Tarbiyyat Page 1

One day a fox said to a crab, “Crawling thing, have you ever run in all your life?”

“Yes,” said the crab, “I run very often from the mud to the grass and back to the river.”

“Oh, shame,” said the fox, “that is no distance to run. How many feet and legs have you? I have only four. Why, if I had as many feet as you have, I would run at least six times as fast as you do. Did you know that you are really a very slow creature? Though I have only four feet I run ten times as far as you do. I never heard of any one with so many feet as you have, running so slowly.”

The crab said, “Would you like to run a race with a slow creature like me? I will try to run as fast as you. I know I am small, so I think we should go to the scales and see how much heavier you are. As you are ten times larger than I, of course you will have to run ten times faster. Another reason why you can run so fast is because you have such a fne tail and hold it so high. If you would allow me to put it down, I do not think you could run any faster than I.”

“Oh, very well,” said the fox, “do as you like, and still the race will be so easy for me that I will not even need to try. Your many legs and your lack of intelligence do not go very well together! Now, if I had my sense and all of your legs, no creature in the forest could outrun me. As it is, there are none that can outwit me. I am known as the sharp-witted. Even man says, ‘Qui-kwat-wui-lai’ (sly as a fox). So do what you will, unwise one.”