Taejo, the first king of the Lee dynasty, had a wise adviser, Moon Hak Taes, and one day the king decided to organize a feast in his honor as a sign of special respect for him. Court nobles, eminent yangbans, and officials gathered for the feast. They drink, eat, have fun. The wine flows like a river. The guests got drunk. And the king too. And the king turned to Moon Hak with these words:
- Listen, teacher, why don’t you address me as an equal?
You are my best friend. Let's joke...
“Jokes with kings end badly, but my head is dear to me,” Moon Hak answered with a slight bow.
“You, teacher, are a pig,” the king answered with a smile. - Come up with a smart joke!
“And you, Your Majesty, look like a bull.”
[Bul is the first degree of Buddhist deity, a monk who has perfectly understood the teachings of the Buddha.]
- What are you saying, teacher! I'm a mere mortal, just like you. Don't be embarrassed, make fun of your king!
And then Moon Hak said:
“The pig, Your Majesty, sees only a pig in front of him, but even the Almighty is visible to the bull’s gaze.”
The king got drunk and didn’t understand the joke: calling the teacher a pig, he became like a pig.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru