Since ancient times, the world was still new, and animals had started working for humans. All animals existed, even the camel, but the camel didn’t want to work. He lived in the vast desert and did nothing but howl. The camel fed on grasses, thorns, and algae existing in the desert, which were also lazy plants like the camel. When anyone spoke to the camel, he would say to him, “Humph,” nothing more.
In the present time, the horse came to the camel on Monday morning, carrying the saddle on his back. He said to the camel, “Come out and race like the rest of us.” But the camel said nothing but “Humph.” The horse left and told the human that the camel said “Humph.”
Then the dog came to the camel, carrying a stick in his mouth. He said to him, “O camel, come up and bring loads like us.” The camel said only “Humph.” The dog left and told the human. Then the bull came, placing a yoke around his neck. He said to the camel, “O camel, why don’t you come and plow the land like the rest of us?” The camel answered, “Humph.” The bull left and told the human.
The human gathered the horse, the bull, and the dog in the end and said to them, “The lazy camel who lives in the forest doesn’t want to work with you, so we will leave him alone. Therefore, you must bear double the amount of work.” This made the three very angry. They were doing the work while the camel sat in the desert idle, laughing at them and saying, “Humph,” then going far away.
Then the jinn responsible for all deserts came in the middle of a dust cloud (he travels this way always because he’s a jinn) and stopped before the three to talk with them. The horse said to him, “O jinn of all deserts, is it permissible in the modern world for anyone to remain idle without work?” The jinn said, “Certainly not.”
The horse said, “All right. There’s a creature living in the middle of the desert with a long neck and long legs. He’s lazy himself. He hasn’t done anything since Monday.” The jinn said, “How amazing. What did this lazy creature tell you?” The dog said, “He said, ‘Humph,’” and the dog added, “And he refused to bring any loads.”
The jinn wrapped himself in his dust cloak and reached the water pool where the camel sat, looking at the water and doing nothing. He said to him, “My friend the camel, we in the modern world all work. It’s not permissible for you to sit like this without work.” The camel said to him, “Humph,” and returned to looking again at the water pool. He said to him, “Your three friends have taken on additional work because of your laziness.” The camel didn’t look at him.
The jinn stroked his chin and began thinking of magic with which to punish the camel for his laziness. He grabbed his staff and pointed toward the camel. The camel’s back began to swell. He said to the camel, “Now you must go to work with your three friends.” The camel answered, “How will I work with my back swollen like this?” The jinn said to him, “You sat idle for three days without any work, and now you must work for three days without any food or drink. You will get food from the hump on your back. Now go out to your three friends and tell them, ‘Humph.’”
Thus, the camel went to work in the modern world. He kept carrying the hump on his back, living for several days without food or drink, benefiting from the nutrition in his hump!
Translated from: How the Camel Got His Hump