such a pity if you could not have eaten it fresh. Therefore I agreed and asked for thirty cane lashes. You have given me fifteen lashes, now could you give the rest of the reward to your servant?”

The king roared with laughter.

“That’s a good story and I admire your courage, wit and willingness to serve me. My servant will get what he asked for. Guards! Bring him here!”

The dishonest servant was brought in. he was given what he had asked for; half of the fisherman’s reward; fifteen lashes with the cane. And this time the palace guard made sure they were really hard ones. After this, the king sent greedy guard away from the palace.

The fisherman, however, was well rewarded for his honesty and courage.

The Three Scholars and The Fool

One day, four men were hunting in a forest. Three of them were well educated. They had studied for many years. The first scholar knew everything about bones. The second scholar had studied flesh, blood, and hide. The third had an even more precious knowledge; he knew how to put the breath of life into lifeless objects. These three men had travelled a great deal and had seen many strange things.

The fourth young man was called Maung Lu Yo, because he was honest and trustworthy. However, he had never left his village. He could not boast of any special knowledge or experience. Therefore, his three friends treated him as a fool. They allowed him to go with them on their hunting trips, because they had known him as a boy. Also he was a cheerful fellow and could shoot well.

When they were talking about their studies, they did not speak to him. Maung Lu Yo did not seem to mind. While his clever friends talked, he built the camp fire and prepared their meals. In many ways, he made himself useful to his learned friends.

On this particular day, the four young men had gone on a tiger hunt. They killed several deer but they had not yet seen a tiger.

“What’s the use of going on a tiger hunt if we don’t even meet a tiger?” they complained.

When the sun began to set, they decided to give up the hunt and go home. Just then, one of them saw a heap of dry bones at the side of the forest path.

“Here are some tiger bones,” said the first scholar who knew everything about bones. “Come, my friends, as we haven’t found a tiger, let me put together the bones of this dead one.” He knelt down and put the bones together until the skeleton of a big tiger was lying on the ground.

The second scholar searched around the bushes and was lucky to find a dry tiger skin. “Now it’s my turn,” he said cheerfully. He took the flesh and blood of the shot deer and moulded it around the skeleton. Then he put the tiger skin around it. And there on the path lay a tiger with a wide open mouth. Only the eyes were dull, because there was no life in them.

“Shall I show you what I can do?” asked the third scholar. His two learned friends laughed and said, “Why not? Show us your precious knowledge.”

But simple Maung Lu Yo shook his head and said, “Don’t do it. If you give life to that tiger, it will kill us.”

The other three jeered at him. “Coward! You go on a tiger hunt and you are afraid of a tiger! You dare call yourself a hunter!”

“I like hunting tigers,” protested Maung Lu Yo, “but I don’t like to be too near one without a weapon. If you don’t mind, I’ll climb this tree before you do your trick.” Maung Lu Yo quickly climbed a tall and sturdy tree.

The third scholar knelt in front of the beast. While his two friends watched, he blew the life force into the tiger’s nostrils.

Suddenly, the tiger’s eye lit up like two bright lanterns. His tail swished about like a whip. A deep roar came from his red open mouth. Only now, did the three realize the terrible mistake they had made. They ran but not fast enough. The ferocious creature jumped upon them and killed them all.

So it was that Maung Lu Yo, the fool, was the only man to come home from that hunting trip.

one drop of honey

One fine morning, a king was sitting with his prime minister in the courtyard of his palace. The two men, who were good friends, liked to talk to each other. While they chatted, they ate some rice cookies with honey.

The king laughed loudly at a funny remark which the minister made. He waved his arms and accidentally spilled some honey on the edge of the courtyard. The prime minister pulled out his handkerchief to wipe up the honey. But the king stopped him, saying, “My dear friend, please don’t bother about that drop of honey. You are much too important to do such work. Later on, I’ll call a servant to clean it up. Please go on with the story you were telling me.”

The two men continued telling each other stories and forgot about the drop of honey. The honey, however, slowly trickled down the courtyard on the path bellow. A fly came buzzing by and ate some of the honey. While it was enjoying the honey, a lizard darted out and swallowed the fly. The sudden movement of the lizard woke up a cat which was sleeping at the side of the street. The cat jumped after the lizard, which quickly darted away.

Just at that moment, a dog trotted by. When it saw the cat jump, it began to bark furiously. Soon the quiet street was filled with the hissing and barking of the cat and dog.

All this noise brought two women out of their houses. They were the owners of the two animals. The owner of the cat threw a stick at the dog to chase it away. The owner of the dog shouted at her to leave the dog alone and to take away the nasty cat instead. They began to shout at each other.

The husbands of both women heard the shrieks and came out to see what the matter was. Each husband took his wife’s side, and they finally came to blows. Their frightened children called their uncles and families to come and help. They all joined in the fight. Within a few minutes, the street was full of struggling men and women.

The awful noise finally reached the king and his prime minister who were still sitting in the courtyard. When the king saw the battle in the street, he told the palace guards to stop it. They ran out and ordered everyone to stop fighting. But nobody listened to their commands. Finally, the chief guard ordered his men to draw their weapons. With their swords in their hands, the guards rushed upon the people and several men were killed.

This made the people of the city angry. They rebelled and began to burn and loot the whole city. In the confusion, even the palace was burnt down.

In despair, the king sent out his army. The rebels fled from the city, but continued fighting in the countryside. Civil war broke out all over country.

After many months of fighting, the crown prince brought peace. The king however was forced to give up his throne to his son. So, the pride of the king in not wanting to clean up one drop of honey cost him his throne and the peace of his country.