Spanish short stories – Learning Spanish through English
Akbar and Birbal – El Perro y las pieles de cuero
Once upon a time, there was a farmer who wanted to water his crops. Since the river was far away, he wanted to buy a well. There was a rich man who owned a well.
TranslateHabía una vez un granjero que quería regar sus cultivos. Como el río estaba muy lejos, quiso comprar un pozo. Había también un hombre rico que poseía un pozo.
The farmer purchased the well from the rich man for a price of 5 silver coins. The rich man was very cunning and wanted to cheat the farmer. He wanted to earn more money.
TranslateEl granjero le compró el pozo al hombre rico por el precio de 5 monedas de plata. El hombre rico era muy astuto y quiso engañar al granjero. Quería ganar más dinero.
The next day, the farmer went to the well with a bucket to draw water from the well. The rich man was standing outside the well and was smiling broadly.
TranslateAl día siguiente, el granjero fue al pozo con un balde para sacar agua. El hombre rico estaba parado junto al pozo y sonreía ampliamente.
The rich man said, “I have sold you only the well and not the water. If you want to take water from the well, you must pay me one silver coin every week.”
TranslateEl hombre rico le dijo: “Te he vendido el pozo, mas no el agua. Si quieres sacar agua del pozo, debes pagarme una moneda de plata cada semana.”.
The poor man tried to argue but the rich man refused to listen. The rich man had many servants and the poor man could not fight the rich man for the water.
TranslateEl hombre pobre trató de quejarse, pero el hombre rico se negó a escucharlo. El hombre rico tenía muchos sirvientes, y el pobre no podía pelear con el rico por el agua.
Not knowing what to do, the poor man began to cry. His neighbour saw him and said, “My dear friend, go to King Akbar and ask for justice. King Akbar is a great king and he shall help you.”
TranslateSin saber qué hacer, el hombre pobre se echó a llorar. Su vecino lo vio y le dijo: “Mi querido amigo, ve a donde el rey Akbar y pide justicia. El rey Akbar es un gran Rey, él te ayudará.”.
The poor man went to the king and complained about the rich man. Akbar listened patiently and looked at his minister Birbal.
Birbal said, “My Lord, I shall take care of this. I shall go and pay a visit to this man.”
TranslateEl hombre pobre fue hasta el Rey y se quejó del rico. Akbar escuchó pacientemente y miró a su ministro Birbal.
Birbal dijo: “Mi Señor, me ocuparé de esto. Le haré una visita a ese hombre.”.
Birbal was a very famous minster who was known for his intelligence and wit. He went with the farmer to the rich man’s house.
The rich man laughed and explained to Birbal, “Dear Birbal. I have only sold the well and not the water. If I sell a pot, should I also give away whatever is inside? That is not fair”
TranslateBirbal era un famoso ministro, era conocido por su inteligencia y astucia. Fue con el granjero a la casa del hombre rico.
El hombre rico se rió y le explicó a Birbal: “Querido Birbal. Solo he vendido el pozo, mas no el agua. Si vendo una olla, ¿debería regalar lo que hay dentro? Eso no es justo.”.
Birbal said, “You are absolutely right. Does the water belong to you?”
The rich man said, “Of course it does.”
TranslateBirbal le dijo: “Tienes toda la razón. ¿El agua te pertenece?”.
El hombre rico respondió: “Por supuesto que sí”.
Birbal said, “Then your water is occupying the well belonging to the farmer. You must pay him 2 silver coins weekly as rent.”
TranslateBirbal dijo: “En ese caso, tu agua está ocupando el pozo que le pertenece al agricultor. Debes pagarle 2 monedas de plata a la semana como alquiler.”.
The rich man realized that he could not cheat the farmer anymore. He apologized to the farmer and to Birbal. He also paid the farmer 1 silver coin as a penalty.
TranslateEl hombre rico se dio cuenta de que no podía engañar más al granjero. Se disculpó con él y con Birbal. También le pagó al granjero 1 moneda de plata como penalización.
Moral: “Ability proves itself by deeds.”
TranslateMoraleja: “La habilidad se prueba a sí misma con hechos.”
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About: Studying through Dual Language immersion is among the best techniques for learning a new language. The objective of this website is to teach yourself how to read and speak Spanish confidently using English as a base 🙂
These Spanish short stories are super cool to read for beginners and also for entertaining children. Akbar and Birbal are among the most famous Indian stories for children that can be studied on a daily basis.
