The Ass and his Shadow – ロバと彼の影
Once upon a time, there was a traveller who wanted to go from the village to the town. He hired an Ass from a merchant to carry his goods to the town. The merchant agreed to hire the donkey but he came along with the traveller as well.
There was a small desert between the town and the village. The road was very hot and the sun was harsh. The traveller became tired and he thought that it would be a good idea to stop soon.
Translate昔々、村から町へ行きたがっていた旅人がいました。彼は商品を町まで運べるように商人からロバを雇いました。商人はロバを雇うことに同意しましたが、彼は旅人を付き添いました。
町と村の間には小さな砂漠がありました。道はとても暑く、日差しが強力だった。旅人は疲れ、もうすぐ立ち止まるのがいいと考えました。
There were no trees visible for miles so they walked some more but soon they realised that they were only halfway through the desert and there would be no more trees along the way.
The traveller became so tired that he decided that it would be good to take a break now. As there were no trees, there was no shadow. As there was no shadow, the traveller said, “I shall sit in the shadow of the Ass for some time. It is too hot and I need to rest.”
Translateどんなに長く歩いてもそこに木は現れず、彼らはもう少し歩きました。しかし、彼らはまだ砂漠の半分しか歩いてなく、この先にもう木はないだろうということに気がつきました。
旅人はとても疲れてしまい、今休憩するのが良いと決めました。そこに木はなく、影もありませんでした。影がなかったので、旅人はこう言いました「私はしばらくロバの影にでも座ろう。暑過ぎて私は休まなきゃいけない。」
The merchant was feeling very hot as well. He also wished to rest in the shade cast by the Ass. So he said to the traveller, “I have rented only the Ass to you. The shadow cast by the Ass was not paid for and belongs to me.”
Saying so, the merchant tried to push the traveller away. The traveller became very angry and soon the two of them began to fight.
Translate商人もとても暑く感じていました。彼もロバの日陰で休むことを望みました。そして彼は旅人に言いました「私はあなたにロバだけを貸した。ロバの日陰は支払われてないから私のものだ。」
そう言って、商人は旅人を押しのけようとしました。旅人はとても腹が立って、すぐに二人は喧嘩し始めました。
The donkey panicked on seeing the two people fight and ran away. The merchant lost his donkey and the traveller lost his goods. They both sadly walked back to the village.
Translate
ロバは喧嘩している二人を見て慌てしまい、逃げていきました。商人はロバを失い、旅人は商品を失ってしまいました。二人は悲しく村へ戻りました。
Moral: “In quarrelling about the shadow we often lose the substance.”
Translate道徳：「影について喧嘩すると実体を失うこともある。」
