The Ox Who Envied the Pig
Jataka Tales · 1 min read
A hardworking ox, pulling heavy loads from dawn until dusk for his farmer, noticed a pig in a nearby pen who did nothing all day but eat rich scraps and sleep, growing fatter and more comfortable by the week.
"How unfair," the ox complained to a passing farmhand, "that I labor honestly every day and receive only plain grass, while that lazy pig does nothing at all and is fed like a king." The farmhand, who understood the true situation, only smiled sadly and said nothing.
Not long after, the pig was led away, and the ox learned from another farm animal that he had been fattened deliberately for a feast, not favored for his idleness at all. The ox realized with a shudder that his own honest labor, however unglamorous, had kept him alive and valued, while the pig's easy comfort had only ever been preparation for his end. He never envied idle comfort again, understanding at last that not every apparent reward is truly a gift.
Moral of the story
Not every easy comfort is truly a reward — honest labor is often the safer path, even when it looks less glamorous.