Once there lived a foolish donkey in a town. The town was situated near a forest. There, in the forest lived king lion and his minister, a cunning fox. Once, king lion was badly wounded in a fierce fighting with an elephant. He became unable to hunt for his prey. So he asked his minister, the cunning fox to bring some good meal for him. As the fox used to share the prey, which king lion hunted for his meals, he at once, set out to search for food.

While wandering here and there, the fox met a donkey. The donkey looked foolish, nervous and hungry. The fox asked him, “Hello! you seem to be new to this forest. Where do you actually come from?”

“I come from the nearby town”, said the donkey. “My master, the dhobi makes me work all day, but doesn’t feed me properly. So I’ve left my home to find a better place to live in and eat properly.”

“I see”, said the fox. “Don’t worry. I’m a senior minister in this forest kingdom. Come with me to the king’s palace. Our king needs a bodyguard, who has the experience of town life. You will live in the palace and eat a lot of green grass growing around it.”

The donkey was very happy to listen to all this from the minister fox of the forest kingdom. He proceeded with him to the royal palace.

Seeing a,donkey before him the king lion became highly impatient and pounced upon him immediately. But on account of constant hunger, the king lion had gone weak. He couldn’t overpower the donkey. The donkey freed himself and ran for his life.

“Your Majesty,” said the fox to king lion, “you shouldn’t have acted in such a haste. You have scared your prey.”

“I’m sorry,” said king lion. “Try to bring him here once again.”

The hungry fox went again to the donkey and said to him, “What a funny fellow you are. Why did you run away like that?”

“Why should not it’ asked the donkey.

“My dear,” said the fox, “you were being tested for your alertness as a royal bodyguard of the king. Thank god, you showed a quick reflex, otherwise, you would have been rejected for the job.”

The donkey believed what the fox said and accompanied him once again to the palace. There at the palace the king lion was hiding behind the thick bushes. As soon as the donkey passed by the bushes, the lion pounced upon him and killed him instantly.

Just when the lion was about to begin eating the donkey, the fox said, “Your Majesty, you’re going to have your meals after quite a few days. It’s better you first take a bath and offer prayers.”

“Hmm!” the king lion roared and said to the fox, “Stay here. I’ll be back right now.”

The lion went to take bath and offer his prayers. In the meantime, the fox ate the donkey’s brain. When the king lion came back to eat his prey, he was surprised to see that the donkey’s brain was missing.

“Where is this donkey’s brain?” The king lion roared in great anger.

“The donkey’s brain!” the fox expressed his surprise. “Your Majesty, you’re fully aware that donkeys don’t have a brain. Had that donkey ever had a brain, he would never have come with me to this palace for the second time.”

“Yes,” agreed king lion, “that’s the point.”

And he started eating happily the rest of the flesh of the dead donkey.

❖ Sometimes a cunning argument outwits normal intelligence.

❖ Deception with sweet words succeeds beyond limit.

❖ Wit has always an answer ready.