There lived two brothers. They were so friendly that they could not spend a single day without each other. Therefore, they built themselves a house together so that they would never be separated, bought one donkey together and started trading together.
They shared their modest income equally, and hostility never entered their home.
But somehow it happened that the younger brother found a treasure in the ground. I found the treasure, but lost my head.
“I’ll take everything for myself,” the younger brother thinks. “I found it, so it’s all mine. I won’t give anything to the eldest.”
He built himself a new house and began to live separately. He didn't even want to know his poor brother anymore. And he became so stingy and greedy that he never even threw away a moldy flatbread.
And then one day he came to the poor brother and said:
“I want to demolish our old house and take my half, it will be useful to me on the farm.” And I want to slaughter our donkey and take half of it too. Even though the donkey is skinny, there will still be some food for the dogs.
The poor man heard these words and fell at the feet of his rich brother.
“Don’t destroy me,” he asks. - Don't do what you plan! Leave me this house and this donkey!
But the rich brother said:
- No, I won’t leave you. I want to get what belongs to me.
Then the poor man said:
“Do you want me to pay you for your half of the house and your half of the donkey?”
But the rich brother said:
- No, I don’t want to. What belongs to me is mine. And what is mine, I will take for myself.
Poor brother said:
- It's unfair. Let's go to the judge and let him judge us. And they went to the judge.
- Master! - said the poor brother. - Listen to us and judge fairly. We are two brothers. We lived in poverty and shared everything equally. The only wealth we had was a house and a donkey. We built a house together with our own hands, we bought a donkey together with common money. Now my brother is rich. He built himself a new house - such that the Negus himself (as the emperor is called in Ethiopia) would not be ashamed to live in it. He now has herds of hundreds of animals. And he wants to destroy our old house and take his half, he wants to slaughter our donkey and also take his half. I asked him to leave me the house and the donkey. But he says: “No, I won’t leave.” I wanted to pay him for half the house and half the donkey. But he says: “No, I don’t agree.” That's why I brought him to you so that you could judge between us. May justice never desert you!
The judge listened to the poor man and turned to the rich man.
- What can you answer to his words?
Rich said:
- Oh my lord! Does your wisdom know no end? Tell me, isn’t everyone free to do with their goods what they want? I'm not asking my brother to give me what belongs to him. And he is encroaching on what belongs to me. Is this fair?
The judge said:
- You're right. No one can stop you from managing your property. So go and do what you have in mind: break your house, slaughter your donkey. And let everyone get their share. It will be fair.
And the judge said to the poor man:
- You shouldn't disturb him!
The brothers bowed and left. Poor - with great sadness in his heart. Rich - with great joy.
Poor said:
- This is the verdict of an unreasonable judge.
Rich said:
“As the judge decided, so it will be.”
So he killed the donkey and divided it into two equal parts, and then called his servants and ordered them to break down the house.
Meanwhile, the poor brother took out all the utensils from his half and began to set fire to the house.
The rich man saw this and said:
“You don’t dare set the house on fire, because my half might also catch fire.”
Poor brother said:
- Who can stop me from disposing of my property as I want? I want to burn down my half of the house and plant beans on this land.
Then the rich brother said:
- It's unfair. Let's go to the judge, let him decide the dispute. As he says, so it will be.
And they went again to the judge.
The rich brother bowed to him and began to tell him everything that had already been told.
The judge listened to him and said:
- What I said last time, I will say now. Everyone is free to do what they want with their goods. You are free to break down the house to take your half, and your brother is free to set fire to his half, and you must not interfere with him.
Then the judge turned to the poor man and said:
- Go and do what you have in mind.
The brothers left.
Rich said:
- This is the verdict of an unreasonable judge.
And the poor man said:
“As the judge decided, so it will be.”
And he burned half of his house, and along with his half, the other half burned down - the one that belonged to his brother.
Then the poor man dug up the ground and planted beans.
When the beans grew, the rich brother's son picked several pods from the garden and ate them.
The poor brother caught him, brought him to his father and said:
- Your son ate five of my beans. So I'll cut open his belly and take out my beans.
The rich man began to ask him:
- Don't do this. I will give you other beans instead of the ones my son ate.
But the poor brother said:
- No, I want my beans.
The rich man fell on his knees in front of him and said:
“For five of your beans, I will return you five full measures, but don’t kill my child.”
But the poor man said:
- No, I don’t need your beans, not five measures, not ten. I need the ones your son ate.
Then the rich brother again went to the judge to seek justice.
The judge listened to him and said:
“What my sentence was, will remain so.” Everyone is free to do with his goods as he pleases. And when your brother says, “I want my beans back,” why do you force him to take your beans instead of his? Get out and don't come to me again!
The brothers returned home. The poor one has great joy in his heart. The rich - with great sadness.
The rich man called all the oldest and most respectable residents of the village to his place and began to ask them to intercede for his son. He promised to give his brother half of his wealth, if only the brother would have mercy and let his son live.
The elders went to the poor man.
Poor said:
“My brother would kill my son even for one grain of bean.” But I didn’t want to kill his son. I just wanted to teach my greedy brother a lesson.
The child remained alive, and the poor man became rich.
That's what they say.
And whoever learns this story, let him remember:
If you throw a stone up, it will fall on your head.
If you set your sights on someone else’s, you will lose what is yours.
If you plan an evil deed, it will first bring misfortune to another, and then even greater misfortune to yourself.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru