KalÄ«lah and Dimnah by al-Muqaffaʿ Ibn;Fishbein Michael;Montgomery James E.;Warner Marina;

Author:al-Muqaffaʿ, Ibn;Fishbein, Michael;Montgomery, James E.;Warner, Marina;
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: New York University Press

Here ends the Chapter on the Investigation of

Dimnah. Such are the consequences of wrong-

doing and the effects of envy and lying.

THE RING DOVE

A parable about the circumstances that initiate friendships between sincere brethren and how each benefits by following the other’s advice.

6.1

The king said to the philosopher, “Now that I’ve heard a parable about how a crafty liar can drive friends apart and incite them to become enemies, tell me one about how friendships between sincere brethren begin and how each benefits by following the other’s advice.”

“A wise man values nothing more than good friends,” replied the philosopher. “Friends help us achieve good things and they console us in times of adversity. The story of the ring dove, the crow, the gazelle, and the turtle is an example of this.”

“And what was their story?” asked the king.

6.2

The philosopher told the following tale: They say that in the Deccan, near the city of Mārūzūd, was a place abounding in game, where hunters would come to hunt. A crow nested there, in a great tree with many branches dense with leaves. One day, as he sat, he became frightened as he spied a hunter approaching, foul-faced, illtempered, and shabbily dressed, with a net on his back and a stick in his hand. “This man,” he said to himself, “has come for a reason— whether it’s to destroy me or someone else, I don’t know, but I’ll stay put and see what he does.”

6.3

The hunter set up his net, scattered grain, and hid nearby. Soon a ring dove flew by, a leader of many doves, who accompanied her. She saw the grain, but not the net, and, along with the other doves, swooped down and landed under the net. The hunter rushed up, delighted to have caught them. Each dove fluttered about separately, straining to free herself, but the ring dove said, “Stay true to one another! Don’t focus more on your own life than on your companion’s. Let’s work together and perhaps we can lift this net.”

So they worked together, lifted the net, and carried it high into the air. The hunter followed, hoping that the net would weigh them down and that they would land before they could go very far.

The crow, who saw what was happening, said to himself, “I’ll follow them to see how their run-in with the hunter ends.”

6.4

The ring dove looked back and saw that the hunter was following, still hoping to capture them, and she said to her companions, “The hunter, I see, is pursuing us. If we stay out in the open, we’ll remain in his sight; let’s head for the orchards and trees. He’ll soon lose track of us and give up. I know a place by the fields where a rat has his den. He’s a friend of mine. If we can get to him, he’ll cut through the net and we’ll be free.”

So they headed for the place the ring dove had mentioned. When they disappeared from the hunter’s sight, he gave up and went away.

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