the lion and the donkey story

A donkey and a fox entered into an agreement with a lion. They would help the lion in hunting and each would receive a share of the meat which they got from the hunt.

That way, no one would starve.

Each of the three animals was given a separate duty. The donkey would be on the look-out for animals to hunt while the fox and the lion would stay hidden. As soon as the donkey spotted an animal, he would bray loudly as a signal. The fox would then come out and growl at the animal to frightened it. When the frightened animal ran, the fox would chase it-in the direction where the lion was hidden. The lion would jump out of hiding and kill the animal with a single blow.

It seemed an excellent idea and it worked perfectly. One morning the donkey spotted a deer and brayed loudly. The fox came out of hiding and growled at the deer, frightening it and making it run towards the lion, who killed it with a single blow.

Now came the time for the sharing of the meat.

“Sir, you are the oldest among the three of us,” the lion said to the donkey. “Why don’t you divide up the meat into three shares so that we can each have a share?”

The donkey felt happy because the lion was showing him this honor. He divided up the meat into three equal shares, gave one to the lion, one to the fox and kept the third for himself.

The lion was very angry with what the donkey had done. “I see that you have divided the meat into equal shares,” he said. “Do you think that each of us did the same amount of work in the hunt? You merely spotted the deer and brayed; the fox only growled at the deer. But I was the one who killed it! Could you or the fox have done that? And yet you have given me a share equal to yours and the fox’s? You shall die for this!” And the lion gave the donkey such a terrible blow that the poor animal died at once.

“Now, fox, “the lion said to the fox. “You divide up the meat-and see that each one gets his fair share.”

The poor fox was shaking with fright. He gathered up all the meat and made two piles of meat- one very large pile and the other a very small pile. “Sir, this is for you”, the fox said to the lion, pointing to the large pile. “The other one is for me.”

“I see that you are wise,” the lion said to the fox.

“Who taught you the art of division?”

 “Sir, it was the donkey,” said the fox. “I saw what happened to him and learnt my lesson.”