Humility

It is told that in ancient times in a small city called Ayom, there was a painter named Albrat. And Albrat was very skilled in drawing. So he used to draw wonderful pictures and sell them to earn his living from them. And he used to draw the plants, the stars, and everything in it as if he was creative. But because the city was very small, Albrat was selling a very small number of pictures, and his family’s living wasn’t enough for all the food and clothes he needed. So he thought to move from this city to go to a large city where he could sell his pictures. ...

Have you heard about the arrogant donkey? The animals and birds lived with some of them in a large farm. All the animals loved their owner, the good farmer, because he cared for them a lot, treated them well—especially the strong donkey who helped him in his work in the field and in carrying loads and things without trouble or exhaustion. The farmer would present food to the donkey morning and evening—especially the sweet barley that the donkey loved a lot. ...

There was a cottage in the village with a thatched roof and all kinds of plants, and in it lived a very poor elderly couple whose horse was their only source of livelihood. They would lend it to merchants in exchange for some grain or clothing and asked for nothing more. They were happy with what they had. One day, the wife said to her husband, “There is an opening in the roof, and something has fallen into the house.” He said to her, “That is good because the house windows are rusted and closed. Through the opening in the roof we will get light and air without having to repair it.” She said to him, “You are right, but what about winter and rain?” He said to her, “We will need a way to collect money.” She said to him, “There is a market fair, why don’t we sell the horse? We will get a good amount.” He said, “Perhaps. I hope I succeed.” She said, “You will succeed because my old man is always right.” ...

Samir was a poor person living in a small village, and he owned a small piece of land. When his father died when he was small, therefore the plot remained fallow. Samir and his mother lived poorly. He worked hard and fed his mother from all kinds of food until he grew, and after that, his mother expelled him from the house, and Samir traveled to a different place to search for work, but he didn’t find anything. He was forced to steal without desire, and he felt regret in his heart. ...

On a day of the days lived a bamboo cutter with his wife in a small hut, and he would go every morning to the forest to cut bamboo and bring it, then he and his wife would make various foods, and sell them in the market. He was kind and poor, but they were happy. On a day, the owner said: This is enough. I have worked for you for three years and I deserve to receive the pay, and I will depart until I get every treasure I deserve. So he gave him three pounds to work for him, but he knew three pounds were not enough, but he was happy to get them, and after a while, the farmer heard a strange voice coming from behind the fig tree. He became surprised and turned to it. He said to him: You are poor. Why are you here? I don’t have anything to tempt you. So he said: Then I will rob you, you wicked. A lot as big as gold, but perhaps a little is all I have and is everything I have, and I gave him three pounds. ...

One day, two trees grew in the middle of the forest. One was a birch tree, and the other was a mango. The mango was kind and sweet. Birds would come to him in autumn and perch, and he would make nests between his branches and shelter them. He welcomed everyone and fed them. He was also generous and provided shade for travelers. He was strong when the winds blew him. ...

One day in a distant land, a beautiful princess lived in a large palace. She had many servants, but she wasn’t happy. The evil wizard loved her and wanted to control her. He thought in the form of a huge cat and followed her everywhere. The wizard could only be ended by a prince stomping on the huge cat’s tail while he was sleeping. This is what happened that night. The huge cat fell into sleep, and the prince stomped on his tail and suddenly turned into the wizard. He said to him: How dare you do that? He said to him: I have to because the wizard will torment her, but who will torment you, I will curse your firstborn son, and he will be born with a huge nose, but he will become a king. Then no one will rule over you except a prince without a nose. ...

It is told that there were five Qatat brothers, living happily near one of the gardens. Among the Qatat brothers was one cat with white fur, while the color of the other cats’ fur was black. The white cat’s sadness and thinking of a solution to the problem: One day, the white cat felt that his brothers didn’t care about him and didn’t play with him. The white cat was very sad and sat alone, thinking of changing his color to resemble his brothers so they would play with him. The white cat said to himself: There is no doubt that my white fur is what keeps my brothers away from me. I must find a solution to this problem. ...

I have three sons who have married. I won over the older one one day and wanted to stay with him. In the morning, I asked his wife to bring me water for ablution. I performed ablution, prayed, and poured the remaining water on the bed I was sleeping on. When the son’s wife came with morning tea, I said to her: My daughter, this is the state of the elderly. I urinated on the bed. The wife became agitated and made a fuss, and the old woman heard a stream of ugly words from her. Then I asked her to wash it and dry it and not do that again. ...

Once there was a rich king who enjoyed strength and intelligence, but what attracted attention most was his extreme arrogance. Due to his great pride, he thought there was no worthy competitor to share his favorite hobby, which was chess. Therefore, this king sent a message across the land announcing that he would give a tenth of his wealth to anyone who proved worthy of playing against him, and in return, if the king considered that person unworthy of trust, he would cut off his head! ...