This is the second legend from the Ode article, "Legends of the Desert".
Click here to see the first one.
A man knocked at his friend's door to ask him a favor: "I want you to lend me 4,000 dinars because I have a debt to pay. Can you do that for me?"
The friend asked his wife to gather together everything they had of value, but even so it was not enough. They had to go out and borrow money from the neighbors until they managed to get the full amount. When the man left, the woman noticed her husband was crying. "Why are you sad? Now that we've got ourselves in debt with our neighbors, are you afraid we won't be able to repay them?" she asked gently.
"Nothing of the sort," he said, "I'm crying because he is someone I like so much, but even so I had no idea he was in need. I only remembered him when he had to knock on my door to ask me for a loan."
Showing posts with label Legend. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Legend. Show all posts
Friday, February 27, 2009
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Legends of the Desert
In the recent issue of Ode magazine, Paulo Coelho shares three tales about "generosity of spirit" that Yasser Hareb, Vice-President for Culture of the Untied Arab Emirates, told him. Here is one of those stories:
Two men were crossing the desert when they saw a Bedouin's tent and asked for shelter. Even though he did not know them, the Bedouin welcomed them in the way that the conduct of nomads dictates: a camel was killed and its meat served at a sumptuous dinner.
The next day, as the guests were still there, the Bedouin had another camel killed. Astonished, they protested they had not yet finished eating the one killed the day before. "It would be a disgrace to serve old meat to my guests" was the answer.
On the third day, the two strangers woke early and decided to continue on their journey. As the Bedouin was not at home, they gave his wife 100 dinars, apologizing for not being able to wait; if they spent any more time there, they explained, the sun would become too strong for them to travel.
They had traveled for four hours when they heard a voice calling to them. They looked back and saw the Bedouin following along behind. As soon as he caught up, he threw the money to the ground before them. "I gave you such a warm welcome. Aren't you ashamed of yourselves?"
In surprise, the strangers said the camels were surely worth far more, but the travelers did not have much money.
"I am not talking about the amount," said their host. "The desert welcomes Bedouins wherever they go, and never asks anything in return. If we had to pay, how could we live? Welcoming you to my tent is like paying back a fraction of what life has given us."
Two men were crossing the desert when they saw a Bedouin's tent and asked for shelter. Even though he did not know them, the Bedouin welcomed them in the way that the conduct of nomads dictates: a camel was killed and its meat served at a sumptuous dinner.
The next day, as the guests were still there, the Bedouin had another camel killed. Astonished, they protested they had not yet finished eating the one killed the day before. "It would be a disgrace to serve old meat to my guests" was the answer.
On the third day, the two strangers woke early and decided to continue on their journey. As the Bedouin was not at home, they gave his wife 100 dinars, apologizing for not being able to wait; if they spent any more time there, they explained, the sun would become too strong for them to travel.
They had traveled for four hours when they heard a voice calling to them. They looked back and saw the Bedouin following along behind. As soon as he caught up, he threw the money to the ground before them. "I gave you such a warm welcome. Aren't you ashamed of yourselves?"
In surprise, the strangers said the camels were surely worth far more, but the travelers did not have much money.
"I am not talking about the amount," said their host. "The desert welcomes Bedouins wherever they go, and never asks anything in return. If we had to pay, how could we live? Welcoming you to my tent is like paying back a fraction of what life has given us."
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)