In a village, there lived a man who had a donkey, a mule, and a horse. He used to go to the market riding his horse, and on the return trip, he would load his goods on the donkey and mule and bring them back with him. The horse had a comfortable life and didn’t suffer from work. But the donkey and the mule carried heavy burdens all the time.
One day, the man loaded a large quantity on the donkey and mule more than their usual, and they went to the market with heavy loads on them. When they were returning from the market, the donkey and the mule were very tired and fell, so they asked the man to help them. The man tried to help them, but they were very heavy and he couldn’t help them at all.
So the donkey turned to the horse and asked him: “Oh my noble master, help us, oh horse.” So the horse refused, saying: “I don’t have a problem. It’s not my fault that you’re carrying heavy loads.”
The man said to the horse: “Oh my noble master, isn’t this what you do? The donkey and mule are poor and need help.” So the horse agreed to help them. So he tried to carry some loads from them, but it was hard and he fell on the ground with the weight.
So the donkey said to the horse: “I see you are tired and suffering, oh horse.” The horse said to him: “Yes, I am tired and suffering, oh donkey. But do you know that when you went out, you were working and helping others. But you only asked that I give you a lesson that I won’t forget at all.”
So the matter continued for several days, until the donkey felt that the horse was extremely tired; so he goes to the forest to look for food, and after long walking, he brought some fruits that sufficed him for few days, and gave them to the horse who was looking at him with waiting. When the horse saw the fruits, he was not satisfied at all, and he still suffers from hunger after him. So he must go to work tomorrow to bring more food for the horse so that he doesn’t get hungry after him.
(Story translated from: The Donkey, the Mule, and the Horse)