Fable 245 (Babrius 82 = Perry 146)
The Lion and the Mouse on His Mane
While a lion was sleeping, a mouse ran over his shaggy mane. This angered the lion and he leaped up from his den, all the hairs of his mane standing on end. A fox made fun of the fact that a lion, king of all the animals, had been startled by a mouse. The lion answered the fox, ‘You insolent creature! I was not afraid of the mouse scratching me and running away; I was just worried that he might make a mess on my mane.’
NOTE: An epimythium probably added by a later editor reads: ‘Check the bold advances of insolent people at the very outset, no matter how small, and do not allow trivial persons to treat you with disrespect.’
Fable 246 (Babrius 1 = Perry 340)
The Lion and the Archer
A man who was an experienced shot with the bow and arrow went up on the mountain to hunt. All the animals fled from him in fear, except for the lion, who challenged the man to a battle. ‘Wait!’ the man said to the lion. ‘Do not be so quick to think you can defeat me. First you need to get to know my messenger, and then you’ll be able to choose the best course to follow.’ Standing at some distance from the lion, the archer let loose an arrow and the barb buried itself in the soft flesh of the lion’s belly. The lion was terrified and fled into the deserted forest glades. A fox standing nearby urged the lion to be brave and stand his ground, but the lion replied, ‘You are not going to fool me or catch me in your trap: when he sends me such a pointed messenger as this, I already know what a fearful person he himself must be.’
NOTE: Another version of this story (Avianus 17) is about a tiger, rather than a lion.
Fable 247 (Chambry 210 = Perry 259)
The Lion and the Elephant
The lion often found fault with the way he had been designed by Prometheus. Admittedly, Prometheus had made the lion very large and handsome, supplying him with sharp fangs in his jaw and arming him with claws on his feet; in short, he had made the lion more powerful than all the other animals. ‘Yet great though I may be,’ said the lion, ‘I am terribly afraid of roosters!’ Prometheus replied, ‘Why waste your time blaming me? You have every good quality that I was able to create, and you are afraid of absolutely nothing, except for roosters.’ The lion kept on lamenting his condition, criticizing himself for being a coward until finally he just wanted to die. It was when he was in this frame of mind that the lion ran into the elephant. The lion greeted the elephant, and stopped to converse with him. When he saw that the elephant kept on flapping his ears, the lion enquired, ‘What’s the matter with you? Why do you keep on flapping your ears like that?’ As the elephant began to speak, a gnat came whizzing by and the elephant said, ‘Do you see this little thing, this little buzzing thing? If it gets inside my ear, I’m doomed.’ ‘Well then,’ the lion concluded, ‘why should I die of shame? I am an excellent creature indeed, and in much better shape than this elephant: roosters are more formidable than gnats, after all!’
You see what strength a gnat must have, given that he provokes fear in the elephant.
NOTE: This fable is also found in Achilles Tatius, Leucippe and Cleitophon 2.21. The lion’s fear of the rooster was a popular Greek and Roman legend; see, for example, Lucretius (The Nature of Things 4.710), who states that the rooster emits a painful substance that gets into the lion’s eyes, although for some reason this substance does not penetrate the eyes of other creatures in the same way. For another story about the lion’s fear of the rooster, see Fable 235.
Fable 248 (Aphthonius 23 = Perry 138)
The Hares and the Frogs
A story about hares meant to comfort unhappy people.
The hares voted to commit suicide, and once they had resolved to die, they had only to decide on the location. The hares concluded that the pond would be an appropriate place, so they headed off in that direction, planning to take their own lives. The frogs who lived on the banks of the pond could not endure the thumping of the hares’ approach, so they scampered into their hiding-places beneath the water. One of the older hares saw them and said, ‘Overturn this vote in favour of death! Look: there are actually creatures who are even more cowardly than we are!’
Unhappy people are comforted by the sight of someone who is worse off than they are.
NOTE: Hares were the proverbial cowards of ancient Greece. The phrase ‘a hare’s life’ was used to indicate someone who lived in a state of constant fear (e.g. Demosthenes, On The Crown 263).
Fable 249 (Aphthonius 17 = Perry 351)
The Deer and His Mother
A story about a deer, urging that advice should be given by a person who is also capable of action.
The deer was being lectured by his mother, ‘Why do you act this way, my child? You have been naturally endowed with horns, and you are powerfully built, so I cannot understand why you run away at the approach of the dogs.’ That is what the mother said. Then, when she heard the sound of the hunting dogs in the distance, she again urged her child to stand firm while she herself took off at a run.
It is easy to advise action which cannot be carried out.
NOTE: Like the hare, the deer was a proverbial coward in Greek (e.g. in Homer, Iliad 1.225, Achilles denounces Agamemnon for having ‘the heart of a deer’).
Fable 250 (Odo 54a = Perry 613)
The Mice, the Cat, and the Bell
There were once some mice who held a meeting about how to defend themselves from the cat. A certain wise mouse said, ‘A bell should be tied around the neck of the cat so that we would be able to hear him wherever he goes and have advance warning of his attacks.’ They all agreed with this proposal. A mouse then asked, ‘Who will tie the bell around the cat’s neck?’ One mouse answered, ‘Not me, that’s for sure!’ Another answered: ‘Not me either! I wouldn’t so much as go near that cat for anything in the world!’
NOTE: Archibald Douglas, earl of Angus (1449–1514), was nicknamed ‘Bell-the-Cat’ for an incident in 1482: the story goes that the nobles of Scotland had formed a conspiracy against Robert Cochrane, a favourite of James III, and when the question was posed, ‘Who will bell the cat?’, Archibald Douglas shouted, ‘That will I!’ He disposed of Cochrane and later participated in the rebellion that deposed James III in 1488.
Fable 251 (Chambry 47 = Perry 245)
The Coward and the Ravens
A coward was leaving on his way to war. Some ravens cawed at him, so he put his weapons down and stood still. Then he took up his arms once more and proceeded on his way, but the ravens cawed at him again. The coward stopped and finally said, ‘Squawk at me as long as you want: you are still not going to get a bite out of my flesh!’
This is a story for people who are terrible cowards.
NOTE: This story is found in Plutarch, Life of Phocion 9.
FABLES ABOUT SELF-DELUSION
Fable 252 (Chambry 156* = Perry 121)
The Musician at Home
There was once a musician who had no talent whatsoever, but he played his lyre in a room that had thick plaster upon the walls so when he heard the echoing sound, he concluded that he must be an excellent musician indeed. Puffed up with pride, he decided to perform on the stage. But when he made his debut at the theatre, his performance was so dreadful that the audience threw stones at him, driving him off the stage.
The fable shows that the same is true of public speakers: while they are still in school they may think that they have some talent, but they find out they are worthless when they embark on a public career.
Fable 253 (Babrius 56 = Perry 364)
The Beauty Contest of the Animals
Zeus had decided to award prizes to the most beautiful animal babies, so he inspected each and every one of them in order to reach a decision. The monkey also participated, claiming to be the mother of a very beautiful baby: a naked, snub-nosed little monkey whom she cradled in her arms. When the gods took a look at that monkey they all started to laugh, but his mother insisted, ‘The winner is for Zeus to decide! But in my ey
es this one is the most beautiful of all.’
NOTE: An epimythium probably added by a later editor reads: ‘This story has the following meaning for everyone, in my opinion: each person thinks that his own child is beautiful.’ For the beauty contest of the birds, see Fable 329, and for another fable about the monkey and her offspring, see Fable 497.
Fable 254 (Phaedrus App. 29 = Perry 555)
The Young Man and the Prostitute
A dishonest prostitute was trying to seduce a young man and he willingly gave himself over to her deceptions, even though she often caused him considerable pain and suffering. The scheming creature would say things like, ‘Although many men vie for my favours with gifts, I value you the most of all.’ Thinking about how often she had tricked him, the young man remarked, ‘I am glad to hear it, my darling—not because I believe you, but because what you say pleases me.’
NOTE: There is a promythium appended to the fable in Perotti’s Appendix: ‘The things which bring us pleasure can often be hazardous as well.’
Fable 255 (Phaedrus 4.3 = Perry 15)
The Fox and the Grapes
Driven by hunger, a fox tried to reach some grapes hanging high on the vine. Although she leaped with all her strength, she couldn’t manage to reach the grapes. As she went away, the fox remarked, ‘Oh, you aren’t even ripe yet! I don’t need any sour grapes.’
People who speak disparagingly of things that they cannot attain would do well to apply this instructive little story to their own lives.
NOTE: For a version of this fable involving a mouse, see Fable 256 (following).
Fable 256 (Chambry 32* = Perry 15)
The Mouse, the Fox, and the Grapes
A fox saw a cluster of grapes hanging from a trellis and wanted to eat them, but the grapes were too high and she could not find a way to get at them. A mouse saw the fox and grinned as he said, ‘You’ll have to go hungry!’ The fox didn’t want a mouse to have the last word, so she replied, ‘Those grapes are sour!’
The fable indicts wicked people who refuse to listen to reason.
Fable 257 (Syntipas 49 = Perry 402)
The Hunter and the Horseman
There was a hunter who had caught a hare and was carrying it home. As he went along his way, he met a man on horseback who asked him for the hare, pretending that he wanted to buy it. As soon as he got the hare from the hunter, the horseman immediately took off at a gallop. The hunter began to pursue the horseman thinking that he might catch up with him. When the horseman finally disappeared into the distance, the hunter reluctantly said, ‘Go ahead then! That hare is my gift to you.’
This fable shows that people who involuntarily have their property taken from them often pretend that they made a gift of it voluntarily.
Fable 258 (Syntipas 4 = Perry 412)
The Rivers and the Sea
The rivers came together in order to make a complaint against the sea. They told her, ‘Why is it that we come to you with waters that are sweet and fit to drink, but you change them into something salty and undrinkable?’ In response to the rivers’ criticism, the sea replied, ‘Don’t come, and you won’t get salty!’
This fable depicts people who criticize someone inappropriately even though that person is actually helping them.
Fable 259 (Chambry 326* = Perry 214)
The Mole and the Frankincense
A mole (which is a blind animal) told his mother that he could see. The mother tested him by giving him a grain of frankincense and asking him what it was. He said it was a little pebble, whereupon she exclaimed, ‘My son, in addition to your blindness, you have also lost your sense of smell!’
So too there are certain charlatans who promise incredible things but who are revealed for what they truly are in trivial matters.
NOTE: The mole was proverbial for blindness, as in the Greek saying ‘blinder than a mole’ (e.g. Apostolius 17.35), and also in Latin, ‘you’ve got the eyes of a mole’ (Jerome, Epistles 84.7).
Fable 260 (Chambry 326 = Perry 214)
The Mole and the Frankincense
Moles are blind animals. A mole once said to his mother, ‘I see a mulberry, mother!’ Then he said, ‘And I smell incense all around!’ And he spoke a third time and said, ‘And I can hear the sound of a tiny bronze ball.’ His mother then said, ‘My son, now I understand that in addition to lacking sight, you have also lost your sense of hearing and smell!’
The story shows that there are some charlatans who promise incredible things but who are revealed for what they truly are in trivial matters.
NOTE: In this more elaborate version of the preceding fable, the mole provides three distinct impressions of the grain of incense: it looks like a berry, it smells like incense, and it sounds like a little metal ball.
Fable 261 (Chambry 326 = Perry 214)
The Mole and His Mother
The mole is a handicapped animal: he is blind. There was once a mole who wanted to kiss his mother, but instead of pressing up against her mouth, he pressed against her private parts. His brothers realized what he was doing and one of them remarked, ‘It serves you right! You had great expectations, but you have gone and lost even your sense of smell.’
The story shows that a sinful mind can even change a person’s nature, causing it to be impaired.
NOTE: This bizarre version of the blind mole motif should probably not even be considered the ‘same’ story as the preceding two fables, although they have been inventoried as a single fable by modern editors.
FABLES ABOUT REFLECTIONS AND ILLUSIONS
Fable 262 (Syntipas 15 = Perry 74)
The Stag and His Reflection
A stag had grown thirsty and went to a spring in order to drink some water. When he saw the reflection of his body in the water, he disparaged the slenderness of his legs but revelled in the shape and size of his horns. All of a sudden, some hunters appeared and began to chase him. As the stag ran along the level ground of the plain, he outdistanced his pursuers and beat them to the marsh by the river. Without thinking about what he was doing, the stag kept on going, but his horns became tangled in the overhanging branches and he was captured by the hunters. The stag groaned and said, ‘Woe is me, wretched creature that I am! The thing that I disparaged could have saved me, while I have been destroyed by the very thing I boasted about.’
This fable shows people should not praise themselves for something unless it is useful and beneficial.
Fable 263 (Syntipas 28 = Perry 133)
The Dog, the Meat, and the Reflection
A dog seized some meat from the butcher shop and ran away with it until he came to a river. When the dog was crossing the river, he saw the reflection of the meat in the water, and it seemed much larger than the meat he was carrying. He dropped his own piece of meat in order to try to snatch at the reflection. When the reflection disappeared, the dog went to grab the meat he had dropped but he was not able to find it anywhere, since a passing raven had immediately snatched the meat and gobbled it up. The dog lamented his sorry condition and said, ‘Woe is me! I foolishly abandoned what I had in order to grab hold of a phantom, and thus I ended up losing both that phantom and what I had to begin with.’
This fable is about greedy people who grasp at more than they need.
NOTE: There is a similar story in the Buddhist Calladhanuggaha-jataka in which a jackal is crossing a stream carrying a piece of meat in his mouth: when he puts down the meat to try to catch some fish, a vulture steals the meat and the jackal ends up with nothing.
Fable 264 (Romulus Ang. 48 = Perry 669)
The Fox, the Moon, and the River
A fox was out walking one night next to a river. She saw the light of the moon reflected in the water and mistook it for a piece of cheese. The fox started to lap at the water, thinking that if she could drink up all the water, she would find the cheese in the dry riverbed. The fox lapped and lapped at the water until finally she choked and died.
So every greedy man goes chasing after profit with
such an intensity that he destroys himself without achieving anything.
NOTE: For the motif of ‘drinking the river’, see Fable 442. Compare the English proverbial fool: ‘hee thinkes the Moone is made of greene cheese’ (Oxford Dictionary of English Proverbs, c.1611).
Fable 265 (Chambry 219 = Perry 260)
The Wolf and His Shadow
There was once a wolf who went wandering in the desert as the sun was sinking and about to set. Seeing his long shadow, the wolf exclaimed, ‘Should someone as great as myself be afraid of a lion? I’m a hundred feet tall! Clearly I should be the king of all the animals in the world!’ As the wolf was boasting, a mighty lion seized and devoured him. Realizing his mistake after the fact, the wolf exclaimed, ‘My self-conceit has been my undoing!’
Aesop's Fables Page 18
