The Two Princes

A long, long time ago, Celest ruled over all. Those were dark days for
the Basin of Life, for in those days Celest thought it was proper to
choose rulers not by their cleverness, nor even by their courage, but
rather by blood. I do not think that any man can truly claim to know how
many fools were placed upon the throne simply because their parents had
sat in that chair before them, but even one was too many. They built
great big palaces to live in, and great big thrones to sit on as they
ruled their inefficient rule.

One of these foolish emperors had two sons, one older and one younger.
The older of these was to rule after his father, and the younger to sit
and wait and do nothing of any value to anybody. The older son never
studied or learned, saying that he would be emperor one day and that an
emperor did not need to know a single thing. Nobody corrected his error,
out of the fear that he would remember and punish them for doing so one
day. The younger of the sons, who did not think he would ever rule,
passed his days in study. After all, he thought, if an emperor had no
use for knowledge, surely one who would not be emperor needed to learn
everything he could!

Well, one day the older son took the throne and the crown and became
emperor. He was as talented at ruling the empire as fish are talented at
flight. The younger son, the one who had studied, sat in his room and
worked as a scientist. He seized knowledge from the universe, and he did
it in secret, for such a thing was thought to be unseemly for one of
royal blood.

Then a crisis came, as crises tend to do. The older son gave his
commands, as he thought was his right, but no good came of them. The
younger son, the clever son, watched and waited, just as he was supposed
to do. Things went poorly for the older son, for in his ignorance he
gave poor orders, so poor that in the end his own people stormed his
palace and struck off his head. Then the younger son sat on the throne
and gave orders and he, because he had studied and learned, gave good
orders. The crisis passed, and he ruled cleverly and well for the rest
of his days. He ruled well, because he realized the truth, that no man
can survive in ignorance for long.

 

 

The Workers and the Weaver

Once upon a time there was a family of the lowest caste who spent their
days working for the common good, as is right and proper. Each and every
one of the people in that family did their duty day in and day out.

In that family, there was a daughter. This daughter dreamed and dreamed
of being in a higher caste. Her family laughed at her, saying that it
could never be. For years she dreamed on as she lifted and hauled for
the public good.

One day, she decided to build herself a loom and study the art that was
most pleasing to her. She did this when she had no other duties, when
her family would sleep or play. She built a loom, and set to practicing.

Her family did not approve of this, for they did not like see her trying
to be better than they were. First they mocked her, and she ignored
them. Then they distracted her, and she ignored them. Finally they, in
their ignorance and their envy, smashed up her loom when she was seeing
to her duties. She said nothing of it, and simply built another.

This went on for years, until she was finally ready to present her work
to the highest caste, the caste she wanted to join. They were impressed,
for in her devotion and in her endless practice the daughter had become
an excellent weaver, and had produced a truly glorious tapestry. The
artists applauded her, and hailed her as one of their own. Thus was she
rewarded for her persistence, and thus did she earn the right to advance
herself.

Remember, children, that practice will make you better, even if nobody
else believes that to be possible.

 

The Snake and the Bear

Once upon a time, there was a bear. It was a big brown brute of a bear,
with big muscles and bigger claws. This bear thought he was the king of
the forest, and that everyone had to do what he said. Once he put those
big muscles and those bigger claws to use, most of the other animals
agreed with him.

That bear sat himself down in the forest and declared that he would no
longer hunt or forage. Instead, each and every other animal had to
either bring him food or be made into food. The other animals listened,
because of those big muscles and those bigger claws, but none of them
liked it. Even amongst animals, parasites are hated for their greed and
uselessness.
                                                           
One day a wolf decided that enough was enough. The bear would not feed
himself from the wolf's labor, giving nothing in return. That wolf
thought that he was stronger than the bear, and charged the bear with
his jaws wide open and his teeth ready for killing. Unfortunately for
the wolf, the bear's big muscles and bigger claws were more than enough
to turn the poor wolf into a meal for the bear.

The next day a deer decided to try his luck. The deer reasoned that he
was fast, and the bear could not rob him if the bear could not catch
him. It is true that the deer never again paid tribute to the bear. The
bear did not kill him for this crime, but since the deer could not get
near the grazing grounds without getting near the bear or his servants,
he soon starved.

The day after that, a snake decided to solve the problem once and for
all. The other animals laughed at him, for he was small and weak and
slow. But the snake knew better. When the bear was glutting himself on
another beast's rightful food, the snake crept up and gave him a single
bite, then slithered away. The bear roared in pain and rage but the
snake hid himself away and was safe from the bear's wrath. The bear soon
fell to the snake's poison, and the forest was soon rid of a parasite.

Remember, children, that strength is mastered by cleverness, and that
those who do not work always pay the price for their crime.